One of the advantages of the digital age is the ability of newspaper readers to interact with the medium and the journalist by way of moderated comments. I do this a lot. But the other day, a comment was mysteriously rejected – I say mysteriously because I just can’t understand why. Here it is – followed by a selection of my comments at random, that were accepted … like a stream of consciousness, perhaps. (Please forgive this self serving post…)
REJECTED
Just as social media provides the vehicle for the dissemination of vitriol, falsehoods that favour the ‘party’ line, so does mainstream media, now that it has self-castrated and is the eunuch in the harem of the left. This is the symbiosis from hell: the de facto partnership of left-leaning (or the diluted right version) governments, with the massive, intrusive, ubiquitous powers of Big Tech plus most legacy media and many institutions. But wait, there is more: the bonus knife set of woke corporates, enslaving themselves to identity politics and woke activism. This is the Leninism that leads to socialism – a system that has never been a benign form of government. It needs to be enforced to exist. Look around the world – where is it voluntary?
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Story: NY Times Twitter warriors call shots over editors
ACCEPTED
Telephone companies have no control over and no legal liability for content carried on their services. That’s a platform. The Twitter/facebook type online services interfere with content carried on their services. That’s a publisher.
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Story: No dry ink on bargaining code deals yet
The ‘blame game’ ascribed to those outside Victoria is motivated not by malice but by empathy and concern for the welfare of its people, such as your own family, Mr Ferguson. The so far largely unquantified social damage of lockdowns and border closures – mental health, emotional trauma – is, I think, instinctively understood by most Australians. Yes, of course, there is plenty of blame directed at the Victorian government, because the entire country is affected by the virus and has managed it much better by comparison in terms of overall suffering. You might also just have a word with your Premier about hubris … deflecting and haranguing his way out of accountability. It tends to provoke the ‘blame’ reflex.
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Story: Lay off Victoria, it’s still bleeding
If Media Watch were really a media watch program, it would have been highly critical of a media that accepted climate alarmist propaganda as science, never questioning the perpetrators of it. Good professional journalism is as much about being sceptical of press releases as it is about finding the facts and ‘speaking truth to power’. Media Watch is complicit in the demise of that sort of journalism, joining the propaganda unit instead … the one at the ABC which has prostituted its intelligence to its ideology.
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Story: A fool’s game in climate change reporting
In Geneva on Tuesday, the misnamed UN Human Rights Council regrettably voted 53-27 to support China’s crackdown. We can take that as a guide to how the UN HRC will vote when China does whatever it wants in Taiwan – and elsewhere. The free world must establish a global organisation with the values we all live by that provides an antidote to the compromised and often corrupt UN. The UN must not be permitted to aid the destruction of democracy anywhere in the world.
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Story: China scores crushing ‘one country, one system’ blow
Geologist and author Ian Plimer plunges the dagger of logic into the heart of the matter: “Annual human emissions (3% of the total) of carbon dioxide are meant to drive global warming. This has never been shown. If it could be shown, then it would also have to be shown that natural emissions (97%) don’t drive global warming.” So it is clearly not science that underpins climate alarmism; it’s ignorance. That ignorance is used to whip up fear so as to manipulate a political agenda that aims to undermine capitalism … just like the political framework of the Black Lives Matter activists. Let not all of us be useful idiots.
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Story: Nothing to fear but climate fearmongers
It would be tragic to demolish anything built by slaves, a dishonour to their back breaking, heart breaking work. Surely the Pyramids, say, are a monument to them, the wretched and poor people, not to slavery itself.
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Story: Hating history a monumental mistake
Han Yang says “Australia is not entirely without blame for the relationship slump.” That is an assertion without evidence. The evidence shows otherwise. Official Australian behaviour has been entirely consistent with civilised and democratic statecraft. China’s has not.
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Story: Wolf-warrior rhetoric springs from increasingly ambitious China
Political correctness as in identity politics, is the assassin of the Aussie larrikin with whom is buried the swag of values for which so many Aussies yearn still.
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Story: Let’s have the ‘values’ argument
Given how difficult and expensive it is to get in front of the High Court with a criminal appeal, it can be assumed that there are other appeals that have endured a similar fate in Victoria’s Appeals Court, throwing into sharp relief the need for a Criminal Cases Review Commission that would open an avenue for further appeals before attempting to engage the High Court.
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Story: Getting criminal appeals right
Communist dictatorships are not legitimate governments and weaker than we think. The Soviet communist system collapsed rapidly once fractured and external condemnation matched internal resistance. The Chinese leadership fears individuals like Dong because they are like a match at the fuse of the freedom bonfire. Hence the brutal response to her and any dissident. The West must keep up the pressure and the public condemnation of the regime to give moral support the Chinese people. Their Big Brother is really Bad Brother.
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Story: Living with China’s ‘white terror’
Sydney BLM protest organiser Paddy Gibson, is an activist from the Marxist Solidarity movement who’s tweeted that police are pigs and his “whole life is dedicated to campaigning against Australian values’’ which he defines as “genocide, apartheid, imperialism (and) white supremacy’’. Well, I’d say he must have already achieved all those things ’cause they don’t exist.
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Story: ‘Useful fools’ spread radical views
“Some time ago I became aware that I no longer trusted (The New York Times) even on issues that I didn’t know about. Because on every issue I did know about, I discovered that the paper was spreading untruths and lies.” That was Douglas Murray, writing in Spectator UK, last month, on what he called the pointlessness of The NY Times. Of course it is equally true of most of our own media, The Australian being a notable exception and this column a pertinent condemnation of such unprofessional and dishonest journalism.
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Story: Al Jazeera’s stitch-up echoes ABC
“the ABC conforms to its charter” ..I read that as ‘the ABC conforms to its culture’…
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Story: The ABC doesn’t need redemption
It’s difficult to recognise Donald Trump in the way he is being portrayed by the Dems, Obama included. The shrill overreach and mischaracterisations, the straw man insults and the sheer absurdities are not just off target, they sound like hysteria. Almost every criticism of Trump, eg divisiveness, is more apt as labels of the left, eg people who’ve attacked or urged attacks on Trump supporters, or staged fake attacks … etc.
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Story: Gloves off: Barack goes for the throat
They spied on Trump’s campaign, like he had claimed. They accused him of colluding with Russia, but he denied it and he was vindicated. They impeached him for abuse of power in his phone call with Ukraine’s President, but the Senate cleared him. Now he claims they have cheated in the election. Can you blame him? By their actions ye shall know them.
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Story: Early voting warps result
Excellent historical perspective from Mr Loosley. Of course there is some context not covered, namely the fervent attempts to oust Donald Trump from the start, in a ‘whatever it takes’ campaign that included much dishonesty. Which is good reason to doubt that “this US presidential election was free and fair, with little disruption and few irregularities.” Copious irregularities have been brought to light and as Mr Loosley says, Presidential elections have been subject to ‘irregularities’ throughout history. I would be keen to hear Mr Loosley’s theory as to why the Republicans made such impressive gains down the ballot (and shrinking the Democrats’ House majority), yet voted a Democrat for President.
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Story: Poor losers, dodgy votes — it was ever thus with US elections
Constitutional law professor Cheryl Saunders has said once the crisis eases, a proper look at emergency procedures was needed to ensure governments could respond swiftly while ensuring appropriate checks and balances were in place. It’ll be too late then. The breaches are damaging people and democracy right now. The sense of urgency needs to be asserted.
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Story: Kirby caveat on use of emergency powers
Premiers and the courts can do whatever they like; there is no mechanism to interfere with or force change on their decisions. Oversight of the legal system is protected by the separation of powers. It’s self reviewing. The premiers can conjure up excuses ….. The premiers and the courts are also free from wearing the consequences of their decisions. Citizens are free to complain (carefully). Lucky country, eh?
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Story: Where the bloody hell is the court decision?
Yes, of course, “voters expect their leaders to keep them safe,” but it is not a binary choice between closed border-curfew-lockdown-handcuff policies or nothing. Victoria and Queensland Premiers have been criticised for the same thing: riding roughshod over personal freedoms in an insensitive manner and justifying it all as “keeping you safe”. They could have kept the vulnerable safe without blanket repressions that keep everyone suffering collateral damage. That’s why we are shrill.
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Story: We’re managing well, so stop the shrieking
Showing itself to be thin skinned in 14 points, the CCP reveals it feels vulnerable and concerned at any criticism – whether because the criticism hurts its communist feelings or it shows how incapable it is defending itself against valid censure. So it resorts to threats, bluff and huff – and trade-based bullying. What’s to respect?
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Story: A little trouble with big China
Have the angry little Penguins put forward any arguments to support their demand for banning Jordan Petersen’s book? What has he written that must not be read?
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Story: Peterson inflames the Assemblies of Wokeness