Comments

It seems to me that Julia Gillard has been punished for doing a good job as PM in a difficult situation. I don't know where the heads of her colleagues were tonight when they voted against her . I guess they'll wake up one day, probably fairly soon and realise what fools they are.

To me, Rudd looked like a man unable to cope with being replaced by a woman, being manipulated by the male dominated mass media for their own ends.

I look forward to following your progress on this much-needed public service.
From what you have written I gather that you would allow any candidate to participate, but that you are aiming mostly to publicise alternative candidates in an effort to give them more traction in the slippery slope created by the major parties?

Sheila N

Subject was: Ed Im sorry to say. It makes.

Ed, I'm sorry to say. It makes no difference who is in government. They are all in this pantomime together. It has been designed to seem as if the different parties are against each other. Where in reality they are all one. It keeps the Sheeple compliant and full of hope that the next puppet will be better. But they never are. Why don't people or sheeple realise this by now?

I would not have published this if I did not have the same kind of problem. Letters jump all over the place. It makes it r impossible to reliably use these machines for which line one has paid hundred of dollars and in some cases thousands. Note how the 'r' and 'line' inserted themselves in the above sentence. How can ASUS sell this RUBBISH? I don't understand why there is not more about this on the internet unless somehow ASUS is managing to block discussions. It is mysterious and awful.

In a rare instance in the which some of the truth about the Syrian conflict is revealed to its listeners, at 9.30 pm on 15 June, ABC News Radio reported that members of the Australian Syrian community had protested in Sydney against the plans by the United States to directly intervene in the terrorist war against Syria. The Syrian protestors also repudiated US Secretary of State John Kerry's lie that the government of Bashar al-Assad had used Chemical weapons against the people of Syria, thereby crossing a "red-line" which Kerry says would justify greater US intervention in Syria.

Ironically, while our State and National economies are sinking in debt, Japan's is growing despite their "ageing population".

Data showed the world's third-biggest economy grew 1.0 per cent in the first quarter, revised up slightly from a preliminary estimate, underscoring a steady recovery driven by a pickup in global growth and sweeping stimulus policies by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

The Age: Japan's economy grows, and surplus doubles

Exports are gradually recovering as overseas growth picks up, so that's a positive sign. But the growth in exports isn't strong enough to offset the rising import costs. However, their economy is actually producing goods to export, while Australia's economy is largely supported by housing and property developments - with opportunities for economic surplus anchored down by population growth.

Those who demand economic growth through population growth are ignoring the ongoing and long-term costs of population growth. Australia's manufacturing is going downhill, and high skilled education and knowledge investment is being starved by lack of funding - and thus universities are relying more on educating international students. It's counter-productive as this means educating our own population has the heavy burden of relying on temporary and permanent immigration!

Athletes lose their winning edge once they become obese and lose their slimline bodies and muscle elasticity. The wealthier nations now, per capita, are those of northern Europe that invest in high skills and exports of their knowledge - like Scandinavia and Germany. The slim and future-ready nations will survive future challenges such as food shortages, scarcities of natural resources due to their investments in knowledge and skills and not the "fat" of bulging populations.

Australia's economy is gorging on population growth, and drowning in debt. The threat of an "ageing population" is cashing on our natural fear of aging, but it should be celebrated for good health, prosperity, ability to provide social and family support, and the wisdom and stability that comes with age.

Sensibly, Japan has not resorted to mass immigration and are heading towards a sustainable and smaller population. Big is not always better and there are benefits of aging that should be celebrated!

Coles corporate affairs Anna Kelly said Coles welcomed the large number of community members supporting its push for improved animal welfare standards. Animals Australia will withdraw its limited range of Make it Possible shopping bags from sale. "Coles was concerned that the good work with our farmer suppliers in the pork and chicken industries would be over shadowed by farmer reaction to the Animals Australia campaign on live cattle exports and has therefore agreed with the offer to withdraw its shopping bags," Ms Kelly said. The Weekly Times: Animals Australia recalls bag Coles is admitting there is no middle ground between meeting Animals Australia's standards of humane chicken, eggs and pork supplies. The system is entrenched in animal cruelty, due to factory farming. Coles obviously supports the obscenity of live exports, and having animals dragged, stabbed and tortured in overseas abattoirs. Farmers should work with Animals Australia. They are not an abolitionist group trying to destroy farmers and the meat industry. Animals Australia are trying to make the public aware of animal cruelty more and more inherent in farming. The "good work" done by farmers in producing meat from pigs confined in sheds for their whole short lives, and being mutilated in the process, is "good" for Coles too! It's business as usual, and they are shunning any free-range systems that would require the public to pay the real costs of producing humane meat and eggs, as was in the traditional methods of farming. The organisations should work together to gain the confidence of the public. This furore makes the Farmers Federation sound as if they actually endorse animal cruelty! "Making it happen" is increasingly difficult as farmers' livelihoods depend on mass production. With land prices soaring, and our cities swelling is size, the days of traditional farming are diminishing as demands for livestock products outpace animal welfare standards.

A friend has reported to me that she saw a large crowd in Melbourne's Swanston Street near the town hall on Sunday afternoon about 3.00pm . She said about 400 people people were protesting against the Turkish government and in sympathy with the protesters in Istanbul defending Taksim Square. This was the focus but from talking to those taking part who said they were mainly from the Turkish community she tells me that it was a moderate well behaved protest about democracy in Turkey. My friend had no knowledge of the rally before coming across the protesters. She saw no media cameras and there have been no reports in the mainstream TV news.

On 31 May it was reported, in the Sydney Morning Herald article Assange slams Carr as a 'well-known liar', that, from the Ecuadorean Embassy in London in which he has has gained refuge, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has called Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr a "well-known liar" whose "ignorance is only eclipsed by his arrogance".

Assange's remarks were in response to Bob Carr's previous assertion that he was fantasizing to think that the US intended to extradite him from Sweden to face conspiracy charges over information provided to Wikileaks by Bradley Manning.

Julian Assange said that he had never claimed there was a CIA conspiracy, but said the US Justice Department was still engaged in a live criminal investigation into WikiLeaks "of unprecedented scale and nature". He added that "Bob Carr is a well-known liar in Australian politics. The man's ignorance is only eclipsed by his arrogance."

Assange accused Bob Carr of being a "US embassy informer" in his own right as a union official during the 1970s, according to diplomatic cables obtained and published by WikiLeaks. This is further confirmed by the Melbourne Age article Bob Carr: Washington's man in Australia of 8 April 2013 and the included article Is Bob Carr a spy? republished from the Independent Australian of 11 April 2013.

When Ford employees lose their jobs in 2016, Julia Gillard is offering a package of $15.1m to help them find new positions. Ironically, funding to universities has been slashed by nearly $3 b, yet Ford has been subsidized by over $1 b over the years to keep the industry in operation. Obviously manufacturing skills are more highly valued that knowledge and academia. This is despite free trade with foreign countries with much lower wages and conditions demolishing our manufacturing industries. With 1,500 new people entering Victoria each week, the problem of our unemployment will be exacerbated by competition with "skilled" workers. A new suburb was announced recently by planning Minister Matthew Guy, offering more jobs for developers. An incentive to create jobs in Victoria would be very welcome, but the competition with temporary and permanent migrants will mean more people will need employment at a time of cutbacks and company closures.

Yarra Council wants to be the David that stops the $8 billion East West Link Goliath. Mayor Jackie Fristacky pledged to go "all the way'' to stop the "lunacy'' of a tolled tunnel from the Eastern Freeway to the Tullamarine Freeway. With the powers of both the growth and road lobby groups behind the East-West link plans, even Council will have trouble turning away the destructive momentum of Goliath. It deflies logic to lose our heritage open space parklands, wetlands at Royal Park, and increase noise and pollution in our city, when there are alternatives already available. The East-West Link is planned to run from the end of the eastern freeway at Clifton Hill through to the Western Ring Road. With ongoing population growth and property develpers being a major lobby group in Victoria, any plans to ease up congestion will eventually be overwhelmed by more traffic. No problem in a system can be solved if the system is continually under pressure to grow. The energy and resources needed for growth compromises any "solutions" to coping with growth, and the quality of the system. The public are demanding public transport, especially with the decline in Australia's liquid fuels and increases in petrol prices. Any solution to road congestion will be clogged up by more cars eventually. The success of this East-West link, despite public protests and logic, mean the North East missing-link is a real and threatening possibility. Tony Abbott has made it perfectly clear a Coalition government won’t provide funding for any urban rail projects in Australia, including the Metro. The North East Link is a proposed new connection between the M80 Ring Road at Greensborough and the Eastern Freeway. It is considered to be an important future link for freight movement, both within and through Melbourne, and for access to employment. It's planned to cut through important heritage parklands, conservation areas, wetlands, and recreational/biodiversity links in the Banyule area. It will link major industrial areas and intermodal terminals, including the Port of Hastings - for all the imported goods we must continue to consume. The proposed new link will is also important to cater for Melbourne’s future population growth planned to be foisted onto us. Friends of Banyule are a not-for-profit organisation that works to protect and enhance the environmental values of Banyule. Their mission is to stop the NE Link through parklands in Banyule by lobbying local, state and federal government for cheaper, sustainable transport solutions. They are part of a coalition of community groups. There's a long dark shadow over the parklands and integrity of Banyule, with these undemocratic forces blundering and bullying through any efforts to stop the road/freeway/spending madness on road transport, and the addiction to growth. With petrol prices predicted by the CSIRO to be up to $8 a litre, it's only this cost that will eventually grind the growth-model to a halt.

Within weeks, our government could allow developers to start tearing enormous holes in the seabed inside the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area - a practice known as dredging - near the Whitsunday Islands. Some 3 million cubic metres of sediment (enough to fill 1,200 Olympic-sized swimming pools!) would be ripped from the ocean bed, destroying the homes and food sources of turtles, dugongs and rare snubfin dolphins. Similar actions at Gladstone have been blamed for crippling the fishing industry. Now mining companies want do it all again at Abbot Point -- but they won’t get away with it if we act now. Federal Environment Minister Tony Burke has the power to stop this. So we’ve launched an emergency petition to demonstrate massive community opposition to this dreadful plan. Sign on today and we’ll hand deliver the petition to Burke in front of journalists during the UN World Heritage Committee meeting in June. TAKE ACTION Environment Minister Tony Burke (yes, it's hard to believe that we actually have one) is still feeling the heat after the UN World Heritage Committee put his department on notice for failing to protect the Reef. The Committee is holding its annual meeting in June, where they’ll give an update on its verdict to save the Reef. He’ll already be nervous about approving another project that would cause more damage, so he’ll be much more receptive to our calls. It would be derelict of duty to allow big mining businesses to destroy a world heritage area. But, money and profits are the only values that matter when governments end up hijacked by their interests and powers.

Reyhanli-Gate: The Cover Up & Changing Story on the Turkey-Syria Border Town Bombing

Wednesday, 29. May 2013

Did the Rift between the Turkey’s AKP Government & Imam Fethullah Gülen’s Cult Lead to the Death of 52 Turkish Citizens?

By Peter Edel

Reyhanli, a town in the Turkish province of Hatay near the Syrian border, was hit last month by a double bomb attack – 52 dead victims, a sad record. Seventeen Turkish Marxists were arrested. Allegedly they committed the crime on command of the Mukhabarat, the secret police of the Syrian dictator₆ Bashar al-Assad.

The criticism of the Turkish government regarding its policy on Syria became almost omnipresent in Turkey after the assault on Reyhanli. In the town itself a massive demonstration against the government resulted in a confrontation with the riot police. Ironically the large majority in Hatay voted for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).

Many in Turkey hold to the opinion that the spilling of violence from Syria into Turkey follows from the decision of the government to grant the Syrian rebels active support. The critics have a point, for the fact that previous wars in neighboring countries did not cause Turkey much harm had everything to do with a passive government policy.

Empty hands

The Syrian regime strived to increase the pressure on the Turkish government and therefore ordered some sympathizing Marxists in Turkey to hit Reyhanli with two car bombs. At least, that’s the way Ankara makes it appear. It defies logic.

PM Erdogan, who is regularly begging Washington for an American war in Syria, was given a new argument with the tragedy in Reyhanli. Erdogan could use news like this after UN-investigator Carla del Ponte failed to find any evidence of the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government.

Shortly before his visit to the US, Erdogan appeared to be empty handed, and It was only because of the double blast in Reyhanli that Erdogan could put something on the table in Washington. It’s not very credible that Assad did not take this scenario into consideration beforehand. OK, it was not very likely that Erdogan could persuade Obama to begin an open war in Syria anyway, but the possibility that Obama would compensate with more military support for the Syrian rebels could not be completely ruled out. Hardly imaginable that Assad was eager to achieve that.

Ediboglu

Mehmet Ediboglu of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), the leading opposition party in the Turkish parliament, claims that the arrested Marxists are innocent of what happened in Reyhanli. Reports suggesting they have confessed apparently do not make much of an impression on Ediboglu. This is understandable- confessions are not very relevant in Turkey considering Turkey’s reputation when it comes to ‘special interrogation techniques’.

According to Ediboglu the assault on Reyhanli was done by Jahbat al-Nusra, a Syrian rebel group allied to al-Qaeda, with ambitions to establish a Sunni regime in Syria. So, exactly what is the neo-Ottoman AKP-government in Turkey aiming for? This mutual objective coincides with numerous reports that al-Nusra receives weapons from Turkey.

Al-Nusra would prefer that Turkey deal with Assad once and for all. Erdogan would probably love to, but is reluctant as long as Obama is hesitant to throw the U.S. into a new war because of negative public opinion. Moreover, Erdogan and Obama are both scared of the efficient Syrian air defense system. Since Assad is making some progress in suppressing the rebellion against his regime, al-Nusra is running out of time.

Those are the circumstances under which the blasts in Reyhanli took place. It draws attention to certain developments; like Erdogan’s remark after Reyhanli that he won’t let himself be pushed into a war in Syria. In so far as he was referring to Assad this does not make any sense. For what can Assad gain with a Turkish offensive against Syria? Al-Nusra on the other hand, could only gain from this. So, it was most likely a slip of the tongue by Erdogan.

Besides, the blast in Reyhanli very clearly carries the signature of Syrian terrorists. It’s bizarre that on one of the cars a person was tied with copper wire.

So far only four Syrian’s were identified among the victims. Remarkable, if one takes into consideration that the ratio between Turks and Syrians is about fifty-fifty in the multi ethnic town. Not to mention the fact that the police in Reyhanli failed to close off the area after the blasts- Making it easy for evidence to disappear, or…. to appear.

Redhack

The situation became downright embarrassing for the Turkish government when the computer hacker group Redhack (1) released documents on the Internet of the Jandarma (Turkish rural military police). The information proved that the Turkish authorities were fully informed that al-Qaeda/al-Nusra was planning an assault with car bombs in Turkey against Syria. The Turkish government could not deny the authenticity of the documents, but it stayed with its position that the Assad regime was responsible for Reyhanli. In the framework of crisis management the government simply stated that it was privy to information the security services had no access to! Subsequently a Jandarma officer, who supposedly leaked to Redhack, was arrested. Redhack denied it had been in contact with this officer and campaigned for his release.

MIT/Police

Before Redhack entered the narrative, the police and MIT (the national intelligence service of Turkey) were putting the blame on each other for what happened in Reyhanli. MIT said it informed the police three days before the attack. The police argued that they had been at the point of making arrests, but didn’t because MIT told them to wait. That something went totally wrong also came to light in the mysterious transfer of the police chief of Reyhanli a few days after the bombing. In a statement by PM Erdogan before his departure to the U.S. he mentioned a ‘communication problem’ between security services in Reyhanli and announced an investigation.

The fact that MIT-leader Hakan Fidan is Erdogan’s confidant and that followers of the U.S. residing imam Fethullah Gülen have much influence within the police force, are of course very special details in all of this. Especially, since the conflict (2) between Erdogan and Gülen has become more apparent lately – the almost undisguised attacks on each other by their mouthpieces in the media leave little doubt about that. Observers (3) in Turkey are quite sure that the ‘communication problem’ between MIT and the police could very well be seen as the next chapter in the rift between the PM and the preacher.

Gülen, who mostly keeps in line with Washington positions, is annoyed by Erdogan’s intention to visit Gaza and the West bank. Moreover, he has reservations about the talks between MIT and PKK-leader Abdullah Öcalan. At first Gülen endorsed this ‘peace process’, although it didn’t seem to be with full belief. He may have said so because Washington expected it from him. No doubt he’s wary about a decrease in his movement’s influence in the Kurdish part of Turkey, following a deal between Erdogan and the PKK. Remarks in the Gülen-media are quite indicative of this.

A Gülen-Party?

There are many issues between Erdogan and Gülen. Last week Erdogan’s former spokesperson Fehmi Koru was among the observers who asserted that the Gülen-movement is considering its own political party in Turkey, out of discontent with Erdogan’s AKP. Remarkable, if one takes into consideration the statements of Gülen that his movement is not of a political nature. On the other hand, political is exactly the word to describe the movement, as it has been that way since its early days. It goes without saying that such a party would be a heavy burden on Erdogan. It could easily make him lose half, or even more, of his votes.

Whether it will come to this is something for crystal gazers. What concerns us right now is whether the conflict between Gülen and Erdogan contributed to the reasons the bomb attack in Reyhanli was not prevented. In any case, after the bloody event it was time for deliberation on the highest level. The first rumor had it that Erdogan would go to Pennsylvania personally to meet Gülen during his stay in the U.S. But that was out of the question, if only because according to Turkish customs he would have put himself under Gülen as his guest.

So, Erdogan send his deputy PM Bülent Arinc instead. In his statement (4) concerning the meeting Arinc denied any conflict between the government and Gülen, merely adding that ‘he wants us to show sensitivity on regional as well as international issues.’ At around the same time Gülen’s loyal columnist Ekrem Dumanli (5) went in full denial mode of a conflict as well. All this is entirely insignificant, of course. But on neither side was there any sign of leaking to the media, and that’s an indication of a certain understanding. That’s why it’s my bet that we’re not going to hear much about the rift between Erdogan and Gülen for some time. However, it’s unlikely that the status quo will remain very long. The mutual lust for power of the PM and the preacher will most probably insure that they will find each other in each other’s way again soon.

# # # #

Peter Edel is an analyst and investigative journalist based in the Netherlands. He is a regular contributor to Boiling Frogs Post.

Notes

1. http://redhack.tumblr.com/post/51069851247/turkish-intelligence-services-was-aware-of-the-bombs

2. http://turkishinvitations.weebly.com/new-power-struggle-emerging-in-turkey.html

3. http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/towards-an-intelligence-state.aspx?pageID=449&nID=47632&NewsCatID=406

4. http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/islamic-scholar-gulen-asked-government-to-be-more-careful-deputy-pm-arinc-.aspx?PageID=238&NID=47443&NewsCatID=338

5. http://www.todayszaman.com/columnistDetail_getNewsById.action?newsId=316612#.UaMGXS_tE8I.twitter

6 ↑ Too many articles, which argue the case in support of Syria as this article rightly does, seem to also include an obligatory labelling of President Bashar al-Assad as a 'dictator' and 'corrupt'.

It appears to me that many Syrians who claim to oppose the Syrian Government because of its alleged corruption are acting for the enemies of Syria -- the United States government, and the Arab dictatorships and Israel and hence traitors, and hence, by definition, far more corrupt than anyone defending the Syrian Government could possibly be.

Whilst the Syrian government may not be without serious flaws, President Assad still strikes me as a man, who is far more courageous, kind and decent than any of the rulers or 'elected' national leaders opposed to him on the international stage, such as Australia's Foreign Minister Bob Carr. (Had Assad ruled Syria, as ineptly and unconscionably as Carr ruled the State of New South Wales as Premier from 1995 until 2005, his government would have long since been overthrown.)

I think the time has long since past when these labels should have been dropped and Assad and those around him be given credit for the courageous and inspired leadership they have shown against the terrorists and their masters. Also, I think it is time that those who wish to make the truth about Syria known, refrained from labelling the Syrian government the 'Syrian regime'.

As I understand it, the project will most likely be open cut bulldozing through the park. Virtually all playing fields and wetlands in West Parkville will be destroyed by the surface connections with CityLink. Furthermore the years of construction will render the area unusable during this time and leave a permanent scar. A park is never the same after it is bisected by a multi-lane road. Its integrity,amenity and ambiance will be utterly destroyed.

One of the world's leading naturalists, Sir David Attenborough, has cautioned Australia against pursuing further population growth, labelling an unlimited expansion a kind of madness. http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/environment/sir-david-warns-against-grow... Sir David Attenborough questioned why our country still debated whether it needed to grow its population. Actually, there is no debate. The mainstream parties have long been locked into the growth-formula for their economic model. It defies reason, logic and long-term strategies. Population growth is considered inevitable by governments that make these growth-decisions without democratic input. The evolution of our economic model has meant that the ideal of "growth is good" has continued long after its use-by-date. We live in a time of the challenge of feeding the planet's swelling numbers. It's assumed that innovation and technology will increase food production by 70% by 2050, as required by the UN. We have species extinctions, deforestation, environmental degradation, the decline of the oceans' food chains, and the inevitable consequences of conflicts as limited finite resources are more thinly spread, our politicians' desire for a bigger population is devoid of scope and a global view. Australia should set the pace on sustainability. It's encouraging that Sir David has not given up on us humans saving the planet. While much of the public will warm to him and share his views, no doubt his message will land on deaf ears for most of our leaders. Attenborough said ''The notion that you could continue to expand and increase and grow in an infinite way on a planet which is finite, is a kind of lunacy. You can see how mad that is by the expression that you can't believe that you can grow infinitely in a finite place - unless of course you're an economist." Economists deal with numbers that are infinite, and the constraints of the real world can be smoothed away through graphs showing growth without limits. “Anyone who believes in indefinite growth in anything physical, on a physically finite planet, is either mad or an economist.” Kenneth E. Boulding

The only evidence of the use of chemical weapons in Syria is of use by the terrorists fighting to overthrow the government of Bashar al-Assad as attested to by UN inspector Carla del Ponte.

Nonetheless, those seeking to manufacture an excuse, that could be used to gain public acceptance of an invasion of Syria by the United States and its allies, have claimed that they have evidence that the Syrian Government has used chemical weapons against its own people.

The claim that Assad would use chemical weapons against the very people who, by their support of his government, has enabled the Syrian Arab Army to hold out against the terrorist insurgency for over two years, is ludicrous in the extreme. Nonetheless, like the lies of Iraqi Weapons of Mass Destruction, the incubator babies, the Tonkin Gulf incident, this lie may yet make it possible for the United States to do wage war against the Syrian people on the same scale that it already has in Iraq and Libya.

The lies uttered by US Secretary of States John Kerry, as recorded on YouTube on 11 May 2013, is further evidence of his and his government's criminality :

The above speech should be contrasted with 27 year old Vietnam War veteran John Kerry's speech against the Vietnam War in 1971. (The speech commences 10 minutes and 20 seconds into a 42 minute and 30 second Democracy Now broadcast.)

HSI advise that you can send read and send a form letter (please feel free to add your own comments) prepared by HSI, or write directly using the following contact details:

Click here

The Honourable Campbell Newman MP, PO Box 15185, City East QLD 4002 - [email protected]

The Honourable Andrew Cripps MP, PO Box 15216, City East QLD 4002 - [email protected]

From PressTV, 23 May 2013

The daughter of Qatari ruler Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani has censured Doha’s support for the terrorists in Syria.

In a message she posted on Twitter, Sheikha Hind bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani stated that the backing of the terrorists was a ‘scandal in the history of Qatar.’

She also denounced the atrocities committed by the terrorists and said the armed groups had committed crimes against the Syrian people - an apparent reference to a gruesome video recently published on the Internet. (Film should only be viewed by minors in the presence of responsible adults.)

The video shows a cannibal terrorist in Syria cutting an organ of a Syrian soldier out of his chest and biting into it.

The Qatari princess also slammed the intervention of terrorists from Saudi Arabia in Syria and their ‘execution of Syrian citizens.’

Turmoil has gripped Syria since March 2011, and many people, including large numbers of Syrian security forces, have been killed in the unrest.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on May 18 that terrorist from 29 different countries were fighting against the government in different parts of the country.

In January, Prince Turki al-Faisal, former Saudi spy chief, called for sending heavy weaponry to the terrorists in Syria.

Editorial comment: I have replaced any occurrence of the word 'militant' with the word 'terrorist' in this article, which happens also to be consistent with the practice of the Syrian Arab News Agency. Many ostensibly progressive groups willingly use the term 'militant' in their own name because of its positive connotations in the English language. I consider that referring to the killers who are waging war against the Syrian people and their government as 'militants' is somewhat an error on the part of those who translate these reports into English.

See also: PressTV film of Syrian Army prisoners being shot in cold blood by their captors. (Film should only be viewed by minors in the presence of responsible adults.) It is followed by an interview with Franklin Lamb.

More than half of respondents to a Salvation Army survey are often going without meals, while two-thirds are having to cut down on buying basic necessities. Australia's status as a desirable "Lucky Country" of a few short decades ago has been eroded by economic growth! 2,700 people across more than 200 Salvation Army centres around the nation were surveyed. The findings also highlight the impact poverty is having on children, with many missing out on school activities, new uniforms and annual dental check-ups. 30 per cent of people surveyed could not afford to fill prescriptions after going to the doctor, and 60 per cent were unable to access dental treatment. While we spend billions of dollars asylum seekers, and our guilt is projected onto their displacement and plights from war and conflicts, many of our own children and most vulnerable are at risk from poverty. The Salvation Army estimates that one in six children in Australia now live at or below the poverty line. 92% have no savings. As our wealth pyramid progressively is shared between more and more people, those at the base are being more and more suppressed and living in deprivation. Ostensibly, our cities have more glass towers and our economy is "growing", its quality is disintegrating at it's base. Salvation Army survey finds many families going without basic necessities

Today (21 May 2013), Supreme Court proceedings were commenced to sue the Department of Environment and Primary Industries for years of failure to protect Victoria’s threatened wildlife. We are alleging in Court that the State Government has violated the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act by not preparing protection plans called Action Statements for four threatened species: the Glossy Black Cockatoo, the Long-nosed Potoroo, the Eastern She-oak Skink and the Large Brown Tree Frog. These four struggling heroes represent the other 370 listed species that also have no legal protection despite them being extremely rare. There’s is a big difference between being listed as threatened and actually being protected. We proved that the govt. logging agency had failed to survey for and protect endangered forest wildlife for decades, when we won the last Supreme Court case in 2010. But we learnt that VicForests can survey and identify rare animals, but still destroy them, their homes and food. Although they’re in deep trouble, the govt refuses to write up plans to protect all listed wildlife. We have amazing animals that exist nowhere else on earth, but laws to protect them are violated daily by the government. The way the state government is applying the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act is instead guaranteeing their extinction. Environment East Gippsland is being represented by the Environment Defenders Office. This case will cost us thousands of dollars and we are asking for any assistance you can offer. Tax deductible donations for 2012/13 can be made to EEG via GiveNow: Please share this - or send to others who are also fighting to save their local wildlife. This case could have very wide ramifications. Jill ------------- Jill Redwood Coordinator Environment East Gippsland Inc Locked Bag 3 ORBOST Vic 3888 (03) 5154 0145 www.eastgippsland.net.au EAST GIPPSLAND - our breathing space

The only place on Earth where orangutans, tigers, elephants and rhinos all roam together, 1.2 million hectares of Sumatran rainforest are under threat of being flattened for gold mines, oil palm plantations, logging and roads. Campaigners in Sumatra are working around the clock to use this momentum to convince Indonesia's President to keep Aceh's forests, wildlife and people safe. This is our only hope of protecting this last stronghold for some of the planet's most endangered species. Palm oil is one of the world's leading agricultural commodities. The two biggest producers, Malaysia and Indonesia, account for 84 percent of the world's palm oil production and ring up sales of US$11 billion annually. The world's appetite for energy seems insatiable, and palm oil may be the Next Big Thing in energy. As biofuels take center stage and governments mandate their use-ironically for the environmental benefits-additional forest destruction, and the attendant loss of wildlife and proliferation of smoke-filled skies, are likely to ensue. The biofuel boom is spurring companies to turn more and more of these vast areas into oil palm plantations. John Buchanan, senior director of business practices with the U.S.-based NGO Conservation International, says that palm oil's energy efficiency as a biofuel makes it very attractive to investors. The promise being made is that wood can produce fuels to run our cars. A few years ago we were told corn, rapeseed, sugar, oil palm, soy and various other crops could be grown for biofuels while providing energy security and reducing greenhouse emissions. The reality has been far different with globally surging food prices, loss of rainforests and other important habitats, further depletion and poisoning of aquifers, and rampant human rights abuses -- all for little or no greenhouse gas emission reduction. To grow enough corn to yield one gasoline-equivalent gallon of ethanol in the drought-stricken Midwest requires 2,700 gallons of water, while the refining process itself consumes between three and six gallons of water per gallon of ethanol. With almost 50 percent of corn production now going to ethanol, farmers and ranchers are paying more for feed which means higher prices for beef, milk, poultry and pork. As with agrofuels, a cellulosic ethanol industry will indirectly destroy forests and lead to more costly food by increasing land pressures upon natural forests and agricultural crop lands. We can expect more vast, lifeless, toxic and water dependent monocultures of genetically modified Frankentrees on stolen deforested lands at a net carbon loss. And the biofuels will be sold to us as a green product, perhaps certified as "well-managed" by WWF, FSC, and other forest sell-outs. Human population growth, species extinctions, the destruction of the planet is set to continue in the quest for economic growth and energy. Biomass, humanity's oldest fuel, makes up 76 per cent of renewable energy and 10 per cent of all energy. About 60 per cent of this is wood, twigs and dung, used by almost three billion people who lack modern fuels, resulting in terrible air pollution and millions of deaths. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/opinion/columnists/harvesting-forests-to... SOS: Momentum grows in the Save Aceh campaign This is not a "harvest" but a rape and pillaging of Nature's last strongholds - forests. Forests can't be seen for the trees if they are valued only as "fuel". Forests are multidimensional environmental systems that are fine-tuned over long periods to sustain biodiversity, food chains, climate and atmosphere control. Many of the world’s most threatened and endangered animals live in forests. Biomass as "CO2 neutral" assumes only one dimension of our existence on our planet - the consumption of energy at whatever costs, even robbing future generations of intact ecosystems. The planet is not just for one species, homo sapiens. We must work in harmony with the planet, not be the cause of an ecological disaster. It's short-sighted and anthropocentric to consider forests as a free energy resource.