it’s all lies to me

Teachers packing heat at school

Well, I can’t really complain about the story itself, except to say that I’m damned pleased that I’ve finished high school already, and did so in Australia, and also that there is no way – even before the guns – that anyone is going to learn productively in an environment like that. However, I’m not overly enamoured with their headline, are they trying to be funny? Making light of a terrible story of social disintegration. Are they trying to soften that blow and put a positive spin on it? Has the work experience kid taken over from the sub-editor? Is it to ensure it gets on the ‘most read’ list above other stories? (Such as blatant Israeli lies; about violations of those quaint old things called the Geneva Conventions). Anyway, poor kids, and poor quality sub editors…

Peace ships break through Israel’s blockade of Gaza
That is a bloody good story. Well written, truthful, and kinda nice. That one of the blokes was from Melbourne is no doubt why it was printed, but it also good to see Jeff Halper getting a shout out, being a damned fine journalist. It also refreshing to see Fatah’s coup attempt refered to as just that. Too often it is ‘factional fighting’ or ‘Palestinian in-fighting’ which fails to recognise the seriousness of the coup attempt (which was carried out with US arms – funny how weapons can make it through the blockade).

Move to block Hezbollah’s ‘terror TV’

Now, I rather like the separation of Church and State. I find it somewhat indispensable to democracy. However, others may not. Hizbollah and Hamas both make bloody good cases that in fact church and state can go together – because their primary goals are the freedom of their people from oppression, not imposing a ‘caliphate’. In the whole article by The Age, I see no actual evidence that al-Mansar is anti-semitic, except one allegation – by a member of a right-wing Zionist group. The article’s ‘evidence’ seems to be solely that Hizbollah is a terrorist group which opposes Israel, and so must be anti-Semitic – and this is never questioned. But is it true? When was the last time Hizbollah carried out offensive operations outside of Lebanon (baring the recent war)? Can’t answer? Because its over 15 years ago since their bombing of the Argentine Israeli embassy or what not. Since then, every Hizbollah action has been in accordance with international law, and their right to oppose illegal occupations of their land (by Israel). Their rockets which rained down on Northern Israeli cities were a war crime – targeting civilians – yet they pale in comparison to the destruction of the entire nation that Israel wrought on Lebanon. The kidnapping that sparked the affair? The Israel soldiers violated the border (thus their kidnapping was not a crime or terrorism). Hizbollah hates Israel not because it is Jewish, but because of two wars, countless bombings, routine border violations, thousands of Lebanese prisoners in Israeli jails, constant interference, and thousands of dead Lebanese because of Israeli aggression. That sounds a pretty good reason to oppose something to me – and the law agrees. Hizbollah is not a terrorist group, it is a Shiite resistance group that was formed in the early eighties because of Israeli aggression, it has not carried out terrorist operations in a long time, it is also now a legitimate political party, a provider of welfare, education and yes, television. It doesn’t have the ideals I’d like to see, but its not an anti-semitic devil – it even broadcasts in a Semitic language.

Israel shuts Gaza crossings after rocket attack

Israel has once more demonstrated the high regard they hold other humans, by stepping up the blockade on Gaza. The blockade includes the Egyptian and sea borders – thus proving the famed “pull out” involved no handing over of actual power. The reason for the re-blockaded borders, this attack, which by the Reuters / Israeli police description, probably landed in a field. The humanitarian situation in Gaza is dire, and starvation is rife, Free Gaza has more info on that, and Israel knows full well that the blockade will cost lives, but that’s a point. Israeli dirt is worth more than Palestinian lives.

Interestingly the article mentions a suicide attack some months ago as the “reason” for other closures – but fails to note that collective punishment is rather illegal, and was one of the major charges levelled at the Nazis. There is also no mention of the very recent upsurge in violence against Palestinians by settlers in the West Bank. (Perhaps because they’re attacks on actual people, unlike the heavily reported attack on Israeli dirt).

McCain questions Obama’s ability to be commander in chief

Is McCain really in a position to question Obama’s judgement? The article quotes McCain as saying: “And in matters of national security, good judgment will be at a premium in the term of the next president”. Quite apart from the fact that good judgement has rarely been displayed by presidents, is McCain really in a position to say what good judgement is? Given that McCain’s claims of torture during his internment in Viet Nam have never been proven – indeed several POWs from the camp where he claims he was tortured – The Plantation – state that it never happened, they were never tortured there, and it was a release camp. Further more, despite his claims of mistreatment, he recieved medical care from Soviet and Viet Namese doctors – that’s right, unlike any other POW McCain received medical treatment from qualified doctors. None of these annoying irregularities has stopped McCain from playing the “war hero” role, and stating time and time again he was tortured, and has foreign policy experience, et cetera. Quite how spending 5 years feeding military information to the Viet Namese while a POW counts as valuable foreign policy experience, I’m not sure. But that hardly matters, as a Cuban psychologist who spoke to McCain came to the conculsion McCain was a “psychopath”, yet it is he who question’s Obama’s judgement?

More on McCain here

Turkey says its planes hit PKK group in n.Iraq

Wonderful stuff that. There are a couple of problems here, beyond the formatting of the headline. In the article there is no mention that this is a blatant violation of sovreignty, merely that “Fighting has intensified in southeastern Turkey in recent weeks” – due to Turkish war planes attacking both military and civillian targets inside both Iraq and Turkey over the past months. Although Reuters only mention attacks by the PKK – carried out mainly by mines, and with military only casualties. Indeed the PKK are characterised as a “guerrilla group, hiding in a cave”. I guess its a plus they weren’t called terrorists, but given the Turkish government’s persecution of Kurds, targeting of civillians, violations of national and international law and so forth, the pro-Turkish, anti-Kurd stance of the article is a disgrace.