(29Jan06) It would be interesting to know what the Islamic Council of Victoria, Judge Michael Higgins and VCAT make of Abu Hamza al-Masri's defence, in light of the flakey prosecution of the two Dannys. Will Hamza's defence feature as part of the appeal??
“…Abu Hamza al-Masri, the hook-handed former imam of the notorious Finsbury Park mosque -- spiritual home to "shoe bomber" Richard Reid and "20th hijacker" Zacarias Moussaoui -- is on trial this month at the Old Bailey. Charges include nine counts of soliciting to murder, four counts of stirring up racial hatred, and two counts of possession of material related to the other charges, including the 10-volume Encyclopedia of the Afghani Jihad…” Preaching Hatred by Diana West in The Washington Times “… For the prosecution, David Perry says: "This is nothing more or less than preaching hatred and murder," which, he makes clear, has nothing to do with Islam.
For the defense , Edward Fitzgerald says: " It is said he was preaching murder. But he was actually preaching from the Koran itself." Well, which is it, gentlemen? He's preaching murder that has nothing to do with Islam; or he's preaching the Koran that has nothing to do with murder. For people trying to fend off jihad in their midst, the question becomes a distracting conundrum.
(29Jan06) “…The power structure of the American media is undergoing a convulsion that surpasses even the revolution wrought by the advent of television broadcasting sixty years ago. At first, television was politically neutral, and neither party took comparative advantage of it. When John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon held their famous televised debates, television came of age as a power-granter in the electoral sphere ..” The Antique Media from The American Thinker “…Television news in turn destroyed the afternoon newspaper industry. Nobody needed or wanted an after-work news update that had been edited and printed around noon at the latest, when television could provide a much fresher update free of charge….Young idealists pursued careers in journalism to “ make a difference ” instead of report the news …. The emergence of talk radio, cable television and especially the internet changed everything…”
Dutch Introduce Exams for Immigrants, Consider Army Drill for Youths
(29Jan06) “…This week the Dutch Parliament voted a bill which obliges immigrants to pass a compulsory exam. The Dutch Parliament is also in favour of a proposal to have troublesome youths disciplined and drilled by the army…. There are 40,000 jobless youths in the Netherlands , who have left school without degrees. The majority of them is of foreign origin. Many become involved in criminal activities. Dutch Introduce Exams for Immigrants, Consider Army Drill for Youths by Paul Belian in The Brussels Journal “A majority of Dutch parliamentarians, including members of the Socialist opposition, supports a plan to discipline them in military style…. The proposal was made this week by the former entrepreneur Hans de Boer , who was recently appointed by the government to head the Taskforce for Youth Unemployment…. De Boer wants the “prep camps” to be able to train 4,000 youths per year, so that they learn “to get out of their beds and clean their shoes.”
Time for St George to start slaying dragons again
(27Jan06)“…We used to treat political correctness, an extremist form of secular morality which emerged from the American civil rights movement of the 1960s, as a joke, and its activities often reflect humourless puritanism which is itself risible. But I no longer find the thing funny. PC rules have an increasing habit of getting themselves enshrined in statutes, and enforced with rigour on bewildered offenders.” Time for St George to start slaying dragons again by Paul Johnson, The Spectator, December 2005 “…I have the impression that most PC advocates and enforcers in this country are women in their thirties or forties, with some education of a red-brick or white-tile nature, no longer young enough to be much interested in sex but old enough to have acquired a certain modest authority in their work, which is overwhelmingly in the state sector…They are mainly bureaucrats, in the state-education system, both local and national, librarians, office-holders in the administrative side of the NHS, minor potentates in town halls and government agencies, law centres, environmental pressure groups, charities and other religion substitutes…In some ways it is a bigger threat to our wellbeing than its progenitor Marxism, because more ubiquitous and less visibly threatening. Its weapon is not tanks or the H-bomb but mind-decay…”
Indonesia's 1969 Takeover of West Papua Not by "Free Choice"
(19Jan06) “…Over six weeks from July to August 1969, U.N. officials conducted the so-called "Act of Free Choice." Under the articles of the New York Agreement (Article 18) all adult Papuans had the right to participate in an act of self-determination to be carried out in accordance with international practice. Instead, Indonesian authorities selected 1022 West Papuans to vote publicly and unanimously in favor of integration with Indonesia ….A consular trip to West Irian in early 1968 observed that "the Indonesian government directs its main efforts" in the territory to "maintaining existing political facilities and suppressing political dissent." Because of neglect, corruption and repression at the hands of Indonesian authorities, Western observers agreed almost unanimously that "Indonesia could not win an open election" and that the vast majority of West Irian's inhabitants favored independence… Indonesia's 1969 Takeover of West Papua Not by "Free Choice" The Indonesian government firmly rejected the possibility of a one-person, one-vote plebiscite in West Irian, insisting instead on a series of local 'consultations' with just over 1,000 hand selected tribal leaders (out of an estimated population of 800,000)… Ambassador Frank Galbraith noted on July 9, 1969 that past abuses had stimulated intense anti-Indonesian and pro-independence sentiment at all levels of Irian society, suggesting that "possibly 85 to 90%" of the population "are in sympathy with the Free Papua cause." Moreover, Galbraith observed, recent Indonesian military operations, which resulted in the deaths of hundreds, possibly thousands of civilians, "had stimulated fears and rumours of intended genocide among the Irianese."
(11Jan06) “..On Sept. 28, 2001, after the attacks on the United States, Osama bin Laden called for financial jihad against the United States, and on Dec. 27, 2001, he called on jihadists "to look for [and strike] the key pillars of the U.S. economy." Although now the Saudis claim bin Laden is their enemy, many of them continue to follow his agenda…..In an interview with Arab News in May 2002, the prince said that if the Arabs "unite through economic interests," they would achieve influence over the U.S. decision-makers…” Saudi Interest in America by Rachel Ehrenfeld, Washington Times “…Since government sources estimate Saudi holdings in the United States at $400 billion to $800 billion, the matter warrants public attention….substantial Saudi and Gulf financial contributions "to bring the proper message to America's brightest minds," are pouring into U.S. educational institutions through Arab and Islamic centers and professorial chairs. Last month the prince gave $20 million each to Georgetown and Harvard universities…”
Islamic intimidation dashed in Demark
(13Jan06) “…Islamic fundamentalists have an arrogance that matches their intolerance for Western values. How else can one explain their efforts to limit free expression in countries that have graciously allowed Muslim immigrants the freedom to follow even the most radical movements within their faith…” Islamic intimidation dashed in Demark in the Las Vegas Review Journal “..Last year, Jyllands-Posten , Denmark 's biggest daily newspaper, asked 40 artists to submit caricatures of the Islamic prophet Muhammad…. The newspaper wanted to find out whether the country's freedom of speech had been eroded by Islamic intimidation…. Because Islamic tradition prohibits any depiction of Muhammad -- even positive ones -- Muslims attacked the newspaper. They demanded an apology, then they demanded that the editors and artists be prosecuted..”
Saddam Hussein's Philanthropy of Terror
(11Jan06) “..Actually, Saddam Hussein knew plenty about terrorism. In essence, he owned and operated a full-service general store for global terrorists, complete with cash, diplomatic aid, safe haven, training, and even medical attention. Such assistance violated United Nations Security Council Resolution 687. The results not only broke international law, but also were deadly ….The public evidence of Saddam Hussein's cooperation with and support for global terrorists is abundant and clear. The Baathist government's contacts and collaboration with terrorists in general, al-Qaeda in particular, and even the September 11 conspirators should make all Americans highly grateful that President Bush led an international effort to remove Saddam Hussein from power.” Saddam Hussein's Philanthropy of Terror by Deroy Murdock “.. The federal trial judge was Harold Baer, Jr. a Clinton appointee. He took testimony from Clinton-designated CIA director James Woolsey and American Enterprise Institute scholar Laurie Mylroie, an adviser to the 1992 Clinton campaign. Baer learned about the Salman Pak camp, and considered other evidence of Saddam Hussein's ties to al-Qaeda. To be fair, Baer did not hear Hussein's side, as the Iraqi dictator did not respond to the suit. Nevertheless, Baer issued his decision….As the May 8, 2003 New York Post and other news outlets reported, Baer ruled that Saddam Hussein's government was complicit in the September 11 attacks and that the Baathist government owed the plaintiffs a judgment of $104 million…”
Are we deceived by multiculturalism?
(10Jan06) “…Many believe the recent attack on two surf lifesavers fuelled the violence. They had been assaulted, in what was believed to be an unprovoked attack, by a large group of men of Middle Eastern appearance. However, I believe the truth is much more profound and it strikes at the heart of multiculturalism..” Are we deceived by multiculturalism? by Danny Nalliah “As a dark-skinned immigrant, I have encountered large blocks of unassimilated Australians along with the continual use of the word “multicultural”. During my 31 years in Sri Lanka and two years in Saudi Arabia , multiculturalism was a word I never heard uttered…“Multiculturalism” is a tool that can be used to destabilise a nation. Australia welcomes people from all over the world. All who choose to come to Australia should be willing to become Australian. It is unfair that some immigrants would push towards Australia becoming like their country of origin. The government cannot and should not bend over backwards to trade the Aussie way of life for other ways…”
Pastor Danny Nalliah is one of the two Dannys involved in the VCAT racial villification case in Victoria.
(10Jan06) “…The Weekly Standard's Stephen Hayes has been trying for a significant amount of time to get released publicly the captured Iraqi documents (only 2.5 % of which have as yet been translated)… some are about to be released. And they should put an end to the preposterous claims that the Baathists would never work with the Jihadis”…... Saddam's Terrorist Ties from the American Thinker “Here is what the soon to be released documents reveal, Hayes says: The secret training took place primarily at three camps-in Samarra, Ramadi, and Salman Pak-and was directed by elite Iraqi military units. Interviews by U.S. government interrogators with Iraqi regime officials and military leaders corroborate the documentary evidence….Some 2,000 terrorists were trained at these Iraqi camps each year from 1999 to 2002, putting the total number at or above 8,000….Taken together, this collection could give U.S. intelligence officials and policymakers an inside look at the activities of the former Iraqi regime in the months and years before the Iraq war…”.
(7Jan06) “…The interior ministers of two German states have recently advanced important measures for containing radical Islam. They bear close attention across the West….In Baden-Wurtenberg, Heribert Rech of the ruling Christian Democratic Union party has overseen the administering of a 30-topic loyalty test for applicants to become naturalized citizens..” Two Germans vs. Islamism by Daniel Pipes “..Because survey research finds that 21% of Muslims living in Germany believe the German constitution irreconcilable with the Koran, the written yes-no questions of yesteryear are history for Muslim applicants for citizenship…The questions amount to a summary of Western values….Applicants who pass the test and are granted citizenship could later lose that citizenship if they act inconsistently with their "correct" answers…”
(5Jan06) As Norman Podhoretz said a generation ago, “A conservative is a liberal (lefty) mugged by reality…” Stabbed in the back.
(4Jan06) “Much of what we loosely call the Western world will not survive this century, and much of it will effectively disappear within our lifetimes, including many if not most Western European countries. There'll probably still be a geographical area on the map marked as Italy or the Netherlands -- probably --just as in Istanbul there's still a building called St. Sophia's Cathedral. But it's not a cathedral; it's merely a designation for a piece of real estate….The design flaw of the secular social-democratic state is that it requires a religious-society birthrate to sustain it.” It's the demography stupid by Mark Steyn “…There are many trouble spots around the world, but as a general rule, it's easy to make an educated guess at one of the participants: Muslims vs. Jews in " Palestine ," Muslims vs. Hindus in Kashmir, Muslims vs. Christians in Africa, Muslims vs. Buddhists in Thailand , Muslims vs. Russians in the Caucasus, Muslims vs. backpacking tourists in Bali . Like the environmentalists, these guys think globally but act locally…Yet while Islamism is the enemy, it's not what this thing's about. Radical Islam is an opportunistic infection, like AIDS: It's not the HIV that kills you, it's the pneumonia you get when your body's too weak to fight it off…That's what the war's about: our lack of civilizational confidence. As a famous Arnold Toynbee quote puts it: "Civilizations die from suicide, not murder"--as can be seen throughout much of "the Western world" right now. The progressive agenda--lavish social welfare, abortion, secularism, multiculturalism--is collectively the real suicide bomb…. Thats the wonderful thing about multiculturalism: You can choose which side of the war you want to fight on. When the draft card arrives, just tick "home team" or "enemy," according to taste.”
(4Jan06) I believe, there is a widely shared understanding that our culture—not just the political system of democracy but our entire western way of life—is at a crossroads….we all know that the future of the West, seemingly so assured even a decade ago, is suddenly negotiable in the most fundamental way… The field of battle may have changed; the armies have adopted new tactics; but the war isn't over: it is merely transmogrified. In the subtitle to his book, Burnham promises “the definitive analysis of the pathology of liberalism.” At the center of that pathology is an awful failure of understanding which is also a failure of nerve, a failure of “the will to survive…” After the suicide of the West By Roger Kimball, writing in the The New Criterion, “... Liberalism, Burnham concludes, is “an ideology of suicide.”… I recall a statement by one Hussein Massawi, a former Hezbollah leader, which I believe I first read in one of Mark Steyn's columns. “We are not fighting,” Mr. Massawi said, “so that you will offer us something. We are fighting to eliminate you.”…. Mr. Massawi speaks clearly, but who is listening?... Our colleges and universities have been preaching the creed of multiculturalism for the last few decades… We are now beginning to reap the fruit of that liberal experiment with multiculturalism. The chief existential symptom is moral paralysis, expressed, for example, in the inability to discriminate effectively between good and evil…”
Star Chamber commission applies the law selectively against Christians in favour of Muslim bigots
(4Jan06)“…In ‘ Muslim bigots impose blasphemy laws on Victori a ' I argued that May Helou and Diane Sisely should be investigated for conspiring to destroy the reputations of two Christian pastors and of trying to intimidate critics of Islam… I deliberately flouted the state's anti-vilification law by insulting both the Koran and the Prophet, something the persecuted pastors certainly did not do… Mr Joe Cambria emailed my article to Dr Helen Szoke Chief Executive Officer of the Equal Opportunity Commission Victoria. Her reply was interesting in what it revealed about the Star Chamber proceedings of her Orwellian commission critics of Islam…. Szoke is trying to weasel around the fact that the vicious persecution of Pastor Danny Nalliah and Pastor Daniel Scot by the EOC and VCAT clearly demonstrate that these bodies are deeply prejudiced and even hostile to the principal of free speech…” Star Chamber commission applies the law selectively against Christians in favour of Muslim bigots by Gerard Jackson “...How can any honest person assert that these agencies are 'impartial' when they were complicit in a conspiracy to prosecute two pastors for accurately quoting from the Koran? Let me remind Szoke that it is indisputable that May Helou, a member of the EOC, incited fanatical Muslim converts to lodge baseless complaints against the pastors… think it's time these agencies were relabelled the Dhimmi Committees. Let us be absolutely clear on this. This disgusting gang willingly provided a Muslim bigot with the means to try and destroy two decent men on the grounds of their Christianity…. If this insufferable band of hypocrites has not got the guts to come after me then how in heavens name can they ever be allowed to sit in judgement on another human being?..”
Read the correspondence between Mr Cambria and Dr Helen Szoke .
For other interesting features be sure to visit December 2005