Gillard backs Internet filter

[redandblack]

That would go down well at a Liberal Party Branch Meeting, Mick. It wouldn't matter what the ALP did as far as you're concerned.

I agree with you, though, you should vote for the odious, as usual

[Gozu]

"The pendulum and the pit — Faulkner, the election and the exhaustion of mainstream politics, part deux":


Labor was let off the hook by the simultaneous rise of Rudd and the hubris of Howard. Rudd’s one man political movement — writing essays on the German theologians, proposing grand theories of the crash, starting a thousand hares running etc — was impressive at the time, but in retrospect it vindicates Rich Hall’s observation that while it’s impressive to play guitar and harmonica at the same time, once you strap cymbals to your knees it’s all over.

One could see that in Rudd’s farewell speech. Some found it moving. I found it, I must say, passive aggressive, a long statement of ‘look what you’ve done to me’. Rudd’s concrete achievements are numerous and that shouldn’t be diminished as the right wing press are eager to do, but his inability to summarise or synthesise them in that speech was a tiny picture of what it must have been like to work for. Every detail provoked further detail, until the object was lost.

So if people who really are concerned by the miniscule number of people arriving on boats can’t see through it, then they really are pretty tragically manipulable, and the cynical base on which the Labor party works is correct.
But politically, Labor has nothing else. Once the Rudd circus left town, there’s just a bare big-top shaped piece of earth, and Wayne Swan and a ukelele.

Campaigning on the Opposition’s territory, in the penumbra of conservative fears, is a big risk – based presumably on the assumption that Gillard’s lead on Abbott as preferred prime minister will do the trick. One of the difficulties for Labor in campaigning against Abbott was that it could not paint him as the true jesus-creeping self-flagellating Waringah Mullar Omar that he is, alienated from the majority of Australians, when Rudd was in charge because Rudd was equally , well, non-BBQ material.

God knows who to barrack for in this one— it’s England v Germany all over again. There’s a great advantage in Labor having this whole strategy repudiated — even from a rightward trending electorate — and the political bankruptcy of the party and its grim leadership. On the other hand, the taxidermy of Tony Abbott…. In either case, nothing’s on offer one could start to get excited about. Which at least means you can kick back and watch it over a drink or two.


http://blogs.crikey.com.au/thestump/201 ... s-part-ii/

[Squawk]

Labor was let off the hook by the simultaneous rise of Rudd and the hubris of Howard. Rudd’s one man political movement — writing essays on the German theologians, proposing grand theories of the crash, starting a thousand hares running etc — was impressive at the time, but in retrospect it vindicates Rich Hall’s observation that while it’s impressive to play guitar and harmonica at the same time, once you strap cymbals to your knees it’s all over.
One could see that in Rudd’s farewell speech. Some found it moving. I found it, I must say, passive aggressive, a long statement of ‘look what you’ve done to me’. Rudd’s concrete achievements are numerous and that shouldn’t be diminished as the right wing press are eager to do, but his inability to summarise or synthesise them in that speech was a tiny picture of what it must have been like to work for. Every detail provoked further detail, until the object was lost.

Very concise and accurate picture that - notably the bold text. As for the red text, I thought Mark William's farewell speech was very similar to Rudd's - passive agressive and basically saying (like Rudd) that he hasn't been given the respect he thinks he deserves. Rudd's list of achievements was eye-opening yet he always struggled to get his message to resonate. Williams was probably the same.

[Wedgie]

Good news, Wedgie, you can vote for Gillard after all

It's been put off.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010 ... 949220.htm

Did they call it completely off, or just put it on the backburner for a year so they don't have to face it as an issue during the election?

[Leaping Lindner]

Is the Internet Filter Australia's Berlin Wall

The reason that such large scale political and ideological change can take place, I believe, is in large part to the robust and open democracy which Australia’s political leaders have built over the last hundred years. Fundamental to this has been the freedom of political thought and expression – backed up by rigorous, independent (and in many instances, judicious) review of government decisions.

The internet filter proposed by Senator Stephen Conroy threatens all this. Thus far, the government have focused their arguments around the highly emotive issue of child pornography. There is no question that access to this sort of material should be prohibited. However, only 32% of the sites listed on the Australian Communications and Media Authority’s “blacklist” are related to child pornography. This means that a whopping 68% of sites on the list are there for other reasons – political, ideological, etc – and at the whim of the government in power at the time.

Moreover, the blacklist is NOT available for public scrutiny or independent review. A copy of the blacklist was released on the Wikileaks website earlier in 2009 (a site which is, itself, blacklisted).

Scary stuff.....particularly when we have a government that (on the surface at least) abandons its principles and is prepared to say or do anything to retain power.

Bit like all those Liberal "wets" (Downer, Ruddock, Costello etc.) who all of a sudden "saw the light" and became "drys" to maintain their position in Howard's Governement. The only pollies with principals are yet to be elected, have left parliament or are Greens

[mick]

Is the Internet Filter Australia's Berlin Wall

The reason that such large scale political and ideological change can take place, I believe, is in large part to the robust and open democracy which Australia’s political leaders have built over the last hundred years. Fundamental to this has been the freedom of political thought and expression – backed up by rigorous, independent (and in many instances, judicious) review of government decisions.

The internet filter proposed by Senator Stephen Conroy threatens all this. Thus far, the government have focused their arguments around the highly emotive issue of child pornography. There is no question that access to this sort of material should be prohibited. However, only 32% of the sites listed on the Australian Communications and Media Authority’s “blacklist” are related to child pornography. This means that a whopping 68% of sites on the list are there for other reasons – political, ideological, etc – and at the whim of the government in power at the time.

Moreover, the blacklist is NOT available for public scrutiny or independent review. A copy of the blacklist was released on the Wikileaks website earlier in 2009 (a site which is, itself, blacklisted).

Scary stuff.....particularly when we have a government that (on the surface at least) abandons its principles and is prepared to say or do anything to retain power.

Bit like all those Liberal "wets" (Downer, Ruddock, Costello etc.) who all of a sudden "saw the light" and became "drys" to maintain their position in Howard's Governement. The only pollies with principals are yet to be elected, have left parliament or are Greens

It is very easy to have principles when you know that you'll never need to put them into practice. It would be interesting to see how long the priciples espoused by the Greens would last if they were elected to government? I suspect the cold hard light of electoral reality would dawn upon them The Green's principles are why they will never be more than an annoyance to the major parties. Going back to kero lamps and riding bicyles and rickshaws doesn't appeal to me.

[Psyber]

Bit like all those Liberal "wets" (Downer, Ruddock, Costello etc.) who all of a sudden "saw the light" and became "drys" to maintain their position in Howard's Government. The only pollies with principals are yet to be elected, have left parliament or are Greens

I'm not sure I'd list the Greens as an exception either having seen that women on Q&A recently presenting a typical example of political doublespeak.
I think some people do enter politics with ideals but get corrupted by the party system, and its pursuit of power at all costs.

[heater31]

Good news, Wedgie, you can vote for Gillard after all

It's been put off.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010 ... 949220.htm

Did they call it completely off, or just put it on the backburner for a year so they don't have to face it as an issue during the election?

more research is required. Me thinks that they have found this harder than they thought to implement and possibly police. Expect it back on the table after Gillard and the puppets are back in power for another 3 years.

I feel that this new broadband network is the be the vehicle to get this thing up and running as I bet London to a brick the Feds retain some control over the whole show in some way.

Not sure how it is supposed to protect the kiddies as I personally have never come across such material unless I purposely went looking for it

[Wedgie]

Good news from one side of the fence. The Libs will block the internet filter.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/08/05/2974827.htm

[mick]

Good news from one side of the fence. The Libs will block the internet filter.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/08/05/2974827.htm

That is good news, regardless of who wins the election this won't happen

[Gozu]

With the federal election edging closer and the National Broadband Network (NBN) set to become an election issue, Communications Minister Stephen Conroy has wisely buried Labor’s controversial internet filter for good.

Labor has abandoned the plan to introduce a filter that incensed civil libertarians and internet lobbyists, who argued against censorship and warned that a filter would not only be ineffective but would also slow internet speeds.

The end of the filter doesn’t mean that the federal government doesn’t deliver a positive outcome when it comes to blocking child pornography. It will now reportedly use its powers under the Telecommunications Act to block hundreds of child abuse websites already identified by Interpol.

http://www.technologyspectator.com.au/l ... and-buried