news…

news…

While Mr Howard in the context of international diplomacy may have gone to far, there seems to be a bit of ground support for the ideas expressed.

http://www.cafepress.com/ObamaOsama

Above is a commercial site obviously aiming to make some dough from all this fuss: so someone thinks this idea has a market to it. Of course I don’t know if they have made any sales but clearly poeple think they might. Capitalism at its worst I would say.

Great insight, CS- and so very true. This is an argument that will keep us bogged down in the dilemma of what to do, with each side able to point to certain disaster if their own prescription to end the war isn’t followed. Its damned if we do, damned if we don’t.

Which is why we have to look at a cost benefits analysis for this war. The cost has been enormous , and the gains minimal. It always aggravates me when the war’s proponents point to Iraq’s elections, and constitution as though they are proof of democracy. Those are democratic institutions, but Iraq is not a democracy it is a failed state so far, with a powerless government.

As to Howard stating his opinion- I think he’s wrong for the reason I just stated. I also think he has a right to state his opinion, but it would have been more respectable if he’d done it as a generality (”If US policy by the next POTUS is such and such, it will likely lead to this unpalatable result”). Comment on the policy, instead of using an individual candidate to represent the policy that he’s criticizing.

People say Australians are racists. That not correct. Of course there are racist here as anywhere else, but Australia is no more racist than any other predominantly who has predominantly a caucasian population.

However they have been fearful. A huge country, small population at the bottom of Asia which has lots of people. In the 1800’s there was the fear of the ‘yellow peril’ hoardes of Asian swamping the country…and that fear persists. People may say ‘that’s racist’ but I know that once Asian migrants adopt the lifestyle of the mainstream there is great acceptance. There is little belief that people of other races are ‘inherently’ inferior. Just the fear that they may overtake this small country…the same way their forebears did with the Australian Aborigines.

Britan was Australia’s protector before WWII. Then the USA did thid role after it (Australia participated in the Korean and Vietnamese wars). Anything that jeopardised the USA – American friendship was political poison.

So until the 1960 there was the ‘White Australia Policy’ to keep immigration European. Fortunatley that was dismantled in the late 60’s and Australia has becomed much more multicultural. We have a big Vietnamese population, te largest group of immigrants at the moment is from India and the largest group of current refugees is from Soamlia.

But that ‘fear’ remained and Howard was the first Prime Minister to use this when he was looking down defeat at an election refusing a container ship which picked up some asylum seekers docking in Australia. (you can read the whole shameful saga here. Then after a couple of month 9/11 happened and Austalia who was quite a open country retreated in fear. Howard had it made. He snuggled up with Bush and Blair and created the illusion in the Australian electorate that Australia was a major player in the ‘Coalition of the Willing’ while the contribution was small.

So what is happening now? The fact is that Howard was able to portray the Opposition party (The Australian Labor Party – ALP) as ‘irresponsible’ and ‘Anti American’ for even mildly criticising Australia’s small involvement in Iraq. And until the majority of Americans seemed to be behind George Bush Iraq campaign it all worked well.

But Howard is in a squeeze now. The weapon of portraying the ALP as anti-American becomes laughable if a major Presidential candidate wants to withdraw from Iraq. The elections are due in November 2007, the polls are not looking good for him and a major weapon against the opposition is fizzling out.

And now we even have USA Conservatives being against him. I wonder what Rupert Murdoch is thinking (the Murdoch Media has been rock solid with him)

George Bush once called Howard ‘The man of steel’. Looks like the steel is buckling.

Am I the only conservative with misgivings regarding John Howard’s proclamation about Barack Obama? Howard, the Prime Minister of Australia and a great friend to the United States, wants to wage an aggressive war against al-Qaeda and radical Islamist …

After all bush & co were using fairly similar language about Howards opposition during the aussie election a couple of years ago.

There is no ally of the U.S. more staunch than Australia. There is a deep reservoir of good will for Americans among Australians. I know and understand this because I have a goodly number of Aussie friends and the Dear Friend & Conscience (who was born in Melbourne) and I talk about moving there; or in her case, back there, when we talk about the wretched state of America.

Australia sent many thousands of troops to Vietnam and has contributed disproportionately (for its population) in Iraq. This alliance and good will has been sorely tested by the Bush administration and Howard, a conservative to the core, has not helped.

But regardless of Howard’s relationship with the White House, he is widely respected in Australia because he has presided over a period of growth and prosperity unprecedented in that country’s history and unprecedented in recent global economic history. He and his managers have been deft at fine-tuning the economy to deal with internal and external challenges year in and year out.

This does not forgive Howard’s slavish support of George Bush or popping off about Barack Obama, but beyond his foreign policy pronouncements he has been a solid leader in a turbulent time.

A final point: The Australians that I know do not love Americans any less because they are led by a corrupt bumbler. And I do not love them any less becayse they are led by a big mouth.

…

Terrorists want to terrorize. An Osama tape right before the elections saying “by all means Bush, stay in Iraq, it’s great for us” serves the simultaneous purpose of allowing Bush allies to say “Be afraid! Terrorists are out to kill us! You can’t let namby pamby democrats in charge!” and Bush opposers say “look! Osama’s still free and alive! And he’d be thrilled by another Bush presidency! Are you going to give him what he wants?” And Osama can laugh all the way to the next cave, seeing how we use his image to divide ourselves instead of uniting against him, our enemy.

You dont lay your entire plan on the table and with no wiggle room.

It sounds good for the antiwar but its already a hint of a guy that does not have the experience to run this country…….YET