Monday

I have been sucked back into the largely pointless and self serving occupation of online publishing. I like to call it this instead of "blogging" because it sounds far more intellectual, encouraging the reader to picture a "I'm sexy but smart because I wear glasses" kind of author rather than an overweight adolescent smearing Twisties seasoning all over the keyboard in their eagerness to play World of Warcraft.

Also, I have to return to my varied and far reaching audience (two people from Mauritania).

The usual symptoms of social malaise have infested national headlines since those expensive, airborne shards of glitter disappeared into the sky above the Harbour Bridge. A gushing body of water succeeded in wiping away a large part of Queensland and has now started work on Victoria. The PM has decided this is a unique opportunity for the people of Australia to pay for the effects of climate change. What has been a traumatic and terrifying ordeal for many continues to serve as a handy national narrative from which "true Australians" and "un-Australians" will emerge.

On the bus yesterday I sat three seats behind the beauty school drop out pumping the latest Ke$ha hit on her iPod and in front of the robust man scoffing a meat pie.

Then boarded two members of Sydney's finest sub culture. Young males from the wealthiest suburbs of the North Shore, they invariably sport Nautica polo shirts, Nike shorts, Adidas trainers... basically the entire alphabet of crappy sportswear never worn as casual street attire by any self respecting citizen. They enjoy adorning public transport with badly executed grafitti, especially employing witty catchesisms such as adlay eshay cuntsay etc etc.

After accusing a group of Asian teenagers of having bird flu (inexplicably squawking like chickens through swigs of VB) the lads disembarked the bus to go home and suck on their communal bong. I was reminded of coming arrivals on Sydney's streets over the next few days.

Lads are neither "hip", "jiggy" nor "down with it". But this song is

Rest in Peace

A wooden boat carrying as many as 100 Iraqis, Iranians and Kurds smashed against Christmas Island's Rocky Point in rough seas on Wednesday morning.

Authorities say there are 30 people confirmed dead and 42 survivors.

Among those who lost their lives are 13 men, nine women, four children and four babies

Catholic Church shuts down Aboriginal healing centre

by Millicent Caffrey

The Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney last month closed the Aboriginal Catholic Ministry in Alexandria and the Aboriginal Healing House in Picton, ending the employment of two long-term workers.

Brenda McDonnell worked with the Aboriginal Catholic Ministry in Alexandria for 11 years assisting in the welfare of the Aboriginal community. She says she was given no explanation for the termination of her employment.

“I honestly don’t know why this is happening,” Ms McDonnell said, describing her immense contribution to the Archdiocese. “I had to bring in $45 to $50,000 each year to maintain the house. It was a beautiful place for women, spiritual bonding and healing.”

Barbara Asplet worked for 25 years in the ministry and was co-ordinator of the Aboriginal Healing House in Picton, which provided programs for women suffering from trauma associated with the Stolen Generation and for victims of domestic violence, sexual, drug and alcohol abuse.

Supporters of Aboriginal rights stood in the rain on December 1, in front of the nativity scene at St Mary’s Cathedral, to protest the decision of the Catholic Church to close the Healing House and end the employment of these two women. They were blocked by security from entering the church, but a small crowd of visitors to the cathedral stopped to listen to their speeches.

Ms McDonnell described the Church’s actions as a “huge injustice” and said she it had made her lose her faith as a Catholic.

Director of Catholic Communications Katrina Lee said the Church’s decision was to reflect the changing needs of the community.

“We would like to introduce even more experienced professional people,” Ms Lee said.

Founding member of the Indigenous Social Justice Association Ray Jackson said the Church’s decision was “just another bastard act by Cardinal Pell.”

“I don’t know what another bastard act is.” Ms Lee said. “That is because I don’t know of any previous ones.”

In February of this year Cardinal Pell banned the Australian Reforming Catholics, a group partly focused on the spirituality and harmony of Aboriginal people, from using a Church in Rose Bay to hold their annual general meeting. Pell has also been criticised for stating in 2006 that the issue of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church was “obviously connected with the problem of homosexuality.”

According to the Archdiocese, the Healing House will be reopened in Sydney after Christmas. Mr Jackson, however, doubts this. “Once the Healing House gets sold, there is no trace on that money whatsoever. The Church can do what they like with it.”

Hungriest Place on Earth

 In this April 8, 2010 file photo, two-year-old Nyagod Kuel attempts to eat on her bed in a hospital ward in Akobo, southeastern Sudan. Two years of failed rain and tribal clashes in this Sudan region bordering Ethiopia have laid foundations for a humanitarian crisis the U.N. mission dubs the "hungriest place on earth." A recent survey found that almost 46 percent of children in the region are malnourished. Lise Grande, the top U.N. official in southern Sudan, said most humanitarian agencies regard a malnutrition rate of 15 percent at an emergency threshold. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay, File)

Funding illegal Israeli settlements? Priceless.

by Bernard Keane

 

Visa, Mastercard and PayPal all enable donations to be made to US-registered groups funding illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank in defiance of international law.

It appears at least one of the major credit cards also enables donations to an extremist Jewish group that has placed a bounty on the lives of Palestinians.

All three have in the last week ceased enabling donations to WikiLeaks. Neither Mastercard nor Visa have explained the basis for their decision to do so. PayPal has backed away from its initial claim that the US State Department told PayPal WikiLeaks had broken the law after the claim was discredited. This is the third occasion on which PayPal has suspended payment services for WikiLeaks.

Israel subsidises over 100 settlements in the West Bank in defiance of international law. Another 100+ are “illegal outposts” even under Israeli law. All benefit from extensive support from the United States, channelled through a range of Jewish and right-wing Christian bodies, all of which have charitable status under US law. The International Crisis Group’s report on settlements in July 2009 identified the important role played by US charities. Israeli newspaper Haaretz has investigated the strong support provided via US charities, and Israeli peace groups have also targeted the generous support provided via private donations from the US and Canada.

Credit card transactional systems play a key role in facilitating this support for illegal settlements. Here are some examples.

• The Shuva Israel group, an evangelical Christian group based in Texas, is accused by Israeli group Gush Shalom of channelling money to fund the illegal West Bank settlement of Revava. You can donate to it, says the Shuva Israel website, via Mastercard, Visa and Paypal.

• The One Israel Fund, used as an example in the International Crisis Group report, boasts of being “the largest North American charity whose efforts are dedicated solely to the citizens and communities of Yesha”. You can donate to the One Israel Fund, according to its website, via Mastercard, Visa and Amex.

• The website of another right-wing Christian group, the Christian Friends of Israeli Communities describes support for settlements like Argaman, which are illegal under international law. You can donate, their website says, via Mastercard, Visa and PayPal.

• One of the highest-profile groups is the Hebron Fund, the centre of a 2009 row when the New York Mets were criticised for hosting a fundraising dinner for the group. It provides extensive support for the extraordinarily aggressive Hebron settlement, described by one Israeli group as “an ongoing war crime”, while the Fund itself has been linked to praise for an Israeli mass murderer. According to its website, it receives donations via all major credit cards.

• Worst of all is the extremist SOS Israel group, which has incurred even the wrath of the Israeli Defence Force by rewarding Israeli soldiers who disobey orders to evict settlers from illegal outposts (i.e. inciting mutiny), and which has offered a bounty for Palestinians shot by IDF soldiers. The SOS Israel website describes a number of ways you can make your “generous donation” to it, including credit cards. Crikey’s token $2 donation via a Visa card was successful last night.

At this stage WikiLeaks has breached no international law and no laws of any country, but Mastercard, Visa and PayPal have all blacklisted it. All three continue to enable the support of settlements that are in breach of international law, in some cases of Israeli law, and in defiance of US policy on settlements under successive Republican and Democrat administrations.

Crikey invited Visa, Paypal and Mastercard to comment but none had responded by deadline.

Congratulations

To our dear Prime Minister Julia Gillard,

On behalf of the Australian people, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you.

As our first female PM you have truly transformed the perception of this great land as one filled with beer swilling, thong wearing, mosquito slapping ockers. You have taken us to an unprecedented level of recognition on the international stage. No longer will Australians remain confused with Austrians, nor will they be mistaken for strange sounding British people.

We are now known as a tough and uncompromising nation. We don't cut corners when it comes to the invasion of our land by undesirable and frankly malodorous "asylum seekers" on leaky boats.

The Labor government has done all it can, even putting some of these refugees up in a motel in Darwin! And those spacious facilities at Villawood are nothing to scoff at, so we can only roll our eyes when these so called asylum seekers start hacking at their wrists, climbing on roof tops and killing themselves.

What were they expecting? Human rights? This is Australia, for God's sake.

Now, from the recesses of that ginger coated head of yours, has emerged what can only be described as an ingenious plan.

Instead of having these foreign people commit suicide in our state of the art facilities, why not just send them packing back to where they belong and avoid the bad press? Who wouldn't like Afghanistan anyway? Sure, there a few hundred rather large craters and countless destroyed buildings from bombs dropped by our steadfast ally, the United States, but other than that, I hear the food is quite good.

And as an Australian citizen who holds complete trust in my democratically elected government, I have no doubts at all that you will honour the commitment which ensures a return agreement will contain assurances that deported asylum seekers not be harmed. Of course it will also include reintegration packages to discourage this cheeky buggers from ever hopping on a boat back to our fair country again.

Some might also say doing deals with a notoriously corrupt government isn't the best political decision, but hey, I'll trust you on this one!

Ms Gillard, I applaud you for setting a fine example to the rest of the world on how to treat those who dare to flee a country which we helped destroy.

I can only hope to be like you when I grow up.

Warmest regards,

Your fellow Australian.

Lomography from Ukraine

I want to go to (the?) Ukraine.
Check out lomography from this interesting little country here.