Ab absurdo (a form of reasoning)

Youtube Comments Worth Mentioning: August 2011

2011-08-06T13:55:00.004+10:00

Amymccourt21 perfectly describes Anthony Followill's voice perfectly! 37 ppl agree lol!

U2 Rocks the biggest concert ever in history

2011-08-06T12:50:00.007+10:00

After travelling five continents in two years, promoter Live Nations claims that the U2 360 Degree Tour was "the most successful concert tour of all time".

Grossing in $700 million, the Irish rock band had surpassed the US$558 million that Rolling Stones netted and also broke that original record in terms of attendance.

Totalling 110 shows, the U2 360 Tour started on June 30 in Barcelona in 2009 and ended on July 30 in Moncton, Canada this year (2011).

Live Nation's chairman of global music, Arthur Fogel said: "This tour was a brilliant success on every level and all involved should be extremely proud. U2 once again have set the standard for achievement - perhaps for all time".

After attending their 360 Tour in Brisbane, I think I may have been a part of history :)

Spowf

Below are some pics I took at the concert. Enjoy:)

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Youtube comments worth mentioning: June 2011

2011-06-14T18:53:00.008+10:00

Hey guys,

Just listening to my youtube channel "Happy Times" and came across this comment on the video, 'I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For - U2 (Live in Milan).

It's worth mentioning.

If you believe U2 is a religion, you would understand the impact this has on the millions around the world who love and treasure U2's transcending lyrics and music.

Yours,
Spowf
P.S. U2 saved my life.

Zoe Wittner Galore

2011-06-13T21:23:00.007+10:00

WOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOO!

I have just won a pretty hectic bid-fight on eBay. Actually, the most hectic bidding I've experienced. I had been waiting for three hours for the bidding time to get down to about three minutes - I guessed the person who who had the highest bid would've felt overconfident, as no one had outbid them in the last four hours.

But, I was watching.

As I was just about to take a screenshot of the remaining time and item to have as a new post on Ab Absurdo I realised that right before my eyes, the

bidding price had increased. With less than twenty seconds remaining, I luckily 'one-clicked' and increased by bid (not realising that the bid only increased the highest bid by 50 cents! Ohmy!

Luckily, it was sufficient - well considering there was six seconds remaining on the bid!

But alas, here is what I've won. And it cost me $16 (exc. postage and handling).

If you've bought Wittner shoes before, you'd know their heels retail starting from $149.00.

I've got the exact pair in black but just couldn't help myself. These shoes (black or tanned) are divine!

Gotta love ebay. If you have any similar stories, please share tips.

Yours,

Spowf

Presenting: Jah Boy - Hope for Tomorrow

2011-06-13T11:51:00.011+10:00

Good morning readers,

I came across Jay Boy after reading a post by Annie Cheffers, on the RokRok Music Facebook Group last week Wednesday.

This track was made with the intention to inspire youth to believe in themselves and be all they can be.
The video was filmed and produced in the Solomon Islands by 'One Television'. Must and lyrics are by Jah Boy and the track is produced and owned by Rebelle Inc.

I don't know much about Jah Boy, but if you do, please share.

Spowf

Top up online with Digicel Online Top Up!

2011-05-30T14:34:00.007+10:00

I discovered Digicel PNG's online top up service on mother's day;) Being unable to send a mother's day gift to my mother on time, I sent her credit (to call me). Selflessness at its worst.

Digicel's online top up service is hosted by ezetop, an online and international mobile top-up provider. However, I've noticed that ezetop also its members to top-up directly from their website - with a number of obvious differences between the two services.

Unlike Digicel's online top up where the amount the person receiving the credit is receiving is automatically calculated, you have to click in order to calculate when you use ezetop.

In addition, unlike digicel's online top up, you can send a message for AUD0.33 (like I did).

Ezetop top-up amounts are:

AUD$4.73 (PNGK10.97);

AUD$9.76 (PNGK21.95);

AUD$18.93 (PNGK43.90); and

AUD$28.39 (PNGK65.85)

Notably, the exchange rates are not consistent with each top up amount today (May 30, 2011). With the rates for the $4.73 and $28.39 being the only consistent calculated at 2.319 (AUD1=PNGK2.319).

In comparison, Digicel PNG's online top up amounts are (and will get you):

AUD$6.58 (PNGK15.00);

AUD$13.16 (PNGK30.00);

AUD$19.75 (PNGK45.00);and

AUD$26.33 (PNGK60.00).

All calculatedd exchange rates for digicel online top for today (May 30, 2011) are consistent at 2.28 (AUD1=PNGK2.28).

ANZ's rates for today (May 30, 2011) are 2.3089 according to ANZ's online currency exchange calculator.

Ezetop have an app on the Apple Store, whereas Digicel don't. Which is why I am on a mission to keep asking questions as to why not.

Overall, in terms of price, Digicel Online Top Up is cheaper than ezetop.

Digicel loses points for not having an app, which may drive (as it almost did me before writing this post and working the pros and cons of each service provider) customers to the ezetop app due to its ease of use and accessibility.

Although ezetop does have an app, what's worse is that you need to sign up to be a member of ezetop - registering cannot be done on the app, you need to do so on a PC, or through a web browser of choice on your mobile phone. In addition, once you sign up on your PC, have downloaded the ezetop app for free on the Apple Store, and are a first time user, an error message appears stating that the ezetop mobile website requires you to have completed a transaction and stored your credit card on the desktop version of ezetop.com. I understand the need for the credit card details, however why complete a transaction first! I guess, as a first-time user of the app, I am all but absolutely discouraged.

For those who don't mind going to Digicel PNG's website, searching the services tab, scrolling down and clicking the Online Top Up option (or alternatively, clicking the banner that appears on the home page).

There are numerous ways to use Digicel's online top up service, personally as an overseas student (I speak to my mum mostly around 3 times a day) and a vodafone AU user, I refuse to pay $6.10 a minute. By sending my mother credit, it's hell cheaper given Digicel's PNGK.049 from 8pm to 8am everyday (no call connection fee).

So compared to $6.10 per minute (PNGK14.08) (as per vodafone au, excluding call connection fee), it only costs only 49 toea!

If, you're not an existing customer of Digicel's Online Top-Up Service, sign up online for Digicel's Online Top-Up Service here.

The Offline Social Network - The Hungry Beast

2011-05-16T16:43:00.006+10:00

Imagine if Facebook was an actual person. Like alive. This is what a conversation with 'Facebook' would be like.

This is hilarious.

Watch it!

Aural pleasures: May 2011

2011-05-10T15:25:00.003+10:00

Im sitting in the State Library in Brisbane and love how there are many other people with Mac's as well because they have all kindly shared their iTunes music with me.

So I have found yet another innovative source of inspiration for this post.

I have since discovered a few new songs I have never heard before (some from familiar artists such as Amy Winehouse and Habib Koite (that African sounding artist whose great music comes preloaded with any Microsoft Windows Media Player).

Check some of this music out - the links take you to youtube videos.

Have fun kids:)

Jokes from an iconic Papua New Guinean pioneer: Henry Kila

2011-05-06T12:36:00.006+10:00

Was just checking out Nancy Sullivan's blog and came across a post on a fellow Yule Islander, Henry Kila who passed away early last year. He was buried on Yule Island.

He was known for being a witty one. Here are a few jokes that Nancy shares:

I remember sitting in the back of the DWU auditorium with him and Mel Togolo for one of the Australian-PNG Business council sessions this year, all of us giggling too much for our own good. Still, I couldn't move away, Henry was being too funny. When a member of the Education Department took the stage I gasped in admiration of his big soft afro. "Where's he from Henry?""

"1972".

Nancy isn't sure but believes this is the last joke she heard him tell:

Mugabe, Somare and Mandela are all tumbling to the ground after a mid-air collision. Everyone takes out their cel phone. Mandela starts dialing up St Peter to be cleared through the Pearly Gates. But the phone keeps ringing and ringing off the hook. Mugabe tries now, but he only gets a busy signal. So Somare dials a number and gets through right away. "How'd you do that? they ask. "Hey, for me," Somare says, "its only a local call.""

R.I.P.

The PNG Gov's history with price controls

2011-05-06T11:08:00.009+10:00

Although a few of you may find certain (if not in its entirety) the notion of privatising state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in Papua New Guinea in particular, then I think this paper by Timothy Curton of Australia National University (ANU) called "Privatisation Policy in Papua New Guinea" will demonstrate why the Mekere Government was adamant on a privatision policy during his term (1999-2002). However, this process was stalled when Somare came into power immediately after.

Commercial Statutory Authorities (CSAs) such as Elcom (Now PNG POWER), Air Niugini and Harbours Board throughout the lifetimes have been subject to an over-regulated market mechanism by the State.

Have a look at p.6:

The cabinet’s decision (National Executive Council 163/1983, 1–5) defining
the government’s future relations with the CSAs also laid down that they
should only undertake new investments if they earned at least the rate of return to be laid down from time to time by the minister for Finance in the
annual budget, and that if a CSA wished to undertake a non-commercial
investment for ‘social/political reasons’, it should seek a subsidy through the budget to cover any losses incurred by the investment. The minimum rate of return was announced only once in a budget, and that budget was rejected (in 1985), but the minister for Finance had in 1984 advised each CSA that an ‘appropriate’ rate of return would be in the range of 16–22 per cent already permitted to the private sector on price-controlled items (Whitworth 1993, 25). These prescribed rates of return were rarely achieved by any of the
CSAs. The average return on investment (ROI) of all four CSAs between 1985
and 1989 varied between a low of 11.1 per cent in 1985 and a high of 13.1
per cent in 1986 (World Bank 1992, 178). Those were the good years: from
1994 onwards Elcom’s operating profits were usually less than its interest
payments (partly because price controls prevented tariff increases to cover
higher costs of imported fuel after the devaluation of the kina in 1994) and
its ROI fell below 5 per cent, while the PTC’s fell to 4 per cent in 1995,
and Air Niugini incurred only losses after 1994 (World Bank 1999, 148–149).

So only if CSA's made a return of between 16-22% percent (of which none of them even achieved together), then they would be able to make new investments!

Curtin continues on p.7:

The NEC decision had directed the CSAs to prepare annual rolling forward five-year capital investment programs for approval by cabinet, and this was complied with until they were corporatized in the late 1990s. The decision further stated that legislation would be drafted enabling the CSAs to vary their prices and charges to the level needed to achieve the required rates of return, but subject to the ‘price justification’ procedures laid down in the Prices Regulation Act. The force of the cabinet’s decisions on pricing and investments was considerably weakened by this failure to grasp the nettle of freeing the CSAs from the government’s pricecontrols. As the years went by, the CSAs found it more and more difficult to gain timely
approval for price increases from the secretary of the Finance or Treasury Department, in his role as price controller, and this largely explains the CSAs’ worsening profits performance noted above. But even in the good years their overall gross margin (i.e. total revenue less
operating costs as a ratio of total revenue) was less than 20 per cent, whereas the private sector would aim for 40 per cent; and this shortfall reflected operating inefficiencies, inadequate sales relative to their large capital investments, and over-staffing.

p.8 continues:

It is evident that the response of the government in 1983 to the growing
difficulties of the CSAs in the 1970s and early 1980s was not to contemplate
privatization, which was rarely mentioned as a possibility, except by
Trebilcock(1982, 115), but to accept Floyd’s restructuring proposals by
turning them into quasi-autonomous entities free to behave as if they were private sector firms, subject however to restrictions on price setting and
staff emoluments. The implicit contradiction between Floyd’s commercialization of the CSAs and their continued public ownership was either not noticed or justified on the grounds that given equal commercial efficiency public monopolies would somehow be
more benevolent than private monopolies.

Does this sound familiar (Curtin,p.8):

Both the CSAs’ autonomy and their ability to operate as if they were privately owned began to be eroded in the 1990s, for increasingly their boards and top management became the creatures
of the current minister, and if he was removed or transferred to a new ministry,
the new incumbent soon acted to replace both board and top management (Millett 1993, 27).

Thoughts?

How do you make sense of death?

2011-04-29T00:17:00.001+10:00

FM100 Papua New Guinea Reaching You 100%

2011-04-20T11:27:00.008+10:00

This morning Hon. Member for Wau/Bulolo, Sam Basil MP updated his facebook status with:

So you can guess what I did next. Tried seeing if FM100 online. And Alas!

They were!

You can listen to the station live, however today there was a network error. I really hope they can fix this slight issue but other than that, well done to the team at FM 100!

Here's a pic which Mr. Basil uploaded of the interview with Mr. Hau'Ofa OBE

Twitter plans to buy TweetDeck Inc.

2011-04-19T09:54:00.012+10:00

Imagine - a world where you didn't need so many tabs open or to click from browser to browser finding where your Facebook page or Twitter page was?? TweetDeck is the solution!

This morning, while crossing my things to do checklist, I checked my Twitter account. Read a tweet by Mashable about how Twitter is in talks to buy TweedDeck by Chris Taylor.

I had no idea what TweedDeck was until I read further in the article that:

TweetDeck is one of the most popular third-party Twitter clients, available in desktop, iPad, iPhone and Android versions. It displays your Twitter news feed, @mentions and direct messages, along with your Facebook feeds — all on the same screen, all updating in real time. TweetDeck can also support updates from MySpace, LinkedIn and Foursquare (Taylor, 2011).

TweetDeck's wikipedia article states that:

TweetDeck is an Adobe AIR desktop application for Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google Buzz, Foursquare, and MySpace. Like other Twitter applications it interfaces with the Twitter API to allow users to send and receive tweets and view profiles. It is the most popular Twitter application with a 19% market share as of June 2009, following only the official Twitter.com website with 45.70% share for posting new status updates. It is compatible with several operating systems including Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X and Linux. An iPhone version was released on June 19, 2009 and an iPad version was released in May 2010 as well. An Android version was recently made available after a public beta period.
Users can split the program into columns which show different things, for instance tweets from friends. TweetDeck interfaces with Twitscoop, 12seconds and Stocktwits, all of which can appear in separate columns. It also allows users to split the people they follow into groups, a very useful feature to many users. The client supports URL shortening which can be done on-the-fly.

It took me less than a minute to download. If you've got Google Chrome, you can download the app from the Chrome shop for free here. Otherwise, TweetDeck is also available for iPhones, iPads, desktops and Android.

Rainy weather music: Summer in the city - The Boys and Girls Club

2011-04-18T20:14:00.007+10:00

So it rained this morning and continued (for a while). I struggled to find a song to listen to today, but remembered 'Summer in the City' by the Boys and Girls Club.

I first came across this track, Summer in the City by the Boys and Girls Club in 2007 after reading a post by Analog Giant.

The link to download the mp3 did not work so I managed to download the mp3 from iTunes and eventually created a Youtube video for the song because there wasn't one.

Taylor K. Long from www.t-sides.com provides a review of the song that really sums it up:

“Summer in the City” is the right kind of electro pop for a lazy late summer. It’s got a solid beat that’s not quite fast enough for dancing, but great for waking up in the morning or walking down the street. The vocals are a soft and tongue-heavy purr, building a picture of the typical summer romance – afternoons spent at home in bed, the kind of commitment that needs no declaration of its loyalty beyond frequent time spent together.

It’s a gracious anthem for those of us wanting to make the most of these last hopeful summer nights.

Enjoy!
Spowf

If you love it so much, you can download the track for $1.69 on iTunes here!

World Music: Zimbabwean artist Oliver Mtukudzi

2011-04-16T19:34:00.006+10:00

I just visited my friend, Tawanda's blog, Thoughts, Experiences and Insights.
A proud Zimbabwean, his post Soundtrack to my life cont.. really made my afternoon. I am calling today a spiritual mental health day.

This song by Zimbabwean artist Oliver Mtukudzi aided that effort.

Face of a dancer from the Alotau Canoe Festival

2011-04-16T19:04:00.005+10:00

If you remember, I wrote a post about Michael Fletcher's beautiful footage taken for North Star Cruises. I somehow, ended up on Flemming Bo Jensen's blog. Flemming is a self-described photographer, traveller, dreamer and nomad.

I found a particular post on Papua New Guinea in particular. Her images taken at the Alotau Canoe Festival of a strikingly beautiful, local, male dancer (see image on left -
Source: www.flemingbojensen.com)

I'm seriously contemplating getting a well-known local Papua New Guinean painter, Jeffry Feeger to paint this.

John Pilger on Obama and Obama, the brand

2011-04-16T16:46:00.004+10:00

"Real activism has little time for identity politics" - John Pilger

The Political economy of everything that's wrong in PNG by the Namorong Report

2011-04-11T13:26:00.005+10:00

I recently signed up on Twitter about two weeks ago and searched 'Papua New Guinea' to start seeing which fellow New Guineans were on Twitter. I scrolled down the list and started following a few random names that had interesting (if any) filled bios.

I began following Mangimosbi and today only visited his twitter profile and read replies to a post he had published on his post called The Namorong Report.

He claims to a medical school drop-out but after reading his post "The Political Economy of Everything That's Wrong in PNG", I don't see why he can't be published.

Martyn Namorong, aka Mangimosbi writes about the education trap that is the Papua New Guinean education system.

Excerpts include:

The solution is not necessarily to 'teach a person how to catch fish' but to give them a net. I believe it's now fair to comment that microfinance institutions in Papua New Guinea have failed in providing people that net. Politicians, Churches, NGOs and business interests have been excellent distributors of free handouts instead of the 'net'. The net I'm referring to is the ability to trade goods and services and/or labour. Our rural people need efficient and affordable transport networks to move goods to local and global markets and to access services. Our urban people need jobs or financial assistance to start small businesses.

Quotable quotes include:

"I believe change is driven by innovation and innovative people are empowered people."

"I don't dream anymore, I am grounded in the reality. I grapple with the facts as they are. Perhaps there are too many visionaries and dreamers such that no one is there to deal with the reality of life in Papua New Guinea. Even a vast majority of people who a trapped like me do not wish to deal with reality. That is why fast money schemes continue to thrive and voters are gullible towards politicians."

Masalai blog, you should definitely contact this young bright man and include him in the next Forum you chair.

Revolution in the Arab World

2011-04-07T13:49:00.007+10:00

For those of who have not subscribed to foreignpolicy.com I suggest you as being a subscriber has it perks. Foreign Policy is published by the Slate Group which is a division of the Washington Post. I just have downloaded an eBook for only US$4.95 for a special report done by Foreign Policy called "Revolution in the Arab World".

Edited by Marc Lynch, the co-editor of The Mideast Channel, FP editor in chief Susan Glasser, and managing editor Blake Hounshell, Revolution in the Arab World: Tunisia, Egypt, and the Unmaking of an Era, is an exclusive new ebook that offers an authoritative look at the rapid reordering of the world's most strategic region and the dilemmas it presents for American power.

With contributions from noted writers Issandr El Amrani and Ashraf Khalil to bestselling authors such as Robert Kaplan and leading U.S. policy experts like Aaron David Miller, the six chapter book includes the prescient rumblings of revolution noted by Amrani and other writers in FP over the last year, a dramatic re-telling of the drama in Cairo's Tahrir Square, deeply reported articles on the behind the scenes players who drove the revolutions, and insights on Washington's back-stage drama over how to respond.

Published in real-time and available to readers on their Kindle, iPad, and computers , Revolution in the Arab World uses new technology to tell the story of the uprising that continues to spread throughout the Middle East and North Africa.

Excerpt from Synopsis:

Where did this wave of anger come from? Why did it begin in Tunisia, and what does it mean? FP's special report starts with a revelatory first chapter that shows how the revolutionary rumblings were ignored, dating back to Issandr El Amrani's prescient warning to Barack Obama in January 2010: Egypt, he wrote, could be the ticking time bomb that overwhelms your international agenda. The coverage also includes a dramatic day-by-day retelling of the battle to hold Tahrir Square, insider accounts of Washington's flip-flopping and struggle to keep up with events, and some of the world’s leading authors and experts, from James Traub to Gary Sick to Robert D. Kaplan, on where we go from here.
Consider it a guidebook for these revolutionary times.
Click here to purchase Revolution in the Arab World.

Cultural resurgence - not rebellion

2011-04-06T19:04:00.004+10:00

Pacific Pulse visited the Festival of Pacific Arts in 2008 and covered a story about the resurgence of traditional tattooing amongst Pacific Islanders - a tradition that had been discouraged by earlier missionary settlement in the last century. I personally had planned a trip to my grandmother's village in Yule Island over the Christmas holidays recently solely to get inked - to honour my grandmother, who is almost in her 90s. Taita, my grandmother traditionally was required to have her entire body (like many other girls on our island) to get her entire body tattooed as a sign of matury and womanhood when she reached puberty. As a young Papua New Guinean who left Papua New Guinea in my early teens, I have confronted issues of who I am, and my personal cultural identity. It is said that in order to know who you are, you need to know where you come from and it has given me a sense of immense pride knowing that I come from a rich cultural background. Thus, in order to celebrate the women before me and to gain the cultural strength to develop an individual identity in the 21st century, I must first know the history and traditions of my people. Click here to watch Pacific Pulse's Episode here.

Images by Jes Aznar - Papua New Guinea Confronts Development

2011-03-31T12:31:00.004+10:00

Photographer, Jes Aznar of the New York Times has taken a few compelling and thought-provoking photos that address key development issues that Papua New Guinea will address, ones which depend upon whether the economic benefits of the PNG LNG project in turn address the social and development issues which stain the country's reputation. Click here to be transferred to the nytimes.com to view a slideshow of the images.

PNG LNG Riches May Not Help Papua New Guinea

2011-03-31T11:37:00.005+10:00

Norimitsu Onishi's article in The New York Times Online, "Riches May Not Help Papua New Guinea (October 25, 2010), Although project-developer, ExxonMobil has stated that it "seeks to create long-term economic and social benefits from its projects and prescence" and "help local businesses to develop proper governance systems" - in reality, that long-term goal is a far-fetched one. Although some of the money has seeved down into the wallets of ordinary Papua New Guineans, some think that Papua New Guineans are not ready to for that kind of money. I agree. With sentiments brewing about how this project has the potential to largely boost Papua New Guinea's economy by up to 80% and create thousands of jobs that will benefit Papua New Guineans and the local economy, under the country's current political and social structure, it seems unreasonable to agree that these estimates will in turn create an opportunity for the government to address current oustanding corruption and transparency issues, increase and improve the service and delivery of basic services to the majority of its population. Yes, projects such as the LNG PNG gas project have the opportunity to transform the and improve PNG's economy, however, economical benefits need to be balanced with measures that aim to also address oustanding social and development issues. Papua New Guinea will only benefit in the long-term if ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND POLITICAL issues are addressed in order for the overall welfare of the country to improve.

Adventures in Paradise: Images of Papua New Guinea by Michael Fletcher

2011-03-30T17:20:00.011+10:00

Hi everyone:)

I do apologise for the MIA situation.

I have since just come across some extremely stunning video imagery taken by Michael Fletcher who is the twin brother of premier Australian landscape photographer, Christian Fletcher. while searching "Papua New Guinea" on Twitter.

HauteOC Traveller tweeted about an interview conducted with Michael Fletcher. Michael is a videographer himself however, his twin brother, Christian is one of Australia's premier photographers (he recently won 4 awards at the Australian Professional Photography Awards 2010).

My goodness but WOW! I remember why I'm proud to be Papua New Guinean again:)

Images Of Papua New Guinea - Scene 1 from Michael Fletcher on Vimeo.

PNG bans legal challenges against resources projects

2010-06-02T16:46:00.001+10:00

PNG bans legal challenges against resources projects
Posted Mon May 31, 2010 8:23pm AEST on ABC.net.au

Papua New Guinea's parliament has passed legislation effectively banning anyone from using the courts to stop resource projects.

Amendments to PNG's Environment Act mean approvals granted by the environment department's director cannot be challenged in court.

It means people worried about the environmental impact of a resource project can no longer mount a legal challenge to the approvals.

The changes follow complaints from the mining industry after landowners won a temporary injunction preventing a Chinese-owned nickel mine from dumping waste into the sea off Madang.

Environment minister Benny Allen says the extraordinary measures are in the national interest.

Lawyers say the amendments also mean people cannot seek compensation for environmental damage.

101 East: Chinese migrants face PNG wrath

2009-09-30T15:56:00.003+10:00

Images: PNG Mourns Kokoda Trek crash victims

2009-08-15T12:21:00.004+10:00

View a slideshow of more images from the Airlines PNG crash here.

No Survivors on Kokoda Track Airplane Crash

2009-08-13T13:51:00.000+10:00

Time for change is NOW

2009-08-10T10:59:00.003+10:00

Got an emailed attachment in my inbox this morning - a signed petition/statement from a number of members of parliament in relation to the pending vote of no confidence against Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister, Sir Michael Somare.

It's worth a read.

Download the report here (right click, save target as):

Papua New Guinea Opposition Media Campaign 2009

Perfectly Frank

2009-08-06T18:51:00.002+10:00

"We are not going to have an election just to please Australia and New Zealand. That's not going to happen".
- Frank Bainimarama

He's been called a dictator, a disgrace and a blot on democracy in the Pacific, but Fiji's interim Prime Minister, Frank Bainimarama, says he just wants to make his country a better place.

In a rare interview with Mark Davis he comes out fighting against his critics...on SBS's Dateline (on Sunday, August 1, 2009).

Al Jazeera's Inside Story: What do Iran's reformists want?

2009-07-23T14:29:00.001+10:00

"...Anger and deadly violence in Iran escalate, despite tough warnings from the country's supreme leader. As the protests continue, what do reforminsts want exactly? What will become of their movement? And can they shake the foundations of the Islamic Revolution?"

Documentary: The battle between Moderate and Radical Islam

2009-07-23T14:16:00.004+10:00

Since yesterday, I've been busy working on a briefing analysis that I need to present to a group of highly opinionated I.R. students. I need to present an analysis on the bi-lateral cooperation between Australia and Indonesia as a result of the Bali attacks on October 12, 2002.

Whilst researching for this topic, I came across the following documentary, by Al Jazeera, in all its entirety conveniently available on YouTube.

Note that Indonesia is the most populous Muslim country in the world. Contrary to the beliefs and actions that are often referred to as "Islam radicalism", Islam is actually a a religion of tolerance and peace. Members of Jemaah Islamiah (JI) interpret the teachings of radical Islamist ideology as reaffirmed in such radical "boarding schools" (such as the one that Abu Bakar Bashir is the principal of) and are consequently encouraged to idolise posters of prominent jihad leaders such as Osama bin Laden (its true, watch the doc below). Such schools of teaching are actually breeding grounds for "terrorism" (a Western concept) however, the students of such schools are really "soldiers of war". I think that Indonesia needs to really take a firmer stand against such institutions as the curriculum that they have encourage these kids to see the world in a "us vs them" paradigm. Even though Indonesia is a developing democracy (after the fall of Suharto), all its citizens have the freedom to worship what ever religion they choose. However, like the anti-Semitic movement that dominated Germany's Nazi Party which eventually lead to WWII, this 'jihad' against non-Muslims (The West predominantly) is escalating as we speak.

Indonesia: Hearts and Minds (Part 1)

Indonesia: Hearts and Minds (Part 2)

Indonesia: Hearts and Minds (Part 3)

Educate me

2009-07-09T19:45:00.007+10:00

In an earlier post, "Revolution and Civil Rights - Are they mutually exclusive" I concluded that a large segment of the protestors in the current Iranian crisis has resulted in international pressure mounting especially from the United States.

However, at the commencement of the G8 Summit this week in L'Aquila it has been argued by Russia that the violence in Xinjiana and in Iran are 'internal matters' and therefore should not be considered as a matter of discussion at the G8 summit. However, this has been opposed by US President Barack Obama, as well as the leaders of both France and Britain who want to increase international pressure against Tehran.

In a statement on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton declared "We would ask the world to join us in imposing even stricter sanctions on Iran to try to change the behaviour of the regime".

Clinton's statement reiterates similar sentiments made by President Barack Obama during his visit to Russia earlier this week in which he stated that the issue of Iran's capabilities need to be resolved through 'diplomatic means'. However, he also stressed something else important:

"the United States reserve(s) the right, and I as commander-in-chief reserve the right, to take whatever actions are necessary to protect the United States."

The perception of Iran as a perceived threat to the United States as a result of their nuclear weapons build-up is a highly complex issue. But I'm sure wondering whether the United States has really vital interests in Iran that are at stake? I mean, the perceived threats of North Korea's missile tests and now Iran? Are the current tensions on the streets of Tehran exercabating public perception of a possible intervention in Iran if other diplomatic channels fail?
Educate me.
Spowf.

Related news articles:

Obama urges Iran to 'stop all violent and unjust actions'

Another day at the office for Ban Ki-Moon

2009-07-09T19:02:00.005+10:00

There has been much debate (especially in my IR tutorial) regarding Ban Ki-Moon's performance so far into his five year tenure at Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Some have argued that he is trying to accomplish too much.

I think we can argue that he is trying to achieve too many things but we must also remember that this man is the Secretary of the United Nations. In his role, he doesn't have the 'privelege' to choose which issues he should choose to address and issues he can't put on the agenda and present it into a small, neat portfolio to the world. Unlike self-interested governments who focus predominantly on domestic national issues, the United Nations has a larger amount of transnational issues to raise public awareness about and help resolve. I think as the dominant international organisation, he is doing a great job by educating the global international community and reminding them of the plight of others around the world. If he failed to raise such issues through the media especially, as individuals, we may not be as educated and be as inquisitive into these issues if he completely failed to acknowledge them. Failing to acknowledge these issues, would undermine the strife and violations that are occuring and eventually we would even further marginalise the importance of these issues.

Put yourself in his shoes. What gives anyone the right to say that the genocide in Sudan is less important//more important than the economic global crisis for example. To argue one case against another, would create a lot of negative responses from all sides. As the lives of millions of people have been affected by both issues - the pool of poor and vulnerable people is just too large to not address.

It's just another day at the office for Ban Ki-Moon.

and to reiterate Ban Ki-Moon it can be either a "make it or break it year full of issues that aren't solved into a make it work year full of solutions."

:)

Revolution and Civil Rights - Are they mutually exclusive?

2009-07-09T18:27:00.007+10:00

In an interview on CNN's American Morning (June 22, 2009), John Roberts interviewed Hamid Dabashi, a professor of Iranian studies based at Colombia University. Dabashi stated that Iranian protestors want civil rights not a revolution.

Read the transcript of the full interview here.

RGarcia posted the following comment:

Don’t listen to the “so-called” expert who says that this is not revolution being demanded. Listen instead to the voices on the ground in Tehran…the voices of those young brave men and women, the voices of those interviewed over the phone by cnn, like the young man pleading with the international community for support by vehemently pointing out that Ahmadenijad’s rule is now illegal and that a new “structure” of government is needed and that the structure of government with Ayatollahs has got to go; When we hear chants of “death to Khamenei ” [Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei], and when we hear others like the son of the former late Shah of Iran who says that he sees now the biggest threat to the current regime since 1979….when we listen to all of these people, the result is quite clear – the people of Iran want nothing less than a revolution, which ovbviously INCLUDES civil rights for its people. Yes, the current Iran constitution provides for civil rights for its citizens, but the current system of government in which there is a ’supreme leader’ is very loudly being opposed. So, please pay little attention to this ‘expert’ (Hamid Dabashi). The people of Iran very obviously are showing that they want nothing less than a revolution which includes a system of government by the people and for the people (and this includes civil rights)…..Revolution and Civil Rights are not mutually exclusive….Rene from Dallas.

Personally, I think that had President Ahmadenijad’s initially been smart enough to have predicted the possibility of riots on a large-scale such as this, and thus opted to have a re-election...the situation would never have exercabated. It would have been more 'democratic' to acknowledge the civil liberties of its citizens as opposed to suppressing their rights to freedom of speech by placing thousands of soldiers on the streets.

President Ahmadenijad seemingly undemocratic response therefore lives little faith in the majority of the Iranian population who now will opt for an overthrow of the current system of governance. What was initially an exercise of civil liberty through peaceful protests and gatherings (although highly emotive) has resulted now in a highly escalating situation that will inevitably either require a peaceful solution or international humanitarian intervention through the use of military force. Only God knows what'll happen then.

NOTE:

Despite his title, President Ahmadenijah does not hold the highest constitutional office in Iran. The highest constitutional office belogns to the Supreme Leader of Iran who is Ali Khamenei, also the commander in chief of the armed forces of Iran (as stipulated in Article 113 of the Constitution of Iran).

Classixx 2009 Australian Tour, Brisbane

2009-06-14T20:54:00.004+10:00

So who's coming?
See you there. Isn't this just a co-incidence?

June 2009: Ipod playlist

2009-06-14T17:35:00.003+10:00

So I know it's winter....

2009-06-14T16:17:00.006+10:00

But just to help keep you warm... I thought this might help...

If you love it so much, download it here.

Elie Wiesel: up close and personal

2009-06-10T14:51:00.007+10:00

If you watched President Obama's speech in Cairo, you would note that he mentioned that he was going to Buchenwald after Cairo. At Buchenwald, President Obama not only had a tour of the infamous concentration camp which claimed to kill 50,000 Jews --he was joined by the German Chancellor as well as the 1986 Nobel Peace Prize leaureate, Elie Wisel.

If you recall, at President Obama's speech in Cairo, he consistently stressed the importance of fostering religious tolerance.

Sooooooooooo....

I've included a youtube video featuring almost an hour and a half worth of footage that was filmed of a presentation by Elie Wiesel to a 2000 person crowd in Chicago.

It's part of the The Arthur N. Rupe Distinguised Dialogue Series hosted by the Boston University.

It's a different speech to one that Elie Wiesel is used to giving - he is invited as part of this Series to talk about himself and as you will find out, quite humously does so. Quite a funny bloke.

Watch President's Obama's Speech, Cairo 2009

2009-06-10T12:52:00.006+10:00

Last week Tuesday, I attended a seminar presented by the U.S. Consul General , Judith Fergin titled "The U.S. - Australia relationship: Confronting global challenges together." During the speech, she noted that President Obama was delivering a historical keynote address in Cairo that same afternoon.

I didn't get a chance to watch it live and if you didn't get a chance to either, here it is.

Spowf

Note: subtitles are available, click the CC option on the selection above.

Yes, we call it diplomacy, Minister!

2009-06-08T17:17:00.002+10:00

Just for laughs: diplomacy explained artistically (and as some may argue...honestly)

Encouraging diplomacy through virtual worlds

2009-06-08T16:56:00.006+10:00

Hey guys,

This is very interesting. Pretty much, we all know how technology has benefits and disadvantages. However, as I've just discovered (didn't know a thing about virtual world's before watching this vid), modern technology, in the case of virtual worlds, can both be a form of entertainment and fun as well as a medium to promote understanding between those who view Islam as a religion that breeds hate and violence (which is undoubtedly incorrect) to one of peace and tolerance.

Personally, I know I won't be creating an avatar of myself (if you have please let us know) so we can check it out and maybe (just maybe) be convinced to create a 3D impersonator of myself.

Happy viewing,
Spowf

Irony at It's Best

2009-06-02T16:45:00.004+10:00

Received a two-line email from Tama today:

90 people get the Swine Flu and everybody wants to wear a mask.
A million
people have AIDS and no one wants to wear a condom.

The School of St.Jude's, Tanzania

2009-05-29T10:25:00.005+10:00

Guys this is sooo interesting...read about what this woman has done....i had my first Cultural and Ethics tutorial and we were examining the quote: "the unexamined life is not worth living" - Socrates (469-399 BC). And my tutor mentioned that when we start to analyse (maybe overanalyse) certain aspects of what our roles as individuals are when it comes to alleviating poverty, we can critically analyse ourselves and say that "yes, i do contribute to poverty". Then this morning I got my ticket for this seminar which will be held next tuesday and just read the background on the presenter, Gemma Sisia...read it:

PRESENTER: Gemma Sisia
In 2002 a young lady, Gemma Rice (now Gemma Sisia), from a sheep farm in Australia, opened a small school, St Judes School, in Northern Tanzania with the help of her family, friends and local Rotary Club. What started with only a handful of children and one teacher is now a thriving school of over 1000 children, 130 teachers and 200 staff.
Over 90% of the children at the school receive a totally free education as local and international sponsors individually cover the costs of not only the educational fees but also the uniform, stationery, transport, hot meal, snacks and drinks of each child. What makes this school even more special is the fact that this success comes about due to the group effort of thousands of ordinary people from all over the world coming together to do something quite extraordinary.

Visit: The School of Jude's website here.

Gemma'a two sons, Nathaniel 7, and Jacob 5, are sooooooo cute!

( Source: The School of St. Jude's site)

Featured documentary: India Reborn

2009-03-06T18:29:00.003+10:00

Ex-Guantanamo Bay detainee is released

2009-03-06T18:10:00.008+10:00

After seven years without trial, Guantanamo Bay Prison detainee Binyam Mohamed has been released from the controversial prison.

I'm aware the when David Hicks was released, there was an enforced media ban on him which prevented him from speaking publicly about his ordeal.

Since, his release - Mohamed's lawyers have requested that President Obama release documented evidence (including photographs) which detail abuse and torture inflicted upon Mr. Mohamed during his incarceration.

My question is: Can Binyam Mohamed sue the United States government? If so, on what grounds?

Through their eyes: The Darfur Genocide

2009-03-02T19:45:00.008+10:00

I've recently signed up to be a member of The Hub which is the world's first participatory site where individuals, groups, networks and organisations can bring their stories of human rights abuses and draw the attention of citizens worldwide. Members can upload videos, photos or make comment on posts. It's a great site - volunteers all over the world with acclaimed human rights advocacy organisations such as Amnesty International make frequent postings as well.

Well, so we all know that George Clooney didn't rock up to this year's 81st Annual Academy Awards...instead he was briefing U.S. President, Barack Obama and Vice President, Joe Biden on the ongoing conflict in Darfur, Sudan. This genocide has been going on for a few years now and the fact that someone of George Clooney's celebrity and association with the United Nation's (he is a U.N. Messenger of Peace) brings great publicity before this modern day genocide went off the radar. You would have thought that world would have taken a more firm stance in the aftermath of Rwanda.

The Sudanese government has time and again denied supporting the mass killings and atrocities that have been instigated by the Jajaweed Militia, however, witnesses continue to raise claims about Government helicopters being used in the assault against innocent civilians. To difuse the Government's rejection of any involvement, video below is a shocking testimony from four alleged perpetrators who have been involved in the Sudan crisis - one was a senior officer in the Sudan Army Force, one a high-ranking Janjaweed commander, another a Janjaweed footsoldier, and the last a Sudanese soldier. In this video you see the genocide through the eyes of these four men. They give very key details about who were financiers behind some of the attacks through to detailed accounts of some of the attacks. The stories of these four men make a direct link between the accounts of witnesses claims and their own experiences in the lies that the Sudanese government has been telling the world over and over again. Phil Cox, an independent film-maker who assisted in the production of this film states the importance of this footage as being "the first time that the people can see a Sudanese, Arabic-speaking, high-ranking commander saying that 'We did this.' It never happened before." In a nutshell, the testimonies of these four alleged perpetrators could be used against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir and others if this case was to go the the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Watch the video here.

Related articles:

Group releases film allegging Darfur war crimes - International Herald Tribune
Shocking video testimony from Darfur perpetrators (Aegis Trust) - By Samir Padania, The Hub online

Get it right, Buai Chewer

2009-03-02T12:36:00.004+10:00

(Mustard, Betel Nut, and Lime)

This post in retaliation to an article posted in the Post Courier's Viewpoint Section entitled "Get right NCDC with your buai ban" by Buai Chewer:

"...Your supporters can then go around and collect the rubbish in their trucks twice a day and while doing so the public is educated on how to dispose of their rubbish properly instead of going around in convoys harassing people".
Read the full article here.

I agree with Buai Chewer that more bins need to be located in smart spots - locations where betel nut chewers can easily dispose of the betel nut shell itself instead of throwing it on the ground and littering public areas. One thing I've noticed (and I'm sure every other Moresby-ean) is the spilling of 'red blood' on our streets and walkways. This 'red blood' itself isn't actually 'human blood' but the product of a chemical reaction between the lime, mustard and saliva in the mouth. If not swallowed, a lot of betel nut chewers usually spit this out of their mouths onto our walkways and from their moving vehicles onto our roads. If the purpose of the betel nut ban is to promote cleanliness and hygiene in Port Moresby, in order to also prevent betel nut chewers from ruining our pathways and especially our roads, (1) all buai chewers on our PMVs (Public Motor Vehicles) should be refused entry on all our PMVs if they are chewing betel nut. (2) NCDC should also enforce all betel nut chewers to carry a plastic bottle (for example only) to spit into instead of smearing betel nut spittle publicly.

"Buai selling (betel nut selling) is their lifeline and as soon as they are deprived of their income..." - Buai Chewer

Growers, PMV operators and village people will not be affected by the betel nut ban - they can still grow, distribute and supply betel nut vendors! The current betel nut ban only restricts WHERE betel nut vendors can sell betel nut. They still can sell betel nut - just not on public property. This is legally enforceable because first of all, betel nut sellers who sell betel nut in public places do not pay the people that the NCDC contracts to clean up the streets. By restricting betel nut vendors to sell betel nut only on private property reduces the costs that the NCDC has to cough up paying street cleaners and also gives the responsibility of cleaning entirely up to the betel nut vendor. Which is very fair. Think of it as a form of 'corporate responsibility' - only on a smaller business scale. In addition, the fact that NCD govenror, Mr. Powes Parkop has established a taskforce of enforcement officers - they aren't mobilised to 'harass' people as Buai Chewer suggests. Yes, they may be intimidating but this is not unlawful harassment. These betel nut sellers know it is illegal to sell betel nut in public places.

By banning the sale of betel nut in public places - there is only a slight change (as opposed to complete difficulty) in terms of moving and purchasing betel nut, I've made a few suggestions to make purchasing betel nut, more 'efficient' for betel nut lovers:

know your 'suppliers' and their location. Liase with them. Get their mobile numbers if you're that desperate. If you can't go to them, let them come to you! Most importantly, know where they live so you can go to their house and buy it. This all sounds very hilarious but I can't figure out anything more practical. It shouldn't prove too difficult as there is a high probability that there is at least one betel nut vendor who alread resides on your street/has a betel nut stall on their property.

Buy in BULK. Simply, less trips and frustration in finding and locating your supplier.

Buai Chewer, I suggest you start to not only stop thinking selfishly, but start acting responsibly. If you haven't noticed, the Health Department, other NGOs as well as the National Capital District Commission (NCDC) have spent millions to educate citizens on how to dispose of their rubbish properly in paid TV, radio and print media. The argument that spending K80,000 so that "the public is educated on how to dispose of their rubbish properly" is a reckless argument. Obviously, lazy and ignorant people have failed to comprehend one-line advocacy campaigns such as "Please Help Keep Port Moresby Clean". It's time to toughen up.

Yes Buai Chewer, betel nut is here to stay, but please be smart and responsible.
Enough is Enough.

He doesn't mean to be rude...But

2009-02-26T18:53:00.002+10:00

he is undeniably sexy.

Who is he?

Simon Cowell, of course!

For someone who has been most noted for his controversial insults and wisecracks, I can't help but have a tinge of cheekiness everytime I watch episodes of American Idol!

Here are some of my favourite Simon Cowell quotes:

I hate political correctness. I absolutely loathe it.
If your lifeguard duties were as good as your singing, a lot of people would be drowning.
Not everybody is perfect, and I don't think we should be looking for perfect people.
Shave off your beard and wear a dress. You would be a great female impersonator.

Bored: Watch Simon getting punk'd here.

Danny Boyle wins Best Director Oscar for Slumdog Millionaire!

2009-02-23T13:11:00.017+10:00

Winners so far:

Milk
1. Best Original Screenplay
Slumdog Millionaire has won an Oscar in the following categories:
1. Best Cinematography
2. Best Adapted Screenplay
3. Best Sound Mixing
4. Best Film Editting
5. Best Original Score
6. Best Original Song
7. Best Director
8. Best Picture
The Duchess
1. Best Costume Design
Dark Knight
1. Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Heath Ledger.
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
1. Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Penelope Cruz
The Reader
1. Kate Winslet, Best Actress

I believe that Slumdog Millionaire has already cemented a definate win for Best Director and Best Picture.

Winners and Losers: The 2009 Oscars

2009-02-23T09:07:00.010+10:00

The red carpet has been rolled out and the excitment and tension has intensified.

In their respective categories, here is a short-list of who I think SHOULD win at todays' 81st Annual Academy Awards:

Best Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger in Dark Knight. Unquestionably.
Best Actor: Mickey Rourke. It's a serious toss between the star of The Wrestler and Sean Penn's portrayal of California's first openly gay elected official, Harvey Milk in Milk. It's been noted that the Academy in history have always taken preferrence for actors who have played the characters of famous individuals, however, my bet is on Mickey Rourke. When one considers the similarities between Rourke's own personal life over the last decade and the character he plays, you must have nothing but pure admiration for the strength and bravery of this actor who in this raw and honest portrayal, reveals himself.
Best Adapted Screenplay - Simon Beaufoy (Slumdog Millionaire) It's either Best Picture or Best Adapted Screenplay for Slumdog. The film deserves to win both categories out of its ten nominations tally.
Best Actress - Kate Winslet. Although a few reviewers have suggested that Kate Winslet's portrayal in Revolutionary Road is the film that should be the film receiving the accolades for the actress' performance, it is most likely that her portrayal in The Reader is the film that will win this category.
Best Actress in a Supporting Role. Undecided between Viola Davis (Doubt) and Marisa Tomei (The Wrestler)
Best Art. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

I will be updating my blog as the live ceremony progresses.

Anything could happen.

Arthos, Porthos and ??? The Question worth 20 million Rupees

2009-02-20T18:18:00.021+10:00

Ayush Mahesh Khedekar as young Jamal.

After receiving much exposure at this film awards season, I recently watched the internationally acclaimed film directed by Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire. At first thought and as per my previous Bollywood film exposure, I had assumed that Slumdog Millionaire would be typical of its predecessors - lots of singing, dancing, eccentric costumes accompanied by storylines that romanticise and celebrate the best of Indian culture and life.

Slumdog Millionaire does share the underlying theme that binds most Western (and Eastern) films of acquiring and earning love, however, the film provides the rare opportunity by allowing a larger audience outside of India to live and see life through the eyes of three young children who live in extreme poverty and experience painful experiences that neither of us would want to see happen to our own children. I believe this to be a more honest and realist portrayal of India - a well-directed film I would definately prefer watching than a perfectly presented, over-romanticised film about India.

Although, certain audiences have viewed this film to be a negative portrayal of a country also richly blessed with wealth and beauty, I know India (just as any other major developed city or country) too has its 'ugly' side. I don't believe I'm as close-minded, poorly educated and arrogant as a xenophobe who has an ill constructed perception about a country overwhelmingly rich in history and culture.

Told and seen through the eyes of the protoganist Jamal (Dev Patel), the movie's horrifiying detail is eased by the innocent, childish humour relayed throughout the script by the other two main characters - Jamal's brother, Salim (Madhur Pintal) and Jamal's love interest, Latika (Freida Pinto).

Among the criticisms of the film's portrayal of India ("a wasteland filled with horror stories of exploitation and degradation" as one critic put it), I believe it is important to remember the intention of the scriptwriter, Simon Beaufoy which was to convey "...the sense of this huge amount of fun, laughter, chat, and sense of community that is in these slums." I strongly believe that the storyline is highly motivational and uplifting.

As a member of the audience, I did not stigmatise nor limit myself to having a constricted and incorrect perception of India as being "one big slum." I guess if the story-line was different and proved to be a lot more unfortunate, then the grounds of arguing that the film was heavily biased could be justified. For example, what if the script had been different and limited the life of "The Three Musketeers" to a life only confined to the slum and their deaths were the result of a common-slum disease? Then I guess, this would be a very negative portrayal of India. This is not the fact in the movie where the lives of the three main characters is not limited to a life of slum-like dwelling and poverty-ridden experiences - we see India's highly visited tourist site, the Taj Mahal, appreciate and breathe the landscape of the interior of India as the two brothers, Jamal and Salim travel on a train, immerse ourselves in Hindi as the characters conversate etc. Unlike the practise of other Bollywood films I have watched that have preceeded Slumdog Millionaire, Slumdog Millionaire accounts and briefly draws the attention of a few segments of India (from the elite through to its slum-dwelling residents). Audiences see the real India- a country that is becoming one of the most competitive economies in the world - rich in its culture and heritage, yet still trying to overcome and solve its own social and development issues. To attest to this dilemma, Slumdog Millionaire has already been hailed by Wall Street Journal critic Joe Morgenstern as, "the film world's first globalised masterpiece." This a story, that is not only limited to the experiences of Third World Countries, but issues such as crime and poverty portrayed in this movie, also occur even in great major developed nations such as the United States of America. There is no need for a group of people to feel attacked or mispresented as poverty is a global issue and in this circumstance, I believe has not been used to humiliate or ridicule the circumstances of a single country.

This movie has not turned me away from visiting India one day and neither has it changed my perception of this Nation. Before my birth, my mother lived and travelled around India for two months and her admiration and love for the culture, cuisine and people further arouse curiosity in me til this day.

Just a thought...

2008-08-25T21:25:00.003+10:00

For those of you who have been following Papua New Guinean politics recently, one topic recently debated more in the media than it has been on the floor of Parliament refers to a recent investigative report done by the Post Courier. Not long ago, the newspaper headlined its front page with a report stating that US$40 million was deposited into a Singapore bank account - allegedly bribes from the logging industry to certain Members of Parliament. When one considers the lack of services and infrastructure that fails to reach the large majority of Papua New Guineans due to the injustice caused by the squandering of public monies, "the people's money", by corrupt politicians, people start to really get pissed off. I mean, wouldn't you? Think about it. When I first read this news article, I had imagined that anti-government sentiment would be brewing not just from anti-corruption lobbyists, but from all levels of society, beginning from the grassroots level. We are talking about a group of people who come from a country that is (and i stress) not poor, however have been subjected and deprived of a wide range of basic necessities such as health and education by a government that every now and then decides to allow its members a hefty allowance increase. Not that they seem to care much about also increasing the minimum wage of the average Papua New Guinean despite the fact that the cost of living has dramatically increased. It's when things like this happen that we begin to ask ourselves whether we should continue to tolerate the way we are being governed. In a normal democratic country, wouldn't you expect the head of the government to resign and let the rule of law prevail upon the discovery of such scandal and humiliation? Not quite.
Despite attempts by certain NGO's, individuals and anti-corruption bodies such as Transparency International to draw angst and resentment, all attempts did not produce such a result. Even the Opposition was gagged to raise questions on the floor of Parliament on this issue! So what hope is there when the House that sits our so called elected members - people that we vote to represent our best interests - are discouraged to let our concerns be heard?
Since, the Post Courier has stood by its report and handed it to the Ombudsman Commission, confidential briefs have been leaked to the media citing revolt and back-stabbing - certain members of the Prime Minister's cabinet are secretly pushing for the PMs possible referral to a leadership tribunal and more recently, the slay of words between Somare and former PM, Sir Julius Chan - after Chan publicly described Somare's leadership style to that of dictator, President Mugabe. Somare immediately retaliated describing Chan's time in the office of the Prime Minister as a historical hindrance to the development of Papua New Guinea.
It must be noted that corruption in our logging industry is not the latest scandal to have hit the fan. A number of reports by government authorities as well as external reports by the likes of the powerful World Bank have concluded that numerous logging operations in Papua New Guinea are illegal. Hooray! The truth is out and freely available. So what? Like the others that have come before it such as the infamous Moti Report, this too will get swept under the carpet as well as others that may "undermine Papua New Guinea's sovereignty", or "be a hazard to development". Thus far, anything that indicts Somare or tarnishes the reputation that he has earned, as "The Father of the Nation" will be rebutted and its grounds challenged. No play up here.
Although Somare assumed leadership through the democratic process known as an election as opposed to President Mugabe of Zimbabwe who assumed leadership, one thing is for certain: the rule of law in Papua New Guinea is severely undermined.
After so much exposure and expressions of revulsion from those who dared to speak, we haven't seen Somare use the same level of passion and flare that most politicians use when campaigning come election time...Why hasn't Somare used the same level of vigor to crack down on corruption within his own Cabinet. Or for that matter, prove and maintain his own innocence and integrity? What is there to hide or protect for that matter? This post is not to intentionally dishonor the contributions that our public servants have made to the development of our country, but to uphold the values of honesty, accountability and development that politicians over-use come speech time and importantly, to seek leadership. More vocal and hard-hitting evangelists of the law would argue that not all efforts have been fully exhausted. But we are lucky; we've still got forums to express our reactions. I've got my blog. How about the other eighty per cent of Papua New Guineans who live in rural areas and depend on a government that fails and cheats them repeatedly. Not merely by squandering millions and engaging in illegal practices but also in terms of representing them honestly and truthfully? What chance do they have when their representative-elect can't represent them? How do we evoke emotion, or better - nationalism, an identity as a collective? I believe that only until then, will we seem some definite change. Otherwise, those in power will remain comfortable because they haven't been hit hard enough to feel long-lasting tremors. To quote Thomas Jefferson: "The two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the Constitution so the second will not become the legalised version of the first".

Do you know what it feels like for a girl...

2007-11-15T16:21:00.000+10:00

It's funny just sitting here behind this computer screen and thinking of what title this post should be, but that moment of confusion was quickly cleared when Madonna's lyrics for her single 'Do you know what it feels like for a girl' quickly streamed through my head.

So I just received an email from a dear friend of mine, one whom I keep very close to my heart and also my unpaid, on-call, therapist who I will call Starfish (to prevent an abusive comment ensueing from her). But for those who are familiar with this blog, Starfish has managed to inspire me to publish this new post.

I found this recent email I received from Starfish just beautiful, in all its simplicity it really says a lot.

...we need to remember we are young, we are awkward, we are female. youth and
being female is possibly just two of the worst things. being young - means dumb,
unsure, little crazy , female - two minds, wants everything, picky, etc. damn.
when do we stop being young? or being female?
its hilarious what we do. i love it. i love being so imperfect and young. i look in the mirror at this face of mine, this pimply (haha) awkard look and i know one day i will look in the mirror and realise that this girl is gone because i will be a woman. i will not have this youth or that look in my eye that i do now. sometimes i think the
older, wiser starfish* is in me talking to me, looking at me in foresight and
telling me how lucky i am and i can honestly glimpse me, the 18 year old me who
has no fucken idea what shes doing and i am grateful that i am so aware that i
am who i am meant to be at this point in my life. one day, my hair won't be long
anymore and i wont wear as much make up and my skin will clear and my clothes
will be more conservative and simple, and i wont laugh as loudly, i wont drive
around in my little car tooting at hot boys, i wont be dancing in the bars at
clubs, i wont be flirting with older men, i wont be teasing young boys, i wont
be with my girls gossiping in cafes, one day i will lose all of this without
realising. it will all just go and something will come - a job, a family,
marriage, maybe deaths, maybe divorces, who knows, but right now - i am free of
responsibility and i can fuck around and not have to prove anything to anyone. i
dont have to be perfect, i dont have to be right, i can do whatever. we can do
that spowf. we are at our best, right now, this is us, so young, lets not grow
up yet man. lets just be a little crazy, a little childish, a little wild.
because we can.
i am just blessed by the people who enrich it and make me
that more deeper, that more wiser and all i think is that im so afraid i am
going to lose all this and not make the most of it and why the fuck do i make
such a big deal out of nothing? think about it. spowf, these guys, why waste
energy on that? i still have feelings for seaweed* and i am aware that he still
has feelings for me, but not now, i dont want to dwell on it or think about it,
i just wantt to get stoned with my girls and swim naked at the surf break and
drive out in my little car on the worst roads on this island. i want to sit on
facebook when im meant to be at work. i want to do everything fucken wrong. i
want to make mistakes so i can learn. i dont want to be sure of anything. i want
to just be a little dumb while i can, this is it. i want to kiss randoms and not
think 'ohh what will so and so think, does he like me, blah balh' who fucken
cares, argh.
this is our time to shine man, and i fucken intend to do that,
be it blind drunk or so stoned or high on life, whatever, i just dont care
anymore. im young and im going to have fun and be a girl.

"The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. "

- Albert Einstein

Note: This is my favourite quote.

Capitalism, globalisation and free trade: rhetoric versus reality

2007-10-12T15:20:00.000+10:00

So I've decided to start an assignment right and its about bloody time too! I don't think I've spent so much time (honestly speaking) sitting in this chair and actually using my study desk which is usually filled with drink botttles, an alarm clock that doesn't work and the occuring sight of neglected food and cutlery that haven't quite made it to the kitchen yet.

So while researching for this assignment, I came around a very interesting quote that made me question everything from what are our roles as individuals in society to improve the lives of those less fortunate than ourselves to having that 'inescapable' subconcious which makes each and every one of us a global citizen.

Here's the quote:

[T]he emergence of capitalism represents a culture that is in many ways the
most successful that has ever been deployed in terms of accomodating large
numbers of individuals in relative and absolute comfort and luxury. It has
not been successful, however, in intergrating all in equal measure, and its
failure here remains one of its major problems. It has solved the problems
of feeding large numbers of people (although certainly not all), and it has
provided unprecedented advances in health and medicine (but, again, not for
all). It has promoted the development of amazingly complex technological
instruments and fostered a level of global communication without precedent.
It has united people in common pursuits as has no other culture. Yet it
remains to be seen when the balance sheet is tallied whether capitalism represents the epitome of "progresss" that some claim.

- Richard H. Robbins, Global Problems and the Culture of
Capitalism (Allyn and Bacon, 1999), p.11-12

The last time I checked, the CEO of that U.S. multinational company had just received a large salary raise...but at whose expense? How about the low-income earning wage earner in the developing country which the same multinaitonal company has a factory. Don't get me wrong, but globalisation too has good points. It's just a matter of whose side you're arguing from.

***

“We welcome the process of globalisation. It is inescapable and irreversible.…” However, “…if globalisation is to create real peace and stability across the world, it must be a process benefiting all. It must not allow the most economically and politically powerful countries to dominate and submerge the countries of the weaker and peripheral regions. It should not be allowed to drain the wealth of smaller countries towards the larger ones, or to increase inequality between richer and poorer regions.”

- Nelson Mandela

What do you think? Not just about capitalism but the bull and hypocrisy of free trade ideologies that are meant to ensure equal economic benefits for everyone? Leave a comment!

O arise all you sons of this land

2007-10-03T23:34:00.000+10:00

Post Courier

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Motigate debate
gagged in Parlt

GOVERNMENT yesterday gagged the Opposition from
asking questions relating to two controversial issues – Motigate Affair and
Mobile War.
On the first day of the sitting yesterday, Parliament Speaker
Jeffery Nape walked in an hour after the ringing of the bells and stopped
Parliament from raising any questions or issues concerning the Moti affair.
Mr Nape said, “I understand that the matter is before the court or the
Defence Council, therefore I wish to inform Parliament that we should not
discuss it.
“Any questions relating to the Moti case will not be entertained
until the report is tabled before Parliament.”
And the Opposition decried
this and termed it dictatorial.
At a news conference attended by all
Opposition members, they said the gagging of debate on important issues
concerning the nation was a disgrace.
Opposition Leader Sir Mekere Morauta
said the Speaker misled the Parliament.
He told reporters that his office
checked with the Supreme Court only on Monday and there was nothing to say that
the Moti issues was before the courts.
He said the Opposition had some
questions regarding the issue and the report was explicit where it said laws
were broken and responsible people should be prosecuted.
Sir Mekere,
supported by his deputy Bart Philemon and former Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan,
said the recommendations of the report is clear and the alleged threats by the
PNG Defence Force to arrest the Prime Minister and NGOs’ outcry were symptoms of
the leaders not doing the right thing.
In saying this, the Opposition called
for the Prime Minister to step aside immediately.
“There is a growing chorus
of dissatisfaction everywhere.
“We are doing injustice to the people,” Sir
Mekere told reporters.
Sir Julius called on respective government bodies
like the Ombudsman, police and public prosecutor to act independently and act on
the recommendations of the Moti report.
Mendi MP Francis Awesa said there
seem to be two laws, one for the small people and the other for the leaders,
supported by Sir Mekere who said a small person gets belted up for stealing a
packet of biscuit and a leader gets free after all these allegations.
Meanwhile, attempts to ask the Communication Minister Patrick Tammur on the
alleged submission to the Cabinet was also gagged with the front bench of the
Government interjecting with points of order and calling on the speaker to rule
it out of order which the Speaker eventually did.
Parliament adjourned to
this morning at 10.

This article raised a number of questions. What does it mean to be independent and free? Are we really independent and free? As outlined in our National Pledge, do our leaders really pledge to:

"Build a democratic society based on justice, equality, respect and prosperity of our people"

Have Papua New Guinea's leaders become so ignorant and blinded by their own visions of personal wealth, status, power and self-interest? Is our society going to the dogs? Maybe one needs to provide certain public figures with clearER definitions of these fundamental governing principles, imperative to the promotion and enforcement of the rights of the men, women and children of any democratic country. It makes me wonder...

Setting the benchmark: Powes Parkop

2007-09-17T14:46:00.001+10:00

During his election campaign for the Moresby Regional seat, Powes Parkop was quoted as saying:

"I don't have millions of kina to give you but I have millions of ideas to share..."

Powes Parkop's swearing into office is a strong indication of the people's will and desire for a new change of leadership style as it has been publicly acknowledged that NCDC, as with most other public offices, has been the milking cow for too long - a haven for those tempted to make a quick buck and in the process, steal monies from the public purse. When I found out that a human rights lawyer had won the Moresby Regional seat and was the governor-elect for the National Capital District, I had felt an overwhelming sense of reassurance that there are truly inspirational Papua New Guineans, who use virtue and power not for the sole purposes of self-interest, status or wealth but who do have a passion to improve the lives of the marginalised and underpriveleged. Studying in the same field of profession as Mr.Parkop, a man I had never heard of or met, I now look up to this man as an inspirational role model for young Papua New Guinean's like myself, to actively play a role in the development of their country.

Last Friday's issue of The National Newspaper which included an article by Harlyne Joku entitled "Parkop suspends four senior execs" demonstrates the type of virtue and honesty that is reflected in this man's leadership.

NCD Governor Powes Parkop
yesterday suspended and charged four senior managers for alleged abuse, funds
misuse and fraud.The alleged anomalies against the city government were
committed between January and August this year, Mr Parkop said.The governor said
he would terminate the services of the manager for social services for failing
in his job.In a statement yesterday, Mr Parkop said prior to his swearing-in and
assumption of office last Aug 21, he had requested among other things the
commission’s financial report for the said period.“It had become obvious to me
that there was massive abuse of the commission’s during that period,” Mr Parkop
said.He further said the financial status and dealings of the commission had not
been secret and that he was advised by many people to terminate all his
managers.But Mr Parkop said that he had refused to do so to give them
opportunity to explain the figures in the financial statement.“This was to
ensure that whatever decision I make, it was directed at arresting the
problem
instead of undertaking a massive termination and replacement which
may not solve the problem of abuse and misuse of funds in the first place,” he
added.
Read the rest of the article here.

A few months ago, Kevin Pamba in his article "Parkos victory is a welcome benchmark" stated that "only time will tell how Mr. Parkop will reciprocate the overwhelming trust bestowed on him." I have a firm belief that the act of him suspending four senior managers for alleged abuse, funds misuse and fraud is a great cause for emulation. And for once, I am briefly persuaded and enlightened to observe that a segment of Papua New Guinean voters are not influenced by bribery, false promises, gifts or handouts, but have once voted with their conscience.

At war with the sea

2007-09-12T17:05:00.002+10:00

A recent report on global warming warned that entire
cultures are at risk of being wiped out if nothing is done. There is still
a lot of debate about whether rising sea levels and rising temperatures are the
result of pollution or simply normal cycles of climate change. But there's one
group of people (a group of people too close to home) that doesn't need any
convincing about this. In the documentary 'That Sinking Feeling', Steve Marshall
visits a group of islands in the South Pacific that seem to be disappearing one
hut, one garden, one village at a time.

- World's Untold Stories

Global warming effects on Cateret Islands Part 1

Global warming effects on Cateret Islands Part 2

Images from Riverfire 2007

2007-09-05T15:24:00.001+10:00

Taking things seriously

2007-09-05T13:32:00.000+10:00

My dearly father who is in Sydney at the moment attending the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Australia 2007 Business Summit gave me a call last night to remind me that he did not get a call from me on Father's Day only to hear me say that 'I was thinking of him?'.....but really had been seperated from my sim card celebrating Riverfire for most of the weekend.

I don't watch television shows that much. However, when I do it usually involves me and a litre of greek mango gelati watching something hilarious to console and comfort my barren mind. This usually involves me watching Thank God You're Here or some piece of comical commentary such as The Chaser's War on Everything.

Whether or not you have greek mango gelati, I thought I'd entertain you with a skit from Chaser's War on Everything borrowed from Myspacetv.com which tests how tolerant people are when it comes to the security arrangement surrounding APEC.

Make Poverty History images

2007-08-31T18:41:00.000+10:00

A few months ago, I made a post about Siobhan getting selected as a ZeroSeven Ambassador. I also promised to get some pictures off her and post them up. Well here they are: The wait is finally over!

"Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural"

MPH: Make Poverty History

It's Our Time

To Change

Make Poverty History!

The journalistic shot heard around the world

2007-08-29T22:05:00.000+10:00

Both these images have been strategically juxtapositioned in order to raise an issue that relates to the priority placed on events or people that are considered to be "soft entertainment news" and ones that register on a more important global agenda. Some critiques may argue that celebrity news is totally irrelevant and important air-time should not be dedicated to the lives of those who live 'comfortable' and 'priveleged' lives when the time set aside to feature such unecessary headlines may have covered other headlines that register on the economical, social or political agenda - issues that are more 'real'.

The 'journalistic shot heard around the world' was one which involved MSNBC's co-host and news reader Mika Brezezinski, in which she refused to read Paris Hilton's release from jail as the news lead.

"On June 26, 2007, near the
beginning of Morning Joe, Brzezinski
refused to read a report about Paris Hilton's release from
jail. One hour later during another news break segment, her producer Andy Jones
again pushed the story as the lead, ranking it over Republican Senator Richard
Lugar of Indiana's break with President Bush on the Iraq war,
which Brzezinski considered more important. After several unsupportive remarks
from host Joe Scarborough, she
attempted to burn the story's script on the air, but was physically prevented
from lighting it by co-host Willie Geist. She then tore
up the script, and one hour later, got up and ran another copy of the script
through a paper shredder retrieved
from Dan
Abrams's office. The incident was quickly popularized on the Internet, and
in the days that followed Brzezinski received large quantities of fan mail
supporting her on-air protest as a commentary on the tension between 'hard news'
and 'entertainment news."

(Source: Article on Wikipedia about Mika Brzezinski)

This video has raised a number of issues personally. Firstly, I admire Mika Brzezinski for her ability to actively stand and vocally argue her views for being 'such a journalist' as Joe Scarborough had called her. My question is to Joe Scarborough is: "If she is such a journalist, then what are you?" Obviously, Mika Brezesinki through her actions and views has expressed an absolute distaste and has obviously put her own career and job security on the line with her reactions. Unlike Joe Scarborough, she is not willing to compromise or sacrifice her beliefs and attitudes and conform to expectations of what people think she should do or say. Secondly, not only do Joe Scarborough's remarks connote a sense of misogynistic views that he has deep-rooted within his immature mind (as his actions and words suggest in the video), it is even more disturbing when he blesphemises with the following: "How do I further the kingdom of God on heaven". Seriously, what a PIG! Overall, I salute Mika Brzezinski on her ability to stand up for what she believed in - in front of millions of viewers, which compromised her career and job security, as well as for her ability to control and poise herself whilst arguing her point with two immature, unprofessional, pigs whose equivalents I would hope never to have as co-workers.

"To the news now..."

- Mika Brzesinki

My favourite mp3s at the moment: August

2007-08-21T21:46:00.000+10:00

I saw a UFO and nobody believes me

2007-08-11T01:01:00.000+10:00

Think stiff beats, thick bass lines, lush melodies, haunting vocals, rolling
guitar licks and urban tales of love and loss. It is part-melancholic beauty
but
for the most part, it's party mayhem...
(courtesy of Sneaky Sound System's myspace)

I just saw Sneaky Sound System live!

It was great! The sound audio guys could've done a bit better with organising the audio stuff better so that the vocals came out clearer (i'm not sure of the technicalities) but either way, it didn't matter because everyone knew the lyrics anyways.

I didn't have my camera with me but my friends did so when I get a chance to, I will post some cool pictures of them including sassy pics of Miss Connie Mitchell up!

True to any other great performances (ie where the audience gets what they want), the trio ended and exited the stage much to the surprise of their fans without singing their hit, UFO. When they did, MC Double D carried a banner with the words "I believe in you" when he exited. They came back on for an encore, after the audience chanted for "UFO" and then Black Angus said upon returning "This is for all of those that believed". The crowd when crazy, when the intro for UFO started!

My favourite song they performed live would've had to be 'Goodbye' because ... ahm, doesn't Connie's vocals just BRING IT! It gives me so much hope now as I look forward to Thursday, October 11th when Paul van Dyk plays at the Family!

"Woop Woop, when you run come around cos I know you're the talk of the town yeah" (R.I.P Natasja).

p.s. MC Double D has a new admirer! Ahah

The worlds No.1 DJ: Paul van Dyk is coming to Brisbane!

2007-08-03T12:58:00.001+10:00

Paul van Dyk is

coming to Brisbane Baby!

And guess who will be over 18?

M.E.

Jealous?

Searching for meaning

2007-08-02T11:41:00.000+10:00

Yu save bislama?

Meet another friend of mine: Yasmine. Yas, I know this isn't the hottest picture of you, but you are too damn cute!

She's Filipino and Swedish but considers herself an island girl at heart (born and raised in Vanuatu before she being 'shipped' to boarding school). At the age of seventeen, almost immediately after graduating she secured a governess position on a farm in Longreach outback Queensland looking after three kids all under the age of 6. Quite a feat that the kids (or even she) survived considering she didn't know how to cook! Anyways, after six months she decided that home (Vanuatu) was where the heart was so is now 'retired' and living at her beach house, living the lonesome idealist/dreamer's life. A life I too, wouldn't mind living.

The slideshow features pictures of her beachhouse and other surrounding areas in Vanuatu - of which I had the pleasure of visiting, compliments of my dearly father as a graduation present!

She just posted her first bulletin on her myspace. Here it is.

THIS IS MY FIRST BULLETIN. i thought i would take a break from the
following:

- swimming

- riding my bike (or my gardener's bike, sorry john)

- eating fresh fruit

- swimming

-body boarding

-verbally assaulting my dogs

-swimming ahahaha

-snorkelling

-lying in the sun

-looking at myself in the mirror and admiring my tan haha

- going into town to socialise briefly before repeating the above

-have spent five days literally by myself out here, first human being was
spotted yesterday (housegirl came back) yay!!but i wish i had a car. fuck that.
but am getting the tico this week, yeewww....despite sirens and graffitti and
stinkiness i feel so dumb doing this.

MISS THE FOLLOWING:kris,kat,nik,sof, nelle.

COME BACK AND ENJOY MY YOUTH WITH ME!!!!!!! dont go to uni or work!! we
will live off coconuts. and grow our own vegies and fruit. and kill our own
cows. and maybe swap our food for two chickens to eat and to have their eggs. we
will live without money....come on you five, come see me!!

Her bulletin brought back memories of life in the islands where everything is slow paced and sunsets never disappoint. Yas has always been vocal about her drive to travel the world and not care about superficial things. Before she left Brisbane for Vanuatu we had a conversation about how she wanted to experience life and how society's standards should not always be the driving force behind your life's decisions and dictate what you do in life. In her bulletin, she speaks of 'enjoying your youth', an ideal I am keen on pursuing especially at this pivotal stage in my life, something that seems so far away to grasp from the perspective of a uni student, yet something that funnily is still very tangible. This leads me onto questioning what our purpose, as individuals is in life?

I honestly don't want to be one of those people that finish their courses at uni and still feel undecided about my career and my future. I think this has a lot to do with discovering what each of our real purposes are. Our 'real purpose' must not be something that we feel obliged or pressured to accomplish because of societal of parental expecations however, it must be personal and something that you feel passionate about.

Okay, I am not overtly religious nor do I live a 'Christian life' but here is something from the Bible:

I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labour. Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.

Ecclesiastes 2:10:11

Kate Bush - Sunset

2007-08-02T11:02:00.000+10:00

Okay just got an email from the beloved brother, Manu over at Masalai in response to the featured video of the week of Kate Bush's track off her Aerial album, Sunset.

Email from Manu:

Hey Sofia,

How you been, just wanted to tell you that I’ve been
listening to that Kate Bush track on your blog over and over again. It’s so
soothing and calming. Thanks for that. When are you coming back, just asking
so
I can remind you that I want to get allot of music off you.

You
don’t have that Kate Bush song on in an album by any
chance???

Your
Bro
Manu

I replied:

I first heard that song about two weeks ago. I was watching FTV and
there was a tribute to Gianni Versace and they were playing this song in the
background and all I could gather was "sky of honey" in the lyrics and with
those magic words I googled it and found out the song title, artist....da da da.
It was released a few years ago on Kate Bush's long-awaited album, Aerial after
about a twelve year absence from recording. Whenever I hear it, I'm in total awe
of how life is truly beautiful and special. Despite all the
bullshit you go through in a day's work, you still have the
opportunity to witness nature unfolding and sharing one of its secrets
that only appears before dusk.
I wish I was at home, sitting on
the friendly French neighbour's driveway (who despite my obvious trespass still
smiles whenever he drives into his house) and silently observing the boats
and ships in the harbour, the traffic chaos in town as people scram in an effort
to complete the last tasks for the day before they go home...oh how I wish I was
sitting on Davetari Drive right now. Instead, I'm sitting here in
the cold, with NO PROPER SUNSET in sight, but STILL GLAD TO BE
ALIVE!
note: I've attached 'Sunset' mp3 in this email.
Enjoy!
Love
me!

For any fans of Kate Bush or just plain curious readers, download the mp3 shown below by right-clicking and selecting Save Target As on the drop down menu that appears.

Kate Bush - Sunset mp3

To bonk or not to bonk: that is the question

2007-07-18T19:51:00.001+10:00

Inspired by the famous line in Shakespeare's play Hamlet, the line"to bonk or not to bonk: that is the question" was used in a lecture I attended a few months ago. Although the lecturer posed this question objectively to demonstrate how cultural backgrounds affect attitudes towards sex (much to the amusement of the students present in the lecture theatre), this post will specifically look at why women have one night stands and how this supposedly "enthralling and exhilarating" experience has some rather negative consequences. In particular, the arguments of Amy in her post "An Open Letter to Mad Sheila" on the Feminist Reprise blog will be examined in order draw some feminist feedback on this debatable topic.

This post raised a number of issues which I believe require me to delve deeper in order for me to really establish what my personal stance on this controversial issue is.

First of all, I totally agree with the author in terms of women having the right to exercise sexual autonomy without being labelled a 'slut' or 'whore'. I believe that this form of labelling (either made by women OR men) not only spits in the face of women who have positively contributed to society, it is also an automatic insult and ignorance of a woman's intelligence and skills - outside of the bedroom. Not only is it bad enough to hear such insults being made by members of the opposite sex, it is even more questionable when made by WOMEN ourselves. It could also be argued that such insults are 'patriarchal terms' i.e terms developed by misyoginists (aka pigs) who have a warped perception of a world where there are no equal standards between the sexes - a world where women are inferior than men; a world where women must comply with male authority. In addition, a woman's compliance or subjectivity to 'patriarchy' is also an issue questioned by the author.

Undoubtedly, a one night stand involves the act of "picking up" with the express purpose of having sex with no initial intention of entering a long-term commitment. I agree with the author on the basis that having sixteen sexual partners in two years contributes to one's decrease in self-respect for her body and detrimentally affects one's self-esteem. However, I totally disagree with her blaming 'patriarchy' for her depressive state (ie feeling worthless).

"I was playing out a script written by patriarchy, one which says that a woman is
worthless unless she has a man, and the way to get a man is to be sexually
available. I believed—because patriarchy told me so—that by acting hawt and
sexxeee* enough, I could hook a man into staying with me."

I don't believe patriarchy dictates that women are incomplete or worthless without a man. I think there is a natural and biological reason why humans are attracted to each other. Patriarchy isn't to blame: it is due to our own mindlessness or lack of exercising our own individual intelligence, caution, power that dictates the decisions we make. I don't think that patriarchy should be given a name and be made out to look like a tyrant because once women start blaming supposedly conspirated ideologies, then our taunts and anguish over our supposed subjectivity and dominance by men is the product of our own lack of intelligence - we are incarcerated by our own thoughts. Women should stop looking for excuses and reasons to justify their misguided decisions (even if being drunk is to blame) and should start being assertive and taking responsibility for their own actions instead of replaying the 'damsel in distress' scene over and over again. Blame 'I' not 'It" - admit it was a mistake (if it indeed was) or be honest and say "yes, it was I who got too drunk and had no fckn clue what I was doing." Don't be fckn mindless but admit personal fault because immediately once you start blaming patriarchy, you contribute to your own subjectivity and inferiority.

I don't think all one night stands are bad at all. Yes, there may be occassions where you didn't need a penis in your vagina in hindsight, but I think that one night stands are great when the attraction is mutual and a high level of respect is exchanged - knowing that you aren't too drunk or mindless of the fact that he is not attracted to you, however you have provided with him with the opportunity of using your body. So therefore, I must once again disagree with the author when she states:

"I justified this behavior to myself, despite how unhappy it made
me, with the Cosmo ideology that“I don’t care about love, respect, and
all that boring monogamy stuff. I just want a good regular fuck, and I
don’t really care who it's with.”

Here Amy limits respect only to monogamous relationships. Respect and connection is essential for a one night stand too! When respect is not present, then maybe one should start questioning her own values and then maybe admit that she was indeed used for solely one man's sexual gratification and that as a result, she was degraded as a woman, blah, blah, blah. Next, she should ask one very serious question: was this self-inflicted? Think again next time...

An excerpt from the posting which I believe every woman should read in order to clarify her expectations about casual sex or even as a disclaimer/warning before engaging in such activities refers to the following:

"So to the woman who really, truly, honestly says to herself, "Gee, tonight I
just want a penis in my vagina. That's really all I want, and so I'm going to go
out and find that," I say, go sheila. But the minute any other desire creeps in
there--a yen for respect, say, for human connection, or even, dare I say it, for
"good" sex from a woman's perspective--I would counsel that sheila to hold her
horses. if you want to be cared about and listened to, if you have any desire to
be acknowledged as a complex human being with an intellect and a soul, I would
venture, random randy anonymous sheila, that fucking a stranger might not be the
most effective vehicle to take you to your destination."

Before I conclude and finish this post, I would like to refer to an excellent article I found entitled "Critique of hookups doesn't reflect reality" by Adda Birnir and Basha Rubin published in Yale Daily News (03.06.2007). Here is an excerpt:

"Neither casual sex or committed sex is an
unmitigated ideal; rather, it is how we approach them and what we expect of them
that becomes problematic. "

I will end this post with words I believe are very important (excerpt taken from same article):

"If we talk about “hooking up”
more, as a society, a community, or among friends, we can develop a vocabulary,
an understanding that it is deep and profound and complex and murky for all
parties involved — but can also be enjoyable, safe and even, dare we suggest,
beautiful... we believe that the answer is not to condemn
any of the behavior.... What our generation needs is to
forge a way to discuss these issues openly and honestly with our friends, our
lovers and our society at large. Of course, there is a problem that women often
feel abused or used by their casual sexual relationships. So, let’s create an
environment where women can assert themselves and their sexual and emotional
desires without being pushed into the old categories of chaste, respectable wife
or damaged slut. "

One night stands and feminist critique: why

2007-07-10T22:45:00.000+10:00

This blog posting is the result of about three semesters (six months) of English classes between Years 11 and 12 studying representations of gender and dissecting tonnes of material where constructions of gender were construed and at times, over analysed. Think of the provocative advertisements that challenge traditional constructions of gender (ie Voodoo advertisements) and/or reinforce traditional constructions of gender (ie the controversial Windsor Smith shoes advertisements).

Since being educated about such important issues, I have become more analytical and opinionated (at times explosive) about my reactions to 'sexist' or biased advertisements on television or in the print media. I'm at a stage of my life, where I am still developing my values and beliefs with relation to issues, some which involve me supporting feminist ideals as well as challenging or siding with alternative view points on confronting issues that women face everyday. Such issues range from 'breaking the glass ceiling' (ie climbing the corporate hierarchy), women's rights, equal opportunity....the list is endless.

However, tonight I'm particularly concerned about "one-night stands" having visited a couple of other blogs whose authors have quite openly expressed and commentated on several stances on this topic, a topic which leaves some of us tight-lipped and others more vocal.

Some of you may find critique in this posting, arguing that I am only seventeen and therefore should not be talking about such a 'taboo' topic, however, I feel that having being educated and exposed to such issues, I have a right to freely express what I think without giving a fcuk about what people may think or say.

So here it goes...(post coming soon!)

All I want is you - by u2 (Live in Milan Concert DVD 2005)

2007-07-05T18:38:00.000+10:00

Just woke up so I need something uplifting. First thing I did, checked out youtube for 'All I want is you' by U2 (Live in Milan from their 2005 world tour).

It's actually a love song and I believe was written by Bono for his wife, Ali. The violin and guitar by the Edge in this song mystify me! I'm in absolute awe everytime I hear the lyrics to this song. Well my interpretation of the lyrics is that this man wants a woman but she's preoccupied with material things (i.e. diamonds on a ring of gold).

PARKLIFE 2007 BRISBANE

2007-07-03T19:46:00.000+10:00

Guess what I found out about five minutes ago. Parklife Brisbane 2007 is going to be on the day before my 18th Birthday. It's an over 18s event, which means I can't legally enter - but there's always another way to get in. The line-up of DJs has got me so excited - it will be truly upsetting if I can't go. BUT I WILL GO! Someway...

I am dieing to party with:

Justice, Riot in Belgium, Kid (fuckn) Kenobi, MC Shureshock, Shapeshifter,
DJ (fcukn) Delicious (yum) and Stereo MC! Digitalism! (zdarlight) Goodwill! Muscles (last night I met a girl...we spent all summer drinking lemonade in hammocks....// Ice Creammm is gunna save the daaaaaaay)

Download ice-cream by Muscles here by right clicking, Save Target As...you know it.
I seriously want to GOOOOOOOOOO.

Visit: http://www.parklife.net.au/ for more information.

Currently, there hasn't been much said about the Brisbane event, but if I keep persisting then the website might get updated witht more information.

I seriously hope I go. It will be the best 18th birthday present EVER!

The BIG questions: Happiness, Individualism, materialism, poverty

2007-07-02T19:57:00.001+10:00

Had brunch today. Nothing really healthy or appetising - very boring start to my day: toasted white bread, heaps of margarine and strawberry jam with a hot cup of Milo...it actually made me sick later on during the day. Hint: it involved the 'forceful expulsion of the contents of one's stomach through the mouth' as Wikipedia describes it.

Anyways enough said, I like to read while I'm eating (well, at least when there's nothing else to stare at, apart from the walls).

I picked up the latest issue of The Weekend Australian Magazine. Flicked through a couple of pages. Went past a couple of articles - some which seemed rather 'far-fetched' especially considering I had just woken up. Hmmm. Flip, flip, flip. Next page. Bang. The words. Scribby in writing. But then after deciphering them with strained eyes, I could make out the only words spread out over two pages in capitals:

What do we mean by

Is affecting the way we live our lives?

Is the all there is?

is it a virtue?

Does exist?

The article entitled: "The Big Think" (dated 30 July 2007) discussed the link between the profession and everyday life. The discussion primarily focused on the views of some academics, or in this context, philosophers.

What grabbed my direct attention was probably the question: "Does God exist". At this stage in my life, I have spent a lot of time cross-examining what my core values and belief systems are. By inheritance (at birth), I was immediately labelled a Christian. However, after seventeen years and about three hours of that time sitting my my Human Rights and Religion lecture, I began to seriously question why I was a Christian/Catholic. Why was I a Christian? Do I really believe in the primary texts of Christianity such as the Bible and other divinities such as the Holy Trinity? During this crucial stages of 'self-discovery', from being strictly black and white about what religion I belong to, I shifted into the gray area and have since considered myself to be agnostic, ie believing in a higher power that is not necessarily the Christian's God. After a few months now, I caught myself having to rethink why I did no longer consider myself to be Christian.

This happened about two weeks ago, while I was having coffee with a friend, Kathryn. While chatting, an ambulance, sirens blazing and all was passing down the main road adjacent tto the coffee joint. In the midst of all this, I was aware of the ambulance and immediately did the sign of the cross (a habit I still do everytime I hear an ambulance drive past). This made me realise that Catholicism is truly beautiful with its dated traditions. I especially reflected on the sincerity and honesty of some the traditions that happen at mass and the Sacraments that I received while at Catholic School (ie baptism, confirmation, communion, reconciliation)....

PHUCK! i THINK I'M CHRISTIAN AGAIN!

welcome to my life! Just a bit indecisive LOL!

Ministry of Sound Sessions 4

2007-07-01T13:50:00.000+10:00

Went to a close friend's housewarming party on Friday night. She had the party downstairs in her rumpus room. She recently moved to Brisbane after securing a job with Leighton and has since been busy working on the Gateway Bridge project (she's an engineer - WE NEED MORE WOMEN IN MALE-DOMINATED PROFESSIONS).

After a couple of champagne bottles, continuous rounds of tequila shots - I again found myself losing all inhibitions and any sense of conscience. Surprisingly, I was able to control myself - there was no table-top dancing, well at least not by me :) I stuck mainly to the area between the projector screen (great lighting) and the bar (she's got a $30,000 entertainment system - that's actually insured...) I think it was the best housewarming party I've ever been to! I met a few interesting people :) - mostly people that work with her.

I got a chance to hear and review (finally) Ministry of Sound's Sessions 4, mixed by John Course and Dirty South.

It's 2CD compilation with about forty tracks:

Tracklist

DISC ONE
John Course

1. Gossip – Standing in the Way of Control (Headman Remix)
2. House Of Pain – Jump Around (Micky Slim Remix)
3. Toby Neal – Do You Really (Want My Love)? (Hook n Sling Remix)
4. Meck feat. Dino Lenny – Feels Like Home (TV Rock vs Dirty South Remix)
5. Alex Gaudino feat. Crystal Waters – Destination Calabria
6. TCS vs Level 42 – Lessons in Love (Mischa Daniels House Mix)
7. Armand Van Helden – NYC Beat (Original 12”)
8. The Sounds – Tony The Beat (Rex The Dog Disco Mix)
9. Jürgen Paape – Take That
10. Space Cowboy feat. Nadia Oh – My Egyptian Lover
11. Green Velvet feat. Walter Phillips – Shake And Pop
12. Electro Funk Lovers – Are You A Lover
13. Camille Jones vs Fedde Le Grand – The Creeps (Electro Funk Lovers Remix)
14. The Screetch – The Screetch
15. Katie Noonan – Time To Begin (Electro Funk Lovers Remix)
16. Jesse Garcia – Off Da Hook!
17. TV Rock vs The Dukes of Windsor – The Others (TV Rock Mainroom Mix)
18. The Potbelleez – Junkyard
19. Michael Gray feat. Steve Edwards – Somewhere Beyond (TV Rock Mix)
20. Mic Newman – Rhythm To Ya Hips (Mind Electric’s Twister Mix)
21. Mind Electric – Electrify

DISC TWO
Dirty South

1. Dirty South & Paul Harris feat. Rudy – Better Day
2. Ryan Murgatroyd feat. Trisha - Funk Country (Micky Slim Remix)
3. The Migrants – I Thought That (Boris Dlugosch Mix)
4. Claude VonStroke – The Whistler (Aston Shuffle Mix)
5. Cicada – Cut Right Through (DJ Delicious Remix)
6. Axwell / Angello / Ingrosso / Laidback Luke - Get Dumb
7. Freakx Brothers – Tension
8. John Acquaviva pres. Swen Weber – First Stroke
9. Tyken feat. Awa – Every Word (Dave Spoon Remix)
10. Tommy Trash & Tom Piper – F**k To The Bass (TT Electro Remix)
11. Arno Cost & Arias – Magenta (Dave Spoon Remix)
12. Federico Franchi – Cream
13. Goodwill & Tommy Trash – It’s A Swede Thing
14. Kaskade – Sorry (Dirty South Remix)
15. Tonite Only – Where the Party’s At (Dada Life Remix)
16. Sneaky Sound System – UFO (Van She Tech Remix)
17. Klaxons – Gravity’s Rainbow (Van She Remix)
18. Wink – Higher State Of Consciousness (Dirty South vs TV Rock Remix)
19. poxyMUSIC – She Bites (Swen Weber Mix)
20. Laidback Luke feat. Steve Granville – Hypnotize (Steve Angello Remix)

To find out more, visit tthe Ministry of Sound website here.

Overall, Ministry of Sound delivered once again. Being a fan of the indie/electro/house genres, I was blown away especially by some of the electro-house monsters esp. Armand Van Helden's – NYC Beat (Original 12”)...luuurve it!

(singing)

Up town, Down town,

Turn the beat around town,

Hip hopping, beat bopping,

There ’s no stopping to the sound of the New York City beat.

Press play...

Armand Vanhelden -...

I was lucky enough to score the whole compilation - FOR FREE!

I wish I could put the pictures of the party here, but to preserve the integrity (lol) of the attendees, I will hold onto that thought...for a really long time.

Fav pieces: Stella McCartney's Spring/Summer 2007 Collection

2007-06-28T16:56:00.001+10:00

Watched about half an hours worth of televisoin this morning. I don't watch television that much so it was interesting to find out on E! that Paris Hilton was released from prison, blah, blah, blah. More interestingly, I watched FTVs coverage of a couple of designers collections. I especially fell in love with a few of Stella McCartney's pieces from her Spring/Summer 2007 Collection. My favourite pieces were:

The cobalt blue and khaki colours were probably the main factors why I even noticed this collection. I'm luvin' the sexy boyfriend shirtdress (image 2) for the casual, kick-back-your-heels-and-have-a-break-approach. A perfect change to the high pencil skirts (which are great too) which created the more masculine, edgy look -women can relax this season as they will feel less inclined to do high maintenance. Women can now, at least until next season introduces its own fresh trends, enjoy the casualness of this collection.

And this pieces are quite nice, especially if you're about to head to more warmer tropical locations of this planet. Not noting any places in particular...should I state the obvious...'We need a holiday!'.

Make Poverty History: Bon is a ZeroSeven Ambassador

2007-06-26T22:49:00.001+10:00

Meet a good friend of mine, Siobhan (aka Bon)

She's cute isn't she?

She loves to play volleyball, is very opinionated (especially in Economics classes) but is also an active global citizen in the fight against poverty. She is an official ZeroSeven Ambassador - one of 500 Ambassadors from all over Australia who have been selected and trained in order to spread the Make Poverty History message and inspire those they meet to take action to end extreme poverty.

Every 3 seconds, a child dies from a preventable disease - watch this video.

Every single day, 30,000 children are dying as a result of extreme poverty.

07/07/07 (hint the reason why the road trip will end in Sydney on 07/07/07) marks the halfway point to achieving all 8 of the Millennium Development Goals by 2015, a plan to halve world poverty.

The MDGs were created in September 2000, amongst the largest gathering of world leaders, at the UN Head Quarters in New York and now the time has come to ensure we make those goals a reality.

The Millennium Development Goals :

Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger ;
Achieve Universal Primary Education ;
Promote Gender Equality ;
Reduce Child Mortality ;
Improve Maternal Health ;
Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria & Other Diseases ;
Environmental Sustainability ;
Develop a Global Partnership ;

Embracing this new era of global responsibility, the Australian Government has set an aspirational target* of contributing 0.7% of the country’s total wealth to Foreign Aid by 2015.

However, today the Australian government is running behind schedule with only 0.3% currently committed.

'If the Minister is as serious about increased aid as he is about effective aid then I think the two will combine to transform Australia’s role in the world of engagement with the poorest of the poor' ...Bono, U2 Frontman (on Treasurer Peter Costello).

The Government has pledged to increase aid by 2010. This effort however is only expected to lift Australia’s contribution to around 0.36% of the country's wealth. This is predicted to place Australia 19th out of the world’s 22 richest nations for our lack of generosity.

Siobhan will begin her journey to MAKEPOVERTYHISTORY on the MAKEPOVERTY HISTORY ZEROSEVEN Road Trip from 01/07/07 for one week and head down to Sydney. The Road Trip aims to make a call on the Australian government to take action to end extreme poverty by taking action to increase aid to 0.7% of budget by 2015. Along the route from Brisbane to Sydney, there will be a number of MAKEPOVERTY HISTORY events, including 6 MAKEPOVERTYHISTORY concerts. This will provide regional communities, as well as capital cities, with an amazing opportunity to become involved in what is the greatest youth movement of our time.On board and lending their support in various ways are the who’s who of Australian musicians including Missy Higgins, Evermore, Little Birdy, Dallas Crane, Blue King Brown, Antiskeptic, Borne, Bliss n Eso, Guy Sebastian, True Live, Custom Kings, Bias B, Jess Mc Avoy and Symbiosis among others.

Visit her myspace page here.

She's a great photographer so at the end of the trip, she should disperse with some great shots - some of which I will post in the nearby future.

Keep the great work up Bon!

David Hicks: an analysis of one man's rights

2007-06-26T20:29:00.000+10:00

Human Rights and Ethics Issues: David Hicks' trial Current mood: distressed Category: News and Politics

For some of you who may not know, I am studying Arts/Law at the moment at QUT. I am particularly trying to major in Human Rights and Ethics for my Arts degree.

Since I mentioned David Hicks' in the previous post, I decided to post this. It a couple of months old and I originally posted it on a discussion board on a uni related site. Anyways, you are all probably aware that the hype surrounding his case has sort of subdued, but here it goes:

*****

The David Hicks' trial has been pondered upon, in particular the human rights abuses that he has claimed to have suffered while incarcerated at the controversial Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba. Here's just a brief discussion of claims of human rights abuses and how these claims (if they eventuated) breach international human rights laws and guidelines.

In an affidavit David Hicks claimed that his human rights were violated through the following (here is a summary of some of his claims):

Ten-hour torture sessions, which involved him being shackled and blindfolded, marked by kicking, beatings with rifle butts, punching about the head and torso,

Death threats at gunpoint and anal penetration with objects

While in custody of American officers he was placed in a self-contained cell designed to deny all stimuli (this is a CIA sensory-deprivation torture technique) which continued for 8 months.

Hicks experienced extreme mood swings and became suicidal.

An American attorney "found Hicks at the brink of despair...unable to comprehend
the reality of his trial..." claim of suicide supported by Moazaam Begg, a
British man formerly held at Guantanamo Bay who recounted in his book after
release Enemy Combatant: A British Muslim's Journey to Guantanamo and Back of
Hicks talking about suicidal impulses during his periods in
isolation
"He often talked about wanting to smash his
head...against the metal of his cage and just end it all"

His head had been rammed into asphalt several times

He was forced medication of which the identity was unknown to him including the influence of sedatives which were forced upon him.
He was forced to run in leg shackles that regularly ripped the skin off his ankles (physical
torture)
As a matter of policy, he was deprived of sleep.

It is notable that if these statements were indeed true, the U.S. government has breached Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions which states that all military detainees are entitled to humane treatment.

On 6 December 2006, Hick's legal team lodged documents with the Federal Court of Australia, arguing that the Australian government had breached its protective duty to Hicks as an Australian citizen in custody overseas, and failed to request that Hicks's incarceration by the U.S. comply with the Geneva Convention, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Universal Declaration of HUman Rights. So has the Australian government done enough to protect the human rights of David Hicks? Well earlier this year, in an interview with Southern Cross Broadcasting, Mr. Howard said the following: "....let me simply say that it has gone on for so long now that we will be pressing the Americans almost on a daily basis". Former PM, Malcolm Fraser speaking at the Human Rights Education Conference of 2007, accused the Aus government of betraying Hick's rights and said that the military commission (where Hicks' trial is to commence on Mar 26) had been structured to produce a guilty verdict.
To support Malcolm Fraser's questioning of the legality of the Military Commission in which Hick's trial will be heard, it can be argued that such military commissions breach Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions as it does not amount to a "regularly constituted court aaffording all the judicial guarantees which are recognised as indispensable by civilized peoples". Also, the Int'l Committee of the Red Cross' Customary International Humanitarian Law 355 (2005) explains that courts are 'regularly constituted' under Common Article 3 if they are "established and organised in accordance with the laws and procedures already in force in a country". It must be noted that the military commission which david hicks' trial is to be heard, only came into effect with the passing of the Military Commissions Act 2006 and therefore does not amount to a "regularly constituted" court.

Article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights states that "everyone shall be entitled to a fiar and public hearing by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal established by law". Similarly, Article 75 (4) of Protocol 1 to the Geneva Conventions 1949 also reiterates this right to a trial before an "impartial" court. Notably, under the Military Commmissions Act 2006, the military commission will be composed of officers appointed from the U.S. armed forces who will act as the jury on questions of fact and will detrmine the sentence if an accused is found guilty by them. Undoubtedly, the system lacks the necessary degree of independent to be impartial and independent. The Military Commission system, therefore, does not safeguard David Hicks' fundamental right as stated in the Geneva Convention and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

So will David Hick's receive a fair trial? The Military Commission rules do not exclude evidence obtained by the use of moral or physical coercion exerted on a prisoner in order to induce him to admit himself guilty of the fact of which he is accused. This breaches the requirement of a fair hearing stated by Article 14 (1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights as well as the fundamental guarantees provided by Article 75(4)(f)of Protocol 1.

Torture techniques: a question of human rights

2007-06-26T08:07:00.000+10:00

Okay, fixed myself a bowl of salad (herb and garlic tuna, tomatoes, avocado, balsamic dressing..same old, same old) and decided to sit down and catch up on some current affairs by skim reading some newspapers. Exams are finally over so I guess reading newspapers and enjoying a salad you prepared yourself can be therapeutic at times.

The first article that grabbed my attention was Sally Neighbour's 'Asking the painful questions' in The Australian Inquirer (p.22).

The article gives an account of torture mechanisms and techniques that have developed over the past fifty years or so. Neighbour's article goes on to question why these torture mechanisms are still being used by the U.S. government despite being labelled as 'unreliabile' and thus, ineffective in the war against terror.

Have a look at this picture:

Most of you will probably associate it with the prisoner abuse claims that occurred at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq that caused much international controversy about two years ago. Most people who have heard only little or not much about torture techniques may at first see this picture only as a man or woman simply standing, arms stretched on what looks like a cardboard box - or even as a gimmick, something that kept the U.S. army personnel entertained in the middle of nowhere.

Upon closer examination, this photograph reveals a can full of worms, unearthing some of the most gruesome and inexcusable human rights violations that have occurred to date. Alfred McCoy, a historian at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and author of A Question of Torture: CIA Interrogation from the Cold War to the War on Terror (click here for more McCoy's' deconstruction of these images and CIA torture techniques) adds more to this picture by citing that this photo represents two CIA foundational techniques. Firstly, the hood on the detainee acts as a sensory disorientation and deprivation technique. Secondly, his arms stretched out are intended to inflict pain upon him/herself (ie self inflicted pain).

What truly shocks me is the possible legalisation of torture techniques that could allow people such as John Howard and George W. Bush to sign a warrant issued by a judge to authorise torture. Have a look at the picture of the prisoner in Abu Ghraib again. If this person was your father, mother, sister, brother, nephew or friend, would you let this happen to them?

In Neighbour's article, the argument of well-known Harvard academic and criminal lawyer, Alan Dershowitz is used to justify 'painless' torture mechanisms that could be used by governments such as the U.S. and Australia. Dershowitz who claims to not be a supporter of torture contravenes his personal belief and states that governments should be able to use torture as long as they are done so in an "accountable, transparent way." Notably, the U.S. does not have a clean slate in relation to matters dealing with accountability and transparency. For example, no one knew that the U.S. were using torture techniques on the detainees at Guantanamo Bay until one of its own, former chief lawyer for the US Navy, Alberto J. Mora blew the whistle on the use of such torture techniques. Think of the human rights abuse claims made by David Hicks against the U.S. government and the U.S government's failure to bear the onus of such claims.

After reading this, who would you believe...a man imprisoned for over five years without a formal charge or a government which claims itself to be democratic and a signatory to numerous United Nations' human rights conventions, yet exercises a form of modern tyranny.

Onto more pressing global issues...

2007-06-25T21:01:00.001+10:00

I was just reading the United Nation's Development Program Report entitled 'Beyond Scarcity Power, Poverty and the Global Water Crisis?

The Report primarily focuses on the issue of the water crisis, the causes and the problems experienced by the poor. The main arguments being that water is not a scarce resource, however, the poor have been sysytametically disadvantaged due to political choices.

However, what really drew my attention and something that I think would start a great discussion relates to the following excerpt (see page 3):

In the world of the early 21st century national
security concerns loom large
on the international
agenda. Violent conflict, concerns
over terrorist
threats, the proliferation of nuclear
weapons and the growth of illicit
trade
in arms and drugs all pose acute challenges.
Against this backdrop
it is easy to lose sight
of some basic human security imperatives, including
those linked to water.

The 1.8 million
child deaths each year related to
unclean water
and poor sanitation dwarf the casualties associated
with
violent conflict. No act of terrorism
generates economic devastation on the
scale of
the crisis in water and sanitation. Yet the issue
barely
registers on the international agenda.

It would be interesting if people could get involved and share some ideas or thoughts.

Winter Racing Carnival

2007-06-25T13:54:00.000+10:00

Just got fresh pictures that were taken a couple of weeks ago at the Queensland Oaks' Day (Ladies Day). I really wanted to go because TV Rock were performing live after the races.

I wasn't going to watch the horses because I am NOT A GAMBLER. I spread the word around my friends and Zanthea (aka Zee) was keen. Got very excited but the excitement subdued and literally died when I did some research and found out from the Queensland Turf Club's website that:

(Under 18s must be accompanied by a responsible adult exercising parental supervision).

ARGHHHHHHHHHHH. Okay, don't panic...think of someone really hard that you know that is over eighteen and will do anything for you....ANSWER: ALEX KALINOE. Made a quick call and all was settled.

Saturday June 2

Woke up early but procrastinated for two hours in bed. Called Alex at 9.45am and asked where she was: almost in the city. Oh $h!t. I did the 'it's okay, I'll be there in no time' attitude and procrastinated some more. Received a text message: 'I'm in the city, let me know when you get in'...I replied: "Don't worry, take your time...I'm still straightening my hair". Half an hour later, I discovered that the zipper on my dress had decided to end its life and not fulfil its purpose - okay, no time to moan and cry - it can be fixed. I then made a mental note to grab a few safety pins when I got into the city. Threw a pair of jeans, boots and jumper on and hopped into a cab and headed directly for the city. Met Alex at Pig N Whistle. She was all glamed up and looked puzzled when she saw how casual I dressed. Lol. I reassured her that I was going to be ready in less than half an hour: first I needed some safety pins, chicken fillets (substitute for strapless bra: ugly silicone 'fake breasts' that push your ahems up) and a quick dash to the Hilton bathrooms to change.

2.30 p.m. Four and a half hours later, I was finally dressed - thankfully, got the safety pins to sit perfectly without protruding out my back, and hailed a cab. "So where are we off to ladies". In a chorus, we both replied: "Eagle Farm Racecourse pleeeeeeeeeease!"

Thanks for an awesome day Lexy. I know you had fun too burning the grass in your Wittner heels to hits like 'Flaunt it' and 'Smack my bitch up'...good times!

I forgot that i might see so many beautiful things

2007-06-25T10:51:00.000+10:00

I cooked my own breakfast this morning! I can't remember the last time I cooked a decent meal. It's not actually the traditional, egg benedict, toast and bacon this morning but this morning I've decided to test my agility in the kitchen by frying some kebabs , tossing a rocket salad (avocado, tomatoes, balsamic dressing) that I grabbed from Zone Fresh, New Market yesterday afternoon. I wish I could take a picture and post it here but I screwed up my memory card while holidaying in Vanuatu a couple of months ago. Pictures from that holiday too can no longer be retrieved. :(

Anyways, its raining here in Brisbane. Temperature unknown. I'm being a silent observer this morning. Despite the occassional interruption of birds whistling and 'Beautiful things' by Tiesto playing, I'm enjoying the beauty and serenity of being especially lucky to sit upstairs on the balcony. There are trees, mostly palm trees that cacoon the balcony. It's really pretty to look out - very calming especially when its the first thing you wake up to the morning. There are so many tall palms here and a number of birds usually visit them - to do what, I don't know (?). The birds are being especially noisy this morning (some kinky mating ritual I suppose), but I'd rather wake up to wildlife then to the sound of trains or worse - AN ALARM CLOCK! Thank God, I didn't set mine this morning.

Failure to launch into stress mode

2007-06-18T18:25:00.000+10:00

Exams are coming up. To be quite frank, I do not feel any sense of urgency. I feel like the past six months have been more like trial months personally as a uni student. Life outside of high school is nothing like boarding school - people don't get paid to do your laundry, travelling to campus is no longer a walk across the street, there isn't a familiar voice that cranks over the PA system at seven in the morning to remind you that a new day has begun and it is time to wake up. Uni life involves a great deal of self-motivation and discipline. The 'D' word. Discipline. Something I lack greatly at my age. But fortunately, something I have been able to identify and label as an issue. I'm getting to know my weaknesses. It's assuring to know that I am not being absolutely arrogant of how I am living my life and that my conscience hasn't totally left me. Hmmm.