Iraq
Dominant propaganda broadcasts the social myth that "our boys are just doing a job" in Iraq. Such language sanitizes, deodorises and legitimises Australia's armed "liberation" taskforce. When our "checkpoint" soldiers shoot and wound a woman and her young daughter, they are only "following orders" to combat "terrorism". So they'll stay "until the job's done", which in reality means destroying dwellings, incriminating and shooting all "suspected insurgents".
This language of deceit separates "out brave boys on the job" from atrocities intrinsic to their role in occupying and "cleansing" Iraq by force.
The same normalising language and meaning is applied to prostitution, whereas some women's social role of sexual service in a male dominated marketplace is justified as her individual free choice of a "job" like any other.
Lyn Ariel
Sydney, NSW
Iraq II
I am a 24-year-old American who also disagrees with the war in Iraq. I just wanted to thank you for publishing the article "US officer: 'Why I disagree with Bush's war for oil'" (GLW #618). I think it is important that the world realise that not all Americans agree with what Bush is doing and that we profusely apologise for his actions. I plead that you not hate all Americans, just the ones that don't realise Bush's tactics. Please send my thoughts, wishes and regards to all in Australia. My husband lived there for two years and he hopes to return for a visit with me in tow.
Jessiane Raehl
Springville, Utah
Macquarie Fields
Thanks to everyone for your support. We have a whole community that is united behind us, so we are not worried. We have given Carr and his cronies a hard time over the few weeks — there's plenty of more heartache for Carr to come.
The police raids and harrassment are continuing as I speak. All of our family links and friends are targets. Police dogs were used in a raid tonight on a house my daughter was staying in at Airds (another run down public housing enclave). The woman who own's the house is a local Aboriginal liaison officer who worked with youth in the Reiby Youth Correctional Centre. She is single with two young children who were terrified. When she rang us she was hysterical. With the continuing hardline policy there is a danger that the riots will spread to other suburbs.
At some stage I will reveal how the mass media hindered us and made our jobs much harder. That is a story in itself. Misreporting, refusing to report the issues which we we were trying to convey from the community, the media has played a despicable role.
The media were only interested in the sensationalist aspects of crime and not the real issues. Guess that's why we need to continue to build the alternative media.
Peter & Barbara Perkins
Macquarie Fields, NSW
Macquarie Fields II
I'm shocked to learn that the cops had the stolen car bugged and under surveillance for three days. How then can they justify the sudden imperative neccessary to justify a fatal car chase, knowing the people in the car were just teenagers not up to anything major?
As long as the cops act as enemies of the unpropertied class, attacking us where we live with full armour and guns, the people are right to fight back by any means neccessary. If a few of the uniformed and armoured thugs get injured or terrified, they may find it harder to recruit new thugs.
If the government wants people without lots of property to have any respect for it, they have to stop the police being thugs, and stick to the role of protecting people from violence, and stop killing kids over minor property disputes. And to the killers: It often takes a long long time, but justice will out!
And to the kids, who appear to have been operating like a caring if anarchic collective, looking out for each other ahead of the bullshit about who owns what stuff, Goddess bless you, you are following the biblical teaching of pro-commune anti-establishment Jesus, while our government and it's mercenaries play the part of the rich pharisees and ruling hypocrites of Jesus's time.
norrie mAy-welby
Redfern, NSW
The Block
I recently read an article about the Block on your website. Although we appreciate the support people are giving to the fight for self-determination, we also feel that the truth is our biggest weapon against those who work to undermine this community. Having said that, I was concerned that some of the things written in the article were obviously not very factual. Could I please refer you to the AHC's website (<http://www.ahc.org.au>) where we try to publish up to dated and accurate information about the Block? Also if you can not find what you are looking for on our site please feel free to email me or even call in to our office.
Peter Valilis
Project manager
Redfern, NSW
Bakhtiyari family
It's odd that the government has never made a nice set of false documents for Peter Qasim and dumped him in Pakistan like they did to the Bakhtiyari family.
The family are now back in Afghanistan facing starvation, freezing to death, 10 million land mines, lack of work, the government has their Afghan documentation and their goods.
Roqia is sick with gestational diabetes, just like she was with Mahzar and there are few doctors in Afghanistan, if she dies in childbirth the bastard in immigration who made the false Pakistani documents that got her deported will be her murderer.
Records show that she was kept in a motel and the Women's and Children's Hospital for so long because of this diabetes that becomes uncontrollable in exceptional circumstances.
Marilyn Shepherd
Kensington, NSW
Chicken ranch
I wonder if someone could report on the proposed chicken farm in Esk shire. There was a two column report on page 4 of the March 7 Courier Mail. It was vague, so I looked into it and found that the Esk shire council had approved of a chicken farm, contracted to Ingrams Chicken. The farm is to house approximately 360,000 birds and is to be located approximately 4 kilometres south of Esk. I called the Esk information office, and they said the nearest town about 4km south of Esk is a residential area called Cedar Grove. I don't know for sure if this is the proposed site for the farm.
I lived in Texas for several years, and the Tyson Chicken Empire of Arkansas (Clinton country) would make news often. The corruption and pollution in this industry was very bad for the residents upwind from, downstream of, or employed by this company.
Our water comes from Wivenhoe Dam, which, according to the maps I can locate, is downstream from the proposed location of the chicken farm. The area 4km south of Esk is within the geographical catchment area, and also within the declared catchment area of Lake Wivenhoe. There semed to be some confusion about this in the Courier Mail article. SEQ has it's feathers flying about it, because the Esk shire council did not consult with them before approving the farm.
I could not find the name of the developer; perhaps they are going to sit on this egg for a while. The council (public servants) is not commenting. I think I know where the water-drinking public comes in this pecking order.
I'm not a journalist, just somebody's mother, and I think this is worth squawking over.
Cherie Harrich
Stafford Heights, Qld
From Green Left Weekly, March 16, 2005.
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