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Obama, Rudd must end the Afghan war

The November 7 Sydney Morning Herald reported that an advisor to US president-elect Barack Obama, Jeffrey Bader, had stated that the “first priority” of the Obama administration would be to seek a greater contribution from Australia to “winning the war in Afghanistan”.

Israel attacks Gaza as food runs out

While the world was distracted by the US elections, Israel broke its four-month-old ceasefire with the Hamas-run Gaza government on November 4, entering the territory and killing six people and capturing six others.

Habib's shocking tale

NEWCASTLE — On November 9, 40 people attended the launch of My Story by Mamdouh Habib and co-author Julia Collingwood.

The woman who tried to save Lake Peddar

Whatever happened to Brenda Hean?
Directed by Scott Millwood
Written by Scott Millwood & Mira Robertson
Distributed by Gill Scrine & Little Films Whatever happened to Brenda Hean?
By Scott Millwood
Allen & Unwin, 2008
256 pages, $26.95 (pb)

The struggle against Prop 8: interview with US activist

Protests against Proposition 8, the California referendum that robs same-sex partners of marriage rights granted in a state Supreme Court decision earlier this year, began the day after the November 4 vote and continued through the rest of the week.

Kmart locks out workers

SYDNEY — Workers at Kmart’s Huntingwood distribution centre in Sydney’s west were locked out by the company for two days from November 10. The workers — members of the National Union of Workers (NUW) — had just completed a four-day strike in pursuit of a new enterprise bargain.

On the box

Summer of Love - Looks at the hippy district of San Francisco's Haight Ashbury during the summer of 1967, which had utopian beginnings born of idealistic youths who'd grown up with post-WWII affluence but were now dealing with Vietnam, racism, and

China and the global economic crisis

As the US, Japan and Europe slide into recession, the leaders of many smaller countries are desperately hoping that continued strong growth in the Chinese economy, which has contributed about 15% of world economic growth in recent years, might save them from this meltdown.

Sandgate feels the power of community

BRISBANE — More than 30 people attended a November 8 Green Left Weekly screening of The Power of Community — How Cuba Survived Peak Oil, at Sandgate Community Centre.

South Africa's ANC: things fall apart

At some point in the not-too-distant future, we might just look back at 2008 as the year in which things really started to fall apart for the African National Congress (ANC).

Climate change: Maldives seek new homeland

According to a November 11 article in the British Guardian, the Maldives government is investigating the possibility of purchasing land in order to move its citizens to escape the disappearance of the Indian Ocean archipelago due to climate change.

Preference deal a joke

MELBOURNE — The ALP have done a preference deal with the “joke” candidate for the Maribyrnong council elections. Former mayor and ALP incumbent Michael Clarke has preferenced Garth Bray, an independent.