The debate over genetically modified (GM) food has flared up again recently, after Greenpeace destroyed an experimental CSIRO wheat crop in Canberra on July 14.
The Australian Federal Police is now investigating Greenpeace over the incident, which CSIRO scientists claim has set their research back by up to a year.
Greenpeace argued the crop posed a threat to the environment and human health. Plans are underway for human trials of the GM wheat before tests are conducted on animals.
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Homeless crisis deplorable
I have been an active trade unionist for many years and that is why I realise your paper is the authentic voice of labour.
It is distressing and deplorable that many thousands of people are homeless and exposed to the cold weather and rain.
I am of the opinion that a sustained campaign should be launched to induce state governments to buy unoccupied units to provide accommodation to the homeless.
It is a matter of urgency as we have two more months of winter ahead of us.
Sydney Stop The War Coalition held a street-theatre protest in Darling Harbour on July 29 outside a $1000-a-head speaking engagement for former British PM and war criminal Tony Blair.
The protesters held a mock trial of Blair, who was charged, tried and convicted of making fraudulent excuses for the invasion of Iraq, the murder of a million Iraqi people, profiting from the proceeds of crime and other crimes against humanity.
About 80 people gathered on July 28 at the Holiday Inn on Darwin’s Esplanade for one of the federal government’s Stronger Futures “consultations”.
One woman said: “It’s a bit late, mate.”
In the very early morning of August 3, about 180 workers and volunteers from the City of Sydney’s Homelessness Unit will do a count of the “rough sleepers” in the city.
The previous count in February, when the weather was much warmer, found 363 people sleeping on Sydney’s streets. Last winter’s count was 289.
In 9/11 and numerous other works, veteran MIT linguistics professor and libertarian socialist author/activist Noam Chomsky has argued the United States is “a leading terrorist state.”
According to the author of a recent diatribe in Australia’s Monthly magazine, these “views on American foreign policy” are “myopic” and “conspiratorial” and make Chomsky an unsuitable recipient of the 2011 Sydney Peace Prize.
Accused Norwegian mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik praised four Australian conservative leaders in his 1500-page manifesto, abc.net.au reported on July 26.
“In a manifesto posted online under the Anglicised pseudonym Andrew Berwick, the killer quoted [former prime minister John] Howard, former treasurer Peter Costello, Catholic Cardinal George Pell and conservative writer and historian Keith Windschuttle,” the ABC said.
If you were sexually assaulted by a member of your school sporting team, would you want to cheer for them when they played? Would you expect your school to uphold your rights over those of your attacker? If the school failed to uphold your rights, would you then expect the courts to find in your favour if you sued?
The answers to these questions should be obvious, but this is not an exercise in rhetorical questioning.
The Tunisian Communist Workers’ Party (PCOT) held the first session of its first party congress as a legal organisation on July 22. The congress was held over July 22-24 in Tunis.
It featured foreign delegates and guests from Europe, Latin America and the Arab world. Estimates of attendees ranged from 1700 to 2000 people.
PCOT leader Hamma Hammami gave a speech in which he defended the party from accusations of involvement in violence.
The ABC’s Four Corners on July 25 showcased the national debate around wind farms’ alleged negative health effects.
It patiently allowed the anti-wind power Waubra Foundation to walk the audience through their case that wind farms are a health hazard. Many people I have met are curious to know if there is any truth to the allegations.
The PSM 6 — six leading members of the Socialist Party of Malaysia — were released from prison on July 29 after a national and international campaign for their release.
The Kasbah in Tunis was once again the scene of violent clashes between police and revolutionary youth after protests on July 15 to advance the revolution were broken up by force.
The protests, dubbed “Kasbah 3”, were demanding the resignation of key ministers in the interim government and the sacking of those responsible for the killings of protesters during the January uprising against dictator Zine el Abidine Ben Ali.
The protests also demanded the regime stick to October 23 as the date for constituent assembly elections.
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