At approximately 7:15pm on the 11th of August 2011, WeAreChange Western Australia confronted Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard at Perth Town Hall about her Fabian Socialist agenda and previously admitted Fabian Society membership. This is in light of her carbon tax agenda announced this year after a direct promise to not bring one in “under a Government she leads.”
Gillard was also told she will “never get your new world order,” after stating in a recent message:
“Not since the founding of the United Nations have we faced such uncertain times, when the contours of a new world order are emerging but not yet apparent.”
During the 2010 Election, Prime Minister Julia Gillard and her deputy Wayne Swan made the promise that they would not introduce a carbon tax if elected to Government.
Now elected Prime Minister Gillard broke that promise in the last week of February 2010 and Australians are very disappointed and angry that once again they face the prospect of increased prices.
Lying is nothing new for most politicians, we know. But this is a pretty big one. Twice, Labor’s previously proposed Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme was defeated. The Liberal Party had a change of leadership over this issue. And now, a carbon (dioxide) tax is proposed.
A protest in opposition is being held on Parliament House, Perth on March 23rd, in conjunction with protests in other capital cities in Australia. We hope you will join us, RSVP on Facebook:
Video from December 11, 2010 at the University of San Francisco. Filmed by John Parulis.
Key Note Speaker: Kevin Bracken
Kevin Bracken is the Secretary of the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) Victoria Branch and President of the Australia Victorian Trades Council Hall, which represents 400 000 workers. He will be speaking, in a personal capacity, on “Corporate Media, The Trade Unions, War and 9/11”. Bracken is one of the leading trade unionists in the world, who has publicly challenged the US official explanation of 9/11, and the political use of “terrorism” by governments internationally to escalate the attacks on democratic rights and repression of the labor movement and working people around the world.
For more about Kevin Bracken and his questioning of the official 9/11 story, check out:
Trades Hall president Kevin Bracken calls 9/11 ‘conspiracy’
From: The Herald Sun
By Shannon Deery, Stephen McMahon with Ewin Hannan
Kevin Bracken, the president of the Victorian Trades Hall and secretary of the Maritime Union of Australia, sparked anger this morning after claiming the attacks were not the result of terrorist activity.
“I believe the official story is a conspiracy theory that doesn’t stand up to scientific scrutiny,” Mr Bracken told ABC talk-back host Jon Faine.
“In my mind the buildings were imploded.”
…
“I challenge you to a public debate,” Mr Bracken said.
“Aviation fuel doesn’t get hot enough to melt steel and no high rise steel frame building before or after September 11 has ever collapsed due to fire.
“I stick to scientific fact.”
…
This is not the first time Mr Bracken has voiced his controversial opinions on the attacks on the World Trade Centre and Pentagon.
In 2006 he told The Australian he believed the attacks only worked because the American government was in some way involved.
“If they want to stop terrorism they’ve got to look at who was really behind September 11,” Mr Bracken said at the time.
“It couldn’t have happened unless there was participation from key elements of the American military and government and security services. I am not saying the whole lot were involved. But I believe the official story for September 11 doesn’t stack up.”
Mr Bracken said in 2006 his views on the terror laws and September 11 were his own, and he was not speaking on behalf of the union.
JULIA Gillard has dismissed as “stupid and wrong” a senior union official’s belief that the 9/11 attacks were a conspiracy but has refused to discipline him.
…
The Opposition opened parliamentary question time on the matter today, with Victorian MP Josh Frydenberg asking the Prime Minister what action she would take against Mr Bracken “to send a message that such remarks are unacceptable”.
“Obviously I don’t agree with the remarks, obviously they are stupid and wrong,” Ms Gillard said.
KEVIN Bracken is a genuine bit-player in Australian politics, as president of the Victorian Trades Hall Council and a Labor Party member of the inner city Port Melbourne branch.
But yesterday he was propelled on to the centre stage of national debate when the Coalition used him to kick off the daily Question Time ritual in Federal Parliament.
Josh Frydenberg, a former Howard government senior staffer, is a Liberal Party politician to watch – smart, savvy and he can carry an argument.
He was let down by his own leadership when the tactics group, which plans the Question Time attack, handed him a piddling question to ask Prime Minister Julia Gillard. Frydenberg referred her to a comment from Bracken about the al-Qa’ida attack on the World Trade Centre which he said was a US Government hoax.
Frydenberg wanted Gillard to discipline him and “send a message to others that such remarks are unacceptable”.
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Gillard brushed the question away, saying the Labor Party was a big organisation which included people who said things that were “stupid and wrong”.
The Prime Minister finished by telling Tony Abbott that if he wanted to set a precedent under which members were expelled for saying stupid things, she could whip up a long list of qualified Liberals in quick time.
This question betrays the lack of real tactical focus by the Opposition.
TO suggest that the al-Qaida terror attack on the World Trade Centre towers on September 11, 2001 was actually a US conspiracy is nothing short of appalling.
Even worse is the fact that the person publicly spruiking the theory yesterday was Kevin Bracken, president of the Victorian Trades Hall as well as the secretary of the Maritime Union of Australia. He claimed the buildings were “imploded”.
Labor Prime Minister Julia Gillard reacted appropriately in question time yesterday when asked about the inflammatory comments by the senior trade union office bearer. She replied that the remarks were “stupid and wrong”.
There were several angry responses from callers after Mr Bracken rang Jon Faine to air his opinions yesterday.
Back in 2006, Mr Bracken said the attacks “couldn’t have happened unless there was participation from key elements of the American military and government and security services”.
He declared: “I believe the official story for September 11 doesn’t stack up.” At the time, he emphasised that these were his personal views and that he was not speaking on behalf of the union members he represented.
But whether Mr Bracken realises it or not, the 3000 people who perished in the World Trade Centre buildings were workers, just like the very people he represents.
Yesterday, the Prime Minister distanced herself from Mr Bracken. “Obviously I don’t agree with the remarks, obviously they are stupid and wrong,” Ms Gillard said. “The Labor Party is a large organisation, people join it as individuals … we don’t dictate what people think.”
Thankfully, Mr Bracken’s extreme views are not shared by Trades Hall secretary Brian Boyd, who said: “It was a terrorist attack, and we condemn it.”
Conspiracy claims are all clap-trap?
From: 2UE News Talk
Posted by David Prior
Steve Liebmann thinks Kevin Bracken is a goose! He claims the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington were a set-up. Who were the conspirators? Are these people simply doubters? What do you make of it?
Kevin Bracken, the senior Victorian unionist who claims that the 2001 World Trade Center collapse was not caused by terrorists, called talkback again today to demand a right of reply.
Kevin Bracken made it clear that this time he was calling as a private individual, not as President of the Trades Hall Council and Secretary of the Maritime Union of Australia.
Yesterday Kevin Bracken called Jon Faine’s Mornings program claiming the official story of the 9/11 attacks ‘doesn’t stand up to scientific scrutiny’.
His comments attracted worldwide attention and earned rebuke from Prime Minister Gillard and the Secretary of the Trades Hall Council.
Today he attacked Jon Faine himself for dismissing his claims out-of-hand.
“Unfortunately cowards like yourself have set the political agenda in this country for too long,” said Kevin Bracken
He called Jon Faine a bully and challenged him to a debate on the issue.
Jon Faine refused the debate.
Kevin Bracken’s initial call was in response to the Parliamentary debate on the Afghanistan war.
“What we should be doing is calling for a proper investigation into the events of September 11,” says Kevin Bracken.
“I believe that the official story is a conspiracy theory, that doesn’t stand up to scientific scrutiny,” he says.
His comments were brought up in Federal Parliament during Question Time where the Prime Minister called them ‘stupid and wrong’.
Trades Hall president Kevin Bracken stands by his 9/11 conspiracy
From: Herald Sun
By Shannon Deery, Stephen McMahon
VICTORIAN Trades Hall president Kevin Bracken remains unrepentant after his controversial comments about the 9/11 attacks made news around the world.
…
Mr Bracken stood by his comments and said he had the support of 50 per cent of the community.
…
In Victoria, Shadow Attorney General Robert Clarke said Mr Bracken’s comments were a direct insult to Australian soldiers serving in Afghanistan.
“It strikes at the very heart of the West’s struggle against terrorism and it is a disgrace that while Australian soldiers are serving and dying in Afghanistan that Mr Bracken make these wild claims that undermine the very reason for their presence in Afghanistan,” he said.
Mr Clarke called on Premier John Brumby to condemn these comments in the strongest possible terms and for the outspoken union leader to be disciplined.
“The Trades Hall Council needs to consider Mr Bracken’s future as its president and the MUA needs to consider his future as their secretary,” he said.
“These comments can’t stand they need to be condemned in the strongest possible terms.”
Trades Hall secretary Brian Boyd said Mr Bracken did not speak on behalf of the organisation.
“The official Trades Hall position is not to entertain that theory,” Mr Boyd said.
“We had almost 3000 working people killed in that terrorist attack. It was a terrorist attack, and we condemn it.”
Mr Boyd said Mr Bracken’s views had caused many debates behind the walls of Trade Hall.
“He is welcome to his views and we’ve discussed his theories,” he said.
“But I totally disagree.”
Mr Boyd said he stood by his colleague despite his extremist views.
“99 per cent of the time Kevin’s a very good president,” he said.
MUA national secretary Paddy Crumlin distanced the union from the comment, releasing a statement saying its position on the attack was “unambiguous”.
“The 9/11 tragedy was a result of a terrorist attack by international terrorists who claimed responsibility,” he said.
“It is the MUA’s position – one that I passionately support as national secretary – that this attack is one of the greatest affronts and abuses of human and civil rights in contemporary history.”
On the 28th of March, 2008, the Victorian Trades Hall Council passed this motion after lengthy debate supporting a thorough and independent inquiry of the terrorist attacks on 9/11. From the minutes of the meeting on the 28th of March 2008;
“That this meeting of VTHC Executive Council calls for a thorough, independent enquiry into the tragic terrorist attacks of September 11.
The events of that day have been used to start pre-emptive wars “that will not end in our lifetime”. They have been used to attack civil liberties and legal principles that have been the cornerstone of civilized communities.
There is an urgent need to reassess the way we view the world after September 11 and we call for proper investigation into the events around that day.”
E-mail the Victorian Trades Hall Council: hatkinson@vthc.org.au
Visibility 9-11 Welcomes Australian Union President, Kevin Bracken – A True Working Class Hero!
To many the name Kevin Bracken is a new one in regards 9/11 Truth. The reality is that Kevin has been a champion of the 9/11 Truth cause since 2006 by disseminating information throughout the Victorian Union Movement and the Maritime Workers Union of Australia. He has distributed DVD’s, shown films and shared information regularly with his associates and the people of Melbourne and he achieved motions calling for a new investigation from both the Victorian Trades Hall Council where he is the President and the Victorian branch of the Maritime Union of Australia of which he heads as Secretary. Kevin has also attended numerous conferences on 9/11 and has been the facilitator of such in Melbourne, Australia. Over the years Kevin and I have developed a close working relationship, both striving for the truth 9/11 to come out to bring end to the wars and to get our rights back that have been eroded since 9/11!
This is the motion passed on the 28th of March of 2008 at the VTHC;
“That this meeting of VTHC Executive Council calls for a thorough, independent enquiry into the tragic terrorist attacks of September 11.
The events of that day have been used to start pre-emptive wars “that will not end in our lifetime”. They have been used to attack civil liberties and legal principles that have been the cornerstone of civilized communities.
There is an urgent need to reassess the way we view the world after September 11 and we call for proper investigation into the events around that day.
On the 20th of October 2010 Kevin was asked to ring into ABC 774 Mornings with John Faine although Faine disputes this. This was following an email that was sent to Faine by Kevin questioning 9/11 in the context of Australia’s ongoing support of the Afghanistan occupation. After the recent Australian Election it was demanded by the Australian Greens in a “balance of power” deal that the Australian involvement in the Afghan War be debated in parliament in it’s first sitting. This debate had been going on this week and it was the first time any such debate had happened since 9/11, which is simply outrageous.
This interview by Faine was possibly the most biased ever heard in Australia on radio broadcast by the tax payer funded Australian Broadcasting Corporation. This attack by Faine of Bracken’s questioning the 9/11 events included a torrent of ad hominem slurs and an absolute refusal to discuss any evidence that the events were anything but what we have been told by our governments. A reasonable explanation of what happened and also with attached audio can be found here. This story titled “Trades Hall president Kevin Bracken Stands by his 9/11 Conspiracy” has been reported all around the world and included a poll which started off running at around 50/50 asking if Kevin’s questions about 9/11 were “reasonable” but has continued to move in his favour ending up at the time of writing these notes at 75% in favour of Bracken.
Kevin has received literally thousands of thank you’s from around the world for his brave stance for 9/11 Truth! Standing his ground even after being directly verbally bashed by the Prime Minister of Australia Julia Gillard saying he was “stupid and wrong” and having his own leadership comrades buckle at the knees if the face of unfounded ridicule. Rather than running for cover Kevin with his chin in the air has reiterated his position defying any to debate him on the issue! As usual all media presstitutes have refused, as there is obviously “no debate to have”. It seems that the vast majority of the public disagree and would like to see such a debate but none of the so called “journalists” dare to tread such a path.
Interesting to note that John Faine is now complaining that the ABC has been swamped by 9/11 activists and it may take the ABC many weeks to deal with the massive amount of complaints and comments they have received. Many of these I know to be formal as I have received many courtesy copies of the complaints to the ABC accusing them of breeching their charter and broadcast policy.
The battle for 9/11 Truth is far from over and as long as the fools in power maintain their policy of occupation of Afghanistan they will remain exposed and at risk of criminal prosecution due to the lies of 9/11. Lets hope it comes soon or they realize and stop the bloodshed.
WeAreChange Western Australian applauds and congratulates Kevin Bracken on his courage and conviction in publicly questioning the official 9/11 story in a reasonable and rational manner, and urges all those who disagree with him – including the Prime Minister – to take up his invitation for a public debate on the matter. Read this appreciation from a New Zealand blogger.
WeAreChange Western Australia’s Reference of Kevin Bracken’s comments
No precedent for steel-framed high-rise collapse due to fire
And exhibited none of the characteristics of destruction by fire, i.e.
Slow onset with large visible deformations
Asymmetrical collapse which follows the path of least resistance (laws of conservation of momentum would cause a falling, intact, from the point of plane impact, to the side most damaged by the fires)
In the the aftermath of WTC7′s destruction, strong evidence of demolition using incendary devices was discovered:
8. FEMA finds rapid oxidation and intergranular melting on structural steel samples
9. Several tons of molten metal reported by numerous highly-qualified witnesses
10. Chemical signature of thermite (high tech incendiary) found in solidified molten metal, and dust samples
WTC7 exhibited none of the characteristics of destruction by fire, i.e.
1. Slow onset with large visible deformations
2. Asymmetrical collapse which follows the path of least resistance (laws of conservation of momentum would cause a falling, to the side most damaged by the fires)
3. Evidence of fire temperatures capable of softening steel
4. High-rise buildings with much larger, hotter, and longer lasting fires have never “collapsed”.
"Aviation fuel doesn't get hot enough to melt steel and no high rise steel frame building
before or after September 11 has ever collapsed due to fire. I stick to scientific fact."
WTC7 exhibited none of the characteristics of destruction by fire, i.e.
1. Slow onset with large visible deformations
2. Asymmetrical collapse which follows the path of least resistance (laws of conservation of momentum would cause a falling, to the side most damaged by the fires)
3. Evidence of fire temperatures capable of softening steel
4. High-rise buildings with much larger, hotter, and longer lasting fires have never “collapsed”.
After the tight Australian Federal Election result, it is more than likely that 3 (possibly 4) independent elected members of Parliament will figure largely in the configuration of the new Government. Issues such as “climate change action” and internet censorship may well be key to the discussions these men hold with both major parties, and public statements from at least one of the Independents – Robert Oakeshott – are that an emissions trading scheme would be “a priority” to him (22 August 2010, Herald Sun). Please e-mail Robert and/or any of the independents involved in these negotiations with your concerns and thoughts on the situation:
Robert Oakeshott (Lyne, NSW): robert.oakeshott.mp@aph.gov.au
Tony Windsor (New England, NSW): Tony.Windsor.MP@aph.gov.au
Bob Katter (Kennedy, QLD): bobkatter@gmail.com
Andrew Wilkie* (Denison, TAS): wilkie.andrew@bigpond.com
* Probable – see latest vote count.
Read my letter below and feel free to grab ideas and links from it.
Hello Robert,
I appreciate that you would be endlessly communicating with people all over Australia, so may I just congratulate you on your re-election as the member for Lyne and list 5 points with references for your consideration, largely in response to your focus on combating apparent climate change as I read about here:
1) You say you’re happy providing anyone the “relevant documents” regarding human-based influence on the climate if they have their doubts. I would certainly appreciate being provided with that, and I’ll offer some of my proof as to why I’m sceptical of your point of view:
The Sceptics Handbook: http://joannenova.com.au/global-warming/ The weather stations can’t be trusted: http://surfacestations.org Former NASA Scientist Dr. Roy Spencer’s thoughts & satellite tempreture stations:
31 500 scientists don’t accept your point of view:
http://petitionproject.org
CLIMATEGATE: The Mother of all Scientific Scandals: (did you hear about this when encouraging the implementation of an ETS last November?)
“On November 19, 2009, climate science was severely shaken by the release of a collection of email messages, together with a collection of data and data processing programs, that were hacked or revealed by a whistle blower from the University of East Anglia Climatic Research Unit (CRU), one of the key centers of global warming research. These emails and text files have been the subject of intense debate, calling to question assumptions on anthropogenic (man-made) global warming.”
So what exactly is it that you’ll be sending me that completely outweights all of this and more..?
2) You say: “I would personally say, let’s go back to the Garnaut report and try and get something through based on that. The template is there, stick to the script, keep it simple.” Garnaut however, appears accepting of the fact that Australia acting alone would be pointless:
Accepting these two points as fact, why would you, and for that matter the next Parliament of Australia, be so hell bent on an ETS? We’re not out of that global recession yet by any means, are we Robert..? Or would that also depend on whether “Garnaut says so”?
3) An ETS would be so open to manipulation I’m surprised anyone who wants to see People before Profits would support it. I personally have been to the Walk Against Warming community events (http://www.walkagainstwarming.org) and there was far from a consensus amongst those who believe the man-made global warming theory on any sort of a carbon price/trading scheme, and after speaking to my group of friends and myself, some were even in more doubt about it being a worthwhile venture in achieving carbon emission reduction. Lets have a look at how it has gone in Europe in regards to corruption in their trading scheme:
[The flyer I handed out at the Walk Against Warming] http://wearechangewa.com/downloads/documents/pdf/Flyers—We.Are.Change—ClimateGate.pdf
4) The Greens suggestion for climate change action are the most extreme out there, of course. What many are not aware of is the Global Governance agenda behind the talk. Please read the Greens “Global Governance” policy off their website: http://greens.org.au/policies/human-rights-democracy/global-governance
They also have related Global Governance measures in their other economic policies, such as:
15. At the international level, support the implementation of a currency transaction tax (Tobin Tax) to discourage global currency speculation and to provide an independent tax base for international institutions.
24. establish mechanisms to prevent the debt crisis from recurring, such as introducing the potential for penalties for surplus as well as debtor nations.
5) This is an agenda backed up by the United Nations, as seen at the Copenhagen Summit and announcements since:
“A deal must include an equitable global governance structure. All countries must have a voice in how resources are deployed and managed. That is how trust will be built.”
The 4th benchmark for success at Copenhagen of UN General Secretary Ban Ki-Moon writing for the NY Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/26/opinion/26iht-edban.html?_r=4
Copenhagen Accord Establishes Global Government Framework:
So do you understand what’s at stake here negotiating favourably with the Greens and for a carbon reduction agenda? The erosion of Australian sovereignty. The Liberals aren’t totally against a carbon tax or trading system but in the position you’re in, you can influence the possibility of it in any future Government structure. Consider your position and possible assumptions carefully, because initial indications show you’re being led down the Greens Garden Path…
I have a book called “The past and future of Climate” by Professor David Archibald along with DVDs to send you if you’d like.
Born: Perth, Australia, 1983
Education: Narrogin Senior High School
Murdoch University
Qualifications: B.Sc(Chiro) B.Chiro, Bachelor of Commerce (Management)
Employment: 4 years self employed as a chiropractor in both rural and metro Western Australia.
Faced with the constant barrage of Global Warming propaganda, Australians can be forgiven for thinking ‘the science is settled’, ‘climate change is real’ and the existence of a ‘scientific consensus’ with the only solution….wait for it…more tax of course. Most Australians (myself included previously) don’t have the time to investigate the issues and as such we have allowed the extreme green left to control the discourse. The encouragement of critical thinking is something sadly lacking from our democracy, but it is my hope that my involvement with The Climate Sceptics will stimulate debate and critical evaluation of this issue by the people of Western Australia.
The Australian Senate was designed by our founding fathers to be a house of review, where each state elected an equal number of senators who would represent the best interests of their state. This is no longer the case. The senate is a house of rubber stamps, where senators rarely cross the floor and are controlled by faceless power-brokers. If elected, I will represent the best interests of West Australians first and foremost. A carbon tax would not be in West Australia’s interest as it is a tax on economic output and ultimately will cost jobs.
WeAreChange Western Australia endorses Beau Woods (The Climate Sceptics Party) as a Federal Senate Candidate for WA. Find him on your white Upper House voting ballot paper this Federal Election, August 21st.
Greens Senator Scott Ludlam (pictured, image credit: David Howe) has given a conclusive rebuttal to comments made by the Labor Government’s Communications Minister Stephen Conroy on the Four Corners documentary, Access Denied, aired on the 10th of May, 2010. The documentary, still viewable online at ABC iView, reveals how an apparently well meaning attempt by [the Australian] government to protect children from video nasties on the net turned into a policy that critics say promotes censorship and reduces personal freedom.
During the documentary, the Communications Minister has the following pledge to the Australian public:
“If a majority of the Parliament in the future want to broaden the classification – meaning of material caught by the filter – well then, Australians should stand up and say ‘just a minute’, and I’ll be one of them.”
To which Senator Ludlam quoted and responded to, just two days later in the Senate:
“Of course, by that time it will be too late. That is the future of this filter: a majority of a future parliament, probably under pressure of some kind of moral panic-whatever that may be-broadening the filter to include a larger scope of banned material and Stephen Conroy standing there in the minority, saying, ‘Just a minute,’ shortly before losing the vote. Once the architecture is in place, the idea that future governments will not be tempted to expand its scope is impossible to entertain. The reasons are technical, as well as political.”
This is an important distinction made by Senator Ludlam in why he opposes the mandatory ISP filtering plan, and it’s one that all reading this should consider carefully. Later in the Parliamentary statement, the Senator had this important message relating to Mr. Conroy’s pledge, which is worth emphasising:
“In terms of the minister’s comments about people standing up and saying no if future governments proposed to increase the scope, and saying that that would be the time for Australians to stand up: the time for Australians to stand up is right now, and we are standing up.“
Scott Ludlam has good authority to speak as an Australian standing up on the issue of the Labor Govnerment’s mandatory web filtering proposal, having attended and spoke at both the December 2008 and March 2010 rallys held in Perth which were aimed at informing the public and expressing opposition to the proposal. Scott also regularly asks questions and makes statements in Parliamentary Question Time and Senate Hearing about the matter, along with making public statements on his blog and taking media interviews, as he happened to yesterday on the ABC’s Triple J program Hack.
Scott’s message to Australians in his May 12 Senate statement pre-empted the May 22nd National Day of Action, which occured in 3 locations around Australia on both sides of the continent. The campaign for these Days of Action were driven by the official anti-censorship paper petition addressed to the House of Representatives, which now has around 6500-7000 signatures penned in total with 4400 already received by Principal Petitioner Melissa Short. It will be presented to the House of Representatives and put on the public Hansard record on the 21st of June, 2010 with the Australian Petitions Committee accepting signatures no later than the 11th of June, 2010. With this recent extended submission deadline, the decision has been made to ask concerned and active Australians to continue gathering signatures, and for them to be mailed to Melissa no later than Tuesday, the 8th of June. The earlier sent the better, so they can be checked & counted before submission.
Review of the May 22nd Day of Action
BRISBANE
The Brisbane Day of Action was the most successful from the day in terms of petition signatures, with a massive 461 signatures acquired in just 3 hours. The Sunshine State delivered a beautiful day for Mel Short, Matt Anderson, Tim Hunt, Gregor, Ben, Eris, Fritz, Shonika, & Warrick to setup tables, petitions, and paraphenalia at Central Station, Brisbane, and ask the public passing by if they’re aware of the Government’s proposal, and if they’d like to sign the petition. The last person mentioned in that list, Warrick Fraser, edited the following video from the Day of Action in Brisbane and many thanks to him for doing so:
Warrick was also good enough to take some photos on the day too. Here he is on the video camera:
Table setup with petitions and information sheets:
A big thanks must also go to Matt Anderson for funding the printed poster and the table, and generally putting in a big effort in organising and promoting the Event.
MELBOURNE
In Federation Square, Melbourne, a fascinating piece of street theatre was carried out by Nicolas Wheeler:
Nicolas was shortly asked to move on by the Victorian State police and did so, but this photograph is testament to a statement made about the inevitable possibility of legal freedoms being reduced under the mandatory ISP filter. There is video footage of the moving on of the display and attempted interview with Nic by media crew below. Afterwards, Nicolas was joined by other activists to gain petition signatures, and in all nearly 200 were gathered. A super effort and many thanks, Nick and co.!
PERTH
Despite the inclement weather overnight leading into the Saturday, Petition Coordinator Andrew Middleton, Julian, and Daniel Kruppa still managed to find a couple of hours in the afternoon to campaign for petition signatures out the front of Fremantle Town Hall. 37 signatures were garnered from the sparse Fremantle crowd, with many viabrant conversations being had with people from all walks of life. Those who were aware of the issue, had a good understanding of the problems associated with the proposed mandatory ISP filtering plan which was pleasing. In particular, an exchange with an English tourist, who despite not caring what happened in this country, was eventually turned around to signing the petition after agreeing with us that what occurs in our political landscape is highly likely to effect England’s political landscape, and vice-versa.
Next two Saturday’s complete Trifecta of Days of Action
In keeping with Scott Ludlam’s urgings for Australians to stand up, locations this Saturday and next Saturday (May 29th, June 5th) around Australia will again have grassroots activists present with petitions in hand, and the more people & signatures the better. So if you’re interested in just coming down and signing the petition, joining a posted location below and help get more signatures, or starting an Action in your local area that you’d like promoting on this website and/or on social networking sites, please take note of the location details posted below and get in contact with the following organisers!
PRINCIPAL PETITIONER & BRISBANE ORGANISER:
Melissa Short
SEE PETITION CAMPAIGNING IN BRISBANE ON THE 6TH OF JUNE, IN THIS SHORT VIDEO:
ARTICLE AUTHOR, PETITION COORDINATOR & PERTH ORGANISER:
Andrew Middleton, wearechangewa@hotmail.com
Where: Outside the entrance to the Alexander Library, Perth Cultural Center (25 Francis Street, Perth)
When: Saturday, June 5, 11:30am – 2pm
Bring: Copies of the 14-box petition, available here. A clipboard and a pen (black or blue)
The personal views, beliefs and opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the beliefs and opinions of “Stop the Filter” or “WeAreChange Western Australia” as a whole.
By Andrew Middleton (contact: wearechangewa@hotmail.com) 6th May, 2010
We start the update on the Australian anti-internet censorship campaign – mobilised due to the Labor Government’s proposed mandatory ISP filtering plan (see WeAreChange WA’s previous article on the matter) – with the above poster designed by Josh Meney, an Australian activist who put his artwork onto the web in the past fortnight free to publish. Thanks to Josh for pouring his creative energies into this striking and provocative poster. It joins a now burgeoning amount of fantastic artistic pieces that have been created about this issue.
Certainly those of us who wish to see the content on the Internet remain free from Government control for the Australian public – both now and in years to come – will need to continue to pour energy into this campaign as despite some speculation, the proposed mandatory ISP filter is still planned to go ahead by the current Labor Government and still has strong support from a small but influential assortment of political parties, ministers, and interest groups. An article in The Australian on the 29th of April titled, “Rudd retreats on web filter legislation,” states:
“KEVIN Rudd has put another election promise on the backburner with his controversial internet filtering legislation set to be shelved until after the next election. A spokeswoman for Communications Minister Stephen Conroy said yesterday the legislation would not be introduced next month’s or the June sittings of parliament. With parliament not sitting again until the last week of August, the laws are unlikely to be passed before the election.”
However, Prime Minister Rudd responded to the article by stating he had “no advice to that effect.” He later said when questioned if the legislation would be introduced this year: “Look, can I ask that you put that to the relevant minister. I don’t have any other advice to what I put to you earlier.” (source: ZDNet.com.au) ZDNet Australia had already that morning questioned the office of the relevant minister, Communications Minister Stephen Conroy, about the reported delay.
“The government is committed to the cyber-safety policy, which includes [internet service provider (ISP)] level filtering of refused classification content,” Conroy’s office replied in a statement.
“A public consultation on improved transparency measures has been held and the department is now working with other government agencies to consider the submissions and examine whether the ideas can be used to enhance the proposed accountability and transparency measures. The department is also continuing to consult ISPs on the implementation of ISP-level filtering.
“Once these processes are complete the legislation will be introduced into Parliament.”
These type of listless responses should be of little surprise to anyone who has a remote interest in the Australian political environment in the modern era. For one, it’s typical handballing from Government minister to Government minister, as if these people don’t speak to each other about issues of social & moral importance such as this one. The Australian makes a simple observation regarding Parliamentary sittings and neither the Prime Minister nor the Communications Minister can give any sort of indication to the public as to the issue raised by The Australian. That being, a date for when legislation will be tabled for a policy this Rudd Labor Party successfully campaigned with at the last Federal Election held on the 24th of November, 2007 – nearly 30 months ago.
Secondly, the Labor Party Government currently has insulation batts, a health plan, mining industry tax plan, and ironically enough, a National Broadband Plan to win over the public on and push through Parliament prior to a Federal Election sometime this year. They will quite simply run out of time to table legislation for this proposal before then. Lastly, the best way to appear to be acting on an issue without actually doing anything, is by setting up Committees and public consultations regarding the issue. And once they’re complete, by setting up more. It buys valuable (stalling) time, as well as giving the impression to the public that the Government cares about what the people have to say on the particular matter, and is doing all it can to achieve the best outcome possible.
Whether the above points are agreed upon or not, the likely delay of the tabling of internet censorship legislation until after the election does not mean that us Australians concerned about this proposal should sit on our hands until after we’ve been to the polls, which mainstream media sources have said is likely – but not necessarily – to be called by Labor sometime in September or October of this year. Quite the opposite; this is actually a dangerous period for the internet censorship issue, as it threatens to lay doment and forgotten about in the face of media-saturated issues such as health, global warming/climate change/the emissions trading scheme, the economy, and recently, a proposed 40% tax on mining industry profits. Furthermore, while this writer doubts both the tabling of legislation prior to any Federal Election and a 2011 election, the incumbent Labor Government does legally/constitutionally have until the 16th of April, 2011 to hold the next election.
Thankfully, the Australian grassroots anti-internet censorship campaign rolls on around the nation in the months of May & June.
Corbett Show interview begins leadup to May anti-web censorship activism
Just yesterday (the 5th of May), Melissa Short (pictured below), the Principal Petitioner of the official anti-censorship paper petition addressed to the House of Representatives – which expresses to Parliament that the majority of Australians’ are in condemnation of the proposed legislation and asks the House to “repeal all legislative action concerning implementation of compulsory content filtering of the internet in Australia” – was interviewed by James Corbett (pictured below) of the Corbett Report. In the interview, James & Melissa discuss the nature of the internet censorship proposed in Australia, how far along the Government is in implementing the content filter, and why Melissa decided to pursue this avenue of dissent against the proposal. Download an MP3 file (11.6megabyes) of the interview and a link to the petition from this page: http://www.corbettreport.com/index.php?i=Documentation&ii=316
(This is the 2nd time James Corbett has dedicated a show or interview to the Australian Government’s mandatory ISP filtering plan, with the entirety of Episode #82 from April 2009 dedicated to the issue. It’s available free to download with documentation here.)
The petition itself was pre-approved for submission to the House of Representatives on January 13th of this year, and Melissa reports a steady stream of petition signatures having come her way since then, with an unknown amount being possibly sent directly to Parliament or yet to be mailed. A central part of the interview is the announcement of the final deadline date for sending in signatures to Melissa, which is the 29th of May, 2010. Tabling to the House is likely to be on June 21st, 2010, however, the Petitions Committee requires petition forms to be received in early June for the 21st of June tabling, so please have signed petition forms (one signature will do!) in the mail, sent to the address provided on this petition by May 29th at the very latest.
Also mentioned by Melissa in the interview is the upcoming protest in Melbourne against the proposed internet censorship plan, organised by Suryavanshi Cosmos. Occuring Saturday, May 22nd, 2010, the event will be held in Federation Square of Melbourne’s CBD and starts at 11:30am. A copy of the aforementioned petition will be available to sign at the event. Find further details about the event here: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=100265633350951
On the back of this initiative shown, activists in Brisbane and Perth have joined in by organising a campaign on the same day to acquire signatures for the petition addressed to the House of Representatives. Details for Brisbane’s Day of Action can be found on Facebook and Meetup.com. Perth’s Day of Action will occur at midday on May 22nd, with the meeting place being out the front of the Fremantle Town Hall. Contact myself at wearechangewa@hotmail.com for further details. Please do not bring partisan material to hand out to the public, this is an action solely aimed at preventing internet censorship. Please do bring printed out sheets of the petition, a clipboard, a pen, cameras, respect for the Police, and a confident, polite, and informative approach to members of the public. Hope to see you on the 22nd of May!
Fremantle Town Hall, the meeting place on May 22nd at midday, for petition signature campaigning.
