'the algebra of infinite justice'

according to the u.s military
an al-qaeda operative
known only by the generic alias abu islam
was among the numeorus occupants of two houses
in a small village called qusayba
close the the iraq-syria border

so at 2am local time yesterday
they dropped (or 'guided') four bombs onto one of the houses

and just after 6am
they dropped two bombs on the other

they soon proudly proclaimed that they had killed abu islam
and several of his associates

the 'associates' that were killed numbered at least 46
and of course included numerous women and children

a military spokesman said
"coalition forces take all precautions
to minimize collateral damage
and prevent the loss of civilian life"

even if we pretend for a moment
that this was a tragic accident
surely dropping bombs on houses doesn't count
as "tak[ing] all precautions ... to prevent the loss of civilian life"

what ratio, i wonder, would be acceptable to the military planners?
if osama bin laden was somewhere in a crowd of 100,000
would they just bomb the lot?

here's hoping you or i aren't in that crowd

as arundhati roy wrote in her essay "war is peace",

"Each innocent person that is killed must be added to, not set off against, the grisly toll of civilians who died in New York and Washington"

indeed, despite what we might be led to believe
the killing of innocent civilians by allied forces
is neither morally nor even strategically different
from civilian deaths at the hands of other 'terrorists'.

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i've been to bali too

what's happening in indonesia?

are more australian tourists taking drugs than ever before?
of course not

australians use drugs and will continue doing so
and indonesians use drugs and will continue to also

the increase in the number of australians charged with drug offences in bali
is indirectly caused by australia's involvement in the war on iraq

muslim people the world over
feel persecuted by the allies
mainly because they are

the muslim world feels an emotional solidarity that western nations don't know
a loyalty
and what we are doing to their brothers and sisters in iraq
is upsetting to indonesian muslims

that australia is assisting in this humiliation
after causing indonesia to lose face
by assisting east timor to gain independence
has generated righteous indignation
amongst the muslim electorate of indonesia

there is very little that is within the power of the indonesian government
that can be done to placate these feelings of powerlessness and rage

one small thing that can be done
to signify a rejection of australia's international behaviour
is to crack down on the drug-taking australian tourists in bali

the indonesian government is of course perfectly aware that to the average australian
having two eckies in your handbag
is pretty normal

but to the sensationalist sensibilities of rightwing indonesian nationalism
this is obvious evidence of the pollution of muslim culture
by morally degenerate infidels
a tide that must be stemmed

schapelle corby and the bali 9 are political prisoners
sacrifices of protest against australian mistreatment of muslims


michelle leslie

.

all's fair in love and "war"

though online encyclopedias differ
i'm sure i read somewhere that "yanqui" from which "yankee" comes
was a native american word for "thief"

either way, who is really surprised by yet more american
complete disregard for both fair play and the rules?

what anyone who considered the matter had probably suspected
has emerged via official channels
the trials of "enemy combatants" held at guantanamo bay
much like their detention itself
is a sham

widespread legal opinion is that the american govt's classification of the prisoners
as "enemy combatants" is legally irrelevant and does not circumvent the geneva convention
under which their indefinite detention without trial or charge is illegal

two former us military prosecutors
were repeatedly told by superiors
that the trials were a set-up

According to ... emails, which have been seen by The Age, the prosecutors were told that it did not matter that the evidence was insufficient for a guilty verdict as military commission members would be "hand-picked" to ensure convictions.

it's good to know our government is on the ball though.
when questioned about this
in relation to the trial of australian citizen david hicks,

Attorney-General Philip Ruddock yesterday ... restated his support for the trial process, saying the US had been "assiduous" in ensuring fairness.

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