Stratfor Global Intelligence on Assange Sexual Assault Charges

I posted this on Wednesday: Wikileaks: Stratfor on Motives for Julian Assange’s Arrest It had sparse traffic until the last 24 hours when it’s gone viral. Well nearly 1000 hits is viral for my little blog.

From Wikileaks’ Stratfor Global Intelligence Files:

Charges of sexual assault rarely are passed through Interpol red notices, like this case, so this is no doubt about trying to disrupt WikiLeaks release of government documents. While it’s possible that Assange’s arrest could disrupt the long-term viability of WikiLeaks, it will not stop the release of cables in the short-term and governments will now be concerned about what the organization may release in revenge.
RE: USE ME Re: Discussion- Assange Arrested

Interesting!

I’m surprised that this gem has not surfaced in the mainstream media as it took only minutes to find on the Wikileaks website. Anyway, at least some netizens have stumbled across it.

When we go to Rio +20

This cross post from AllVoices goes with the twitter hash tag #futurewewant:

When we go to Rio De Janeiro in June next year, lots of emotional capital will be invested in the success of the Rio +20 Earth Summit. It’s the twentieth anniversary of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Brazil’s iconic city. This time those two elements are brought together as the World Summit on Sustainable Development.

…Rio +20 needs to be more than a dream. It must come up with more than a platform to negotiate an agreement. It must deliver more that the bare bones ‘institutional framework’.

The summit can be a game changer, an earth mover. It’s over to you!
Rio +20: Earth Mover or Green Economy Carnival

Think this should be in the More in Hope than Expectation category.

Waiting on Durban

While we’re waiting for some kind of decision/communique from COP17 in Durban, may I share a cross post/cross promotion from AllVoices:

This week in Durban young citizen journalists are challenging the popular stereotype of Generation Y. Gen Ys are supposed to be: self-obsessed; apathetic; disengaged; with limited attention spans; shallow online chatterers and gamers; little concerned for the future of the planet they’ll be inheriting.

Move over baby boomers! The twentysomethings are at the gates, in particular a new generation of committed and skilled young women activists. Many of them are in South Africa to cover the current United Nations COP17 climate change conference.
These web warriors are not just reporting the story. Increasingly they are the story, as they lobby to bring about climate action. Meet three of them.

Adopt a Negotiator tracker for Mexico, Andrea Arzaba, is an active blogger withGlobal Voices and Th!nk About It.

Young Ugandan Kodili (Chandia Benadtte Kodili) is an Activista Swarm blogger with ActionAid and Secretary for Female Affairs at the National Youth Council. She also has been part of Global Voices’ mentoring program.

The third young woman doing it for her planet is Gemma Borgo-Caratti, the NSW Coordinator of AYCC (Australian Youth Climate Coalition). She tweets as@beyondthinice and her concerns about Antarctica can be shared on her websiteChanging today for tomorrow.

Durban: Gen Y women doing it for the planet

The full post is here.

Illegal Aliens Invade London

Okay, it’s a film review. Not everyday we attend a teen SciFi at the cinema. But it was free and turned out to be fun.

My review of Attack the Block at Cinema Takes:

Before the preview session we were warned that the film was dark and violent but fun. For a Sci-Fi alien film, Attack The Block turned out to be on the light side with less blood and violence than expected. It was fun! The audience laughed a lot – a real plus for a teen flick as there were lots of baby boomers in attendance.

A London housing estate is besieged by extraterrestrial monsters. Writer/director Joe Cornish keeps a fast pace, punctuating the humour with the inevitable but fairly subdued ‘horror’. The script is clever at times, though the frequent references to oppression of the block’s underclass youth by police, government and society is hardly subtle or necessary. Better to let the bleeding obvious… Anyway, it’s a film about a London riot of a very different kind.

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It’s All Happening Down Under

We’re back from two months in the UK and Morocco to find that lots of the action is happening down under. A couple of my web roundups for Global Voices on Australian politics:

Australia: Historic New Carbon Price Law Divides Nation

The Australian Federal Parliament finally passed the contentious Clean Energy Bill on 8 November 2011. The legislation introduces a carbon price of $A 23 per tonne from July 2012, leading to an emissions trading scheme (cap and trade) after 3 years.

Peter Campbell’s blog on the state of the planet congratulated those involved in passing the legislation:

This is wonderful news. It is a shame it has taken so long for us to finally price pollution and provide leadership and and incentives for a clean energy future.

Well done Julia Gillard, The Labor Government, the MPCCC, Tony Windsor and Rob Oakshott, all the Greens in the senate – particularly Christine Milne and Bob Brown and their advisors – and Adam Bandt in the House of Representatives.

Some opponents were quick to make negative comparisons. @marksharma saw parallels with the far right:

Australia is NOT a democracy anymore.We are now under the ‘occupation’ of Nazis led by Julia Gillard & Hitler Bob Brown! #auspol #CarbonTAX 8 Nov

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Australia: Obama Charm Offensive Not Everyone’s Cup Of Tea

Even before Airforce One had landed in Australia on Wednesday 16 November 2011, President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Julia Gillard were online targets.

In his post John Passant threw a left hook at both Obama and the local Greens Party.

The Greens support war criminal Barack Obama

Instead of welcoming mass murderer Obama, the Greens, as the biggest non-mainstream party, should be organising demonstrations against the war criminal.

On the right side of the political stage, the little known Australian TEA Party announced a rally of their own:

This is our big chance to impact the extreme left elites that are crippling our country and indeed the world.

…Julia Gillard and Barak Obama. These two deeply cynical Politicians are seeking to deflect disastrous domestic policies and unpopularity in their respective countries with a carefully choreographed – ‘photo op ‘ – propaganda event.

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Anyway, it’s great to be back even if it is pouring in Melbourne. If nothing else the coffee is so much better!

New News Panel: Australian Media Leaders Held to Account

Thanks to the Melbourne Press Club for the video of the Melbourne Writers Festival’s New News panel – Australian Media Leaders Held to Account:

Mark Scott (Managing Director, ABC), Greg Hywood (CEO, Fairfax Media) and Sophie Black (Editor, Crikey)

It was my privilege to represent Our Say members who voted for my question and a place on the panel.

A highlight was meeting Maxine McKew who chaired the session in her usual professional and relaxing manner.

And a special thank you to all the Café Whisperers who encouraged and supported me. It was a hoot!

Activistas: New Voices at the Table

Just like to introduce some new cyber friends from Activista’s Blogger Swarm, ‘A network of young Activistas from across the globe blogging for a global audience on Food and Climate Justice!’

It is my privilege to be mentoring one of the bloggers on behalf of Global Voices: Benadette Chandia Kodili, from Uganda.

Please support the Activistas by reading and joining in their conversations. They would love to hear from Café patrons.

More – Activistas: Changing their World Through Blogging

Australian Media Leaders: Have a Say

Please excuse this promo but it’s too good to pass up.

Our Say (Democracy is Not a Spectator Sport) has a challenge:

Senior executives from media organisations will answer the most voted question at the 2011 New News Conference on Saturday 27th of August.
Not only that, the person who asks the question voted most popular will be invited to join the media leaders on the panel (click here for details). Ask and vote for questions, you want answered by the people who run our media organisations.
You could be sitting with Mark Scott (Managing Director of ABC), Greg Hywood (CEO of Fairfax Media) and Sophie Black (Editor of Crikey) to discuss issues with media, journalism and the coverage of politics in news. This is a unique opportunity for you to keep Australian media leaders to account.

My question: ‘What skills will be essential for journalists in the newsroom of 2050?’

You could vote for it here or post your own question. What a hoot if we could get someone from the Café on the panel!

Monckton’s Mates?

From Red Bluff:

The Jackboot’s On the Other Foot

Recently Lord Monckton, displaying a swastika, called Ross Garnaut a fascist. If you’re German and a climate scientist then you’ve probably come to expect the term Nazi to be thrown at you but not necessarily a noose.

The scene:

Melbourne University 7 PM 12 July 2011

The event:

The Critical Decade, the keynote address for the FOUR DEGREES OR MORE? Australia in a Hot World conference

The speaker:

Professor Schellnhuber, Head of the Potsdam Institute of Climate Impact Research and Chair of the German Government’s Advisory Council on Global Change

The protestors:

4 Citizens Electoral Council members

The Stoush:

As we entered the building, people were handing out leaflets for and against climate action. It didn’t take much grey matter to work out there would be some political theatre coming up. As the good professor began to speak, a protestor leapt to his feet in the second row and waved a very large noose. He yelled about a climate conspiracy involving Queen Elizabeth, the royal family, and green Nazis. He was taken by the arm by a senior academic who vigorously escorted him from the auditorium.

A series of interruptions followed.

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Flickcrit: Babies – Speaking for Themselves

A crosspost from my little cinema blog Cinema Takes:

No commentary, no dialogue to speak of, just four babies in their first year of life. Ponijao from Opuwo Namibia, Bayar from Bayarjargal Mongolia, Mari from Tokyo Japan and Hattie from San Francisco USA.

Though not my topic of choice, I was won over within seconds. Thomas Balmès’Babies is my kind of documentary maker. He lets the camera tell the story. The structure is straightforward and predictable: from breastfed dependency to toddling independence. You can draw your own life lessons, just enjoy the wonder of infancy or do both. If the global village has any future, it is being nurtured in these communities.

It’s a French production but could hardly be classified as foreign language. Wikipedia suggests that some viewers think “it lacks insight and depth”. Must be used to docos that do all the thinking for them.

Do yourself a favour – catch this one, preferably on the big screen. I haven’t smiled so much at the cinema  for ages.