Monday, May 31, 2004

Can we trust the [British] Officer class?

An interesting article on the difference in style between British and US army officers. Is their a case for Dan Simmons "New Bushido"? A Warrior credo based on the protection of civilians set above all considerations?

Tuesday, May 25, 2004

US to demolish Abu Ghraib jail

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | US to demolish Abu Ghraib jail and punish its general: "'Then, with the approval of the Iraqi government, we will demolish the Abu Ghraib prison as a fitting symbol of Iraq's new beginning.'"

So a maximum security prison is a "fitting symbol of Iraq's new begging" is it?

Sunday, May 23, 2004

What have we done? Susan Sontag on the Abu Ghraib images

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | What have we done? Susan Sontag on the Abu Ghraib images: "To 'stack naked men' is like a college fraternity prank, said a caller to Rush Limbaugh and the many millions of Americans who listen to his radio show. Had the caller, one wonders, seen the photographs? No matter. The observation, or is it the fantasy, was on the mark. What may still be capable of shocking some Americans was Limbaugh's response: 'Exactly!' exclaimed Limbaugh. 'Exactly my point. This is no different than what happens at the Skull and Bones initiation and we're going to ruin people's lives over it and we're going to hamper our military effort, and then we are going to really hammer them because they had a good time.' 'They' are the American soldiers, the torturers. And Limbaugh went on. 'You know, these people are being fired at every day. I'm talking about people having a good time, these people. You ever heard of emotional release?'"

Friday, May 21, 2004

The ugly face of power

Guardian Unlimited | US elections 2004 | The ugly face of power

Claim made for new form of life


BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Claim made for new form of life
: "'But if you go back to how we defined life prior to our knowing about DNA, our criteria was that things multiplied in culture. This is what we have.'"

Morning post

My first real post in a very long time.

Don't ask me why I've eschewed this medium. Part of my brain still likes to be the IT geek, crawling around in the cracks looking for the "perfect" technical solution. Fact is that this works and I should just stick to it.

I slept better last night. My first really good night of sleep all week. The fever of Monday has receded and the antibiotics are slowly doing their thing. The sore throat is receding too. My sleep was full of strange dreams. There was a church, there was my eldest sister. A strange mechanical contraption trying desperately to go around the world entirely on land by somehow traveling at 90 degrees to the horizontal along cliffs. I was in it sometimes so was Liz (I'm still with Liz by the way -- I moved in with her at the beginning of May, our first anniversary of meeting).

So what have I been doting in my absence from this space? I have left work in the commercial world. I was accepted on Ba at University of Technology, Sydney. I am now studying writing and contemporary culture. Next year I begin international studies in Japanese.

I have been extremely busy this year that the Long Now has contracted into the school work that I do. But with the arrival of the end of my first term, and the exceptional feed back I have received from my written work, I feel remarkably buoyed by the realisation that yes, I am a writer.

In ten days Liz and I fly to New York. She is taking up a 3 week internship and a school their while I will practice my art: writing.

Namaste
Paul

BBC NEWS | Americas | Free US flights for 'being nice'


BBC NEWS | Americas | Free US flights for 'being nice'
: "some industry analysts are sceptical about the wisdom of airlines offering free tickets.

'Next thing you know, they'll be paying you to fly,' said Ray Neidl, airline analyst at Blaylock & Partners.

'I just hope there are not that many people that are nice - yields are bad enough already.'
"

Thursday, May 20, 2004

And justice for all

Aljazeera.Net - US wants court exemption renewed: "But Washington has signed bilateral agreements with 89 countries who promised not to prosecute American citizens anywhere as well as anyone under contract to the United States, said Richard Grenell, spokesman for US ambassador John Negroponte.

Some of those who ratified the treaty also signed the agreement with the United States, which in some cases is tied to aid."

"Under former President Bill Clinton, the US was one of 135 nations that signed the treaty, but the Bush administration rescinded the signature."

And justice for all

Aljazeera.Net - US wants court exemption renewed: "But Washington has signed bilateral agreements with 89 countries who promised not to prosecute American citizens anywhere as well as anyone under contract to the United States, said Richard Grenell, spokesman for US ambassador John Negroponte.

Some of those who ratified the treaty also signed the agreement with the United States, which in some cases is tied to aid."

Wednesday, May 19, 2004

Not Vietnam - Much Worse

News: "The world has seen the last of liberal imperialism. It died on the killing fields of Iraq. It is no consolation to the people of that country, but at least their sufferings have demonstrated the cruel folly of waging war in order to fight a liberal crusade."

Tuesday, May 11, 2004

The customer is always right


Aljazeera.Net - US army 'pleased' with interrogators
: "'It's been reported to us that we're doing a fine job. That's from our customer (the army), and those are the people who count,' said JP 'Jack' London, head of CACI, on Monday."

Saturday, May 08, 2004

I pay you to pay me...

The Observer | Business | Shadow over Murdoch as Sky growth slows: "Sky is working on a loyalty card similar to that pioneered by supermarket chain Tesco. It would be inserted in Sky's set-top boxes, in the second 'interactive' slots that are not currently in use."

So let me get this straight. I pay Sky something in the region of 30 quid a month and they are going to reward me for watching Sky. So instead of watching the BBC on terrestrial I should watch on Sky...only that Sky have come off the Sky platform..so no loyalties there...

So they pay me for me paying them...

Why not just give it to me free and let the ads pay Shy their revenue. Oh no...that would never do, would it...what ever happened to the neo-conservative "user pays" credo?? It's lost somewhere on my loyalty card...

Law is of no consequence

The Observer | UK News | British quizzed Iraqis at torture jail: "Senior Pentagon sources have also told this newspaper that plans are being drawn up to bulldoze Abu Ghraib within a month in an attempt to assuage Arab outrage at photographs of US sexual abuse of detainees inside the prison.

But the commander of US detention facilities in Iraq said yesterday the US military will continue to run the prison with a reduced population and that if orders are received to close Abu Ghraib, the military would shift the mission to Camp Bucca, south of Basra.

The Red Cross disclosed to The Observer that its president, Jakob Kellenberger, had personally warned three of George W. Bush's most senior officials - National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, Secretary of State Colin Powell and Deputy Defence Secretary Paul Wolfowitz - of widespread abuse tantamount to torture."