Fighting Fake News with REAL 3/10/22; Truss; QAnon politics and the Christian Right; Florida bans books; Kangaroo Court; Irony of Bolt's silence;

 

National Times

Exclusive: IPA has lost all funding from ASX 100 . (The Saturday Paper and Mike Seccombe )

How quick is a day in politics there was Andrew Bolt bragging about the influence he had with the powers to be in Australia. He was best mates with Tony Abbott and the head of the IPA John Roskam. He even got his son James a job there.

 Like puffing on a dandelion all that good fortune or some might call arse-licking has blown away. So much for being Murdoch's top "influencer". A legend in his own lunch time. Lachlan is even suing "Crikey" for  it's opinion which Bolt once insisted was "free speech". In America there'd be no case to answer. However, that's now turned into what appears to be the "right of free silence". by Andrew Bolt. 

2d  ·

There was a time, not so long ago, when corporate Australia lined up…  

“Twenty or 30 years ago,” says John Roskam, whose 17-year tenure as executive director ended a couple of months ago, “we had dozens of ASX 100 companies supporting the IPA. Now, there’s not one.

“Not one,” he repeats, for emphasis. “Not one of the ASX 100 companies supports the IPA.”

No wonder Roskam sounds dispirited. Big business created the IPA. It was set up in 1943 following the collapse of Australia’s major conservative political party, the United Australia Party, in opposition to the perceived “socialism” of the Curtin Labor government.

Its founders included the chairmen of BHP and Coles, as well as the head of the Herald and Weekly Times newspaper group, Keith Murdoch, father of Rupert, among many other business leaders.

The fact that corporate Australia now has largely abandoned the IPA – although the Murdochs, whose business is listed offshore, are still supporters, as is mining magnate Gina Rinehart, whose interests are held privately – may be the clearest indication of the declining influence of not just the IPA but right-wing think tanks in general.

“Many people, including myself as a Liberal Party member, are frustrated with the direction of the Liberal Party. The libertarian alternative through the LDP is becoming more and more attractive.”

There are many other indicators, too.

See more

 

Truss is, as the 2021 essay forecast, entirely immersed in the world and personnel of the billionaires’ ultra free market lobby groups masquerading as thinktanks. Her Chancellor is an ideologue and true believer in the message. The “thinktanks” face the moment of testing: who was the liberty for that they championed? Only the Ultra High Net Worth class and their High Net Worth enablers? Both the UK and the US stand on the brink of something unthinkable a decade ago. Australians must fight to ensure that our radicalised right (and the “thinktanks” that foster the internationally-networked radicalisation) don’t take us back down that path. We have a chance to rebalance the playing field. Will our right resume playing the game as a contest, or continue to try to trash the field?

Source: Australia might be saving our democracy. Can the UK and US? – » The Australian Independent Media Netw

Morrison’s role model reveals his true QAnon self

Donald Trump’s recent open embrace of the QAnon conspiracy cult that deifies him has predictably metastasized into full-on identification. This became clear at his Sept. 17 rally in Youngstown, Ohio, where QAnon fans in the audience raised their fingers in a coded salute while Q-derived theme music played over the loudspeakers. Over the past couple of weeks on his Truth Social chat platform, he has repeatedly posted and reposted Q-derived memes and hashtags, including ominous suggestions of future Jan. 6-style insurrectionist violence.

Source: QAnon Conspiracists Buoyed By Trump’s Truth Social Embrace | Crooks and Liars

Fahrenheit 451- Radical Christian ISIS-based model state with Religious police coming your way

In combination with other recent laws restricting public schools from discussing LGBTQ issues or racism — including Florida's 2022 "Don't Say Gay" law (HB 1557) and "Stop WOKE Act" (HB7) and its 2021 ban on teaching "Critical Race Theory" — this has led some school districts to advise teachers to box up their classroom libraries until each book is vetted. Others have instructed teachers to stop buying or accepting donated books for their classrooms until at least January, to give the district time to hire mandatory new staff to serve as "media specialists" who review each title.

Source: "Statewide book bans" are coming to Florida's classrooms, enforced by the far right | Salon.com

 

The key points of the fake National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) are:

1) Bare minimum protection for whistleblowers.

2) They have backflipped on their election promise for public hearings which will now only happen in exceptional circumstances.

3) Massive Breach of Open justice – This is also in part designed to intimidate whistleblowers from not coming forward.

Source: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s fake National Anti-Corruption Commission fails whistleblowersKangaroo Court of Australia

 

theguardian.com

Four state scandals that show what a federal anti-corruption commission could uncove

 ·

 

For years, Bolt has argued that he has a right to free speech without the terrible restrictions that someone disagreeing with him might place on his freedom. We should reject political correctness and all that it entails.

So, I’m presuming that he must be very upset that Lachlan Murdoch should take Crikey to court because of what they printed and that he doesn’t feel that the idea that Lachlan has “has suffered and will continue to suffer substantial hurt, distress and embarrassment” should be a reason for him to sue them.

As for Andrew Bolt, I’m left presuming his opinion on the Lachlan Murdoch situation because he hasn’t made his views as clear as he normally does. Of course, this would have nothing to do with who his employer is, because that would lead some to draw the inference that he doesn’t really think his paper supports his free speech on all subjects.

Source: Andrew Bolt Does Not Support Murdoch’s Viewpoint! – » The Australian Independent Media Network

 

Australian home values have fallen for a fifth consecutive month, with prices dropping in all capitals except Darwin.

Source: Home values fall for fifth straight month - Michael West