Be the signal » politics

The Great Australian Internet Blackout

Jeff Waugh — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 11:51:30 +0000

The Great Australian Internet Blackout is a combined online and offline demonstration against imposed online censorship. We’re collaborating with Electronic Frontiers Australia (and hoping to bring on similar organisations soon) to make sure every Australian knows why this draconian policy is unacceptable.

We’re gathering steam within the online community opposed to this policy, then broadening our audience with offline outreach efforts. Our first big demonstration will be during the week of Australia Day… websites across the country with go dark for the week, and we will celebrate the national holiday by joining the traditional Australia Day public parties across the nation, wearing black (hey, it’s a “blackout” after all!) and informing our fellow citizens about the threat of imposed online censorship.

Check out the website for more info, follow @OzNetBlackout on Twitter and get involved via Facebook group and events.

The Amazing Emanuel Brothers

Jeff Waugh — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 06:29:23 +0000

President-Elect Obama’s Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel was the inspiration for The West Wing’s #1 White House hottie, Josh Lyman.

(Interesting aside: After serving as Deputy Chief of Staff to Leo McGarry through President Bartlet’s administration, Josh Lyman became Chief of Staff under President Matt Santos at the end of the series. The eerie similarities between Obama’s reality and The West Wing’s storyline continue…)

Ari Emanuel was the inspiration for Entourage’s hilarious super-agent, Ari Gold.

Ezekiel Emanuel is a medical ethicist.

Screenwriters, start your engines!

Yeah, perhaps the Emanuel family won’t be scoring a hat trick.

Update: Jonathan informs me that the Emanuel brothers were interviewed by Charlie Rose this week. Now to find it online!

WotD: surge

Jeff Waugh — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 02:17:12 +0000

surge, noun — Throwing good after bad. Such as: money, lives, reputation, international good-will.

Recent examples of use: Iraq, Wall Street, deregulation, tax cuts for the top 1%, War on Drugs.

QoTD: Brendan Nelson

Jeff Waugh — Wed, 14 May 2008 07:10:15 +0000

Every mother loves her baby, every baby is valued and Mr Rudd should value all babies equally. We should not live in Australia where Mr Rudd thinks that some babies are more valuable than others. It’s very, very important that Mr Rudd understand that every mother loves her baby and this should be an Australia where all babies are equal. — Brendan Nelson, single-handedly raising the level of political discourse in Australia

(Blogging this in absolute surprise that the clip wasn’t already available on YouTube! Had to find and upload it myself. Lazyweb, where are you?)

QoTD: Gough Whitlam

Jeff Waugh — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 18:12:12 +0000

“Only the impotent are pure.” — Gough Whitlam

Poll Position

Jeff Waugh — Wed, 09 May 2007 05:36:18 +0000

In Australia, there is a key position — fundamental to our governance, and almost unique to the Australian political landscape — that we, the people of this nation, do not elect. As I say this, you may be thinking of the Governor-General, representative of our head of state, the Queen… but there is a far more important position at stake here.

John Howard: “We’re clearly behind at the moment and I don’t expect any great change in that. I expect this to be a very hard fought election and the toughest that the Government has faced.”

Kevin Rudd: “I expect that we’ll take a pounding in the opinion polls as a result of this budget on the politics of it. [...] There’s still a few months to go before this election, but he’ll get a surge in the polls and I dare say I won’t.”

That’s right sports fans: It’s the race of the year! One which you can’t decide! Who will be… The Underdog?

QoTD: Gough Whitlam

Jeff Waugh — Sun, 29 Apr 2007 03:12:33 +0000

“Now, in ’07, the task of the Australian Labor Party is to address and redress the growing inequality created not by neglect or drift or indifference, but by the deliberate infliction of a decade of the most ideologically driven regime in Australia’s history.” — Gough Whitlam, with Margaret, as the first recipients of the ALP’s national life membership awards

Meanwhile, the Ghost of Mark Latham, once Gough’s protege, was spooking other members of the party.

Cheney in Sydney

Jeff Waugh — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 03:06:56 +0000

“[The Premier of New South Wales] said state firearms regulations had been amended to allow Mr Cheney’s US Secret Service bodyguards to carry firearms during the visit because the vice president’s security was of paramount concern.” — Protesters warned over VP violence

Good to see we’re adapting our wonderfully stringent firearm laws to make sure the US Secret Service can keep Cheney from shooting our citizens.

Humble Pie

Jeff Waugh — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 07:54:21 +0000

I say, why all the glum faces? *crickets*

And in my first act of bipartisan outreach since the election, I shared with [Nancy Pelosi] the names of some Republican interior decorators who can help her pick out the new drapes in her new offices. *crickets*

Thank you, voters of the USA, for making Bush eat humble pie.

Politics Schmolitics

Jeff Waugh — Mon, 23 Oct 2006 11:53:53 +0000

The United States of America…

is armed to the teeth with nukes,
disrespects international law,
invades and wages war on foreign countries based on abject lies,
savagely ignores human rights,
has virtually buried habeas corpus,
supports institutionalised torture,
and finally, the USA has banned Vegemite!

This kind of behaviour tends to bring out the yobbos bagging Yanks mentality, even among ever-tolerant Aussie GNOME conspirators. So, as we were giving stick for the latest round of inhumane acts by the USA, we pondered how thoroughly confusing our political system would be to the average American. Here’s a quick guide to Australian politics, specifically for Americans planning to apply for refugee status in the near future…

Republicans are, for the most part, young and progressive.
Liberals are conservative.
We don’t use “liberal” as a pejorative term.
To be doubly confusing, we have a “Labor” party, not a “Labour” party.
Red is progressive, blue is conservative.
We put numbers in the little boxes.
Failing to vote is an exception to the rule.
A “Free Trade Agreement” means freely trading your dignity for… free.
Democrats once held the balance of power, but are now a miserable, ineffectual wreck. (Hold on a second…)

Let us know what we’ve missed in the comments, please.