from Crikey…..

Christian Kerr writes:

John Howard has today unveiled his biggest election weapon – incumbency.

It doesn’t matter what Kevin Rudd puts on the table – education, water, whatever. If he wants to, the PM can trump it.

from the ABC …..

Abbott says Rudd uses religion politically

Federal Health Minister Tony Abbott has accused Labor leader Kevin Rudd of using religion for political purposes.

He was speaking to the Young Liberal Federal Convention in Melbourne this morning.

The fratboy & his co-conspirators continue to act as provocateurs.

The United States of fascism accuses Iran of arms trafficking in support of Iraqi “insurgents” (who maybe just consider themselves freedom fighters, given the ongoing occupation of their country by bushit, blair & their corporate oil thieves?) & seize three Iranian diplomats. Whilst the US says that “charges” against the Iranians will be made public “soon”, this must be considered doubtful, given the Americans normal propensity to go public immediately with the wildest accusations on the slightest pretext. The Iranian diplomats are no more than hostages & their seizure is a deliberate provocation.

‘Just five days after the September 11th attacks in 2001, in a Q and A with reporters on the South Lawn of the White House, a President with a new mission, a new cause, and a new purpose in life told the American people that, though they had to "go back to work tomorrow," they should now know that they were facing a "new kind of evil." He added, "And we understand. And the American people are beginning to understand. This crusade, this war on terrorism is going to take a while."

from Buzzflash ……

Always the master of creative rhetoric, the White House's political spin machine has reached a new low. Backtracking over the original justifications for the Iraq War as they become increasingly erroneous, the Bush Administration has finally come up with a way to maintain their insistence that Iraq is "the central front on the war on terror."

‘George W. Bush would like people to believe that he has somehow created a "new plan" - a "New Way Forward" in Iraq.

Interestingly enough, at least this time, Bush didn't fool anyone. According to the polls, 70 percent of the American people are deeply opposed to the President's recent recycled version of the same never-ending, never-changing plan. But the thing that the American people and, too, the Democratic Congress don't fully realize is that, George W. Bush doesn't care what anybody thinks. President Bush's escalation plan is nothing more than a stalling tactic. However, contrary to popular opinion, the President isn't only delaying the exit from Iraq, so that he can get out of office and leave the mess for the next chump. There is some truth to that, but there is much more to Bush prolonging an exit from Iraq than just his leaving office.

from the Centre for American Progress …..

Escalating Failure

‘Last night, President Bush disregarded the opposition of U.S. military commanders, lawmakers of both parties, the Iraq Study Group (ISG), and the American public and announced to the nation that he plans to increase America's presence in Iraq by approximately 21,500 troops, with no timetable for when troop levels would be drawn back down. The right wing tried to present this "surge" as the "last chance for success" in Iraq. But as the Associated Press noted, Bush's escalation announcement is simply the "latest repackaging of a program that's been wrapped and rewrapped many times." When Bush sent increased U.S. forces into Baghdad in June 2006, the security situation actually deteriorated further and violence increased. One Bush administration official admitted that the escalation plan is "more of a political decision than a military one" and military commanders have made clear to the President that U.S. forces are already overstretched. As Bush noted in June 28, 2005, sending more troops to Iraq will "undermine our strategy of encouraging Iraqis to take the lead" and "suggest that we intend to stay forever." Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) has introduced legislation demanding accountability from the President, and the Center for American Progress has released a memo recommending "an amendment on the supplemental funding bill that states that if the administration wants to increase the number of troops in Iraq above 150,000, it must provide a plan for their purpose and require an up or down vote on exceeding that number." American Progress also has a strategic redeployment plan detailing "a responsible exit from Iraq as part of a balanced global strategy to make Americans safer."

‘Iraq's massive oil reserves, the third-largest in the world, are about to be thrown open for large-scale exploitation by Western oil companies under a controversial law which is expected to come before the Iraqi parliament within days.

The US government has been involved in drawing up the law, a draft of which has been seen by The Independent on Sunday. It would give big oil companies such as BP, Shell and Exxon 30-year contracts to extract Iraqi crude and allow the first large-scale operation of foreign oil interests in the country since the industry was nationalised in 1972.

‘Bush is still the Christian-crusader President, still lodged inside a bubble universe filled with neo-con advisors - and that means more troops in Iraq, even if the idea doesn't make a lick of sense.

Every now and then, you have to take a lesson or two from history. In the case of George Bush's Iraq, here's one: No matter what the President announces in his "new way forward" speech on Iraq next week - including belated calls for "sacrifice" from the man whose answer to 9/11 was to urge Americans to surge into Disney World - it won't work.

from our ABC ..... 

PM promises $25m for SCG stand

The Federal Government will provide $25 million for a new grandstand at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

Prime Minister John Howard says he expects the New South Wales Government to fully match the Commonwealth's contribution.

from our venerable ABC …..

US would have executed Saddam 'differently'

By Washington correspondent Kim Landers

The United States says it would have handled the execution of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein differently, but is also insisting that "justice has been done".

from the Sydney morning herald …..

Hicks case needs to be resolved: Ruddock

‘Pressure is building on the Federal Government to take action to end the US detention without charge of the Australian David Hicks at Guantanamo Bay.

from The Guardian

Blair blames Iran for Middle East conflicts

Wednesday December 20, 2006