Once upon a time, there was a nation of people who believed everything they were told by their government.

When Tony Abbott called for heads to roll at the ABC, he invokes the “death cult” rhetoric he supposedly deplores, writes Lyn Bender.

from Crikey ….

Already we have the Nazi slogan of ‘Work Will Make You Free’ splattered heavily across our social welfare landscape. ‘Arbeit Macht Frei’ … work will make you free.

The terrorist imaginary necessarily requires mutual enforcement. It begins with the idea of a red under the bed, or the monster in the woods. The work for such a monster is essentially done by the fantasist victim, the individual who fears what he or she might become.

If governments are to maintain public support for their military ventures, war narratives must be kept simple and consistent. The underlying message must not change: the West is always the innocent victim of terrorism, never its perpetrator.

from John Passant ….

from Crikey …..

The lawyer at the centre of the East Timor cabinet-bugging scandal has finally broken his silence to defend himself and his client against attacks by Attorney-General George Brandis and Abbott government lawyers.