Planet Irf

PHOTOS: The Joy of Christmas ...

2011-12-22T14:56:00.000+11:00

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HUMOUR: Breaking winds on jihad ...

2011-12-03T17:27:00.002+11:00

During the period of 2005 to 2010, when I was writing regularly and prolifically, some interesting characters were taking quite a deal of notice. For instance, the Cairns author of the Winds of Jihad blog had been following me almost obsessively. He calls himself Sheik Yermami, and the chap clearly has taken a liking for my work. Here are some descriptors he's used to describe me ... Serial

BOOKS: Henry Reynolds on Tasmania

2011-11-25T23:31:00.000+11:00

Work has taken yours truly to a small island off the coast of Mexico. It's a gorgeous place known for its delightful landscape ... ... and for the genocide committed by its early settlers. So where did all this luscious murderous Tasmanian stuff emerge from? I decided to spend a Friday afternoon finding out. It didn't involve much research or effort on my part. I just joined some of

VIDEO: Yep, it's time to swear!!

2011-11-25T09:12:00.000+11:00

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SPORT: Bookshop paradise

2011-11-14T01:57:00.000+11:00

I believe in heaven. I've always wondered what it would be like. Maybe I should stop wondering and start preparing for it. But let's wonder for a while. I'd like to think jannah/paradise is a huge library and bookshop where browsing and even shoplifting is permitted. Books about all subjects, not just God and religion. Hopefully there will be lots of travel books, stuff on anthropology and

COMMENT: A thought on Remembrance Day

2011-11-11T14:05:00.000+11:00

This Remembrance Day our thoughts will be going to the Diggers in Afghanistan, many of whom are dying at the hands of allied troops in the Afghan National Army. Perhaps may not be quite the day to try and understand why Afghans are killing our young men. Or perhaps it is. Perhaps we need to understand the realities of torn loyalties and how they can lead allies to stop shooting the real enemy

MEDIA: The Bolt decision

2011-09-28T17:53:00.001+10:00

It must have been an awful feeling for one of Australia’s most loved and hated columnist, a rare moment when he did not enjoy the limelight. But dressed in his dark blue suit and a tie that almost matched the colour of his greying hair, columnist, blogger, TV and radio personality Andrew Bolt was genuinely phased by the judgment of a single Federal Court Judge. For a man who otherwise never shies

MEDIA: American-owned newspaper plays the Manne

2011-09-18T17:12:00.003+10:00

It was bound to happen. That American-owned newspaper that likes to call itself The Australian has shown itself to be the 'Heart of the Nation' with a vicious and vitriolic attack on La Trobe University academic Robert Manne. And why? Because Professor Manne wrote 25,000 critical words about the paper. And in its response, The Oz left not a single angle uncovered, with even an exceptionally

CRIKEY: Ten years on, 9/13 a milestone for minorities

2011-09-14T18:55:00.003+10:00

Today is the 13th day of September -- 10 years after an important milestone for the United States and the West. Ten years ago our way of life and our freedoms, our liberal democracy and our rule of law were all assaulted and violated. No, it didn't take place in New York or Washington. It took place at a small family-run petrol station in Mesa, Arizona. A young man named Balbir Singh Sodhi,

RACISM: Centre for Independent Studies hosts genetics expert ...

2011-07-25T16:35:00.000+10:00

As part of its Big Ideas Forum this year, he Centre for Independent Studies is hosting German Thilo Sarrazin, a German former banker and politician who claims Muslims are lowering German intelligence and that all Jews share certain genes. Lovely. Janet Albrechtsen will also be sharing the podium. You can read a gushing tribute to Sarrazin in The Australian authored by Oliver Marc Hartwich, a

COMMENT: Numbered paragraphs on scandalous tapping ...

2011-07-22T18:17:00.001+10:00

Far be it from me to revel in someone else's sorry. But seriously, the Murdoch press has caused sorrow to so many people that it's time to have a good laugh. So here goes. [01] Here is an excellent summary and analysis of the line taken by that American newspaper that calls itself The Australian. And John Stewart looks at how The Oz's cousin Fox News ignores grossly illegal (if not criminal)

LOONWATCH: For the week ending 19 June 2011

2011-06-19T23:54:00.000+10:00

[01] It seems New York Congressman Anthony Weiner is hiding the fact (?) that his untucking of his tackle is part of some devious form of taqiyya. For those of you who don't know, the word taqiyya is an Arabic term used in Muslim jurisprudence. Basically what it means is that if someone pulls a gun out and threatens to shoot you if you confirm you are a Muslim, you are permitted to lie about

HEALTH: Mental illness and magistrates ...

2011-06-15T00:43:00.000+10:00

Is it an essential element of the role of a magistrate that they not have a mental illness of any kind? Including one that is easily treatable? Former NSW Attorney General Frank Walker doesn't believe so. After all, plenty of elected officials suffer from mental illness, whether they admit it or not. And they are involved in lawmaking and often in executive decisions that affect the nation and

LOONWATCH: For the week ending 2 June 2011

2011-06-02T22:59:00.000+10:00

I don't get much time to blog these days. Or to write. Lots of work. Lots of travel. But there's still so much to write about, so much lunacy to laugh at. So here's an experiment. I'll cover the best bits of lunacy from Thursday to Thursday. The lunacy can take various forms - imbecilic politics, hypocritical comment, whatever. Let's start. [01] A small cabal of twits at that American-owned

MUSIC: Tim Finn shines

2011-05-28T01:53:00.000+10:00

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QUOTE: Nir Rosen on media fraud ...

2011-05-22T01:24:00.000+10:00

Here is Nir Rosen, a senior writer for the New York Times Magazine. Too often consumers of mainstream media are victims of a fraud. You think you can trust the articles you read, why wouldn’t you, you think you can sift through the ideological bias and just get the facts. But you don’t know the ingredients that go into the product you buy ... According to the French intellectual and scholar

OPINION: Muddled thinking in Anzac tweet

2011-05-06T16:11:00.001+10:00

I spent part of the Anzac Day weekend in true Australian style at the Rooty Hill RSL Club. This huge complex in Sydney's far west includes a hotel, a tenpin bowling facility and more pokies than you can poke a truckload of cash at. I joined a bunch of ordinary punters and some blokes sporting military medals in a small hall before a big screen and watched a game of rugby league. As I sat, I

POLITICS: More on Peter King's radical fiasco

2011-03-12T05:15:00.000+11:00

Republican Congressman Peter King, Chair of the US House of Representatives Homeland Security Committee, has just commenced a set of controversial hearings on the "radicalisation of American Muslims". Writing in the Boston Globe, John Tirman from the MIT Center for International Studies notes: The START database on terrorism in America, which tracks all incidents of political violence, shows

USA/COMMENT: Peter King's terror fantasy

2011-03-08T14:02:00.002+11:00

The Daily Show - How Do You Solve a Problem Like Sharia?Tags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook A Republican Representative from Long Island in New York has just commenced Congressional Hearings in the United States on the dangers posed by Muslims. Apparently they haven't been doing enough to fight terrorism and extremism among their ranks. As a

HUMOUR: Islamic French superheroes

2011-03-08T01:01:00.001+11:00

It’s often said that Paris is the city of lovers. Which might make you wonder whether such wimped-out lovey-dovey Parisian types might ever need superheroes to protect them. After all, isn’t love supposed to conquer all? But like any big city, the real Paris is a place where organised crime and terrorism can flourish. This might explain a recent decision by the board of multinational Batman

MUSIC: A lesson in bad acting, awful miming and even worse driving

2011-03-06T17:57:00.001+11:00

... and all this on the foothills of the Himalayas. Seriously, I should try reading Alistair MacLean on the train and see if some South Asian d#ckhead chases after me in a jeep. Bookmark this on Delicious

CRIKEY: NSW election: the ethnic vote battle that is Lakemba

2011-03-01T17:04:00.000+11:00

With the NSW election coming up on March 26, there will no doubt be plenty of attention paid to the so-called ethnic vote. And with even safe ALP seats up for grabs as O’Farrell’s barrel of promises rolls across western Sydney, ethnic organisations will use the opportunity to promise votes. For a price, of course. In Lakemba, things aren’t exactly promising for the Libs. Although the Liberal

VIDEO: A step-by-step guide to television news reporting

2011-02-28T17:07:00.000+11:00

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PAKISTAN: Can a security contractor claim diplomatic immunity?

2011-02-27T04:09:00.000+11:00

There's a chap named Raymond Davis currently in a prison cell in Pakistan. He was in the country as a private contractor working for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). David was arrested after he gunned down two men in Lahore. A third person was run over by a US Consulate vehicle. The Hindustan Times reports: Davis, a US official, was arrested in Lahore Jan 27 after he shot dead two youths

COMMENT: Jeremy Sammut tries to be a smartie on M&M's

2011-02-26T03:10:00.002+11:00

Jeremy Sammut is a research fellow at the Centre for Independent Studies. He has a PhD in Australian social and political history from Monash University. He has written about child protection laws and health policy. And now he is writing about what he describes as the 'M&M' debate. M&M equals "multiculturalism and Muslims". His article appearing on the CIS website has been reprinted on the

COMMENT: Running riot across Sydney

2011-02-26T01:34:00.000+11:00

The American-owned Sydney tabloid Daily Telegraph carried an article today about a report from the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics about rioting in Sydney. Here are some excerpts: THOUSANDS of assaults occur within 20m of a hotel or club across Sydney, a damning report has found, as authorities yesterday called for further restrictions on late-night trading ... The assaults were clustered

VIDEO: A song for a friend soon to be married ...

2011-02-26T00:01:00.001+11:00

... and whose favourite band is Duran Duran. Congrats AElk and JF!! Bookmark this on Delicious

EGYPT: Terror myth clouds reality of Egypt revolution

2011-02-25T13:26:00.000+11:00

What a terrible waste. One of the few moderate Arab nations has been rocked by a revolution. Beady-eyed hairy-faced Islamo-fascists poised to take over, determined to drive Israel seaward and smother what remains of the Middle East under one giant burqa. This is the Egyptian scenario painted by influential and allegedly conservative pundits. They insist Hosni Mubarak was a moderate, and that

OPINION: Reflect reality, and reject monocultural nonsense

2011-02-24T19:02:00.001+11:00

Don’t let politicians and other pundits lecture us on who we are, IRFAN YUSUF writes Something really tragic took place in the Sydney suburb of Rouse Hill last week. Five Christians of various ages were buried. An entire Christian family - mum, dad, two children and an aunt - died in a tragic boating accident. An Anglican priest presided over the service. A smaller number of people who died

POLITICS: Bad intelligence ...

2011-02-21T03:13:00.002+11:00

The New York Times reports the hilarious antics of a Californian conman who took advantage of Washington's terror hysteria. For eight years, government officials turned to Dennis Montgomery, a California computer programmer, for eye-popping technology that he said could catch terrorists. Now, federal officials want nothing to do with him and are going to extraordinary lengths to ensure that his

VIDEO: On American Conservatives and abortion ...

2011-02-20T18:48:00.000+11:00

The Daily Show - Rape Victim Abortion FundingTags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook Bookmark this on Delicious

CRIKEY: The media pigeonholing Muslims is not helping any cause

2011-02-18T17:47:00.001+11:00

Scribes used to talk about “the Muslim community” and ascribe to this monolithic blob the views of several religious talking heads from fellafel land. Rarely would they bother with the vast majority of people who felt inclined to tick the “Muslim” box on their census forms. In fact, the average punter for whom Islamic religion was just one layer of their identity was left out of the

COMMENT: Things I learned about the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) over the years

2011-02-16T23:49:00.002+11:00

There's this scary creature in Egypt that has spread its testi ... woops ... tentacles across the world. It's a huge conspiracy that wants to transform each and every part of the planet into one huge bearded caliphate. Soon each nation will covered in a massive black burqa. At this time, no man will be allowed to lodge a develop application at their local council unless it makes provisions for a

MUSIC: An Australian classic

2011-02-16T23:12:00.000+11:00

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COMMENT: Things I learned about asylum seekers today

2011-02-16T17:21:00.001+11:00

Here is a summary of learnings I gained from various smart, important and influential people today on the subject of asylum seekers today: [01] If you pay for the funeral of a dead asylum seeker, it just encourages more of them to jump on boats. [02] If an asylum seeker wants to bury their 9 month child at taxpayers' expense, s/he needs to come up with a decent policy proposal. [03] Funerals

OPINION: Prejudice among our pollies is alive and well

2011-02-16T10:38:00.003+11:00

Tony Abbott doesn’t have much talent to choose from, IRFAN YUSUF writes It's official. Liberal Senator Cory Bernardi doesn't like halal meat. He argues halal slaughter contradicts his values and he doesn't see why he should have to put up with it. I too am a victim of halal slaughter. My first experience with it left me severely traumatised. It was 1977 and I was a wee lad of seven. It was the

MEDIA: Andrew Bolt's anti-racism poetry

2011-02-14T12:59:00.002+11:00

The January 2011 edition of the notoriously left-wing magazine IPA Review includes a lengthy profile piece on Andrew Bolt by one Paul Barry. It features a revealing poem Bolt wrote and had published at age 13. Barry notes: It certainly isn't Les Murray, but it is a fascinating insight into the young Bolt's mindset ... it is unmistakenly written as an outsider railing against racism and the mob

COMMENT: The neo-Con fantasy comes unstuck

2011-02-13T16:31:00.006+11:00

Here’s an example of the kind of fruitloop reasoning that makes so many American conservatives such a laughing stock: Are the Arabs capable of democracy? And if so, can Americans be the agents of their transformation? The answer, of course, is that no one knows. The lack of a single democratic Arab government gives grounds for skepticism. The claim that something in Arab culture makes it

COMMENT: Show us your (average) face!

2011-02-12T18:07:00.001+11:00

There's been alot of talk in the Herald Sun lately about that nasty thing called multiculturalism. I guess it's been a slow news period, and many tabloid readers perhaps believe Egypt is still ruled by pharaohs. Conventional wisdom on planet Murdoch tells us that when wogs come to town, they have to adopt our ways. They need to be just like us. Meanwhile, back here on planet Earth, The Age

VIDEO: 30 years of dictatorship ended in 34 seconds ...

2011-02-12T04:38:00.006+11:00

... and after 18 days of protests across the country in which hundreds were murdered using US-supplied bullets by thugs under the employ of the dictator's regime. UPDATE I: Here's a tweet from Wael Ghonim (@Ghonim): Dear Western Governments, You've been silent for 30 years supporting the regime that was oppressing us. Please don't get involved now Fair call. UPDATE II: Egyptian protesters

VIDEO: How Omar Suleiman made a mickey of the United States

2011-02-12T00:38:00.001+11:00

The Americans and Israelis are very close to Egypt's long serving intelligence chief and recently appointed Vice President Omar Suleiman. And what has Suleiman offered in return? Watch this video from CNN's Parker Spitzer show to find out. UPDATE I: Suleiman has also been personally linked to the torture of an Australian citizen Mamdouh Habib. I wrote something about this in Crikey back in

VIDEO: Watch stupid Republican voters talking about Obama and Egypt

2011-02-10T00:38:00.000+11:00

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VIDEO: Fox News reports a terrorist attack in America

2011-02-09T21:59:00.000+11:00

Russian cable news network RT asks some pertinent questions. Bookmark this on Delicious

VIDEO: Anti-Semitism Texas style

2011-02-08T21:50:00.000+11:00

The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10cJewish Speaker of Texas State Housewww.thedailyshow.comDaily Show Full EpisodesPolitical Humor & Satire BlogThe Daily Show on Facebook Bookmark this on Delicious

COMMENT: Angela Shanahan and Lebanese fertility ...

2011-02-08T18:14:00.001+11:00

Angela Shanahan, a columnist for The Australian, has every reason to be concerned about the plight of Coptic Christians in Egypt, who are regularly the subject of discrimination by the Mubarak regime, not to mention threats from a minority of Muslim wackos. Though in defending the Copts, she might consider her targets as well as the old adage about people in glass houses. In a recent column,

EGYPT: An Israeli view of the Muslim Brotherhood

2011-02-08T01:38:00.001+11:00

In 2006, Dr Israel Elad Altman wrote a paper for the Hudson Institute, a neo-Conservative thinktank, on the subject of Democracy, Elections & the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood. Dr Altman is a Senior research fellow at the Institute for Policy and Strategy, at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya. he holds a PhD in Islamic Studies from UCLA. Here are some excerpts from that paper ... Western

CRIKEY: Al Jazeera English’s Cairo performance: it’s the new CNN

2011-02-04T17:15:00.000+11:00

Last night, ABC24’s coverage turned from cyclone Yasi to Egypt at about 7.45. ABC correspondent Ben Knight was interviewed as he stood in his hotel room. He said words to this effect: “It’s too dangerous to venture outside my hotel room. In fact, it’s too dangerous for any journalist to be out there.” The real and serious journos were forced to seek safety in their hotel rooms. At that very

POLITICS: Egyptian intifada

2011-01-29T16:49:00.006+11:00

It's times like these that speaking and reading Arabic would come in handy. Still, we'll make do with English-language sources and translations. [01] The Washington Post describes one Egyptian revolutionary. IN CAIRO Abdel Zaher Dandarwi does not look like a revolutionary. At 53, his hair is graying at the temples and his eyes betray more fatigue than fury. But it was fatigue - with the daily

HUMOUR: Burka woman

2011-01-25T16:30:00.001+11:00

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OPINION: Rhetoric of religious right inflames zealots in East and West

2011-01-13T19:21:00.000+11:00

There are certain similarities between recent political shootings in the US and Pakistan, IRFAN YUSUF writes A bitter political debate is played out in the media and among politicians about the alleged danger posed by a tiny and extremely vulnerable minority. Populist and allegedly conservative politicians pass draconian legislation at the expense of this minority, thousands of whose members

COMMENT: Religious minorities ...

2011-01-09T00:57:00.008+11:00

In Egypt, following the bombing of a Coptic Church in Alexandria, Christians and Muslims marched in the streets in protest. Christians and Muslims called on the government to end discrimination against Coptic Christians. Muslims offered protection to Christian churches. Muslims even attended Christmas services in Coptic churches, acting as human shields.That's what is happening in Egypt. So what

VIDEO: "Inside Story" on Coptic clashes in Egypt

2011-01-06T01:00:00.002+11:00

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POLITICS: Murderous blasphemy or blasphemous murder?

2011-01-05T17:34:00.010+11:00

The governor of Pakistan's wealthiest province was gunned down. Salmaan Taseer was killed by his bodyguard at close range. The guard claims he shot his boss due to the latter's opposition to blasphemy laws.UPDATE I: Here is a response from Huma Imtiaz. I have no idea who she is but I endorse every word of her response.UPDATE II: The allegedly more "moderate" Barelwi school of thought has been

VIDEO: If only it could be a more Merry Christmas ...

2011-01-02T21:04:00.002+11:00

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VIDEO: Look at this terrorist refugee queue jumper

2010-12-26T17:31:00.005+11:00

We don't need such people in our wonderful white nation. And the moon is made of green cheese.Bookmark this on Delicious

NEWS: Sale extended

2010-12-22T20:18:00.007+11:00

And with that in mind, the Christmas sale of Once Were Radicals: My Years As A Teenage Islamo-fascist has been extended to Christmas. Yep. That's right. Until Christmas. If you live in Australia, you only have limited time to have a copy of the book mailed to your door for a mere price of Now that is cheap.So hurry as this offer ends on 7 January 2011.Surely the extension of this amazing offer

MUSIC/VIDEO: Pure class ...

2010-12-21T18:01:00.001+11:00

DC Lee, formerly of the Style Council. From the mid-'80's.Bookmark this on Delicious

OPINION: Asylum-seeker shame rises for some political pundits

2010-12-20T06:30:00.008+11:00

Oh, to have been a fly on the wall of the United States embassy in Canberra last November. And to be sitting there watching and listening as that unnamed ''key Liberal Party strategist'' that boat people was a politically ''fantastic'' issue with ''the more boats that come the better''. And if, for no other reason, than to know who that imbecile strategist was!Oh, to now be a fly on the wall of

BOOK: Special Christmas deal on Once Were Radicals ...

2010-12-09T13:39:00.009+11:00

Once Were Radicals: My Years As A Teenage Islamo-Fascist is an award-winning comic memoir by Irfan Yusuf.The book has received some rave reviews:... Yusuf explains the complexity of Middle Eastern culture and its history in lively, simple language. Added to accessibility is laugh-out-loud humour, as he pokes fun at John Howard’s national security fridge magnets ... (Sun Herald)... this witty,

VIDEO: Aamer Rahman urges his audience to throw pooh at John Howard

2010-12-08T13:00:00.001+11:00

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MEDIA: WikiLeaks hysteria ...

2010-12-07T16:14:00.007+11:00

This post will be a running tally of updates on WikiLeaks developments. I can't guarantee it will be updated regularly. If only I had the resources of Fairfax or News Limited!UPDATE 1: Jeffrey T Kuhner, a writer for the Washington Times, a far-Right newspaper published by a Korean preacher, has called for WikiLeaks dude Julian Assange to be assassinated. He writes:... we should treat Mr. Assange

COMMENT: Why isn't this man donating to Israel's bushfire effort?

2010-12-04T23:59:00.003+11:00

Lots of countries are helping Israel out with its current bushfire predicament. Among them are Bulgaria, Greece and Spain. Also helping are Muslim-majority states such as Azerbaijan. According to the News AZ website:The Azerbaijani Ministry for Emergencies sent today two helicopters of the aviation group to join the international crews helping Israel in the battle a huge forest fire.MES’ two

POLITICS: Liberal plane set to crash if crew bombs left wing

2010-12-01T02:51:00.005+11:00

Here's a scenario for politically astute, frequently flying Canberrans. A passenger jet is about to make its descent to its destination. The pilot, Captain Blackadder, orders the cabin crew to prepare for landing.But some of the crew have a cunning plan. They harbour a strange belief that this plane should fly with only one wing. They have strapped makeshift bombs to the left wing of the plane,

MUSIC: Diesel live

2010-12-01T01:04:00.001+11:00

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VIDEO: Shut the f*ck up and start swearing!

2010-11-20T01:17:00.000+11:00

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COMMENT:So what on earth do we do with Afghanistan?

2010-11-19T16:16:00.006+11:00

A British Army doctor named Henry Walter Bellew wrote these words after spending a fair bit of time in Kandahar and Kabul:Now that our armies are in possession of Kandahar and Kabul ... the question arises, what are we to do with the country heretofore governed from these seats of authority, and latterly in the possession of the Ruler seated at Kabul.We run the show. What do we do? How do we run

MEDIA: The perils of working for Today Tonight ...

2010-11-19T13:32:00.004+11:00

It's Christmas time. Well, not quite. It's Muslim Christmas time. The Arabs call it Eid al-Adha. The Indonesians call it Hari Rayah Haji. The Turks call it Qurban Bayram. In my parents' part of the world, they call it Baqarah Eid.It's all about God asking Abraham to sacrifice his som. And this afternoon, I received a phone call from Channel 7's Today Tonight to sacrifice my credibility.I feel

VIDEO: When is a church not a church?

2010-11-17T01:10:00.001+11:00

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VIDEO: Bush continues to defend torture ...

2010-11-13T23:36:00.001+11:00

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HUMOUR: Indian sexual prowess ...

2010-11-10T00:29:00.001+11:00

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COMMENT: How things change at the Oz ...

2010-11-05T02:35:00.003+11:00

Remember this alleged scandal about Griffith University becoming a Wahhabi terrorist camp after accepting a measly sum from the Saudi embassy?Amazing how things change. Read this gushing profile of a Saudi prince. It gors on and on and on. The Prince's PR department couldn't have done a better job.The Prince, of course, puts his money in all the right places.The 19th richest man in the world only

OPINION: Artful dodger does himself no favours on David Hicks ...

2010-11-03T23:55:00.004+11:00

A recent episode of the ABC's Q&A almost became a battle of the memoirs. John Howard was the sole guest, his appearance fitting very neatly in with his publisher's promotion schedule. Howard was buoyed by audience responses to his mantras about the economy and his gentle pokes in the eyes of Peter Costello and Malcolm Fraser.Then, out of the blue, David Hicks's face appears via webcam. Contrary

COMMENT: Switzer isn't into tea ...

2010-11-02T12:13:00.003+11:00

Former Opinion Editor of The Australian Tom Switzer makes some interesting observations about the Tea Party.Some argue that the Tea Party's success in Republican primaries is evidence of a rejuvenated right dedicated to a genuine constitutionalism and commitment to small government. But while the Tea Party is tapping into the economic anxiety and political estrangement that voters feel across the

COMMENT: Why David Hicks matters ...

2010-11-01T12:19:00.005+11:00

I've just started reading David Hicks' memoirs. I'm upto the part where he travels to Pakistan and spends time with the Tabligh Jamaat, an international Muslim missionary effort founded in India during the early 1940's. So many young Muslims have been with the TJ at some stage or other, myself included.Hicks has gove to Pakistan after spending some time with the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) who

OPINION: Cricket corruption exposes hypocrisy in Australian circles

2010-11-01T00:00:00.008+11:00

I was watching Pakistani satellite TV at my parents' house in Sydney the other day when I saw an unusual character appear on the screen. He looked Pakistani. He dressed Pakistani. But he sounded like something straight out of Little Britain.The young Londonistani told the Pakistani GEO cable news channel:Dey should be sacked from da team and sent back to da motherland, innit.Or something like

VIDEO/IRAQ: Lengthy report on the Secret Iraq files ...

2010-10-24T15:51:00.001+11:00

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VIDEO/COMMENT: John Howard's war of liberation ...

2010-10-24T14:57:00.003+11:00

According to his recently released memoirs, John Howard says that the Australian Labor Party was absolutely wrong to oppose the invasion and war in Iraq. Why?John Howard says it was "inconceivable" that Australia would not back the US in Iraq ...The former Liberal prime minister charges the Labor Party with lacking conviction, hiding behind the UN and outsourcing its foreign policy to the

COMMENT: Tim Soutphommasane on multiculturalism in Australia

2010-10-23T14:09:00.011+11:00

Tim Soutphommasane is one of the few regular opinion writers for The Australian who is not certifiably mad. He has penned an interesting comparison between Australian and German multiculturalism in response (it seems) to angela Merkel's statement at one of her Party's gatherings that multiculturalism has "utterly failed".(From my limited knowledge of German history, the last time multiculturalism

CRIKEY: Stuff the dirty dunnies, it’s the religious violence that could halt Delhi

2010-10-01T20:23:00.005+10:00

Yes, many Indians are very embarrassed over the poor state of the dunnies at the athletes’ village in New Delhi. They’ve openly been writing about it, not ashamed to lash out at the government or even at themselves. One columnist wrote that the urban elite were deluding themselves:Just when we were patting ourselves on the back for having become an economic dynamo and a growing ‘soft’

CRIKEY: The real Delhi: not as dirty, scary and chaotic as the media thinks

2010-09-28T16:18:00.004+10:00

Over the past few weeks, we’ve read western sporting officials declare that Delhi’s Commonwealth Games won’t work because the city (and in particular the athletes’ village) is “filthy”, “uninhabitable” and “seriously compromised”.It’s true that many Indians have been mightily peeved with their government’s handling of the affair. Tejaswini Patil writes that “one of the English media channels in

COMMENT: Arab Derangement Syndrome

2010-09-27T12:35:00.003+10:00

Shaykh Musa bin Maymun, also known as Moses MaimonidesArab Derangement Syndrome. Or ADS for short. An obsessive hatred of all things Arab or associated with Arab (or broader Muslim) culture.No, I didn't make up this term. David Shasha did. And who is David Shasha?David Shasha is the director of the Center for Sephardic Heritage in Brooklyn, New York. The Center publishes the weekly e-mail

MEDIA: Yet another trumped-up News Limited burqa controversy ...

2010-09-24T10:01:00.004+10:00

It starts from a News Limited local paper and then makes its way into News Limited tabloids and finally onto the News Limited group-blog.Down there on Planet Murdoch, a place where people of certain faiths are regarded as having genetic defects, it is big news. But up here on Planet Earth, no one seems to give a shit.And perhaps Planet Irf shouldn't either. Back to work ...Words © 2010 Irfan

COMMENT: Race and religion ...

2010-09-23T10:31:00.008+10:00

A number of people have responded to my piece published in The Age today by claiming that I have confused race and religion. The confusion seems to largely arise out of the beginning paragraphs:In the early '90s, I was in the final stages of my university studies and had too much time on my hands. I started teaching Muslim scripture to year 1 and 2 kids at a south-west Sydney school. On my first

EDUCATION: Here's another university funding scandal The Oz chooses to ignore ...

2010-09-22T10:31:00.003+10:00

What is it with The Australian? Why do they keep missing university funding scandals??Some years ago, they went into complete histrionics over $100,000 given to Griffith University in Brisbane by Saudi Arabia. There were cries of bias and sinister plots of Saudi and Wahhabi ideology being spread by stealth.(It didn't last long after it was pointed out that the Saudis had invested even more money

OPINION: When the idiot few hold sway

2010-09-13T15:17:00.003+10:00

Paul Kelly once sang a touching tune called From Little Things Big Things Grow. The song was about human rights for indigenous minorities and reconciliation. Its basic message was that the actions of a few marginalised people can have a snowball effect.The same effect is being played out in New York. A few marginal people have been taking small steps, and have managed to create a snowball effect.

VIDEO: Message from a New York City firefighter ...

2010-09-09T17:04:00.002+10:00

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RACISM: Germany's answer to Glenn Beck?

2010-08-30T23:26:00.004+10:00

If you thought Ayaan Hirsi Ali's book contained gross generalisations, wait till you get your hands on the German Central Banker Thilo Sarrazin's book. Published in German as Deutschland schafft sich ab ("Germany does away with itsel").So what does he say that is so offensive? According to DW:At the launch, Sarrazin reiterated his beliefs about the threat of Muslim culture to European societies.

VIDEO: Jihadi jokers ...

2010-08-30T17:52:00.007+10:00

This movie looks friggin hilarious. Innit. But will our local tea party commentariate get the jokes?Bookmark this on Delicious

SPORT: Cricket corruption ...

2010-08-30T02:51:00.005+10:00

Corruption in cricket (or "kirkit" as my chronically South Asian mum calls it) has become a joke. South Asians are used to corruption. It's an everyday thing in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. It never happens in Australia. Just ask the Australian Wheat Board. Or the Queensland Police.Malcolm Conn uses a column in The Australian to remind us all of just how corrupt everyone is in

COMMENT: Watching the election in boganville ...

2010-08-21T21:59:00.004+10:00

I have my computer with me at McDonalds in Mackay city, taking advantage of their free internet connection. I'm surrounded by alien and ugly looking creatures with tattoos running up and down their arms. But I needn't worry about them reading what I type. It's likely they cannot read.OK that's a little slack. 95% of them cannot read. And their English vocabulary is generally limited to words

POLITICS/CRIKEY: Northern Qld politics no place for wusses, sheilas

2010-08-19T14:12:00.007+10:00

Politics in the central Queensland mining town of Mackay isn’t a game for wusses. Or women for that matter. Which might explain why not a single female candidate showed up to the Dawson "Great Debate" last night at the Mackay Entertainment & Convention Centre. It’s not that chick candidates wouldn’t have been interested. It’s just that there were no sheilas running this time around.Unlike the LNP

CRIKEY: Welcome to the US of Hey, that’s a lot of security

2010-07-30T10:40:00.004+10:00

What do you get when you build your intelligence service up to such a size that it occupies three times the floorspace as the main centre of your executive government? When the services employ about150% of the population of your capital city? And when the amount of intelligence reports produced are so huge that a large proportion are just ignored completely?Surely you’d have some kind of

EVENT: Come & Watch the Amazing Annabel Crabb

2010-07-17T19:05:00.005+10:00

Come along on Sunday 18 July to watch and witness the delightful fabulous amazing charming and nice Annabel Crabb."AAAAAH!!" I can hear my step daughter scream, "Annabel's my idol!!!!!!!!"So where can you see Ms Crabb?Gleebooks - Dulwich Hill536 Marrickville RoadDulwich Hill, 2203Tel: 02 8080 0098Some other bloke is also on straight after her. He certainly isn't my step daughter's idol. Still, he

COMMENT: Andrew Bolt's World Cup Nightmare ...

2010-07-16T21:45:00.008+10:00

It’s amazing what crazy thoughts enter your brain in the early hours. One recent Monday morning, an hour or so past midnight, I was sitting in my room trying to stay awake for the World Cup final. I needed some comic relief. While perusing Andrew Bolt’s Herald Sun blog, I suddenly wondered who the f*ck would fill Fred Nile’s NSW Upper House seat after he retires at the next NSW election. I then

COMMENT: Always be polite when wishing a woman be raped ...

2010-07-16T18:53:00.004+10:00

In an extraordinary defence of Mel Gibson published on the Herald Scu ... woops ... Sun website, Andrew Bolt makes this remark:Gibson, it’s said, is now finished in Hollywood after Oksana Grigorieva, mother of his daughter, taped him ranting over their relationship and her flaunting of her siliconed body.For instance: “I am going to come and burn the f------ house down.”And: “You look like a f---

VIDEO: Final reflections on the World Cup result ...

2010-07-12T07:22:00.003+10:00

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OPINION: ALP can mine marginal seats

2010-07-02T10:03:00.006+10:00

Julia Gillard has impeccable working class credentials. Her parents were one of many “ten-pound Poms” migrating to Australia in 1966. Her first speech, delivered on Remembrance Day 1998, referred to her identifying with local communities of families on low incomes and possessing a fighting spirit.Gillard's own father was a coalminer. He must have had many a tale of hard work, sacrifice and danger

MUSIC: Stop what you're doing, siddown, shuddup and hold on!

2010-06-25T13:35:00.003+10:00

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POLITICS: Oh my God!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-06-12T16:26:00.006+10:00

If someone had told me a decade ago that my politics would be this ...My Political ViewsI am a left moderate social libertarianLeft: 3.61, Libertarian: 2Political Spectrum Quiz... there's a possibility I would have shot them and/or myself.Or perhaps I never was as conservative as I thought. Was I always a feel-good liberal hippy only interested in sowing the seeds of love?Was I really only ever

OPINION: Who Made The Dogs Bark?

2010-06-12T15:23:00.007+10:00

This article was first published in NewMatilda on 6 September 2006.___________________Howard and Costello's comments about Australian Muslims are classic examples of the dog whistle, writes Irfan Yusuf.On 1 September, on Radio 2GB, there was the following dialogue between Prime Minister John Howard and a talkback caller:PRIME MINISTER: what I want to do is to reinforce the need for everybody