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Last updated on March 5th, 2018 at 01:40 pm
Professor John Quiggin is giving away money again! Clink on over, leave a comment, and tsunami survivors will be assisted via John’s contribution to Medecins Sans Frontieres.
Speaking of the borderless …
A female Italian journalist held hostage by militants in Iraq made a heart-rending plea for her life in a videotape broadcast today.
Giuliana Sgrena, a 56-year-old Italian reporter who was kidnapped in central Baghdad two weeks ago, appeared in a video broadcast on Italian television and called on her government to withdraw its troops from Iraq.
Sgrena looked drawn and tired, and spoke with a halting voice, at times broken by crying. Behind her was an inscription in red Arabic letters stating “Mujahideen without borders”, a previously unheard of group.
- That may be my fault, slatts. For some reason I can’t seem to figure out how to set the time on this thing to match Sydney time. The last time I had it set (for UTC +17 I think) it disappeared Tim’s latest posts, thinking they shouldn’t show up yet. It was making me crazy so I just left it at whatever time it was. Stupid round world.Posted by Andrea Harris, Administrator on 2005 02 18 at 11:59 PM • permalink
- Will we see MSF sue for breach of copywrite – I think not. off topic- a pleasant Sat morning’s listening on ABC Radio National- Geraldine Doogue of lottery capitalist rich family fame- discusses the iconic architecture of Canberra “SOME think there is TOO much emphasis on the military in Canberra, it makes SOME PEOPLE UNEASY.”— Re Woody Allen film” about the GREAT MAN”. She and co agitator Alan Saunders go on to join Verve Cliquot representative Mireille ? speaking about her book ‘Why Frenchwomen Don’t Get FAT”.I expected some tips on diet etc but we got a diatribe to chew on about Americans and obesity and plate sizes etc ad nauseum.Doogue retired flushed with righteous schaudenfreud and we moved on to the Music Show with just Al.He served us up “Red Clydeside” (Lenin referred to Glasgow as the Petrograd of the West don’t you know) and a folk singer called Alisdair Hewlett.He sang indecipherable songs about a martyr of the anti-war movement who wanted the Scots working class to strike during wartime etc. Somehow the discussion turned to protest songs today, a site called the centre for political song at Caledonian Uni (active since SEPT 11),attacks on the BBC by the British Gov, how very hard it is to find Right Wing folk music;how there were shearing songs in Australia which were racist and anti-Chinese,how most folk songs were PROGRESSIVE and expressed the feelings of ordinary working class people,”THEY GET THINGS RIGHT 9 OUT OF 10 TIMES don’t you know.Then we went on to how “clearly there is a great deal of anti-war sentiment around . Then how people don’t want to use communist Labels anymore but Social Democrat used to mean Communist don’t you know.This presenter asked if he wouldn’t be better off distributing pamplets of socialist literature or USING THE INTERNET as songs didn’t seem to work.Well there is a BOOKLET with the cd.To get the women in too he sang a song called Mrs Barber’s Army (tsk tsk isn’t that military) about a rent striker during war time. –ALL this comes under the classification of theyarts.He once presented a programme of 60s musos who composed pro WHITLAM anti- govt songs after “THE DISMISSAL” and explore their anguish as they wallowed in nostalgia with him. Yesterday it was ABC radio interviewing DON WATSON author of a book on Managerial Speak. Somehow the conversation just meandered around to Vanstone saying “Robust”9 times in an interview, John Howard,the US Republican party and FRAMING -how they spent milllions over the years to encourage voters to vote for them.They spoke about WAR ON TERROR, AXIS OF EVIL, a speechwriter called Lutz etc.
- I can understand, I think, that when you’re a journalist it’s probably in the blood to want to roam around freely and get what stories seem interesting. However, with the situation being what it is in Iraq right now, it should be almost EXPECTED that one consequence of wondering around may be a kidnapping (followed, of course, by a beheading).
I don’t wish, in any way, to disparage reporters who break from the pack hanging around the hotels. But, aren’t there some ways for journalists and/or news organizations to obtain ‘wandering around Iraq’ reports without the lone reporter heading off by himself/herself? It seems to be tempting fate, at this point.
For news organizations –
Couldn’t they hire some of the Iraqi bloggers?
What about Iraqi reporters?The news organizations could give whoever they hire a trial period. If they like what/how the person reports they could go from there.
For individual reporters –
Safety in numbers? Team up with a few others, at the very least. This has NOT prevented kidnappings, but perhaps may make kidnappings less likely.
Hire armed protection.
Embed with the coalition forces.
Sad to say, but, but don’t expect any country to yield to kidnappers’ demands in the event you get kidnapped.
Posted by CJosephson on 2005 02 19 at 01:17 AM • permalink
- Crash, not using paragraph breaks makes Baby Jesus cry.Posted by Andrea Harris, Administrator on 2005 02 19 at 01:36 AM • permalink
- How great is it to live in the only country in the world where the biggest health problem is overweight poor people?Posted by richard mcenroe on 2005 02 19 at 02:07 AM • permalink
- …oh, we’re just fattening them up before we turn them into Soylent Green. 😉Posted by Patrick Chester on 2005 02 19 at 03:30 AM • permalink
- That Italian trash the Iraqi ‘insurgents’ are currently holding hostage is one of those idiots who foolishly thought that just because she was on THEIR side, and because she was in Iraq to help undermine America’s efforts there, that the killers of so many other innocents would go easy on HER, like they did with SBS ARSEHOLE John Martinkus. Now SHE’S tied up with a knife at HER throat just like all the others she callously thought had rightly died. I say, in the immortal words of Nelson Muntz…HA! HA!
- #6…
“flushed with righteous schandenfreude…”
what a great line!
Posted by cochise wurlitzer on 2005 02 19 at 10:47 AM • permalink
- Andrea #8 – LOL. ;-pPosted by Barbara Skolaut on 2005 02 19 at 02:12 PM • permalink
- re #7
Great Point! The news organisation who are sending journalists like McGoo & Martinkus want a particular result. They do not want the views of those actually living there like the guys from blog Iraq The Model. That would confuse their loonie readership.
The wealth of information provided by Chrenkoff will never appear in any of our (ahem!) newspapers like the Age or SMH.
They’re kidding, right?
Are you sure this isn’t Scrappleface?
Wotta buncha loony (if deadly) losers.