Sunday, July 31, 2005

Iceman sizzles in hot Hungarian Grand Prix

Iceman, Kimi Raikkonen, took out the Hungarian GP today for McLaren and ten more drivers points with the Schumacher siblings squabbling for P2 & 3 and the amazing Alonso nowhere in sight.

Coulthardt and Klien went out early in the race, with Klien rolling the Red-bull in rather spectacular style and ultimately seven cars ended up being retired from the race, leaving only a small field of competitors the 2005 Grand Prix in Budapest.

Raikkonen set down a scorching pace[not surprising at 47*C on-track], led for a short while by Montoya before his car had to be retired, leaving the podiums to be fought out between Raikkonen, and Michael and Ralf Schumacher, with no serious contenders ever reaching beyond P4,5 & 6.

Trulli and Button took P4 & 5 while the Williams team took P6 & 7. Alonso had difficulties early in the race after losing a front wing and was seemingly only making up the laps to better his placing in the next round in Turkey next month.

Sato and Fisichella came in 8th and 9th with Sato scoring a point towards the drivers' points for the season.

As regular as clockwork, Jordan's Karthikeyan and Monteiro would have come in last and second last if it wasn't for Massa, who had car troubles, limping around the circuit to make up laps for his positioning in next month's race.

UPDATE: Race results are viewable at this F1 page and the live timing archive link on this page is definitely worth a look also.

Saturday, July 30, 2005

Sneaky whistleblowing tactics

The federal opposition has created an email address, whistleblowersonhoward@hotmail.com by which public servants can blow the whistle on federal government corruption and waste.

Electronic Frontiers Australia just had to burst the Labor Party's transparency bubble. EFA'S extremely with-it Irene Graham said, 'you'd have to be nuts to do it.'

She said legislation made in December '04 allowed authorities to intercept email without a warrant.

"I would think that if it was highly confidential it was better to personally deliver it or put it in an Australia Post letter - they can be intercepted but nowhere near as easily as email."

However the Opposition Public Accountability spokesperson, Kelvin Thomson said the scheme offers 'confidentiality' and that significant corruption had already been uncovered, which aims at making the Howard government more accountable.

Mr Thomson cited such revelations as the rural rorts and pork barrelling, and while that is progress towards transparency it would hardly be surprising if more major disclosures didn't reach their final destination. Recrimination is common towards public sector whistleblowers and a certain amount of stealth when revealing corruption would most likely be advisable.

Monday, July 25, 2005

German Grand Prix-the Alonso Show

Nothing to see here...

Reminiscent of Ferrari's stretch in the limelight, Fernando Alonso can't seem to do anything wrong this season. He took out his third consecutive win in the Grand Prix at Hockenheim leading the other drivers by 36 points.

Montoya took P2 and Jensen Button took P3 for BAR Honda. Fisichella managed to recover from yet another opening lap bingle between Sato and Webber, the Australian having to go out for repairs to his suspension, causing him a twelve lap delay and ended up retiring from the race limping home after lap 55. Webber will be cashing in his rabbit's foot if this run of bad luck keep's up.

Trulli also suffered difficulties from being caught up in the opening lap skirmish and came in at 14th, and Ice-man, Raikkonen, was retired due to hydraulics problems which seems to have dashed his chances in the drivers points.

Takuma Sato also later clipped Fisichella's Renault, damaging his own front wing and his chances in the race, struggling with Williams Heidfeld and eventually coming twelfth while Heidfeld came in at eleventh.

Fisichella, Michael Schumacher and Ralf Schumacher took out 4th, 5th and 6th respectively followed by Coulthard, Massa and Klien. Jordan once again were an 'also ran,' with Karthikeyan and Monteiro coming in 16th and 17th ahead of Minardi-Cosworth's Robert Doornbos.

Sunday, July 24, 2005

UK Police shot dead innocent man

UK Police have admitted killing an innocent man, suspecting the Brazilian was a terrorist with a bomb, despite the fact that they were close enough to shoot him in the head at point blank range.

Robert Ayers of the Royal Institute of International Affairs think tank told Reuters that under new guidelines, police are now permitted to shoot suspects in the head if they were deemed to pose a threat to the public in order to facilitate immediate nervous system shutdown. Under the controversial change in Scotand Yard policy 3 years ago, officers are instructed to avoid the abdominal area as that is mostly where explosives would be strapped.

Jean Charles de Menezes, a 27 y/o electrician, was on his way to work at the time the second series of London bombings failed last week and was shot five times at point blank range in the head, by officers wearing plain clothes. His family said he had no criminal history and no apparent reason to run from police. Scotland Yard statements have yet to confirm whether the victim could speak English and whether the police were readily identifiable to the victim.

The shoot-to-kill policy is in question and the Muslim community holds grave fears over their safety in view of the shooting of Mr de Menezes. The shooting and the policy were defended by police hierarchy, who require officers to make life-or-death split-second evaluations under extreme pressure, of persons who may pose a threat to the public.

Police say they are now satisfied de Menezes was not involved in the bombings and that the error was regrettable.

Police drag suspect behind car

An indigenous man arrested on burglary and drug offences, was admitted to Northern Territory Hospital after being dragged behind a police car on a bitumen road, having lost toenails and skin from his feet.

The police declined to comment saying there is an investigation underway, but in the suspect's bail application the court heard he fell out an unlocked door as the police van drove along.

How do you tell a witch?

Pagans, Wiccans and occultists of all shapes and varieties are breathing a collective sigh of relief as the last remaining anti-witchcraft legislation is repealed in Victoria.

The Monty-Pythonesque legislation which made it a criminal offence to profess/pretend to tell fortunes or practise witchcraft was incorporated in the Vagrancy Act, thus aligning the psychic practises and religious magic with offences such as escaping from lawful custody, obscene exposure, begging and possessing house-breaking implements.

Spokesman from the Pagan Awareness Network, Gavin Andrew, said the changes would prevent people who vilified witches and pagans from claiming the Racial and Religious Tolerance Act did not apply because it only protected lawful religions.

Victorian Attorney-General Rob Hulls said the 'Dickensian' laws were almost 200 years old and had no place in today's multicultural and tolerant society.

The Catholic church in Victoria have condemned the changes and said such practises were all 'dark arts' and should not be seen to be condoned by the government.

However, on the ABC's Stateline program Charles Sherlock of Trinity Theological College said some aspects of witchcraft compensate women[another incorrect presumption based on stigma and social exclusion- obviously it would compensate men and women equally] for a sense of 'wholeness' that the church has been unable to offer them.

Friday, July 22, 2005

More explosions in London Tube

There have been reports of 4 more explosions in London today, with only one person reported injured.

Lateline reported that the explosions were minor and could have possibly been detonators exploding, they also said Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, has gone into 'lock-down' [as opposed to hiding] at Number 10 Downing St. Not alone in that sentiment - one of the carriers of the exploding rucksacks has been reported to have dropped the bag on the train and run away.

The detonations have occurred North, South, East and West of the city as per the details in the note accepting responsibility for the London bombings 2 weeks ago. Similarly to the attack last fortnight, three trains on the Tube had to be evacuated, and a bus.

Wednesday, July 20, 2005

Bloggerganda

The Evil Empire strikes back.

National Medicare Identity card in 2006

Forget a referendum, that would ensure failure...

The government will be introducing a national government services card as of 2006 which will amalgamate multiple agencies' details on individuals and replace the medicare card.

A leaked Cabinet document details the new 'smart' medicare card planned for next year to incorporate personal details used for individuals by other government services.

The document discusses the sensitivity of being the card being seen in the same light as the failed 1980's Australia Card, said that it should not be seen as a national identifier, then says it was considered as part of a broader anti-terrorism strategy.

But the cabinet submission was prepared by the Attorney-General's Department after he denied that any such national identity card was being tabled.

"People will have a choice of a photo on the front of the card, or stored on the chip," Human Services Minister Joe Hockey told The Australian. "We are looking at something a little more complex than a dumb Australia Card."

The card's roll-out, scheduled for next year, will be used to build up expertise for the possible introduction of a national security card containing "biometric" data, such as fingerprints. "

Tuesday, July 19, 2005

Sunday, July 17, 2005

Progress?

The mind boggles, with the recent comments from John GST Howard about the national identity card which cannot be dismissed, liberal party plans to insert biometric chips into credit cards and drivers' licences, and also the e-passports which haven't been clearly explained by Bob Nash as to whether they will contain the tracking chips in this country's passports that they do in most states in the US.

This recent development is much more of a worry, due to the implications for civil liberties with the gap between the machines and humans growing ever-closer.

"We all want progress, but if you're on the wrong road, progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road; in that case, the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive." C.S. Lewis

Thursday, July 14, 2005

Aussie journalists face gaol

Two Herald Sun political reporters, Michael Harvey and Gerard McManus, are facing contempt charges for refusing to reveal a source/whistleblower.

A public servant is alleged to have leaked secret documents which would have an adverse impact on the image of the Howard government in relation to veterans affairs benefits.

The public servant involved also faces a gaol term if found guilty of unauthorised disclosure of information, which carries a sentence of up to two years in gaol.

Wednesday, July 13, 2005

Hungry worm hits jackpot at World Bank

A hundred emails later, and I think there is one very satisfied mass mailer worm which hit the World Bank 'Empowerment Community of Practice Newsletter' mailing list today.

The dilemma this causes, isn't just the initial emails that are generated from the Bank's mailing lists, but the hundreds of complaints from the list's participants which also get sent out to gazillions more people.

It is surprising to see people with such distinguished occupations responding to the erroneous worm driven emails with such exasperation, if they only thought ahead about those emails being sent and duplicated by thousands, all over the world, I think their responses may have been a little more conservative.

Monday, July 11, 2005

British Grand Prix

After a minute silence for those who died this week in the London bombings, Montoya got an early start at Silverstona for the 2005 British Grand Prix and stayed there, to get P1 for McLaren.

Alonso, Raikkonen and Fisichella followed in P2, 3 & 4 respectively.

For Raikkonen it was another spectacular race but it must have felt like a bad case of deja vu, as he climbed up from P12 to finish in P3 after a ten position penalty for a replacement engine, just as he did last week in Magny-cours.

For Ferrari, Toyota and Williams it was a disappointing race while Jordan and Minardi were 'also rans.'

Saturday, July 09, 2005

Adjusting to life

The trauma of disasters, man-made or natural, brings about questions of existance.

Kim from Larvatus Prodeo gets to the nuts and bolts about what we are doing here.

Terror conspiracy facts

As inspired by Intergnat, I was lucky enough to find this very eloquent post in Anthony Loewenstein's comments.

A law lecturer at South Western University poses this thought provoking post, in this global climate of media hype, commercialist propaganda and chaos maybe it will inspire a little independent thought out there in the 'sphere, and beyond.

Free minds, harmony and the wind in your hair

Amidst the darkness a little bit of light and lightness of being.
A must-read.

Friday, July 08, 2005

London terror attack

The number of casualties has risen to 700 and fatalities to 38, in yesterday's terror attacks in London. Authorities have discerned that there were 3 explosions on the tube and one it appears set off prematurely, in a bus. Seven Austalians are confirmed injured.

According to media coverage the terrorists' statement made a remark about 'London being under attack from North, South, East and West,' and as such, the information of the four attacks is more credible than the initial confusion and conjecture about six or seven locations having been bombed.

Several terrorism experts have appeared in the broadcast media, in an attempt to profile the perpetrators of this crime. Assessed as 'highly skilled experts' it is difficult to believe the UK authorities' claim that this group were 'unknowns.'

It is also difficult to understand the contradiction between their motives and the somewhat predictable effects of their attack, which has merely amplified the stance of countries participating in the 'war against terror,' when islamic radicals and terrorists have previously wished the coalition to withdraw troops from Iraq.

With the US introducing biometric passports as of October, and 27 countries complying with that standard, and Australia planning to introduce biometric identifiers in driver's licences and credit cards, there will now be few who will stand in the way of this 'compromise of civil liberties,' as Donald Rumsfeld so aptly put it.

Leaks about recent Australian ASIO raids on terror suspects planning attacks on Australian public transport, and intel in the US that terror cells were going to target commuters in the States, have merely added to the push for big brother type defensive systems to be put in place.

In a country where public sector corruption is rife and legislation preventing transparency and accountability of intelligence, defence and police services increasing, it is foreboding that it may be necessary for untrustworthy individuals to have and wield an unchecked amount of power over citizens.

The UN's Human Rights Watch said, 'the bomb attacks in London today were an assault on the
fundamental principle of respect for civilian life, the logic of terrorism—that the ends justify the means—has resulted in the deliberate death and injury of innocent people. There is
no justification for acts that assault the right to life.'


** I should hasten to add, the evidence supplied in the statement from the 'unknown' group of Bristish terrorists claiming responsibility doesn't follow the pattern of an Al Qaeda attack, according to the media-featured counter-terrorism experts, which is why the police wouldn't confirm who the perps were. Perhaps it would be a healthier use of air-time for the media to be trying to investigate some of these issues than rehashing graphic footage to a point of voyeurism. PM Howard has said the death toll has climbed to 52 and is likely to increase further.**


Thursday, July 07, 2005

London bombings

London's transport system has suffered what appears to be a terrorist attack, with multiple explosions at four stations on the London tube and on two tourist buses.

Authorities have confirmed two people as being dead and at least ninety injured.

After the first explosion was discovered the cause was initially suggested to be related to power surges.

Details released so far are sketchy, but the BBC have suggested the attack may have been done to cause disruption to the G8 summit.

Tony Blair has left the G8 meeting and is on his way back to London but the meeting continues.

UPDATE -
Search engine watch has estimated that approximately 100 people have died in the bombings although there have been no details released to support this claim as yet, they have compiled a list of a number of sites for info.
- some news sources have reported that certain stocks have risen sharply after the explosions. Here are links to some of the blog posts about the London bombings, on technorati.

The bombings are now being attributed to a European splinter cell of the Al Qaeda group but there has not been any statement released taking responsibility for the bombings by that group, or any other.

UPDATE - A British defense expert has claimed that at least 24 people would have been required to organize the bombings which were similar in execution to the Madrid bombings last year. The numbers of injured are increasing while the number of fatalities, realistically, will take some time to be finalized but the official response says two people have died.


Monday, July 04, 2005

Australia still chooses death penalty

Australians, by complacency, are still opting for the death penalty indiscriminantly for Australian prisoners.

Human rights abuses and deaths in custody are not being thoroughly investigated, and there are still some who condone the indiscriminant use of the death penalty for prisoners guilty of anything from accrued fines, drugs offences, thieving or violent crimes.

The submission of a report detailing and medically documenting human rights abuses of prisoners in Western Australian gaols was submitted to the United Nations in 2002, and is still to be addressed as are the 339 recommendations of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths In Custody from 1991.

Spain leads race for equality

Not satisfied to win the French Grand Prix...

Spain is proposing new gender laws, due to pass through the Spanish Senate this week, to combat traditionally catholic patriarchal gender roles in the country, which see unpaid household chores done mostly by women.

"Changes to the marriage contract...will force men and women to promise not only fidelity but equal shares of housework, childrearing and care of the elderly until death they do part."

Spain, yesterday, also made a decision to legalize gay marriage making their traditional 'macho latino' image, more progressive than the US and Australia.

French Grand Prix: Magny-cours

A sea of blue brought Renault's Fernando Alonso to the lead from the start to the finish of the French Grand Prix and leads the Drivers' Championships by 24 points.

Alonso's only competition came from Raikkonen who came in second for McLaren after climbing from 13th position, following a ten position penalty.

Schumacher got P3 for Ferrari after Motoya was forced to retire, and Button and Trulli came in P4 & P5 respectively.

Williams and Jordan didn't rate a mention, with the race at Magny-cours being fraught with mechanical problems for the 2 teams.

After a number of problematic races, the only consolation for Aussie Ken-doll, Mark Webber, came from finally finishing a race this season before his younger teammate Nick Heidfeld. Webber was apparently, troubled for the duration of the race, by 'excessive cockpit heat' .