Critical Times

After being approached by the Spirit of Eureka Committee the Marion Council has decided to fly the Eureka Flag during the commemorative anniversary (Nov 28 to Dec 3) of the Eureka Stockade Rebellion of 1854.

It was put to the council that the Eureka Stockade Rebellion was a key event in the development of Australian democracy and Australian identity” (see http://www.cultureandrecreation.

The CFMEU will be bringing Humphrey McQueen to Adelaide to be one of the key speakers at the Ark Tribe Rally on October 30th.

McQueen is a well renowned Australian Historian who has written numerous books about political, social and economic issues. He has recently published, “A framework of Flesh” which tells of the battles that construction workers waged over safety issues in the dangerous building industry during the past century.

Facing the economic crisis in the U.S.
October 2009 By Katie Beran and Celine-Marie Pascale

Few people will escape the effects of the global economic crisis that has been unfolding since the fall of 2008.

by Renfrey Clarke

Admit it: you’re just a little disturbed when industrialists, fossil-fuel lobbyists and the Liberal and National parties thunder that big, quick cuts to carbon emissions would bankrupt Australian business. Well, aren’t you?
Rest easy. Australian capitalism has ample money – and technical resources too – that could be used to cut emissions drastically in as little as a decade.

Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhydyxRjujU

“It’s a crime story.

by Prof. Jose Maria Sison
Chairperson, International Coordinating Committee
International League of Peoples’ Struggle
3 October 2009

The leaders of the imperialist powers and the world’s other big economies concluded their G-20 summit in Pittsburgh, USA and declared the capitalist world economy on the path to recovery. They praised themselves for arresting economic decline and stabilizing financial markets, and for starting a reform process towards “strong, sustained and balanced growth in the 21st century”.

Source: Ark’s Tribe Blog

The Senate will soon vote on the Bill to replace the ABCC with a new Building Industry Inspectorate.
A Senate majority report recommended that the Bill is passed, with some amendments. The coercive powers in the construction industry could stay, and a construction worker like Ark Tribe could still face jail for standing up for his rights on site.

(Map, above, shows Port Augusta at the top of the gulf, and both Leigh Creek and Copley sandwiched between Lakes Torrens and Frome)

A small contingent of protesters calling for the closure of the polluting coal-fired Port Augusta power station last weekend were easily outnumbered by the corporate world’s protectors, the state police.

About 35 supporters of the Climate Emergency Action Network (CLEAN) took the 3-hour road trip from Adelaide to Port Augusta. They held a community forum on Friday night and marched on the power station the following morning.