Replying to Alan was Re: replying to Juan was Re: CNN's web site today Sunday 14.10.01

[Gary MacLennan <g.maclennan@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Alan wrote:



> Incidentally, that is a partial answer to the theories about East Timor
> supposedly making it easier for the Australian state to send in the troops.
> Here is a perfect opportunity for them to do so - a war with overwhelming
> popular support - and yet they send a couple of smallish ships, a few planes
> and a company of commandoes.  There are more Australian ships and troops
> chasing asylum seekers around the ocean than there are being sent to fight
> the war in the land from which most of the asylum seekers are fleeing.


Well Alan  Australia's contribution *has* increased on the Gulf War even an
ideologue like yourself cannot deny that.  During the Gulf War Hawke, the
then Labor Prime Minister could only send one boat.  Howard has gone
further than that.

Nor can you deny that the East Timor intervention has made the Australian
army more popular.  Neither can you deny that Price, the Labor Party's
representative on the joint Parliamentary  Defence Committee, has floated
the kite on conscription.

We are having what the media call a "khaki election".  I do not agree with
that formulation but it has been used widely and it surely indicates that
this is a different level of involvement from the Gulf War.  Moreover
Howard has activated the Anzus Treaty with the United States in keeping
with NATO's invoking of Clause 5.  Hawke did not do that.

What you and your party cannot come to terms with is that Australia has
laid out a new imperialist  (minor of course but still imperialist) role
for itself based on military interventions in the region.  The East Timor
intervention helped this.  To deny that is simply the old democratic
centralist bull shit at work making you contradict reality once more. Hence
your need to play down the increase in Australia's military contribution to
the latest American adventure.

Boring!!!


regards

Gary


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