Heroes and Villains

Written By: - Date published: 10:41 am, March 15th, 2015 - 9 comments
Categories: democratic participation, International, Revolution, Syria, war - Tags: , , ,

How can it be that even liberal media lauds those fighting the Daesh in Syria (for example, here, here and here) and yet liberal legal systems arrest and charge those seeking to support those same people with terrorist offences?

It couldn’t possibly be that our (western liberal) governments are way out of step and touch now, could it?

9 comments on “Heroes and Villains ”

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  1. Paul 1
    15 March 2015 at 11:05 am

    Way out of step.

  2. NZJester 2
    15 March 2015 at 11:33 am

    (Thinking authorities in the west have yet discover the difference between their arse and their elbow…)
    There is no difference as they are one big arse so their elbows are arses to!

  3. Paul Campbell 3
    15 March 2015 at 11:47 am

    Don’t forget that our National government just passed laws that would have banned kiwis going off to fight the fascists in the International Brigades – and there were more than a few (and a few on the other side)

    http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/war/spanish-civil-war/new-zealanders

  4. No1kiwi 4
    15 March 2015 at 12:41 pm

    As George Galloway would say:

    The National Government of New Zealand, and the Republithug Party here in the good old US of A, are two cheeks of the same Arse!

  5. Philip Ferguson 5
    15 March 2015 at 1:50 pm

    On our American friends:
    Killing people and pissing on their corpses – all in a day’s work for imperialism: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2012/01/15/killing-people-and-pissing-on-their-corpses-all-in-a-days-work-for-imperialism/

    Drones target one, kill 28: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2014/12/17/us-drones-target-one-murder-twenty-eight/

    My Lai and the real American war in Vietnam: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2013/02/14/my-lai-and-the-real-american-war-in-vietnam/

    And in New Zealand we can hardly be smug. Take the New Zealand record in Samoa – Samoa: what New Zealand did: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2011/08/28/samoa-what-new-zealand-did/

    And this piece on Gallipoli includes stuff on the massacre of a Palestinian village NZ troops were a full-on part of: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2012/04/24/gallipoli-invasion-a-dirty-and-bloody-business/

    Phil

  6. dave brown 6
    15 March 2015 at 1:57 pm

    But… we can’t have workers going to wars on their own initiative when that is the prerogative of us 1% warmongers and our Coalition of the Killing.
    For one thing the jihadists might get defeated and then where would the War on Terror be? Worse, where would our oil be?
    Worse than a constant supply of jihadists coming home to terrorise us into terrorising you would be freedom fighters coming home to overthrow us.
    So we are very much in touch with you, thankyou.

  7. One Anonymous Bloke 7
    15 March 2015 at 2:08 pm

    There is growing international pressure for the PKK’s “terrorist” designation to be lifted.

    The Washington Post:

    The irony of the moment is profound: The United States is essentially aiding a “terrorist” group to fight other militants in a country it occupied for almost a decade. It highlights the many conundrums facing American policy makers. To what extent should the Kurds be given free rein now? Should the United States abandon its longstanding support for a federal, inclusive Iraqi state? And how far will the United States go as the PKK and other Kurdish militia take the fight to the Islamic State?

    The Financial Times:

    An online petition calling on the US to remove the PKK from its terrorist list because it “has been a partner in defending Iraq and Kurdistan” had gathered more than 16,000 signatures by Thursday.

    In Turkey, President Ergodan owes his election to Kurdish support.

    Delist the PKK!

  8. Philip Ferguson 8
    15 March 2015 at 9:20 pm

    Yes, it’s interesting that a group that has been very effective in pushing back ISIS, and which has progressive-secular politics, is actually on the NZ government terrorism list. Placed there by none other than. . . the current NZ government which is so concerned to see secular, progressive solutions in the Middle East (apparently).

    Couple of interesting pieces re NZ governments’ bogus ‘terrorism’ list:

    Ramping up state powers – the Terrorism Suppression Act since 2007: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2015/01/23/the-terrorism-suppression-act-since-2007/
    (This article also has the list of groups currently on the NZ government list.)

    New Zealand and the terrorist designation scam: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2012/05/28/new-zealand-and-the-terrorist-designation-scam/

    Phil