A Plot To Uncover The Truth
*
Mural, Redfern.
WHILE we have seen the apparent death of Communism, ways of thinking that were either born under Communism or strengthened by Communism still govern our lives. Not all of them are as immediately evident as a legacy of Communism as political correctness.
The first point: language. It is not a new thought that Communism debased language and, with language, thought. There is a Communist jargon recognizable after a single sentence. Few people in Europe have not joked in their time about “concrete steps,” “contradictions,” “the interpenetration of opposites,” and the rest.
The first time I saw that mind-deadening slogans had the power to take wing and fly far from their origins was in the 1950s when I read an article in The Times of London and saw them in use. “The demo last Saturday was irrefutable proof that the concrete situation...” Words confined to the left as corralled animals had passed into general use and, with them, ideas. One might read whole articles in the conservative and liberal press that were Marxist, but the writers did not know it.
Doris Lessing
The trouble is that, with all popular movements, the lunatic fringe so quickly ceases to be a fringe; the tail begins to wag the dog. For every woman or man who is quietly and sensibly using the idea to examine our assumptions, there are 20 rabble-rousers whose real motive is desire for power over others, no less rabble-rousers because they see themselves as anti-racists or feminists or whatever.
Doris Lessing
In all the silences, in all the gaps, the drunken shouts, the slurred speech, a stumbling embrace, a smart put down, life on the street and life in the penthouse, his path had taken him there. A handsome black face. A scheming huddle. A plot to uncover the truth; the whirling daze of people, of buildings, he thought he heard the squawk of seagulls overhead as he lost consciousness. All in all, he was profoundly shocked. Time had slowed infinitely. He was sure he was being bashed. Mr Fielding, Mr Fielding...
He awoke in a featureless room. His body ached, confirming his suspicion he had been bashed. There were white lights overhead, the cliches of every torture scene in countless movies. He couldn't see anyone. He couldn't determine who he was. The implant was still not functioning, and his brain struggled to grasp the fact. He had become so used to an augmented intelligence it was difficult to know who he was without one. Work? He hadn't filed. Where was he? His boss would kill him. Realising the danger, he opened his eyes more slyly, glancing sideways around the room.
He was in some kind of hospital. He could see a nurse with a clip board through a glass partition. He could see two guards placed outside his room. He couldn't tell what it was they had asked him. He didn't have anyone to call. His parents had passed five years before. The kids had grown and flown. His old friends from the party days had all died. He had never re partnered; and the Social Policy Centre, which had been at the heart of ensuring that people like himself never found happiness in another again, was itself under siege. That, he finally, remembered, was why he was here. He lay still for what seemed like hours.
There was much that could be gained from discretion. If he lacked a functioning implant, perhaps they could not read him either. Or maybe there was a one-way remnant, he did not know. He was busting to go to the toilet but too afraid to move. He didn't want to face another beating, he didn't want to face any more questions. From somewhere he could remember a conversation conducted over his inert form; was he worth saving? It was his intellect, ironically, that finally kept him alive. People with his IQ level were not common; not even now when technology transformed everything and made everyone bright.
Finally nature won out. He had to have a piss. He tried to sit up, the white walls and white light cascading everywhere, a sickening swirl. His movement prompted immediate activity. A nurse he hadn't detected was in the room was immediately by his side; looking down with professional concern. Relax, she said, we've decided to save you. You'll be back to normal soon. You've told us everything. You needn't worry.
She could see him eyeing the guards at the door.
Don't worry about them, she said. They're just a precaution in case the implant doesn't work.
He raised an eyebrow and she smiled.
Believe it or not they really are here to protect you. It's in your best interests to stop fighting. You've already given them everything they want. It's only a question now of whether you're recycled or disposed of; and if you, like the rest of us, like living no matter how over death, permanent death, then just play along. They understand. You couldn't have known. You would probably never have even made the connections without the implants.
Who are you? he finally asked, the words lumping in his throat like cold suet.
I'm your friend, she said, and touched him on the hand.
That's when he knew he really was in trouble.
I'm your friend, she repeated, stroking the back of his hand.
I have to go to the toilet, he said.
THE BIGGER STORY:
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/world/rudd-voices-concerns-on-tibet/2008/04/09/1207420450075.html
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has delivered a blunt message to China in a speech in Beijing, saying there are significant human rights problems in Tibet.
"Australia, like most other countries, recognises China's sovereignty over Tibet but we also believe it is necessary to recognise there are significant human rights problems in Tibet," Mr Rudd told students at Peking University on the first day of his visit to China.
"The current situation in Tibet is of concern to Australians.
"We recognise the need for all parties to avoid silence and find a solution through dialogue," he said in the speech, delivered in Mandarin.
The Chinese Government is already upset with comments Mr Rudd made in the US last week, in which he condemned human rights abuses in Tibet and called on China to talk to exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.
Mr Rudd today emphasised the need for Australia to speak frankly to China on issues such as Tibet.
"As a longstanding friend of China I intend to have a straightforward discussion with China's leaders on this," he told an audience of about 600 students.
"We wish to see the year 2008 as one of harmony and celebration - not one of conflict and contention."
Mr Rudd flew into Beijing today amid controversy over the Olympic torch relay, which has been disrupted in London and Paris by pro-Tibet protesters.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23504709-2,00.html
FORGET the latest West End musicals, Kevin Rudd - The Lecture was the hottest ticket in London today.
The Australian Prime Minister was the sell-out star turn at a public lecture presented by the London School of Economics, where demand was so great people were turned away.
Aussie expatriates, a smattering of Londoners and international students were among those queuing for three city blocks to see the newly minted Australian leader.
Another 30 or more were waiting for at least an hour in the bitter British cold to see if there were any return tickets for the "show".
The LSE's Professor Sarah Worthington, who chaired the event, confirmed tickets were a hot item - the school received 1000 requests for tickets - and the theatre has a capacity of just under 1000 - in the first 15 minutes they were on offer.
The Peacock Theatre in London's West End has been home to the children's ballet Angelina Ballerina, about a little mouse in a pink tutu, for the past few days.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/rudd-didnt-bow/2008/04/09/1207420454246.html
Kevin Rudd has attracted fresh criticism at home while he continues his 18-day overseas tour, this time from Liberal Senator George Brandis, who claims the Prime Minister did not show enough respect to the Queen.
Senator Brandis told ABC Radio today that Mr Rudd did not bow his head when he met the Queen at Windsor Castle this week but was quite happy to offer a friendly salute to US President George Bush a few days ago.
"When the Prime Minister went to call upon the Queen he didn't make the customary neck bow," Senator Brandis said.
"It's interesting that the Prime Minister of Australia doesn't afford the appropriate formal courtesy to the person who is at least nominally Australia's head of state, but makes this flamboyant and rather obsequious gesture to the President of the United States."
Mural, Redfern.
Mural, Redfern.
WHILE we have seen the apparent death of Communism, ways of thinking that were either born under Communism or strengthened by Communism still govern our lives. Not all of them are as immediately evident as a legacy of Communism as political correctness.
The first point: language. It is not a new thought that Communism debased language and, with language, thought. There is a Communist jargon recognizable after a single sentence. Few people in Europe have not joked in their time about “concrete steps,” “contradictions,” “the interpenetration of opposites,” and the rest.
The first time I saw that mind-deadening slogans had the power to take wing and fly far from their origins was in the 1950s when I read an article in The Times of London and saw them in use. “The demo last Saturday was irrefutable proof that the concrete situation...” Words confined to the left as corralled animals had passed into general use and, with them, ideas. One might read whole articles in the conservative and liberal press that were Marxist, but the writers did not know it.
Doris Lessing
The trouble is that, with all popular movements, the lunatic fringe so quickly ceases to be a fringe; the tail begins to wag the dog. For every woman or man who is quietly and sensibly using the idea to examine our assumptions, there are 20 rabble-rousers whose real motive is desire for power over others, no less rabble-rousers because they see themselves as anti-racists or feminists or whatever.
Doris Lessing
In all the silences, in all the gaps, the drunken shouts, the slurred speech, a stumbling embrace, a smart put down, life on the street and life in the penthouse, his path had taken him there. A handsome black face. A scheming huddle. A plot to uncover the truth; the whirling daze of people, of buildings, he thought he heard the squawk of seagulls overhead as he lost consciousness. All in all, he was profoundly shocked. Time had slowed infinitely. He was sure he was being bashed. Mr Fielding, Mr Fielding...
He awoke in a featureless room. His body ached, confirming his suspicion he had been bashed. There were white lights overhead, the cliches of every torture scene in countless movies. He couldn't see anyone. He couldn't determine who he was. The implant was still not functioning, and his brain struggled to grasp the fact. He had become so used to an augmented intelligence it was difficult to know who he was without one. Work? He hadn't filed. Where was he? His boss would kill him. Realising the danger, he opened his eyes more slyly, glancing sideways around the room.
He was in some kind of hospital. He could see a nurse with a clip board through a glass partition. He could see two guards placed outside his room. He couldn't tell what it was they had asked him. He didn't have anyone to call. His parents had passed five years before. The kids had grown and flown. His old friends from the party days had all died. He had never re partnered; and the Social Policy Centre, which had been at the heart of ensuring that people like himself never found happiness in another again, was itself under siege. That, he finally, remembered, was why he was here. He lay still for what seemed like hours.
There was much that could be gained from discretion. If he lacked a functioning implant, perhaps they could not read him either. Or maybe there was a one-way remnant, he did not know. He was busting to go to the toilet but too afraid to move. He didn't want to face another beating, he didn't want to face any more questions. From somewhere he could remember a conversation conducted over his inert form; was he worth saving? It was his intellect, ironically, that finally kept him alive. People with his IQ level were not common; not even now when technology transformed everything and made everyone bright.
Finally nature won out. He had to have a piss. He tried to sit up, the white walls and white light cascading everywhere, a sickening swirl. His movement prompted immediate activity. A nurse he hadn't detected was in the room was immediately by his side; looking down with professional concern. Relax, she said, we've decided to save you. You'll be back to normal soon. You've told us everything. You needn't worry.
She could see him eyeing the guards at the door.
Don't worry about them, she said. They're just a precaution in case the implant doesn't work.
He raised an eyebrow and she smiled.
Believe it or not they really are here to protect you. It's in your best interests to stop fighting. You've already given them everything they want. It's only a question now of whether you're recycled or disposed of; and if you, like the rest of us, like living no matter how over death, permanent death, then just play along. They understand. You couldn't have known. You would probably never have even made the connections without the implants.
Who are you? he finally asked, the words lumping in his throat like cold suet.
I'm your friend, she said, and touched him on the hand.
That's when he knew he really was in trouble.
I'm your friend, she repeated, stroking the back of his hand.
I have to go to the toilet, he said.
THE BIGGER STORY:
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/world/rudd-voices-concerns-on-tibet/2008/04/09/1207420450075.html
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has delivered a blunt message to China in a speech in Beijing, saying there are significant human rights problems in Tibet.
"Australia, like most other countries, recognises China's sovereignty over Tibet but we also believe it is necessary to recognise there are significant human rights problems in Tibet," Mr Rudd told students at Peking University on the first day of his visit to China.
"The current situation in Tibet is of concern to Australians.
"We recognise the need for all parties to avoid silence and find a solution through dialogue," he said in the speech, delivered in Mandarin.
The Chinese Government is already upset with comments Mr Rudd made in the US last week, in which he condemned human rights abuses in Tibet and called on China to talk to exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.
Mr Rudd today emphasised the need for Australia to speak frankly to China on issues such as Tibet.
"As a longstanding friend of China I intend to have a straightforward discussion with China's leaders on this," he told an audience of about 600 students.
"We wish to see the year 2008 as one of harmony and celebration - not one of conflict and contention."
Mr Rudd flew into Beijing today amid controversy over the Olympic torch relay, which has been disrupted in London and Paris by pro-Tibet protesters.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23504709-2,00.html
FORGET the latest West End musicals, Kevin Rudd - The Lecture was the hottest ticket in London today.
The Australian Prime Minister was the sell-out star turn at a public lecture presented by the London School of Economics, where demand was so great people were turned away.
Aussie expatriates, a smattering of Londoners and international students were among those queuing for three city blocks to see the newly minted Australian leader.
Another 30 or more were waiting for at least an hour in the bitter British cold to see if there were any return tickets for the "show".
The LSE's Professor Sarah Worthington, who chaired the event, confirmed tickets were a hot item - the school received 1000 requests for tickets - and the theatre has a capacity of just under 1000 - in the first 15 minutes they were on offer.
The Peacock Theatre in London's West End has been home to the children's ballet Angelina Ballerina, about a little mouse in a pink tutu, for the past few days.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/rudd-didnt-bow/2008/04/09/1207420454246.html
Kevin Rudd has attracted fresh criticism at home while he continues his 18-day overseas tour, this time from Liberal Senator George Brandis, who claims the Prime Minister did not show enough respect to the Queen.
Senator Brandis told ABC Radio today that Mr Rudd did not bow his head when he met the Queen at Windsor Castle this week but was quite happy to offer a friendly salute to US President George Bush a few days ago.
"When the Prime Minister went to call upon the Queen he didn't make the customary neck bow," Senator Brandis said.
"It's interesting that the Prime Minister of Australia doesn't afford the appropriate formal courtesy to the person who is at least nominally Australia's head of state, but makes this flamboyant and rather obsequious gesture to the President of the United States."
Mural, Redfern.
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