FINAL OVERSEAS TAKEOVER?

by Jeremy Lee
The plunging Australian dollar, in what Treasurer Costello is pleased to call Australia's most prosperous decade this century, has opened the doors to a mop-up process of takeovers of remaining Australian resource companies. We have already seen a battle between two multinationals, Anglo-American and RIO, for an Australian iron ore company.
The Sunday Age (Melbourne, 24/9/2000) reported: "The backbone of Australia's mining, financial service and manufacturing wealth, including some of the nation's largest and best-known brand names, is under threat from overseas predators as the Australian dollar continues its plunge to historic lows.

The cashed-up predators are looking at buys of a lifetime as the currency crash knocks billions of dollars from the value of Australian firms for bargain-hungry US and European buyers......'At the end of the day everything's up for grabs', said ABN-Amro equity strategist Gerard Minack, who said foreign investors could take over even Western Mining or BHP ...."

The threat to Australian companies could haunt the Government because of comments on the same issue in 1996 by then Opposition Treasury spokesman Peter Costello when the Australian dollar was worth $US74.29 cents as opposed to $54.45 on closure in New York yesterday.
'The low Australian dollar is not just a symptom of our problem. It also serves to make Australian assets cheaper for foreigners to purchase,' Mr. Costello said as he listed about 20 Australian companies that had just been sold overseas. They included Lifesavers, Allens, Tooheys, Brash's and Aeroplane Jelly ...."

It was the same Peter Costello who was involved in the "debt bus", which toured parts of Australia condemning the size of the overseas debt prior to the 1996 election.

WORLD GOVERNMENT - A CANADIAN REPORT

An article sent to us from Canada (The National Post, 7/9/2000) was headed,
THE UN's PLAN FOR GLOBAL CONTROL and claimed the 55th annual gathering of the United Nations General Assembly in New York - the Millennium Assembly we have referred to previously - " .... is scheduled to take at least two actions to turn the corner from a world of sovereign nations to a world of disparate peoples subordinated to the supreme authority of the United Nations ...."

One of these was to be the adoption of the Earth Charter, an updated version of the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. Its advocates were hailing it as a Magna Carta of a new regime. The other was described by The National Post as ".... a lengthy declaration, developed by 1,000 UN-accredited non-governmernt organisations (NGOs) called Strengthening The United Nations For the 21st Century". Among a host of demands was " ....calls for a UN arms register of all small arms and light weapons, and 'peace education' covering 'all levels from pre-school through university'.

"The declaration demands UN 'political control of the global economy so that it may serve our vision', and 'integration' of the World Trade Organisation under UN control ...... 'This declaration also calls for the UN to impose direct taxes such as 'fees on foreign exchange transactions (i.e. the Tobin Tax)'. ...."

Will copies of these Declarations be available for ordinary members of the public? No doubt our Prime Minister and our redoubtable Minister for Foreign Affairs are fighting hard that this should be so.

SOME MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS

Mr. Isi Liebler, a long-time opponent and critic of the League of Rights, seems to have double standards on the issue of multiculturalism. Melbourne"s Herald Sun (27/9/2000) reported: "Melbourne Jewish leader Isi Liebler, a staunch defender of Australian multiculturalism, says the policy has no place in Israel. "'This is a country which was set up and created as a Jewish country for the Jews,' he told a Jerusalem newspaper. "Mr. Liebler has previously said that multiculturalism in Australia was something that 'we are all proud being part and parcel of ....'"

Mr. Liebler moved to Israel two years ago as chairman of the World Jewish Congress. He complains that post-Zionists are watering down the Zionist dream. The article went on: " ....Mr. Liebler said post-Zionists were pushing a universalist agenda in schools aimed at eliminating Jewish nationalism and creating a multicultural state ...."

Funny how views change depending on the hat you are wearing. It doesn't look as though there is much future for Palestinians in Isi's view of things.

ZIMBABWE NEWS

This poignant snapshot of life in Zimbabwe was received via Cathy Buckle's website (link below.) While reading it remember how much support Malcolm Fraser's government gave to the installation of the Mugabe regime. In 10 years time, will we think the same way about Keating's support for Mandela and his ANC successor?

"Dear family and friends, Sorry for my silence and no letter last week. Aside from the fact that the telephone went down and the phone company was out on strike, we had reached the point where insanity was drawing frighteningly close so took ourselves off to Mana Pools for a few days to try and get our thoughts together and put things into perspective.

We have now very reluctantly made the final decision to leave our farm and will spend the next few weeks (assuming we have that long) selling all the remaining livestock, disposing of mountains of farm related bits and pieces which have accumulated to alarming proportions and generally closing our operation down. This has been an incredibly painful decision but perhaps for the best as the future of commercial agriculture in Zimbabwe seems to be drawing to a close.

Sadly we are not alone in our decision; our immediate neighbor has already left his farm, another plans to leave within the next few months and a third has started winding down his operation as well. It seems without doubt that this was the ultimate aim of the war veterans; simply wear us down, cripple our operations, drive us to the edge of bankruptcy until we gave up and now they have won.

Insane as it may sound, I am going to attempt to put our farm on the market. We have still not been listed for compulsory acquisition, have still not received the dreaded Section 8 letter informing us of impending government takeover. An estate agent has first to apply to the government for a Certificate of No Interest and it will be interesting to see what happens when they try on our behalf.

Our squatters are now living permanently on the property, driving vehicles across the fields and felling the timber, stripping its bark and piling up great heaps of prime gum poles. We are absolutely helpless and I find it hard to describe the feelings that churn in my gut as I see trees that I planted with my own hands, pruned over the years, weeded and protected for all this time and now have to watch as they simply take them.

Last Saturday a great crowd of people gathered in our fields and waited for the arrival of the Zanu PF MP for Marondera East to arrive. The esteemed gentleman had apparently sent word that he would himself be sharing out our farm on that day, but as the day wore on and he didn't arrive, people became restless. Finally a messenger came to say that the MP wouldn't be coming, he had rolled his brand new government Pajero five times a few kilometers from here and was dead. It obviously took the locals a couple of days to work out the implications before they must have realized that this now means a by-election; back to square one with the intimidation, the rallies, the beatings and finally the voting.

Three days after the death of our MP, the youngster who pulled a gun on me some weeks ago, moved onto our neighbor's land, started felling the trees on their 300 acre plot and building himself a hut in their cattle paddock. Until now largely untouched by the WV's, our neighbors in their 70s have now to endure the rape of their land for the third time. They lost everything in the Mau Mau in Kenya, lost everything again in Nyanga in the Zim war in 1980 and now it starts all over again. We all begin to feel more than a little like the Jews who were stripped of their human rights, property rights and then their lives in Nazi Germany. We can only hope and pray that for us we can get off our land with our lives and can remain in the country of our birth and try and rebuild.

Ethnic cleansing; such a strange term, how terrifying to be the victims of it. So now, for the first time in 10 years I am going to attempt to find a job; a scary prospect having been a boss for a decade. Even scarier the thought of living in a little box in a town, but after this six months of hell, even a small holding has lost its appeal as perhaps those little pieces of land will be next on the list.

For Zimbabwe I weep. What is to become of her and her people when, by this time next year it won't only be diesel and paraffin they are queuing for but bread, sugar, maize meal, meat, etc. etc. etc.

There are now so many farmers doing what we are doing. Agriculture has become untenable, there is no end in sight, there is no one that seems able to quell this utter insanity. How very very sad that it has come to this and to think of what it will be like in a few months from now. I apologize if I missed out answering anyone's letters these past few days. We continue to appreciate everyone's supportive and caring messages. Thank you."

Cathy Buckle is a farmer living in Zimbabwe. Her published letters about the plight of white Zimbabwe farmers can be found at www.1freespace.com/beetee/index.html (from Neil Baird's e-mail).

BLAIR TYCOON PAID JUST $5000 TAX

The problem of the multi-rich paying too little in taxes is not exclusive to Australia. The problem of politicians being too close to the multi-rich is not an exclusive Australian problem either! According to a report originally published by the Sunday Times (UK), the millionaire businessman credited with turning round the Labour Party's finances by raising up to £7m ahead of the last general election paid just £5,000 in taxes to the Inland Revenue last year. The well-connected Lord Levy, an accountant, is a close confidant of Britain's prime minister, Tony Blair. He was made a Lord by Blair in 1997 in recognition of his work in helping to raise money for the Labour Party.

The Sunday Times first revealed that Levy was a basic-rate taxpayer who paid about the same to the Inland Revenue in the 1998/99 financial year as someone earning the national average salary of £21,000. The leak came in the wake of a story which revealed how foreign-born Labour donors are cutting their tax bills by exploiting a £10 billion loophole through which they can claim not to be domiciled in the UK for tax purposes despite having lived and voted here for decades. Levy's tiny tax bill will surprise his wide circle of friends and business associates, who include Ehud Barak, the Israeli prime minister and Bernie Ecclestone, the Formula 1 racing tycoon. They know Levy as a self-made millionaire who drives a Bentley, lives in a palatial London home complete with swimming pool and palm trees, and who boasts of having brought the pop-stars Chris Rea and Alvin Stardust to fame.

The tax bill would also appear to place a question mark over how much of Levy's wealth, if any, is held in the sort of tax avoidance schemes that Labour colleagues criticised so vehemently before winning office in 1997. Lord Levy has now been appointed by Blair as his "personal envoy" to the Middle East. (Irving website)

FREDERICK SEITZ'S PETITION

by Antonia Feitz
The following letter, abstract, and explanation by Frederick Seitz, Past President, National Academy of Sciences, USA, and President Emeritus, Rockefeller University, has been sent to Professor Ann Henderson-Sellers, who is the director of the environmental section of Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), asking for her comments.

As I wrote in a covering letter, "I'm sure you will have heard of Frederick Seitz's petition now signed by some 19,000 of the world's scientists including many climatologists and meteorologists. Seitz claims the only fact that can be agreed on is that the earth is warming, but he claims that the effects would be more likely to be beneficial than harmful. In fact he says the efforts being made to reduce greenhouse gasses will cause more harm than good. The United States is very close to adopting an international agreement that would ration the use of energy and of technologies that depend upon coal, oil, and natural gas and some other organic compounds. Cynics have already commented that multinationals will simply move production to the under-developed nations which aren't subject to the Kyoto targets.
"Saving the planet" is certainly a convenient rationalisation for shedding jobs in the first world in this time of corporate globalisation. ... "Who's right? ... My question is, with all the differences of opinion why should people believe the government/UN line?"

Opinion Research Review of Global Warming Evidence
Letter from Frederick Seitz

Below is a review of information on the subject of "global warming". Please consider these materials carefully. This treaty is, in our opinion, based upon flawed ideas.
Research data on climate change do not show that human use of hydrocarbons is harmful. To the contrary, there is good evidence that increased atmospheric carbon dioxide is environmentally helpful. The proposed agreement would have very negative effects upon the technology of nations throughout the world, especially those that are currently attempting to lift from poverty and provide opportunities to the over 4 billion people in technologically underdeveloped countries. It is especially important for America to hear from its citizens who have the training necessary to evaluate the relevant data and offer sound advice. We urge you to sign and return the petition card. If you would like more cards for use by your colleagues, these will be sent. Frederick Seitz Past President, National Academy of Sciences, U.S.A., President Emeritus, Rockefeller University https://www.oism.org/pproject/

The Abstract
A review of the research literature concerning the environmental consequences of increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide leads to the conclusion that increases during the 20th Century have produced no deleterious effects upon global weather, climate, or temperature. Increased carbon dioxide has, however, markedly increased plant growth rates. Predictions of harmful climatic effects due to future increases in minor greenhouse gases like CO2 are in error and do not conform to current experimental knowledge.
Full text at: https://www.oism.org/pproject/s33p36.htm

Opinion Global Warming Petition
We urge the United States government to reject the global warming agreement that was written in Kyoto, Japan, in December, 1997, and any other similar proposals. The proposed limits on greenhouse gases would harm the environment, hinder the advance of science and technology, and damage the health and welfare of mankind. There is no convincing scientific evidence that human release of carbon dioxide, methane, or other greenhouse gases is causing or will, in the foreseeable future, cause catastrophic heating of the Earth's atmosphere and disruption of the Earth's climate. Moreover, there is substantial scientific evidence that increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide produce many beneficial effects upon the natural plant and animal environments of the Earth.

Explanation
There were 19,200 of the initial signers. During the past 2 years, more than 17,100 basic and applied American scientists, two-thirds with advanced degrees, have signed the Global Warming Petition. Signers of this petition so far include 2,660 physicists, geophysicists, climatologists, meteorologists, oceanographers, and environmental scientists (select this link for a listing of these individuals) who are especially well qualified to evaluate the effects of carbon dioxide on the Earth's atmosphere and climate. Signers of this petition also include 5,017 scientists whose fields of specialization in chemistry, biochemistry, biology, and other life sciences make them especially well qualified to evaluate the effects of carbon dioxide upon the Earth's plant and animal life.

Nearly all of the initial 17,100 scientist signers have technical training suitable for the evaluation of the relevant research data, and many are trained in related fields. In addition to these 17,100, approximately 2,400 individuals have signed the petition who are trained in fields other than science or whose field of specialization was not specified on their returned petition. Of the 19,700 signatures that the project has received in total so far, 17,800 have been independently verified and the other 1,900 have not yet been independently verified. Of those signers holding the degree of PhD, 95% have now been independently verified. One name that was sent in by enviro pranksters, Geri Halliwell, PhD, has been eliminated. Several names, such as Perry Mason and Robert Byrd, are still on the list even though enviro press reports have ridiculed their identity with the names of famous personalities. They are actual signers. Perry Mason, for example, is a PhD Chemist.

The costs of this petition project have been paid entirely by private donations. No industrial funding or money from sources within the coal, oil, natural gas or related industries has been utilized. The petition's organizers, who include some faculty members and staff of the Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine, do not otherwise receive funds from such sources. The Institute itself has no such funding. Also, no funds of tax-exempt organizations have been used for this project.

The signatures and the text of the petition stand alone and speak for themselves. These scientists have signed this specific document. They are not associated with any particular organization. Their signatures represent a strong statement about this important issue by many of the best scientific minds in the United States. This project is titled "Petition Project" and uses a mailing address of its own because the organizers desired an independent, individual opinion from each scientist based on the scientific issues involved - without any implied endorsements of individuals, groups, or institutions. The remainder of the initial signers and all new signers will be added to these lists as data entry is completed.
Copyright 2000 © OISM

BIOTECH IS BAD NEWS AT ST. LUCIA

An alliance of local community groups, Biohazard Action Alliance, is opposing the "inappropriate location of Biotechnology Research Laboratories within the residential environs of Brisbane".
Their message is
Messing about with the nature of things could have grave consequences for the future of the world's bird population, if not for our own. The following report, published in the journal Science, shows a threat through the major loss of food resources in the use of GM crops that resist weedkillers. We seek a 5 year moratorium on the construction of the biotech facilities at St. Lucia to properly evaluate the environmental effects of genetically modified plants, animals and other organisms.

Study shows GM crops might affect birds
Using crops genetically engineered to resist weed killers might harm birds - not because the genetic changes are harmful but because killing weeds means less food for birds, researchers said yesterday. Some farms where such crops are used could see a 90 percent drop in the number of weeds - a boon to farmers but bad news for hungry birds, Andrew Watkinson of the University of East Anglia in Norwich, England, said.

Watkinson and colleagues used a computer model to predict the effects that planting a weed killer-resistant sugar beet would have on a weed known as lamb's quarters or fat hen (its scientific name is Chenopodium album), whose seeds are a major food source for skylarks. "We predict that weed populations might be reduced to low levels or practically eradicated, depending on the exact form of management," they wrote in their report, published in the journal Science.

"Consequent effects on the local use of fields by birds might be severe, because such reductions represent a major loss of food resources." They said the effects on overall bird populations would depend on whether a few large farms used the genetically modified (GM) crops in just a few places, or if such crops were planted by many different farmers.
"These results probably apply widely to other crops, weeds, and seed-eating birds," Watkinson told Science. But he stressed the results would be seen as a result of any weed management practice. It is just that using GM crops is a particularly effective way to get rid of weeds, he said.

Watkinson said bird populations in Britain have fallen by up to 90 percent in the last 25 years. "It seems likely that the widespread introduction of herbicide-tolerant crops will result in further declines for many farmland birds unless other mitigating measures are taken," he said.

Monsanto replies
Monsanto Corp., which makes the Round-Up Ready soybean genetically modified to resist its herbicide of the same name, was quick to issue a response to the study. "It is important to understand that this is not an issue of biotechnology," the company, a division of Pharmacia Corp., said in a statement. "It is an issue of weed control, whether through biotechnology or other methods. This mathematical model, and any conclusions drawn from it, must be viewed with caution because it does not reflect real farming conditions."

But Watkinson had pointed out that using a computer model saved having to wait for years of field studies. One argument made in favour of GM crops is that they can allow farmers to use less weed killer than they normally would, because they can kill off weeds with one big dose while leaving crops undamaged. "Data from other scientists who have conducted field studies on herbicide-tolerant sugar beets has shown that herbicide-tolerant plants allow farmers to maintain weeds longer in sugar beet fields, which could offer greater resources at a time of year when food for birds is scarce," Monsanto argued.

"Agricultural practices that improve the yield per acre actually prevent additional land from coming under cultivation, preserving the best wildlife environments in their natural state and protecting indigenous habitats for birds and other wildlife." GM crops have been attacked by environmental groups, which have cited studies that suggest that Monarch butterflies can be harmed by pollen from GM plants. Most recently, Iowa State University researchers said Monarch butterfly caterpillars were seven times more likely to die when they ate milkweed plants carrying pollen from Bt corn, which produces a pest killing protein taken from bacteria known as Bacillus thuringiensis. Other researchers have attacked this and similar studies, saying they do not reflect real-world conditions.
From Planet Ark USA: September, 2000... Story by Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent

LEAGUE PUBLICATIONS

Those who do not subscribe to the New Times Survey or Heritage Journal are missing out on some great reading. Why not send a gift subscription for a friend? September's New Times Survey include articles from John Pilger, Dr. Pat O'Neill and Jeremy Lee's editorial, excellent as always. Subscription: $25.00 per annum.

Learn about the remains of a Phoenician colony found at Sarina, Queensland, said to have been founded about 1000BC: what links did the Irish, Scots and Anglo-Saxons have with the Phoenicians? Article featured in the next edition of Heritage due to be released next month - $30.00 per annum.