IT'S A BATTLE FOR COMMON LAW RIGHTS

by Betty Luks
Australia and America now have 'conservative right-wing' governments. But what does that mean in today's doublespeak? And why am I so cynical when it comes to all the hype and hoopla of politicians? I ask myself, what is really motivating them and what are the undisclosed agendas behind their latest moves?

A 'conservative' was once someone who held a political orientation towards the preservation of the best in their society and they were opposed to radical changes (radical: arising from or going to the root cause). In other words, there were basic principles which the conservatives believed essential for the continuity and sustainability of their society.
The Australian League of Rights (AloR) has been a Christian 'conservative' movement throughout its 58 years of existence; it has convened Conservative Speakers' Clubs in the different States of the Commonwealth for well over thirty continuous years. So, what are the differences between the League's policies and the newly elected so-called 'conservative' parties' in Australia and America?
Where can we 'spot the difference' in at least one aspect between the League as a Christian-based conservative movement and both 'conservative' parties whose leading members parade their own brand of 'Christianity' when it gives them a political advantage.

A Christian Civilisation
The ALoR starts from the position it was the light of Christian Truth which showed the way forward for men to build what was the finest civilisation man had yet produced. We stand positively for the Individual: The protection and extension of Individual freedom is essential. The Individual is ultimately held responsibile and accountable for his attitudes and actions throughout his life, therefore, to be 'responsible' he must be in a position to be able to freely choose.

What 'the State' gives today - it can take away tomorrow!
For over fifty years Eric Butler warned his fellow Australians against the idea of an Australian Bill of Rights: If you fall for the idea that the State can grant you your rights, you had better remember that what the State gives you today it can take away tomorrow!
The pedigree of the modern idea of a Bill of Rights can be traced back to the French Revolution's "Declaration of Rights" and Englishman Roger Scruton has reminded his readers that when the Bastille was stormed in 1789, seven inmates were discovered and released amid general rejoicing (The Spectator 16/10/04). Yet only four years later, the prisons of France contained 400,000 people! And in conditions that ensured the deaths of many of them.

French revolutionary 'justice' was administered by Revolutionary Tribunals which denied the accused the right to counsel, and which punished people for offences defined in the same philosophical language that had inspired the original Declaration, and which could therefore be interpreted to mean anything that the prosecutor desired.

"The State can't set you free," admonished Roger Scruton when warning of the 'Human Rights' threats to the ancient liberties of the British peoples.
"The Human Rights Act has seemed to many to be an innocent adaptation of principles already contained within our common law, and indeed affirmed by Statute once before, in the Bill of Rights of 1689. Seen in this way, the Act is no more than an affirmation of an ancient principle of our jurisdiction, which is that the law exists to protect the individual from oppression, whether that oppression be exerted by criminals, by neighbours or by those in authority."

Mr. Scruton continues:
"But this vision of the matter overlooks a profound distinction between common law and civilian jurisdictions, and between the English presumption that your are free until the law forbids you and the Continental presumption that you are free only if the law explicity says so." (And you may only speak out on 'politically incorrect' issues if the State's human rights thought police approve!…ed)
The British idea of freedom "did not originate in the courts", writes Mr. Scruton, "it stepped down there from the exalted realm of philosophy, but only by first putting a foot on to the throne of politics. It arose out of mediaeval speculations about natural justice - the justice that reigns supreme in Heaven and which stands in judgement over human laws…"

Out of the French Revolution grew the revolutionary idea that our freedoms came from some point other than God, and, just like Topsy the idea grew. It could be the Party, the State, the Parliament, even the Cabinet and the Human Rights Commissions.
Scruton counsels us to think deeper: "Rights are not secured by declaring them," he says, "they are secured by the procedures that protect them."

Ernst Zundel is leading the way for us:
That is why Ingrid Rimland, wife of Ernst Zundel a political prisoner in Canada courageously fighting for his right to freedom of thought and speech, and now his personal freedom, could write:
"When I asked what this latest Supreme Court defeat meant, not just for Ernst, but for Canadians, he said calmly - and here I have to paraphrase as I remember it:
"It has always been a feature of Anglo-Saxon law that there were review mechanisms every step of the way built into the system - where one could challenge bad decisions and get someone to take another look. A precedent has now been set, and Canada will have to live with it. A pity."

FROM THE 'BOWELS' OF WASHINGTON

TRIAL REVEALS U.S. GAVE U.K. 5-MONTHS ADVANCE DATE FOR IRAQ WAR

'INSTITUTIONAL LIARS' SAVAGED OVER EU CONSTITUTION

Lord Stoddart of Swindon, the independent Labour peer who chairs the cross-party "Campaign for an Independent Britain" (CIB) has severely criticised the Prime Minister for signing up to the EU Constitution against the wishes of the British people. He described Tony Blair and his Government as "institutional liars" and called the signing of the Treaty a "betrayal of Britain and its independence".

Lord Stoddart said: "This Government has been shown over and over again to be institutional liars. They have told us nothing but lies about the Constitution. We were supposed to believe that it was only a 'tidying up' exercise, when in reality it is a polar shift in our relationship with the EU. It marks the formal transition of the EU to a legal personality in its own right. Today, it becomes a country called Europe and gives itself massive new powers over the member states.
"People need to understand that the Prime Minister is signing away nothing less than Britain's right to self-government. A thousand years of history goes down the drain at the stroke of a pen. Our democratic heritage is being given away lock, stock and barrel.

The 'Third Way' - the real direction
"Opinion poll after opinion poll has shown that the British people want nothing to do with the EU Constitution and yet we have a Prime Minister who swept to power calling his Government 'the people's Government', who is riding roughshod over their wishes by signing up to this dreadful document in Rome today. How times have changed".
The Campaign for an Independent Britain opposes Britain's membership of the European Union. Its campaigning activities are based on accurate and informed analysis of the very real cost of Britain's continued membership. It believes that the EU is undermining British democracy and endangering the nation's economic future.

Editor's note: Fortunately there will be a referendum in a number of EU countries, including the UK, so the new EU Constitution is not yet a certainty.
U.K. readers: For further information on "Campaign for an Independent Britain" contact Stuart Gulleford on 07734-457390 or 01277-231837.

AND NOW FOR THE 'HEALTH' POLICE

BASIC FUND

Now is the time to launch this year's annual Basic Fund. We ask all our supporters to give deep thought to their continued and strengthening support for the work of the League. The inaugural meeting of the Australian League of Rights took place on the 31st October 1946 at 17 Waymouth Street, Adelaide, and here we are just over 58 years later planning still further projects for the promotion, development and defence of our Christian-Social-Credit heritage and culture.

The huge task of scanning, proof reading and placing on CD the League's forty years of On Target is nearing completion! Our humble thanks go to those two people who have persevered and worked so hard, all these months and months, to do the job. They know who they are.

Book sales continue apace with many new titles coming on-stream thanks to the dedicated work of our book shop folk. Wally Klinck brought over a few copies of Ron Gostick's social credit book "Canada" which will prove a 'winner'. Wally also made available a few CDs of C.H. Douglas' BBC address: "The Causes of War" plus a speech by 'social credit' party premier Manning who followed William Aberhardt's government into power in Canada. While the quality is not as good as we would have liked, both speeches are of immense historical value.
Order further copies of the CDs from Heritage Book Mailing, P.O. Box 27, Happy Valley 5159. $20.00 each posted.

The website is proving an extremely valuable tool as we reach out to the younger generation. Older supporters and actionists are so encouraged when they hear the details of what is happening. Especially when they reflect on the hard slog they put in over all those years. There will be more news on this front in the not too distant future.
Having said all that, we are pleased to commence this year's annual Basic Fund appeal with a balance of $4739: 50.

CANADIAN ASSOCIATION FOR FREE EXPRESSION

CUSTOMS SEIZE BOOK ON EDUCATION AND CLASS AS 'HATE'

Canada Customs and Revenue Agency agents seized four copies of "Why Johnny Can't Think: America's Professor-Priesthood" by scholar and journalist Robert W. Whitaker, "as they may constitute obscenity or hate propaganda," it was claimed. The books were seized from Paul Fromm, Director of the Canadian Association for Free Expression at Toronto's Pearson Airport. Mr. Fromm was returning from a trip to Washington D.C.

Involved in the Zundel case
"This is part of an ongoing campaign of Customs harassment of those of us involved in the Zundel case," Mr. Fromm said. "I've been sent to secondary inspection on almost every return trip from the U.S., since I became publicly identified as a supporter and fundraiser for the imprisoned dissenter."
"I was detained for an hour and 15 minutes and, as usual, was the only person of a flight of more than 50 sent for secondary inspection," he explained. "The female inspector, who, as always refused to give her name, rifled though my newspaper clippings and even felt all the pockets of my soiled shirts and a suit in my suitcase."
The author of "Why Johnny Can't Think," Robert W. Whitaker, was born and raised in South Carolina. He attended the University of South Carolina and took graduate studies at Virginia Graduate School. He has been a college professor, international aviation negotiator, Capitol Hill senior staffer, Reagan Administration appointee and writer for the Voice of America.

Mr. Whitaker is an outspoken critic of the ideological dominance in education. He believes that formal education has become dangerous and, often fatal, to common sense.
"Formal education is far and away the biggest industry in the United States," he argues, "Americans pay trillions of dollars, both in taxes and private tuition, to have their children indoctrinated in a false and destructive ideology, which serves as the basis for a series of disastrous public policies".

Fromm accuses: "The Customs censors have set themselves up as a political thought police". "Over the past half dozen years, they've seized Irish myths and even booklets containing legal submissions in court cases. Sometimes, these books are returned by the censors; sometimes, not."
"These anonymous operatives are trampling on freedom of speech and freedom of thought," adding "I find it ironic that, on a recent visit to Moscow, Prime Minister Paul Martin advised Russian President Vladimir Putin not to over-react to the terrorist threat and not to restrict basic rights such as freedom of speech. Perhaps, Martin should worry a bit more about freedom of speech right here in Canada," says Fromm. "He should pass the word to the Customs thought police to respect freedom to read."

Details of: The Canadian Association for Free Expression (CAFE), [Box 332, Rexdale, ON,. M9W 5L3.] CAFE was founded in 1981 and is Canada's leading advocate for free speech. It has intervened in a number of court cases and human rights tribunals and is especially concerned about government censorship of the Internet. CAFE publishes a monthly Free Speech Monitor.

RESPONSE TO "DRAFT REPORT: BLUEPRINT BALLARAT"

by Ron Fischer
Thanks to Mr. Ron Fischer of Ballarat for sending us a copy of his realistic response to the draft blueprint circulated for comment by Ballarat citizens. It contains valuable comments for other writer-actionists to use.
The draft report highlights extreme global competition: Blueprint Ballarat highlights the extreme competition that exists globally. It is manifest in the get-big-or-get-out advice given to farmers during the last thirty years and the merger and takeover activity in big business. This type of competition, whether consciously intended or not, sets Ballarat against Bendigo, Geelong and the Latrobe Valley.

'Growth' a red herring
Growth is made to appear as the remedy for all economic problems, a position espoused by economists so the report is not breaking new ground in that respect. However, growth in that context is a red herring. At 1 per cent population growth, consumption will double in 72 years. At 1.5 per cent it will double in 48 years and at 2 per cent it will double in 36 years. This land, the driest continent on Earth, will not sustain that -- at least waterwise.

On page 9 the report refers realistically to a decreasing number of jobs. The 20:80 society is already with us. That is a society in which all the production and distribution needed for an expanding standard of living worldwide can be carried out by 20 per cent of the available workforce. The rest could be redundant except that the reality is masked by the number of jobs that have no relationship to real needs. That 20 per cent will progressively decrease as technology takes over more and more jobs.
It is envisaged that the time could come within the next fifty years when robots will carry out the majority of manufacturing jobs with very little human input. Unless the economic rules are rewritten in that time, how are the majority of the available workers of Ballarat, as a microcosm of the nation, to gain access to the massive production that is possible under such a scenario?

"Ballarat's future infrastructure needs partly relate to where the money comes from."
A realistic reference on page 13. Money is a costless creation, originally devised as a facilitator to allow things to happen but it has become a hindrance. All infrastructure work needed is physically possible. If we are short of any material thing, like bulldozers, to construct the Deer Park bypass, the duplication of the Calder, the Pakenham bypass, the Scoresby Freeway (?), the Geelong bypass, to mention only the roadworks that are becoming more urgent as the years go by, we have people who would be glad of the jobs made available to build them.
Unless the economic rule-book is rewritten, the nation's infrastructure will continue to fall short of requirements. What is physically possible should be financially possible.

Page 14 refers to an upgrading of the CBD. Every few years the Council spends some millions of dollars renovating, upgrading, renewing the Bridge Mall. The results of all this expenditure are only temporary. The Bridge Mall remains a bottleneck with much confusion for tourists wanting to get from Sturt Street into Curtis Street to continue a journey to Melbourne.
The only permanent and transparent solution is to demolish all the buildings in the precinct bounded by Grenville Street, Curtis Street, and Little Bridge Street to Victoria Street and return it temporarily to its pristine condition. Resurvey the area so that Victoria Street is virtually indistinguishable from Sturt Street.
Sure, it would take uncountable dollars but money is a costless creation. It is being created day by day by banks entering figures in their computers…

Segment on growth
Obviously the segment on growth and jobs is a throwback from the mid- twentieth century when full employment was the norm. That situation is no longer possible due to the fact that human input has been, and will continue to be, replaced by machines and technology. It is essential to move on from that concept and devise a way nationally to get purchasing power into the pockets and purses of the eighty per cent not needed in the workforce. The present system of welfare, unemployment benefits and work for the dole merely stigmatises and alienates that eighty per cent of the available workforce. While these payments continue to be made out of taxation ultimately those who still have a job (or other income) will have 'the pants taxed off them' to pay the welfare bill.

Two 'priorities' are in conflict
Two areas of priorities and strategies introduced on page 19 are in conflict. Firstly, the writers of this report suggest priority:
"To ensure employment is maximised in specific segments e.g. mothers returning to work, spouses of new residents seeking work".
The other side to this coin is a concern for youth unemployment and suicide. These two (unemployment and suicide) cannot be separated since unemployment among males is extremely demoralising. So why encourage mothers to take up employment which widens the gap between the 'haves and have nots'? In this case the homes with two breadwinners and those with none.Furthermore, the concern for post-45 year-old workforce participation is another impediment to the teenage entry to the workforce.

Lower retirement age category
In a realistic economy the retiring age could easily be lowered to 45. Anybody unemployed beyond that age could be given the status of retired rather that unemployed seeking non-existent jobs. By lowering, not raising, the age at which retirement benefits can be accessed we would reduce unemployment among school leavers, the segment of the population that gets into most mischief.

Male roles 'grossly dimmed'
When discussing school drop out rates (Page 29) it is shown that boys demonstrate a lower retention rate than girls. This couldn't have any relationship to the fact that emphasis has been placed now for some decades on women's careers but the vision of breadwinner, tradesman, businessman et al for boys has been grossly dimmed by the aforesaid emphasis, could it?
At highschool in 1940-41 most boys had a vision of their future. Today as he looks out of the classroom window his perception is the stigma that goes with unemployment.

Water supplies
Water supply (page 35) is the key to the carrying capacity of any tract of land whether it be a farm, a city or a nation. Unless money becomes available to increase the water supply a large proportion of the dreams expressed in this document will not come to fruition. Using water more frugally will not make our water stretch as much as a new dam; but where?
Incidentally, when you type 16,700m litres you are referring to a measure used in laboratories, millilitres. If you are discussing water supply in megalitres the term is Mlitres.

Financial 'resources'
Finally, on page 44 it is said that "access to large financial resources will always be limited". Only if you believe the spiel of the financial monopolists who have been given the nod by successive governments. If we go on accepting their constraints very little of what is needed will be done.
Co-operation is the 'key'. We must organise and co-operate whether Ballaratians, Geelongites, Bendigonians, Liberal or Labor voters, as consumers, to demand that the economic rule-book be rewritten.

MISSING EDITIONS OF "THE NEW TIMES"

SYDNEY CONSERVATIVE SPEAKERS' CLUB

NATIONAL WEEKEND REPORT

BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS

"Killing Hope: US Military & CIA Interventions since WW II," by William Blum.
The West has been soundly conditioned to react Pavlovianly to a number of psycho-political terms; 'swear words' such as 'communist' or 'fascist', terms intended to conjure up mental pictures from Stalinist purges to slave-labour camps. A 'Them' agin 'Us' reflex.
"Them" can mean a peasant in the Philippines, a mural-painter in Nicaragua, or a legally-elected prime minister in British Guiana - but all, somehow, presented as part of the same monolithic conspiracy; all in some way, a threat to our Way of Life. William Blum has done a mammoth service to his people by listing the destabilising, revolutionary activities of the U.S. Military and the CIA, from China in the 1940s to the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Price $40.00 posted.