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UNDERSTANDING THE GLOBAL ECONOMIC CRISIS

From the newswire... On December 15th at 7pm at the Irish Club, 61 Townshend Road, Subiaco, concerned citizens will hold a forum on the crisis and the uncertain future. For thirty years we were told there is no alternative. We were told that embracing free trade, deregulation and privatisation was the best and only way to run society. Earlier this year the smoke ran out and the mirrors shattered. The Wall Street party was over and ordinary people were left to clean up the mess. The bottom line is that the system does not work. The millionaire bankers and speculators who made the crisis go from bad to disastrous were rewarded with tax-payer funded bail-outs while ordinary people across the developed world face the loss of their job and home. In the Third World, the daily struggle for survival will get harder than ever. How can we make sense of the unfolding crisis? Will Australia be spared the worst of it, as 'our' leaders keep telling us? What can we do to make sure it never happens again? READ MORE/Comment

Stop The Clean Feed

From the newswire, December 8, 2008:The Australian government is currently quietly going ahead with plans to filter all Australian's access to the internet in a manner similar to the People's Republic of China and Iran. This is despite the facts that the filter: will significantly slow down the internet for all Australians; will not be able to prevent distribution of illegal material anyway; and represents a dangerous erosion of our freedom... So, before this terrible idea is enacted we call on Australians to: get informed - get connected - get organised - and Stop The Clean Feed - Nationwide protests on the 13th of December READ MORE/Comment

ANAWA Anti-uranium training and information workshops

Anti-uranium workshops: SUN 7 and 14 DEC 08 - The Anti-Nuclear Alliance of WA is the umbrella group in WA for organisations campaigning against the nuclear industry and uranium mining in particular. ANAWA website ANAWA are running two information workshops for interested people in response to numerous requests for up-to-date information to assist in the campaign against uranium mining in WA... Both workshops will cover uranium mining, the nuclear fuel chain, risks to human health and environment, nuclear power and climate change and renewable energy alternatives. | Alternatives to Nuclear Power Presenters: Giz Watson MLC and Former Senator Jo Vallentine With the recent announcement by the Premier of the lifting of the ban on uranium mining in WA there is a renewed urgency for people to be well-informed and confident in putting forward the arguments against uranium mining and the nuclear industry. | antinuclear.net These workshops are the first in what will be an ongoing training program organised by the ANAWA to provide information, training and skill-sharing. They will provide the opportunity for better public debate, stronger networks and increased confidence for campaigners. READ MORE/Comment... Get on the Anti-nuke-action mailing list

Student Housing Action Collective defy eviciton notice

From the newswire: December 4, 2008 - The Student Housing Action Cooperative (SHAC) are refusing to leave their squatted double story terrace buildings in Melbourne. They face eviction after taking possession of the empty site in August. The Carlton property is owned by the University Of Melbourne and the group were issued an ultimatum to leave by November 28. SHAC have refused to move out. "The University has asked us to leave as soon as we have completed our exams," said Alexander Turnbull, a member of SHAC. "We're not planning to go anywhere unless Melbourne University provides us with a property for use as an affordable student housing co-operative. We have no-where else to go," he said. SHAC arose in response to the current housing crisis which has seen a decline in the quantity of affordable student housing combined with an increase in rental costs. Victorian Trades Hall Council warned the university it could face union action if it evicted the group. The students have proposed converting the properties into a student-run housing co-operative under Common Equity Housing. "We're not asking the university for any money. We can finance the conversion ourselves with Common Equity," SHAC spokesman Teishan Ahearne said. SHAC says it takes inspiration from STUCCO - the affordable student housing co-op in Sydney which started as a squat and has been running for over 15 years. SHAC Blog READ MORE/Comment

Police hire spooks to snoop online activists

From the newswire: November 27, 2008: Mainstream media is reporting that internet communications and websites of Australian activists and protest groups have been secretly monitored by state and federal agencies for over five years. According to the reports a Melbourne private intelligence firm specialising in open-source intelligence has been engaged by Victoria Police, the Australian Federal Police and the federal Attorney-General to monitor and report on activist groups internet use. Open Source Intelligence is an information process which finds, selects and acquires information from publicly available sources and analyses the data to produce 'actionable intelligence' - Wikipedia As well as focusing on domestic activist groups, the company monitors news, government and security-related websites around the world for indicators on threats or potential threats to Australia's interests from "acts of terrorism and civil unrest." The secret monitoring involves exploring websites, chat rooms, social networking sites, email lists, bulletin boards, online forums etc to gather information on planned demonstrations and other activities. Most of those monitored have not broken any laws, however it is believed the information is conveyed to government agencies that also deal with terrorism... SMH article READ MORE/Comment...

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