Guest post by Alec Rawls
Andrew Bolt has been blogging for the past week about the totalitarian tendencies in the just released “Media Inquiry” commissioned by Australia’s Labor government.
This “Finkelstein Report” advocates unlimited regulation of virtually all published and broadcast speech in Australia.
The actual proposal can be scanned in a few minutes (pages 290-300 here). It would set up a 21 member News Media Council, charged to enforce at least some level of oversight:
While the setting of standards should be left to the News Media Council, they should incorporate certain minimum standards, such as fairness and accuracy [§ 11.52, p. 291].
But there is no corresponding limit on how much the Council is allowed to regulate. Just the opposite, the Report explicitly declares that protecting freedom of speech is not part of the Council’s mission! §11.55, p. 292:
The News Media Council requires clearly defined functions. It is not recommended that one of them be the promotion of free speech. There are ample bodies and persons in the community who do that more than adequately.
Really? In a country that has no constitutional or statutory protection for speech, how are non-governmental “bodies and persons in the community” more than adequate to protect speech from a governmental body that is endowed with unlimited power to regulate speech?
The report explicitly calls for opinion to be regulated along with news (§11.64, p. 294) , and while low-readership blogs would possibly be exempted, Bolt notes that the suggested threshold for regulation would cover any blog that averaged even one reader a day, and even that would be at the complete discretion of the Council (§11.59, p. 293).
In addition to making whatever rules they want, the Media Council will also sit in judgment (§11.70, p. 296):
If not resolved informally, complaints should be dealt with by a complaints panel consisting of one, three or, only in exceptional cases, five members of the News Media Council.
Envisioned remedies (§ 11.74, p. 297-8) include forced corrections, forced withdrawals, and forced publication on the offender’s website of contrary views.
Crime and punishment
Elsewhere the Media Inquiry makes perfectly clear which views are to be corrected: global warming skepticism and criticism of the Labor government.
Skeptics could even be forced to take their own views down and post contrary views in their place. Just impose all the contemplated remedies at once, and why not? There are no stated limits. There are no limits on scope: that political speech is to be granted wide play, or even whether challengers for office must submit to oversight on their claims about the incumbent regime. Neither are any procedural limits imposed. The Council can make up whatever rules it wants. And if people refuse?
Failures to comply (§11.77, p. 298) are to be turned over to existing courts (civil or criminal not specified) which would be called upon to punish non-compliance as contempt of court (i.e. running fines or jail until compliance is forthcoming). In other words, unlimited punishment.
In the name of efficiency there are to be no “internal” or “external” appeals (§278, p. 299), but judges deciding on contempt charges would be allowed to review Council rulings if they feel that their dockets are not full enough already (§11.79, p. 299).
Orwellian “benefits”
§11.86 (p. 300) lists the proclaimed benefits that justify this system of unlimited regulation. Compared to the barbaric system of liberty, where people compete to offer the most convincing arguments, having the government be the arbiter of truth will:
[enable] the public to have confidence that journalistic standards will be upheld and that complaints will be resolved without fear or favour.
Yes, government is well known to never play favorites, and Solomonic power is famous for its even handed wisdom: “Cut the baby in half!” Liberty is way overrated.
Solomon did not actually cut the baby but we can be certain that this 21 member Council, all appointed by a single “independent committee” (like the authors of the Finkelstein report!), would be an abattoir.
“Independent” the report clarifies (§11.46, p. 291), means “Independent from government” (emphasis added), and yet it is to have the power of government. In other words, it is to have unaccountable power, and this independence from accountability is to be conferred upon a well known permanent Labor constituency, Universities Australia, which would get to appoint a majority of the “independent committee.”
Thus the entire enterprise would have the great virtue (from the Labor point of view) that unlike the sitting government, the voters cannot “throw the bums out.” Here the appointing committee and the appointed Council will violate the fundamental principle of republicanism as articulated by Alexander Hamilton, who appealed at the New York Convention that:
The true principle of a republic is, that the people should choose whom they please to govern them.
Too bad the Australian Constitution also lacks a republican guarantee.
The final punctuation mark on Finkelstein’s plan, the last proclaimed benefit of allowing dissidents to be swallowed whole by the Ministry of Truth, is timeless virtue:
Enhancing the public flow of information and the exchange of views.
“War is peace,” and “we’ve always been at war with Eastasia.” As Brendan O’Neill writes in The Australian:
…we’re witnessing the unravelling of many of the values and virtues of the modern era.
All in a knee-jerk snit over the fact that the left-dominated media does not yet have a complete publishing monopoly. Dissenting voices can still be heard, and Finkelstein finds that very disturbing.
Negative liberty: non-existent in Australia and in peril in America
To an American, what is most striking about the Australian plan is the complete absence of any statement of negative rights, or freedom from restrictions on speech. Our entire concept of free speech is framed in negative terms: “Congress shall make no law… abridging the freedom of speech.” The Australians have no constitutional protection for speech, but it is still astounding to see how readily the left would overthrow this pillar of Western liberty in exchange for partisan advantage.
The same totalitarian ambitions are at work in America too. They face greater legal obstacles here, but key actors are powerfully placed. Obama’s “regulatory czar” Cass Sunstein wants to use the system of “notice and takedown” from copyright law to shut down “conspiracy theories.” As an example, he wants to suppress claims that:
the theory of global warming is a deliberate fraud.
If SOPA had passed then all of the necessary machinery would have been in place, ready to expand from copyright infringement to the suppression of conspiracy theories at the drop of a one-line rider on any bill. At that point our freedom to speak our minds would lie in the hands of Sunstein booster Elena Kagan (who brought Sunstein to Harvard, calling him “the preeminent legal scholar of our time”); the racist Sonya Sotomayor (a long-time member of La Raza, or “the race“); and a borderline Court-majority of similar un-worthies.
We dodged a bullet and it looks like Australia will too, given how well the Finkelstein report is being received down under, but dodging bullets is a precarious business. If we don’t somehow manage to effect a fundamental retrenchment of liberty it won’t be long before we lose it.
I think you meant the Ministry of Love.
Вся власть советам!
It is time for an Aussie Spring!
How can the Aussie public be so complacent about the eroding of Democracy that the brave men and women fought so bravely for in the past?
Labor Governments across this continent are being cast out. The Federal one will be utterly annihilated at the next election…. Labor is it’s own worst enemy. Their lies, deceits, maladministration and totalitarianism is there for everyone to see. However it is not our elected officials who are the problem, the problem lies with our vast unelected Ecofascist and Socialist bureaucracies that remain while anting Australia’s democratic processes in between Labor Governments and asserting themselves, like the Finkelstein enquiry, when Labor Socialists gain power.
There comes a time when one must amputate what has become rotten….. We, in Australia, are just about at that unhappy place. The Socialists know it too and strive to to beat back what is surely about to beset them.
…. They will rue the day they distorted truth, science and society to gain power.
I fear for my beloved homeland. This Govt is the most dangerous Govt ever in the history of Australia.
In other news, Australia’s Carbon Tax is being challenged in the High Court. There are a number of avenues for challenge (under the Constitution) but the strongest appears to be that the Federal Govt cannot impose taxes on State property, and some of the 500 targets of the tax are State owned (such as power generation and waste disposal).
http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/political-news/government-brushes-off-palmers-challenge-to-carbon-tax-20120315-1v8al.html
Just one more reason to never step foot in that country…not that I ever considered. Good luck Aussie.
Wow. This is quite chilling to read about this. I assure you, if something similar were to happen in this country, we here in Texas would be taking up arms. We do not sacrifice or surrender our fundamental freedoms.
Can you say George Orwell and Animal Farm?
Peter says:
March 15, 2012 at 4:57 pm
Global Warming discussion in Australia is largely closed down except for a few brave souls.
______________________________________________________
So true, but many of the brave souls who have been out there and speaking out, are weary at belting their head on a brick wall of government, bought and paid for propaganda. What needs to be understood that even when the now opposition was in control of Federal Parliament, we had almost wall to wall Labor Governments at state level. Think Californian style eco-loon government across America and Tammany Hall styled labor and Green controlled local government (Town Councils) where the greens ruled, that in fire prone areas, trees could not be removed or shrubs cleared, fire breaks or land clearing prevented because that would disturb the natural environment. This absolute power backed by punitive regulations and crippling fines. Hardly surprising that our annual summer fires in dried out bush caused such havoc and loss of life.
Those green tyrants don’t change their ways. They wait in the wings for the opportunity to grab power again. We are slowly changing away from Labor governments as a result of the abuses of power, the financial waste and crippling debt expenditure on left wing adventures. But even that battle is far from over as we have learned how the cornered fight dirty, like the ludicrous attempted smear in the past few days by the Queensland Premier.
Of course over the top of all this is the Federal Labor government, accused of “pork barreling” key electorates with monetary handouts, fighting tooth and nail to keep the inquiry reports secret, to prevent exposure or publication. The insatiable reach for the ability to regulate first the newspapers, then the internet, and no we could not have wireless based internet, we must have more expensive easily monitored for content and censorship via the National Broadband Network where internet traffic is channeled through the network cable.
I fear we will become the infamous “Australian model” or case study that is put up as an example of how easy it is to destroy an easy going democratic nation. We won’t be as trusting in the future. One thing I would point out is that regulations work often in unintended ways so as new governments come in, those that proposed such wide regulation, might just lament with the benefit of hindsight.
“Those who do not remember the past are doomed to repeat it”
George Santayana
I hope those down under can appreciate our 2nd Amendment. For those with blinders on, it is not about hunting, target shooting or self defense. It is about being able to throw the bastards out using force if necessary.
“Guard with jealous attention the public liberty. Suspect every one who approaches that jewel. Unfortunately, nothing will preserve it but downright force. Whenever you give up that force, you are inevitably ruined.”
Patrick Henry, speech in the Virginia Ratifying Convention, June 5, 1778
The green/warmists here are suffering what I call ‘Australian Water Torture’. Every shower, every rain cloud, every cool day, every brimming reservoir, ever gleaming floodplain and desert bloom, eats away at the foundations of their Faith. That Faith was based on the ABSOLUTE CERTAINTY that the climate was getting hotter and drier. The idiots even went on the record with this assertion (See Dr Tim Flannery).
As common sense prevails and The Australian People gradually realize that the doomsday scenarioi is simply not happening the ‘authorities’ are getting desperate.
This Finkelstein effort is just a sign that they are losing the battle for public opinion and are madly trying to prevent the spread of Doubt …they lost the science argument long ago.
Australians have no constitutional protection for speech, equivalent to the 1st amendment of the U.S. constitution?
Let’s hope they have something equivalent to the 2nd amendment of the U.S. constitution.
“In times of universal deceit [Global Warming Hoax], telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” (George Orwell.)
“Those who don´t know history [Global Warming Hoax Propagandists] are destined to repeat it.” (Edmund Burke.)
“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men [Global Warming Hoax Apologists] do nothing.” (Edmund Burke.)
“Silence [Global Warming Hoax Apologists] in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.” (Dietrich Bonhoeffer.)
Global Warming Hoax is EVIL AND WRONG.
SAY NO TO GLOBAL WARMING HOAX
SAY NO TO JUNK SCIENCE
SAY NO TO GLOBAL GOVERNANCE
Please be accurate. The US Constitution does not grant the “freedom of speech.” This freedom is part of the “certain unalienable rights” that we all have regardless of whether our government recognizes it. Many argued at the time that the Bill of Rights was unnecessary and were concerned that listing some rights would lead the government to conclude, in error, that rights not enumerated could be limited. They appear to have been correct in their concern.
“That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government…”
Louis Hooffstetter says:
March 15, 2012 at 7:27 pm
Australians have no constitutional protection for speech, equivalent to the 1st amendment of the U.S. constitution?
Let’s hope they have something equivalent to the 2nd amendment of the U.S. constitution.
They sadly gave that up 10 years ago or so…..
Alec Rawls reckons
Really? In a country that has no constitutional or statutory protection for speech, how are non-governmental “bodies and persons in the community”
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It’s called the courts Alec.
Andrew Bolt should know that. Afterall he was recently smacked on the hand for attempting to discredit people and damage their livelihoods by making up s???t on his blogs.
The legal judgement specifically balanced freedom of speech against the right of vicious political commentators to make s???t up.
Andrew is just trying to bury what he did. Don’t fall for it.
I would be demanding heads. Whoever was involved in this report should lose their jobs. Quite frankly, I don’t know why Australians are not screaming bloody murder right now.
“Doug UK says:
March 15, 2012 at 4:49 pm
But JHC! – if this is true – your politicians need a wake up call in democracy.”
That’s what you get when you have a Fabian Socialist at the helm of power in OZ. It’s called Control Freaking! We had similar attempts at control freaking on certain issues here in NZ under our former Labour Lead Govt under another Fabian Socialist leader with a Marxist leaning Helen Clark.
The previous Labour Govt in the 1980s under David Lange scrapped any rights, etc pertaining under the Magna Carta!!
in the name of CAGW, the Wivenhoe Dam in Queensland, Australia, which holds enough water for many decades was allowed to fill to capacity, instead of being kept below levels to allow for flood mitigation, and the engineers are now at the centre of a damning report regarding the floods last year. best to read it here for now:
16 March: Andrew Bolt: Queensland flood inquiry report released
http://blogs.news.com.au/heraldsun/andrewbolt/index.php/heraldsun/comments/queensland_flood_inquiry_report_released/
12 March: Courier Mail, Australia: Flood victims sign up to sue State Government over January 2011 disaster
AN ATTEMPT to sue the State Government for the damage caused by the January 2011 flood is shaping as the largest class action Australia has ever seen, a group of flood-affected residents was told yesterday.
The move to sue the Government for damages is gathering momentum, with nearly 300 people packing a community meeting in Chelmer yesterday.
There are believed to be more than 1000 people signed for the “no win-no fee” action…
http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/flood-victims-sign-up-to-sue-government/story-e6freoof-1226296493281
let this be a lesson to those people who put CAGW ideology ahead of scientific integrity.
Alec reckons
If we don’t somehow manage to effect a fundamental retrenchment of liberty it won’t be long before we lose it.
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Yep.
Let’s take a lesson from history. The Nazi Party was elected to office via lying, cheating and manipulation. The lesson to be learn’t is that freedom of speech that allows unlimited rights to lying cheating and manipulation is a bad idea.
We should not be able to lie and then justify it by claiming its free speech.
We should not be able to cheat and then excuse it as free speech.
We should not be able to manipulate the public and claim that’s Ok since it’s free speech.
Both sides of politics should be able to cooperate for the common good, even if they disagree. That requires a certain level of trust and respect. Lying, cheating and manipulating in the name of free speech will eventually destroy good government and destroy freedom, as the Germans discovered.
As a Canadian, I have witnessed what socialist Governments can do from The Federal government, Provincial to the Municipal we are neck deep with the same socialist’s and principles Australia is experiencing with the Labor/socialist. but thank god we have a relativity sane Conservative government at present, yes they have warts but compared to what goes on in Europe, Australia and the USA under Obama. Canada is in great shape! We don’t buy the Global warming fraud thank god. Good luck Aussies you have a terrible up hill battle ahead of you but I’m confident the majority will fight back against these Control freak socialist criminals!!!
Sounds like Australia is on a fast track to an oligarchy. I hope you guys can derail that train.
without the investigations of Hedley Thomas, the truth might never have come out:
16 March: Australian: Hedley Thomas: Dishonesty, collusion and flood victims taken for mugs
IT is now official – the final report of the floods inquiry has found there was a serious cover-up over the devastating floods last year.
It involved collusion, dishonesty and lying. The inquiry found three engineers presented false evidence after the event in an attempt to protect their professional reputations.
The cover-up concealed a breach of the operating manual for Wivenhoe Dam, Queensland’s most dangerous and powerful infrastructure, between 8am on January 8 until the evening of January 9, according to the findings…
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/in-depth/queensland-floods/dishonesty-collusion-and-flood-victims-taken-for-mugs/story-fn7iwx3v-1226301577641
I would foresee a near instant invention using akin to the old unernet (which I believe is still operational) forming. Alternatively, a bit torrent style user sharing arrangement where documents are shared but not stored. Email notifications or distribution of articles, would do much the same thing as a web article with no discussion area.
People will outsmart both the politicians and the law 10:1 every time. They are chasing cats with a broom on this one. Not that they would understand that untill they spent the money and effort.