Media mogul Murdoch is buying a Conservative alternate universe
The Abbott Government is leading Australia down America’s path on a range of social and economic issues, and holding the reigns is Rupert Murdoch. American writer Vegasjessie gives us an international perspective on the social damage of Murdoch’s influence, and the ramifications this could have for Australia.
Denying the climate-change crisis and taking away people’s health care is not what most Americans want, but the “Murdochracy” is very persuasive to the contrary.
Pro-war, anti-humanity, pro-pollution is precisely the objective of the conservatives who are merely puppets of Rupert Murdoch. In addition to the undying support for the merciless bombing of Gaza by most American media outlets, Australia’s conservative government is mirroring the sentiments of the GOP and their war-mongering media with its deferential view of the far-right Israeli government.
The impending doom the Affordable Care Act faces in its next Supreme Court battle is extremely depressing for American Progressives who think health care is a right, not a privilege. Funny thing, universal health care in Australia, thanks to the Abbott government, a wholly owned subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch, is facing a similar battle.
Murdoch argued that true morality lies in the free-market rather than socialism because “it gives people incentives to put their own wants and needs aside to address the wants and needs of others.” (Abbott) praised Murdoch in his IPA speech, itself weighty with Biblical references, the tradition of politics Tony Abbott has embraced was clear – that of obstinacy, demagoguery, and dogmatism. Reforms promised by Abbott during the speech included privatizing Medibank; the state-owned private health insurer for over three million Australians, and repealing Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act.
Sound depressingly familiar?
Crazy Murdoch disciples will burn this planet alive (image via crooksandliars.com)
The idea that Americans reject equality, health care for all, or any restraints on emissions is parroted by our media, which is very much in danger of monopolization by Murdoch. The efforts to purchase Time-Warner will continue. To create more capital, Rupert is selling his lesser assets: Britain’s BSkyB agreed to pay $9 billion to buy Murdoch’s pay-TV companies in Germany and Italy. Fox is expected to use the proceeds to fuel its pursuit of Time Warner.
The abolition of the carbon tax by Australia last week was the first industrialized nation to take a giant step backward in the efforts to curtail man-made climate change. As Rupert owns 70% of the Australian media, this was easily accomplished, much to the horror of every scientist not in the employ of the Fox empire. In America, According to USA Today/Stanford University polling, 73 percent of Americans believe in climate change and 52 percent of Americans say that it will be a “very serious” problem if we don’t implement policies to reduce it (as opposed to 10 percent who say that climate change will be “not serious at all”).
When anti-climate change legislation is presented by the Murdochracy as an essential component to protect people’s delicate finances, America, like Australia, is going down a dark path, all thanks to a megalomaniacal 83 year old who won’t be around to live in the awful world he is helping to destroy. With the track record of our Supreme Court, it wouldn’t be surprising if “clean coal” wins a massive law suit against those damned scientists who report on facts in the not-too-distant future.
This article was first published on crooksandliars.com.
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18 comments
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Phil -
mikestasse -
John Lord -
randalstella -
stephentardrew -
Anomander -
Choppa -
stephentardrew -
Kaye Lee -
Anne Byam -
Kaye Lee -
corvus boreus -
corvus boreus -
Matters Not -
Kaye Lee -
Matters Not -
Archer -
abbienoiraude
Return to home pagePlease, please, the word is “alternative”, not “alternate”. Stop being the Americans we don’t want to be!
WHAT? Not another grammar pedant……..
You might also like to read this.
https://theaimn.com/the-mongrel-that-is-murdoch/
1. John Lord is on a theme here. It could be called entrapment.
2. The mere assertion of ‘grammatical’ or semantic censure seems to be taken as sufficient to establish its case.
No. ‘Alternate’ suffices, and is shorter for a heading.
The word worth reservation is ‘Conservative’. For radical plunderers, extreme pirates, global destroyers. But, of course, I understand its identifiability here with such massive evil.
Damn I didn’t think Murdoch had a new thought that wasn’t driven by greed and power. This guy is one demented fascist troglodyte. One wonders how such a fool can be so influential. That good old magical thinking works a treat for the rationally and logically challenged.
Die you bastard and put us out of our misery.
To fix Abbott’s quote above – “Let’s be under no illusions, my government is a plutocratic kleptocracy masquerading as democracy”.
Murdoch does not own 70% of Australia’s media – when will you guys realise this? He might sell 70% of the papers that are bought, but owns less than a quarter of news media. Perhaps it’s because his products are popular? No one forces anyone to buy them, people make a choice.
Also history shows us that Murdoch can and will give public backing to Labor. Small minds have short memories.
Good lord Choppa read any of Fox News crap lately. The guy is fascist regardless of his percentage ownership. He feeds and incites the ignorant. He only supports his own self interest and Labor is not the be all and end all of progressives. Here we go that free speech choice thing again. You know that science stuff about causation, genetics, cultural, familial and ideological conditioning. Humans acting as self-interested viruses when evolution demand communitarian cooperation. Nah lets be even handed while the planet burns and Wall Street send us to hell again. Mark my words its coming. Look at the US economy lately. Some brilliant recovery that. Funny now who owns much of the rest of the media? Wouldn’t be corporate self-interest types would it? Foxes in the hen house ain’t pretty just look at the wonderful Fox sycophants in the LNP. Sheesh what a load of rubbish.
Among capital city and national daily newspapers, which are by far the most influential in setting the news agenda, News Corporation titles accounted for 65% of circulation in 2011. Fairfax Media, the next biggest publisher, controlled just 25%. Those figures may have shifted slightly since then, but there is no doubt that News Corp Australia is our most dominant player – it owns 14 of our 21 metro daily and Sunday newspapers.
Two newspaper owners (News and Fairfax) accounted for 86% of newspaper sales in Australia in 2011, as compared to 54% for the top two newspaper owners in the United Kingdom and a lowly 14% for the top two in the United States.
While I agree with some of the sentiments expressed in the article, I have to wonder at a few of the comments. e.g. ” Denying the climate-change crisis and taking away people’s health care is not what most Americans want, but the “Murdochracy” is very persuasive to the contrary. ” …. Pardon me, but it is not what most AUSTRALIANS want either, thank you ?.
The big question remains … is there, or is there not – climate change. Scientists ( I do not have the % break down ) disagree on it. From what I have gleaned, some say yay, others say nay. It is very much an ongoing investigation. Personally, I think we ARE in trouble with climate change, but the absolute answers are yet to be given – and agreed to by all scientific endeavours.
None of that alters the fact that we all should be pro-precautionary. Best be safe than sorry. Given that, we should all look very carefully and seriously at renewable energy because a) it makes 99% sense to pursue it – and it’s infinite possibilities, and b) we just might need it in the long run !!! The jury is still out on it though. To take a stand on one extreme or the other is madness. We all have to find a middle ground that embraces both points of view … ( almost an impossibility I admit ) … but try we must. And renewable energy is something we MUST consider far more, at this point in time.
As for Murdoch ????????? We give him waaaay too much kudos. He is but a little old coot, with tons of money who has perfected the art of waving his self-seen power over the globe. HE THINKS.
His holdings are substantial, but not the be all and end all of ALL news.
It’s time we gave him the flick as far as being a hefty tool of manipulation over anyone or any Government. That does NOT mean I am in Abbott’s corner. I most certainly am N O T. Apart from the climate change uproar, the Abbott proposed legislations are a disgrace – mean, callous and uncalled for.
And it’s time we just simply stopped tallking about Murdoch. He thrives on publicity … and his own projection of self importance. The opening image here reflects just that. And I have researched it, and he did indeed say such a thing. It’s all MY, MY, MY. He deserves to be put last in people’s minds. Forget him – even if our current Government cannot. What the hell hold does he have or thinks he has, over our Government anyway ? And why do they sway his way ? Would be interesting to learn – but I expect we never will. ???
Cheers ….. AB.
Anne,
If you still think there is doubt about climate change then you need to read up more. The only debate is how bad it will be and how soon and none of it is rosy (from credible sources who do not include Ian Plimer or Bob Carter or anyone who pays for their opinion).
And much as you and I may dismiss Murdoch, every one of our Prime Ministers has paid court to him – Rudd, Gillard and Abbott have all made the subservient ‘go to dinner at rupie’s place’ call. I long for the politician that says to Rupert “You are irrelevant…make an appointment with my secretary.”
Anne B,
The peer reviewed science on anthropogenically influenced climate change has been in for some time.
It is happening and it is accelerating.
Feedback loops such as the arctic melt releasing hitherto sequestered bio-matter in massive methane eruptions push the probable consequences beyond any predictability.
You do not have to be an atmospheric scientist to understand how human activities can affect the temperature of the biosphere. Even a primary school level understanding of the living processes of trees, including their heat absorbtion, hydro-tumescence and basic shading properties, combined with observation of broad global trends in deforestation, will give you an inkling of the problems we are creating with the continued habitability of our planet to our species.
The mass dying of life in our polluted, acidifying and irradiated oceans gives no cause for comfort or complacency.
The additional layers of scientific observation and research confirm and reinforce the proposition that we have created an oncoming shit-storm for ourselves and our fellow residents.
Ranged against the consensus of active and accountable science, we have retired geologists sponsored by fossil fuels, media whores with track records of falsehoods(hail bolt!) and corrupt and closeted politicians, making ridiculous kook claims of a massive fraud and conspiracy.
Funnily enough, many denying the idea that ill-considered vast actions are having global consequences profess a belief in knowledge of a divine, pre-ordained destiny enacted by a deity who resembles themselves, only bigger and shinier(with a huge phallus). That this prophetic dogma ends in apocalypse may go some way to explaining the blasé attitudes shown to the very real and dire problems we are creating for ourselves and our descendents.
Accommodate the ‘counter-consensus’ of consequential denialists all you want, but I will not alter my conclusions to cater to fanatics, liars and fools.
.
P.S, Those objecting to the American diction and yank-o-centric viewpoint of the article should note that it was an article penned by a U.S writer.
Spot on! The absolute answers haven’t been given. But guess what, when it comes to science, the ‘absolute’ answers will never be given, because science is not about ‘absolutes’ or ‘truths’. If you want ‘truths’ you have to go to ‘mathematics’ or ‘logic’
Science is always about ‘probabilities’ and ‘degrees of confidence’ in predictions. When it comes to climate change, the evidence is in. It’s happening and at an accelerating rate.
BTW, I wish it wasn’t because we have ‘coal to burn’ so to speak but to continue down our existing path is madness. For those ‘scientists’ out there who can disprove the science, then all types of rewards and accolades await.
With the hundreds of millions poured into the denier’s campaign one would have thought that if they could disprove AGW they would have done so by now or at least attracted some interest from the scientific community to use some of that bottomless pit of fossil fuel money for their research. But apparently those “corrupt climate scientists” are not willing to prostitute themselves, unlike Plimer (who is on the Board of several of Gina Rinehart’s businesses) and Carter (who is paid by the Heartland Institute) and Henry Ergas (who recently made a video with that fruitcake Monckton). It is humiliating that these people are given a voice while our government attacks the IPCC and the Climate Change Authority. Abbott’s short term in office will go down in infamy and that photo of them laughing and high fiving after repealing the carbon tax will be looked upon in horror.
Actually, they had one go. The team was led by Richard A. Muller, founder and Scientific Director. Professor of Physics, UCB and Senior Scientist, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). Muller is a member of the JASON Defense Advisory Group who has been critical of other climate temperature studies before this project. Even Anthony watts endorsed tha make-up of the team
So what did this ‘broad mix of people’ experienced in ‘handling large data sets’ conclude. Here’s Muller:
Dear oh dear. Turns out these scientists couldn’t be bought. ‘Humans are almost entirely the cause’.
The Charles G. Koch Foundation provided significant funds. Egg on faces all round.
Not much publicity here in Australia possibly because our leading climate scientist, Bolt and Pell, were not involved.
Read more here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berkeley_Earth
Choppa – I’ll ask you to try find a paper that isn’t owned by Fairfax or News Corp at your local milk bar, Coles or Woolies, or news agency where Herald Sun, The Age, The Australian, and Financial Review take place up front and centre.
Mx given out for free in Melbourne CBD, Leader newspapers delivered every week to peoples homes in Victoria.
You can’t escape News Corps propaganda if you wanted to.
@corvus boreus
“…profess a belief in knowledge of a divine, pre-ordained destiny enacted by a deity who resembles themselves, only bigger and shinier(with a huge phallus).”
Loved it!! HA! Made me smile in a post that is so serious. Thank you.
and….what you said, with bells on!!