Talisman Saber - whore games

And how accountable will the US be in case of breach - say a misguided weapon killing a pod of whales, fish kill due to turbidity, the insidious effects of spilling high grade contaminants and fuels onto already fragile and suffering reefs? The US is eager to dodge any form of international accountability and is ambiguous when it comes to defining its accountability in its agreements to use bases in Australia.

Reports indicate many of the ground exercises will be performed using “greener” high tech simulators, tracking using sensors and lasers mounted into helmets. All troops will be equipped with this Cubic technology and results will be sent in real time to processing centers in Hawaii, Florida, Virginia and Australia.

This is part of the “interoperability” being developed, implying that the ADF will become vassals of the US forces. Jerry Dinkel of the manufacturer, Cubic, landed a US$45.6 million contract to supply the ADF with the simulation equipment (add that to the US$60 million). Cubic also won a smaller contract to install the training instrumentation in the new urban warfare training center built at Shoalwater.

Cubic follows in the profitable tracks of US companies like Raytheon Australia (makers of DU bearing ordnance) and L-3 Communications, in netting lucrative Australian contracts.

These deals rarely make the news, maybe only one paragraph on page four. The increasingly mushroom-like demos are not consulted as to whether they want affordable health care, better public transport or expendable war technology. The “By the People For the People” sort of gets lost. Even the once profitable ADI (Australian Defence Industries) is now in the hands of the French. Merde! But only after reassurances from the US. War simulations are very profitable for overseas companies.

The ANZUS treaty is trotted out to defend Australia’s obsequiousness. This insubstantial document states quite clearly the US and Australia shall leap to the aid of the other if there is conflict in the Pacific. It was invoked after 9-11. New York is hardly on the Pacific Rim, unless the tectonic plates of California collapsed while I was in the shower.

The tragedy is that the Labour Party will undoubtedly in the new phallo-babble, continue to be “hard on terrorism”. They will not question the future of the Quatermass style structure at Pine Gap.

Kevin Rudd is a foreign policy conservative, pro US, and has no creative alternatives. So for those of us who think that there are better things to do with one’s tax profits than blow things up and run around dressed as side salads, who do we choose in the next election?

Howard may crow about choosing who comes to our shores, but what about the rest of us? The fact is when it comes to defence, any pretence of democracy falls over and fascism comes quietly looming out of the dust. How do you like your fascism sir? Lightly done? Very well sir

We have seen what happens to US allies. If one gets into bed with elephants one has to expect to be crushed or at the least have a few fractures. Iraq is a most recent example. Obviously Australia, like the others, believes that its relationship with the US is different. It might be if there was some reciprocity, but one doubts if the US administration would be happy to host Australian bases. After all, the competence of Australian forces might show up the US Big Tech but Small Brain mismatch. Besides many US “proving ranges” as they are called, are now so contaminated, that even the US Park service will not take them back.

Despite all the expense and destruction of exquisitely precious habitats, the US and Australia by default, will still “lose” the war in Iraq, Afghanistan and, if they are dumb and imperial enough to do it, any war in Iran. They could take a leaf out of Ashoka’s book and declare peace and acceptance, but his approach did not turn a buckaroo.

Visitors awed by the graceful arcing and social interweaving of migrating whales might be somewhat alarmed to hear sonic booms of jet fighters, feel the shock waves from exploding ordnance and know that this is all being done to keep them safe from terrorists. No doubt the whales and other forms of marine life may see the ADF and their US allies as eco terrorists, but we don’t know that, as no doubt the Defence force audits don’t include interviews with whales.