Swastikas are band on Stormfront!

Shock! Horror!

Or so says ‘Sam’, a race warrior from Victoria.

Apparently, the ban is a result of Don I have a cunning plan Black’s recent decision to clean up the image of the racist trash on Stormfront.org.

No easy task.

In the thread devoted to discussing this about-face, poor old ‘apteryx’ — another “fair dinkum Aussie patriot”, and member of the forum since August 2001 — was not happy, Don. And neither, apparently, was Don’s disciple, ‘Steelcap Boot’ aka Paul Innes (aka ‘Beanie Baby’), who has promptly “band” apteryx, presumably as a result of his whinging. “This is what happens when mental midgets rule” howled apteryx in protest at the removal of his God-given right to fly the swastika online.

Another pea-brained member (and ah, ‘anarchist’), PanEuropeanAnglo, explains the ruling this way: Swastikas “have a bad rep due to mass brainwashing about being a “hate” symbol”. A sensitive new age racist, PEA-brain reckons that fans of the swastika should “Let SF be a cot for pro-white infants… it needs to have a softer approach. After all, type in anything vaguely to do with whiteness and pride in Google, SF is the first hit each and every single time”.

Awww.

Note that PEA-brain claimed credit on behalf of the New Right/National Anarchists for the complaint lodged by the owners of mathaba.net regarding [the Slackbastard blog]; note further that Welf Herfurth, Der Führer of NR/NA, is a regular contributor to the self-styled ‘alternative news service’.

From under his blanket, a local Ku Klux Klown strongly disagrees with Black’s decision to whitewash Stormfront.org. “If the newcomers had any brains at all” — a rather dubious assumption, I suspect — “they would easily overcome the symbolism [and] eventually … face the fact [that] the swastika [is] a major part of our history, so the best time to learn this is right at the start of their awaking”. By which term I think the man in the white bed sheet means ‘awakening’.

Another fair dinkum Aussie patriot incredulously asks: “What’s next? Holocaust denial?”

Surely not!

But it gets better. In response to apteryx’s tearful complaint:

Steelcap Boot: “I do not class Mr Don Black a mental midget.”
PEA-brain: “I don’t believe [apteryx] was referring to Don when he made that statement.”

Ouch.

Further:

Sam: “I understand censorship perfectly. Fact is that swastikas are band, news or not. We have a lot of people coming on to this site who are guest if they see thousands of swastikas they will think we are just a bunch of Nazi’s which isn’t true.”
Steelcap Boot: “Perhaps this is the same type of thing that the police have to deal with. Police have to unhold the law of the land. Land says indicate when turning a corner. Driver passes test to get license.”

Somehow, I don’t think Mensa will be rushing to induct the brains trust at Stormfront any time soon.

The nightmare continues:

Sam: “Its important that people take us seriously and we are not the stereotype that the Jew portrays us to be.”
Manolis Turbo: “Much agreed but that don’t mean we have to bend to their will. I understand that Stormfront is not a democracy but the swastika is a powerful symbol of our ancestors and it should not be banned because it offends the status quo. I’m 100% Romanian but I grew up in the States and have US citizenship and the swastika is part of my ethnicity. Part of who I am. It is an old symbol used by my ancestors as well as by their descendants such as my grandfather and my great grandfather, both of whom fought under the swastika. Succumbing to PC rules of not offending Jews with an ancient symbol of White heritage means rolling over for our enemies and promulgating cowardice among our own kind.”

Unfortunately for Mister Manolis, Mister Black disagrees.

KKK people threatened us: Aborigines
Denis Gregory
May 18, 2008

POLICE are investigating claims a group of young Aborigines were threatened by a man armed with a tomahawk and wearing full-length Ku Klux Klan garb.

Members of the group say that about 1am last Saturday, as they were walking home in the Riverina town of Griffith, the man jumped out of a black utility truck and waved the tomahawk at them while yelling racial obscenities. They say another man emerged from the truck wearing a black balaclava and the female driver of the ute also began fighting, with one of the female Aborigines.

The group claims that when police arrived, the men pulled off their garb and put it in the back of the truck.

Police arrested six group members who allegedly turned on them and punched a policewoman. Three were charged with affray and other offences, with interviews continuing.

The incident has enraged the local Aboriginal community. Spokeswoman Lynette Kilby said the youth tried to explain what had happened but the police “didn’t want to know”. “They arrested the young people and let those in the truck go,” she said.

A little birdy in Gosnells, WA has chirped a little gossip in our ear.

What kind of gossip? Tawdry gossip, of course! The best kind.

According to our Gosnells gossip, after the unfortunate break-up of one Baron von Hund and his dear Lilith in late 2007, the aforementioned Lilith has hooked up with Scumfront Downunder poster Sirino.

Is there any truth to this rumour, dear readers? And is homewrecking an appropriate action for someone who claims to subscribe to traditional Aussie values?

The answers, please, to the usual address.

Prejudice no longer a bar to Jewish progress: Leibler
Farah Farouque
May 13, 2008

DOES the disclosure of a single anti-Semitic email in the Liberal Party disclose deeper prejudice in traditional establishment circles against the Jewish community?

Leading Jewish businessman Mark Leibler suggests prejudice lingers in some quarters but was not a barrier to progress any more.

“I can still remember when a young Jewish boy or girl in the 1960s and early ’70s would have difficulty getting (legal) articles in establishment firms,” Mr Leibler said. And, he said, even today “when you mix in business circles you will hear racist comments, including anti-Semitic remarks”.

One such incident was divulged at an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission inquiry into the Richard Pratt-owned Visy group. A transcript of a conversation between two former Amcor executives included remarks such as: “Ah, you know what the Jews are like. No wonder they own half the world.”

Mr Leibler said it demonstrated pockets of prejudice still existed. “These elements of prejudice don’t disappear overnight,” he said. “But I don’t believe the Victorian Liberal Party or the leader is anti-Semitic.”

Adam Held, the Liberal candidate, who was the subject of an anti-Semitic email by former state campaign manager Susan Chandler, defended his party.

“In my long association with the Liberal Party, I have personally never had any anti-Semitic comments directed towards me. It is my belief that the Liberal Party remains a steadfast friend of the Australian Jewish community and the state of Israel,” Mr Held said.

B’nai B’rith Anti-Defamation Commission chairman John Searle believed this to be an isolated incident. “Fortunately, it appears to be the views as expressed by a single member of the Liberal Party and is not representative,” he said.

But is it really just a single member, or does the sickness run deeper?

We can think of a few other anti-Semitic incidents involving the Liberal Party over the past few years:

David Clarke attends neo-Nazi celebrations, 2005

Member for Indi’s media officer launches into secretly recorded anti-Semitic rant, 2006

Anti-Semitic fruitloop Ken Aldred pre-selected for seat of Holt, 2007

Senator Helen Coonan, Liberal Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells and NSW Upper House MP David Clarke attend neo-Nazi celebration, 2007

And we can’t forget Lyenko Urbancic,, the Nazi intelligence officer who was one of the most powerful people in the New South Wales Liberals from the 60s until his death in 2006.

Those examples are just off the top of our heads, and they’re just the tip of the iceberg. (We have more on the Liberal Party here.)

More later.

Baillieu vows purge as Lib’s race slur exposed
David Rood and Paul Austin
May 13, 2008

THE crisis in the Victorian Liberal Party deepened yesterday when a campaign manager at party headquarters was forced to quit for making a racist comment about a Liberal candidate at last year’s federal election.

Susan Chandler, the state campaign manager and a supporter of Opposition Leader Ted Baillieu, resigned after anti-Baillieu forces released an email in which she made an anti-Semitic comment about a Jewish Liberal.

In the October 19 email, to fellow Liberal campaign worker John Osborn, Ms Chandler described the party’s candidate for Melbourne Ports, Adam Held, as a “greedy f–king Jew” after he wrote to party HQ asking for more campaign pamphlets.

Mr Osborn made the anti-Semitic slur public in retaliation against the pro-Baillieu forces after he and another staff member, Simon Morgan, were sacked for contributing to an anonymous anti-Baillieu internet blog.

Ms Chandler resigned, offering an apology to Mr Held and the Jewish community, after party president David Kemp gave her an ultimatum to quit or be sacked.

Mr Baillieu, who was ambushed with the racist email during a radio interview yesterday, sought to limit the damage, saying: “Anti-Semitism is a disgraceful form of vilification and is repugnant to the values of the Liberal Party and to myself.”

But he vowed to continue his campaign to purge the party of traitors and “cancerous elements”, saying other Liberals beyond the two sacked staff members were implicated in the internet blog.

They would be tracked down, exposed and could face expulsion.

“I do not care what it takes, but I want to see the organisation cleaned up,” Mr Baillieu said.

As Jewish community leaders condemned Ms Chandler’s comment, she issued a statement expressing deep regret. “I have many Jewish friends and am in no way anti-Semitic,” she said.

“My comments were completely out of character and were made on the spur of the moment in an email during a difficult period of the election campaign.”

Mr Held last night said he was surprised and deeply disappointed to learn of Ms Chandler’s comment, but had accepted her apology.

Mr Osborn said he had decided to release the email from Ms Chandler, whom he described as “a known factional associate of Mr Baillieu”, because “there is no place in the Liberal Party for that sort of base prejudice”.

He said she was involved in the internal investigation into the anti-Baillieu blog, which was now exposed as “a complete sham”.

He accused Mr Baillieu and outgoing Liberal Party director Julian Sheezel of leaking to The Age selective internal Liberal emails from him and Mr Morgan. “Mr Baillieu and Mr Sheezel have demonstrated at best incompetence and at worst a disingenuous cover-up,” he said.

Mr Osborn and Mr Morgan were sacked last month after the anti-Baillieu website, called “He who stands for nothing”, was traced to their computers at Liberal Party headquarters.

The blog, which has been shut down, had a banner reading “Ted Baillieu must GO” , described the Liberal leader as a “vile communist” and “vacuous moron”, and called him Cottee’s — “because he’s thick and rich”.

Mr Baillieu, Dr Kemp and Mr Sheezel say they have seen evidence linking other senior Liberals to the blog, and have asked incoming state director Tony Nutt to find out who they are.

The Age believes the investigation is homing in on several staff members in federal and state MPs’ offices — although no MP has so far been directly implicated.

Dr Kemp condemned the behaviour of the sacked Liberal bloggers as vicious and damaging to the party. “I have never seen behaviour of this kind before in the party,” he said.

“What we have seen in this case is behaviour that not only carries out a vicious personal vendetta against the leader of the party but does so in a completely deceptive way from a professional position in the party.”

Mr Baillieu said the sacking of the two was the “tip of the iceberg”.

“There are a cell of people who’ve been doing the bidding of others in the party. There are a number of people, they are a small, deep-seated cell, and it’s time to clean up,” he told Fairfax Radio.

He labelled the activities of Mr Morgan and Mr Osborn “outright treachery”.

“We’ve had these individuals seeking to undermine our campaigns and corrupt our election campaigns and candidacies,” Mr Baillieu said. “You can’t have that. These are paid employees.”

Former premier Jeff Kennett, a supporter of Mr Baillieu, condemned Mr Osborn and Mr Morgan for disloyal and cowardly behaviour, saying “those moles have been cut out of the system”.

Cursing priest back at pulpit
Shannon Deery
May 11, 2008

A SENIOR Catholic priest who launched a racist and foul-mouthed tirade at skateboarders is back behind the pulpit.

Monsignor Geoff Baron was discovered during the week working at a Caroline Springs Catholic primary school.

The revelation came a week after a Melbourne principal requested her pupils’ parents to switch off foul-mouthed TV chef Gordon Ramsay.

The disgraced Monsignor was ordered on indefinite leave by Archbishop Denis Hart midway through last year after video footage emerged of him abusing skateboard teenagers outside Melbourne’s St Patrick’s Cathedral.

The former dean of the cathedral slipped back into Melbourne three months ago, according to Catholic Church sources, after spending time in Sydney.

During the week he was offering mass at Christ the Priest Catholic Primary School in Caroline Springs. It is understood he has also been carrying out pastoral duties, including visiting the elderly and frail.

While reluctant to about the incident, Monsignor Baron said it was good to be back at work.

“I’m a Catholic and I’m a happy Catholic with a lot of fulfilling pastoral work to do,” he said.

The priest hit the headlines after his outburst - which has been viewed 500,000 times - first appeared on YouTube.

The footage shows Monsignor Baron yelling the F-word and C-word at the teens as well as hurling racial abuse such as “Go back to where you come from, you don’t belong in Australia . . . little foreigner there, look at the slanty eyes, black hair”.

The scandal drew a heated response.

At the time, Monsignor Baron apologised for his behaviour, but refused to apologise to the teenagers concerned.

News of the move prompted fresh outrage yesterday, with several church sources saying the priest should not have been allowed to return.

“What kind of example are we setting as a church?” one said.

“We are no better than the likes of Gordon Ramsay if we allow him continue to serve as a leader.”

Vicar General Monsignor Les Tomlinson would not say if Monsignor Baron had had counselling or anger management courses.

“We do not respond to questions in relation to the health of a person,” Monsignor Tomlinson said.

“Monsignor Baron freely resigned from his position as Dean of St Patrick’s Cathedral last August.

He remains an active priest of the archdiocese available for appointment within the archdiocese.”

Indian student Kanan Kharbanda was bashed in Australia
Mark Dunn
May 10, 2008

STUDENT Kanan Kharbanda, 26, was left partially blinded after being bashed by a gang of 10 or more youths at Sunshine in March.

He has now fled Australia and is undergoing medical treatment in his native India.

“They entice us to come to Australia saying all its good points - but what kind of a world-class city cannot ensure the safety of ordinary people?” Mr Kharbanda told the Indus Age paper for expats.

Asif Valji, 19, and Vijay Maddineni, 22, multimedia students at Cambridge International College in the city, also say they are victims of racist assaults and thefts.

Both said they were often approached by youths demanding they hand over their laptops or mobiles.

Mr Valji claimed his home was broken into by a thug who had earlier harassed him.

Their friend Kanwerdeep Singh, 20, was stabbed in the leg while another youth attempted to steal his phone.

“They always want to degrade us,” Mr Valji said about repeated racial taunts he and his peers get, mainly while catching trains to school or at part-time jobs.

“I’ve had people shout me in the ear, yelling ‘white is right’,” he said.

Federation of Indian Students of Australia president Raman Vaid said racist attacks were increasing.

“Most of the students mortgage their family home as collateral for an Australian dream,” Mr Vaid said.

“When students arrive in Australia they see a completely different picture and the dreams are shattered.

“With a bad start with their education life, they start to face other issues like unemployment, lack of housing, cultural differences and shock, which in turn relates to stress and depression.”

Psychiatric registrar Tanveer Ahmed said the flip-side to Australia’s booming international student industry was the desperation faced by many newcomers.

Mr Ahmed said he had seen a number of foreign students at risk of suicide. FISA believes 13 have taken their lives in the past year here.

One Bangladeshi student, whose family had mortgaged their home to pay for his education, attempted to kill himself after he failed to meet his subsequent tuition fees despite working three part-time jobs. Study fees for two years for foreign students can reach as high as $50,000, on top of living expenses.

“Working in mental health, I see more and more students each month and their situations are often horrendous,” Mr Ahmed said. “Suicide attempts, self-harm or drug overdoses are the most common, usually in relation to financial and study pressures.”

Youth guilty of race attack
Shane Fowles

A TEENAGER who assaulted a restaurateur in a racially-fuelled gang attack was yesterday placed on a community-based order.

Joshua Ladd, 18, of Morack Avenue, Warrnambool, yesterday pleaded guilty to eight charges stemming from a range of incidents over the past month.

He had spent four days in custody, having been arrested on Monday for stealing shoes from a department store and possessing a dangerous article.

The court heard that Ladd’s run of offences started on April 11 when the teen and two friends banged on the doors of China City restaurant in Koroit Street, Warrnambool.

Shouting abusive and racist remarks, they were confronted by a male owner who told them to leave.

A grossly drunk Ladd and the others began punching the defenceless victim to his head and upper body, before the man fled up Koroit Street.

Ladd then threw a beer can at the restaurateur, breaking his spectacles.

The victim was continually punched and suffered cuts and abrasions to his face.

Magistrate Ron Saines denounced the racist attack and Ladd’s attitude towards the Chinese community. “Some Chinese people have been here for 10 generations,” he said. “They are entitled to hold onto their culture without being told to go home and so on.” Ladd also pleaded guilty to spray painting the Fletcher Jones factory walls and possessing five grams of cannabis for personal use.

The 18-year-old, who moved to Warrnambool last year, will have to complete 100 hours of unpaid work as part of the nine-month CBO.

AJAX in racial slur row
Adam Kamien

A SPECTATOR at an AJAX Football Club game against Parkdale two weeks ago has been accused of racially vilifying an opposition player.

Parkdale Football Club is claiming that Ryan Burger, who is a black South African reserve-grade player, was vilified, but hasn’t revealed what was said.

According to AJAX president Brian Goldberg, the matter has been dealt with. He said Parkdale has confirmed it wouldn’t take any further action with the league’s governing body, the Victorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA).

Goldberg spoke with Burger and Parkdale president Darren Fenech and followed up with a letter attempting to distance the club from the sentiments expressed by the spectator. He said the club and the VAFA was satisfied.

“They were fully understanding of the fact that even if it was an AJAX supporter, it is out of our reach and hard to manage.”

The incident comes after a big preseason push by the committee to curb unacceptable behaviour by supporters of the club, after a litany of incidents in recent years.

A letter from coach Stuart Powell was circulated early in the season asking supporters to behave, and while it is yet to be confirmed whether the spectator responsible for the incident is linked with AJAX, Goldberg is convinced the club’s early season efforts are working.

“[The incident] is disappointing, but on the other side, 99 per cent of AJAX supporters this year have really responded and been outstanding — in good and bad games.”

Fenech told The AJN that while he felt AJAX had taken the appropriate steps to resolve the matter, Burger was still keen to undertake mediation with the supporter concerned.

“Brian was fantastic he handled it very well and was quite rightly dissatisfied with what occurred and we’re more than happy with the way it panned out,” he said.

“The player is happy. He said he would still like to sit across from the person who made the remarks and talk to him about it, but it doesn’t look like that will happen.”