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September 09, 2004
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The war
It won't be long before the first "I question the timing" slurs start. In the interim, the bombing of Australia's embassy in Jakarta serves to remind us that terrorism has not been defeated. At the same time Bali bombers are sipping Starbucks. Indonesia is a battleground in this war and its Government and police need to act like it. UPDATE: Tim Blair is following the story with plenty of links. Ken Parish belittles himself and the victims with the first "JI working for Liberals" jaunt; Chas seems to be heading down the same line. Off the blogroll with Ken. Ozguru wonders about the Starbucks Bali Bomber now. More at LGF, Yobbo and Chrenkoff. Yobbo also has the answers to "why the islamic extremists hate us so much". Conrad reports on a friend who felt the blast. Macam-macam says Australia's travel warning has been upgraded as does Myrick. Rajan says Indonesia is the weak link in the war on terror. At the SMH "blog" Counterspin (with no permalinks, entry titled "Early Jakarta analyis") quotes Scott Burchill's off-the-cuff reactions (with my responses): 1) Another intelligence failure? For all the co-operation over the Bali bombing, the intel on JI is either not being shared with Australia or it doesn't exist. Given ONA received a funding boost after the WMD fiasco, it must be ASIS's turn to be rewarded for failure. Media Coverage: UPDATE 1.5:Let's see if the media can call terrorists by their name this time (via TB). So far the SMH can, the Independent can't, Reuters can (just, via a quote)... UPDATE 2: This post has been moved to the top of the page...more in the extended entry. I've never been a fan of the Aussie flag, with its Union Jack. But I firmly believe in everything that flag stands for and why we need to defend those values from those that seek to destroy it. We can be thankful that (at least so far) it appears no Aussies have been seriously hurt or killed, but we must extend our deepest sympathies to those Indonesians that have. There will be a time for anger, but not yet. Now is a time of sadness and mourning. The only good that may come out of this is the Indonesian Government may see fit to really crack down on JI and the Islamic extremists - they are callously murdering Indonesians without qualms. Regardless of your politics, it is clear this an enemy that cannot and should not be appeased. I love that flag. posted by Simon on 09.09.04 at 05:40 PM in the
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TrackBack URL for this entry: http://blog.mu.nu/cgi/trackback.cgi/44780 Send a manual trackback ping to this post. Bomb attack on Oz Embassy Excerpt: According to the SMH: A huge bomb exploded outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta today - there are fears of many casualties. Police have confirmed it was a bomb blast, and say bomb squad officers are at the scene. There are now reports of at... Weblog: G'day Mate! Tracked: September 9, 2004 04:05 PM "Activists" Attack in Jakarta Excerpt: I just received an SMS from a friend in Jakarta telling me that a bomb exploded outside the Australian Embassy, near which she lives. News reports say that seven people, all Indonesian, have been killed and approximately 100 injured. All... Weblog: The Gweilo Diaries Tracked: September 9, 2004 06:04 PM Jakarta Excerpt: The Islamo-Fascists have bombed and murdered some Australians again, almost two years after they murdered all those people in Bali. Simon has a news roundup on e... Weblog: Dean's World Tracked: September 9, 2004 06:19 PM Islamist fanatics strike again. Excerpt: Car bomb explodes outside Australian Embassy in Jakarta Once again, it seems the Muslim fundamentalist terror group Jemaah Islamiyah has struck at foreigners, but murdered the very people they claim to represent. Of the eight or more dead and the hundr... Weblog: On The Third Hand Tracked: September 9, 2004 08:54 PM Quote of the Day Excerpt: "It is a certain fact that not all Muslims are terrorists, but it is equally certain, and exceptionally painful, that almost all terrorists are Muslims." -- Abdel Rahman al-Rashed, the general manager Al Arabiya I have been in and out of Bus... Weblog: The Asia Pages Tracked: September 9, 2004 09:50 PM Australian Embassy Bombed in Jakarta Excerpt: Simon, an Australian by birth, is doing full coverage. He also has a blog roundup and reaction. Excellent resource. Might I be so bold to remind you that one of the convicted Bali bombers which killed 202, including 88 Australians,... Weblog: mypetjawa v. 2.0 (beta) Tracked: September 9, 2004 10:06 PM Car Bomb Explodes near Aussie Embassy in Indonesia Excerpt: Read this news in the context of upcoming Australian elections next month. Channel News AsiaTerrorists struck again in Indonesia after a powerful bomb went off in Jakarta on Thursday outside the Australian Embassy. Eight people, mostly Indonesians were... Weblog: Backcountry Conservative Tracked: September 9, 2004 10:30 PM Time for a "Blue Ensign" Moment. Excerpt: Why? Because the Aussie embassy in Jakarta was bombed. And because Simon Sez: I love that flag. A little context is in order: I've never been a fan of the Aussie flag, with its Union Jack. But I firmly... Weblog: Welcome to Castle Argghhh! The Home Of Two Of Jonah's Military Guys. Tracked: September 10, 2004 03:10 AM Terrorist Attack On Those Friendly Australian's Embassy In Jakarta Excerpt: When you attack someone as friendly as the Australian people you've seriously got something wrong with you. I mean come on how can you hate a country like Australia? Friendliest people on earth (I've been there twice and don't think... Weblog: Diggers Realm Tracked: September 10, 2004 04:08 AM Terrorist Attack on Australian Embassy in Jakarta Excerpt: From News.com.au via Digger: AT least eleven people have been killed and up to 160 are wounded after an apparent terrorist attack on the Australian embassy in Jakarta. Australian embassy staff escaped relatively unscathed in the suspected suicide attac... Weblog: In Search of Utopia Tracked: September 10, 2004 04:57 AM Bombings in Indonesia Excerpt: I wanted to write about this but after seeing what Simon has done, I have not much to add. Weblog: Flying Chair Tracked: September 10, 2004 10:13 AM Australian Embassy Blast Reminds Us That Terrorism Still Lives...And Prowls Excerpt: Terrorism is alive and well, even though the U.S. Presidential race sucks up most of the oxygen in the American news media. In Indonesia: Three people are believed to have been killed in an explosion outside the Australian embassy in Weblog: The Moderate Voice Tracked: September 10, 2004 04:29 PM Warning before Indonesia Blast Excerpt: Reuters Indonesian police were warned 45 minutes before a suicide car bombing outside the Australian embassy that Western missions would be attacked if a prominent militant cleric was not freed, Australia says. Foreign Minister Alexander Downer told a ... Weblog: Backcountry Conservative Tracked: September 10, 2004 08:21 PM New Blog - Some Interest, Some Blather Excerpt: I have no idea who or what this blog purports to be, other than an Aussie living and working in... Weblog: Whom Gods Destroy Tracked: September 11, 2004 07:02 AM
Comments:
Outstanding coverage - George might have a point - where do you find the time! posted by: Phil on 09.09.04 at 08:24 PM [permalink]Thank you for posting that photograph. Somehow, even with all the great analysis you posted, it is that image of the flag in front of the bombed out embassy which will stay with me. posted by: RP on 09.09.04 at 09:01 PM [permalink]Simon, just so you know, I linked to you here today on my blog. For some reason, trackbacks are not automatically happening and I am both too busy and probably too ignorant to figure out why. posted by: RP on 09.10.04 at 01:02 AM [permalink]Same here. Dunno why. posted by: Yobbo on 09.10.04 at 02:21 AM [permalink]Just to clarify, a common mistake I have seen even BBC make, that the building in the background not the Australian embassy, but a highrise office tower next door to it. The Aussie embassy, a white, angular building you have probably seen in TV coverage, was designed at an angle and elevation to avoid worse case damage in the event of such a blast. Which explains that of the seven+ buildings damaged by the blast, the embassy building sustained the least damage (apart from the gate). Still, this photo is a haunting image reminiscent of iconic images of the stars and stripe on 11 September, 2001. Moving right along ... It's a real shame that the beautiful people of Bali are again forced to suffer damage to their tourism industry. Balinese, like the innocent passers-by, and decent security guards in Jakarta yesterday, do not deserve to suffer in a magnitude that no Australian could possibly fathom. The target might be Australia, but the casualties are Indonesian. There are a lot of ordinary folk in Jakarta today, burying their loved ones and wondering how the f*** they got involved in this mess. Who will they blame? Megawati? Howard? JI? Bush? posted by: mikeyinbarcelona on 09.10.04 at 10:54 AM [permalink] |
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