Spare a thought for Sydney MP Craig Kelly, the real victim of his comments about how we all need to get over the shooting down by Russian-backed forces of MH17, which killed 38 Australians. “It’s very disappointing to see that some people have taken political advantage by taking my comments out of context,” he told the ABC this morning. Yep, real disappointing, Craig. Though it’s unclear what “context” explains saying “nothing is going to bring those three kids back” to the father of some of the victims and that Russia’s crimes “have to be slightly looked over.”
Kelly is normally the cosmic radiation of the Liberal Party. He’s an incessant background hiss, constantly on Sky News to offer commentary about any and all issues, a reliable source of right-wing babble, almost invariably and perfectly reflecting the views of Tony Abbott. None of this has helped him in his seat of Hughes, where many local Liberals are keen to get rid of him, to the fury of Abbott, who is all for greater democracy within the Liberal Party until it threatens one of his mates.
Yesterday, though, Kelly faced a dilemma, because he’s an enthusiastic fan of Donald Trump, but even Abbott — like many other Trump supporters — was angered by Trump’s grovelling to Vladimir Putin. Kelly went for Trump and Putin. Suddenly he stopped being just a background hiss on the office television, and stood out. Like a sore thumb. Then kept digging this morning.
Let’s not overplay this. Kelly’s a useless appendage to the Liberal Party and of no great moment in the scheme of things. But it’s interesting to wonder why exactly it is that so many on the right are fans of Putin, given his great popularity on the far left, where reflexive anti-Americanism means any thug, kleptocrat or dictator seen as a hurdle to Western interests is embraced, even if they’re guilty of mass murder and war crimes, like the Putin-backed Assad regime. Pauline Hanson, too, is a big fan of Putin. “I wish we had a leader like that here,” Hanson said last year. “I wish someone would stand up and fight for this country… I think he is a strong man and I think what I was reading is about 97 per cent of people in his country respect him.”
Across Europe, far right parties and figures like Nigel Farage can be found praising Putin, or even taking money from him. Marine Le Pen took a nine million euro loan from a Moscow-based bank; Austria’s far right Freedom Party signed a five year “cooperation treaty” with Putin’s party.
This bending of the ideological curve means that the side of politics that once literally defined itself in relation to hostility to the Soviet Union is now a warm supporter of good relations with Russia; the hostility that once demanded nuclear war as the price of destroying godless communism transformed into an irenic “can’t we all just get along” embrace of a leader who murders his critics, seeks to undermine the EU and NATO and encourage the rise to power of anti-democratic populists.
But Pauline Hanson for once succinctly summed up the appeal of Putin when she marvelled at how strong he was and how she wished there was a leader like that here. Putin is the ultimate wish fulfilment of both left and right political extremism, the idea that governing shouldn’t be difficult, that a real leader simply sweeps aside opposition and imposes their will, whether implementing a far-left or far-right agenda, communism or nationalism. He is the fantasy figure of the ultimate reductive view of politics, that the messiness of democracy, the compromises, the deals, the negotiation, the endless argument, isareunnecessary if you just find a real leader who simply brushes all that aside and does what they want, without bothering about what citizens want.
It’s a child-like view of the world. But nothing’s going to bring the kids back, right Craig?
I suspect Mt Keane is trying to wind up those far left conspiracy theorists who took such exception to his outrageous slander of Trump and his handlers yesterday.
They’ll be along shortly
Good guess, TRH. However, after quickly glancing through Keane’s re-hash of his article from yesterday (Does he get paid for re-phrasings?), I don”t intend to re-hash my own responses to the now deleted drivel from yesterday!
Sorry, TRH, because of my posts you may include me in the ‘far left’. However, I haven’t had a sniff of any sort of ‘conspiracy’, theory or not. Do you actually attempt to analyse what informed posters have to say? Or do you just pigeon-hole those of us with an opposite view as ‘far left’.
Actually, back in the days when I had Foxtel, I was always amused by Bill O’Reilly characterising every Democrat as ‘the far left’. One can only have a guess as to how he would describe Bill Shorten or Mark Dreyfus or even Daniel Andrews.
Wrongful perception is a dangerous thing, TRH.
Exactly Lorraine. Why do the RWNJs read these articles?
Probably because [left-leaning] Keane reinforces their illusions.
tRump the first person to occupy the WH who is a Traitor. What would Reagan say, what would Lincoln say? tRump has sold out America to Putin. He received $30 Million from Russia for his campaign. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/18/world/europe/trump-intelligence-russian-election-meddling-.html#click=https://t.co/l844uns5la
Again with the ‘left, right, left, right’ relic of history, Hammie.
It’s irrelevant.
Of course the craziness of the Trump circus has to spill-over into Australian politics and it’s not surprising that an idiot such as Mr. Kelly has made such a remark about MH17. Unfortunately for him, he doesn’t have Sarah Huckabee Sanders to tell the world that he meant the opposite (while keeping a straight face).
“You’ve taken my comments out of context” is of course the standard piss-weak excuse that RWNJ’s like Kelly trot out whenever they are called out on their moronic utterings. Like his hero, The Donald, Kelly obviously thinks everyone is a gullible idiot with a short memory who will buy into his self-serving blustering and completely forget what he said yesterday or even 10 minutes ago.
The sooner he is relegated to the status of ex-MP the better it will be for for Australia.
It looks like Vlad is up to his pectorals meddling wherever he can to drive even the smallest wedge to de stabilise the EU. This blog from the LRB on the silly dispute between Greece and their northern neighbour is a real eye opener.
https://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2018/07/17/yiannis-baboulias/the-macedonian-question/
It’s a bit rich for a presumed outsider to label the Macedonia question a “silly dispute”. A couple of weeks ago I was in Thessaloniki and noted that when prime minister Tsipras visited the city he hardly entered the CBD, preferring to remain in an unidentified hotel on the outskirts to avoid angry demonstrators who really were gearing up for a brawl with their own government. As far as many Greeks are concerned, the country to their north just needs to give itself another name that does not include Macedonia. Until it does, no amount of spin from their prime minister will do. And this is WAY more important to them than the EU or the Euro zone or relations with Russia, Germany or anyone else. They seem to be fighting mad in an Alexander the Great kind of way – which ain’t to be meddled with.
That’s what’s silly. Luxemburg has the Belgian province of Luxemburg on its border. Azerbaijan has the Iranian province of Azerbaijan on its border. The Democratic Republic of Congo and the Congo Republic share a common border. For some reason the republic centred on Skopje calling itself Macedonia or even Northern Macedonia is an existential threat to the much bigger and better-armed Hellenic republic. Only Greeks and Macedonians (Skopje variety) can understand that. For the rest of us, and for Luxemburgers and Congolese and Azerbaijanis it’s nonsense.
Over 20 years ago I was lucky enough to have contact with a delegation from Lithuania. This was just before 1991. To my amazement they kept talking about their country returning to Greater Lithunania in the 14thC. Can you believe it?
I can’t categorically state that this weirdness applies to every former USSR Republic, but this mob was ripe for it .
Memories appear to be long in some European countries.
And what about Mongolia (independent) and Inner Mongolia (Chinese province?).
Here’s one for ya, Hugh. The person on the other end of the call, when Victoria Nuland said “Yats is our guy”, in the lead in to the Maidan Square fun in Ukraine, in 2014, was a cat by the name of Geoffrey R. Pyatt, the US Ambassador to Ukraine at the time.
Guess where Pyatt is plying his ambassadorial trade, now.
Yep, Greece. Appointed by O’Bomber in 2016.
I trust the Crikey folk understand the history of the US backing the Greek military junta rule over Greece from the ’60’s into the ’70’s?
David, One of the barriers to educating the ineducable is their blind belief in what the msm has to say. I have a feeling that very few would understand, or know about, the Greek military junta in the 60’s or 70’s. I am certain that the majority of them watch Q&A and think they are ‘informed’.
As for the take-over by fascist forces in Ukraine, I doubt that any of them would be aware of the many visits by John McCain to that beleaguered land.
The facts are that rather than an upsurge of democracy it was an upsurge of fascism.
Ukraine was in financial trouble. Firstly, it turned to the EU, however, that organisation proposed an austerity policy, much like those by the IMF in South America in the 70’s and up to the 90’s. The financial help would not be available to the Ukraine for another few years, meaning that they had to struggle along in the meantime.
Unsurprisingly, the Ukraine government then turned to Russia for assistance. Russia was prepared to give assistance immediately, without austerity measures.
Good god above, what a disaster that would have been to the World Bank, the IMF and the EU.
In comes the US and its CIA along with every other ‘intelligence’ apparatus at their disposal. We all remember the vile fascist videos that showed up on our computers. That charming man who barged into a local council meeting with his lethal weapon on his shoulder. That is the one video that stands out in my mind to this day. A replica of Nazi Germany; intimidation, fear, and over-riding democratic mores.
Ah! yes, that symbol of stupidity, John McCain, with Obama’s blessing, bringing back Nazism to the Ukraine.
Wow, the Little River Band, that great band from the 80’s fronted by Glenn Shorrock, have a website and a position on the dispute about the use of the term ‘Macedonia’? They really have moved on from their pop-rock roots.
As for Vlad driving wedges to de-stabilise the EU, perhaps, but I think he may be both smarter than that and couldn’t be bothered. The EU that exists now is already held aloft by hot air only, and is structurally due to fall soon. Why bother being an insurgent force against a collapsing regime?
So true, Dog’s. He doesn’t need to lift a finger, the West is tearing itself to pieces all on its own.
Mind you, it was a nice touch from V.V.P to raise Bill Browder at the Helsinki presser, and suggest reciprocal investigations.
As of today, that mere suggestion has the White House and State Department at opposite poles.
Minimal effort, maximum result. Goddam he’s a great meddler.
“The EU – My Part in its Downfall”?
Mr Keane seems to have a real obsession with Russia and “Russia’s crimes”. I subscribed to Crikey to have an access to a balanced left-wing news source, but not to a vent of one guy’s hatred towards something.
Though not to the extent of the USA and China, Russia is extremely influential in world politics, and as such, BK has a legitimate journalistic reason for expressing his views, just as you do (and have done) to express yours.
Yes, sure, everyone can express their views. There is a subtle difference however: he is getting paid for that. He is free to write whatever he wants, I’m free not to renew my subscription when it expires.
“Russia’s crimes”, for God’s sake. Putin’s crimes – yes, but who is BK to put a label on the entire country?
But if you read the article more carefully you’ll find he is referring to Putin and not the Russian people in general. For example – “Vladimir Putin’s crimes, it’s worth considering why the right loves the Russian autocrat so much.” He isn’t putting a label on the whole country, just as critiquing Trump isn’t labelling the whole of the US.
I wouldn’t say a word if it was only about Putin, 100% agree that he is a criminal.
Quote: “Though it’s unclear what “context” explains saying “nothing is going to bring those three kids back” to the father of some of the victims and that Russia’s crimes “have to be slightly looked over.””
Another quote, from BK’s previous article:
“Given that the Mueller inquiry has now produced indictments for a dozen Russian agents, in addition to a string of indictments and guilty pleas from Trump-connected US figures in relation to their contact with Russians, it’s now become impossible to credibly dismiss the argument that Russia interfered with the 2016 election.”
Wasn’t able to respond to your previous post.
Your first example is BK using a quote from Craig Kelly. As for your second example, sometimes it is useful to understand that when critiquing a country, the dominant power doesn’t always need to be mentioned, as it is understood. Just the same as when critiquing American policy, it is Trump’s America we are critiquing.
Ah, ok, that makes sense. I haven’t seen / read Craig Kelly’s original comment. Placing quotation marks more carefully would probably help though.
No need to use quotation marks when paraphrasing and you have already identified the source.
Formally that’s correct. However that was BK’s own choice of what exactly to quote and to what extent. As you said, we all have a right to express our opinion. I think the choice of words in BK’s article was intentional and it has in my case left a foul aftertaste. Which brings us back to the beginning of our conversation.
I don’t read Crikey for content I always agree with. That would be pointless. Most of BK’s articles stimulate debate, as do HR’s, and that’s more to the point of Crikey and why I’m a subscriber. I don’t think it’s meant to be a small echo chamber. There’s plenty of them around if that’s your thing!