The Rabid Right Wing Blogging Set

[Examples: Tim Blair, ABC Watch, Slattsnews. There's lots of others you can find without much effort.]

Do right wing bloggers have real jobs? If they do, how they get the time to trawl the net and produce so much material is beyond me.

So, why do they hate the ABC? Well, it seems that they don't like anyone reporting news that doesn't have a slant that agrees with their views. (They have similar complaints regarding the Fairfax press.)

If they don't like the ABC's reporting, why don't they use the commercial media news services? After all, that's where most people get their information from. Not much controversy there; you don't want to turn off the punters by making the them think. Which, of course, is the problem. These guys have enquiring minds and use the information, but they want it packaged to suit their views of the world.

To the dismay of our bloggers, the ABC staff don't have a media mogul standing over them, so they can report a much more independent view on events. No pandering to right wing sentiments at the ABC, as happens in a lot of the commercial media. If Rupert or Kerry were in control at the ABC, there wouldn't be a problem!

Even the ABC board stacked with the government of the day's appointees can't bring the ABC to heal. Not that they haven't tried. Independant organisations have hired to monitored the ABC for bias, and found none. Not satisfied with that, they're doing it again!

Interestingly, I remember that Paul Keating was critical of ABC reporting. In my view, if they piss of both sides of politics, then they must be reasonably balanced.

Which brings me on to the second point. The right wingers' views on the middle east.

After 11 Sept, the US did the right thing and went after the terrorists in Afganistan. The spin was that it was a 'war', but this was incorrect as they weren't fighting against a state, but a bunch of criminal zealots. Afganistan was a much a police action as the cops doing a dawn raid on a drug pusher's house.

The result of this miliary action was that it brought down the Taliban government, who were harbouring the criminals, and that was a good thing, too.

However, the US, instead of consolidating the basket case state of Afganistan, by helping to install a government that could control the whole country, and perhaps prevent a return of the terrorists, turned it's attention on Iraq instead.

While the US was invading Iraq and coping with its occupation, it took its eye off the ball. Where they should have been going after terrorists wherever they are, their attention was on Iraq.

The invasion of Iraq was a mistake, full stop.

If you don't think so, then answer this simple question? Do you feel safer since the Americans went in? I think 98% of the population would answer no.

For some reason, our right wing blogger friends have the view that the invasion of Iraq was a good thing. They bang on about how good it is the Sadam has gone, no argument about that from me, but they ignor the original invasion excuse of the (non existant) WMDs. They ignor the lack of links between the former Iraq government and terrorist groups. The ignore the effect that this action has had to actually strengthen terrorism by aggrevating centuries old animosities between the Christian and Moslem worlds. They ignor the boost the invasion has given to terriorist organisations. They ignor the fact that Iraq is now a magnet for every zealot / terrorist in the region. The ignor the thousands of Iraqi lives lost since the US went in. The desperatly try to convice us that abuse of prisoners was an aberation, not the norm.

Our bloggers are spewing out articles linked to similar pieces written by clones of themselves in a desperate attempt to convince us (and themselves?) that everything about Iraq with be ok. Talk about delusionary! However, you rarely seem to get an original thought. Interesting, that .....

You can be sure I'll be using my little corner of web space to counter the right wing blogger avalanche!