Crikey Worm: Queensland Police investigate mosque attacks

BRISBANE MOSQUE ATTACKS

Right-wing extremists are suspected of targeting two mosques across Brisbane in acts of intimidation against a handful of worshippers. The Courier-Mail ($) reports that police are investigating claims that self-proclaimed pastor Logan Robertson, as well as a group of men from his Baptist church in Ipswich, verbally abused worshippers and entered the Kuraby Mosque to film documentary footage without permission on Wednesday.

According to a spokesperson for the Islamic Council of Queensland, Ali Kadri, as quoted in The Australian ($), the group at Kuraby also started going through mosque books, threatened a 65-year-old man, and told a teenager “you don’t belong in this country, you bloody terrorist, and we should burn this place down to the ground”. In a heated clash with Kadri, Robertson denied any “abuse”.

PACIFIC PACT

Australia and New Zealand are expected to sign off on a new Pacific Island security agreement that could be used to limit the military presence of non-signatories such as Russia and China. The Australian ($) reports that the new Biketawa Plus regional security declaration will cover policies relating to defence, law and order, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief after countries sign off at the Pacific Islands Forum in September.

The move comes as China continues to increase its diplomatic and financial ties with Pacific nations, retiring defence chief Mark Binskin hits out at China’s “broken promise” not to militarise the South China Sea, and ASIO and DFAT chiefs reportedly warn Australian companies about escalating Coalition rhetoric escalating the China-Australia trade war ($).

FULL OF HOT AIR

Efforts from the Trump administration to streamline and shore up (!) the US offshore wind industry under its “America First” energy and labour policy has successfully brought in some of the most advanced companies in the field — from Europe.

The Sydney Morning Herald reports that moves to streamline and carve out new areas off the coast for leasing — initiatives aimed at increasing both domestic energy and employment figures — have so far largely benefited European-backed companies. They have taken out all eight of the US government’s lease auctions since 2014. 

In other environment news, this past week has seen a string of all-time heat records broken across the Northern Hemisphere. So maybe it doesn’t matter who owns those wind farms.

[free_worm]

THEY REALLY SAID THAT?

I would have been pre-selected for the next election had I chosen to remain. Notwithstanding the seat is marginal, I also believe I could have won the seat for an eighth term.

Michael Danby

The Melbourne Ports Labor MP announces that he will not contest the next election, but it is 100% his choice and he would have won anyway and this has nothing whatsoever to do with the Greens coming within 477 votes last time.

CRIKEY QUICKIE: THE BEST OF YESTERDAY

The real story behind the credit card debt headlinesGlenn Dyer and Bernard Keane

“The media love a financial distress story, as demonstrated by the constant — and entirely contrived — claims of rising ‘mortgage stress’. The latest version isn’t about residential mortgages, but credit card debt — or ‘debt trap’ as the Australian Securities and Investments Commission put it yesterday when releasing a new report.”

Ramsay Centre furore dies off along with its achingly poor logicGuy Rundle

“Boy, the quality of Ramsay Centre propaganda has declined, hasn’t it, since ANU supremos Brian Schmidt and Gareth Evans revealed that the centre wanted a Stasi-like process of commissar-auditors in lectures, as part of the deal. The ‘moderate’ Ramsayites have melted away, leaving only the Catholic Leninists like Greg Sheridan, Baldrick to Tony Abbott’s Blacka — no, that doesn’t work, they’re both Baldrics — to do what they can to try and wreck any possible deal between the Ramsay Centre and Sydney University, so that the centre can be shunted to the taxpayer-supported Australian Catholic University, under the watchful eye of its $1.25 million per year VC Greg Craven.”

The Helen Razer glossary for ruling class go-gettersHelen Razer

“Last year, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg posted 6000 words on the tendencies of history. In surprise news, he did not hold that the history of all hitherto existing societies was that of class struggle. No. All history has necessarily led to a marvellous and democratic thing like Facebook.”

READ ALL ABOUT IT

Two teenagers shot dead in ‘horrific’ incident at Sydney home

LNP accuses Labor of ‘lies’ in crucial Longman byelection

Scam warning as myGov Medicare payment site ‘cloned’

NSW releases long-awaited sexual assault strategy

Paramedics may be allowed to carry weapons to defend themselves against assaults in the line of duty ($)

Archbishop Julian Porteous criticised for banning Father Frank Brennan over same-sex-marriage views

Marti Zucco calls for Minister to help clarify Hobart Lord Mayor role ($)

Happy Way has leveraged online influence to become Telstra South Australian Business of the Year ($)

Wimbeldon: Teen star Alex de Minaur marches into the third round

Beware! Cops can use DNA data to pick bad apples from your family tree

WHAT’S ON TODAY

Brisbane

• Day one of the Queensland Liberal National Party’s three-day state convention, with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack and LNP President Gary Spence set to address the conference tomorrow. LNP leader Deb Frecklington will also speak on Sunday.

Canberra

• The AEC will finalise a candidate list and ballot papers for five federal byelections for the July 28 Super Saturday — Braddon, Fremantle, Longman, Mayo, and Perth.

• A parade will be held to mark the Chief of the Defence Force change of command from Air Chief Marshal Mark Binskin to General Angus Campbell.

Darwin

• Final day of banking royal commission hearings on financial issues affecting Indigenous Australians and farming finance.

Hobart

• Justice Duncan Kerr will deliver judgment in the Federal Court matter of “Huon Aquaculture v Minister for the Environment” over salmon farming in Tasmania’s Macquarie Harbour.

• Transforming Tasmania spokespeople Martine Delaney, Dede River and Roen Meijer will launch of new campaign for transgender, intersex and gender diverse law reform in Tasmania.

Perth

• Attorney-General Christian Porter will officially open a new Joint Cyber Security Centre.

• Senator Jordon Steele-John, Senator Peter Whish-Wilson, and Greens candidates for Fremantle and Perth, Dorinda Cox and Caroline Perks, will announce policy on revitalising recycling in WA.

• Returning Officer Phil Richards will announce that Liberal Party candidate Alyssa Hayden has been elected to fill the vacant Legislative Assembly seat for the Darling Range byelection.

Adelaide

• A Senate Inquiry will begin into the selection process for a national radioactive waste management facility in South Australia.

• UK Emeritus Professor and international philosopher of higher education Ronald Barnett will deliver a public lecture on “The beginnings of ecological leadership, the limits of management”, and help launch Joshua Spier’s new book, Heidegger and the Lived Experience of Being a University Educator.

Melbourne

• Protestors for Victorian NAIDOC Week will march through the Melbourne CBD.

• The Australian Production Design Guild will present a screening of the first episode of Picnic at Hanging Rock along with a Q&A with art and costume designers.

Sydney

• Strategist and senior fellow at the Washington DC think-tank New America, Peter W. Singer, will deliver a public address, “CyberThreats: 2018 Cyber Security Trends”, as part of Sydney’s Visiting Entrepreneur Program.

• The China Cultural Centre will open their latest exhibition, Story of the History – Henan Excellent Folk Custom Photography.

Burnie, Tasmania

• Cricket Tasmania CEO Nick Cummins and WBBL Hurricanes allrounder Meg Phillips will be joined by state government MP Adam Brooks and Braddon byelection candidate Brett Whiteley for a joint government announcement.

Sunshine Coast, Queensland

• Senator Pauline Hanson will hold a media conference for a funding announcement.

Ballarat, Victoria

• Sports Minister John Eren will announce funding to upgrade irrigation and drainage at Alfredton Reserve.

THE COMMENTARIAT

Grattan on Friday: The price of greasing squeaky wheels ahead of the election — Michelle Grattan: (The Conversation): “The Turnbull government is finally tackling the issue of how the GST is divvied up between the states. It’s a fraught task because reslicing the pie means some get a smaller portion. That is, unless you throw in extra flour, to make the bake bigger. And that’s just what the federal government is proposing. Why the change and why this generosity?”

Why Leyonhjelm must offend and cannot apologise — Waleed Aly (Sydney Morning Herald): “By now it is clear we’re stuck in a cycle. Unless something drastically changes, Leyonhjelm will not apologise, and the disapproving audience will not be won over by his argument that he was simply taking a stand against Hanson-Young’s misandrist allegation (probably imagined) that all men are rapists. Even Hanson-Young’s threatened defamation suit — itself beset with political problems — might not end this.”

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