Teachers Accused of Anti-US Bias--SMH, Australia

[Gloria]

From the new World Media Watch up now at http://www.zianet.com/insightanalytical
Tomorrow at Buzzflash.com

Many more choice quotes by Costello in this article....


5//The Sydney Morning Herald, Australia August 22, 2005

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/teachers-accused-of-antius-bias/2005/08/21/1124562750372.html?oneclick=true



TEACHERS ACCUSED OF ANTI-US BIAS

By John Garnaut and Geesche Jacobsen

The federal Treasurer has drawn a rebuke from teachers for warning them against spreading anti-Americanism in schools and suggesting it could mutate into anti-Westernism and terrorist attacks against Australia.



Venturing outside his usual economic territory, Peter Costello said many teachers were carrying left-wing ideological baggage from the 1970s.



"If your teacher's carrying that bias it tends to get passed on," he said yesterday. "…Anti-Americanism can easily morph into anti-Westernism. Particularly you've seen that with terrorists. They don't really draw distinctions between Americans or Britons or Australians; they just like to hit anybody who they consider to be part of the West."



Mr Costello's comments to Channel Nine followed a lengthy critique of the US-Australia relationship at the Australian American Leadership Dialogue on Saturday night.



(SNIP)



Mr Costello said problems with American power and differences in policy were far outweighed by benefits.



"If the world is to have a hegemon, the modern United States is the kind of hegemon we would like to have: democratic, respectful of human rights, with strong and genuine belief in individual liberty," he said.



But Sharon Canty, spokeswoman for the Parents and Citizens Federation, suggested Mr Costello was more interested in media and leadership than policy.



"Evidence of successful education in NSW could be a student's ability to recognise a grab for leadership and media time when they see one," she said.

[punpirate]

1. Hmm...

... as I recall, the Bali bombing was in retaliation for Australia's support of the US in the Iraq invasion, so it seems that what Costello is advocating increases, rather than decreases, Australia's chances of suffering terrorist attacks.

Even in Australia, the conservatives think up is down, black is white, and tyranny is freedom... and I'm sure the average Australian is jumping for joy at his government being under the sway of the world's only hegemon....

[genieroze]

2. Hummm.

http://www.newspeakdictionary.com/ns_frames.html

[melody]

3. It depends upon what they mean by "anti-American"

If it's anti-Bush government, no problem. I'm behind them 100%. If it's anti-American as a nationality, then I have a problem. Bigotry in any form amounts to ignorance...something a teacher shouldn't be teaching, unless he/she is from the redder areas of Alabama. :-)

[Matilda]

4. In Costello's eyes, anti-Bush is anti-American.

And anti-American is anti-Australian.

Last time I looked, Australia hadn't become officially a state of
the US, but perhaps I'm misinformed.

[melody]

7. one doesn't have to be a citizen of a country to be fair to it

If someone is anti-American (meaning bigoted toward the nationality), that's as much a testimony to their ignorance as it would be if they held any other similar form of bias. It doesn't matter if they are citizens of that country or not. We discussed Australian government and culture when I was an undergrad (many years ago). I would have objected as strongly if someone tried to generalize about Australians, or any other group.

If being anti-Bush is anti-American, then I guess I'm anti-American and I'm related distantly to three Presidents (including a signer of the Declaration of Independence).

[Matilda]

8. What Costello - and Government supporters generally - means

is that if we offer anything other than a view that is not biased
TOWARDS the United States, then we are un-American. And "unamerican"
was the damning phrase used, not anti-American, which is apparently
a much bigger crime.

These words were used to criticise the public broadcaster, the ABC,
during its coverage of the Iraq invasion, not because the
commentators were uttering critical comments, but simply because
they didn't use accepted phraseology, nor did they pander to the
views of the right-wing. When Iraqis died, they showed it, when
someone stuffed up, they talked about it. That was un-American,
and the ABC was not only rebuked, but an enquiry was launched into
their coverage of the war. I for one refused to watch anything but
the ABC's coverage, and I found that even it was not telling me
as much as I was learning from the Internet.

Depends on your point of view, I guess.

[melody]

9. neuron challenged brain...I meant anti-American

If the rhetoric was supposed to blanketly damn any and all criticism of Bush as "anti-American", then that's unmitigated hogwash.

If the rhetoric was intended to insult all (or even most) people who are from the US, then I have a problem with it. Only 25% of us voted for Bush - that is IF you believe Diebold (which I don't for a moment). Over half of Americans either voted against or were too young or physically unable to vote.

So long as it's kept to the government, I'm with you. My people, however, are another matter.

However, I "get" that you are saying it was anti-Bush = anti-American, which is -- as I said -- swine shampoo. lol

[applegrove]

5. So nobody in the world is allowed to dislike bully U.S. policy? Wow!

I'll have to remember that - NOT!:rofl:

[Adrian Luca]

6. Total Hyperbole

Mr Costello's outrage stems from the fact that some Australian kids he was talking to didn't seem teary-eyed when he told them how the USA saved Australia from the Japanese.

Costello of course failed to mention that the only reason the USA saved Australia from the Japanese was that Australia was a necessary base of operations. Before the Phillipines was lost, The US told the Australian government in no uncertain terms that the US couldn't care less if Australia fell to the Japanese.

And I'd wager that most Australians would believe Australian blood spilt in that pathetic American escapade in Vietnam made up for any help received during WW2.

Not to mention that Australia became a russian nuclear target for 20 years, thanks to US intelligence bases on Australian soil.

Please consider any Australian debts to the USA paid in full.