E D I T O R I A L

The Sirens' Song
There is nothing for trade unionists to celebrate from Labor�s loss in the Cunningham by-election.

F E A T U R E S

Interview: The Wet One
NSW Opposition industrial relations spokesman Michael Gallacher stakes out his relationship with the union movement.

Bad Boss: Like A Bastard
Virgin Mobile is sexy and funky, right? Well, only if those terms have become synonyms for dictatorial or downright mean.

Unions: Demolition Derby
Tony Abbott likens industrial relations to warfare and, like a good general should, he is about to shift his point of attack � from building sites to car plants, reports Jim Marr.

Corporate: The Bush Doctrine
For the powerful, consumerism equals freedom, and is all the freedom we need, writes James Goodman

Politics: American Jihad
Let�s get real. The origins of modern Islamic terrorist groups are in Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Langley, Virginia not Baghdad, argues Noel Hester.

Health: Secret Country
Oral history recordings are an inadequate tool in trying to find out what happened to Aboriginal stockmen and their communities on cattle stations in Northern Australia, writes Neale Towart

Review: Walking On Water
On the 20th anniversary of the first AIDS-related death, Tara de Boehmler witnesses the aftermath of losing a loved one to the illness in Walking On Water.

Culture: TCF
Novelist Anthony Macris captures life on the shop floor in this extract from his upcoming novel, Capital Volume II

Poetry: The UQ Stonewall
The University of Queensland has sought to join the ranks of union-busting companies like Rio Tinto in trying to sack the president of the local union - and made the mistake of thinking they were dealing with an array of acquiescent academics.

N E W S

Email Use Sparks Pay Claim

Melbourne Cup Strike Threat

10,000 Rally in Support of Kingham

Negligent Bosses Labelled �Serial Killers�

Ambulance Officers Win $6 Million Back-Pay

Strike Pay to Bali Appeal

Boral Bosses Bag Bulk Bucks

Bid to Block New ACCC Chief

Cuts Equals Profits for ANZ

First Takers for 36-Hour Week

IT Outsourcing Agencies Called To Account

Pay to Work Spreads to Hornsby

Howard Opens Waters to Rogue Ship

Work a Suicide Factor

Unis Drop RDO Assault

Boxes of Books for Good Causes

Activist Notebook

C O L U M N S

The Soapbox
I Walk The Line
American civil rights leader Jesse Jackson has weighed into the Hilton Hotel dispute with this special message to the workforce.

Postcard
Mekong Daze
Union Aid Abroad's Phil Hazelton fires off a missive from Laos where he is spending a year working with the community.

Month In Review
Bush Whackers
It was a month where the world teetered on the brink of peace, no thanks to the leader of the free world, writes Jim Marr

The Locker Room
The Laws Of Gravity
Phil Doyle goes looking for the fine line that separates sport from an exercise in time-wasting

Bosswatch
Snouts in the Trough
It�s AGM season in the corporate world, and deal after shady deal is being exposed as highfliers treat company accounts like the proverbial honey-pot.

Wobbly
Songs of Solidarity
There has been a proud history of pro-worker tunes dating back to the early days of the 20th century, which will be continued in a new CD, writes Dan Buhagiar.

L E T T E R S

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Brooklyn Phil Says ...

Mother In "WAR"

Was at the video store rapping with my friend Kenny the mgr. Now Kenny the mgr. is such a nice guy, despite his very conservative views. He enjoys reading my columns, yet still will always comment

"Your views are really waaaay out there- but on some of them I actually do agree." Like what I ask?

"Well, I agree that we could have and need nat'l healthcare for all of us, if the gov't would cut down on excess spending- like giving money to all those regimes throughout the world who care diddlysquat about us!"

We got to the subject of conducting a war vs. Iraq. I stated the underlining fact that is rarely discussed on the mainstream media- such a war would cost we taxpayers over 100 billion smackeroos.

Suddenly, as if out of nowhere, this young mother on line with two young sons swinging from her arms, she shouts out "He's got it now- we cannot wait any longer. He has the uranium- he's a danger!" I looked at Kenny who already assured her Saddam must go as soon as possible. Again she jumped in " He can make the big one pretty soon- he's got to go before he uses it!" I asked the two of them why would this guy, if and when he had "The Bomb", why would he risk losing his power, his country and, more importantly, his LIFE? Why would

he use this bomb as a preemptive strike (sound familiar Georgie Jr.?) when it would be the LAST thing he would do alive? I concluded that men like him want to live as much as the next guy (or despot) especially since they live so well - they want to die of old age in a nice warm bed with their power under their pillow- not go up in flames just to say "gotcha first". Finally, I intimated that the only way this clown would use any "weapon of mass destruction" (isn't that phrase played out by now?) would be if he were cornered and trapped like the proverbial rat that he is. Isn't that usually when rats attack?

Mother of two was already swinging her kids, movies in hand, out the door, shouting back that I was crazy to ever trust this madman. I tried to answer her about who had the greater madman, but she was already climbing into her Land Cruiser with (I kid you not) license plates that said "Support Education". I wanted to tell her that the 100 billion we would save could go pretty far in supporting education, as well as better healthcare for me, her and her swinging kids. Too late, she was off into the Friday traffic, getting her 12 miles per gallon. I guess this "War" with Iraq could go a long way for her. Perhaps the 112 billion gallons of oil under Saddam's bed would help lower gas prices.

Finally, I scratched my head in wonder. Isn't it so easy for any of us to send troops into war, like they did in the 60's when many of my schoolmates returned in "zipped bags"? So easy to send some other mother's son to fight and die? I wonder. I wonder if a) "Mother in War's" boys were 18 and 19, not 5 and 6 and b) we had a military draft in place. I wonder how "gung ho" Mom would then be. Perhaps she'd load her boys into the Land Cruiser and gasguzzleit to Canada instead of some troop transport.

That's something for us all to consider. Before we 'signed off" on giving this (or any) President the power to wage war without a Congressional declaration, we and our politicos should have investigated all the facts, and all the options. Hear that "Mother In War"?

Biography: Philip A Farruggio is a baby boomer Brooklyn NY born bred and educated (Brooklyn College '74), Currently, he resides in Florida and is self employed as a mfg. rep for an environmental bacteria company. Philip writes for many publications as a free lance columnist. He has been published on counterpunch.com 12 times this year alone. He can be reached at

[email protected]

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Last Modified: 15 Nov 2005