KOVKO CONTINUED

FROM www.crikey.com.au
Peter Carlisle writes:When I heard about Jacob Kovko's death I was at first suspicious – how the hell could anyone shoot themselves while cleaning an Steyr (standard issue rifle used by Aust army). Made no sense whatsoever – almost impossible error to make especially after years of regular intensive training good habits and as a sergeant he'd be training both his subordinates and superiors. So I started to imagine potential suicide. Now I hear pistol and I remember training on the Browning (WWII vintage by the way) and thinking at the time "holy sh*t I never want to have to use this in operations – so easy to accidentally shoot someone". Any short muzzle weapon is inherently more risky, however the Browning has the most appalling safety catch imaginable, and the training/familiarity soldiers get? F*ck all in comparison. If they're still using Brownings (and I wouldn't be at all surprised) then Dept of Defence is culpable in my opinion – plenty of easier to use (safer) pistols available only, oops, more expensive
FROM crikey
A few hours later the military situation worsened. Speaking on the Alan Jones radio program, the Defence Minister revealed that Private Kovco did not die from a gunshot injury sustained while "maintaining his weapon" – the official reason given by Defence after his death last Friday. "He wasn't in fact cleaning his weapon," Dr Nelson told Jones. "It was near him in his vicinity and he made some kind of movement which suggests that it discharged. There was obviously a live round in it which there should not have been and that's as much as I should probably say at the moment
FROM http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/mystery-of-private-kovcos-pistol/2006/04/27/1145861490035.html

The Federal Government and the military maintain the two soldiers in the room with Private Kovco at the time did not see the weapon discharge.
A former soldier with experience in Iraq said the standard gun-handling procedure for Defence personnel on deployment involved discharging all weapons and removing the ammunition magazines upon entering the perimeter of a fortified barracks.

PALTALK ADDICTION AND FATIGUE

Most dangerous addictions are somewhat self limiting. I mean, take too much smack, your breathing stops, take too much speed, your heart stops or your brain makes you do risky things, drink too much, you fall over and go to sleep, eat too much, people laugh at you and call you american.
PALTALK is another matter. addictive for sure, damaging, no doubt, but the LIMITING factor is missing. Let's face it, if we spend long enough on PALTALK to be "regulars" then we are already addicted. just as surely as in a shooting gallery, PALTALKERS find a camaraderie among fellow addicts, and reinforce each others addiction with enabling strategies like acceptance, praise and AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!

ORIGINS OF CHAT

Troops at Anzac taking a short break from the front line to chat. Chatting was not "having a yarn" although it is possible that that is the way the term started. Chatting was searching through your clothes to find and kill the chats, small lice like insects that infected everyone at Anzac and many in France/Flanders.

WHAT NOBLE CAUSE?

Australians have been dying for other countries causes since the beginning. We went from FOR KING AND COUNTRY to ALL FOR EMPIRE to ALL THE WAY WITH L.B.J..... (shudder).

Australia has sacrificed the flower of it's youth for other nations "Noble Causes" throughout it's history.
The ANZAC legend is painted in blood. The sacrifice was immense, 64.8% of Australians, and 58.4% of New Zealanders that sailed off to WW1 (The 'great' war, to end all wars) didn't come home.

Worthy sons of the empire, we may be, but we have paid a terrible price. Imagine where Australia would be today if the cream of our manhood had been at home, building our own nation?

The recent tragedy of Jacob Kovko dying of a gunshot wound to the head in a barracks in Iraq is a sickening blow to Australians.

At a time when most thinking Australians are alarmed at our continued participation in a war of aggression based on LIES, and a case being built to invade Iran with strategic nukes, the death of Kovko should give pause to those supporting John Winston Howard and his infatuation with Bush and the P.N.A.C. ambitions of world military intimidation.

ANZAC DAY MARCH

Concerns over veterans' orange Anzac protest
The Returned and Services League (RSL) is concerned about a protest which could see some veterans wear orange during next week's Anzac Day marches.
The protest is being stirred up by veterans of several conflicts who say they have been abandoned by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Paul Dignan says a departmental psychological evaluation has diagnosed him with chronic combat post traumatic stress disorder directly related to his service in East Timor.
But he says for the past 10 months the Department has refused to either accept the report or his claim for compensation.
Mr Dignan says the protesters will march as normal on Anzac Day, wearing something orange.
"The veterans who are allowed to march will simply march wearing an orange armband," he said.
"Some may prefer to wear an orange baseball cap type of thing and we will march with our units as we have done for years."
But the the RSL's South Australian president Jock Statton says Anzac Day is an inappropriate time for the protest.
"I believe the only reason they are doing it is because they haven't got enough support to make their demonstration stand out," he said.
"They are taking the opportunity of when Australians really feel for veterans to put across their point."
But Mr Dignan disagrees he says the orange protest is a responsibility.
"Not just a right, we have a responsibility to protest on Anzac Day. A responsibility as Australians this is not right and it's not fair," he said

MEMORIES ARE MADE OF THIS

RECOLLECTIONS OF A FOREIGN MINISTER (plagiarised from www.crikey.com.au
by Alexander Downer (11 April 2006, to the Cole Inquiry) In order of utterance.

It could have been It may have been I don't specifically recall I can't precisely remember I don't recall I don't recall I couldn't rule out It is possible I don't know I'm not sure I have only a very distant recollection I don't recall I don't think I did I'm pretty sure I didn't make a note I don't recall I could have done I don't recall it I don't recall I simply do not recall
I would have made a note of it and been quite focused I might have turned out to be wrong I don't recall I don't recall I don't recall I don't recall I wouldn't use that language I don't remember precisely It didn't mean anything to me It doesn't mean anything to me I wouldn't recognise him Nothing at all I don't read the summaries unless I'm stuck on a plane I have no idea I have no idea I can't recall I gave no such direction I don't recall I didn't make any notes I just don't recall I can't answer that question I can't recall my state of mindI don't recall I simply do not recall I do not recall I can't quite find the place I don't recall I simply do not recall I don't recall I don't recall I don't recall I'd have to reflect on thatI don't recall I don't recall I'm not sure I don't know I don't recall It is sketchy very sketchy I can't tell you I wasn't aware There is so much intelligence It's a very major challenge to deal with intelligence I have no recollection of it I just can't recall it at all I have no recollection I have no recollection Information flows appear to be very imperfect I was not awareI don't know I don't know I can't recall I'm not aware I can't recall I don't know I don't recall I assumed I don't recall We had no knowledge I can't specifically recall I can't recallI just can't specifically recall It's very difficult to recall I'm not sure that I'm not sure I wasn't sure I can't specifically recall I don't recall I don't know I can't say I just don't knowI don't have any specific recollection I'm not aware I wasn't aware I had no knowledge I wasn't aware I wasn't aware I wasn't aware I just can't recall.

PHILOSOPHY CONDENSED

PHILOSOPHY AT A GLANCE: Now you don't have to pretend to know, in a few clicks you can get an overview of certain philosophers from history. http://www.btinternet.com/~glynhughes/squashed/

WHAT AM I DOING HERE?

THEY DON'T GET IT!

I splashed this link to a parody of racism into PALTALK. and you know what? Some of them got huffy and offended! THEY DIDN'T GET THAT IT WAS A PARODY! That tells me that you can't exaggerate the racism in America, it's as bad as you can imagine. http://www.blackpeopleloveus.com/index.html

HOW 'ARD CAN IT BE?

You can trim the eyebrows; you can cap the teeth; you can cut the hair; you can put on different glasses; you can give him a ewe's milk facial, for all I care; but, to paraphrase a gritty Australian saying, `Same stuff, different bucket.' In the pantheon of chinless blue bloods and suburban accountants that makes up the Australian Liberal Party, this bloke is truly one out of the box. You have to go back to Billy McMahon to find a Prime Minister who even approaches this one for petulance, pettiness and sheer grinding inadequacy .
John Howard has always been proud to call himself a conservative. The problem I think is that he has confused this with preservative. He probably wishes good old Ming had dosed the country with formaldehyde when he had the chance. Because it all started going wrong in the late 1960s. Here is a man who lived at home until he was 32. You can imagine what he was like. Here were young Australians demonstrating against the Vietnam War, listening to the Doors, driving their tie-died kombi vans, and what was John Howard doing? He was at home with mum, wearing his shorts and long white socks, listening to Pat Boone albums and waiting for the Saturday night church dance.