the 3rd paragragh ..
"The strategic rationale for any meaningful Australian role in Asia is compromised by its meager population'
... weekday NY trains crowded, sub stations crowded, streets crowded .. Sydney only the first he is right on pop..
Dunno, he should know, but just fell postion is enough to give it strategic importance in American Japanese and indonesian eys. We are very involved with Indonesia as the US has been with Iran in the past and probably still is while they carry on their public brawl over enrichment.
The suggestion that our involvement in Iraq "has roused the ire of Muslims across Asia, which precipitated the deadly Bali bombings in 2005,"is denied by Howard the PM, and he says the radicals hated us already because of our involvement with the independence movement in East Timor, which of course is an ongoing trouble spot, also. he may be right that could have justified Bali, but he's wrong on his dumb, stupid contention that our invovement and our ass licking has not put us up the unpopularity list of the fundamentalists pushing the fighting.
DON'T LIKE HIS "Call me a skeptic, but somehow the strategic equation of 20 million people facing off against 200 million angry neighbors fails to add up." AT ALL. FEELS THE CREATING THE ENEMY THING. JUST NOT RIGHT TO SAY THAT 200M ARE 'FACING OFF' AGAINST 20M, IS IT? NOT EVEN IN A "STRATEGIC EQUATION". LAST I READ OUR FORCES ARE FAR SUPERIOR TO INDONESIA'S IF ANYBODY WNTS TO DEBATE THE FRIGGIN' THREAT FROM iNDONESIA. THEY HAVE THOUSANDS OF ISLANDS AND IT IS EASY TO FOMENT ACTION AGAINST THEM. THEY DON'T WNT TO FIGHT A FRIGGIN' WAR AGAINST AUSTRALIA, BUT THEN SADDAM DIDN'T WANT TO AGAINST YOU GUYS, EITHER.
"Australia has to choose a new role for itself" .. don't immed. see a connection between US pullout in Iraq, then Australia would too, I guess and the situation down here???
and not sure if your timetable will be shortened meaningfully by the Dem's .. wasn't there some bi-partisanship in the drafting of it?
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