Comment on Australia to recognise Palestinians' right 'to a state of their own', PM says
zero_gravitas@aussie.zone 22 hours agoIt won’t.
If they thought it would do any good, then they wouldn’t have the spine to do it.
We know they don’t have the spine to do anything with any practical effect, because otherwise they would have done it by now. They could have instituted broad trade sanctions, or prevented the export of military goods including F-35 parts and steel armour plating.
Gorgritch_umie_killa@aussie.zone 22 hours ago
Well, what are the costs of moves like those. I’m working on a moral and humanist calculus, Albanese may be partially working on that, but he’ll also be working from a political calculus.
The US has made it pretty clear that Israel is their favourite protectorate. If, as you say in another comment, we are owned by the US, then does that mean in the heirarchy of protectorates we are lower than Israel and therefore likely to seriously damage our standing with the US by imposing arms sanctions? And what does that mean for Australian military defence? And technology supply?
For one thing, we’d have to be ready for massive and disproportionate responses from the fascists in charge in the US. Is our defence establishment ready for that? Our population psychologically ready for that?
I’m proposing these, not as my values, but to demonstrate that this is more complicated for the politicians than for ordinary people. PK on Politics Now podcast had a good discussion on this last week.
Taleya@aussie.zone 5 hours ago
If ever there was a time to not be the US’ lapdog, it’s fucking now.
Deceptichum@quokk.au 20 hours ago
I’ll take the US ire over being a spineless shithole country like we are.
Zagorath@aussie.zone 20 hours ago
Yeah, playing realpolitik is an excuse that can only get you so far. When there’s genocide involved, and various other war crimes involved in executing that genocide (including murdering aid workers and journalists), that excuse goes out the window.
Ilandar@lemmy.today 22 hours ago
Good points, it is easy forget that a lot of the big IR issues are associated with the US and can have significant knock-on effects as a result. I do find realpolitik quite sickening when applied to human rights issues, though.
Gorgritch_umie_killa@aussie.zone 21 hours ago
It is. Theres a point in things where you have to say as a nation we’re willing to wear the consequences of our convictions.
Its a shame that i feel that Australians aren’t willing to accept costs like those for what i still believe are broadly held convictions about how we want to live in the world.
Zagorath@aussie.zone 20 hours ago
Aren’t they? Have they been asked? Labor isn’t willing to accept the cost. That isn’t the same thing.
Ilandar@lemmy.today 20 hours ago
Well I guess that depends a bit on the context, because in this case certainly it seems like most Australians are now quite united in their opinion and its really the politicians who have been dragging their feet. But more broadly I agree, it has been somewhat frustrating to see how willing Australians are to educate themselves on the situation in Gaza and advocate on behalf of Palestinians whilst issues that are actually relevant to the Australian context, like the rights of Indigenous people or asylum seekers, remain areas of widespread ignorance and disinterest. I suppose one of the key differences is that pro-Palestinian advocacy really costs Australians nothing, so for most the opportunity to take a selfish position doesn’t exist. It’s free moral high ground with zero trade-offs.
Tenderizer@aussie.zone 17 hours ago
Given the experience with Gough Whitlam, the consequences would (presumably) be a near-immediate LNP government that would backtrack on any conviction we demonstrate and further make things worse not just for Palestine but for Australians.
Alternatively the consequences could be being cut out of military supply chains in the future but like … pretty sure America wants to do that anyway so I don’t know if the government would make decisions based on that.