I wonder how our new Foreign Minister will fare in Muslim countries?i

Very good point Is Mise. Penny Wong's negotiations seem to be grist for amusement- life can be interesting in the things it throws up- thanks

Don't forget the Libs had one too. I often wondered if it was to annoy the Muslims & some other cultures.

Of course Wong would annoy anyone.

Canem,
>It's interesting- with respect- that Aiden says in his final point that the Left isn't Marxist
>yet seems to defend Marxist Economics earlier on
Not just defend: attacked and defended in the same sentence!

The reason is simple: I value truth. And the truth is that while other economists had used the Labour Theory of Value as an approximation for calculation convenience, Marx was so overreact on it that his conclusions are of little value (so no need to read Das Kapital) and the mainstream was right to reject them. However his methodology (looking at components of value) is something that economists would do well to heed, regardless of their political positions.

>It seems to me that many ideas and propaganda points used on the left are
>concurrent with those used by the communist diaspora
Of course they are - communists used the ideas of the Left in the propaganda just as anticommunists used the ideas of the Right. But nowadays most people are capable of critical thinking. Can't you see the flaws of trying to establish guilt by association?

Regarding geoinfomatics, interpretation is where the software has made the biggest difference. Where it's necessary to set up modelling, its still likely to be time consuming.

BTW I did study both Urban Economics and Geoinfomatics in the second year of my Civil Engineering degree.

You wont have long to find out, when Penny Wong visits the Worlds largest Muslim country, Indonesia. I suspect she will acquit herself well, being both knowledgeable and articulate. Anyone would be better than a member of Mr Potato Head's mob. Glad there hasn't been any backstabbing in the Coalition after the annihilation last Saturday, nope, its all been front on, no pretence at hiding it.

CM, when are you going to wake up and stopping trying to continue the outdated Cold War fight. The only ones who mention Karl Marx, and Marxism these days are you of the loony right.Get over it, the World has moved on.

Aidan said-

Comment 1-

The reason is simple: I value truth- Marx was so overreact on it that his conclusions are of little value (so no need to read Das Kapital) and the mainstream was right to reject them.

Answer 1-

Existentialist's tend to no objective truth- multiple truths- truth implies propaganda- hopefully you can find those that you can negotiate a peaceful existence with stakeholders acting in good faith.

I prefer to go back to the source material (in this case Das Capital) where I can- so that the meaning isn't obscured by misinterpretation. But at least you admit that Marx "over-reacted".

Comment 2-

>It seems to me that many ideas and propaganda points used on the left are
>concurrent with those used by the communist diaspora
Of course they are - communists used the ideas of the Left in the propaganda just as anticommunists used the ideas of the Right. But nowadays most people are capable of critical thinking. Can't you see the flaws of trying to establish guilt by association?

Answer 2-

When there is a pretty good historical link between Communism and the modern Labor party it seems to be a fair conclusion to say they are essentially the same. Remember the DLP and rejected Anti-Communist Catholics (1955). The founder of the New Left- Herbert Marcuse was a Gay Hebrew Trotskyite Psychologist from the Frankfurt School who lived in the US during the counter culture. Saul Alinsky also a Hebrew Anarcho-Socialist. If I dig into the Labor movement I see Communism everywhere.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counterculture_of_the_1960s

"New Left in the 1950s and 1960s led to a revival of interest in libertarian socialism. The New Left's critique of the Old Left's authoritarianism was associated with a strong interest in personal liberty, autonomy and led to a rediscovery of older socialist traditions, such as left communism, council communism, and the Industrial Workers of the World- also led to a revival of anarchism."

When the principles and tactics and ideology of communism are used by the New Left it seems a fair conclusion to say they are essentially the same