Note: CONTENT WARNING - some of this content is about upsetting, disturbing or triggering events & attitudes. Seek competent help - including professional - if you need it. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that linked
articles may contains names and/or images of deceased people. READER CAUTION IS RECOMMENDED! For
anyone distressed by anything in this post, or for any other reason considering
seeking support, resources are available in Australia here, here, and here. In other nations, you will have to do an Internet search using terms such as “mental health support - <your nation>” (which, for instance, may lead to this, this, and this, in the USA, or this, this, and this, in France [biased towards English-language - my apologies]), or perhaps try https://www.befrienders.org/.
Note: in my “from the news” posts, quotes are shown italicised and blue, my comments are in a different shade of blue, and “good” items are shown in green. I have loosely grouped the posts where such seemed reasonable, but that is subjective (i.e., my opinion - others are free to disagree), and challenging, as some posts belong in multiple “groups”.
Frrom this week’s news on society generally, and broader issues (note: I may continue to add links for a few days, possibly up to a week, after these are published):
- The issues in the this case include: the safety, dignity, respect, and human rights generally of women and other groups lacking power, including how victims of sexual assaults (which do include men) are treated (including some of the stupid opinions about how victims will behave); the media; the conduct of trials and the nuances of justice (this finding did not happen in a criminal trial because of the gross, in my opinion, stupidity of one juror - and it should be noted this finding is to civil, not criminal levels of proof) and healing (there were questions about the speech that, as the judge pointed out, should have been obvious - an excellent, free, online training manual for journalists which goes into exactly that sort of issue). News reports include: “Judge finds Bruce Lehrmann raped Brittany Higgins and dismisses Network 10 defamation case. How did it play out?” https://theconversation.com/judge-finds-bruce-lehrmann-raped-brittany-higgins-and-dismisses-network-10-defamation-case-how-did-it-play-out-225891 “Bruce Lehrmann loses defamation bid, judge finds he raped Brittany Higgins” https://www.thenewdaily.com.au/news/national/2024/04/15/lehrmann-defamation-verdict “While Justice Michael Lee found there were discrepancies in the evidence of all parties involved, he was scathing in his assessment of Lehrmann’s truthfulness in his evidence. ... Lee said Lehrmann was indifferent to whether a drunk Higgins consented or not before he raped her on a senator’s couch at Parliament House. ... The finding was not made to the criminal standard of ‘beyond reasonable doubt’, and the Federal Court decision does not amount to a conviction. Nor will it lead to any criminal punishment. ... The judge said Higgins had been loose with the truth about allegations made to Ten in 2021 that members of the then-Coalition government had sought to silence her in reporting the alleged rape. “‘The cover-up allegation was objectively short on facts but long on speculation,” he said. But Lee found that any incorrect statements to police in 2019 were not inconsistent with remarks being made by a “genuine victim of sexual assault”.” “Bruce Lehrmann ‘hellbent on having sex’ with Brittany Higgins and raped her in Parliament House, defamation judge finds” https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2024/apr/15/bruce-lehrmann-defamation-trial-judge-verdict-rape-brittany-higgins-parliament-house-ntwnfb “Lee was, however, critical of the conduct of Channel Ten’s The Project team, saying “the rape allegations were intertwined with the cover-up and the Project team had strong indications of the unreliability of their main source, particularly as to how she lost material on her phone and selected material survived”. He also criticised their approach to seeking comment from Lehrmann: “If Network Ten wanted to get in contact with Mr Lehrmann, there were ways of ensuring that contact could be achieved. He was not living the life of a hermit.” Lee said the case functioned as a “Rorschach test” for some observers. “For more than a few, this dispute has become a proxy for broader cultural and political conflicts.”” “It took a well-equipped, forensic judge to unstitch Lehrmann – and hand the media a rare win” https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/apr/15/it-took-a-well-equipped-forensic-judge-to-unstitch-lehrmann-and-hand-the-media-a-rare-win “The judge criticised the way Channel Ten handled the story, but found Brittany Higgins’ evidence on the central allegation ‘honest and accurate’ ... Since 2015, when then treasurer Joe Hockey kicked off the trend to sue in the federal court, there have been 20 defamation trials defended by the media. The journalists have lost 15 of them with awards of damages totalling more than $6m, and costs beyond the dreams of Croesus ... The media has now succeeded in five substantially defended cases. ... In his conclusion on rape, Lee in a separate paragraph simply said: “Mr Lehrmann raped Ms Higgins.” Perhaps, that was all Brittany Higgins wanted and needed to hear. All the rest, for months and years, was noise and distraction.” However, “How are we to understand the pervasive journalistic arrogance of the Bruce Lehrmann imbroglio?” https://www.theguardian.com/media/2024/apr/17/bruce-lehrmann-defamation-trial-verdict-brittany-higgins-rape-allegation-spotlight-channel-ten-ntwnfb “The defamation case against Network Ten revealed media mediocrity plus a lack of self-awareness and humility. Many journalists should have known better” This analysis includes useful examples “What Lehrmann’s defamation defeat means for the former staffer, Channel Ten and Lisa Wilkinson” https://www.thenewdaily.com.au/news/2024/04/15/lehrmann-defeat-analysis This article mentioned the possibility of an appeal “Second criminal trial unlikely following Bruce Lehrmann defamation case ruling, but experts say appeal could happen” https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-16/bruce-lehrmann-second-criminal-trial-unlikely-expert-says/103706654
- “Benjamin Cohen was falsely accused of the Bondi Junction stabbings. Here's how the lie spread around the world” https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-15/how-misinformation-spread-after-bondi-junction-stabbing/103708210 On a separate attack: “Prime Minister Anthony Albanese convenes security cabinet meeting over Sydney church ‘terrorist act’” https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-16/albanese-says-there-is-no-place-for-violence-in-our-community/103728308 This article also outlines the staggering community violence against service organisations “Digital ‘death knocks’: is it fair game for journalists to mine social media profiles of victims and their families?” https://theconversation.com/digital-death-knocks-is-it-fair-game-for-journalists-to-mine-social-media-profiles-of-victims-and-their-families-227784 No
- “AI is making smart devices – watches, speakers, doorbells – easier to hack. Here’s how to stay safe” https://theconversation.com/ai-is-making-smart-devices-watches-speakers-doorbells-easier-to-hack-heres-how-to-stay-safe-223738
- “How Google’s Location History Program Could Upend Digital Surveillance Law” https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/how-google-s-location-history-program-could-upend-digital-surveillance-law
- “Questioning the Conventional Wisdom on Liability and Open Source Software” https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/questioning-the-conventional-wisdom-on-liability-and-open-source-software
- “Charlene's daughter was taken by a crocodile, but she's not in favour of culling” https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-19/mother-warns-against-crocodile-attack-culling-northern-territory/103736134 “A mother whose daughter was killed by a crocodile has joined scientists in pushing the Northern Territory government to consider more public education — rather than an expansion of culling — to keep people safe” Her pain is still present for her loss, which initially led to support for culls, but not now
Assumptions / basis
In writing this, I have assumed / started from the following:
- this blog states quite clearly that it is about political and human rights matters, including lived experience of problems, and thus I will assume readers are reasonable people who have noted the content warning in the post header;
Possible flaws
Where I can, I will try to highlight possible flaws / issues you should consider:
- there may be flawed logical arguments in the above: to find out more about such flaws and thinking generally, I recommend Brendan
Myers’ free online course “Clear and Present Thinking”;
- I could be wrong - so keep your thinking caps on, and make up your own minds for yourself.
If they are of any use of interest, the activism information links from my former news posts are available in this post.
If you appreciated this post, please consider promoting it - there are some links below.
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