The Unknown Unknowns
Australia's judiciary gets it wrong from time to time. Not to raise old stories or point fingers but the Kathleen Folbigg and Lindy Chamberlain before show the judiciary of this country to be entirely faulty in some cases and takes them years to self correct. In each of those cases, there was media mayhem. On the whole, a media circus portends terrible things for people caught in their spotlight of hateful attention.
In that light, I want to point out something that's been vexing me a bit. The Bruce Lehrmann case that recently got thrown out and then decided that they won't re-try the case has left Lehrmann in purgatory forever. It's very troubling because let's face it, both Brittany Higgins and Lehrmann were Liberal Party staffers and that kind of subtracts just about all political sympathy from me, leaving just a he-said-she-said scenario of accusations. Both of them seem like well-heeled private-school-educated people who had an 'in' to work in Parliament, and this terrible thing happened to Higgins. So up to this point, I've not really cared what happened because a) I am a bastard when it comes to politics and make no mistake, this is politics; and b) I don't care about scandals out of parliament and; c) I'm inclined to dislike both these people based on their resume, so why would I care how the trial goes?
That said, I'm getting a little bothered by some fundamental things here. Lehrmann never got a verdict at his trial because a juror's misconduct ruined the trial. The prosecution decided not to re-try the case, so as Lehrmann points out, that leaves him as somebody who is not exonerated. In his words, 50% of people in the country think he is a rapist. Judging from the media coverage, I think he has the figure low there. I'd say it's more like 80%. I've never heard from anybody who has stood up and vouched for Lehrmann in the press. The media has not shown anybody who has stood up and said it couldn't have been Lehrmann, based on character or motive or modus operandi.
In other words, thanks to the media, Bruce Lehrmann's received a presumption of guilt all along. And now the prosecution and judiciary have decided to just let it go - in turn, he will never have the chance to clear his name in court. Surely people can see if all things being equal, this is more than a bit wrong. The media have tried the guy already and he has no recourse except defamation trials. If the prosecution really think he was the rapist, they would be well advise to bring that case back. This situation is not justice in anyway shape or form, let alone for Brittany Higgins. The media is a shit and the judiciary is, dare I say, unreliable.
The Counteroffensive At Last
There are indications the Ukrainian counteroffensive is underway. It was originally mooted in winter for the northern spring, but leaks and waiting for the arrival of equipment as well as training for how to use them, has delayed the counteroffensive. It's nice to know it is finally underway. The business of Bakhmut was turning into a rather horrible little stalemate that was taking the world's economy with it.
It would be nice if at some point Vladimir Putin could be removed, a peace settlement made swiftly and things go back to some semblance of normal. If there's one thing that is certain, it is that Putin is responsible for all of this mess and he needs to be brought to justice. He is a fugitive from justice, hiding out in the Kremlin. He started this war and is now solely responsible for its outcomes. The views to the contrary are is just propaganda.
Get Back To Those Recordings
Paul McCartney says there will be one more Beatles song featuring John Lennon.
In an interview with the BBC, McCartney said the record was a demo he and Lennon worked on.
"It was a demo that John had, and that we worked on, and we just finished it up," he said.
McCartney did not name the song that has been recorded but according to the BBC it is likely to be a 1978 Lennon composition called Now And Then.
The track — one of several on a cassette that Lennon had recorded for McCartney a year before his death — was given to him by Lennon's widow Yoko Ono in 1994.
Two of the songs, Free As A Bird and Real Love, were cleaned up by the producer Jeff Lynne, and released in 1995 and 1996.
Yeah that would be about right. It's hard to say if it would be any good as a song. It certainly will be going out to a world that is probably now indifferent to the charms of the Beatles. The Covid Pandemic killed a lot of Baby Boomer codgers and codgettes.
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