Four More Things About the Sydney Riots

1. How's the state Labour Government react? Give itself a zillion extra powers, of course. I'm sure this will end well, with the powers only be used when necessary. They will be used in a non-discriminatory way, and they won't exacerbate things in any way.

2. Also the Australian government said that the new Labour laws would stop riots.

The Workplace Relations Minister, Kevin Andrews, said claims that the new laws would spark Paris-style riots were hysterical. He even suggested that riots would occur if Australia did not embrace the laws.

"It's well known that France still has a very rigid labour market, and it's a consequence of those rigidities and the failure to bring about some flexibility in their labour market that is a major cause of what's occurring in Paris at the present time," Mr Andrews said.

Obviously individual agreement just haven't had their opportunity to use their magic power to make people happy.

3. In another life I was a feminist historian, and once you start analysing the role gender in history, you keep doing it in the present. The most obvious point is, like the riots in France, this rioting is a male act. I wonder what happened to the partners of these men when they got home? Because there is a role women seem to be playing in these riots. There are coded, and less coded, references to attacks on women as the justification for the attacks on middle eastern men. This particular idea about the relationship between gender and race isn't exactly new, and is pretty fucking dangerous.

4. Yesterday Checkpoint's introduction to their piece about the riots started "Australia's Prime Minister John Howard is calling for ethnic and religious tolerance after racial violence erupted." How would he recognise ethnic and religious tolerance if he tripped over it? I'm surprised he could even pronounce it.