Bondi shooting

Now, I did say here in August that I didn't see the point in countries saying they recognised a Palestinian state when it was still (and remains today) hopelessly unclear how one was to be governed, and worried that it gave Hamas some sense of encouragement. 

That said, what a stupid Right wing tosser freakout we are seeing in blaming Australia's recognition of the state (in September - I don't think I have ever commented on it) for the Bondi Beach terrorist attack.

On Twitter X, your guaranteed source for commentary by Right wing tossers from all over the world, the freakout was happening before anyone even knew definitely what was happening.  The ABC was blamed for not mentioning fast enough that there was a Hanukkah festival happening; Channel 9 ruffled feathers by having a Muslim reporter on the scene.

Campbell Newman - now a libertarian party figure after ruining Brisbane's King George Square as Lord Mayor, and going on to be the least popular Premier we have ever seen - was reliably hyperventilating, as was clown head Rowan Dean whose outrage (that the Albanese government caused it) was enough to launch his permed head into orbit.

And now the Opposition Leader we are all waiting to be deposed - Susan Ley - is politicising it before the dead are buried:

‘Clear lack of leadership’ over antisemitism, Sussan Ley says

The opposition leader says there has been a “failure” to protect Jewish Australians.

She says there is “palpable anger” in the community and a sense of “bewilderment”.

Antisemitism in Australia has been left to fester … We have seen a clear failure to keep Jewish Australians safe. We have seen a clear lack of leadership in keeping Jewish Australians safe. We have a government that sees antisemitism as a problem to be managed, not evil that needs to be eradicated ...

 We’ve seen synagogues fire-bombed, orchestrated by foreign terrorist states. Every single day for the last two years the lives of Jewish Australians have been made harder by this rising tide of antisemitism.

Ley says she’s spoken to antisemitism envoy Jillian Segal this morning, who has been urging the government to respond to her report. 

 Here's my prediction:   unless there turns out to be some specific intelligence warning given to the government of plans for this attack, this will not have the political blowback the Liberals (and even nuttier Right) think it will.   That's because all normal people will see it as a revenge attack, likely by individuals acting alone, for the extent of the attack on Gaza in reaction to the wildly stupid terrorist attack on Israel.  And of course, it wasn't warranted, and statements of sympathy to Australian Jews are entirely appropriate.   

But only the stupidest of the stupid would say that the Albanese government encouraged it.