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The imprisonment of this Toben fellow for challenging politically-mandated facts, should serve as a reminder to everybody that the "law" is nothing more than the codification of the opinions of a bunch of corrupt politicians, backed up by the threat of violent force (the state-sanctioned armed goons who get all twitchy if their families are threatened, but whose job is to rip families apart on some politician's say-so - usually for something that involves no harm to anybody). And let's ignore the historical irony... Moses leads a campaign of pillage and genocide from Egypt all the way to the Levant, and thirty centuries later folks who think of his story as their cultural foundation myth, are cryng foul about mass killings.
As I've said many times, I have no idea whether or not the Kraut government (another pack of politicians) had a policy of systematic annihilation of some or other set of whackballs who believed in a 3000-year old fairy tale of genocide, ethnic cleansing and rapine (and whose political leadership had declared war on Germany in 1933).
For the sake of argument, let's say it actually did happen.
Well, apart from the bits that have been shown to be bullshit, like the 'riveting first person account' of Jacob Wilkomerski... and the 'I was raised by wolves' of the latest fraud, and the 'soap from human fat' rubbish, and the 'electrified floor that completely evaporated a thousand people at a time' fiction, and the people who apparently survived being gassed six times, and the ethnically-coloured smoke from crematorium chimneys.
We can't be expected to believe those - and it's hard to imagine that there could be legal sanctions for pointing out that they are bullshit. We will likewise overlook the photos that were retouched to add smoke, and we will forget about the absolutely scary fuel requirements to cremate all the evidence. We will accept that the Germans chose the most inefficient means of annihilation imaginable (so 'German efficiency' goes in the bin as a myth, alongside 'US military dominance' and 'French culinary supremacy').
Now think about this: questioning any of those things would currently be illegal under French, German, British, Australian law, had they not already been exposed as fabrications. What does that mean for other parts of the narrative that have yet to be properly investigated?
But let's say that everything that has not yet been shown to be bullshit, did in fact happen.
So what? It proves that a government that gained power through a perfectly normal democratic process, can and will do heinous things to self-declared internal enemies. Few people recall that nasty old Adolf rose to power by forming a coalition with another party after an election. People forget that every action of the German government was legal under German law at the time (this is now the 'Bush/Ashcroft/Rumsfeld,/Kissinger/Cheney defence').
So politicians routinely kill people, and try to provide themselves with legal cover to do so - where's the surprise?
And when politicians kill people they are too gutless to actually get their hands dirty, so they use goon squads. Again - where's the news?
Here's a tip: if the government of a country is led by a dude who wrote a book declaring his distrust for members of your sect, don't declare war on his country. You might think it will feel good at the time - you'll feel smart, and you'll think it makes him look like an idiot. Think again - life isn't an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond where you get away with 'zingers' and everybody just moves on to the next scene.
You've got two choices: have him knocked off, or shut up and keep your head down. Being a smartass is not a good long term solution.
But i digress...
Without people like this Toben fellow, frauds like Wilkomerski and others would still be peddling their bullshit fabrications. They would have political cover for their bullshit, and would benefit from the politically-orchestrated oppression of anybody who is not prepared to blindly accept their word for it. Again, not a viable long term solution. You would think that the political classes would have learned something from the Vatican's requirement to apologise to Galileo - not to mention the impending suit requiring the return of Templar assets seized by Rome under false pretences in 1307... that's a suit worth almost as much as the US bank bailout.
Moving right along...
Why isn't there a law forbidding questioning of the death of Elvis or JFK? Why isn't there a law forbidding flat-earth theorising? Why isn't there a law forbidding whackjobs like Bible Spice (Caribou Barbie) from asserting that the Earth is less than 6000 years old and that dinosaurs and humans once shared the same environment?
I'll tell you why: because they aren't necessary: the facts speak for themselves, and anyone who believes the same as Caribou Barbie is just dismissed as a screwball by anyone with an IQ above about 80. The only time you have to legislate an opinion is when there are facts that would otherwise reveal your opinion to be bullshit. This is why politicians promulgate tens of thousands of pages of laws.
This is why I have no respect whatsoever for any law that conflicts with my personal beliefs.
I don't drive fast - not because it's against the law, but because it's doesn't change trip times enough to justify the additional risk.
I don't engage in pre-emptive assault: not because it's against the law to assault people, but because pre-emptive assault is not a sound basis on which to run a life or a set of lives. Game theory shows you that pre-emptive action in repeated games is only a dominant strategy if the pre-emption is overwhelmingly successful (and it never is overwhelmingly successful, even if you kill the other guy: and if all you do is piss him off, you can find yourself in a mortally-dangerous world).
Passports, drivers licenses and the other forms of political ear-tagging that the parasite class requires in order to properly oversee their livestock is another case in point. Not particularly of interest to me, but their absence can cause the attention of the politician's armed goon squads. Similarly, in the 1900s I would not have publicly declared my atheism: it was a death penalty offense to be an atheist.
To my way of thinking, the bones of any politician who voted for the Act imposing death for non-belief, ought to be disinterred and fed to pigs. And anybody who legislated for current laws that outlaw belief in rational inquiry (albeit only imposing imprisonment) - they ought to be fed to pigs as well.
People who try and dick around with other people's lives and livelihoods need to be reminded from time to time, by graphic examples, that the world is a very dangerous place. If you live in a big city, the last thing you hear might be a click behind your left ear. Big cities are violent places - and some folks don't think hard enough about how long people normally live, versus how long they live if they stick their noses where they're not wanted. (That is why part of the State's rape of taxpayers is used to pay for a lifetime's supply of armed goons for its former politicians and their families).
Imagine a world in which the ability of the State to properly protect its citizens is heavily compromised - as it is in the US at the moment. Between drug gangs, organised crime and other private security structures, there is a huge increase in the likelihood of running foul of someone who can organise to do you real harm: someone who doesn't play around, and who makes Prick Cheney look like a powdered fag choirboy.
Imagine being a run of the mill dude - just a workaday
schlub - and finding out that a local drug gang has got it
into their head that you're the police informant who led to the
incarceration of their 'homie'. That sort of shit has happened before,
and the results are universally unpleasant - the last person that it
happened to that I am aware of, would have ended their life praying for that
click behind the left ear.
Major Market Indices
The broad market - the All Ordinaries (XAO) - dipped reasonably hard, registering a loss of 71.3 points (1.49%), finishing at 4702.8 points. The index hit an intraday high of 4774.1 at 10:00 am, while the low for the day was 4646.4 - set at 10:28 am Sydney time.
Total volume traded on the ASX was 1.12bn units, 27.5% below its 10-day average. The ASX's daily listing of all stocks included 1274 different 3-letter FPO's which traded (i.e., had non-zero trade volume). Of these, 313 issues rose, with volume in rising issues totalling 276.9m units; decliners numbered 698 counters, and between them they traded aggregate declining volume of 648m shares.
Of the 496 All Ordinaries components, 114 rose while 313 fell. Volume was tilted in favour of the losers by a margin of 2.7:1, with 177.97m shares traded in gainers while 484.06m shares traded in the day's losers.
The Index that forms the cash basis for the SFE's Share Price Index Futures - the S&P/ASX 200 (XJO) - registered a loss of 65.7 points (1.38%), closing out the session at 4695.4 points.
| Name | Close | +/-(%) |
|---|---|---|
| All Ordinaries | 4702.80 | -71.30 (1.5%) |
| ASX 20 | 2728.10 | -28.10 (1.0%) |
| ASX 50 | 4653.10 | -60.10 (1.3%) |
| ASX 100 | 3836.60 | -53.80 (1.4%) |
| ASX 200 | 4695.40 | -65.70 (1.4%) |
| ASX 300 | 4682.00 | -66.30 (1.4%) |
| ASX Mid-Cap 50 | 4573.70 | -99.00 (2.1%) |
| ASX Small Ordinaries | 2438.00 | -37.80 (1.5%) |
The "heavy hitters" of the Australian market - the ASX 20 Leaders (XTL) - registered a loss of 28.1 points (1.02%), closing out the session at 2728.1 points.
The 21 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 142.62m units; 7 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 27.45m shares, while the 13 decliners had volume traded totalling 77.15m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were
- Suncorp-Metway (SUN), +$0.65 (6.48%) to $10.68 on volume of 4.5 million shares;
- CSL (CSL), +$1.14 (2.89%) to $40.57 on volume of 1.9 million shares;
- Foster's Group (FGL), +$0.12 (2.06%) to $5.95 on volume of 9.4 million shares;
- National Australia Bank (NAB), +$0.45 (1.75%) to $26.15 on volume of 5.2 million shares; and
- Macquarie Group (MQG), +$0.64 (1.66%) to $39.10 on volume of 1.6 million shares.
On the less salubrious side of the big-cap fence, the following stocks were the worst-performed within the index:
- AMP (AMP), -$0.33 (4.58%) to $6.88 on volume of 4.8 million shares;
- Newcrest Mining (NCM), -$1.26 (4.37%) to $27.59 on volume of 2.2 million shares;
- BHP Billiton (BHP), -$1.25 (3.95%) to $30.42 on volume of 22.6 million shares;
- Woodside Petroleum (WPL), -$1.47 (2.86%) to $50.01 on volume of 2 million shares; and
- Rio Tinto (RIO), -$2.34 (2.56%) to $88.91 on volume of 3.4 million shares.
At the other end of the market-cap spectrum lie the denizens of the ASX Small Ordinaries (XSO) - the place where non-mania excess returns lie. The small end of the market had significantly worse day than its large-cap counterpart. The Small Ords registered a loss of 37.8 points (1.53%), closing out the session at 2438 points.
Among the stocks that make up the Small Caps index, 60 index components finished to the upside, and of the rest, 124 closed lower for the session.
The 208 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 292.95m units: volume in the 60 gainers totalling 112.96m shares, with trade totalling 152.83m units in the index's 124 declining components. The major percentage gainers within the index were- Albidon (ALB), +$0.15 (13.81%) to $1.20 on volume of 304.4 thousand shares;
- United Minerals Corporation NL (UMC), +$0.13 (12.2%) to $1.15 on volume of 847.6 thousand shares;
- Allco Finance Group (AFG), +$0.03 (11.11%) to $0.25 on volume of 3.7 million shares;
- Hastie Group (HST), +$0.20 (8.77%) to $2.48 on volume of 199.3 thousand shares; and
- Great Southern (GTP), +$0.04 (7.61%) to $0.50 on volume of 709.9 thousand shares.
In the red-zone of the little-stock index, the following list represents the biggest downers (in terms of percentage decline):
- Record Realty (RRT), -$0 (20%) to $0.02 on volume of 1.5 million shares;
- Coeur d'Alene Mines Corporation (CXC), -$0.32 (16.67%) to $1.60 on volume of 478 thousand shares;
- Mineral Deposits (MDL), -$0.1 (14.71%) to $0.58 on volume of 624.1 thousand shares;
- OM Holdings (OMH), -$0.28 (14.14%) to $1.70 on volume of 1.8 million shares; and
- Panoramic Resources (PAN), -$0.18 (13.46%) to $1.13 on volume of 3 million shares.
Index Changes
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XAO | All Ordinaries | 4702.8 | -71.3 | -1.49 | 759.9m |
| XFL | ASX 50 | 4653.1 | -60.1 | -1.28 | 270m |
| XJO | ASX 200 | 4695.4 | -65.7 | -1.38 | 550m |
| XKO | ASX 300 | 4682 | -66.3 | -1.4 | 686.6m |
| XMD | ASX Mid-Cap 50 | 4573.7 | -99 | -2.12 | 141.6m |
| XSO | ASX Small Ordinaries | 2438 | -37.8 | -1.53 | 275m |
| XTL | ASX 20 | 2728.1 | -28.1 | -1.02 | 136.6m |
| XTO | ASX 100 | 3836.6 | -53.8 | -1.38 | 411.6m |
Market Breadth
| ASX20 | XTO | XJO | XAO | XSO | Market | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Advances | 7 | 20 | 59 | 114 | 60 | 313 |
| Declines | 13 | 79 | 136 | 313 | 124 | 698 |
| Advancing Volume | 27.5m | 59.3m | 101.2m | 178m | 113m | 276.9m |
| Declining Volume | 77.1m | 306.1m | 403.5m | 484.1m | 152.8m | 648m |
GICS Industry Indices
Among the 11 industry indices, 3 registered an advance for the session, the remaining 8 lost ground.
The best performing index was Healthcare (XHJ), which added 206.6 points (2.18%) to 9699.6 points. The 9 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 9.86m units; 7 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 8.47m shares, while the 2 decliners had volume traded totalling 1.39m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were
- Sigma Pharmaceuticals Ltd (SIP), +$0.07 (5.02%) to $1.36 on volume of 1.8 million shares;
- Ansell (ANN), +$0.39 (3.14%) to $12.80 on volume of 363 thousand shares;
- CSL (CSL), +$1.14 (2.89%) to $40.57 on volume of 1.9 million shares;
- Ramsay Health Care (RHC), +$0.28 (2.71%) to $10.60 on volume of 209.6 thousand shares; and
- Sonic Healthcare (SHL), +$0.22 (1.56%) to $14.28 on volume of 1.6 million shares.
Second in the index leadership stakes was Utilities (XUJ), which gained 45.4 points (0.95%) to 4821.9 points. The 10 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 26.97m units; 5 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 10.73m shares, while the 2 decliners had volume traded totalling 13.53m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were
- Spark Infrastructure Group (SKI), +$0.04 (2.48%) to $1.65 on volume of 1.3 million shares;
- SP Ausnet (SPN), +$0.03 (2.27%) to $1.13 on volume of 4.7 million shares;
- Duet Group (DUE), +$0.05 (1.81%) to $2.82 on volume of 1.7 million shares;
- Envestra (ENV), +$0.01 (1.52%) to $0.67 on volume of 2 million shares; and
- AGL Energy (AGK), +$0.20 (1.44%) to $14.10 on volume of 1.1 million shares.
The bronze medal for today goes to Consumer Staples (XSJ), which climbed 23.2 points (0.32%) to 7293.6 points. The 13 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 28.91m units; 6 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 20.45m shares, while the 5 decliners had volume traded totalling 7.66m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were
- Goodman Fielder (GFF), +$0.05 (3.52%) to $1.47 on volume of 6.3 million shares;
- ABB Grain (ABB), +$0.23 (2.87%) to $8.25 on volume of 154 thousand shares;
- Foster's Group (FGL), +$0.12 (2.06%) to $5.95 on volume of 9.4 million shares;
- Metcash (MTS), +$0.05 (1.18%) to $4.28 on volume of 1.9 million shares; and
- Woolworths (WOW), +$0.20 (0.7%) to $28.90 on volume of 2 million shares.
The worst-performed index for the session was Materials (XMJ), which dipped 376.5 points (3.43%) to 10606.9 points. The 45 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 151.98m units; The 34 decliners had volume traded totalling 133.23m units, and 10 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 18.72m shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were
- Coeur d'Alene Mines Corporation (CXC), -$0.32 (16.67%) to $1.60 on volume of 478 thousand shares;
- OM Holdings (OMH), -$0.28 (14.14%) to $1.70 on volume of 1.8 million shares;
- Panoramic Resources (PAN), -$0.18 (13.46%) to $1.13 on volume of 3 million shares;
- Aquarius Platinum (AQP), -$0.73 (12.52%) to $5.10 on volume of 543 thousand shares; and
- Western Areas NL (WSA), -$0.73 (9.75%) to $6.76 on volume of 716.9 thousand shares.
Just missing out on the wooden spoon was Energy (XEJ), which slid 485.4 points (2.98%) to 15794.9 points. The 19 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 38.48m units; The 16 decliners had volume traded totalling 32.05m units, and 3 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 6.43m shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were
- Gloucester Coal (GCL), -$0.86 (11.85%) to $6.40 on volume of 889.7 thousand shares;
- Arrow Energy (AOE), -$0.18 (6.12%) to $2.76 on volume of 2.4 million shares;
- Linc Energy Ltd (LNC), -$0.28 (5.66%) to $4.67 on volume of 661 thousand shares;
- Worleyparsons (WOR), -$1.54 (5.08%) to $28.76 on volume of 659.1 thousand shares; and
- Felix Resources (FLX), -$0.86 (5.02%) to $16.28 on volume of 520.3 thousand shares.
Third-to-last amongst the sector indices was Consumer Discretionary (XDJ), which slid 36.5 points (2.28%) to 1563.3 points. The 24 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 31.28m units; The 16 decliners had volume traded totalling 22.27m units, and 7 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 4.37m shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were
- David Jones (DJS), -$0.38 (9.27%) to $3.72 on volume of 1.8 million shares;
- Billabong International (BBG), -$0.8 (5.84%) to $12.90 on volume of 602.7 thousand shares;
- Crown (CWN), -$0.49 (5.83%) to $7.91 on volume of 849.8 thousand shares;
- JB Hi-Fi (JBH), -$0.63 (4.98%) to $12.03 on volume of 517.2 thousand shares; and
- Seven Network (SEV), -$0.26 (4.06%) to $6.15 on volume of 600.4 thousand shares.
Sector Indices
| Code | GICS Sector | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XHJ | Healthcare | 9699.6 | 206.6 | 2.18 | 10m |
| XUJ | Utilities | 4821.9 | 45.4 | 0.95 | 27m |
| XSJ | Consumer Staples | 7293.6 | 23.2 | 0.32 | 29m |
| XTJ | Telecommunications | 1489.8 | -1.4 | -0.09 | 46m |
| XXJ | Financials ex Property Trusts | 5109.5 | -22.1 | -0.43 | 71m |
| XIJ | Information Technology | 520.6 | -4.4 | -0.84 | 1m |
| XPJ | Property Trusts | 1426.4 | -24.6 | -1.7 | 91m |
| XNJ | Industrials | 4390.5 | -77.5 | -1.73 | 79m |
| XDJ | Consumer Discretionary | 1563.3 | -36.5 | -2.28 | 31m |
| XEJ | Energy | 15794.9 | -485.4 | -2.98 | 38m |
| XMJ | Materials | 10606.9 | -376.5 | -3.43 | 152m |
All Ordinaries Major Movers
All Ords Volume Leaders
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ADY | Admiralty Resources NL | 0.06 | 0.00 | 5.77 | 59.6m |
| TLS | Telstra Corporation Limited. | 4.38 | 0.00 | 0 | 38m |
| BHP | BHP Billiton Limited | 30.42 | -1.25 | -3.95 | 22.6m |
| IPL | Incitec Pivot Limited | 4.42 | -0.23 | -4.95 | 22.3m |
| BXB | Brambles Limited | 7.50 | -0.19 | -2.47 | 14.1m |
All Ords Percentage Gainers
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| INP | Innamincka Petroleum Limited | 0.42 | 0.08 | 23.53 | 583.5k |
| ALB | Albidon Limited | 1.20 | 0.15 | 13.81 | 304.4k |
| UMC | United Minerals Corporation NL | 1.15 | 0.13 | 12.2 | 847.6k |
| AFG | Allco Finance Group Limited | 0.25 | 0.03 | 11.11 | 3.7m |
| MPF | Multiplex Acumen Property Fund | 0.48 | 0.04 | 9.09 | 117.8k |
All Ords Percentage Losers
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AVM | Anvil Mining Limited | 5.00 | -1.35 | -21.26 | 1k |
| RRT | Record Realty | 0.02 | 0.00 | -20 | 1.5m |
| SPH | Sphere Investments Limited | 0.92 | -0.21 | -18.58 | 240.6k |
| CXC | Coeur d'Alene Mines Corporation | 1.60 | -0.32 | -16.67 | 478k |
| WHC | Whitehaven Coal Limited | 2.20 | -0.40 | -15.38 | 636.7k |
