Censoring The Diggers

This is CRAP!!!

And the ban played on MORE than 80 years since the repeal of the War Precautions Act, Australian soldiers are still being censored. Last December, after footage of Australian troops skylarking with weapons was posted on YouTube - including one video of a digger pointing a gun at a fellow soldier dressed as an Arab - Australian soldiers were banned from blogging. A 26-year-old Sunshine Coast soldier serving in Iraq was placed under review and his military weblog, "Iraqi Letters", was deleted during the defence force's move to silence servicemen online. Some defence forces, the United States' in particular, use military weblogs (or milblogs) as a recruitment tool and for positive publicity. According to milblogging.com, there are more than 1700 military weblogs from 29 countries, but Australia has none. And other forms of military-related censorship still exist. Australia and Britain are the only two countries that have a D-notice system, under which the media agrees not to publish sensitive government information deemed a threat to national security. Enacted in Australia in 1952, it has not been used in this country for decades, although the Keating government considered enacting it over reports it had bugged the Chinese embassy in Canberra. BEN DOHERTY

Ok look, I can see the ADF's point of view as far as the Youtube inceident goes but come on, these are young people, giving up their youth and their personal lives to fight for our freedoms. They are prone to be a little boisterous from time to time, especially considering they can't get on the Milblogs to Blog away all that extra energy!!

I have to wonder though, did it ever occur to the ADF that we may WANT to hear what the Diggers have to say??

The only positive news to come out of places like Iraq and Afghanistan is on the Milblogs. without them, how would people know we are in fact making progress in these places??

This reminds me of the first Post I ever wrote for Tanker Brothers back in Oct 06...

Just A Thought.. For once I have chosen to stay quiet on the subject of blogs vs security concerns. To be honest, I don't believe I am knowledgeable enough in this area to comment. However, I will share my opinion on what I believe to be the possible social and emotional ramifications of this decision. As we have all seen, the Tanker Brothers have an amazing family unit to support them during their deployment. Then of course, there is the extended 'Tanker Family'. This site, their blogs are their way of being heard on a subject that they are truly passionate about. Their contribution to this war is two fold, both ont he ground and online, spreading the word of it's positive outcomes to the masses. I know they certainly helped this novice understand it better. Now they fight to keep this site, their labour of love alive. But people, what if they fail?? What if the internet freedoms our soldiers enjoy are limited?? I have the honour and privelige of being able to access the thoughts and emotions of both deployed and recently returned soldiers in various formats, including blogs and home pages. Day after day I see the emotional rollercoaster these brave men and women are on. I have to be honest, this leads me to wonder if the Powers That Be have ever really read any of these. The internet provides a healthy outlet for these people to share thoughts and fears, negatives and positives. To reach out and find comfort in complete strangers when they find it to hard to confide in family and friends. It provides the means for socialisation to many soldiers who are at, or nearing an age where they would have been reaching out, looking to meet new people in clubs, through sport or other recreational activities. I don't know who makes these decisions and on what basis but imagine for a moment you are on your first deployment, you're just starting out, your life experience is limited to high school and boot camp. Suddenly you are in another country, away from your loved ones. You are looking at the same 4 walls, you have the same people as both workmates and room mates. feelings of isolation begin to over whelm you. You're lonely and trying to reach out amongst people who feel the same way. Ok, if you have never personally experienced this think of a movie where someone had to get something off their chest. What is always the first piece of advice they are given?? Write it in a letter. You don't have to mail it, just pour your heart out. For those who have never done it - it helps. This is what people are doing when they blog. On the other hand, imagine you are sitting across from someone and they are asking you to pour your heart out. What is the first thing you do?? You clam up, you put on a front, you say you're ok. Every day people are using these internet formats to reach out to other people, build friendships, online communities, support each other in times of need. I truly believe it would be detrimental to the emotional well being of these people to be forced to endure censorship. I think we need to give credit where credit is due. Their stake in their own security is far greater than ours, of course they aren't going to do anything to endanger themselves or the lives of others. The blogs typically take on a more personal aspect anyway. What Milbogs do is encourage patriotism amongst the country men and women of our brave soldiers, encourage support and educate people to the hardships these soldiers face on a daily basis to ensure our continuing freedom. Where would we be without our Milblogs!! A_C

Food for thought

A_C