It’s Not Them, It’s Us

I suppose an official visit to Indonesia by Anthony Albanese and his girlfriend is out of the question unless they sleep in separate quarters. Our northern neighbour’s coming prohibition of fornication is being discussed in predictably jejune terms – Bali bogan bonk ban etc – but Greg Sheridan isn’t laughing. Jakarta’s revamp of the Indonesian Criminal Code to enforce a stricter version of Islamic morality is “profoundly concerning” and “should worry us all,” he asserts. The suicide bombing in Bandung today indicates this interpretation is simplistic. Islamic extremists don’t like the revised dispensation either – regarding its proscription of anti-state ideologies not as an affirmation but as an escalation against them. Because the Benny Hill West was only interested in the sex angle and not the undergirding substance, we discarded the lede. Therein lies the true nature of an emerging national security crisis. Far more concerning to any thoughtful Australian than an Indonesian law destined to be more of an exotic whim than an iron diktat is the West’s obsessive embrace of Nazi Mengele-ism and its violent war on publicly professed Christianity, religious education, freedom of conscience and innocent life. So-called liberalism is an evil contagion that more and more nations will take increasingly chauvinistic measures to suppress.

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29 Responses to It’s Not Them, It’s Us

  1. NFA says:

    Cannot read Sheridan’s missive because paywall but then I haven’t read any of his ‘stuff’ for years apart from headlines.

  2. Petros says:

    Not a surprise given what’s been happening in Aceh since the tsunami. Maybe they just don’t want bogan tourists anymore. What’s next? A ban on tattooed tourists?

  3. Baba says:

    We see ya
    Don’ wanna be ya.

  4. Christine says:

    The concluding sentence –
    a strong warning

  5. Riversutra says:

    “Bonk Ban” scream the clickbait media and around the office the minimally informed adopt the victimhood mantle in their belief that it is aimed at their drunken frolics in Bali.

    The only people who can make a complaint of sex outside marriage to police are a spouse, parents or children, drastically limiting the scope of the amendment

    An exotic whim indeed.
    The real story is that the tide has well and truly turned and American culture is not admired any more in many parts of the non-west world.
    They don’t our stinkin ( said with El Guapo accent from The 3 Amigos) pronouns, child mutilation, race based identity, woke green religion and victimhood as a way of life.
    The anti state ideologies whose purpose the bill is drafted to counter, promptly bomb a cop shop to express their opposition.
    So, we now have an alliance of the Bali lotus eaters and the islamofascism adherents to oppose the Bill. On basically the same day the main Bali bomber is released.
    Truth, stranger than fiction? For sure.

  6. It’s totalitarianism masquerading as liberalism.

  7. Buccaneer says:

    Odd how the main attraction for many Australians to go to Bali seems to be an opportunity to engage in casual relations with people they don’t know. It seems that should another community have the wrong kind of moral vanity they get condemned. No one seems to want to explain how this attitude isn’t just an attempt at values based colonialism?

  8. Yank says:

    Seems CL thinks we are governed by Nazis. Moderation in all things

  9. Buccaneer says:

    Did you bother to read the article. Seems like the state in Canada thinks it’s cheaper to offer people assisted dying than help to live their lives when some arbitrary bureaucrat thinks its all too difficult. Now we have such a blowout in the NDIS will we offer the same treatment for people with serious disability?

    Acquired deaf blindness is one of the most limiting and common disabilities for people as they age, will those folks be encouraged to end it all as they are too much of a burden?

  10. C.L. says:

    Seems CL thinks we are governed by Nazis.

    To be fair, the Nazis didn’t cut off the breasts of their own daughters.

  11. C.L. says:

    Sheridan: Indonesia’s Criminal Code revision should worry us all.

    Is Indonesia stumbling towards populist Islamism?

    The revision of the Criminal Code to include a range of Islamist and anti-democratic provisions is one of the most profoundly concerning developments in the giant nation’s democratic journey since the overthrow of the military dictator, Suharto, in 1998.

    The new code makes extramarital sex and cohabitation illegal, but much more importantly strengthens blasphemy laws, adds apostasy as an offence and severely curtails free speech.

    The embrace of democracy by Indonesia since Suharto’s fall, with the regular transfer of power among elected politicians and a thriving civic society, has been one of Southeast Asia’s few beacons for democracy and some version of liberalism.

    With more than 270 million people, Indonesia is the fourth most populous nation in the world, and its sheer demographic momentum, combined with patchy but sustained development, means it will inevitably become one of the world’s biggest economies.

    Recently its president, Joko Widodo, has increased Jakarta’s activism in global diplomacy.

    But ever since 1998 there has been a serious tension within Indonesian politics over what the central ambition of its political system is: to give expression to democracy, or to give political expression to Islam?

    Properly understood, the two need not be in conflict. Indonesia for centuries has been notable for its relatively easy going, syncretic form of Islam, recognising its substantial Hindu and Christian minorities, and the often fruitful blend of Islam with the folk traditions of the archipelago.

    As usual with Indonesia, there is great fuzziness and confusion about how the new code will operate. It will not come into force for a couple of years, it could be subject to constitutional challenge, it could yet be amended again in the parliament.

    Similarly, charges against people for engaging in premarital sex can only be brought if there is a complaint by a close family member.

    Nonetheless, all the parties in parliament supported the new code, which is itself deeply disturbing.

    It intrudes an Islamic state apparatus into the private lives of Indonesians, and perhaps of visiting foreigners.

    Friends of Indonesian liberalism once worried about the globalising forms of Islam and especially the influence of the Middle East on Indonesia. But the Gulf Arab states are now embarking on their own, albeit limited, social liberalism while it is predominantly domestic forces which are now pushing Indonesia in the other direction.

    Strengthening the blasphemy law is extremely concerning, as this type of law is used in many Muslim majority nations to persecute religious minorities.

    Similarly, making it an offence to insult the president looks open to obvious oppressive use and capricious and unpredictable interpretation. Ditto with restrictions on protests.

    Worst of all are the restrictions on media for publishing “uncertain and excessive” news.

    Indonesia’s democracy is raucous and contested. It’s to be hoped that the forces for democracy and restraint, for tolerance and diversity, make a counter push against this disheartening new criminal code.

    The importance of the way Indonesia develops for Australia is obvious.

  12. C.L. says:

    Sheridan voted for (and promoted) gay ‘marriage’ but wonders why Indonesia is no longer attracted to carcinogenic Western liberalism.

    Also LOL re an “offence to insult the president.”

    Twittergate proves the FBI was far more criminally extreme cracking down on this ‘crime’ than Jakarta.

  13. Not Trampis says:

    tourists won’t have to worry about the bonk ban if you are silly enough to go there but the blasphemy laws are another thing all together.
    The law about the poor president is quite broad as a well.
    Sheridan is right that we should be worried about this development.

  14. C.L. says:

    Why? Are the Indonesians going to invade Darwin and make cohabiters get married?

  15. dover_beach says:

    Similarly, charges against people for engaging in premarital sex can only be brought if there is a complaint by a close family member.

    Nonetheless, all the parties in parliament supported the new code, which is itself deeply disturbing.

    This is really a commendable law given the complainants are typically wronged by such behaviour. And it’s not as if once Christian jurisdictions had similar laws on the books themselves before they were taken over by daughters of lust. Such a law has much to recommend it as it is founded in justice.

  16. C.L. says:

    The blindness of the ‘conservative’ commentariat on the consequences of Western neo-nazism is breathtaking. We no longer have any authority to promote reforms in Afghanistan, Iran, Africa, Indonesia and elsewhere. In colonising days of old, we did – but not now. The question is not, ‘how could a Muslim-majority country prosecute a fornicator’ but, rather, ‘how could a Christian-majority country lionise a baby decapitator.’

  17. Franx says:

    Laws against blasphemy and apostasy have their ‘western democratic’ cognates in forms such as the censuring of various ‘denialisms’ , ‘conspiracy theories’, ‘extremisms’, to name some.

  18. Boambee John says:

    Non Mentis displaying a neo-colonialist mentality.

  19. C.L. says:

    Laws against blasphemy and apostasy have their ‘western democratic’ cognates in forms such as the censuring of various ‘denialisms’ , ‘conspiracy theories’, ‘extremisms’, to name some.

    ✔️ Indeed.

  20. Lee says:

    The West has lost any moral high ground it had to be sanctimoniously lecturing others.

    Sheridan, like so many others, is one of the latter day neo-colonialists.

  21. Cassie of Sydney says:

    I posted this piece this morning on Catallaxy…

    The confected outrage now directed at Indonesia for its ban on pre-marital fornicating is, unsurprisingly, being greeted in this country by the usual howls, screeches, derision and sneers, but I shouldn’t be surprised by this, Australia is now so completely adrift from any moral and religious foundations, particularly around anything sexual. We now live in a society where woke corporations and government bureaucracies run a mile from mentioning the word “Christmas” yet the same woke corporations and government departments are proudly funding and celebrating a forthcoming “festival” of homosexuality in early 2023…it’s called “Sydney WorldPride”. Sydney is about to be awash in “Pridepox” and goodness knows what else. Only half a century ago, few even in this country would have blinked an eyelid at the Indonesian ban, such a policy was normal for our grandparents, in fact many if not most would have understood and accepted such a ban. It wasn’t too long ago that hotels across the West banned unwed couples, in fact there’s a very funny episode of Fawlty Towers that mocks such a hotel ban. Fornicating before marriage is actually prohibited in all three Abrahamic religions.

    There are two points that interest me, the first point I find amusing, the second point is yet another indictment of our debased and hypocritical society.

    Let’s start with the “amusing”. PM AlboSleazy the Slusher (because every word he utters ends up sounding like a verbal slush) won’t be rushing off anytime soon with his “partner” (my God I hate that term), “Jodie” (who once worked for an industry superannuation firm, of course), to frolic on a Bali Beach and in a Bali bedroom. I reckon the Indonesians should count themselves lucky here, they ain’t missing anything by banning such a couple. Jodie has been licking her lips for the last six months, and to be fair, who wouldn’t? However it’s nice that AlboSleazy won’t be able to cart her off to fornicate illegally at an Indonesian resort. I also suspect that Malaysia will soon follows this stricture on pre-marital sex.

    My second point harks back to a point I confronted my uber progressive nephew about two weeks ago, when we were talking over a family dinner about Qatar hosting the “World Cup”. I so delicately lectured him about some facts, firstly that Qatar should never ever have been awarded the rights to host the Cup, to which my nephew nodded in furious agreement, however I said that the fact that Qatar bans homosexual sex is not the reason why it should never have been held in Qatar. He stopped nodding in furious agreement. I told him that Qatar’s funding of terrorism and its treatment of foreign workers, who are no better than indentured labour, are much more valid reasons why Qatar should never ever have been awarded the Cup rights. And then I said to my nephew, in relation to Qatar’s Islamic proscribing of homosexuality, so what, I don’t care, I respect their laws. Who are we to lecture Qatar or any other country about their sexual mores? Isn’t that cultural imperialism? Isn’t that patronising? Isn’t that a form of racism? Isn’t that Islamophobia? He was nonplussed at first but then he slowly nodded in agreement and said “yes, you’re right”. To which I said…”yes I am”.

    Who are we to lecture Indonesia or any other country as to its laws? Unlike here in Oz, Indonesia and other countries outside the “West” aren’t interested in committing cultural suicide. They take pride in their religion, their heritage and their broader culture. I admire that. Contrast this to Oz and across the West, all we’re doing now is trashing everything that made us great. It’s a daily spectacle of trashing, debasing, and degrading. But we shouldn’t worry too much, here in the West we’ll always have our sanctimonious hypocrisy and double standards to grasp onto, it’s about all we have left.

    Apologies about the length of the piece, but I do like a morning rant!

  22. NFA says:

    Sheridan, like so many others, is one of the latter day neo-colonialists.

    Lee

    It is quite extraordinary to see Western ‘elitist’ NGO’s dictate.

  23. C.L. says:

    A Cassie classic. 👍

    Contrast this to Oz and across the West, all we’re doing now is trashing everything that made us great. It’s a daily spectacle of trashing, debasing, and degrading.

    And policing.

  24. Dunny Brush says:

    Oppose the insidious drag sexualisation of children? You’re a neo-nazi:

    Threats of neo-Nazi protests force cancellation of LGBTQIA+ event in St Kilda.

    An end-of-year celebration featuring a drag show and other queer performances has been cancelled amid vile threats from online neo-Nazi and anti-LGBTQIA+ groups.

    Glitter Nova, a celebration of the LGBTQIA+ community, was due to take place at St Kilda’s Victorian Pride Centre Thursday evening for attendees aged 12-25 years old.

    Organisers instead made the call to postpone the event run by Stonnington Youth Services when it became apparent protesters would disrupt the evening.

    A Stonnington Council spokesman told the Herald Sun it was a “difficult decision” but one that was necessary to ensure the safety of attendees.

    “We have recently become aware of a planned protest at Glitter Nova this evening and, in order to maintain our commitment to creating safe and inclusive events, we felt the wisest and most prudent course of action was to postpone the event in order for us to ensure the safety of our attendees,” the statement read.

    “We were looking forward to this event, and understand that many young people were looking forward to it also.

    “The decision to postpone has not been taken lightly – the safety of our community is paramount.”

    The event was marketed as a free youth celebration of “diversity, inclusion, having fun and connection to like-minded folks.”

    Drag performances, queer stand-up comedy, musical acts and a chance for attendees to enjoy garment-making workshops were planned.

    “Our decision to postpone the event in no way legitimises the statements made by the protest groups,” the spokesman said.

    “Our primary focus is on the safety of young people and their right to be able to gather connect and celebrate in a welcoming and inclusive environment.”

    “We fully support our LGBTIQA+ community and are committed to a culture of child safety.”

    The Herald Sun understands police will continue to run proactive patrols of the area to deter any anti-social behaviour.

    Organisers have vowed to reschedule the event to a later date.

  25. C.L. says:

    Thanks for posting, Brush.

    Victoria Police protecting a night-time sexpo for 12 year-olds run by homosexuals and cross-dressers. And only “neo-Nazis” oppose it.

  26. Lee says:

    “We fully support our LGBTIQA+ community and are committed to a culture of child safety.”

    Yes, your children are perfectly “safe” with mentally ill men who dress up in drag to gain access to them.

    The vast majority of my parents’ generation (born pre-WWII) would have been absolutely livid at the thought of drag queens and sexual deviants being anywhere near their children.

  27. Diogenes says:

    What Sheridan has also missed is that Indonesia has also embraced the Lavrov Doctrine, as opposed to the US defined Universal Declaration of Human Rights. “Yes we support human rights, but we will interpret them according to our history and culture”.

    Are we surprised that Indonesia is one of the 11 countries of the G20 who haven’t imposed sanctions on Russia? Also they refused to exclude Russia from the G20 they hosted a few months ago.

  28. dover_beach says:

    Oppose the insidious drag sexualisation of children? You’re a neo-nazi:

    Threats of neo-Nazi protests force cancellation of LGBTQIA+ event in St Kilda.

    You watch, they will try and nix these protests under the same guise as they do prayer out the front of abortuaries. They are already cultivating the field by being worried about the ‘safety’ of attendees, by referring to the protestors as ‘far right’, ‘neo-Nazis’, ‘homophobes’, ‘transphobes’, and the like. They may even be so bold as to fabricate an incident.

  29. C.L. says:

    What Sheridan has also missed is that Indonesia has also embraced the Lavrov Doctrine, as opposed to the US defined Universal Declaration of Human Rights. “Yes we support human rights, but we will interpret them according to our history and culture”.

    Are we surprised that Indonesia is one of the 11 countries of the G20 who haven’t imposed sanctions on Russia? Also they refused to exclude Russia from the G20 they hosted a few months ago.

    I’ve bookmarked this excellent point.

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