Another year’s done gone.
As in 2022, then, here’s a brief review of what appeared on the blog in 2023:
January : I updated Trot Guide, made some notes about Invasion Day and anti-fascism — inter alia National Socialist Network (NSN) lvl boss Tom Sewell escaped a prison term after being found guilty of assault — and we interviewed Evan Smith, Boe Spearim and Shane Burley for the radio.
February : Along with episodes of Yeah Nah Pasaran! (interviews with Diana Garvin, Kirsten Dyck, Meghan Conroy and Hannah Gais), I wrote about a shitty local black metal promoter called Australibus Tenebris.
March : In March, it came to my attention that veteran Islamophobic serial pest Shermon ‘The Great Australian Patriot’ Burgess — the former face of the ‘Australian Defence League’, ‘Reclaim Australia’, ‘United Patriots Front’ and numerous other far-right satellites — had apparently converted to Islam. We also spoke to Kate Burns, Byron Clark, Jayne Persian and Simon Hunt (Pauline Pantsdown).
March was also when English semi-pro transphobe Lady Posie Parker (AKA Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull) took part in a publicity tour of Australia and paid an even briefer visit to Aotearoa/New Zealand. The fallout from that particular stoopid carries on into 2024, with special guest speaker and Victorian state MP Moira Deeming suing Liberal Party leader John Pesutto for defamation regarding her involvement in the tour and subsequent expulsion from the party; especially ‘controversial’ was the participation of Sewell & The Gang in the event, a fact which forms a critical part of Deeming’s claims against Pesutto. See : Victorian MP Moira Deeming lodges defamation suit against Liberal leader John Pesutto, ABC, December 5, 2023.
April : We spoke to Ray Acheson and Jason Wilson in April and, borrowing from Crikey’s Cam Wilson, I (re-)examined the careers of several AltRight keyboard warriors (and some intimate links to The Daily Mail).
May : The NSN rallied outside the Victorian state parliament again (May 13) and another old mate and former PHONy, Torin O’Brien, generated some publicity in Rocky. We spoke to Alex Hinton, Ali Breland, Kristina Stoeckl and Siân Norris: Cam also spoke to Kiera Butler about Lawyers, Moms & Money.
June : There was nothing beyond documenting interviews with Molly Conger, Bill Peel and Elise Thomas.
July : In July we spoke to Isabella Currie, Ashley Mattheis, Max Kaiser and Jock Palfreeman: there was also discussion about the neo-Nazi gym in Sunshine West.
August : Warren Mundine’s Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) met at the casino in Sydney in August. I banged on about it a bit, and I also examined the bizarre campaign by the Building Industry Group of unions in Victoria to defend duck-hunting, noted the temporary retirement of keyboard warrior David Hiscox from the NSN and, for some reason, also talked a little about muzak. This month on Yeah Nah Pasaran! we interviewed Bradley Onishi, Jason Wilson, Matthew Cunningham and Tom Tanuki: Cam also spoke to Valerie Morse on Racist Tours.
September : In September, a group of NSN members unwisely decided to attempt to disrupt an anti-fascist benefit gig: Neo-Nazis attack anti-fascist benefit gig in Thornbury, Friday September 15 and Melbourne neo-Nazis flee from Melbourne SHARPs : September 15, 2023. The month also saw a protest rally outside the NSN’s HQ in Sunshine West: Anti-Nazi Rally, Sunshine West, Saturday, September 23 /// Donate to Black Peoples Union + White Rose Society and Melbourne Nazis Say: No to The Voice to Parliament/Yes to Boxing Gyms in Sunshine West. For the show, we spoke to Eviane Leidig, Mike Rothschild, Emily M. Bender and Dan McQuillan.
Also: Proud Boys were sad boys.
October : Go Pies!
Local anarchist Pope Fred passed away, a NEW! war dropped, the NSN leadership were acknowledged as being scholars and gentlemen (while some old bones were seemingly buried) and we interviewed Émile P. Torres, Antony Loewenstein, Luke L Pearson, Kaz Ross and Brandi Buchman.
November : In November I briefly re-examined Australian Unions on The War on Gaza, promoted another anti-fascist benefit gig and responded at some length to an article by Paul Sakkal in ‘The Age’ about how Nasser Mashni (Australian Palestinian Advocacy Network) is secretly a cooked antisemite. For the show we spoke to Jason Wilson, Alana Lentin and Aaron Winter.
December : The NSN rocked up in Ballarat, Joshua Roose and Neil Mitchell faced off against tyre extinguishers on 3AW and in the final episodes of Yeah Nah Pasaran! for the year we interviewed Jordan McSwiney and Joan Braune.
2024 will be the twentieth (!) anniversary for the blog, the audience for which has long been in decline. In addition to the blog, I, along with a majority of readers, can also be found on Bluesky, Facebook, Mastodon and X/Twitter. I also have a Patreon.
