I know I do a lot of ****bagging on the US' foreign policy. For all my **** bagging, it's not without any ignorance of what my country does to smaller countries in the Pacific. Australia has been called by several countries the big bully of the Pacific and for good reason.

This (http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/11/18/1069027116721.html) is one of those examples.

East Timor is a struggling country we helped to liberate. To paint a comparison, imagine if the US took over the oil in Iraq and started exploiting that for all it was worth.

What particularly pisses me off is the slant this article took, that East Timor is pointing an accusatory finger at the Aussie government like we've done nothing wrong. Fact is, Australia has been doing this for years and it's been kept very very low key for this reason.

- J.

I remember East Timor from when I was in grade 11 when they were liberated.

These people were being ****ing butchered by the hundreds and forced into some god awful situations. The UN really turned a blind eye to a lot of it, and I'm glad we stepped in. The people basically wanted to vote for a democracy but were threatened, murdered or co-erced into declaring otherwise. One of the many reasons countries like Indonesia don't like Australia very much.

- J.

Well, I guess the argument is its better to have someone stealing your money than to have them killing your childern and raping your wife

I've been unaware of this till now, never even heard of the place....but i'd have to somewhat agree with creed. I think a certain amount is owed to them for helping to liberate, but maybe they've gone a bit overboard.

they have definitly gone overboard. They are lying to the people from east timor and they are lying to the world.

Samething in iraqi. However, I am not blind to the fact they ARE better off now. You don't have to worry about being dragged from your bed at night, thrown in jail and never charged with anything

If America does control the oil fields in Iraq, the average American has yet to see any direct benefit as a result of it.

Petrol prices are starting to come back to reasonable levels, by that I mean less than $1.80/gallon.

Australia has been not only lying but deliberately trying to sweep this under the rug. There's one thing to make a deal and try to recoup your losses for your initial investment, it's another to **** them over because you know you can.

- J.