Extreme postcodes: 2119

Postcode 2119 is Beecroft. So what's extreme about Beecroft? Mostly it's just extremely nice.

It's one of those 'leafy green' northern suburbs. It looks nice, and it would undoubtedly be nice to live there. The crime rate is low, and it's certainly not the sort of place you'd hear about in conjunction with anti-terrorist raids.

But yesterday there was a massive police operation, involving pre-dawn raids on homes in about a dozen Sydney suburbs. We are led to believe there was an imminent terrorist threat, by supporters of Islamic State. There were going to be beheadings of randomly selected citizens. These would be filmed, and beamed to the world, thus terrorising us and advancing the cause of the caliphate. And nice little Beecroft was one of the suburbs involved!

So maybe there's something extreme about Beecroft in the sense of the word that interests the intelligence community too? (I've noticed that since I've been posting pieces about 'extreme postcodes' I've been getting large numbers of multiple hits from around the world. If this is the world's spy agencies taking an interest in me, then here you are, something for you people at last!)

Now I imagine there was something real going on that needed police attention. Probably urgent police attention. Maybe one day we'll know the whole story, and maybe then we'll understand why the whole operation was such a big deal. But I'm not the only cynical soul who's noticed a few things about this.

Like that the Government was in trouble in the opinion polls. Its budget had been largely rejected by public opinion and a hostile Senate. That they were desparately, pathetically keen to join in on the new war in the Middle East, and anything that would frighten the public into accepting this would suit them well. That a few days before the raids, the official
'national security alert level' was raised from 'medium' to 'high'. (What purpose would this serve during the final planning of the big police raid, other than to warn the suspects?) That there were cameras present at the raids, and it was all being beamed to us as a big media event. That on the same morning as the raids, the Immigration Minister finally broke his year's silence on his big secret 'turn-back-the-boats' policy to deter waterborne asylum seekers (ie "look at all the potential terrorists I've saved you from"). That some reports are that the alleged conspirators were from the Afgani community (and were thus quite likely asylum seekers). That the muslim community is now worried and even angry about the way they're being portrayed. And one senator (admittedly not a Government one) has now suggested banning the burka! That again!

The whole PR side of this appears to have been superbly orchestrated, in a way that enhances the Government's political standing. They've lied in the past about weapons of mass destruction to justify entering the last Iraq war, and they lied about asylum seekers throwing their children overboard, to stoke up a fear of asylum seekers and help them win the 2001 election. Abbott would dearly love to be in a position to hold and win a double dissolution election now, to end the stalemate in the Senate and start getting his programme through. It's hard not to harbour some doubts about even the essential facts of what we've been told of yesterday's security threat, such is the way politics gets to be played.

The other suburbs involved in yesterday's drama, incidentally, were Castle Hill, Marsfield, Merrylands, Northmead, Westmead, Bella Vista, Guildford, Bass Hill, and Regents Park.