James Cogan - The Selling Out of Australia

SUMMARY:
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I was genuinely fired up after hearing James Cogan’s talk — it cuts through the usual punditry and asks the uncomfortable questions about who really benefits from Australia’s deepening embrace of US foreign policy. Cogan, National Secretary of the Socialist Equality Party and a regular for the World Socialist Website, argues that the idea of a single, unified “Australia” being sold out is misleading. Instead he presents a sharp class analysis: the corporate, media and political establishment have aligned their material interests with Washington’s strategic pivot to the Indo‑Pacific, preparing bases, surveillance platforms and rotational deployments that put Australia on the frontline of a confrontation with China. Far from mere lackeys or soft nationalists, these elites act to preserve their global economic advantages. Importantly, Cogan contrasts this with the working class, whose interests lie in opposing militarisation and war. The talk is provocative, well informed and urgent — essential viewing for anyone concerned about Australia’s future, sovereignty and the threat of being dragged into great‑power conflict.

RUMBLE-OPTIMIZED DESCRIPTION:
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James Cogan (National Secretary, Socialist Equality Party) delivers a sharp, urgent critique of what many call “the selling out of Australia”. This is not a rehash of tired slogans — it’s a class‑based analysis that explains why Australia’s political, corporate and media elite are increasingly locked into the US pivot to the Indo‑Pacific. Cogan traces how successive governments, institutions and think tanks have normalised the idea of Australia as the southern anchor of US strategy, recommending expanded naval basing, surveillance infrastructure, drone operations and more frequent US rotational deployments on our soil.

The talk challenges the assumption that Australia is a homogeneous entity that can be ‘sold out’. Instead Cogan argues the country is bitterly divided along socio‑economic lines: the wealthy sections see their material interests tied to US global power, while the working class has distinct, anti‑war interests. He highlights key milestones and policy recommendations that underpin growing militarisation and the prospect of confrontation with China, and explains why these developments are driven by strategic interests rather than mere political incompetence or lack of independence.

If you care about Australia’s sovereignty, the risk of being dragged into great‑power conflict, and the politics that push us toward militarisation, this talk is essential viewing. Please like, subscribe and comment below with your thoughts — do you agree with Cogan’s class analysis? What should be done to resist escalation and defend the interests of working people? Share this video and start the conversation.

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