Published 12 April 200913 April 2009 · Main Posts terrorism poster remix Jeff Sparrow The other day, I stumbled across one of those creepy national security posters – coincidentally, it was at a bus stop outside the Maribyrnong Detention Centre, thus uniting two of the abiding images of the Howard years in one horrid flashback. I can’t find a decent size reproduction of the image but you’ll probably know it: lines of dialogue from neighbourhood finks reporting their acquaintances to the terror hotline, all shaped into a map of Australia. ‘It’s not normal for him to have visitors at this hour’ — that kind of thing. Anyway, someone in Britain had a similar reaction to the same sort of campaign there, and has created a website that allows you to recaption the poster appropriately. Hence the image above. Jeff Sparrow Jeff Sparrow is a writer, editor, broadcaster and Walkley award-winning journalist. He is a former columnist for Guardian Australia, a former Breakfaster at radio station 3RRR, and a past editor of Overland. His most recent book is a collaboration with Sam Wallman called Twelve Rules for Strife (Scribe). He works at the Centre for Advancing Journalism at the University of Melbourne. More by Jeff Sparrow › Overland is a not-for-profit magazine with a proud history of supporting writers, and publishing ideas and voices often excluded from other places. If you like this piece, or support Overland’s work in general, please subscribe or donate. Related articles & Essays 20 March 20262 April 2026 · Main Posts Final results of the 2025 Judith Wright Poetry Prize Editorial team Established in 2007 and supported by the Malcolm Robertson Foundation, the Overland Judith Wright Poetry Prize seeks outstanding poetry from new and emerging writers. This year’s judges, Shastra Deo, Harry Reid and […] 20 March 202620 March 2026 · Main Posts Final results of the 2025 Neilma Sidney Short Story Prize Editorial team Established in 2007 and supported by the Malcolm Robertson Foundation, the Overland Neilma Sidney Short Story Prize seeks outstanding original short fiction of up to 3000 words themed loosely around the notion […]