When lone wolf gunman Man Monis walked into the Lindt cafe in Sydney in December last year, he seemed to have little doubt or confusion about his aims. Monis had his hostages hold up black flags with Arabic script in the windows, resembling those brandished by Islamic State; he called television and radio stations insisting he was carrying out a terrorist attack; he went to the trouble of adorning himself in paraphernalia associated with Islamic terrorism, and he had a long history of directing the most vile abuse at the families of Australian soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. But such is the state of denial of many in public life, and especially those on the left, together with their desperation to pretend there is no serious issue with Islam and terrorism, the Coroner must seriously consider expert evidence over an extended period of time, and at significant expense to the taxpayer, to tell us that – cue wide eyed incredulity – the Lindt cafe madman, who insisted he was carrying out a terrorist attack on behalf of Islamic State, was in fact, a terrorist.
