=== Todays Toon ===
Spare us the whingeing woman. Julia Gillard whinges that an Opposition member elected as an endorsed Coalition member won’t defect to the ALP to help her out. by Bronwyn Bishop=== Bible Quote ===
“The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.”- 1 Corinthians 2:14=== Headlines ===
Plenty of Unfinished Business Awaits Congress After Elections
Democrats are hoping to squeeze debate on numerous bills into their lame duck session after the November elections, even though balance of power could shift to the GOP once the next Congress convenes.Polls: Dems in Trouble In Battleground States
As president speaks in Wisconsin at a campus rally, he visits a state where his party and his policies are in big trouble with voters, Fox News polls find
Celebrity Drug 'Fix' On Dangerous Rise
Many connected to the entertainment arena say they are seeing an increase in recreational drug use among celebrities, who continue to rely on their friends as suppliers
Pedophiles Find a Home — on Facebook
Despite 'strict' policy against posting child exploitation content, world's largest pro-pedophilia advocacy group is on Facebook — and it's using the social networking giant to prey on kids
Ancient Greek Grave Hides Golden Skeleton
Greek archaeologists have found an ancient skeleton covered with gold foil in a grave on the island of Crete, officials said Tuesday. Excavator Nicholas Stampolidis said his team discovered more than 3,000 pieces of gold foil in the 7th-century B.C. twin grave near the ancient town of Eleutherna. Cemeteries there have produced a wealth of outstanding artifacts in recent years. The tiny gold ornaments, from 1 to 4 centimeters (0.4 to 1.5 inches) long, had been sewn onto a lavish robe or shroud that initially wrapped the body of a woman and has almost completely rotted away but for a few off-white threads.Breaking News
Navy rescues stranded fishermanTHE Australian navy has rescued an Indonesian fisherman who was adrift at sea for three days.
Gillard slams minister threat 'nonsense'
PRIME Minister Julia Gillard has rejected as "completely untrue" claims that two of her ministers threatened to resign and force by-elections before she announced her ministry.
Joyce sinks slipper into deputy speaker nod
NATIONALS Senate leader Barnaby Joyce says the Coalition is "disappointed" Labor's candidate for deputy speaker won out, but insists it's no big deal.
Show commonsense on pairing, PM urges
PRIME Minister Julia Gillard is urging the Opposition to show some commonsense in deciding which Government ministers and MPs can absent themselves from Parliament.
NSW/ACT
Dress-up bikies booked by copsTWO bikies have been charged after cops found police uniforms and a mass of stolen cosmetics at a house.
Tall tale belittles Sydney city
ARCHITECTS want higher towers at Barangaroo to prevent Sydney from becoming a short city.
Sydney reveals its secrets
SECRET Sydney will be exposed, allowing a rare glimpse of underground water tunnels, old hospitals and ghost train platforms.
There's a Santa crisis looming
IT appears there aren't enough jolly men available to don white beard, red suit and padding to represent Santa Claus this Christmas.
No idea I was a grandmother
WHEN Keli Lane arrived home in September 1996, her mother had not the slightest inkling she had given birth to her second child.
Bikies 'planned hit on Zervas
IT was an order that "came from the top" of the Comanchero bikie gang - and there was to be "no dicking around", a court heard.
Locusts cop it from the air
THE phony war is over, with the first real battle against the locust plague that threatens to devastate NSW's crops to begin today.
School bus 'ablaze in seconds'
JUST seconds before this bus burst into flames, it was filled with 38 Sydney high school students enjoying an excursion to the snow.
Keating sees red over charge
AS former PM Paul Keating sees it, it was the traffic infringement court case we had to have.
Get tough on firearms, Will's family says
THE parents of slain police officer William Crews back a campaign calling for tougher gun laws.
Queensland
Bligh on shift as checkout chickPREMIER Anna Bligh has started her shift as a checkout chick at a Coles store in Brisbane as part of her program to reconnect with voters.
Stonefish stings plague north
MAGNETIC Island has become a dangerous place to wade in the shallows with three people suffering stonefish stings in the past few weeks.
New check-in glitch hits Virgin
VIRGIN has been hit by more computer glitches at airports with travellers being checked in manually.
Stolen 4WD rams cops in chase
POLICE still hunting driver of stolen four wheel drive which rammed a patrol car before smashing into a power and bringing down lines.
State red tape costing billions
RED tape is costing Queensland businesses $6.5 billion a year, up $780 million on last year, an industry group says.
Bayside Brethren church plan declined
A CONTROVERSIAL Exclusive Brethren development proposal for a block of land on Brisbane's bayside has been rejected by Brisbane City Council.
Agents say 'Tell her she's dreaming'
PREMIER Anna Bligh believes the State Government can make a profit on a millionaire's row it bought on the Sunshine Coast, but real estate experts say she's dreaming.
Teen friend 'frightened' by Sica
ACCUSED triple murderer Max Sica once frightened a female friend by following her home with his car lights off, a court heard.
Bligh's green power rip-off
HOUSEHOLDS are being charged seven times the real price for gas-fired electricity to meet the Bligh Government's commitment to a "clean and green" state.
10 commandments enrage police
POLICE have been warned that arrogance, narcissism and excessive socialising with colleagues are early indications of misconduct and corruption.
Victoria
Secret files woman had top clearanceUPDATE 10.26am: A WOMAN linked to the discovery of secret files in a police drug raid had the “highest security clearance”.
No relief for Virgin blues
UPDATE 9.30am: VIRGIN Blue's computer system is working again after an early morning glitch delayed thousands of passengers.
Analog switch gathers pace
ABOUT 455,000 households will lose their analog TV signal and have to buy a digital televiison or set-top box before May 5.
Organisers promise windfall
WORLD cycling championship organisers claim the titles will deliver a multi-million windfall for Victoria's economy.
Walk of life
FIVE-year-old cerebral palsy sufferer Cooper Smith is raising funds for poor children in Cambodia with a 1km charity walk.
We just want peace
THE youngest son of slain crime patriarch Macchour Chaouk has declared a ceasefire with rival family the Haddaras.
Wedding a black and white choice
THE bride-to-be had a black-and-white choice - bring the grand final to her wedding or risk being left at the altar.
Council wants to pay for station
MELBOURNE City Council could be forced to build its own makeshift police station in a bid to curb violence in Southbank.
Bodybuilder's '17kg drug stash'
A FORMER bodybuilder stole hundreds of thousands of dollars in drugs while working at a medical waste company, a court has heard.
Hunt for shotgun bandits
DRAMATIC CCTV: A GUN-wielding bandit and his accomplice have been captured on video carrying out a terrifying armed robbery.
Northern Territory
Nothing newSouth Australia
Suspicious fire burns houseA SUSPICIOUS house fire in Nuriootpa has caused at least $120,000 damage.
Five arrested over high-speed chase
FIVE people have been arrested following an alleged bottle shop break-in at Parkside and a high-speed pursuit at Monarto.
Let the war on locusts begin
THE state's war against locusts became airborne yesterday, and officials expect to have sprayed hundreds of kilometres in the Flinders Ranges by the end of the week.
Harry back in loving arms
IT'S been a big fuss for a small dog. Harry the chihuahua is in all kinds of debt to his owner after being reunited with her at Sturt Police Station yesterday.
Buddhist temple plans a step closer
AN imposing 35m high pagoda and 18m bronze Buddha statue are one step closer to being built on an idyllic beach setting at Sellicks Hill.
Foley's $330m Budget apology
A BUDGET error of more than $330 million has forced Treasurer Kevin Foley to make an embarrassing apology to Parliament.
Haves versus the have-nots
THE State Government has been accused of mowing down sport in the disadvantaged western suburbs while propping up leisure centres in affluent areas.
Libs' plan to save millions
THREE ministers and programs such as the Thinkers in Residence would be scrapped under a Liberal government.
Atheist's 'miracle' escape in Penola
JON Banks is a confessed atheist, but the Penola post office owner was happy to take any miracle he could get when he suffered a heart attack.
Human toll the hidden impact of water policy
DROUGHT and climate change are prompting outbursts of domestic violence and increasing the number of suicides along the River Murray, a national expert says.
Western Australia
Controversial beach laws deferredCOTTESLOE Town Council last night deferred its controversial new beach laws to "take into account community feedback".
Boy, 16, charged over car fire death
A 16-YEAR-old boy has been charged over the death of another teenager whose body was discovered inside a burnt-out car in a Bassendean yesterday.
Hidden camera 'no joke'
A MAN who hid a camera in a bathroom exhaust fan to spy on a 21-year-old woman sharing his home has been fined $1250.
Hardship payments for residents
THE State Government hopes to announce a package of hardship payments for under-insured Toodyay residents who lost property in the 2009 bushfire.
WA books $831m budget surplus
WA’S economic recovery is going better than expected after higher royalties and public servant cuts help drive the state’s operating surplus to $831 million.
Extortionist facing substantial sentence
A SOLIDLY built tattooed man known as "Ox'' wielded a baseball bat to terrorise a Perth mining executive into paying money to an extortionist, a court has heard.
Seafarer 'put himself at risk'
A SEAFARER killed on board a floating storage and off-loading oil tanker off West Australia's north coast in 2008, placed himself in a dangerous position, a report has found.
Kitten dumping season begins early
THE first kittens of the Christmas cat dumping season have arrived at the Cat Haven.
Tasmania
Nothing new=== Journalists Corner ===
Guest: Daniel HannanHe has blasted Gordon Brown's economic policy. Now, what's his warning for Obama and America? Daniel Hannan speaks out.
===
No Knowledge, No Vote?!
Are some Americans just too uninformed to cast a ballot? John Stossel makes a surprising case. Plus - we go inside Bush and Obama's "warring" positions. Bob Woodward discusses how the presidents differ when it comes to battle.
===
Securing Our Nation's Borders!
Mexican drugs and violence are spilling over into the states. So, what needs to be done now to contain the chaos south of the border? Sheriff Paul Babeu reacts.
===
On Fox News Insider:
SPEAK OUT: Women Less Likely to Vote Than Men in 2010?Kim Jong Il Makes Son 4-Star General
VIDEO: O'Reilly Gets Royal Treatment at The Daily Show
=== Comments ===
Stunning New Poll on Politics and the MediaBY BILL O'REILLY
Stunning new poll on politics and the media, that is the subject of this evening's "Talking Points Memo." Survey done by Politico and George Washington University asked 1,000 likely voters about the current state of politics and the media in the USA. The results may surprise you.
First, 45 percent strongly disapprove of the job President Obama is doing, 35 percent strongly approve. But, personally, this situation is reverse, 47 percent of likely voters say they strongly approve of the president as a person. Just 19 percent strongly disprove.
On the subject of his possible re-election, 44 percent say they will vote against Barack Obama the next time around, 38 percent say he deserves to be re-elected. Forty two percent of Americans say the president is very liberal, and 41 percent say the new "Obamacare" legislation is terrible, just 18 percent favorite enthusiastically.
So, the mood of the country is obviously running strongly against Mr. Obama's policies. As for the Republican Party, Mitt Romney has a 45 percent favorable rating, 28 percent don't like him. Sarah Palin, 44 percent like her, 49 percent do not. Mike Huckabee 49 percent like him, 25 percent do not. And Newt Gingrich clocks in at 35 percent favorable, 39 percent unfavorable.
Turning to the media, listen to this, 81 percent of likely voters now get their information about politics from cable news; 71 percent say they get it from information from network news. On the cable news front, 42 percent of respondents say Fox is their main source of information about politics, 30 percent say CNN. Just 12 percent cite MSNBC, which is disastrous.
The Politico-George Washington survey also polled media people. When asked who has the greatest positive impact on the political debate in America, your humble correspondent, the O'Reilly guy, comes out far ahead. Forty nine percent of Americans cited me as having a positive impact on the political debate in this country.
Now, I know I'm not a humble man, but that's really something. I appreciate it very much. I should note that 32 percent of the public say that I am a negative influence. Of course, they are misguided. Glenn Beck comes in second; 38 percent saying he has a positive impact, 32 percent negative. Rush Limbaugh third; 36 percent positive, 52 percent negative. Sean Hannity fourth; 35 percent positive, 25 percent negative, and Jon Stewart fifth; 34 percent positive, 22 negative.
So, what does all this mean? Well, clearly the Fox News Channel has become the most important media outlet in the country. I don't think there is any question about that. Secondly, our cable competition doesn't even show up. Third, network news does remain a force but no longer leads. Fourth, the Republican race in 2012 wide open. And fifth, President Obama has enormous problems to overcome.
===
Rejecting Religion In America
By Cal Thomas
“God helps those who help themselves” has long been one of those sayings misinformed people think is in the Bible. Sadly, too many people who claim to believe in God think it is part of Scripture. Their ignorance about such ultimate issues is exposed in the latest survey by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life.
And here’s another surprise. –The folks in our country who scored the highest on the survey’s multiple choice test were atheists. Why? According to Pew:
"American atheists and agnostics tend to be people who grew up in a religious tradition and consciously gave it up, often after a great deal of reflection and study," said Alan Cooperman, associate director for research at the Pew Forum.
"These are people who thought a lot about religion," he said. "They're not indifferent. They care about it."
I’m not surprised by these findings. Mr. Cooperman’s interpretation makes sense to me. To reject religion you must understand what you are rejecting.
But it can also work the other way…
Some of my favorite former atheists began reading Scripture in order to discredit it and wound up as believers. The book "Who Moved the Stone" is one of the more famous conversion stories of an atheist.
Author C.S. Lewis had a similar experience, beginning as an atheist, then as he read the Bible, a theist, and then a convert to Christianity. -- He started by using his mind to discredit Scripture and ending up one of the most famous of all modern converts.
What is most shocking about Americans who DO identify themselves as believers in this survey is that Protestants and Roman Catholics – the two largest branches of Christianity in America – are unaware about the basic tenets of their faith. For example, 45 percent of Roman Catholics who participated in the Pew study don’t know their church’s belief that the bread and wine of the Eucharist become the literal body and blood of Christ.
More than half the Protestants surveyed could not identify Martin Luther (not King) as the person who gave impetus to the Protestant Reformation. The next time they sing, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God” in church, they might like to glance down at the bottom of the hymnal page to note the author.
Every faith category – from Jews to Mormons – did poorly in giving correct answers to questions they should know about their declared faith. Not surprisingly, said Pew, those who attend religious services at least once a week and consider faith important in their lives answered more of the questions correctly than those who were less serious about religious practices.
The Bible – in both the Old and New Testaments—warns about the “cares of this world” creeping in to dull our senses to the need of God in our lives. In modern times, that dullness is produced by the pursuit of pleasure and material things.
Forgetting God produces not only eternal consequences, but earthly ones as well. Moses warned about forgetting God and when ancient Israel did, she was conquered by her enemies. New Testament writers penned similar warnings. Alexandr Solzhenitsyn concluded the major reason Russia suffered under Communism for six decades is that his people had forgotten God. Abraham Lincoln blamed the Civil War on a nation that had forgotten God “and the hand that graciously preserved us.”
Ignorance is not bliss, especially when it comes to the consequences of ignoring God, His salvation and where each of us will spend eternity. -- Those questions trump politics and every other earthly concern. (emphasis added - ed)
Cal Thomas is America's most widely syndicated columnist and a Fox News contributor.
===
Artificial Human Ovary Created
By Jeanna Bryner
A lab-grown ovary has successfully matured human eggs and could eventually be used to help women conceive.
The artificial ovary could play a role in preserving the fertility of women facing cancer treatment in the future, said study researcher Sandra Carson, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and director of the division of reproductive endocrinology and infertility at Women & Infants Hospital in Providence, R.I.
Immature eggs could be salvaged and frozen before the onset of chemotherapy or radiation, and then matured in the artificial ovary.
"I think this will be a way that we'll be able to mature eggs, but it's not going to be next month," Carson told LiveScience, adding that she hopes in the next five years the method will be used in clinical practice.
The development will also provide a living laboratory of sorts for looking into basic questions about how healthy ovaries work and how exposure to toxins, such as phthalates, can disrupt the organ and its function.
Ovaries are almond-size organs (most women have two) in which eggs mature before being released down the fallopian tubes, ready to be fertilized. But when aiming to recreate one, the scientists had to look under the hood at key details.
"An ovary is composed of three main cell types, and this is the first time that anyone has created a 3-D tissue structure with triple cell line," Carson said.
She said her goal was never to invent an artificial organ, per se, but merely to create a research environment where she could study how the three types of ovary cells interact.
But then Carson learned about special Petri dishes created in the lab of Jeffrey Morgan, associate professor of medical science and engineering at Brown University. The dishes are made out of a moldable gel meant to coax cells into certain shapes. The cells can't attach to the micro-mold and so instead they attach to one another within the confines of the custom-shaped molds.
"In a typical Petri dish, cells grow as one layer on the surface of the dish," Morgan said in a telephone interview. "And in our 3-D dish the cells grow as clusters of cells, they self-assemble to form a 3-D structure."
The two researchers collaborated to create the lab ovary. First they formed honeycombs of theca cells, one of two key types in the ovary, donated by patients ages 25 to 46 at the hospital. After the theca cells grew into the honeycomb shape, spherical clumps of donated granulosa cells were inserted into the holes of the honeycomb together with human egg cells (oocytes), also donated by patients. In a couple days the theca cells enveloped the granulosa and eggs, mimicking a real ovary. [Image of honeycomb ovary]
In experiments the structure, which is about the diameter of a pencil eraser, was able to nurture eggs from the so-called early antral follicle stage to full maturity. None of the eggs in the study were fertilized with sperm.
The scientists detail their results online Aug. 25 in the Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics that describes the innovation.
The research was supported by the division of reproductive endocrinology & infertility at the Women & Infants' Hospital of Rhode Island, and by a grant from the Rhode Island Science and Technology Council.
===
PRIORITIES CONSIDERED
Tim Blair
Is football more important than marriage? Yes. Yes, of course it is:
Melbourne brides will be left at the altar next Saturday, with guests dumping nuptials in favour of watching the AFL Grand Final replay.But grand final weekend didn’t avoid them, being rescheduled after last Saturday’s draw.
Bride-to-be Laura Haywood is devastated by the replay, saying guests have already started declining to attend her special day.
“We’ve had five people cancel already and I’m assuming many people just won’t turn up to the ceremony,” Ms Haywood said …
Ms Haywood said neither she nor fiance Andrew Swann followed football, but the pair had been careful to avoid grand final weekend.
===
WARMTH AND BRIMSTONE
Tim Blair
Shunned by Obama, religious relic Bill McKibben continues his evangelism road show:
It may be too late to reverse some of the devastating effects of a warmer earth, author and environmentalist Bill McKibben told a standing-room only crowd at the College of the Holy Cross Monday night.(Via Flopping Aces)
In a folksy cadence more akin to his roots as a Methodist Sunday school teacher than climate change activist, Mr. McKibben apologized in advance for “bumming people out,” but declared the situation around the planet isn’t good …
Mr. McKibben’s lecture opened a yearlong series at Holy Cross on the environment, and was sponsored by the Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture.
===
CYCLE OF HISTORY
Tim Blair
City of Sydney council is opening unpopular bike lanes and trying to close popular late-night bars. We’re working our way back to the 1930s.
UPDATE. Sydney’s future foretold.
===
TRUTHER MOTHER
Tim Blair
Look who’s a truther:
Now that Cindy Sheehan has decided Dick Cheney was involved in 9/11, perhaps the ABC should seek another interview.
===
NOT ANYONE’S KING OR GOD
Tim Blair
WikiLeaks, the life-endangering idiot site run by Australian Julian Assange, is leaking staff:
At least half a dozen WikiLeaks staffers have tendered their resignations in recent weeks, the most prominent of them being Daniel Domscheit-Berg, who, under the name Daniel Schmitt, served as WikiLeaks’ German spokesman.Assange’s alleged reply:
Domscheit-Berg learned about Assange’s agreements with a number of media outlets last month, but did not know the details or when the documents were scheduled to be released. When he quizzed Assange in an online chat, Assange responded by accusing Domscheit-Berg of leaking information about discontent within WikiLeaks to a columnist for Newsweek.
A purported transcript of the chat provided to Wired.com by a WikiLeaks insider shows the conversation grew heated.
“You are not anyone’s king or god,” wrote Domscheit-Berg in the chat. “And you’re not even fulfilling your role as a leader right now. A leader communicates and cultivates trust in himself. You are doing the exact opposite. You behave like some kind of emperor or slave trader.”
“You are suspended for one month, effective immediately. If you wish to appeal, you will be heard on Tuesday.”Domscheit-Berg resigned instead.
===
Why are you clapping?
Andrew Bolt
Labour voted for the wrong Miliband, who makes a refreshing protest against a hypocrite applauding his brother.
(Thanks to reader Alan RM Jones.)
===
Poor Rolf goes from icon to pariah
Andrew Bolt
From an Australian Communications and Media Authority finding on station 2WKT:
Complainant’s submissionsBut then ACMA decrees on limits on the right of one station guest to express himself. Oddly enough, the guest is Aboriginal. The vilification that’s not addressed is the vilifiction of Harris.
On 17 March 2010, the complainant submitted to 2WKT that:
1. The first complaint relates to the choice of introduction music by Rolf Harris ‘Brindabella Morning’ to an allegedly Indigenous segment. Rolf Harris is well known for his vilification of Aboriginal peoples. [ ... ]
An apology to myself and the wider community should be made immediately. The choice of music was derogatory and offensive by [the presenter] and if she is to continue
Licensee’s submissions
On 21 May 2d10, the licensee submitted to the complainant that:
The Board apologises for any offence inadvertently caused to the Aboriginal community for the music played on 16 March 2010.
However, the Rolf Harris song “Brindabella Morning” was played as a comment on the softness of that particular morning in the Southern Highlands…
Finding…
In relation to the first matter, it is noted that the lyrics of Brindabel/a Morning focus on the natural beauty of the region. The complainant has not outlined concerns with the content of the song, but has alleged that the broadcast of the song Brindabella Morning was derogatory and offensive, given the opinions held by the recording artist, Rolf Harris.
It is noted that Mr Harris has commented publicly on Indigenous issues4, however, as this song does not focus on Indigenous issues, nor were Mr Harris’ views on Indigenous issues discussed by the presenter or her guest, the broadcast of the song is not in breach of code 4 of the Community Radio Broadcasting Codes of Practice (the Codes).
If some readers are wondering why I don’t discuss a similar case, I sadly can’t. And such are the legal dangers, that comments on this are closed.
(Thanks to reader Christopher.)
===
A soldier’s view
Andrew Bolt
A soldier serving in Afghanistan has written to 2GB’s Jason Morrison about the Army’s decision to court martial three soldiers over the deaths of six civilians:
I am a serving soldier in the ((UNIT NAME)) currently operating in ((LOCATION)) in the northern Kandahar Province in Afghanistan.
My father emailed me this morning to let me know about the news back home with the soldiers charged and that thankfully many people have spoken up in support of the boys.
It’s been a wild couple of months up here but it’s calming a little at the at the moment. The insurgent activity is always changing but we are having contact nearly every second day on missions and it’s a bit of a nervous time.
Only a fortnight ago one of the boys was hit in one of the Bushmasters (armed trucks) in a roadside bomb. He was pretty badly cut up but he should be ok.
I jumped on the internet to read the newspaper coverage of the manslaughter charges and being over here I can almost see what took place. People back home need to know that we’re fighting an enemy that looks just like a civilian.
===
Suzuki off his warming planet
Andrew Bolt
Tom Harris of the International Climate Science Coalition reviews the latest book of eco-alarmist and crank David Suzuki:Some of the book delves into what one may consider environmental mysticism. Saying that, because air is in and around us, we are air and since we all share that air, then “I am you”. Because plants and animals ultimately come from the soil and we eat plants and animals, then “we are earth.” In referring to animals and plants, Suzuki says, “All life on Earth is our kin. And in an act of generosity [a strange concept to attribute to species other than humans], our relatives create the four sacred elements for us.”(Thanks to reader John.)
There are many science mistakes in the book too numerous to list ...but here is one that illustrates how far Suzuki has strayed from a rational assessment of main stream science (p. 17):
“We have become a force of nature ... Not long ago, hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, drought, forest fires, even earthquakes and volcanic explosions were accepted as “natural disasters or “acts of God.” But now, we have joined God, powerful enough to influence these events.” ...
And of course tonight, Suzuki strongly, even angrily, promoted the human-caused climate catastrophe hypothesis - no one dared contest him in the question period.
===
Germans attack again
Andrew Bolt
Test your prejudices - or your judgment with this just-in report:
Intelligence agencies have intercepted a terror plot to launch Mumbai-style attacks on Britain and other European countries...By:
A. Muslims
B. Baptists
C. Hindus
D. Jews
Sky’s foreign affairs editor Tim Marshall said militants based in Pakistan were planning simultaneous strikes on London and major cities in France and Germany… Intelligence sources told Sky the planned attacks would have been similar to the commando-style raids carried out in Mumbai...By:
A. Muslims
B. Baptists
C. Hindus
D. Jews
Britain’s terror threat level remains at “severe” following the underpants bomber’s attempted attack on Detroit airport last Christmas.The “underpants bomber” was:
A. Muslim
B. Baptist
C. Hindu
D. Jewish
If you are stumped for the answers, AP and the Jakarta Globe can’t help you, either.
America’s ABC suggests the correct answer to the first question is none of the above:
… a suspected German terrorist ...
===
Which two did Gillard want to dump?
Andrew Bolt
Julia Gillard thinks two of her Cabinet ministers don’t deserve their jobs, says former Labor powerbroker Graham Richardson:When she tried to demote one cabinet minister and suggested to another that he should step aside, they both immediately threatened to resign from parliament. Gillard backed off. She had no choiceSo which two are the ones Gillard thinks are duds?
CABINET MINISTERSUPDATE
Julia Gillard, 48
Prime Minister
Wayne Swan, 56
Deputy Prime Minister and Treasurer
Kevin Rudd, 52
Minister for Foreign Affairs
Chris Evans, 52
Minister for Jobs, Skills and Workplace Relations
Simon Crean, 61
Minister for Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government; Minister for the Arts
Stephen Smith, 54
Minister for Defence
Nicola Roxon, 43
Minister for Health and Ageing
Jenny Macklin, 56
Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs
Anthony Albanese, 47
Minister for Infrastructure and Transport
Kim Carr, 55
Minister for Innovation, Industry and Science
Stephen Conroy, 47
Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy; Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on Digital Productivity
Penny Wong, 41
Minister for Finance and Deregulation
Peter Garrett, 57
Minister for Schools, Early Childhood and Youth
Robert McClelland, 52
Attorney-General
Joe Ludwig, 51
Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
Tony Burke, 40
Minister for Sustainable Population, Communities, Environment and Water
Martin Ferguson, 56
Minister for Resources, Energy and Tourism
Chris Bowen, 37
Minister for Immigration and Citizenship
Craig Emerson, 55
Minister for Trade
Greg Combet, 52
Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency
Would Richardson really have made it up?
Prime Minister Julia Gillard has rejected as ”completely untrue” claims that two of her ministers threatened to resign and force by-elections before she announced her ministry.If Richardson is right, I’d put my last dollar on Garrett being one of the ministers he referred to, with Wong probably the other.
UPDATE 2
Friend Michael points out that it can’t be Wong, since she’s in the Senate and would not trigger a by-election by resigning. McClelland? After all, there were rumours that Wong would get his portfolio. Michael thinks Macklin.
===
News flash: GetUp considered being pro-Labor
Andrew Bolt
This is news?
Left-wing lobby group GetUp considered becoming an ALP “campaigning machine” in the lead-up to the 2007 federal election, the group’s first executive director says.And, clearly, it decided to become just that, right? Or have I missed the campaigns it produced that helped the Coalition?
===
No time now for a second grand final
Andrew Bolt
I’ve never heard such whingeing this week about the AFL’s tied Grand Final.
And I mean that literally.
I never heard this whingeing about having to hold a replay when we last had an AFL Grand Final tie, in the 1977 game between North Melbourne and Collingwood.
And no one I’ve asked can recall any after the 1948 tie, either.
But this time? My goodness. There has been a bitching from the moment the final siren blew.
Collingwood captain Nick Maxwell, still out on the ground, denounced a replay as an “absolute joke”.
St Kilda hero Brendon Goddard complained his holiday plans had been ruined.
St Kilda’s president, Greg Westaway, said having to wait another week to decide the premiership was “a bit of a nonsense” and the AFL had to change the rules.
And the AFL has not definitively ruled that out, and has already decreed there will be no replay if there is another tie next Saturday. Extra time will be played instead.
You see the trend already.
In fact, once the AFL replayed all tied finals games, but since 1994 has settled all but the grand final in extra time.
Likewise, rugby league grand finals ending in a tie were once replayed, but since 1979 have been decided instead in extra time, and, later, a golden point in overtime.
What’s with us, that so many fans now jib at what they gladly put up with for decades?
===
More for less
Andrew Bolt
Christopher Booker on Britain’s latest wind-farm rip-off:
In all the publicity given to the opening of “the world’s largest wind farm” off the Kent coast last week, by far the most important and shocking aspect of this vast project was completely overlooked. Over the coming years we will be giving the wind farm’s Swedish owners a total of £1.2 billion in subsidies. That same sum, invested now in a single nuclear power station, could yield a staggering 13 times more electricity, with much greater reliability.
===
You launch a public campaign for $37 million and want privacy?
Andrew Bolt
Janet Albrechtsen asks some excellent questions about Kristy Fraser-Kirk’s increasingly troubling $37 million claim against David Jones and its former chief executive Mark McInnes, accused of groping:
When newspapers started asking questions as to whether Fraser-Kirk had made previous harassment complaints when she worked as a civilian with the NSW Police, her media managers ensured she appeared in front of the cameras again, this time lamenting the “smear” campaign against her.Albrechtsen asks a series of other questions. Read on. No comments.
But hang on. If Fraser-Kirk uses the media to claim McInnes is a serial harasser, surely the media is entitled to explore whether Fraser-Kirk is a serial complainant. And if Fraser-Kirk is allowed to claim in court that McInnes sexually harassed many other women, isn’t McInnes entitled to know who these women are?…
Then, on Monday, Fraser-Kirk’s team claimed in court that their client was suffering an “adjustment disorder” because of media attention causing “harm and intrusion” and that, to protect the other women suffering the same fate, their names should be subject to a strict confidentiality regime…
Another question: Isn’t it a bit rich for Fraser-Kirk to complain about the media given that Fraser-Kirk and her team kicked off the $37m claim in a blaze of publicity before assembled media?
===
WikiLeak autocrat suffers WikiLeaking
Andrew Bolt
You’d think it was the job description. But WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has accused a key staffer of leaking:
When he quizzed Assange in an online chat, Assange responded by accusing [Daniel] Domscheit-Berg of leaking information about discontent within WikiLeaks to a columnist for Newsweek.Another WikiLeaker reveals that Domscheit-Berg told the troubled Assange a few home truths in reply:
“You are not anyone’s king or god,” wrote Domscheit-Berg in the chat. “And you’re not even fulfilling your role as a leader right now. A leader communicates and cultivates trust in himself. You are doing the exact opposite. You behave like some kind of emperor or slave trader.”Really? Which statement of Assange’s might have given him this idea? Was it this?
“I am the heart and soul of this organization, its founder, philosopher, spokesperson, original coder, organizer, financier and all the rest,” Assange wrote Snorrason. “If you have a problem with me, piss off.”Anyway, Assange did not take Domscheit-Berg’s criticisms well:
“You are suspended for one month, effective immediately,” Assange shot back. “If you wish to appeal, you will be heard on Tuesday.”Domscheit-Berg quit instead, joining half a dozen others leaking from the organisation.
I can’t think of a better illustration of Bertrand Russell’s observation:
Much of what passes as idealism is disguised hatred or disguised love of power.
===
Australia’s next top model is…. No, wait
Andrew Bolt
The horror.
No comments:
Post a Comment