Bill Shorten was instrumental in changing SPC worker's conditions forever .. according to him. It may well be the most honest thing he has said in public life if, as is possible, SPC closes forever. A monster has married a 12 year old girl in a religious ceremony in NSW. No word as to which religion was involved, but a Lebanese male university student who had married and had a sexual relationship with a 13 year old girl was formally refused bail in Sydney on Friday. It is alleged he had befriended the 12 year old girl at a mosque in the Hunter region. Another boat has been turned back, and no apology from those who said that that could not happen.
===
- 572 – Prince Shōtoku of Japan (d. 622)
- 1102 – Empress Matilda, English wife of Henry V of the Holy Roman Empire (d. 1169)
- 1478 – Thomas More, English politician and author (d. 1535)
- 1758 – Benedikt Schack, Czech tenor composer (d. 1826)
- 1804 – John Deere, American businessman, founded Deere & Company (d. 1886)
- 1812 – Charles Dickens, English author (d. 1870)
- 1870 – Alfred Adler, Austrian psychologist (d. 1937)
- 1877 – G. H. Hardy, English mathematician (d. 1947)
- 1906 – Puyi, Emperor of China (d. 1967)
- 1906 – Oleg Antonov, Soviet aircraft designer, founded the Antonov Aircraft Company (d. 1984)
- 1914 – Ramón Mercader, Spanish assassin of Leon Trotsky (d. 1978)
- 1920 – An Wang, Chinese-American engineer and businessman, founded Wang Laboratories (d. 1990)
- 1934 – Earl King, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 2003)
- 1948 – Jimmy Greenspoon, American keyboard player (Three Dog Night)
- 1956 – Mark St. John, American guitarist (Kiss and White Tiger) (d. 2007)
- 1958 – Matt Ridley, English scientist, journalist, and author
- 1962 – Garth Brooks, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1996 – Mai Hagiwara, Japanese singer (Cute, Petitmoni, and Kira Pika)
- 1997 – Anhelina Kalinina, Ukrainian tennis player
Matches
- 457 – Leo I becomes emperor of the Byzantine Empire.
- 1074 – Pandulf IV of Benevento is killed battling the invading Normans at the Battle of Montesarchio.
- 1301 – Edward of Caernarvon (later King Edward II of England) becomes the first English Prince of Wales.
- 1497 – The bonfire of the vanities occurs in which supporters of Girolamo Savonarola burn thousands of objects like cosmetics, art, and books inFlorence, Italy.
- 1819 – Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles leaves Singapore after just taking it over, leaving it in the hands of William Farquhar.
- 1856 – The colonial Tasmanian Parliament passes the second piece of legislation (the Electoral Act of 1856) anywhere in the world providing for elections by way of a secret ballot.
- 1898 – Émile Zola is brought to trial for libel for publishing J'Accuse.
- 1907 – The Mud March is the first large procession organized by the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies (NUWSS).
- 1935 – The classic board game Monopoly is invented.
- 1940 – The second full length animated Walt Disney film, Pinocchio, premieres.
- 1948 – Neil Harvey becomes the youngest Australian to score a century in Test cricket.
- 1962 – The United States bans all Cuban imports and exports.
- 1964 – The Beatles first arrive in the United States. Their performance on The Ed Sullivan Show two days later would mark the beginning of the British Invasion.
- 1984 – Space Shuttle program: STS-41-B Mission – Astronauts Bruce McCandless II and Robert L. Stewart make the first untethered space walk using the Manned Maneuvering Unit(MMU).
- 1990 – Dissolution of the Soviet Union: The Central Committee of the Soviet Communist Party agrees to give up its monopoly on power.
- 1995 – Ramzi Yousef, the mastermind of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, is arrested in Islamabad, Pakistan.
- 2009 – Bushfires in Victoria left 173 dead in the worst natural disaster in Australia's history.
Despatches
- 812 – Li Ning, Chinese prince (b. 793)
- 999 – Boleslaus II, Duke of Bohemia (b. 932)
- 1823 – Ann Radcliffe, English author (b. 1764)
- 1938 – Harvey Samuel Firestone, American businessman, founded the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company (b. 1868)
- 1979 – Josef Mengele, German SS officer and physician (b. 1911)
OPPOSITE DAY
Tim Blair – Friday, February 07, 2014 (12:49pm)
Greg Hunt’s office this week got everything back to front:
The Federal Environment Minister’s office has put out an embarrassing press release claiming the carbon tax is still inflicting “gain” instead of “pain”.“Emissions figures released today show the Carbon Tax is still inflicting plenty of gain, with no environmental pain,” the first version said.
Oopsy doopsy. While we’re still in opposite mode, please let me commend this wonderful video featuring two intelligent, thoughtful, articulate and completely non-hypocritical women, whose stage show I cannot wait to see.
(Note: all comments to this post must be expressed in opposite-speak, as demonstrated above.)
DESK CHANGE WORSE THAN CLIMATE CHANGE
Tim Blair – Friday, February 07, 2014 (3:30am)
Nobody is worried much about climate change:
Australians rank climate change well down on their list of concerns, even though most believe temperatures where they live will rise, according to an annual survey of attitudes by the CSIRO.On a list of 16 issues ranging from health and cost of living to terrorism and drug problems, climate change came in at just 14th.
Meanwhile, a change of desks causes panic:
Canberra scientists fear they will soon be squashed into tiny, noisy workspaces that make it too hard for them to do their research …The CSIRO Staff Association says the plan, which will help cut maintenance costs, will undermine staff’s work.Its secretary, Sam Popovski, said “widespread open-plan office accommodation is unsuitable for the work role and function of many CSIRO staff and that it may lead to reduced productivity and increased workplace absenteeism”.He said scientists, engineers and other researchers needed “isolated spaces for concentration and contemplation”.
Send ‘em all to Antarctica. One expert finds a religious solution:
Associate Professor Leena Thomas, of the University of Technology, Sydney’s school of architecture, regularly surveys people’s perceptions of their workplaces, and says staff often complain about the noisiness of open-plan offices.However, she said intelligent design could make even a 14sqm workspace suitable for most people.
An ABC host too keen to can Abbott
Andrew Bolt February 07 2014 (2:48pm)
ABC host Waleed Aly in The Age:
So Abbott did not err about the wet allowance, which is in the enterprise agreement and is misdescribed by Aly. Abbott did not misrepresent the effect of the “piddling” allowances, talking instead about the enterprise agreement as a whole. He did not “fleetingly” mention the real reasons for refusing the handout when bringing up the enterprise agreement.
Once again I must ask of an ABC host, why this too-eager willingness to believe the worst of the Liberal Prime Minister, against the evidence? Why this misrepresentation of the facts?
===Why did the Prime Minister so grossly misrepresent SPC’s enterprise bargaining agreement, and the costs it imposes on the company?The single example Aly gives of a claim Abbott grossly misrepresented:
The ... government emphasised things such as the EBA’s “wet allowance"… [This] allowance covers the costs of protective gear for people whose job brings them into contact with dangerous chemicals, and that SPC no longer pays it anyway, preferring instead to buy the gear for the workers itself.What Abbott actually said:
It is very important that they complete the renegotiation of the enterprise bargaining agreement. The existing agreement contains conditions and provisions which are well in excess of the award: there are wet allowances, there are loadings, there are extensive provisions to cash out sick leave, there are extremely generous redundancy provisions well in excess of the award. This does need to be very extensively renegotiated if this restructure is to be completed ...What the SPC Ardmona enterprise agreement, to expire in June, in fact includes:
53.37 WET PLACE ALLOWANCEWhat Aly says Abbott exaggerated:
3.37.1 An employee (other than a cleaner of machinery, equipment, vats and the like) working in any place where the employee’s clothing or footwear becomes wet shall be paid 58 cents per hour extra, such extra rate to continue for all time the employee is required to work in wet clothing or footwear.
Ask SPC why it’s struggling and you get a very clear answer that emphatically has nothing to do with industrial relations. Employees’ allowances, they’ve now informed us, cost them $116,467 last year. Next to the $25 million they’re after, that’s piddling.What Grace Collier says is the real problem with the agreement - not just the allowances Aly pooh-poohs but the high base wages, extra days off and union restrictions:
[The] base rates alone range from $48,538 to $61,359… I estimate SPC labour costs are double what they should be because of direct costs as well as the cost of a wide range of productivity restrictions....What Aly says Abbott should have said instead:
Harvest Freshcuts is a food processor. The plant at Bairnsdale is about the same distance away from Melbourne that Shepparton is… The working week is longer. Labour costs look a third lower. Conditions are much closer to or capped at award rates and wages are adjusted only by CPI.
The government had several coherent (even if contestable) reasons for its decision [to refuse SPC a $25 million handout]: SPC sits within a highly profitable company flushed with cash to invest unlike our debt-riddled government; that to give money in these circumstances would set an appalling precedent of corporate welfare, inviting profitable businesses to queue for handouts; that this government is philosophically driven by the principle that it is for businesses to stand or fall on their own.What Abbott actually said - “fleetingly” - in announcing the decision:
Fleetingly, the government mentioned these… There was scant justification for placing industrial relations at the centre of this story.
I want to congratulate the owner of SPC Ardmona, Coca-Cola Amatil, for the efforts that they have already made to restructure the business. They’ve already put many millions in to the restructure. They’ve put a new management team in place. There are new marketing strategies, both domestically and abroad… They’re also prepared to very extensively renegotiate the enterprise bargaining agreements…And more of the same.
It is very important that they complete the renegotiation of the enterprise bargaining agreement. The existing agreement contains conditions and provisions which are well in excess of the award: there are wet allowances, there are loadings, there are extensive provisions to cash out sick leave, there are extremely generous redundancy provisions well in excess of the award. This does need to be very extensively renegotiated if this restructure is to be completed and I have to say, as SPC and Coca-Cola go about this renegotiation, they’ll certainly have the support of Government in doing so.
I think it’s great that SPC Ardmona do have the support of such a strong parent business, because Coca-Cola Amatil is one of the most profitable companies in our country; it’s a $9 billion business by market capitalisation. In the last six months for which has been reported, their pre-tax profit was just a whisker under $300 million, just for six months. I think their after-tax profit was about $215 million. So, this is a very, very strong business and I think this is a business which well and truly has the resources to ensure that SPC Ardmona is in a strong position to restructure in a way which will enable this company, these jobs, to flourish into the future.
This is a government which is committed to trying to maximise employment, to try to ensure that the workers of Australia have viable jobs for the future; they have well-paid jobs in viable businesses and the best way to ensure that that is the case is for business to lead the restructuring that is necessary to ensure that companies like this have a strong future.
Now, as I said, Coca-Cola Amatil is a very good business; a very, very good business. Its chairman is David Gonski – David Gonski AC – one of our best known business people ... and I think, as a subsidiary of Coca-Cola Amatil, SPC Ardmona does have a very strong future…
So, the restructure is underway, but there’s a lot more that needs to be done and it should be done by the business. It’s not really the Government’s job to restructure a particular business
So Abbott did not err about the wet allowance, which is in the enterprise agreement and is misdescribed by Aly. Abbott did not misrepresent the effect of the “piddling” allowances, talking instead about the enterprise agreement as a whole. He did not “fleetingly” mention the real reasons for refusing the handout when bringing up the enterprise agreement.
Once again I must ask of an ABC host, why this too-eager willingness to believe the worst of the Liberal Prime Minister, against the evidence? Why this misrepresentation of the facts?
SPC now pays Shorten’s bill
Andrew Bolt February 07 2014 (2:24pm)
Bill Shorten’s way of fighting for working people is to make them unemployable:
===IN his former life as a union leader, Bill Shorten led SPC Ardmona workers on a six-day strike during the harvest season, winning them an extra eight days “leisure time’’.Last December:
Amid debate over the workers’ enterprise agreement and its role in the company’s financial woes, a 2004 press release has emerged in which the now-Opposition Leader claimed to have changed SPC working conditions “forever’’.
He said workers had “won an agreement from SPC Ardmona for a 13.5 per cent improvement in salary conditions including an extra eight days of leisure time by the third year of the agreement’’.
SPC ARDMONA has sacked 73 workers at its Goulburn Valley processing plant as the struggling company fights for survival…Now:
A spokesman for SPC Ardmona said employees were aware of the “critical and urgent need to transform our business’’ and ... had been previously advised their positions were under review as the company assessed its work practices to identify productivity improvements.
Since 2011, 32 per cent of positions across the business had been made redundant...Labor’s economics in a nutshell.
Too dangerous for you to know
Andrew Bolt February 07 2014 (1:37pm)
Strange that the religion is not named:
Curious:
When police and media go out of their way not to name a religion, you can safely guess which one is being protected:
(Thanks to reader TruthBeTold.)
===A 26-year-old man who “married” a 12-year-old girl has been arrested and charged with 25 counts of sexual intercourse with her… Police claim the man and child were “married” in a religious ceremony in NSW earlier this year.UPDATE
Curious:
Police say the marriage was illegal, but would not elaborate on what religion was said to be involved.UPDATE
The 26-year-old man, who is from a different cultural background, allegedly told police he did not believe he was committing an offence.
When police and media go out of their way not to name a religion, you can safely guess which one is being protected:
A Lebanese university student accused of marrying and having a sexual relationship with 13-year-old girl was formally refused bail by a Sydney court on Friday…
Police allege Mr Chamma befriended the girl when she was 12 years old at a mosque in the Hunter region.
(Thanks to reader TruthBeTold.)
Another boat turned back. And still no sorry from the “couldn’t, shouldn’t, wouldn’t” critics
Andrew Bolt February 07 2014 (11:56am)
No, no, they said. Couldn’t be done. Shouldn’t be done. Wouldn’t be. Could lead to war, even:
More evidence that the gate really is now shut:
Now boat people are turning back their own boats:
===AUSTRALIAN authorities have again used giant lifeboats to return boatpeople to Indonesia, with a group of 34 asylum-seekers washing up on a West Java beach.UPDATE
More evidence that the gate really is now shut:
ASYLUM seekers awaiting passage to Australia have begun flooding back into Malaysia in the first independent confirmation that the federal government’s controversial boats policy has effectively closed our maritime borders.UPDATE
Malaysian officials revealed the Maritime Enforcement Agency has for the first time intercepted boat people returning from Indonesia to Malaysia across the Malacca Straits because they could not get to Australia…
Using a combination of maritime enforcement patrols, Malaysian special forces and navy, the Malaysian government claims the traffic of people smuggling through its region to Australia was slowing at source points such as the coast of Malaysia.
Now boat people are turning back their own boats:
Malaysian officials revealed the Maritime Enforcement Agency has for the first time intercepted boat people returning from Indonesia to Malaysia across the Malacca Straits because they could not get to Australia…(Thanks to reader Peter of Bellevue Hill.)
The official in charge of Malaysia’s operations described it as a complete “reversal” of the people smuggling trade, claiming it was a direct result of Australia’s Operation Sovereign Borders. “I would definitely say so, there is a change of patterns now … a reverse movement of people,” director-general of the MMEA Admiral Mohd Amdan Kurish told The Daily Telegraph…
“Recently … we intercepted 27 people, Bangladeshi, who would normally move out of the country, Malaysia, to go to Australia.
On 2GB tonight - hypesters are getting too much for me. So which country would you flee to?
Andrew Bolt February 07 2014 (11:34am)
On with Steve Price from 8pm. Listen live here. Talkback: 131 873.
Listen to all past shows here.
Last night I wondered how Shorten could rail against the “big end of town” when he had this Charles Blackman on his wall, which I suggested would be worth $100,000.
===Listen to all past shows here.
Last night I wondered how Shorten could rail against the “big end of town” when he had this Charles Blackman on his wall, which I suggested would be worth $100,000.
Reader C, someone in a position to know much about art, corrects me:
I believe Bill Shorten was photographed in front of a print of the painting for these reasons;Apologies to Bill Shorten.
1) The original work is oil on board – it would not be framed under glass with a mount; 2) The original work is 121.9 x 76.2 cm – much larger than the work depicted in the photograph;
3) It’s a major painting by Blackman from a very important period – it would be worth in excess of $400,000 if it came on the market; and
4) I have not found any records of smaller copies of the work by Blackman in oil or acrylic
If the ABC is not biased, why is GetUp its friend?
Andrew Bolt February 07 2014 (9:05am)
ABC managing director Mark Scott:denies the ABC is biased:
But if the ABC is as unbiased as Scott claims, why is the union-funded, Greens-campaigning and Labor-linked GetUp running this campaign?:
UPDATE
Small example of many similar I could cite each day. A caller on ABC host Jon Faine’s show today attacks guest Tim Wilson, a classical liberal appearing with Labor’s Liberty Sanger, as the “cuckoo in the nest at the ABC” and demands he be replaced by someone from the Left-leaning Australia Institute. He congratulates Faine “for your evenhandedness”.
===It is clear what our editorial responsibility is, to be fair and balanced and impartial and show no favour to either side and that is what we seek to do.
But if the ABC is as unbiased as Scott claims, why is the union-funded, Greens-campaigning and Labor-linked GetUp running this campaign?:
And why is the Liberal-friendly IPA running this campaign?
If the far-Left considers the ABC friendly and conservatives consider it hostile, can Scott really maintain both have got it wrong?
UPDATE
Small example of many similar I could cite each day. A caller on ABC host Jon Faine’s show today attacks guest Tim Wilson, a classical liberal appearing with Labor’s Liberty Sanger, as the “cuckoo in the nest at the ABC” and demands he be replaced by someone from the Left-leaning Australia Institute. He congratulates Faine “for your evenhandedness”.
Herald acts astonished by rising scepticism
Andrew Bolt February 07 2014 (8:10am)
The Sydney Morning Herald’s Peter Hannam seems surprised that his paper’s scaremongering isn’t working:
Give us a break. The most obvious reasons are the glaringly obvious one this article refuses to even mention - that, as so many scientists now concede, global temperatures have actually not risen for 16 years, cyclones have not got worse, total sea ice has not declined, the Arctic ice cap hasn’t vanished, dam-filling rains haven’t ended, crops have not shrunk, snow has not stopped, droughts world-wide have not increased, floods haven’t worsened....
Why did Hannan omit a single example of so many alarmist predictions proving false? Surely that startling record of dud predictions, many promoted by the Herald itself, explains the public’s scepticism?
Instead, Hannam tortures the data to hide the 16-year plateau of global temperatures:
UPDATE
Good question from reader amf:
===Australians rank climate change well down on their list of concerns, even though most believe temperatures where they live will rise, according to an annual survey of attitudes by the CSIRO.Gosh, what could have caused that? Much furrowing of brows:
On a list of 16 issues ranging from health and cost of living to terrorism and drug problems, climate change came in at just 14th.
Zoe Leviston, a social psychologist at CSIRO and lead author of the survey, said the ranking was “surprisingly low”, ... [and] may reflect people turning off the issue because it had become so politicised, artificially pulling the ranking down.The scepticism is just artificial, caused by a “politicised” debate?
Give us a break. The most obvious reasons are the glaringly obvious one this article refuses to even mention - that, as so many scientists now concede, global temperatures have actually not risen for 16 years, cyclones have not got worse, total sea ice has not declined, the Arctic ice cap hasn’t vanished, dam-filling rains haven’t ended, crops have not shrunk, snow has not stopped, droughts world-wide have not increased, floods haven’t worsened....
Why did Hannan omit a single example of so many alarmist predictions proving false? Surely that startling record of dud predictions, many promoted by the Herald itself, explains the public’s scepticism?
Instead, Hannam tortures the data to hide the 16-year plateau of global temperatures:
The World Meteorological Organisation declared on Tuesday that 2013 was the world’s sixth-warmest on record. Last year was also Australia’s warmest in a century of records, the Bureau of Meteorology said last month.Which is a transparent attempt to avoid admitting this:
Thirteen of the 14 warmest years since instrumental records began in 1850 have occurred this century, with 2005 and 2010 the equal warmest, and 1998, a strong El Nino year, was the third warmest, the WMO said.
Not reporting but propagandising.
UPDATE
Good question from reader amf:
“Zoe Leviston, a social psychologist at CSIRO”. The ‘S’ in CSIRO used to stand for scientific
Why has the CSIRO become so debased that it is conducting surveys instead of doing the hard science it was renowned for?
“Blackest day in sport” shames Labor and the sports bosses who backed it
Andrew Bolt February 07 2014 (7:30am)
Mark Robinson on a scandalous beat-up by desperate Labor politicians supported by sports bosses lacking the guts to defend their codes:
And then there was that desperate search for scapegoats, as I noted already just two months after that farcical press conference:
===IT was February 7, 2013, the blackest day in Australian sport.What a scandal. So much damage done. So much hype. Such little questioning by so many journalists, some seemingly keener to defend Labor than innocent athletes.
Or so it was said.
Criminals, bikies and underworld figures had infiltrated Australia’s sporting codes, and mad scientists in long white coats and sports fitness staff with muscles as best mates, were giving out drugs like they were candy on Halloween.
There were claims of match-fixing and the use of performance-enhancing drugs…
Twelve months on, it’s virtually amounted to sweet FA…
Since that fearmongering day in Canberra, just one sportsperson has been suspended for use and trafficking of a performance-enhancing drugs and he is Canberra Raiders winger Sandor Earl.
And then there was that desperate search for scapegoats, as I noted already just two months after that farcical press conference:
It was in February that the Gillard Government made the chiefs of five big sports codes - including the AFL - stand on a stage like guilty men as ministers Jason Clare and Kate Lundy lectured us on how Australian sport was corrupted with drug cheating, match-fixing and organised crime.
Really? So in the two months since, why have we seen not a single player of any code charged? Not a single drug test failed? Not a single instance of match-fixing found?
Where the hell is the proof?
The people behind this farce must be sweating. The search must be on for some face-saver. A scapegoat.
Step up, James Hird.
Waiting, waiting for the ABC to protect its bananas from exploitation
Andrew Bolt February 07 2014 (6:40am)
The Victorian editor of ABC News explains why a Liberal ad on Labor’s links to a corruption-riddled union cannot use ABC footage:
Professor Sinclair Davidson sools the ABC lawyers onto another outrageous infraction of their rights.
===So let’s guess how long it will take those vigilant ABC lawyers to force GetUp to remove these billboards with their ABC-copyrighted images of two prominent ABC current affairs hosts:
Let me help those vigilant lawyers:
Some cartoon characters, such as Disney characters, are licensed by merchandising organisations or agents such as those listed below....UPDATE
ABC Licensing (Bananas in Pyjamas, Playschool, Triple J)
Tel (02) 8333 5351; http://www.abccontentsales.com.au/contact.htm
Professor Sinclair Davidson sools the ABC lawyers onto another outrageous infraction of their rights.
The jackass generation
Andrew Bolt February 07 2014 (6:18am)
This kind of open contempt not just for police but for lifeguards - and the public - seems new:
There’s another symptom for you. As the public’s authority shrinks, that of the tribes grows strong.
===TEENS are terrorising swimmers and lifeguards at Northcote pool, endangering others by doing bombs into crowded areas and pushing people into the water.The pool was closed? Because the thugs refused to leave? And the troublemakers “could” face charges - or not?
Police say troublemaking youths could face assault charges after they were called to evict large groups of kids several times in the past month… Pool managers have even resorted to employing security guards to protect patrons and lifeguards…
A video posted on Facebook in January showed two boys running at two lifeguards, who had their backs turned, and pushing them into the pool…
Witnesses were horrified at the actions of a gang of 20 boys last Sunday, whose “anti-social behaviour” forced police to close the outdoor pool as the mercury soared to 39C… Police were called to evict the youths but they refused to leave and threw objects at the officers, forcing the pool to be closed early at about 5pm.
There’s another symptom for you. As the public’s authority shrinks, that of the tribes grows strong.
Howes hurts himself - but hurts Shorten, too
Andrew Bolt February 07 2014 (5:56am)
I can confirm Bill
Shorten’s closeness to - or dependence on - unions is indeed an issue
for some frontbenchers, and AWU boss Paul Howes has exposed that with
his speech this week::
===Mr Howes’ stinging attack on a minority of corrupt “criminals” in the construction union provoked significant debate within the Labor Party on Thursday, with senior members questioning Mr Shorten’s handling of the unfolding allegations of corruption and malfeasance ... and questioning why the ALP leader had not put more distance between himself and the troubled union. One member of the shadow ministry, who declined to be named, questioned Mr Shorten’s political strategy and suggested that given his position as leader was safe following party rule changes, he should have been more forthright in his criticism of the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union.But Howes hurt himself within Labor by proposing a “grand compact” between unions and business - a vague and backward idea with virtually zero support from unions, business, Liberals or Labor:
“We need to be careful we aren’t boxed in by Abbott,’’ the MP said. ‘’He [Shorten] won’t do it, but people want more than the standard lines from the leader’s office.’’
A second, veteran Labor MP suggested that Mr Howes’ speech was one the Opposition Leader should have delivered himself.
Bill Shorten believes it’s a fantasy...Peter van Onselen:
“Very 1980s all of that,” [Tony Abbott] told 4BC Radio today… The Prime Minister told reporters in Brisbane he doesn’t like the sound of a big “council” being dictated between businesses, unions and government, because that’s “corporatism” not democracy.
Shorten and Howes, once allies within the AWU, are now more distant than ever. ...Many people forget how young Howes actually is - just 32. They also forget how much intelligent people tend to change their views - particularly on politics - with experience and growing wisdom. As a boy from a broken home, Howes was a Trot. As a bright young union leader, he became more pragmatic and tacked to the Labor Right. As a very successful young man, about to marry a very successful corporate woman, Howes is going ... where? Not to the Labor front bench, I would guess.
Ever since Julia Gillard was defeated by Kevin Rudd in their final leadership showdown, Howes’s standing within the party has slipped. The NSW Right split against him in that showdown, with close ally, former state secretary Sam Dastyari, leading the revolution. The pair’s fallout hasn’t been repaired, with Dastyari now a senator.
Next Howes was blocked from running for the Senate vacancy created by Bob Carr’s retirement. Conservative union leader Joe de Bruyn blocked Howes on the unofficial grounds that he was pro gay marriage…
While Howes was only recently re-elected to his national secretary position within the AWU, rumblings within the union suggest he leads a divided organisation. That is likely only to increase after his press club claim that wages are too high.
What is Clive Palmer’s agenda?
Andrew Bolt February 07 2014 (5:39am)
There is a danger Clive Palmer is confusing his private business interests with the national interests that a political leader should always have in mind - especially a a leader holding the balance of power
===FEDERAL MP Clive Palmer has launched an extraordinary attack on China’s biggest conglomerate, declaring he would not stand by and watch Australian interests be “raped and disrespected by foreign-owned companies”.
In a dramatic escalation of the tensions between Mr Palmer and the state-controlled Citic Pacific over the newly built $8 billion Sino iron ore project in Western Australia, Mr Palmer accused the Chinese company of trying to take Australian resources without paying full consideration.
Citic Pacific president Zhang Jijing yesterday accused Mr Palmer of talking “rubbish” and warned that the dispute had prompted other Chinese companies to place Australia on a watchlist as a potential investment destination.
Mr Palmer, the founder of the Palmer United Party that could hold the balance of power in the Senate after July 1, and Citic are engaged in a long-running dispute over the payment of royalties from the Sino project to Mr Palmer’s privately owned Mineralogy, which sold the original tenements to Citic.
Fairfax claims it’s found a new “torture” witness. But some things ring a bit false…
Andrew Bolt February 06 2014 (8:21pm)
Fairfax reporter Michael Bachelard claims a breakthrough in the “torture” story - a witness who saw three boat people deliberately burned by sailors and for the first time gives a journalist the whole story:
First, is it really true that “Yousif Ibrahim Fasher has been remarkably untroubled by visits from journalists” and “Fairfax Media conducted the first extended face-to-face interview with Fasher”?
In fact, Peter Alford of The Australian on Monday said he interviewed Yousif Fasher, too, albeit by phone, and reported in broad terms the same claims:
===Yousif Ibrahim Fasher has been remarkably untroubled by visits from journalists… It was Fasher who alleged a month ago that three asylum seekers had their hands deliberately burned by the Australian navy ...Let’s fact check the claims, because there is less to this story than meets the eye. (I don’t say it’s false; just unlikely.)
But since then, as the storm raged on, he was left largely alone. This week, ... Fairfax Media conducted the first extended face-to-face interview with Fasher, who says he was an eyewitness to the incident, and he told his story in unprecedented detail.
On Fasher’s account, ... four asylum seekers [on the boat] forced their way past the two [navy] guards in the main cabin to try to get to the toilet… There was an altercation
During the turmoil he says a young man, Bowby Nooris, ... was sprayed in the eyes with capsicum spray, stumbled and blindly grabbed at the hot pipe…
But Fasher insists that, after Nooris fell, naval personnel — he does not know their names — grabbed the wrists of three other men and forced their hands onto the hot pipe, one after the other…
Afterwards, he says, a man in navy uniform called him over.
“They said, ‘Yousif, translate for the people. Say to anyone: If you want to go to the toilet again, we will burn his hands...”
First, is it really true that “Yousif Ibrahim Fasher has been remarkably untroubled by visits from journalists” and “Fairfax Media conducted the first extended face-to-face interview with Fasher”?
In fact, Peter Alford of The Australian on Monday said he interviewed Yousif Fasher, too, albeit by phone, and reported in broad terms the same claims:
Yousif Fasher ... continues to insist three asylum-seekers on the January 6 boat were “tortured” ... Speaking by phone yesterday from the Tanjung Pinang immigration detention centre, in northern Sumatra, Yousif said: “Three people had their hands put on the engine by force, I saw everything.”But Alford reported what Bachelard has not - reasons to doubt Yousif Fasher’s word.
Of the eight Somali asylum-seekers interviewed at length, only one, Yousif Fasher, continues to insist three asylum-seekers on the January 6 boat were “tortured” in that way.Bachelard in his story today did not note that Yousif Fasher had once falsely claimed Bowby was tortured, too - surely something that goes to his credibility. Bachelard in fact implies Yousif Fasher’s story was always consistent:
Yousif, who did not receive any burns, was the source of the deliberate burning allegations made to the ABC, often via Sharmarke Abdullah Ahmad… Sharmarke, self-designated spokesman for 62 pushed-back asylum-seekers remaining under immigration supervision in Kupang, now believes none of the burns was deliberately inflicted…
Sharmarke says he spoke again to people from the January 6 boat: “They told us they were not deliberately forced to touch the hot engine."…
Sharmarke acknowledged yesterday that at least one deliberate burning case cited to him by Yousif, that of Bowby Nooris, was untrue.
“Yousif told me that this claiming and everything (else) were accurate, but when I asked Bowby, he just told me another story,” Sharmarke said.
Bowby told The Australian on Thursday that the serious burn on his right hand came about when he was temporarily blinded by what seemed to have been capsicum spray and stumbled against an engine block.
Details aside, though, his account has been consistent from the first.I don’t know this Fairfax breakthrough adds anything new. But I do think it does not present the facts in an unbiased way.
During the turmoil he says a young man, Bowby Nooris, the first into the corridor, was sprayed in the eyes with capsicum spray, stumbled and blindly grabbed at the hot pipe.
This is consistent with Nooris’s injuries, and what he has subsequently told both the ABC and The Australian about how they were incurred. It’s the basis of the conclusion by Media Watch that: “It appears that the burns occurred in a scuffle with the navy and were not deliberately inflicted by navy personnel”.
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.. I'm sorry. Truly sorry. But, I will continue to breathe until I stop. - ed===
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.. nothing artificial with Herpes .. we guarantee straight from nature to you ..
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Pastor Rick Warren
Only #26Days 'til 2014's greatest film #SonOfGodhits theaters! Who will you take to see it?http://bit.ly/1b7uMjt
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The glory of God is seen in creation
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Just start doing what you know is the right thing to do and the feelings will follow. Don't wait. Action ignites motivation.
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Sundials demonstrate a profound spiritual truth: Shadows always reveal the presence of Light.
When you're going through dark days, Isaiah says this: "If you are walking in darkness, without a ray of light, trust in the Lord and rely on God!” (Isaiah 50:10)
The way you get through the ‘Valley of the Shadows’ without fear is to turn your back on the shadows and turn to the Light!
Jesus said, “I AM the LIGHT of the world. If you follow me, you won't be stumbling through the darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life." (John 8:12)
When you're going through dark days, Isaiah says this: "If you are walking in darkness, without a ray of light, trust in the Lord and rely on God!” (Isaiah 50:10)
The way you get through the ‘Valley of the Shadows’ without fear is to turn your back on the shadows and turn to the Light!
Jesus said, “I AM the LIGHT of the world. If you follow me, you won't be stumbling through the darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life." (John 8:12)
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One of our staff bands leading staff worship OUTSIDE in January! (At our Lake Forest campus children's building.) 80 degree weather, they served ice cream after staff meeting.
===MADU Odiokwu Pastorvin
PRAY
Father,I thank You for Your goodness and faithfulness in my life. I choose Your promises. I choose to declare that You are my Refuge and my Fortress. I will trust and hope in You all the days of my life in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Father,I thank You for Your goodness and faithfulness in my life. I choose Your promises. I choose to declare that You are my Refuge and my Fortress. I will trust and hope in You all the days of my life in Jesus’ name. Amen.
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I will say of the Lord, He is my Refuge and my Fortress, my God; on Him I lean and rely, and in Him I [confidently] trust. (Psalm 91:2)
What are you saying of the Lord today? In other words, what are you declaring that God will do in your life? The next verse in this passage says, “And He will cover me, deliver me and protect me.” Notice the connection: “I will say” and “He will do.” What a wonderful promise! On the other hand, if we’re not saying anything, we’re not releasing our faith. So you could read the passage in the reverse, “I will not say of the Lord, and He will not do.”
Always remember that your words have creative power. Life and death are in the power of the tongue. When you declare who God is in your life, you are displaying your faith and trust in Him. Faith is what pleases God and opens the door for Him to move in your life. Today, declare God’s greatness in your life. Declare that He is faithful. Say of the Lord and watch what He will do on your behalf.God bless you.
What are you saying of the Lord today? In other words, what are you declaring that God will do in your life? The next verse in this passage says, “And He will cover me, deliver me and protect me.” Notice the connection: “I will say” and “He will do.” What a wonderful promise! On the other hand, if we’re not saying anything, we’re not releasing our faith. So you could read the passage in the reverse, “I will not say of the Lord, and He will not do.”
Always remember that your words have creative power. Life and death are in the power of the tongue. When you declare who God is in your life, you are displaying your faith and trust in Him. Faith is what pleases God and opens the door for Him to move in your life. Today, declare God’s greatness in your life. Declare that He is faithful. Say of the Lord and watch what He will do on your behalf.God bless you.
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Father, I commit my words to You today and choose to bless my future. Thank You for directing my steps. I keep my heart and mind focused on You in Jesus’ name. Amen.
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I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live.(Deuteronomy 30:19, NKJV)
Did you know that with your words you can either bless your future or curse your future? Your words have creative power. If you want to know what your life is going to be like five years from now, just listen to what you’re saying about yourself today. Too many people go around saying, “I’ll never get well.” “I’ll never get out of debt.” “This marriage is never going to last.” Then they wonder why they don’t see things turn around. It’s because they’re calling defeat into their future. They’re calling in mediocrity. Don’t let that be you.
When you get up in the morning, no matter how you feel, no matter what things look like, instead of using your words to describe your situation, use your words to change your situation. Make a declaration of faith by saying, “This is going to be a great day. I have God’s favor. He’s directing my steps.” When you do that, you are choosing life for your future. You are calling in favor, increase and opportunities. Your words are coming into alignment with God’s Words, and when you align yourself with God, He’ll lead you into victory and blessing all the days of your life.God bless you.
=Did you know that with your words you can either bless your future or curse your future? Your words have creative power. If you want to know what your life is going to be like five years from now, just listen to what you’re saying about yourself today. Too many people go around saying, “I’ll never get well.” “I’ll never get out of debt.” “This marriage is never going to last.” Then they wonder why they don’t see things turn around. It’s because they’re calling defeat into their future. They’re calling in mediocrity. Don’t let that be you.
When you get up in the morning, no matter how you feel, no matter what things look like, instead of using your words to describe your situation, use your words to change your situation. Make a declaration of faith by saying, “This is going to be a great day. I have God’s favor. He’s directing my steps.” When you do that, you are choosing life for your future. You are calling in favor, increase and opportunities. Your words are coming into alignment with God’s Words, and when you align yourself with God, He’ll lead you into victory and blessing all the days of your life.God bless you.
Father, I come to You with an open and humble heart. Thank You for surprising me with Your love and blessings today. Keep me close to You and help me to always follow Your Word in Jesus’ name. Amen.
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All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God.(Deuteronomy 28:2, NIV)
Friend, when you’re in covenant with God, when you keep His commands and honor Him faithfully. He’ll do things for you in a fraction of the time of what it would take anybody else. His blessings will come on you and overtake you.
Why don’t you take the limits off of your life today by stepping out in faith? Do what the Word says and keep an attitude of faith and expectancy. Know that He loves you with an everlasting love, and He wants to overtake you with His blessings today.God bless you.
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The carnal mind will never understand the things of God.
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Is any thing too hard for the LORD? (Genesis 18:14, KJV)He is bigger than your problems.
PRAY.
Father, today I choose to trust You with my whole heart. I know there is nothing too hard for You. Help me to stand strong in faith and keep me close to You all the days of my life in Jesus’ name. Amen.
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An Interesting Story.
A surgeon was reading a Book with all his Attention.And a young lady,his patient came in and ask him,What are you reading? Was it a new scientific finding? No. “It is a Bible.”, he exclaimed. His patient asked, “Will your Bible help you before my operation or after?” His reply. “During.”
Philippians 4:13 (New King James Version) says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” The surgeon knew that his skill and intellect are nothing without God’s power and favor. He understands that only God has the power to guide him while he does surgery on the operating table. Imagine him splicing and cutting with his hands while his mind talks to God. He remembers the words of the Bible about being a vessel of blessing and being anointed to help people get better.
Listen, you may not be a surgeon, a lawyer, or a CEO of a multi-million dollar corporation. You are an ordinary citizen with no title or prestige. But not having these does not disqualify you from doing great things for God. You can do everything through the power of God. Receive strength from God Himself and do the things that glorify His name. Read more of God’s word so that you will be equipped to face life head on. Lastly, meditate on what the Bible says just like how the surgeon did.God bless you.
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Post by Matt Granz.
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WTF?
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- 457 – Leo I (pictured on solidus) was crowned Byzantine emperor, and went on to rule for nearly 20 years.
- 1907 – More than 3,000 women in London participated in the Mud March, the first large procession organized by theNational Union of Women's Suffrage Societies, seeking women's suffrage in the United Kingdom.
- 1940 – Walt Disney's Pinocchio, the first animated motion picture to win a competitive Academy Award, was released to theaters by RKO Pictures.
- 1986 – President of Haiti Jean-Claude Duvalier fled the country after a popular uprising, ending 28 years of one-family rule in the nation.
- 2012 – Several months of political crisis in the Maldives culminated in the resignation of President Mohamed Nasheed.
Events[edit]
- 457 – Leo I becomes emperor of the Byzantine Empire.
- 1074 – Pandulf IV of Benevento is killed battling the invading Normans at the Battle of Montesarchio.
- 1301 – Edward of Caernarvon (later King Edward II of England) becomes the first English Prince of Wales.
- 1497 – The bonfire of the vanities occurs in which supporters of Girolamo Savonarola burn thousands of objects like cosmetics, art, and books inFlorence, Italy.
- 1783 – American Revolutionary War: French and Spanish forces lift the Great Siege of Gibraltar.
- 1795 – The 11th Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified.
- 1807 – Napoleonic Wars: Battle of Eylau – Napoléon's French Empire begins fighting against Russian and Prussian forces of the Fourth Coalition at Eylau,Poland.
- 1812 – The strongest in a series of earthquakes strikes New Madrid, Missouri.
- 1813 – Action of 7 February 1813: stalemate two evenly matched frigates from the French Navy and the British Royal Navy, Aréthuse and HMS Amelia.
- 1819 – Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles leaves Singapore after just taking it over, leaving it in the hands of William Farquhar.
- 1842 – Battle of Debre Tabor: Ras Ali Alula, Regent of the Emperor of Ethiopia defeats warlord Wube Haile Maryam of Semien.
- 1856 – The colonial Tasmanian Parliament passes the second piece of legislation (the Electoral Act of 1856) anywhere in the world providing for elections by way of a secret ballot.
- 1863 – HMS Orpheus sinks off the coast of Auckland, New Zealand, killing 189.
- 1894 – The Cripple Creek miner's strike, led by the Western Federation of Miners, begins in Cripple Creek, Colorado.
- 1897 – Greco-Turkish War: The first full-scale battle takes place when the Greek expeditionary force in Crete defeats a 4,000-strong Ottoman force at Livadeia.
- 1898 – Émile Zola is brought to trial for libel for publishing J'Accuse.
- 1900 – Second Boer War: British troops fail in their third attempt to lift the Siege of Ladysmith.
- 1904 – A fire in Baltimore, Maryland destroys over 1,500 buildings in 30 hours.
- 1907 – The Mud March is the first large procession organized by the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies (NUWSS).
- 1935 – The classic board game Monopoly is invented.
- 1940 – The second full length animated Walt Disney film, Pinocchio, premieres.
- 1943 – Imperial Japanese naval forces complete the evacuation of Imperial Japanese Army troops from Guadalcanal during Operation Ke, ending Japanese attempts to retake the island from Allied forces in the Guadalcanal Campaign.
- 1944 – World War II: In Anzio, Italy, German forces launch a counteroffensive during the Allied Operation Shingle.
- 1951 – Korean War: Sancheong-Hamyang massacre
- 1962 – The United States bans all Cuban imports and exports.
- 1964 – The Beatles first arrive in the United States. Their performance on The Ed Sullivan Show two days later would mark the beginning of the British Invasion.
- 1974 – Grenada gains independence from the United Kingdom.
- 1979 – Pluto moves inside Neptune's orbit for the first time since either was discovered.
- 1984 – Space Shuttle program: STS-41-B Mission – Astronauts Bruce McCandless II and Robert L. Stewart make the first untethered space walk using the Manned Maneuvering Unit(MMU).
- 1986 – Twenty-eight years of one-family rule end in Haiti, when President Jean-Claude Duvalier flees the Caribbean nation.
- 1990 – Dissolution of the Soviet Union: The Central Committee of the Soviet Communist Party agrees to give up its monopoly on power.
- 1991 – Haiti's first democratically-elected president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, is sworn in.
- 1992 – The Maastricht Treaty is signed, leading to the creation of the European Union.
- 1995 – Ramzi Yousef, the mastermind of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, is arrested in Islamabad, Pakistan.
- 1999 – Crown Prince Abdullah becomes the King of Jordan on the death of his father, King Hussein.
- 2009 – Bushfires in Victoria left 173 dead in the worst natural disaster in Australia's history.
- 2012 – President Mohamed Nasheed of the Republic of Maldives resigns, after 23 days of anti-governmental protests calling for the release of Chief Judge unlawfully arrested by the military.
Births[edit]
- 572 – Prince Shōtoku of Japan (d. 622)
- 1102 – Empress Matilda, English wife of Henry V of the Holy Roman Empire (d. 1169)
- 1478 – Thomas More, English politician and author (d. 1535)
- 1612 – Thomas Killigrew, English playwright (d. 1683)
- 1693 – Anna of Russia (d. 1740)
- 1741 – Henry Fuseli, Swiss painter (d. 1825)
- 1758 – Benedikt Schack, Czech tenor composer (d. 1826)
- 1804 – John Deere, American businessman, founded Deere & Company (d. 1886)
- 1812 – Charles Dickens, English author (d. 1870)
- 1837 – James Murray, Scottish lexicographer and philologist (d. 1915)
- 1842 – Alexandre Ribot, French politician, Prime Minister of France (d. 1923)
- 1867 – Laura Ingalls Wilder, American author (d. 1957)
- 1870 – Alfred Adler, Austrian psychologist (d. 1937)
- 1873 – Thomas Andrews, Irish shipbuilder and businessman (d. 1912)
- 1877 – G. H. Hardy, English mathematician (d. 1947)
- 1878 – Ossip Gabrilowitsch, Russian-American pianist and conductor (d. 1936)
- 1885 – Sinclair Lewis, American author and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1951)
- 1885 – Hugo Sperrle, German field marshal (d. 1953)
- 1887 – Eubie Blake, American pianist and composer (d. 1983)
- 1889 – Harry Nyquist, American engineer (d. 1976)
- 1891 – Ann Little, American actress (d. 1984)
- 1893 – Joseph Algernon Pearce, Canadian astrophysicist (d. 1988)
- 1895 – Anita Stewart, American actress (d. 1961)
- 1898 – Dock Boggs, American singer-songwriter and banjo player (d. 1971)
- 1901 – Arnold Nordmeyer, New Zealand politician (d. 1989)
- 1905 – Paul Nizan, French author (d. 1940)
- 1905 – Ulf von Euler, Swedish physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1983)
- 1906 – Puyi, Emperor of China (d. 1967)
- 1906 – Oleg Antonov, Soviet aircraft designer, founded the Antonov Aircraft Company (d. 1984)
- 1908 – Buster Crabbe, American swimmer and actor (d. 1983)
- 1908 – Fred Gipson, American author (d. 1973)
- 1908 – Manmath Nath Gupta, Indian Revolutionary Writer(d.2000)
- 1909 – Hélder Câmara, Brazilian archbishop (d. 1999)
- 1909 – Wilhelm Freddie, Danish painter (d. 1995)
- 1909 – Amedeo Guillet, Italian army officer (d. 2010)
- 1909 – Silvio Zavala, Mexican historian
- 1912 – Russell Drysdale, Australian painter (d. 1981)
- 1912 – Roberta McCain, American wife of John S. McCain, Jr.
- 1914 – Ramón Mercader, Spanish assassin of Leon Trotsky (d. 1978)
- 1915 – Teoctist Arăpașu, Romanian patriarch (d. 2007)
- 1915 – Eddie Bracken, American actor (d. 2002)
- 1918 – Markey Robinson, Irish painter (d. 1999)
- 1920 – Oscar Brand, Canadian singer-songwriter and author
- 1920 – An Wang, Chinese-American engineer and businessman, founded Wang Laboratories (d. 1990)
- 1922 – Marion Cunningham, American food writer (d. 2012)
- 1922 – Hattie Jacques, English actress (d. 1980)
- 1923 – Dora Bryan, English actress and singer
- 1923 – Martha Holmes, American photographer (d. 2006)
- 1925 – Hans Schmidt, Canadian wrestler (d. 2012)
- 1926 – John Frank Davidson, English engineer
- 1926 – Konstantin Feoktistov, Russian engineer and astronaut (d. 2009)
- 1927 – Juliette Gréco, French singer and actress
- 1927 – Vladimir Kuts, Russian runner (d. 1975)
- 1927 – Patsy Swayze, American dancer and choreographer (d. 2013)
- 1929 – Alejandro Jodorowsky, Chilean actor, director, and screenwriter
- 1932 – Gay Talese, American author
- 1932 – Alfred Worden, American astronaut
- 1933 – John Anderton, English footballer
- 1934 – Eddie Fenech Adami, Maltese politician, 7th President of Malta
- 1934 – King Curtis, American saxophonist (d. 1971)
- 1934 – Earl King, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 2003)
- 1935 – Herb Kohl, American politician
- 1935 – Cliff Jones, Welsh footballer
- 1937 – Juan Pizarro, Puerto Rican baseball player
- 1938 – S. Ramachandran Pillai, Indian politician
- 1939 – Ray Taliaferro, American radio host
- 1941 – Peter Foxhall, Australian clergyman and author
- 1941 – Little Tony, Italian-Sammarinese singer and actor (d. 2013)
- 1943 – Eric Foner, American historian
- 1943 – Gareth Hunt, English actor (d. 2007)
- 1945 – Gerald Davies, Welsh rugby player
- 1945 – Ian Jack, Scottish journalist
- 1946 – Héctor Babenco, Argentinian-Brazilian director, producer, and screenwriter
- 1946 – Sammy Johns, American singer-songwriter (d. 2013)
- 1946 – Pete Postlethwaite, English actor (d. 2011)
- 1946 – Gérard Jean-Juste, Haitian priest and activist (d. 2009)
- 1947 – Wayne Allwine, American voice actor (d. 2009)
- 1947 – Ross Lonsberry, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1948 – Jimmy Greenspoon, American keyboard player (Three Dog Night)
- 1949 – Paulo César Carpegiani, Brazilian footballer and coach
- 1949 – Jacques Duchesneau, Canadian police officer and politician
- 1949 – Joe English, American drummer (Wings and Sea Level)
- 1950 – Karen Joy Fowler, American author
- 1951 – Benny Ayala, Puerto Rican-American baseball player
- 1952 – Vasco Rossi, Italian singer-songwriter
- 1953 – Dan Quisenberry, American baseball player (d. 1998)
- 1954 – Dieter Bohlen German singer-songwriter and producer (Modern Talking and Blue System)
- 1955 – Rolf Benirschke, American football player
- 1955 – Miguel Ferrer, American actor
- 1956 – Emo Philips, American comedian
- 1956 – Mark St. John, American guitarist (Kiss and White Tiger) (d. 2007)
- 1957 – Richard Cook, English journalist (d. 2007)
- 1957 – Carney Lansford, American baseball player
- 1958 – Rusty Brooks, American wrestler
- 1958 – Matt Ridley, English scientist, journalist, and author
- 1958 – Giuseppe Baresi, Italian footballer and coach
- 1959 – Mick McCarthy, English footballer, manager and pundit
- 1960 – Robert Smigel, American actor and comedian
- 1960 – James Spader, American actor
- 1961 – Alfred Zijai, Albanian footballer (d. 2013)
- 1962 – Garth Brooks, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1962 – David Bryan, American keyboard player and songwriter (Bon Jovi)
- 1962 – Eddie Izzard, Yemeni-English actor and comedian
- 1963 – Seppo Vilderson, Estonian footballer
- 1964 – Ashok Banker, Indian author
- 1964 – Ray Mears, English television host and author
- 1964 – Cynthia Woodhead, American swimmer
- 1965 – Jason Gedrick, American actor
- 1965 – Chris Rock, American actor, director, screenwriter, and producer
- 1965 – Petr Váša, Czech singer-songwriter, actor, and poet
- 1966 – Kristin Otto, German swimmer
- 1967 – Richie Burnett, Welsh darts player
- 1967 – Cheung Man, Hong Kong actress
- 1968 – Peter Bondra, Slovak ice hockey player
- 1968 – Sully Erna, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Godsmack)
- 1968 – Mark Tewksbury, Canadian swimmer
- 1969 – Adriano Silva Francisco, Brazilian footballer
- 1969 – Yves Racine, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1970 – Stanley Roberts, American basketball player
- 1971 – Anita Tsoy, Russian singer-songwriter
- 1972 – Essence Atkins, American actress
- 1972 – Robyn Lively, American actress
- 1972 – Amon Tobin, Brazilian DJ, producer, and songwriter (Two Fingers)
- 1973 – Irina Björklund, Finnish actress
- 1973 – Juwan Howard, American basketball player
- 1974 – Nujabes, Japanese DJ and producer (d. 2010)
- 1974 – Cheryl Cosim, Filipino journalist
- 1974 – J Dilla, American rapper and producer (Slum Village) (d. 2006)
- 1974 – Danny Goffey, English singer-songwriter and drummer (Supergrass, Babyshambles, The Jennifers, Lodger, and The Hotrats)
- 1974 – Emma McLaughlin, American novelist
- 1974 – Steve Nash, Canadian basketball player
- 1975 – Wes Borland, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Limp Bizkit, Black Light Burns, Big Dumb Face, and Combichrist)
- 1975 – Alexandre Daigle, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1975 – Rémi Gaillard, French comedian and actor
- 1976 – Kelly Choi, South Korean-American television host
- 1976 – Sreto Ristić, German footballer
- 1977 – Georgios Alexopoulos, Greek footballer
- 1977 – Paul Comrie, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1977 – Tsuneyasu Miyamoto, Japanese footballer
- 1977 – Dimitris Papanikolaou, Greek basketball player
- 1977 – Mariusz Pudzianowski, Polish strongman and mixed martial artist
- 1978 – David Aebischer, Swiss ice hockey player
- 1978 – Endy Chávez, Venezuelan baseball player
- 1978 – Ashton Kutcher, American model, actor, and producer
- 1978 – Daniel Van Buyten, Belgian footballer
- 1979 – Daniel Bierofka, German footballer
- 1979 – Nicola Campedelli, Italian footballer
- 1979 – Tawakkol Karman, Yemeni activist and Nobel Prize laureate
- 1979 – Jon Leicester, American baseball player
- 1979 – Cerina Vincent, American actress
- 1980 – Kevin J. Boyle, American politician
- 1980 – Maximiliano Cejas, Argentinian footballer
- 1980 – Richie Castellano, American singer, songwriter and musician (Blue Öyster Cult)
- 1981 – Darcy Dolce Neto, Brazilian footballer
- 1981 – Lee Ok-Sung, South Korean boxer
- 1982 – Osamu Mukai, Japanese actor
- 1982 – Mickael Pietrus, French basketball player
- 1983 – Scott Feldman, American baseball player
- 1983 – Teshome Getu, Ethiopian footballer
- 1983 – Georgios Gougoulias, Greek footballer
- 1983 – Sho Kamogawa, Japanese footballer
- 1983 – Christian Klien, Austrian race car driver
- 1983 – Federico Marchetti, Italian footballer
- 1984 – Trey Hardee, American decathlete
- 1985 – Tina Majorino, American actress
- 1985 – Devis Nossa, Italian footballer
- 1985 – Deborah Ann Woll, American actress
- 1986 – Stephen Colletti, American actor
- 1986 – Michael Orozco Fiscal, American footballer
- 1986 – Lina Stančiūtė, Lithuanian tennis player
- 1986 – Giorgi Tsintsadze, Georgian basketball player
- 1986 – Pippa Wilson, English sailor
- 1987 – Kerli, Estonian-American singer-songwriter and pianist
- 1987 – Brea Bennett, American porn actress
- 1987 – Joe Cardle, English footballer
- 1988 – Lee Don-Ku, South Korean ice hockey player
- 1988 – Nikola Fraňková, Czech tennis player
- 1988 – Albin Hodza, French footballer
- 1988 – Lee Joon, South Korean singer, dancer, and actor (MBLAQ)
- 1988 – Ai Kago, Japanese singer and actress (Morning Musume, W, and Minimoni)
- 1988 – Matthew Stafford, American football player
- 1989 – Nick Calathes, Greek basketball player
- 1989 – Louisa Lytton, English actress
- 1989 – Alexis Rolín, Uruguayan footballer
- 1990 – Anna Abreu, Finnish-Portuguese singer
- 1990 – Neil Etheridge, English-Filipino footballer
- 1990 – Steven Stamkos, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1991 – Ryan O'Reilly, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1991 – Zhou Yimiao, Chinese tennis player
- 1992 – Maimi Yajima, Japanese singer and actress (Cute, ZYX, and High-King)
- 1993 – David Dorfman, American actor
- 1993 – Diego Laxalt, Uruguayan footballer
- 1993 – Mehdi Kiani, Persian actor
- 1996 – David Castro, American actor
- 1996 – Mai Hagiwara, Japanese singer (Cute, Petitmoni, and Kira Pika)
- 1997 – Anhelina Kalinina, Ukrainian tennis player
Deaths[edit]
- 812 – Li Ning, Chinese prince (b. 793)
- 999 – Boleslaus II, Duke of Bohemia (b. 932)
- 1045 – Emperor Go-Suzaku of Japan (b. 1009)
- 1317 – Robert, Count of Clermont (b. 1256)
- 1560 – Bartolommeo Bandinelli, Italian sculptor and painter (b. 1493)
- 1603 – Hermann Wilken, German mathematician (b. 1522)
- 1626 – William V, Duke of Bavaria (b. 1548)
- 1642 – William Bedell, English clergyman (b. 1571)
- 1690 – Sir William Morice, 1st Baronet, English politician (b. 1628)
- 1693 – Paul Pellisson, French author (b. 1624)
- 1736 – Stephen Gray, English astronomer (b. 1666)
- 1779 – William Boyce, English composer (b. 1711)
- 1799 – Qianlong Emperor of China (b. 1711)
- 1801 – Daniel Chodowiecki, Polish painter (b. 1726)
- 1819 – August Wilhelm Hupel, Baltic German linguist and clergyman (b. 1737)
- 1823 – Ann Radcliffe, English author (b. 1764)
- 1837 – Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden (b. 1778)
- 1839 – Karl August Nicander, Swedish poet (b. 1799)
- 1862 – Francisco de Paula Martínez de la Rosa y Berdejo, Spanish politician, Prime Minister of Spain (b. 1787)
- 1864 – Vuk Stefanović Karadžić, Serbian philologist and liguist (b. 1787)
- 1871 – Henry E. Steinway, German-American businessman, founded Steinway & Sons (b. 1797)
- 1873 – Sheridan Le Fanu, Irish author (b. 1814)
- 1878 – Pope Pius IX (b. 1792)
- 1897 – Galileo Ferraris, Italian physicist (b. 1847)
- 1898 – John Reily Knox, American lawyer, founded Beta Theta Pi (b. 1820)
- 1919 – William Halford, American navy officer, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1841)
- 1920 – Alexander Kolchak, Russian admiral (b. 1874)
- 1920 – Charles Langelier, Canadian politician, and judge (b. 1850)
- 1937 – Elihu Root, American lawyer and politician, 38th United States Secretary of State, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1845)
- 1938 – Harvey Samuel Firestone, American businessman, founded the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company (b. 1868)
- 1939 – Boris Grigoriev, Russian painter (b. 1886)
- 1942 – Ivan Bilibin, Russian illustrator (b. 1876)
- 1944 – Lina Cavalieri, Italian soprano (b. 1874)
- 1952 – Pete Henry, American football player and coach (b. 1897)
- 1959 – Nap Lajoie, American baseball player (b. 1874)
- 1959 – Daniel François Malan, South African politician, 5th Prime Minister of South Africa (b. 1874)
- 1959 – Guitar Slim, American guitarist (b. 1926)
- 1960 – Igor Kurchatov, Russian physicist (b. 1903)
- 1962 – Clara Nordström, German author and translator (b. 1886)
- 1963 – Learco Guerra, Italian cyclist (b. 1902)
- 1964 – Sofoklis Venizelos, Greek politician, 133rd Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1894)
- 1965 – Perikles Ioannidis, Greek admiral (b. 1881)
- 1968 – Nick Adams, American actor (b. 1931)
- 1971 – Douglass Cadwallader, American golfer (b. 1884)
- 1972 – Walter Lang, American director (b. 1896)
- 1979 – Josef Mengele, German SS officer and physician (b. 1911)
- 1980 – Secondo Campini, Italian engineer (b. 1904)
- 1985 – Matt Monro, English singer (b. 1930)
- 1986 – Cheikh Anta Diop, Senegalese historian, anthropologist, and physicist (b. 1923)
- 1990 – Alfredo M. Santos, Filipino general (b. 1905)
- 1991 – Jean-Paul Mousseau, Canadian painter (b. 1927)
- 1991 – Amos Yarkoni, Israeli soldier (b. 1920)
- 1992 – Buzz Sawyer, American wrestler (b. 1959)
- 1994 – Witold Lutosławski, Polish composer and conductor (b. 1913)
- 1994 – Stephen Milligan, English journalist and politician (b. 1948)
- 1994 – Arnold Smith, Canadian diplomat, 1st Commonwealth Secretary-General (b. 1915)
- 1996 – Phillip Davidson, American general (b. 1915)
- 1998 – Lawrence Sanders, American author (b. 1920)
- 1999 – Hussein of Jordan (b. 1935)
- 1999 – José Silva, American parapsychologist (b. 1914)
- 1999 – Bobby Troup, American actor, pianist, and composer (b. 1918)
- 2000 – Doug Henning, Canadian magician (b. 1947)
- 2000 – Shiho Niiyama, Japanese voice actress (b. 1970)
- 2000 – Big Pun, American rapper (Terror Squad) (b. 1971)
- 2000 – Dave Peverett, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (Foghat and Savoy Brown) (b. 1943)
- 2001 – Dale Evans, American singer-songwriter and actress (b. 1912)
- 2001 – Anne Morrow Lindbergh, American author and pilot (b. 1906)
- 2002 – Jack Fairman, English race car driver (b. 1913)
- 2002 – Tony Pond, English race car driver (b. 1945)
- 2003 – Augusto Monterroso, Guatemalan author (b. 1921)
- 2003 – John H. Reading, American politician (b. 1917)
- 2005 – Atli Dam, Faroese politician, 5th Prime Minister of the Faroe Islands (b. 1932)
- 2005 – Bob Turner, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1934)
- 2006 – Princess Durru Shehvar of the Ottoman empire (b. 1914)
- 2008 – Tamara Desni, German-English actress (b. 1913)
- 2009 – Molly Bee, American singer and actress (b. 1939)
- 2009 – Jack Cover, American pilot and scientist, invented the Taser gun (b. 1920)
- 2009 – Blossom Dearie, American singer and pianist (b. 1924)
- 2009 – Brian Naylor, Australian television host (b. 1931)
- 2010 – Franco Ballerini, Italian cyclist and coach (b. 1964)
- 2013 – William Anthony Hughes, American bishop (b. 1921)
- 2013 – John Livermore, American geologist (b. 1918)
- 2013 – Niki Marangou, Cypriot painter and author (b. 1948)
- 2013 – Krsto Papić, Croatian director and screenwriter (b. 1933)
- 2013 – Peter Steen, Danish actor (b. 1936)
- 2013 – József Tóth, Hungarian geographer and academic (b. 1940)
Holidays and observances[edit]
- Christian Feast Day:
- Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Grenada from the United Kingdom in 1974.
“Whoever pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honor.” - Proverbs 21:21
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Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon
February 6: Morning
"Praying always." - Ephesians 6:18
What multitudes of prayers we have put up from the first moment when we learned to pray. Our first prayer was a prayer for ourselves; we asked that God would have mercy upon us, and blot out our sin. He heard us. But when he had blotted out our sins like a cloud, then we had more prayers for ourselves. We have had to pray for sanctifying grace, for constraining and restraining grace; we have been led to crave for a fresh assurance of faith, for the comfortable application of the promise, for deliverance in the hour of temptation, for help in the time of duty, and for succour in the day of trial. We have been compelled to go to God for our souls, as constant beggars asking for everything. Bear witness, children of God, you have never been able to get anything for your souls elsewhere. All the bread your soul has eaten has come down from heaven, and all the water of which it has drank has flowed from the living rock--Christ Jesus the Lord. Your soul has never grown rich in itself; it has always been a pensioner upon the daily bounty of God; and hence your prayers have ascended to heaven for a range of spiritual mercies all but infinite. Your wants were innumerable, and therefore the supplies have been infinitely great, and your prayers have been as varied as the mercies have been countless. Then have you not cause to say, "I love the Lord, because he hath heard the voice of my supplication"? For as your prayers have been many, so also have been God's answers to them. He has heard you in the day of trouble, has strengthened you, and helped you, even when you dishonoured him by trembling and doubting at the mercy-seat. Remember this, and let it fill your heart with gratitude to God, who has thus graciously heard your poor weak prayers. "Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits."
Evening
"Pray one for another." - James 5:16
As an encouragement cheerfully to offer intercessory prayer, remember that such prayer is the sweetest God ever hears, for the prayer of Christ is of this character. In all the incense which our Great High Priest now puts into the golden censer, there is not a single grain for himself. His intercession must be the most acceptable of all supplications--and the more like our prayer is to Christ's, the sweeter it will be; thus while petitions for ourselves will be accepted, our pleadings for others, having in them more of the fruits of the Spirit, more love, more faith, more brotherly kindness, will be, through the precious merits of Jesus, the sweetest oblation that we can offer to God, the very fat of our sacrifice. Remember, again, that intercessory prayer is exceedingly prevalent. What wonders it has wrought! The Word of God teems with its marvellous deeds. Believer, thou hast a mighty engine in thy hand, use it well, use it constantly, use it with faith, and thou shalt surely be a benefactor to thy brethren. When thou hast the King's ear, speak to him for the suffering members of his body. When thou art favoured to draw very near to his throne, and the King saith to thee, "Ask, and I will give thee what thou wilt," let thy petitions be, not for thyself alone, but for the many who need his aid. If thou hast grace at all, and art not an intercessor, that grace must be small as a grain of mustard seed. Thou hast just enough grace to float thy soul clear from the quicksand, but thou hast no deep floods of grace, or else thou wouldst carry in thy joyous bark a weighty cargo of the wants of others, and thou wouldst bring back from thy Lord, for them, rich blessings which but for thee they might not have obtained:--
"Oh, let my hands forget their skill,
My tongue be silent, cold, and still,
This bounding heart forget to beat,
If I forget the mercy-seat!"
"Oh, let my hands forget their skill,
My tongue be silent, cold, and still,
This bounding heart forget to beat,
If I forget the mercy-seat!"
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Today's reading: Exodus 39-40, Matthew 23:23-39 (NIV)
View today's reading on Bible GatewayToday's Old Testament reading: Exodus 39-40
The Priestly Garments
1 From the blue, purple and scarlet yarn they made woven garments for ministering in the sanctuary. They also made sacred garments for Aaron, as the LORD commanded Moses.
The Ephod
2 They made the ephod of gold, and of blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and of finely twisted linen. 3 They hammered out thin sheets of gold and cut strands to be worked into the blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen--the work of skilled hands....Today's New Testament reading: Matthew 23:23-39
23 "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices-mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law-justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.
25 "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean....
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