The price of liberty is eternal vigilance. A former Age editor was appointed by the Howard administration to head the ABC. Mark Scott had worked as an editor for the Age and SMH, both far left news media which adhere to Green politics and suppress issues relevant to conservative politics. He is also a former chief of staff to conservative party education ministers Metherell and Chadwick. If ever my issues are examined the activity of Scott will need to be examined to exonerate him from the possibility of corruption. His appointment to the ABC was met with suspicion by ABC staff fearful of having their bias addressed. However Scott has been inept and has failed to address poor standards. Some say he should resign after the recent adverse court case involving The Chaser posting an image of a balanced journalist fucking a dog. I feel he should have resigned well before that, and possibly should never have been appointed by Metherell.
On this day in 1983, Pioneer 10 left behind the orbit of Neptune .. waving good bye to our solar system. When data had been collected to leave on Pioneer, someone had suggested a recording of Bach, but Carl Sagan said that would be bragging. In 1977, our compassion for the evil was demonstrated when James Earl Ray, the assassin of Martin King, was recaptured and jailed instead of being killed outright. In 1971, the NYT began publishing the Pentagon Papers it had ignored while a Democrat was President. In 1970, The Long and Winding Road became the Beatles last number one hit. Some wanted them to make more .. let it be. In 1525, Martin Luther married his chosen mate, something not generally done under the rules of the Catholic Church. In 313, the Edict of Milan was granted, giving religious freedom throughout the Roman empire. And so creating a foundation for the secular society we enjoy today, giving us liberty that the corrupt, like Scott, would prevent.
===
For twenty two years I have been responsibly addressing an issue, and I cannot carry on. I am petitioning the Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott to remedy my distress. I leave it up to him if he chooses to address the issue. Regardless of your opinion of conservative government, the issue is pressing. Please sign my petition at https://www.change.org/en-AU/petitions/tony-abbott-remedy-the-persecution-of-dd-ball
===
Happy birthday and many happy returns Mapa Sparta Fisiihoi and James Baker. Born on the same day, across the years. On your day, in 1525, Martin Luther married Katharina von Bora, against the celibacy discipline decreed by the Roman Catholic Church for priests. In 1805, The Lewis and Clark Expedition became the first European Americans to sight the Great Falls of the Missouri River. In 1970, "The Long and Winding Road" became The Beatles' twentieth and final number one single in the United States. Your journey is long and windy. But history shows you will find your passion and marry it.
- 40 – Gnaeus Julius Agricola, Roman general (d. 93)
- 823 – Charles the Bald, Roman emperor (d. 877)
- 839 – Charles the Fat, Roman emperor (d. 888)
- 1773 – Thomas Young, English polymath (d. 1829)
- 1854 – Charles Algernon Parsons, English-Irish engineer (d. 1931)
- 1863 – Lucy, Lady Duff-Gordon, English fashion designer (d. 1935)
- 1865 – W. B. Yeats, Irish poet, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1939)
- 1884 – Gerald Gardner, English religious leader, founded Gardnerian Wicca (d. 1964)
- 1892 – Basil Rathbone, South African-American actor (d. 1967)
- 1910 – Mary Whitehouse, English activist, founded the National Viewers' and Listeners' Association (d. 2001)
- 1915 – Don Budge, American tennis player (d. 2000)
- 1927 – Slim Dusty, Australian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 2003)
- 1929 – Ralph McQuarrie, American artist, known for designing many elements of the Star Wars films (d. 2012)
- 1943 – Malcolm McDowell, English actor
- 1944 – Ban Ki-moon, South Korean diplomat, 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations
- 1951 – Richard Thomas, American actor, director, and producer
- 1953 – Tim Allen, American actor and producer
- 1963 – Catarina Lindqvist, Swedish tennis player
- 1970 – Chris Cairns, New Zealand cricketer
- 1977 – Emily Harrison, American actress
- 1980 – Sarah Connor, German singer-songwriter and dancer
- 1986 – Azumi Muto, Japanese model and actress (d. 2006)
- 1986 – Ashley Olsen, American actress, singer, producer, and fashion designer
- 1986 – Mary-Kate Olsen, American actress, singer, producer, and fashion designer
- 1996 – Kodi Smit-McPhee, Australian actor
Matches
- 313 – The Edict of Milan, signed by Constantine the Great and co-emperor Valerius Licinius granting religious freedom throughout the Roman Empire, is posted in Nicomedia.
- 1373 – Anglo-Portuguese Alliance between England (succeeded by the United Kingdom) and Portugal is the oldest alliance in the world which is still in force.
- 1381 – The Peasants Revolt led by Wat Tyler culminated in the burning of the Savoy Palace.
- 1525 – Martin Luther marries Katharina von Bora, against the celibacy rule decreed by the Roman Catholic Church for priests and nuns.
- 1625 – King Charles I of England marries Henrietta Maria of France, Princess of France
- 1777 – American Revolutionary War: Marquis de Lafayette lands near Charleston, South Carolina, in order to help the Continental Congress to train its army.
- 1805 – Lewis and Clark Expedition: scouting ahead of the expedition, Meriwether Lewis and four companions sight the Great Falls of the Missouri River.
- 1893 – Grover Cleveland notices a rough spot in his mouth and on July 1 undergoes secret, successful surgery to remove a large, cancerous portion of his jaw; operation not revealed to US public until 1917, nine years after the president's death.
- 1917 – World War I: the deadliest German air raid on London during World War I is carried out by Gotha G bombers and results in 162 deaths, including 46 children, and 432 injuries.
- 1927 – Aviator Charles Lindbergh receives a ticker-tape parade down 5th Avenue in New York City.
- 1944 – World War II: Germany launches a V1 Flying Bomb attack on England. Only four of the eleven bombs actually hit their targets.
- 1952 – Catalina affair: a Swedish Douglas DC-3 is shot down by a Soviet MiG-15 fighter.
- 1970 – "The Long and Winding Road" becomes the Beatles' last US Number 1 song.
- 1971 – Vietnam War: The New York Times begins publication of the Pentagon Papers.
- 1977 – Convicted Martin Luther King Jr. assassin James Earl Ray is recaptured after escaping from prison three days before.
- 1983 – Pioneer 10 becomes the first man-made object to leave the central Solar System when it passes beyond the orbit of Neptune (the furthest planet from the Sun at the time).
- 1994 – A jury in Anchorage, Alaska, blames recklessness by Exxon and Captain Joseph Hazelwood for the Exxon Valdez disaster, allowing victims of the oil spill to seek $15 billion in damages.
- 1997 – A jury sentences Timothy McVeigh to death for his part in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.
- 2000 – Italy pardons Mehmet Ali Agca, the Turkish gunman who tried to kill Pope John Paul II in 1981.
- 2007 – The Al Askari Mosque is bombed for a second time.
- 2010 – A capsule of the Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa, containing particles of the asteroid 25143 Itokawa, returns to Earth.
Despatches
- 1036 – Ali az-Zahir, Egyptian caliph (b. 1005)
- 1256 – Tankei, Japanese sculptor (b. 1173)
- 1636 – George Gordon, 1st Marquis of Huntly, Scottish politician (b. 1562)
- 1645 – Miyamoto Musashi, Japanese samurai (b. 1584)
- 1951 – Ben Chifley, Australian politician, 16th Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1885)
- 1986 – Benny Goodman, American clarinet player, songwriter, and bandleader (b. 1909)
- 2010 – Jimmy Dean, American singer, actor, and businessman, founded Jimmy Dean Foods (b. 1928)
- 2014 – Jim Keays, Australian rock singer (The Masters Apprentices) (b. 1946)
Not-so-great Scott needs to be reined in
Piers Akerman – Friday, June 13, 2014 (5:52am)
ABC editor-in- chief Mark Scott has given serial cause to be sacked for incompetence during his exorbitantly paid tenure at the head of the taxpayer-funded broadcaster — and probably would have been if he had answered to a board with any courage.
On a salary of more than $800,000 including super and bonuses — $300,000 more than the prime minister — Scott could reasonably be expected to perform the duties attached to his title.
Those might include a regular attendance at the daily conferences of key news managers and producers when the news line-up is discussed. Editor-in-chief Scott is not only a no-show, but his participation has never been discussed.
Nor does he take part in the commissioning conferences at the decision-making level where ABC programming is planned.
One of the things usually attached to a CEO’s big salary is a modicum of responsibility for the performance of the organisation he or she is paid to run. Scott hasn’t shown he understands that side of the deal. He obviously can’t control The Chaser or its crew, though he is ultimately responsible for the garbage they produce.
As editor-in-chief he must take responsibility for the content of the ABC’s news and current affairs, as well as its other programming.
This week, the Royal Commission into trade union governance and corruption has heard evidence that would strongly suggest former PM Julia Gillard was given money obtained from a union slush fund by her ex- boyfriend Bruce Wilson, which she used to pay for renovations to a house she owned in Melbourne. Ms Gillard has denied all allegations of any impropriety.
The same commission also heard allegations that Opposition Leader Bill Shorten made threats to a former senior officer of the AWU, Bob Kernohan, and that Kernohan, who had been handed pre-selection to a safe Victorian state Labor seat, subsequently lost that endorsement (it went to Shorten but he withdrew).
Further, Kernohan was sent bullets in the post and was viciously bashed in a manner that was not unlike the punishing bruising meted out to former NSW state Labor MP Peter Baldwin when he stood up to the NSW Right machine in 1980.
Most news organisations, let alone their editors-in-chief, would consider allegations naming a prime minister or an opposition leader worthy of leading their newspapers or bulletins. Not so the ABC under Scott’s leadership. After the astounding allegations were made on oath in the commission’s sitting in Sydney on Wednesday, they didn’t even make it to the first half of the ABC’s NSW evening television news.
But the ABC (and later Fairfax) had made much of a leaked statement made by Gillard’s former boyfriend Wilson, which made unsupported and subsequently unanimously rejected claims about some of the witnesses testifying against him.
The ABC’s flagship current affairs program, 7.30, prosecuted a ferocious line of interrogation against retired lawyer Harry Nowicki, who formerly represented the deregistered Builders Labourers Federation, but failed to substantiate any of Wilson’s allegations. It appears to have been running a defence for Wilson and through that, also for Gillard.
That’s not surprising. The ABC is well-entrenched among the supporters of the women-only political slush fund Emily’s List, who uphold the view that Gillard was unfairly criticised because she was a woman, not because she was demonstratively incompetent.
Though it is nearly nine months since Gillard was dumped by the voters, her shadow still looms large over the ABC mindset.
Thus it was no surprise to see aged US Democrat congressman Henry Waxman used as a prop by ABC reporter Sarah Ferguson to beat up a story about Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s policy to dump the ineffective carbon tax.
It’s just a question of joining the dots.
Waxman’s link to Australia is Bruce Wolpe, a vocal global warmist, who happens to have been a senior adviser to Gillard (and still lists that role on his Linkedin profile). Wolpe is a former communications director at Fairfax, where he shared the views of most inmates of that sheltered workshop.
He worked for Waxman between his gig at Fairfax and in Gillard’s office, where he was charged with liaising with the business.
His success can be gauged by the business community’s unanimous rejection of the Gillard government’s economy-destroying policies.
In reality, what goes to air on the ABC is not decided nor vetted in any practical way by the editor-in-chief or senior management.
In the ABC, Australia’s Big Collective, such decisions are taken at program level and at best the ABC operates more like a university with inter-program fights taking the place of inter-faculty rivalries as key on-air presenters and producers, many of whom have spent their entire careers within the ABC and built their own mini empires, jostle to present their leftist version of events.
Only after the shows have aired does the editor-in-chief and the other highly paid executives on the 14th floor of Ultimo HQ discover what their organisation has broadcast. Scott is an engaging fellow but has never cleaned out the clique of former Fairfax, former Labor staffers who make up his inner circle.
There have been a couple of appointments from News Corp recently, but until the complacent ABC board decides otherwise, no one will be permitted to be the CEO of “our” ABC unless they are compliant to the wishes of the staff.
GOOD SENSE AND POWER GAMES ARE POLES APART
WHAT a stunning vision NSW Premier Mike Baird has offered the state in return for the long-term lease of less than half of the poles and wires carrying the state’s power. What a dismally bleak outlook Opposition Leader John Robertson put forward to frighten the electorate.
The contrast between Premier Baird’s approach and that of the former union boss could not have been greater. I know how hard it was for some of the National MPs to agree to the deal. In small regional communities every job is extremely important and electricity jobs have traditionally been long-lasting and reliable. Essential to the ongoing viability of the town.
But if NSW is to continue to match pace with the rest of the world, and particularly those nations in our region with which we are trying to compete in the service industries, we need to ensure that the state’s infrastructure can meet the demands of the future.
At the moment, the state’s infrastructure doesn’t meet the current needs of the people. Anyone who gets out of Macquarie St knows NSW is in need of a fix.
Last weekend I was in Adelaide and Melbourne. Adelaide is locked in a ‘60s time warp with ‘50 overtones. Melbourne, by comparison, works far better.
Both, however, function more effectively than Sydney.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore is an impediment to progress as far as the inner city goes, relying on the retrogressive elements of society to maintain her stranglehold on the city, but that’s beside the point.
The problem lies where the rubber meets — or doesn’t meet — the road. Our highways and freeways are medieval after Melbourne’s.
Our commuters suffer daily. Unlocking $20 billion in infrastructure funding, including $6 billion for regional NSW, makes sense.
Smarter and more successful Labor figures with union backgrounds, including former Labor Treasurer Michael Costa, argue the proposals are “sensible and moderate” and the “right thing to do”.
Premier Baird has put his political life on the line. Others tried and were thwarted by idiots playing politics. NSW needs this now.
OUR GIFT TO THE WORLD
Tim Blair – Friday, June 13, 2014 (3:06pm)
Women want him. Men want to be like him. Presenting Hector the coal mascot.
Kernohan claim to royal commission: Shorten despised Gillard’s link to communist party
Andrew Bolt June 13 2014 (11:45am)
From former AWU Victorian president Bob Kernohan’s sworn statement to the royal commission into trade union corruption:
===“118. I knew of Ms. GILLARD back then only in passing at ALP conferences. Bill SHORTEN knew her better than me and he told me that WILSON and GILLARD was an item going back to 1992. I remember that Bill SHORTEN told me on numerous occasions that he despised GILLARD because of her links to the Communist Party.”Julia Gillard was on the management committee of the Socialist Forum, recycling former members of the Communist Party into Labor. In the 1980s she explained this infiltration of the Labor Party:
For the Left to make any real advance all these perspectives on the relationship to Labor in government need to be rejected in favour of a concept of strategic support for Labor governments. We need to recognise the only possibility for major social change is under a long period of Labor administration. Within that administration the Left needs to be willing to participate to shape political outcomes, recognising the need to except (sic) often unpalatable compromises in the short term to bolster the prospect of future advance.(Thanks to reader George Orwell.)
Fairfax worships a new God
Andrew Bolt June 13 2014 (10:48am)
Mark Kenny and the Sydney Morning Herald sum
up the dominant Fairfax prejudices beyond the point of parody: Tony
Abbott is a slave to stupid Christianity when the truth faith is global
warming and Barack Obama is God:
===Abbott-haters and warmists confounded: Obama and Abbott hold warm meeting
Andrew Bolt June 13 2014 (10:18am)
The anti-Abbott beat-up
is exposed. Remember all the hungry predictions by Leftist reporters
that Barack Obama would whack Tony Abbott over climate change in their
White House meeting?
Fairfax’s Mark Kenny predicted a weakened bond:
UPDATE
Unable to accept the failure of her predictions of a frosty meeting, the ABC’s Lisa Millar tries one last time to get Obama’s spokesman to comment on Abbott’s “offensive” statements. Still no luck, though:
More interested in trying to winkle out some criticism of Abbott rather than explore what he’d actually achieved.
(Thanks to reader Cyanpixie.)
===Fairfax’s Mark Kenny predicted a weakened bond:
Fundamental differences over climate-change policy continue to hamper Tony Abbott’s capacity to build links in the US as both President Barack Obama and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon want more support from Australia for international action on carbon dioxide emissions.The Guardian’s Lenore Taylor hoped and prayed:
As Obama and Abbott prepare for their first formal meeting in Washington on Thursday, the differences between their positions on global warming are clearer than ever, and according to diplomatic sources the president will not seek to downplay them.Fairfax’s Peter Hannan, in a front-page story in The Age, warned of a damaging showdown:
... a top adviser to the Obama administration on climate change said Australia could jeopardise its relationship with the United States if the Abbott government fails to fall into line on climate policy.The ABC’s North American correspondent, Lisa Millar, hoped for the worst:
When the Prime Minister arrives at the White House, there will be none of the fanfare that has welcomed previous Prime Ministers, the lack of regard seems mutual...The ABC is now forced to report the truth as opposed to the beat-up - deeper ties, no climate change showdown and expressions of warmth:
Prime Minister Tony Abbott and US president Barack Obama have agreed to a new defence initiative which paves the way for extra American military forces and activity in Australia.Publicly, there were only expressions of warmth and a deepening of ties:
During wide-ranging talks at the White House, the pair also discussed their different approaches to climate change, with both agreeing they would like energy efficiency on the G20 agenda… Mr Obama reportedly said he understood the Australian Government had a mandate for its policy, while Mr Abbott said the fuel excise is already acting as a carbon price signal to improve energy efficiency.
Perhaps tellingly, the topic was not raised in front of the cameras. Regional trade and investment came first....
... the meeting of political opposites appeared warm.
Obama described Australia as one of a handful of countries that the U.S. can always count on. “And Aussies know how to fight, and I like having them in a foxhole if we’re in trouble. So I can’t think of a better partner,” he said.Real tense - not:
PRESIDENT OBAMA: So thank you, Tony.Yeah, here’s Obama showing Abbott his “lack of regard”:
PRIME MINISTER ABBOTT: Well, thank you so much, Barack.
When Mr Abbott told the President he had to stop by Honolulu to refuel on his way home, the President’s eyes lit up.So all those preview pieces predicting tensions proved ill-informed, driven by prejudice rather than analysis. Yet another example of how global warming evangelism blinds believers.
“You work too hard Tony,” the President said.
“You should try and get a surf in while you are there,” he said.
It was a jovial end to what was a successful first meeting between the two since Mr Abbott was elected. And it had been a similar start to their summit as they joked about the fact that the 9 foot Malibu Mr Abbott had given the President as an official gift from Australia, was too big to fit into the oval office.
UPDATE
Unable to accept the failure of her predictions of a frosty meeting, the ABC’s Lisa Millar tries one last time to get Obama’s spokesman to comment on Abbott’s “offensive” statements. Still no luck, though:
Incredible.
More interested in trying to winkle out some criticism of Abbott rather than explore what he’d actually achieved.
(Thanks to reader Cyanpixie.)
Aly does it again: excusing a terrorist movement as just Western blowback
Andrew Bolt June 13 2014 (10:15am)
Fairfax columnist and Muslim apologist Waleed Aly did it with Boko Haram and does it again with Iraq. Don’t mention Islam!
In Iraq we have Islamist extremists - led by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant - slaughtering Shiites, attacking the Iraqi democracy and claiming a new Islamic Sunni state in the north of Iraq and Syria.
Who does Aly blame? The West:
And what words never pass his lips in this article? Yes, “Islam” and “Muslim”.
True, he does mention “Islamic” - but only once, in noting the Sunni force involved is indeed the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant. Nowhere does Aly describe Islam’s role in fostering such violence and contempt for democracy, whether in Iraq, Egypt or Syria, all countries he discusses in this piece. No, just blame the West for Muslims slaughtering Muslims to impose a fascist state.
It’s always the West, which makes Aly’s piece reads dangerously like an apologia for Islamist extremism of the deadliest kind.
But just to underline Aly’s slipperiness, here is the core of his argument. The West was stupid to remove Saddam Hussein in Iraq and thus unleash this terrorist “blowback”. But it was stupid not to remove Bashar al-Assad in Syria and thus allow this terrorist uprising. Whatever it chooses, the West is wrong:
It is impossible to ignore the influence of Islam in this conflict:
===In Iraq we have Islamist extremists - led by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant - slaughtering Shiites, attacking the Iraqi democracy and claiming a new Islamic Sunni state in the north of Iraq and Syria.
Who does Aly blame? The West:
We haven’t yet come to terms with just how much damage the invasion of Iraq has done. It’s likely we won’t fully know for decades. But it’s clear that the blowback is already under way...Predictably, Aly does not even mention a more telling fact: that the US pulled out prematurely from Iraq in 2011, leaving a vacuum that terrorists now fill. Nor does he mention that the regime the West toppled in 2003 was one of the most brutal known, responsible for starting two wars and a genocide. If he believes that regime should have been left in place he should say so explicitly and reckon what that would have cost in more lives lost.
And what words never pass his lips in this article? Yes, “Islam” and “Muslim”.
True, he does mention “Islamic” - but only once, in noting the Sunni force involved is indeed the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant. Nowhere does Aly describe Islam’s role in fostering such violence and contempt for democracy, whether in Iraq, Egypt or Syria, all countries he discusses in this piece. No, just blame the West for Muslims slaughtering Muslims to impose a fascist state.
It’s always the West, which makes Aly’s piece reads dangerously like an apologia for Islamist extremism of the deadliest kind.
But just to underline Aly’s slipperiness, here is the core of his argument. The West was stupid to remove Saddam Hussein in Iraq and thus unleash this terrorist “blowback”. But it was stupid not to remove Bashar al-Assad in Syria and thus allow this terrorist uprising. Whatever it chooses, the West is wrong:
Obama ran an anaemic campaign for military intervention in Syria that went nowhere. These days he regards Syria merely as “somebody else’s civil war”.UPDATE
We will never know what would have happened had America intervened at that stage. But we do know that Bashar al-Assad had free reign to unleash brutal force, thereby radicalising the environment and laying down a magnet for Sunni terrorist groups. And we now know that those groups are enmeshed with those in Iraq.... Mosul is in terrorist hands because we blew the lid off Iraq, then refused to help put it back on Syria.
It is impossible to ignore the influence of Islam in this conflict:
The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Shams (Isis) has imposed a strict set of Sharia laws on the citizens of Nineveh province just days after capturing the provincial capital of Mosul.
In a document circulating on social media attributed to the group, Isis warned tribal leaders and sheikhs not to “work with [the Iraqi] government and be traitors” while proclaiming that women should only go outside if absolutely necessary.
“For women, dress decently and wear wide clothes. Only go out if needed,” read the document ...
The document added that Isis wish to destroy all shrines and graves, in reference to Shia shrines in towns such as Samarra where fighting is continuing.
“For those asking who are you? We are soldiers of Islam and took on our responsiblity to bring back glory of the Islamic Caliphate… Anyone who steals [will have their] hands cut,” the document translation read.
The Bolt Report on Sunday
Andrew Bolt June 13 2014 (9:39am)
A cracker of a line-up for the show this week.
Editorial: It’s not one Tanya Plibersek and a few journalists will want to watch.
My guest: Foreign Minister Julie Bishop on Iraq and Abbott’s meeting with Obama.
The panel: former Treasurer Peter Costello and former NSW Treasurer Michael Costa on welfarism, the Budget, the AWU scandal and more.
NewsWatch: Rowan Dean. Examining the media narrative of a stumble-bum PM.
Plus: a Senate embarrassment.
On Channel 10 at 10am and 4pm.
The videos of the shows appear here.
Oh, and once again we’ve tried to get Labor shadow ministers onto the show.
Richo: Turnbull doing a Rudd
Andrew Bolt June 13 2014 (9:16am)
Graham
Richardson is not the only commentator to wonder whether I wasn’t right
about Malcolm Turnbull’s ambitions and strategy, after all:
And, again, the caveat that was ignored last time: Turnbull is not actively agitating for the leadership, and almost no Liberal MP would have him anyway.
What’s more, I doubt very, very much there will be a vacancy this side of the election.
===Andrew Bolt and Alan Jones hopped into him and he belted them right back…Looking forward to Turnbull now attacking Richo as “bordering on the demented”, “deranged” and “unhinged”. But of course there are reasons Turnbull finds it more useful to demonise me than to demonise Richo. That, too, is part of his strategy.
Just as I was beginning to accept that he was merely defending himself and was in no way pursuing a strategy of keeping his name before the public in case Tony Abbott stumbled and fell, I received a call from Tony Burke, the manager of opposition business....
Burke reminded me that Rudd worked out that the caucus would only ever turn in his direction if he became so popular with the public that he could not be ignored… The parallels between Rudd and Turnbull are hard to miss… With the Prime Minister away Turnbull came out to play just as Rudd did when Gillard went overseas.
And, again, the caveat that was ignored last time: Turnbull is not actively agitating for the leadership, and almost no Liberal MP would have him anyway.
What’s more, I doubt very, very much there will be a vacancy this side of the election.
Bruce Wilson’s story - and a document that challenges it
Andrew Bolt June 13 2014 (8:59am)
Bruce Wilson’s day in the dock summed up:
UPDATE
Hedley Thomas:
===JULIA Gillard’s former union boyfriend has admitted to extracting large sums of money from the Thiess construction company for a secret slush fund he set up with legal assistance from the then future Labor prime minister…Julia Gillard insists she did nothing wrong, did not know how the slush fund operated, did not benefit from the fund and paid for her renovations herself.
Mr Wilson, a former Australian Workers Union official, went out of his way in evidence to the commission yesterday to distance Ms Gillard from wrongdoing by insisting that she had no role in the operations of the AWU Workplace Reform Association after helping him create it in 1992.
He also rejected as “lies” the sworn evidence given to the commission by builder Athol James on Wednesday that Mr Wilson paid for renovations on Ms Gillard’s Melbourne house, and that Mr James saw Mr Wilson give Ms Gillard “a large amount of cash” to cover her cheque payments for the work…
It heard from former AWU bagman Ralph Blewitt last month that he handed over $7000 in cash from the slush fund on Mr Wilson’s orders to pay tradesmen when Ms Gillard was present at the house…
Mr Wilson told the commission yesterday that Mr Blewitt never paid tradesmen in “bib-and-brace overalls” at the Gillard house as he had claimed…
At no time did he pay for Ms Gillard’s renovations, Mr Wilson said…
The former AWU official — who should face criminal charges for fraud and conspiracy over the slush fund, according to commission counsel assisting Jeremy Stoljar SC — rejected the allegation he “deliberately and knowingly” set up the AWU Workplace Reform Association as a device to obtain funds from Thiess…
[H]e insisted that Ms Gillard had no role in the fund after providing legal advice to set it up. He said he never raised with her how the association would raise money… He said Ms Gillard had helped draft the rules…
While Mr Wilson conceded that Thiess paid money to the fund for almost a year in return for no services and that “in part” he did conceal its existence from others at the union, he denied that invoices sent to the company were false.
He claimed he hired AWU official Glen Ivory, who died in 2004, to perform training services with Thiess… In a surprise move, Mr Stoljar produced a sworn statement to police made by Mr Ivory in 1997, in which the former AWU official said he and the union’s executive were never made aware of the Workplace Reform Association, and he never worked for it as a training officer…
Mr Wilson confirmed that money from the slush fund was used to partly fund the purchase of a house in the Melbourne suburb Fitzroy in 1993, and that he had a power of attorney document arranged by Ms Gillard so he could bid for the property at an auction on Mr Blewitt’s behalf.
The house was mortgaged to Slater & Gordon. Funding for the Fitzroy house came from the slush fund, but the house was bought in Mr Blewitt’s name “in part” to keep activities of the AWU Workplace Relations Association concealed from others in the AWU.
UPDATE
Hedley Thomas:
JULIA Gillard went for the jugular in a withering attack 18 months ago. Her target, Ralph Blewitt, a corrupt union official in the AWU slush fund scandal, had been speaking openly to The Australian and Victoria Police, incriminating himself and Bruce Wilson in an alleged fraud — and implicating her by claiming she was a vital cog in its machinery and even a beneficiary of cash....Ouch.
Gillard let fly. “You can work out who you believe: the person who is standing here, prime minister of Australia, who has done nothing wrong, or the man who says he’s guilty and is looking for an immunity. Mr Blewitt, according to people who know him, has been described as a complete imbecile, an idiot, a stooge, a sexist pig, a liar, and his sister has said he’s a crook and rotten to the core. His word against mine. Make your mind up.”
The lead lawyer in Australia’s national royal commission into union corruption, Jeremy Stoljar, SC, has made his mind up.
There is worse to come. The inquiry has flagged investigations into a second Wilson slush fund, involving one of Gillard’s closest friends, Robyn McCleod.
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4 her, so she can see how I see her===
While the threats facing Israel are growing, the IDF works tirelessly to develop and implement the most advanced technology, doing its utmost to keep Israel's citizens safe.
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Heavenly Father,I thank You for the promise to fill my hunger. I open my heart to You and ask that You draw me by Your Spirit. Teach me to walk in Your ways of righteousness that I may honor and serve You all the days of my life. I bless Your name today. In Jesus’ name....
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Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. (Matthew 5:6, NIV) Just like you have to stop what you are doing to take time to eat in the natural, you have to take time to “eat” or partake of the right things spiritually. We have to...
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Roasted Red Pepper Hummus spiced up the Shiksa way. Creamy, smoky, spicy, garlicky goodness!
Recipe here: http://theshiksa.com/2013/
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Never trust a bloke in a Blue tie, hey Julia?
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Graphic Quotes: Barack Hussein Obama
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“To avoid being mistaken for a sellout, I chose my friends carefully. The more politically active black students. The foreign students. The Chicanos. The Marxist professors and structured feminists and punk-rock performance poets.” Barack Obama, Dreams From My Father
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Larry Pickering
PAROLE BOARD RESPONSIBLE FOR JILL’S DEATH... and police were fast asleep
Facts were reported (illegally, due to a suppression order) in the Pickering Post on September 30, 2012.
This germ Bayley had at least 16 convictions for violent rape, there were many more unaccounted for and he was prematurely out on parole.
He was a person very well-known to police and there had been a rash of rape reports in inner Melbourne suburbs prior to Jill Meagher’s murder.
A German backpacker was raped in StKilda only weeks before Jill went missing and had given police an excellent description of a ginger-headed man.
Police had issued an identikit pic of the assailant yet didn’t even recognise Bayley from their own description!
They made public a copy of a bridal shop’s CCT video and asked TV audiences for assistance to identify a person they already knew. WTF?
Why police cars didn’t immediately arrive at Bayley’s address demanding an alibi is astounding. And where the hell was his parole officer?
Oh yes, his parole officer had tipped him off that the police might be on to him. Even Bayley’s parents had told police that he was likely to re-offend again while on parole. Incredible!
A report written three years ago, recommended that "immediate priority" be given to fixing a Victorian Police problem: The report revealed that 11 (eleven) "parolees" were charged with murder between July 1, 2008, and November 17, 2010.
What the hell has been going on in Victoria?
When he raped and murdered Jill Meagher, Bayley had already been released on parole for the rape of two other girls.
While in jail he sent the two girls birthday cards each year, reliving his experiences with them.
The girls, who had already been through stressful court testimony, now had to suffer Bayley’s ghoulish reminisces.
The police did nothing to prevent the torment.
A police report, marked "Protected" and written by Detective Acting Inspector Mark Newlan, warned that the parole problem exposed Victoria Police to "legitimate criticism by the media and the broader community" and significant damage to the force's reputation.
Screw the force’s “reputation”! What about the public’s safety, Mr Newlan?
Premier Baillieu, at the time, said, "We've known about the problems, but particular problems in regards to parolees, the failure of Victoria Police, I’ve read about those over the last 24 hours," he said.
"I think like most Victorians I'm shocked that basic information like this has not been available. Police should have available to them all the information about parolees, indeed any breaches of parolees ought to be addressed very promptly.
"I am appalled, I am shocked, I can only say we will deal with this problem," he said.
He didn’t deal with it. And it was not until Bayley was sentenced that a suppression order was lifted allowing the public to know who and what they have a right to be aware of.
Police Association Secretary, Greg Davies, said the parolees charged with murder should not have been let out of jail early in the first place.
"Why are these people on parole? How can the Parole Board get it so wrong that they allow these people to be released early from jail?" Mr Davies asked.
Whether they are released early or not, the public is still at risk. People like Bayley are sick and will reoffend whenever they are released.
The problem is suppression orders keep the public in the dark and juries politically correctly unaware of an accused’s criminal history.
The Victoria Police have been accepting of praise for work well done but why wasn’t this known serial rapist in their cross-hairs long before this tragedy ocurred? They knew him better than anyone!
No wonder the Victorian Police asked Jill’s husband to tell everyone not to discuss the matter at the time.
Melbourne residents have not been safe for years and have had no way of knowing who they should be wary of.
Parents also are not allowed to know where serial paedophiles are living.
Juries are not allowed to know the history of someone they are asked to find guilty or innocent.
Judicial political correctness victimises the victim while protecting the criminal.
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“The whole point of empathy is to stand in someone else’s shoes and see things through their eyes.” http://bit.ly/DRP0612
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Breaking: 10-year-old Sarah Murnaghan is being prepped for surgery and is getting her lung transplant. http://tinyurl.com/moglfcz
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Pastor Rick Warren
The prize is always on the other side of pain. You must cross that river to get the reward.
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HWY 412 — in Boise City, OK.
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We welcome today's announcement that every school in NSW will have flashing lights by 2015:http://bit.ly/13Tzqck
Flashing lights go a long way to ensure that motorists are aware that they are travelling in a school zone and need to slow down.
Do you find they help you?
We would also like to see the RMS adopt a regular program of school zone audits to identify safety issues.
We are currently collecting information from the public regarding neglected school zones and we would like to hear from parents or teachers, and particularly Parent & Citizens Committees, that have safety concerns with their local school zone:http://bit.ly/14tOLm7
The survey will remain open until 29 July 2013 with the results to be provided to the NSW Government to assist in the further roll-out of Australian-standard signs and flashing lights: To fill out the survey, please go to:http://bit.ly/14tOLm7
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- 1525 – Martin Luther married Katharina von Bora (pictured), defying the celibacy discipline decreed by the Roman Catholic Church for priests.
- 1886 – King Ludwig II of Bavaria was found dead in Lake Starnberg near Munich under mysterious circumstances.
- 1966 – The Miranda v. Arizona landmark ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court established the Miranda warning, requiring law enforcement officials to advise a suspect in custody of his rights to remain silent and to obtain an attorney.
- 1982 – Fahd became King of Saudi Arabia, succeeding his half-brotherKhalid upon the latter's death.
- 1997 – In one of the worst fire tragedies in recent Indian history, 59 people died and 103 others were seriously injured during a premiere screening of the film Border at the Uphaar Cinema in Green Park, Delhi.
Events[edit]
- 313 – The Edict of Milan, signed by Constantine the Great and co-emperor Valerius Licinius granting religious freedom throughout the Roman Empire, is posted in Nicomedia.
- 1373 – Anglo-Portuguese Alliance between England (succeeded by the United Kingdom) and Portugal is the oldest alliance in the world which is still in force.
- 1381 – The Peasants Revolt led by Wat Tyler culminated in the burning of the Savoy Palace.
- 1525 – Martin Luther marries Katharina von Bora, against the celibacy rule decreed by the Roman Catholic Church for priests and nuns.
- 1625 – King Charles I of England marries Henrietta Maria of France, Princess of France
- 1740 – Georgia provincial governor James Oglethorpe begins an unsuccessful attempt to take Spanish Florida during the Siege of St. Augustine.
- 1774 – Rhode Island becomes the first of Britain's North American colonies to ban the importation of slaves.
- 1777 – American Revolutionary War: Marquis de Lafayette lands near Charleston, South Carolina, in order to help the Continental Congress to train its army.
- 1805 – Lewis and Clark Expedition: scouting ahead of the expedition, Meriwether Lewis and four companions sight the Great Falls of the Missouri River.
- 1881 – The USS Jeannette is crushed in an Arctic Ocean ice pack.
- 1886 – A fire devastates much of Vancouver, British Columbia.
- 1886 – King Ludwig II of Bavaria is found dead in Lake Starnberg south of Munich at 11:30 PM.
- 1893 – Grover Cleveland notices a rough spot in his mouth and on July 1 undergoes secret, successful surgery to remove a large, cancerous portion of his jaw; operation not revealed to US public until 1917, nine years after the president's death.
- 1898 – Yukon Territory is formed, with Dawson chosen as its capital.
- 1910 – The University of the Philippines College of Engineering is established. This unit of the university is said to be the largest degree granting unit in the Philippines.
- 1917 – World War I: the deadliest German air raid on London during World War I is carried out by Gotha G bombers and results in 162 deaths, including 46 children, and 432 injuries.
- 1927 – Aviator Charles Lindbergh receives a ticker-tape parade down 5th Avenue in New York City.
- 1944 – World War II: German combat elements - reinforced by the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division - launch a counterattack on American forces near Carentan.
- 1944 – World War II: Germany launches a V1 Flying Bomb attack on England. Only four of the eleven bombs actually hit their targets.
- 1952 – Catalina affair: a Swedish Douglas DC-3 is shot down by a Soviet MiG-15 fighter.
- 1955 – Mir Mine, the first diamond mine in the USSR, is discovered.
- 1966 – The United States Supreme Court rules in Miranda v. Arizona that the police must inform suspects of their rights before questioning them.
- 1967 – U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson nominates Solicitor-General Thurgood Marshall to become the first black justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.
- 1969 – Governor of Texas Preston Smith signs a bill into law converting the former Southwest Center for Advanced Studies, originally founded as a research arm of Texas Instruments, into the University of Texas at Dallas.
- 1970 – "The Long and Winding Road" becomes the Beatles' last US Number 1 song.
- 1971 – Vietnam War: The New York Times begins publication of the Pentagon Papers.
- 1977 – Convicted Martin Luther King Jr. assassin James Earl Ray is recaptured after escaping from prison three days before.
- 1978 – Israeli Defense Forces withdraw from Lebanon.
- 1981 – At the Trooping the Colour ceremony in London, a teenager, Marcus Sarjeant, fires six blank shots at Queen Elizabeth II.
- 1982 – Fahd becomes King of Saudi Arabia upon the death of his brother, Khalid.
- 1982 – Riccardo Paletti, was killed when he crashed on the start grid for the Canadian Grand Prix
- 1983 – Pioneer 10 becomes the first man-made object to leave the central Solar System when it passes beyond the orbit of Neptune (the furthest planet from the Sun at the time).
- 1994 – A jury in Anchorage, Alaska, blames recklessness by Exxon and Captain Joseph Hazelwood for the Exxon Valdez disaster, allowing victims of the oil spill to seek $15 billion in damages.
- 1996 – The Montana Freemen surrender after an 81-day standoff with FBI agents.
- 1997 – A jury sentences Timothy McVeigh to death for his part in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.
- 1997 – Uphaar cinema fire, in New Delhi, India, killed 59 people, and over 100 people injured.
- 2000 – President Kim Dae Jung of South Korea meets Kim Jong-il, leader of North Korea, for the beginning of the first ever inter-Korea summit, in the northern capital ofPyongyang.
- 2000 – Italy pardons Mehmet Ali Agca, the Turkish gunman who tried to kill Pope John Paul II in 1981.
- 2002 – The United States withdraws from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty.
- 2002 – Two 14-year-old South Korean girls are struck and killed by a United States Army armored vehicle, leading to months of public protests against the US.
- 2005 – A jury in Santa Maria, California acquits pop singer Michael Jackson of molesting 13-year-old Gavin Arvizo at his Neverland Ranch.
- 2007 – The Al Askari Mosque is bombed for a second time.
- 2010 – A capsule of the Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa, containing particles of the asteroid 25143 Itokawa, returns to Earth.
- 2012 – A series of bombings across Iraq, including Baghdad, Hillah and Kirkuk, kills at least 93 people and wounds over 300 others.
Births[edit]
- 40 – Gnaeus Julius Agricola, Roman general (d. 93)
- 823 – Charles the Bald, Roman emperor (d. 877)
- 839 – Charles the Fat, Roman emperor (d. 888)
- 1595 – Jan Marek Marci, Bohemian doctor and scientist (d. 1667)
- 1649 – Adrien Baillet, French scholar and critic (d. 1706)
- 1672 – Anna Maria Franziska of Saxe-Lauenburg (d. 1741)
- 1752 – Frances Burney, English author and playwright (d. 1840)
- 1761 – Antonín Vranický, Czech violinist and composer (d. 1820)
- 1763 – José Bonifácio de Andrada, Brazilian politician (d. 1838)
- 1773 – Thomas Young, English polymath (d. 1829)
- 1775 – Antoni Radziwiłł, Lithuanian politician (d. 1833)
- 1786 – Winfield Scott, American general (d. 1866)
- 1790 – José Antonio Páez, Venezuelan general and politician (d. 1873)
- 1809 – Heinrich Hoffmann, German psychiatrist and author (d. 1894)
- 1822 – Carl Schmidt, Latvian-German chemist (d. 1894)
- 1827 – Alberto Henschel, German-Brazilian photographer and businessman (d. 1882)
- 1831 – James Clerk Maxwell, Scottish physicist (d. 1879)
- 1854 – Charles Algernon Parsons, English-Irish engineer (d. 1931)
- 1863 – Lucy, Lady Duff-Gordon, English fashion designer (d. 1935)
- 1864 – Rudolf Kjellén, Swedish politician (d. 1922)
- 1864 – Dwight B. Waldo, American historian and academic (d. 1939)
- 1865 – W. B. Yeats, Irish poet, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1939)
- 1870 – Jules Bordet, Belgian immunologist and microbiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1961)
- 1875 – Paul Neumann, Austrian swimmer and physician (d. 1932)
- 1876 – William Sealy Gosset, English chemist and statistician (d. 1937)
- 1879 – Heinrich Gutkin, Estonian businessman and politician (d. 1941)
- 1879 – Charalambos Tseroulis, Greek general (d. 1929)
- 1884 – Anton Drexler, German politician (d. 1942)
- 1884 – Gerald Gardner, English religious leader, founded Gardnerian Wicca (d. 1964)
- 1884 – Étienne Gilson, French philosopher (d. 1978)
- 1885 – Henry George Lamond, Australian farmer and author (d. 1969)
- 1887 – André François-Poncet, French politician and diplomat (d. 1978)
- 1887 – Bruno Frank, German-American author, poet, and playwright (d. 1945)
- 1888 – Fernando Pessoa, Portuguese poet and critic (d. 1935)
- 1892 – Basil Rathbone, South African-American actor (d. 1967)
- 1893 – Dorothy L. Sayers, English author (d. 1957)
- 1894 – Leo Kanner, Ukrainian-American psychiatrist and physician (d. 1981)
- 1894 – Jacques Henri Lartigue, French photographer and painter (d. 1986)
- 1897 – Paavo Nurmi, Finnish runner (d. 1973)
- 1899 – Carlos Chávez, Mexican composer, conductor, and journalist, founded the Mexican Symphonic Orchestra (d. 1978)
- 1901 – Tage Erlander, Swedish politician, 25th Prime Minister of Sweden (d. 1985)
- 1903 – Red Grange, American football player and actor (d. 1991)
- 1905 – Doc Cheatham, American trumpet player, singer, and bandleader (McKinney's Cotton Pickers) (d. 1997)
- 1905 – James T. Rutnam, Sri Lankan historian and author (d. 1988)
- 1905 – Xian Xinghai, Chinese composer (d. 1945)
- 1906 – Bruno de Finetti, Austrian-Italian mathematician (d. 1985)
- 1909 – E. M. S. Namboodiripad, Indian politician, 1st Chief Minister of Kerala (d. 1998)
- 1910 – Gonzalo Torrente Ballester, Spanish author (d. 1999)
- 1910 – Mary Wickes, American actress and singer (d. 1995)
- 1910 – Mary Whitehouse, English activist, founded the National Viewers' and Listeners' Association (d. 2001)
- 1911 – Luis Walter Alvarez, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1988)
- 1911 – Erwin Wilhelm Müller, German physicist (d. 1977)
- 1912 – Hector de Saint-Denys Garneau, Canadian poet and painter (d. 1943)
- 1913 – Ralph Edwards, American radio and television host (d. 2005)
- 1913 – Yitzhak Pundak, Israeli general, diplomat and politician
- 1914 – Frederic Franklin, English-American ballet dancer and director (d. 2013)
- 1914 – George Crichton Wells, English physician (d.1999)
- 1914 – Barbara Reynolds, English author and lexicographer
- 1915 – Don Budge, American tennis player (d. 2000)
- 1916 – Wu Zhengyi, Chinese botanist (d. 2013)
- 1917 – Teddy Turner, English actor (d. 1992)
- 1918 – Ben Johnson, American actor and stuntman (d. 1996)
- 1918 – Helmut Lent, German pilot (d. 1944)
- 1918 – Percy Rodriguez, Canadian-American actor (d. 2007)
- 1920 – Rolf Huisgen, German chemist
- 1920 – Iosif Vorovich, Russian mathematician (d. 2001)
- 1921 – Lennart Strand, Swedish middle-distance runner (d. 2004)
- 1922 – Etienne Leroux, South African author (d. 1989)
- 1926 – Paul Lynde, American actor and singer (d. 1982)
- 1927 – Slim Dusty, Australian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 2003)
- 1927 – Peter Marychurch, British former director GCHQ
- 1928 – Li Ka-shing, Chinese businessman
- 1928 – Renée Morisset, Canadian pianist (d. 2009)
- 1928 – John Forbes Nash, Jr., American mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1929 – Alan Civil, English horn player (d. 1989)
- 1929 – Robert W. Scott, American politician, 67th Governor of North Carolina (d. 2009)
- 1929 – Ralph McQuarrie, American artist, known for designing many elements of the Star Wars films (d. 2012)
- 1930 – Gotthard Graubner, German painter (d. 2013)
- 1930 – Ryszard Kukliński, Polish colonel and spy (d. 2004)
- 1931 – Nora Kovach, Hungarian-American ballerina (d. 2009)
- 1931 – Reed Scowen, Canadian politician
- 1931 – Irvin D. Yalom, American psychotherapist
- 1932 – Raymond Jolliffe, British politician
- 1932 – Bob McGrath, American actor and singer
- 1932 – Billy Williams, American baseball player and coach (d. 2013)
- 1933 – Tom King, English politician
- 1933 – Norman Lloyd-Edwards, British Lord–Lieutenant for South Glamorgan
- 1935 – Christo, Bulgarian-French sculptor and painter
- 1935 – Jeanne-Claude, Moroccan sculptor and painter (d. 2009)
- 1935 – Samak Sundaravej, Thai politician, 25th Prime Minister of Thailand (d. 2009)
- 1936 – Michel Jazy, French runner
- 1936 – Michael H. Jordan, American businessman (d. 2010)
- 1937 – Eleanor Holmes Norton, American politician
- 1937 – Erich Ribbeck, German footballer and manager
- 1937 – Andreas Whittam Smith, British newspaper editor
- 1938 – Gwynne Howell, Welsh opera singer
- 1939 – Tom Cheek, American sportscaster (d. 2005)
- 1939 – Siegfried Fischbacher, German-American magician
- 1940 – Bobby Freeman, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and producer
- 1940 – Dallas Long, American shot putter
- 1941 – Marcel Lachemann, American baseball player, coach, and manager
- 1941 – Serge Lemoyne, Canadian painter (d. 1998)
- 1941 – Esther Ofarim, Israeli singer
- 1943 – Malcolm McDowell, English actor
- 1943 – Jim Guy Tucker, American lawyer and politician, 43rd Governor of Arkansas
- 1944 – Christine Beasley, British National Health Service administrator
- 1944 – David Curry, British politician
- 1944 – Ban Ki-moon, South Korean diplomat, 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations
- 1945 – Whitley Strieber, American author
- 1947 – A.G. Lafley, American businessman
- 1948 – Garnet Bailey, Canadian-American ice hockey player (d. 2001)
- 1948 – Joe Roth, American director and producer, co-founded Morgan Creek Productions
- 1949 – Dennis Locorriere, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show)
- 1949 – Ulla Schmidt, German politician
- 1950 – Belinda Bauer, Australian-American actress and psychologist
- 1950 – Nick Brown, British politician
- 1950 – Gerd Zewe, German footballer and manager
- 1951 – Howard Leese, American guitarist and producer (Bad Company and Heart)
- 1951 – Richard Thomas, American actor, director, and producer
- 1951 – Stellan Skarsgård, Swedish actor
- 1951 – Robert P. Young, Jr., American jurist
- 1952 – Tony Bruno, American radio host
- 1952 – Jean-Marie Dedecker, Belgian martial artist and politician
- 1953 – Tim Allen, American actor and producer
- 1954 – Rita Cadillac, Brazilian porn actress, singer, and dancer
- 1954 – Andrzej Lepper, Polish politician, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland
- 1954 – Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigerian economist and politician, Minister of Foreign Affairs for Nigeria
- 1955 – Alan Hansen, Scottish footballer
- 1955 – Leah Ward Sears, American jurist
- 1958 – Mark Byford, British BBC administrator
- 1958 – Peter Scudamore, British jockey and racehorse trainer
- 1959 – Boyko Borisov, Bulgarian politician, 50th Prime Minister of Bulgaria
- 1959 – Steve Georganas, Australian politician
- 1959 – Lance Kinsey, Canadian-American actor and screenwriter
- 1960 – Clive Lewis, British judge
- 1960 – Jacques Rougeau, Canadian wrestler
- 1960 – Adam Sampson, British public service and charity executive
- 1961 – Bob Crow, English union leader (d. 2014)
- 1961 – Kaire Indrikson, Estonian swimmer
- 1961 – Anders Järryd, Swedish tennis player
- 1962 – Davey Hamilton, American race car driver
- 1962 – Glenn Michibata, Canadian tennis player
- 1962 – Rudolf Povarnitsyn, Ukrainian high jumper
- 1962 – Ally Sheedy, American actress and author
- 1962 – Hannah Storm, American journalist and author
- 1963 – Bettina Bunge, German tennis player
- 1963 – Sarah Connolly, English opera singer
- 1963 – Paul De Lisle, American bass player (Smash Mouth)
- 1963 – Catarina Lindqvist, Swedish tennis player
- 1963 – Audrey Niffenegger, American author and academic
- 1964 – Christian Wilhelm Berger, Romanian organist, composer, and educator
- 1964 – Kathy Burke, English actress, director, and playwright
- 1964 – Michael Anthony Franano, American singer-songwriter and composer
- 1964 – Šarūnas Marčiulionis, Lithuanian basketball player
- 1965 – Infanta Cristina, Duchess of Palma de Mallorca
- 1965 – Vassilis Karapialis, Greek footballer
- 1965 – Lukas Ligeti, Austrian-American drummer and composer
- 1965 – Lisa Vidal, American actress
- 1966 – Henry Bond, English photographer
- 1966 – Naoki Hattori, Japanese race car driver
- 1966 – Grigori Perelman, Russian mathematician
- 1967 – Taşkın Aksoy, German-Turkish footballer and manager
- 1968 – Fabio Baldato, Italian cyclist
- 1968 – Spike Breakwell, English comedian and actor
- 1968 – Peter DeBoer, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
- 1968 – Darren Dreger, Canadian sportscaster
- 1968 – David Gray, English-Welsh singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
- 1968 – Tim Leveque, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1968 – Denise Pearson, English singer-songwriter (Five Star)
- 1968 – Marcel Theroux, English author and journalist
- 1969 – Cayetana Guillén Cuervo, Spanish actress, director, and screenwriter
- 1969 – Virginie Despentes, French author
- 1969 – Joseph Keter, Kenyan steeplechase runner
- 1969 – Laura Kightlinger, American actress, producer, and screenwriter
- 1969 – Lynne Koplitz, American comedian and actress
- 1969 – Svetlana Krivelyova, Russian shot putter
- 1969 – Søren Rasted, Danish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (Aqua, Hej Matematik, and Lazyboy)
- 1969 – Jamie Walters, American actor and singer
- 1970 – Chris Cairns, New Zealand cricketer
- 1970 – Rivers Cuomo, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Weezer, Avant Garde, and Homie)
- 1970 – Mikael Ljungberg, Swedish wrestler (d. 2004)
- 1971 – Shannon Fill, American actress
- 1971 – Nóra Köves, Hungarian tennis player
- 1971 – David Mendenhall, American actor
- 1972 – Meelis Aasmäe, Estonian skier
- 1972 – Martin Ballantyne, English actor
- 1972 – Kristjan Järvi, Estonian-American conductor
- 1972 – Natalie MacMaster, Canadian fiddler
- 1973 – Sam Adams, American football player
- 1973 – Tanner Foust, American race car driver
- 1973 – Mattias Hellberg, Swedish singer-songwriter (The Hellacopters, Nationalteatern, and The Solution)
- 1973 – Kasia Kowalska, Polish singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
- 1973 – Ville Laihiala, Finnish singer-songwriter and guitarist (Sentenced and Poisonblack)
- 1973 – Anna Mosenkova, Estonian ice dancer
- 1973 – Leeann Tweeden, American model and television host
- 1974 – Coko, American singer (SWV)
- 1974 – Steve-O, American stuntman and actor
- 1974 – Selma Björnsdóttir, Icelandic singer and actress
- 1974 – Valeri Bure, Russian-American ice hockey player
- 1974 – Brande Roderick, American model and actress
- 1974 – Takahiro Sakurai, Japanese voice actor
- 1975 – Ante Čović, Australian footballer
- 1975 – Jeff Davis, American screenwriter and producer
- 1975 – Jennifer Nicole Lee, American model, actress, and author
- 1975 – Jaan Pehk, Estonian musician and writer
- 1975 – Riccardo Scimeca, English footballer
- 1976 – J Brown, English singer (Five)
- 1976 – Kym Lomas, English singer and actress (Hear'Say)
- 1976 – Tygh Runyan, Canadian-American actor and guitarist (The Awkward Stage)
- 1977 – Dragoș Bucur, Romanian actor
- 1977 – Emily Harrison, American actress
- 1977 – Tarmo Kikerpill, Estonian basketball player
- 1977 – Romain Mesnil, French pole vaulter
- 1977 – Earthwind Moreland, American football player
- 1977 – Rainer Schönfelder, Austrian skier
- 1977 – Erin Toughill, American mixed martial artist and boxer
- 1977 – Selwyn Ward, American actor
- 1978 – Jason Michael Carroll, American singer-songwriter
- 1978 – Brian Dowling, Irish television host
- 1978 – Ethan Embry, American actor
- 1978 – Mikako Ichikawa, Japanese model and actress
- 1978 – Mathis Künzler, Swiss actor
- 1979 – Esther Anderson, Australian actress
- 1979 – Nila Håkedal, Norwegian volleyball player
- 1979 – Miguel Pate, American long jumper
- 1979 – Ryan Pickett, American screenwriter, director, and producer
- 1980 – Sarah Connor, German singer-songwriter and dancer
- 1980 – Florent Malouda, French footballer
- 1980 – Diego Mendieta, Paraguayan footballer (d. 2012)
- 1980 – Jamario Moon, American basketball player
- 1980 – Juan Carlos Navarro, Spanish basketball player
- 1980 – Maho Nonami, Japanese actress
- 1980 – Darius Vassell, English footballer
- 1980 – Markus Winkelhock, German race car driver
- 1981 – Daryl Blonder, American actor and author (d. 2012)
- 1981 – Chris Evans, American actor
- 1981 – Blake Judd, American actor, director, and producer
- 1981 – Julie-Marie Parmentier, French actress
- 1981 – Radim Vrbata, Czech-American ice hockey player
- 1982 – Kenenisa Bekele, Ethiopian runner
- 1982 – Krzysztof Bosak, Polish politician
- 1982 – Jessica Caban, American model, dancer, and actress
- 1982 – Nate Jones, American football player
- 1982 – Jess Manafort, American director, producer, and screenwriter
- 1983 – Matt Allison, English race car driver
- 1983 – Rebeca Linares, Spanish porn actress
- 1983 – Steve Novak, American basketball player
- 1983 – Sarah Schaub, American actress
- 1983 – Jason Spezza, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1984 – Nery Castillo, Mexican-Uruguayan footballer
- 1984 – Kaori Icho, Japanese wrestler
- 1984 – Antje Möldner-Schmidt, German runner
- 1984 – Nautica Thorn, American porn actress
- 1984 – Phillip Van Dyke, American actor
- 1985 – Raz-B, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actor (B2K)
- 1985 – Filipe Albuquerque, Portuguese race car driver
- 1985 – Silvio Bankert, German footballer
- 1985 – Lela Star, American porn actress
- 1985 – Danny Syvret, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1986 – Kat Dennings, American actress
- 1986 – Keisuke Honda, Japanese footballer
- 1986 – Azumi Muto, Japanese model and actress (d. 2006)
- 1986 – Ashley Olsen, American actress, singer, producer, and fashion designer
- 1986 – Mary-Kate Olsen, American actress, singer, producer, and fashion designer
- 1988 – Gabe Carimi, American football player
- 1988 – Reece Noi, English actor
- 1989 – Irene Gorovaia, Russian-American actress
- 1989 – Tommy Searle, English motocross racer
- 1989 – Lisa Tucker, American singer and actress
- 1990 – Tara Lynn Foxx, American porn actress
- 1990 – Nicole Riner, Swiss tennis player
- 1990 – Aaron Johnson, English actor
- 1991 – Will Claye, American jumper
- 1991 – Ryan Mason, English footballer
- 1995 – Emily Fanning, New Zealand tennis player
- 1995 – Laura Ucrós, Colombian tennis player
- 1996 – Kodi Smit-McPhee, Australian actor
Deaths[edit]
- 1036 – Ali az-Zahir, Egyptian caliph (b. 1005)
- 1231 – Anthony of Padua, Portuguese priest and saint (b. 1195)
- 1256 – Tankei, Japanese sculptor (b. 1173)
- 1636 – George Gordon, 1st Marquis of Huntly, Scottish politician (b. 1562)
- 1645 – Miyamoto Musashi, Japanese samurai (b. 1584)
- 1665 – Egbert Bartholomeusz Kortenaer, Dutch admiral (b. 1604)
- 1760 – Antoine Court, French minister (b. 1696)
- 1784 – Henry Middleton, American politician, 2nd President of the Continental Congress (b. 1717)
- 1846 – Jean-Baptiste Benoît Eyriès, French geographer and author (b. 1767)
- 1881 – Joseph Škoda, Czech physician and dermatologist (b. 1805)
- 1886 – Ludwig II of Bavaria (b. 1845)
- 1898 – Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau, Canadian lawyer and politician, 5th Premier of Quebec (b. 1840)
- 1904 – Nikiphoros Lytras, Greek painter (b. 1832)
- 1917 – Louis-Philippe Hébert, Canadian sculptor (b. 1850)
- 1918 – Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich of Russia (b. 1878)
- 1930 – Henry Segrave, American-English race car driver (b. 1896)
- 1931 – Kitasato Shibasaburō, Japanese physician and bacteriologist (b. 1851)
- 1943 – Kočo Racin, Macedonian author and activist (b. 1908)
- 1948 – Dazai Osamu, Japanese novelist (b. 1909)
- 1951 – Ben Chifley, Australian politician, 16th Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1885)
- 1954 – Henry Blogg, English fisherman (b. 1876)
- 1957 – Irving Baxter, American high jumper and pole vaulter (b. 1876)
- 1958 – Edwin Keppel Bennett, English poet and academic (b. 1887)
- 1965 – Martin Buber, Austrian-Israeli philosopher (b. 1878)
- 1965 – David Drummond, Australian farmer and politician (b. 1890)
- 1969 – Pralhad Keshav Atre, Indian journalist, director, and producer (b. 1898)
- 1972 – Clyde McPhatter, American singer (Billy Ward and his Dominoes and The Drifters) (b. 1932)
- 1972 – Dündar Taşer, Turkish soldier and politician (b. 1925)
- 1972 – Georg von Békésy, Hungarian biophysicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1899)
- 1972 – Stephanie von Hohenlohe, Austrian-German spy (b. 1891)
- 1977 – Matthew Garber, English actor (b. 1956)
- 1979 – Darla Hood, American actress, voice actress, and singer (b. 1931)
- 1979 – Demetrio Stratos, Egyptian-Italian singer-songwriter and pianist (I Ribelli and Area) (b. 1945)
- 1980 – Walter Rodney, Guyanese historian and activist (b. 1942)
- 1981 – Jean-Louis Lafosse, French racing driver (b. 1941)
- 1982 – Peter Maivia, Samoan-American wrestler (b. 1935)
- 1982 – Khalid of Saudi Arabia (b. 1912)
- 1982 – Riccardo Paletti, Italian race car driver (b. 1958)
- 1984 – António Variações, Portuguese singer-songwriter (b. 1944)
- 1986 – Benny Goodman, American clarinet player, songwriter, and bandleader (b. 1909)
- 1987 – Geraldine Page, American actress (b. 1924)
- 1989 – Fran Allison, American actress and singer (b. 1907)
- 1991 – Ljubov Rebane, Estonian physicist (b. 1929)
- 1993 – Gérard Côté, Canadian runner (b. 1913)
- 1993 – Deke Slayton, American pilot and astronaut (b. 1924)
- 1994 – Nadia Gray, Romanian-French actress (b. 1923)
- 1997 – Nguyen Manh Tuong, Vietnamese lawyer (b. 1909)
- 1998 – Alfred Gerrard, English sculptor (b. 1899)
- 1998 – Birger Ruud, Norwegian ski jumper (b. 1911)
- 1998 – Reg Smythe, English cartoonist (b. 1917)
- 2002 – John Hope, American meteorologist (b. 1919)
- 2002 – Maia Wojciechowska, Polish-American author (b. 1927)
- 2003 – Malik Meraj Khalid, Pakistani politician, Prime Minister of Pakistan (b. 1916)
- 2004 – Dick Durrance, American skier (b. 1914)
- 2004 – Ralph Wiley, American journalist and author (b. 1952)
- 2005 – Jonathan Adams, English actor (b. 1931)
- 2005 – Álvaro Cunhal, Portuguese politician (b. 1913)
- 2005 – David Diamond, American composer (b. 1915)
- 2005 – Lane Smith, American actor (b. 1936)
- 2006 – Charles Haughey, Irish politician, 7th Taoiseach of Ireland (b. 1925)
- 2007 – Walid Eido, Lebanese judge and politician (b. 1942)
- 2008 – Gertrude Fröhlich-Sandner, Austrian politician (b. 1926)
- 2008 – Tim Russert, American journalist and lawyer (b. 1950)
- 2009 – Mitsuharu Misawa, Japanese wrestler (b. 1962)
- 2009 – Fathi Yakan, Lebanese politician (b. 1933)
- 2010 – Jimmy Dean, American singer, actor, and businessman, founded Jimmy Dean Foods (b. 1928)
- 2012 – Sam Beddingfield, American pilot and engineer (b. 1933)
- 2012 – Graeme Bell, Australian pianist, composer, and bandleader (b. 1914)
- 2012 – Luiz Gonzaga Bergonzini, Brazilian bishop (b. 1936)
- 2012 – Roger Garaudy, French philosopher and author (b. 1913)
- 2012 – Mehdi Hassan, Indian-Pakistani singer-songwriter (b. 1927)
- 2012 – Jože Humer, Slovenian composer (b. 1934)
- 2012 – Erica Kennedy, American journalist and author (b. 1970)
- 2013 – Mohammed Al-Khilaiwi, Saudi Arabian footballer (b. 1971)
- 2013 – David Deutsch, American businessman, founded Deutsch Inc. (b. 1929)
- 2013 – Newton Lai, Hong Kong actor (b. 1951)
- 2013 – Sam Most, American flute player and saxophonist (b. 1930)
- 2013 – Edmund Pellegrino, American ethicist and academic (b. 1920)
- 2013 – Kenji Utsumi, Japanese voice actor (b. 1937)
- 2013 – Albert White Hat, American educator and activist (b. 1938)
- 2014 – Jim Keays, Australian rock singer (The Masters Apprentices) (b. 1946)
Holidays and observances[edit]
- Christian Feast Day:
“For the director of music. A psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.”Psalm 19:1-2 NIV
===
Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon
Morning
It is well frequently to weigh ourselves in the scale of God's Word. You will find it a holy exercise to read some psalm of David, and, as you meditate upon each verse, to ask yourself, "Can I say this? Have I felt as David felt? Has my heart ever been broken on account of sin, as his was when he penned his penitential psalms? Has my soul been full of true confidence in the hour of difficulty as his was when he sang of God's mercies in the cave of Adullam, or in the holds of Engedi? Do I take the cup of salvation and call upon the name of the Lord?" Then turn to the life of Christ, and as you read, ask yourselves how far you are conformed to his likeness. Endeavour to discover whether you have the meekness, the humility, the lovely spirit which he constantly inculcated and displayed. Take, then, the epistles, and see whether you can go with the apostle in what he said of his experience. Have you ever cried out as he did--"O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" Have you ever felt his self-abasement? Have you seemed to yourself the chief of sinners, and less than the least of all saints? Have you known anything of his devotion? Could you join with him and say, "For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain"? If we thus read God's Word as a test of our spiritual condition, we shall have good reason to stop many a time and say, "Lord, I feel I have never yet been here, O bring me here! give me true penitence, such as this I read of. Give me real faith; give me warmer zeal; inflame me with more fervent love; grant me the grace of meekness; make me more like Jesus. Let me no longer be found wanting,' when weighed in the balances of the sanctuary, lest I be found wanting in the scales of judgment." "Judge yourselves that ye be not judged."
Evening
"Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling."
2 Timothy 1:9
2 Timothy 1:9
The apostle uses the perfect tense and says, "Who hath saved us." Believers in Christ Jesus are saved. They are not looked upon as persons who are in a hopeful state, and may ultimately be saved, but they are already saved. Salvation is not a blessing to be enjoyed upon the dying bed, and to be sung of in a future state above, but a matter to be obtained, received, promised, and enjoyed now. The Christian is perfectly saved in God's purpose; God has ordained him unto salvation, and that purpose is complete. He is saved also as to the price which has been paid for him: "It is finished" was the cry of the Saviour ere he died. The believer is also perfectly saved in his covenant head, for as he fell in Adam, so he lives in Christ. This complete salvation is accompanied by a holy calling. Those whom the Saviour saved upon the cross are in due time effectually called by the power of God the Holy Spirit unto holiness: they leave their sins; they endeavour to be like Christ; they choose holiness, not out of any compulsion, but from the stress of a new nature, which leads them to rejoice in holiness just as naturally as aforetime they delighted in sin. God neither chose them nor called them because they were holy, but he called them that they might be holy, and holiness is the beauty produced by his workmanship in them. The excellencies which we see in a believer are as much the work of God as the atonement itself. Thus is brought out very sweetly the fulness of the grace of God. Salvation must be of grace, because the Lord is the author of it: and what motive but grace could move him to save the guilty? Salvation must be of grace, because the Lord works in such a manner that our righteousness is forever excluded. Such is the believer's privilege--a present salvation; such is the evidence that he is called to it--a holy life.
===Today's reading: Ezra 3-5, John 20 (NIV)
View today's reading on Bible GatewayToday's Old Testament reading: Ezra 3-5
Rebuilding the Altar
1 When the seventh month came and the Israelites had settled in their towns, the people assembled together as one in Jerusalem. 2 Then Joshua son of Jozadak and his fellow priests and Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and his associates began to build the altar of the God of Israel to sacrifice burnt offerings on it, in accordance with what is written in the Law of Moses the man of God. 3 Despite their fear of the peoples around them, they built the altar on its foundation and sacrificed burnt offerings on it to the LORD, both the morning and evening sacrifices. 4 Then in accordance with what is written, they celebrated the Festival of Tabernacles with the required number of burnt offerings prescribed for each day. 5 After that, they presented the regular burnt offerings, the New Moon sacrifices and the sacrifices for all the appointed sacred festivals of the LORD, as well as those brought as freewill offerings to the LORD. 6 On the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to the LORD, though the foundation of the LORD's temple had not yet been laid....
Today's New Testament reading: John 20
The Empty Tomb
1 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"
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