Institute of Public Affairs IPA held a talk on Free Speech related to the 800 yo Magna Carta. John Roskam and Chris Berg co wrote a book on it called "Magna Carta, a tax revolt that gave us liberty". Also, an IPA researcher gave a stunning piece of research regarding universities and the teaching of history. Only, universities are not teaching history in Australia and speech is not as free as it should be. One important part of history is British history and only ten out of thirty four Australian universities teach it. Possibly because of the invasion myth. But regardless of why, understanding the importance of the Magna Carta is related to what created it and why. People might know about King John from the Robin Hood stories. He was a much worse King than those stories suggest. He lost the French part of England and wanted to raise money to pay for more battles. The Barons revolted and created the Magna Carta which the inept King sealed. The king wanted to be king and didn't care what he gave away. But he died fighting the Barons anyway after he failed to adhere to it. Once the document was created, it took on a life of its own. Thing is governments need tax to work, and no one ever wants to pay more. So the only way forward is to spread the base or cut expenditure. The ALP are tax and spend style governments. Conservatives would like to cut expenses if they could. There is room. NSW could cut a quarter of her public service and still maintain, and possibly improve service delivery. Unions would not like that.
Conspiracy theory re guns, Martin Bryant and John Howard. Because the left hate Mr Howard they are willing to say anything. This latest is the conspiracy theory that Bryant could not have killed all those people as he is an idiot and should have missed and people should have run away. And so Mr Howard, according to the theory, exploited the tragedy to remove guns unnecessarily. The truth, however, is Bryant had military grade weapons which were very loud. Scared people could not focus on the source of the weapons and ran everywhere. And those unlucky enough got close to Bryant where he shot them point blank. It wasn't genius and there wasn't a conspiracy. And Mr Howard showed restraint and some people still have weapons and licenses. But no one needs an assault rifle in civilian life.
ICAC owes Cuneen an apology. ICAC are desperate to be wrapped up before they investigate ALP corruption. In this instance, they over stepped their bounds and targeted a prosecutor and had no grounds to do so. They need to say they are sorry. They should also pay her a lot of money for their corrupt activity.
Adam Goodes and Boos. He isn't being booed for his play. He is a gifted athlete, but a lousy representative as Australian of the Year. He is divisive and too likely to view things in terms of race. He needs a media adviser, not a rest from sport. Sport is what he is good at. But don't pity the thirteen year old whose casual bigotry was disgraceful. Goodes deserves respect for his athleticism. Even for those who don't support his team.
Anger over the death of a lion in Zimbabwe. Thing is, Zimbabwe is corrupt. We know about the death of one lion because Zimbabwe want to embarrass the hunter that paid them. Personally, there is nothing sporting with hunting, even with a bow and arrow. Even a lion has not got a fair chance. An air of expectation that a 10 yo girl suicided to kill 16 in Nigeria, and wound 50 others. No lions were injured by the girl. But even so, her religion may not have minded.
In 238, the Praetorian Guard stormed the palace and captured Pupienus and Balbinus. They were dragged through the streets of Rome and executed. On the same day, Gordian III, age 13, was proclaimed emperor. 615, Pakal ascended the throne of Palenque at the age of 12. 904, Sack of Thessalonica: Saracen raiders under Leo of Tripoli sacked Thessaloniki, the Byzantine Empire's second-largest city, after a short siege, and plundered it for a week. 1014, Byzantine–Bulgarian wars: Battle of Kleidion: Byzantine emperor Basil II inflicted a decisive defeat on the Bulgarian army, and his subsequent treatment of 15,000 prisoners reportedly caused Tsar Samuil of Bulgaria to die of a heart attack less than three months later, on October 6. 1018, Count Dirk III defeated an army sent by Emperor Henry II in the Battle of Vlaardingen. 1030, Ladejarl-Fairhair succession wars: Battle of Stiklestad: King Olaf II fought and died trying to regain his Norwegian throne from the Danes. 1148, the Siege of Damascus ended in a decisive crusader defeat and led to the disintegration of the Second Crusade.
1565, the widowed Mary, Queen of Scots, married Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, Duke of Albany, at Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh, Scotland. 1567, James VI was crowned King of Scotland at Stirling. 1588, Anglo-Spanish War: Battle of Gravelines: English naval forces under the command of Lord Charles Howard and Sir Francis Drake defeated the Spanish Armada off the coast of Gravelines, France. 1693, War of the Grand Alliance: Battle of Landen: France won a Pyrrhic victory over Allied forces in the Netherlands. 1793, John Graves Simcoe decided to build a fort and settlement at Toronto, having sailed into the bay there.
In 1836, inauguration of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France. 1848, Irish Potato Famine: Tipperary Revolt: In Tipperary, Ireland, then in the United Kingdom, an unsuccessful nationalist revolt against British rule was put down by police. 1851, Annibale de Gasparis discovered asteroid 15 Eunomia. 1858, United States and Japan signed the Harris Treaty. 1864, American Civil War: Confederate spy Belle Boyd was arrested by Union troops and detained at the Old Capitol Prison in Washington, D.C. 1899, the First Hague Convention was signed.
In 1900, in Italy, King Umberto I of Italy was assassinated by the anarchist Gaetano Bresci. 1907, Sir Robert Baden-Powell sets up the Brownsea Island Scout camp in Poole Harbour on the south coast of England. The camp ran from August 1 to August 9, 1907, and is regarded as the foundation of the Scouting movement. 1913, the Norwegian football club Vålerenga Fotball was founded. 1914, the Cape Cod Canal opened. 1920, construction of the Link River Dam began as part of the Klamath Reclamation Project. 1921, Adolf Hitler became leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party. 1932, Great Depression: In Washington, D.C., troops dispersed the last of the "Bonus Army" of World War I veterans. 1937, Tōngzhōu Incident: In Tōngzhōu, China, the East Hopei Army attacked Japanese troops and civilians.
In 1945, the BBC Light Programme radio station was launched for mainstream light entertainment and music. 1948, Olympic Games: The Games of the XIV Olympiad: After a hiatus of 12 years caused by World War II, the first Summer Olympics to be held since the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, open in London. 1950, Korean War: After four days, the No Gun Ri Massacre ended when the US Army 7th Cavalry Regiment was withdrawn. 1957, the International Atomic Energy Agency was established. 1958, U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed into law the National Aeronautics and Space Act, which created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). 1959, first United States Congress election in Hawaii as a state of the Union. 1965, Vietnam War: The first 4,000 101st Airborne Division paratroopers arrived in Vietnam, landing at Cam Ranh Bay. 1967, Vietnam War: Off the coast of North Vietnam the USS Forrestal caught on fire in the worst U.S. naval disaster since World War II, killing 134. Also 1967, during the fourth day of celebrating its 400th anniversary, the city of Caracas, Venezuela was shaken by an earthquake, leaving approximately 500 dead.
In 1973, Greeks voted to abolish the monarchy, beginning the first period of the Metapolitefsi. Also 1973, during the Dutch Grand Prix driver Roger Williamson was killed in the race, after a suspected tire failure caused the car to pitch into the barriers at high speed. 1976, in New York City, David Berkowitz (a.k.a. the "Son of Sam") killed one person and seriously wounded another in the first of a series of attacks. 1980, Iran adopted a new "holy" flag after the Islamic Revolution. 1981, a worldwide television audience of over 700 million people watched the wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer at St Paul's Cathedral in London. 1987, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and President of France François Mitterrand signed the agreement to build a tunnel under the English Channel (Eurotunnel). Also 1987, Prime Minister of India Rajiv Gandhi and President of Sri Lanka J. R. Jayewardene signed the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord on ethnic issues. 1993, the Supreme Court of Israel acquitted alleged Nazi death camp guard John Demjanjuk of all charges and he was set free. 1996, the child protection portion of the Communications Decency Act was struck down by a U.S. federal court as too broad. 2005, astronomers announced their discovery of the dwarf planet Eris.
Conspiracy theory re guns, Martin Bryant and John Howard. Because the left hate Mr Howard they are willing to say anything. This latest is the conspiracy theory that Bryant could not have killed all those people as he is an idiot and should have missed and people should have run away. And so Mr Howard, according to the theory, exploited the tragedy to remove guns unnecessarily. The truth, however, is Bryant had military grade weapons which were very loud. Scared people could not focus on the source of the weapons and ran everywhere. And those unlucky enough got close to Bryant where he shot them point blank. It wasn't genius and there wasn't a conspiracy. And Mr Howard showed restraint and some people still have weapons and licenses. But no one needs an assault rifle in civilian life.
ICAC owes Cuneen an apology. ICAC are desperate to be wrapped up before they investigate ALP corruption. In this instance, they over stepped their bounds and targeted a prosecutor and had no grounds to do so. They need to say they are sorry. They should also pay her a lot of money for their corrupt activity.
Adam Goodes and Boos. He isn't being booed for his play. He is a gifted athlete, but a lousy representative as Australian of the Year. He is divisive and too likely to view things in terms of race. He needs a media adviser, not a rest from sport. Sport is what he is good at. But don't pity the thirteen year old whose casual bigotry was disgraceful. Goodes deserves respect for his athleticism. Even for those who don't support his team.
Anger over the death of a lion in Zimbabwe. Thing is, Zimbabwe is corrupt. We know about the death of one lion because Zimbabwe want to embarrass the hunter that paid them. Personally, there is nothing sporting with hunting, even with a bow and arrow. Even a lion has not got a fair chance. An air of expectation that a 10 yo girl suicided to kill 16 in Nigeria, and wound 50 others. No lions were injured by the girl. But even so, her religion may not have minded.
In 238, the Praetorian Guard stormed the palace and captured Pupienus and Balbinus. They were dragged through the streets of Rome and executed. On the same day, Gordian III, age 13, was proclaimed emperor. 615, Pakal ascended the throne of Palenque at the age of 12. 904, Sack of Thessalonica: Saracen raiders under Leo of Tripoli sacked Thessaloniki, the Byzantine Empire's second-largest city, after a short siege, and plundered it for a week. 1014, Byzantine–Bulgarian wars: Battle of Kleidion: Byzantine emperor Basil II inflicted a decisive defeat on the Bulgarian army, and his subsequent treatment of 15,000 prisoners reportedly caused Tsar Samuil of Bulgaria to die of a heart attack less than three months later, on October 6. 1018, Count Dirk III defeated an army sent by Emperor Henry II in the Battle of Vlaardingen. 1030, Ladejarl-Fairhair succession wars: Battle of Stiklestad: King Olaf II fought and died trying to regain his Norwegian throne from the Danes. 1148, the Siege of Damascus ended in a decisive crusader defeat and led to the disintegration of the Second Crusade.
1565, the widowed Mary, Queen of Scots, married Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, Duke of Albany, at Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh, Scotland. 1567, James VI was crowned King of Scotland at Stirling. 1588, Anglo-Spanish War: Battle of Gravelines: English naval forces under the command of Lord Charles Howard and Sir Francis Drake defeated the Spanish Armada off the coast of Gravelines, France. 1693, War of the Grand Alliance: Battle of Landen: France won a Pyrrhic victory over Allied forces in the Netherlands. 1793, John Graves Simcoe decided to build a fort and settlement at Toronto, having sailed into the bay there.
In 1836, inauguration of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France. 1848, Irish Potato Famine: Tipperary Revolt: In Tipperary, Ireland, then in the United Kingdom, an unsuccessful nationalist revolt against British rule was put down by police. 1851, Annibale de Gasparis discovered asteroid 15 Eunomia. 1858, United States and Japan signed the Harris Treaty. 1864, American Civil War: Confederate spy Belle Boyd was arrested by Union troops and detained at the Old Capitol Prison in Washington, D.C. 1899, the First Hague Convention was signed.
In 1900, in Italy, King Umberto I of Italy was assassinated by the anarchist Gaetano Bresci. 1907, Sir Robert Baden-Powell sets up the Brownsea Island Scout camp in Poole Harbour on the south coast of England. The camp ran from August 1 to August 9, 1907, and is regarded as the foundation of the Scouting movement. 1913, the Norwegian football club Vålerenga Fotball was founded. 1914, the Cape Cod Canal opened. 1920, construction of the Link River Dam began as part of the Klamath Reclamation Project. 1921, Adolf Hitler became leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party. 1932, Great Depression: In Washington, D.C., troops dispersed the last of the "Bonus Army" of World War I veterans. 1937, Tōngzhōu Incident: In Tōngzhōu, China, the East Hopei Army attacked Japanese troops and civilians.
In 1945, the BBC Light Programme radio station was launched for mainstream light entertainment and music. 1948, Olympic Games: The Games of the XIV Olympiad: After a hiatus of 12 years caused by World War II, the first Summer Olympics to be held since the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, open in London. 1950, Korean War: After four days, the No Gun Ri Massacre ended when the US Army 7th Cavalry Regiment was withdrawn. 1957, the International Atomic Energy Agency was established. 1958, U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed into law the National Aeronautics and Space Act, which created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). 1959, first United States Congress election in Hawaii as a state of the Union. 1965, Vietnam War: The first 4,000 101st Airborne Division paratroopers arrived in Vietnam, landing at Cam Ranh Bay. 1967, Vietnam War: Off the coast of North Vietnam the USS Forrestal caught on fire in the worst U.S. naval disaster since World War II, killing 134. Also 1967, during the fourth day of celebrating its 400th anniversary, the city of Caracas, Venezuela was shaken by an earthquake, leaving approximately 500 dead.
In 1973, Greeks voted to abolish the monarchy, beginning the first period of the Metapolitefsi. Also 1973, during the Dutch Grand Prix driver Roger Williamson was killed in the race, after a suspected tire failure caused the car to pitch into the barriers at high speed. 1976, in New York City, David Berkowitz (a.k.a. the "Son of Sam") killed one person and seriously wounded another in the first of a series of attacks. 1980, Iran adopted a new "holy" flag after the Islamic Revolution. 1981, a worldwide television audience of over 700 million people watched the wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer at St Paul's Cathedral in London. 1987, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and President of France François Mitterrand signed the agreement to build a tunnel under the English Channel (Eurotunnel). Also 1987, Prime Minister of India Rajiv Gandhi and President of Sri Lanka J. R. Jayewardene signed the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord on ethnic issues. 1993, the Supreme Court of Israel acquitted alleged Nazi death camp guard John Demjanjuk of all charges and he was set free. 1996, the child protection portion of the Communications Decency Act was struck down by a U.S. federal court as too broad. 2005, astronomers announced their discovery of the dwarf planet Eris.
2014
Some people are so annoying, so self absorbed, so entitled in their outlook in life that nothing can be done for them. And there have been many such pairs of people and even nations. Examples include Rudd and Gillard, but consider the two post Soviet Union nations of Russia and Ukraine. Ukraine exploiting the deaths of nearly three hundred civilians on MH17 are shelling the evidence and making incursions on Russian separatists. Ukraine have got Washington DC to coordinate sanctions against Russia at the same time, preventing military aid to get to the separatists. Maybe there is evidence incriminating Russia, but maybe it incriminates Ukraine. And the prevention of Australian and Dutch police from getting to the crash site should be treated as a war crime. But nothing is new in history. On this day, in 238, two inept bickering Ceasers were being derelict in their duty. Rome was threatened by Maximinus Thrax who had killed the two previous Ceasers and was marching on Rome. Come the time, comes the man, and Rome called on the newly crowned Ceasers of Pupienus and Balbinus to defend Rome. Pupienus had had military success. But the two argued like an unhappy married couple. Finally, on this day, the Praetorian Guard, bodyguards of the Ceasers who had a duty to Rome, stormed the imperial palace, killed the two idiots and gave the throne to a the grandson of the Ceaser killed by Maximinus. It was too late. Maximinus would be Ceaser for three years and it was the beginning of very bad, unhappy leadership of Rome in the third century.
Such stupidity is rife in history. In the late '80s, an unsuccessful ALP Premier, Unsworth, suggested an enormous and expensive birthday cake sculpture for Paddington. Today, an equally inept Mayor Clover Moore has proposed $9 million in sculptures, including a big piece outside the Town Hall. But a particularly dumb thing in Ireland during the potato famine parallels this foolishness. It is called the Tipperary Revolt and it highlights how weak leadership inspires idiots. It happened in 1848, a year in which revolutions were rocking Europe and some Irish got the idea that a revolution like the French one would be grand. The idiot Young Irish revolutionaries gathered, and police were despatched to arrest them. Only the townsfolk thought it clever to make it difficult, and gathered on the road with weapons. The police sidestepped the townsfolk but were seen and pursued by them to a townhouse. The desperate police took the family of the house hostage and pointed their weapons in defence of the house against the chasing townspeople. The parents were with the crowd and begged for their children to be given back to them. One of the townsfolk thought they would walk up to the house and negotiate. But, when a weapon was discharged the police fired out of the house and the outraged townsfolk fired in. People were hurt and killed. There was a stand off, and it would later be written that the townsfolk were outraged that their peaceful gathering had come to this. Police reinforcements arrived and the townsfolk dispersed. Who knew that a French Style revolution could turn bloody? Who knows that it is wrong for a city to go into debt for non infrastructure art work? Some of the revolutionaries were transported to Australia. Ned Kelly was the son of a convict. But the West has a tradition of grace and kindness when dealing with fools. One such idiot was a Confederate Spy in 1864, a young woman named Belle Boyd. Her father was a confederate soldier. Some Union sympathisers marked her house as being confederate in sympathy, and so she killed one of them. The law let her have that, but she was watched and she cultivated as a lover a Union Captain and obtained secrets from him she tried to get to her Confederate friends. The secrets were intercepted on this day in 1864, and he was detained for a time, but lived and died free.
Also on this day the great Palenque King Pakal arose to the throne age 12 in 615. His mummy has been found. In 1565, Mary Queen of Scots married Henry Stuart. In 1567, James Stuart, her son, was made King of Scotland. In 1588, Spanish Armada was spanked at the Battle of Gravelines. In 1793, John Graves Simcoe decided Toronto was a nice place for a fort and settlement near the bay. In 1836 the Arc de Triomphe was built to commemorate those who died in service to France during the revolution and Napoleonic wars. In 1899, the first Hague convention was signed. In 1900, an Anarchist killed the Italian King. In 1907, Sir Robert Baden Powell set up the first scout camp. In 1921, Hitler became NAZI leader. In 1948, the Olympic Games resume after a twelve year hiatus. In 1959 the first congressional elections were held in Hawaii, sometimes mistaken for Kenya. In 1976, Son of Sam killed an innocent victim. In 1981, hundreds of millions watched a young woman marry a jaded older Prince of Wales who never really loved her.
Such stupidity is rife in history. In the late '80s, an unsuccessful ALP Premier, Unsworth, suggested an enormous and expensive birthday cake sculpture for Paddington. Today, an equally inept Mayor Clover Moore has proposed $9 million in sculptures, including a big piece outside the Town Hall. But a particularly dumb thing in Ireland during the potato famine parallels this foolishness. It is called the Tipperary Revolt and it highlights how weak leadership inspires idiots. It happened in 1848, a year in which revolutions were rocking Europe and some Irish got the idea that a revolution like the French one would be grand. The idiot Young Irish revolutionaries gathered, and police were despatched to arrest them. Only the townsfolk thought it clever to make it difficult, and gathered on the road with weapons. The police sidestepped the townsfolk but were seen and pursued by them to a townhouse. The desperate police took the family of the house hostage and pointed their weapons in defence of the house against the chasing townspeople. The parents were with the crowd and begged for their children to be given back to them. One of the townsfolk thought they would walk up to the house and negotiate. But, when a weapon was discharged the police fired out of the house and the outraged townsfolk fired in. People were hurt and killed. There was a stand off, and it would later be written that the townsfolk were outraged that their peaceful gathering had come to this. Police reinforcements arrived and the townsfolk dispersed. Who knew that a French Style revolution could turn bloody? Who knows that it is wrong for a city to go into debt for non infrastructure art work? Some of the revolutionaries were transported to Australia. Ned Kelly was the son of a convict. But the West has a tradition of grace and kindness when dealing with fools. One such idiot was a Confederate Spy in 1864, a young woman named Belle Boyd. Her father was a confederate soldier. Some Union sympathisers marked her house as being confederate in sympathy, and so she killed one of them. The law let her have that, but she was watched and she cultivated as a lover a Union Captain and obtained secrets from him she tried to get to her Confederate friends. The secrets were intercepted on this day in 1864, and he was detained for a time, but lived and died free.
Also on this day the great Palenque King Pakal arose to the throne age 12 in 615. His mummy has been found. In 1565, Mary Queen of Scots married Henry Stuart. In 1567, James Stuart, her son, was made King of Scotland. In 1588, Spanish Armada was spanked at the Battle of Gravelines. In 1793, John Graves Simcoe decided Toronto was a nice place for a fort and settlement near the bay. In 1836 the Arc de Triomphe was built to commemorate those who died in service to France during the revolution and Napoleonic wars. In 1899, the first Hague convention was signed. In 1900, an Anarchist killed the Italian King. In 1907, Sir Robert Baden Powell set up the first scout camp. In 1921, Hitler became NAZI leader. In 1948, the Olympic Games resume after a twelve year hiatus. In 1959 the first congressional elections were held in Hawaii, sometimes mistaken for Kenya. In 1976, Son of Sam killed an innocent victim. In 1981, hundreds of millions watched a young woman marry a jaded older Prince of Wales who never really loved her.
Historical perspectives on this day
1565, the widowed Mary, Queen of Scots, married Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, Duke of Albany, at Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh, Scotland. 1567, James VI was crowned King of Scotland at Stirling. 1588, Anglo-Spanish War: Battle of Gravelines: English naval forces under the command of Lord Charles Howard and Sir Francis Drake defeated the Spanish Armada off the coast of Gravelines, France. 1693, War of the Grand Alliance: Battle of Landen: France won a Pyrrhic victory over Allied forces in the Netherlands. 1793, John Graves Simcoe decided to build a fort and settlement at Toronto, having sailed into the bay there.
In 1836, inauguration of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France. 1848, Irish Potato Famine: Tipperary Revolt: In Tipperary, Ireland, then in the United Kingdom, an unsuccessful nationalist revolt against British rule was put down by police. 1851, Annibale de Gasparis discovered asteroid 15 Eunomia. 1858, United States and Japan signed the Harris Treaty. 1864, American Civil War: Confederate spy Belle Boyd was arrested by Union troops and detained at the Old Capitol Prison in Washington, D.C. 1899, the First Hague Convention was signed.
In 1900, in Italy, King Umberto I of Italy was assassinated by the anarchist Gaetano Bresci. 1907, Sir Robert Baden-Powell sets up the Brownsea Island Scout camp in Poole Harbour on the south coast of England. The camp ran from August 1 to August 9, 1907, and is regarded as the foundation of the Scouting movement. 1913, the Norwegian football club Vålerenga Fotball was founded. 1914, the Cape Cod Canal opened. 1920, construction of the Link River Dam began as part of the Klamath Reclamation Project. 1921, Adolf Hitler became leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party. 1932, Great Depression: In Washington, D.C., troops dispersed the last of the "Bonus Army" of World War I veterans. 1937, Tōngzhōu Incident: In Tōngzhōu, China, the East Hopei Army attacked Japanese troops and civilians.
In 1945, the BBC Light Programme radio station was launched for mainstream light entertainment and music. 1948, Olympic Games: The Games of the XIV Olympiad: After a hiatus of 12 years caused by World War II, the first Summer Olympics to be held since the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, open in London. 1950, Korean War: After four days, the No Gun Ri Massacre ended when the US Army 7th Cavalry Regiment was withdrawn. 1957, the International Atomic Energy Agency was established. 1958, U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed into law the National Aeronautics and Space Act, which created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). 1959, first United States Congress election in Hawaii as a state of the Union. 1965, Vietnam War: The first 4,000 101st Airborne Division paratroopers arrived in Vietnam, landing at Cam Ranh Bay. 1967, Vietnam War: Off the coast of North Vietnam the USS Forrestal caught on fire in the worst U.S. naval disaster since World War II, killing 134. Also 1967, during the fourth day of celebrating its 400th anniversary, the city of Caracas, Venezuela was shaken by an earthquake, leaving approximately 500 dead.
In 1973, Greeks voted to abolish the monarchy, beginning the first period of the Metapolitefsi. Also 1973, during the Dutch Grand Prix driver Roger Williamson was killed in the race, after a suspected tire failure caused the car to pitch into the barriers at high speed. 1976, in New York City, David Berkowitz (a.k.a. the "Son of Sam") killed one person and seriously wounded another in the first of a series of attacks. 1980, Iran adopted a new "holy" flag after the Islamic Revolution. 1981, a worldwide television audience of over 700 million people watched the wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer at St Paul's Cathedral in London. 1987, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and President of France François Mitterrand signed the agreement to build a tunnel under the English Channel (Eurotunnel). Also 1987, Prime Minister of India Rajiv Gandhi and President of Sri Lanka J. R. Jayewardene signed the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord on ethnic issues. 1993, the Supreme Court of Israel acquitted alleged Nazi death camp guard John Demjanjuk of all charges and he was set free. 1996, the child protection portion of the Communications Decency Act was struck down by a U.S. federal court as too broad. 2005, astronomers announced their discovery of the dwarf planet Eris.
=== Publishing News ===
This column welcomes feedback and criticism. The column is not made up but based on the days events and articles which are then placed in the feed. So they may not have an apparent cohesion they would have had were they made up.
===
Editorials will appear in the "History in a Year by the Conservative Voice" series, starting with August https://www.createspace.com/4124406, September https://www.createspace.com/5106914, October https://www.createspace.com/5106951, or at Amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/1482020262/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_dVHPub0MQKDZ4 The kindle version is cheaper, but the soft back version allows the purchase of a kindle version for just $3.99 more.
===
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
Or the US President at
https://www.change.org/p/barack-obama-change-this-injustice#
or
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/change-injustice-faced-david-daniel-ball-after-he-reported-bungled-pedophile-investigation-and/b8mxPWtJ or http://wh.gov/ilXYR
Mr Ball, I will not sign your petition as it will do no good, but I will share your message and ask as many of friends who read it, to share it also. Let us see if we cannot use the power of the internet to spread the word of these infamous killings. As a father and a former soldier, I cannot, could not, justify ignoring this appalling action by the perpetrators, whoever they may; I thank you Douglas. You are wrong about the petition. Signing it is as worthless and meaningless an act as voting. A stand up guy would know that. - ed
Lorraine Allen Hider I signed the petition ages ago David, with pleasure, nobody knows what it's like until they've been there. Keep heart David take care.
I have begun a bulletin board (http://theconservativevoice.freeforums.net) which will allow greater latitude for members to post and interact. It is not subject to FB policy and so greater range is allowed in posts. Also there are private members rooms in which nothing is censored, except abuse. All welcome, registration is free.
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
Or the US President at
https://www.change.org/p/barack-obama-change-this-injustice#
or
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/change-injustice-faced-david-daniel-ball-after-he-reported-bungled-pedophile-investigation-and/b8mxPWtJ or http://wh.gov/ilXYR
Mr Ball, I will not sign your petition as it will do no good, but I will share your message and ask as many of friends who read it, to share it also. Let us see if we cannot use the power of the internet to spread the word of these infamous killings. As a father and a former soldier, I cannot, could not, justify ignoring this appalling action by the perpetrators, whoever they may; I thank you Douglas. You are wrong about the petition. Signing it is as worthless and meaningless an act as voting. A stand up guy would know that. - ed
Lorraine Allen Hider I signed the petition ages ago David, with pleasure, nobody knows what it's like until they've been there. Keep heart David take care.
===
Happy birthday and many happy returns Wendy Ta, Tracy Truong and David Som. Born on the same day, across the years. Along with Charles Cochrane-Baillie, 2nd Baron Lamington (1860), Dag Hammarskjöld (1905) and Ken Burns (1953).
1148 – The Siege of Damascus ended in a decisive crusader defeat, leading to the disintegration of the Second Crusade.
1858 – Japan reluctantly signed the Treaty of Amity and Commerce, an unequal treaty giving the United States various commercial and diplomatic privileges.
1899 – The first Hague Convention, among the first formal statements of the laws of war and war crimes in international law, was signed.
1958 – U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act into law, establishing a new federal non-military space agency known as NASA.
1987 – Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Sri Lankan President J.R. Jayewardene signed the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to resolve the ongoing Sri Lankan Civil War. The Sri Lankan civil war is over. NASA is mandated. You know what war crimes are. You have a treaty of amity and commerce. The crusade is over. Enjoy your lamingtons and film your success.
1148 – The Siege of Damascus ended in a decisive crusader defeat, leading to the disintegration of the Second Crusade.
1858 – Japan reluctantly signed the Treaty of Amity and Commerce, an unequal treaty giving the United States various commercial and diplomatic privileges.
1899 – The first Hague Convention, among the first formal statements of the laws of war and war crimes in international law, was signed.
1958 – U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act into law, establishing a new federal non-military space agency known as NASA.
1987 – Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Sri Lankan President J.R. Jayewardene signed the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to resolve the ongoing Sri Lankan Civil War. The Sri Lankan civil war is over. NASA is mandated. You know what war crimes are. You have a treaty of amity and commerce. The crusade is over. Enjoy your lamingtons and film your success.
- 1166 – Henry II, Count of Champagne (d. 1197)
- 1605 – Simon Dach, German poet (d. 1659)
- 1646 – Johann Theile, German composer (d. 1724)
- 1806 – Horace Abbott, American businessman and banker (d. 1887)
- 1846 – Sophie Menter, German pianist and composer (d. 1918)
- 1849 – Max Nordau, Hungarian physician, author, and critic, co-founded the World Zionist Organization (d. 1923)
- 1860 – Charles Cochrane-Baillie, 2nd Baron Lamington, English politician, 8th Governor of Queensland (d. 1940)
- 1874 – Auguste Giroux, French rugby player (d. 1953)
- 1883 – Benito Mussolini, Italian journalist and politician, 27th Prime Minister of Italy (d. 1945)
- 1904 – J. R. D. Tata, French-Indian pilot and businessman, founded Tata Motors and Tata Global Beverages (d. 1993)
- 1905 – Clara Bow, American actress (d. 1965)
- 1905 – Thelma Todd, American actress and singer (d. 1935)
- 1915 – Bruce R. McConkie, American religious leader (d. 1985)
- 1920 – Neville Jeffress, Australian businessman, founded Sentia Media (d. 2007)
- 1923 – Jim Marshall, English businessman, founded Marshall Amplification (d. 2012)
- 1930 – Paul Taylor, American dancer and choreographer
- 1946 – Neal Doughty, American keyboard player, songwriter, and producer (REO Speedwagon)
- 1953 – Ken Burns, American director and producer
- 1953 – Geddy Lee, Canadian singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer (Rush and Big Dirty Band)
- 1965 – Chang-Rae Lee, South Korean-American author
- 1972 – Wil Wheaton, American actor, screenwriter, and producer
- 1981 – Emily Bauer, American actress, singer, and dancer
- 1981 – Dyana Liu, Taiwanese-American actress
- 1988 – Sabrina van der Donk, Dutch model, Miss Earth 2006
- 1990 – Shin Se-kyung, South Korean actress and singer
- 1995 – Kiray, Filipino actress
Deaths
- 238 – Balbinus, Roman emperor (b. 165)
- 238 – Pupienus, Roman emperor (b. 178)
- 1030 – Olaf II of Norway (b. 995)
- 1833 – William Wilberforce, English politician and philanthropist (b. 1759)
- 1844 – Franz Xaver Wolfgang Mozart, Austrian pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1791)
- 1890 – Vincent van Gogh, Dutch painter (b. 1853)
- 1900 – Umberto I of Italy (b. 1844)
- 1974 – Cass Elliot, American singer (The Mamas & the Papas, The Big 3, and The Mugwumps) (b. 1941)
- 1983 – David Niven, English actor, singer, and producer (b. 1910)
- 1148 – The Siege of Damascus ended in a decisive crusader defeat, leading to the disintegration of the Second Crusade.
- 1836 – The Arc de Triomphe(pictured) in Paris, commemorating those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars, was formally inaugurated.
- 1950 – Korean War: U.S. Army 7th Cavalry Regiment troops concluded four days of shootings of civilians, sparked by fears that columns of refugees might contain North Korean spies.
- 1981 – A worldwide television audience of over 700 million people watched the wedding of Prince Charles and Diana Spencer at St Paul's Cathedral in London.
- 2010 – An overloaded passenger ferry capsized on the Kasai River in Bandundu Province of the Democratic Republic of Congo, resulting in at least 80 deaths.
They didn't steal Damascus. We have our triumph. The shooting has ended. We have a wedding. The guests are on the ferry. Let's party.
Matches
- 238 – The Praetorian Guard storm the palace and capture Pupienus and Balbinus. They are dragged through the streets of Rome and executed. On the same day, Gordian III, age 13, is proclaimed emperor.
- 615 – Pakal ascends the throne of Palenque at the age of 12.
- 904 – Sack of Thessalonica: Saracen raiders under Leo of Tripoli sack Thessaloniki, the Byzantine Empire's second-largest city, after a short siege, and plunder it for a week.
- 1014 – Byzantine–Bulgarian wars: Battle of Kleidion: Byzantine emperor Basil II inflicts a decisive defeat on the Bulgarian army, and his subsequent treatment of 15,000 prisoners reportedly causes Tsar Samuil of Bulgaria to die of a heart attack less than three months later, on October 6.
- 1018 – Count Dirk III defeats an army sent by Emperor Henry II in the Battle of Vlaardingen.
- 1030 – Ladejarl-Fairhair succession wars: Battle of Stiklestad: King Olaf II fights and dies trying to regain his Norwegian throne from the Danes.
- 1148 – The Siege of Damascus ends in a decisive crusader defeat and leads to the disintegration of the Second Crusade.
- 1565 – The widowed Mary, Queen of Scots, marries Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, Duke of Albany, at Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh, Scotland.
- 1567 – James VI is crowned King of Scotland at Stirling.
- 1588 – Anglo-Spanish War: Battle of Gravelines: English naval forces under the command of Lord Charles Howard and Sir Francis Drake defeat the Spanish Armada off the coast of Gravelines, France.
- 1693 – War of the Grand Alliance: Battle of Landen: France wins a Pyrrhic victory over Allied forces in the Netherlands.
- 1793 – John Graves Simcoe decides to build a fort and settlement at Toronto, having sailed into the bay there.
- 1836 – Inauguration of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France.
- 1848 – Irish Potato Famine: Tipperary Revolt: In Tipperary, Ireland, then in the United Kingdom, an unsuccessful nationalistrevolt against British rule is put down by police.
- 1851 – Annibale de Gasparis discovers asteroid 15 Eunomia.
- 1858 – United States and Japan sign the Harris Treaty.
- 1864 – American Civil War: Confederate spy Belle Boyd is arrested by Union troops and detained at the Old Capitol Prison in Washington, D.C.
- 1899 – The First Hague Convention is signed.
- 1900 – In Italy, King Umberto I of Italy is assassinated by the anarchist Gaetano Bresci.
- 1907 – Sir Robert Baden-Powell sets up the Brownsea Island Scout camp in Poole Harbour on the south coast of England. The camp runs from August 1 to August 9, 1907, and is regarded as the foundation of the Scouting movement.
- 1913 – The Norwegian football club Vålerenga Fotball was founded.
- 1914 – The Cape Cod Canal opened.
- 1920 – Construction of the Link River Dam begins as part of the Klamath Reclamation Project.
- 1921 – Adolf Hitler becomes leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party.
- 1932 – Great Depression: In Washington, D.C., troops disperse the last of the "Bonus Army" of World War I veterans.
- 1937 – Tōngzhōu Incident: In Tōngzhōu, China, the East Hopei Army attacks Japanese troops and civilians.
- 1945 – The BBC Light Programme radio station is launched for mainstream light entertainment and music.
- 1948 – Olympic Games: The Games of the XIV Olympiad: After a hiatus of 12 years caused by World War II, the first Summer Olympics to be held since the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, open in London.
- 1950 – Korean War: After four days, the No Gun Ri Massacre ends when the US Army 7th Cavalry Regiment is withdrawn.
- 1957 – The International Atomic Energy Agency is established.
- 1958 – U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs into law the National Aeronautics and Space Act, which creates the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
- 1959 – First United States Congress elections in Hawaii as a state of the Union.
- 1965 – Vietnam War: The first 4,000 101st Airborne Division paratroopers arrive in Vietnam, landing at Cam Ranh Bay.
- 1967 – Vietnam War: Off the coast of North Vietnam the USS Forrestal catches on fire in the worst U.S. naval disaster since World War II, killing 134.
- 1967 – During the fourth day of celebrating its 400th anniversary, the city of Caracas, Venezuela is shaken by an earthquake, leaving approximately 500 dead.
- 1973 – Greeks vote to abolish the monarchy, beginning the first period of the Metapolitefsi.
- 1973 – During the Dutch Grand Prix driver Roger Williamson was killed in the race, after a suspected tire failure caused the car to pitch into the barriers at high speed.
- 1976 – In New York City, David Berkowitz (a.k.a. the "Son of Sam") kills one person and seriously wounds another in the first of a series of attacks.
- 1980 – Iran adopts a new "holy" flag after the Islamic Revolution.
- 1981 – A worldwide television audience of over 700 million people watch the wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer at St Paul's Cathedral in London.
- 1987 – British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and President of France François Mitterrand sign the agreement to build a tunnel under the English Channel (Eurotunnel).
- 1987 – Prime Minister of India Rajiv Gandhi and President of Sri Lanka J. R. Jayewardene sign the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord on ethnic issues.
- 1993 – The Supreme Court of Israel acquits alleged Nazi death camp guard John Demjanjuk of all charges and he is set free.
- 1996 – The child protection portion of the Communications Decency Act is struck down by a U.S. federal court as too broad.
- 2005 – Astronomers announce their discovery of the dwarf planet Eris.
Hatches
- 869 – Muhammad al-Mahdi, Iraqi 12th Imam (d. 941)
- 1166 – Henry II, Count of Champagne (d. 1197)
- 1605 – Simon Dach, German poet and hymnwriter (d. 1659)
- 1646 – Johann Theile, German organist and composer (d. 1724)
- 1744 – Giulio Maria della Somaglia, Italian cardinal (d. 1830)
- 1763 – Philip Charles Durham, Scottish admiral (d. 1845)
- 1797 – Daniel Drew, American businessman and financier (d. 1879)
- 1801 – George Bradshaw, English cartographer and publisher (d. 1853)
- 1805 – Alexis de Tocqueville, French historian and philosopher (d. 1859)
- 1806 – Horace Abbott, American businessman and banker (d. 1887)
- 1817 – Ivan Aivazovsky, Armenian-Russian painter (d. 1900)
- 1817 – Martin Körber, Baltic German pastor, composer, and conductor (d. 1893)
- 1843 – Johannes Schmidt, German linguist and academic (d. 1901)
- 1846 – Sophie Menter, German pianist and composer (d. 1918)
- 1846 – Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil (d. 1921)
- 1849 – Max Nordau, Hungarian physician, author, and critic, co-founded the World Zionist Organization (d. 1923)
- 1860 – Charles Cochrane-Baillie, 2nd Baron Lamington, English politician, 8th Governor of Queensland (d. 1940)
- 1869 – Booth Tarkington, American author and playwright (d. 1946)
- 1872 – Eric Alfred Knudsen, American author, lawyer, and politician (d. 1957)
- 1874 – Auguste Giroux, French rugby player (d. 1953)
- 1874 – J.S. Woodsworth, Canadian politician (d. 1942)
- 1876 – Maria Ouspenskaya, Russian-American actress (d. 1949)
- 1878 – Don Marquis, American author, poet, and playwright (d. 1937)
- 1880 – John Meyers, American swimmer and water polo player (d. 1971)
- 1883 – Porfirio Barba-Jacob, Colombian poet and author (d. 1942)
- 1883 – Benito Mussolini, Italian journalist and politician, 27th Prime Minister of Italy (d. 1945)
- 1884 – Ralph Austin Bard, American financier and politician (d. 1975)
- 1885 – Theda Bara, American actress (d. 1955)
- 1887 – Sigmund Romberg, Hungarian-American pianist and composer (d. 1951)
- 1888 – Vladimir K. Zworykin, Russian-American engineer, invented the Iconoscope (d. 1982)
- 1891 – Bernhard Zondek, German-Israeli gynecologist and academic (d. 1966)
- 1892 – William Powell, American actor and singer (d. 1984)
- 1897 – Neil Ritchie, Guyanese-English general (d. 1983)
- 1898 – Isidor Isaac Rabi, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1988)
- 1899 – Walter Beall, American baseball player (d. 1959)
- 1900 – Eyvind Johnson, Swedish author, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1976)
- 1900 – Don Redman, American composer, and bandleader (d. 1964)
- 1904 – Mahasi Sayadaw, Burmese Theravada Buddhist monk and meditation master (d. 1982)
- 1904 – J. R. D. Tata, French-Indian pilot and businessman, founded Tata Motors and Tata Global Beverages (d. 1993)
- 1905 – Clara Bow, American actress (d. 1965)
- 1905 – Dag Hammarskjöld, Swedish economist and diplomat, 2nd Secretary-General of the United Nations, Nobel PrizeLaureate (d. 1961)
- 1905 – Stanley Kunitz, American poet and academic (d. 2006)
- 1905 – Thelma Todd, American actress and singer (d. 1935)
- 1907 – Melvin Belli, American lawyer and actor (d. 1996)
- 1909 – Samm Sinclair Baker, American author (d. 1997)
- 1909 – Chester Himes, American-Spanish author (d. 1984)
- 1910 – Helend Peep, Estonian actor (d. 2007)
- 1911 – Foster Furcolo, American politician, 60th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1995)
- 1911 – Archbishop Iakovos of America (d. 2005)
- 1913 – Erich Priebke, German captain (d. 2013)
- 1914 – Irwin Corey, American actor and activist
- 1915 – Bruce R. McConkie, American religious leader (d. 1985)
- 1915 – Francis W. Sargent, American politician, 64th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1998)
- 1916 – Budd Boetticher, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2001)
- 1916 – Charlie Christian, American guitarist (d. 1942)
- 1917 – Rochus Misch, German SS officer (d. 2013)
- 1918 – Edwin O'Connor, American journalist and author (d. 1968)
- 1918 – Mary Lee Settle, American author and academic (d. 2005)
- 1920 – Rodolfo Acosta, Mexican-American actor (d. 1974)
- 1920 – Neville Jeffress, Australian businessman, founded Sentia Media (d. 2007)
- 1921 – Richard Egan, American actor (d. 1987)
- 1921 – Chris Marker, French photographer and journalist (d. 2012)
- 1923 – George Burditt, American screenwriter and producer (d. 2013)
- 1923 – Edgar Cortright, American scientist and engineer (d. 2014)
- 1923 – Jim Marshall, English businessman, founded Marshall Amplification (d. 2012)
- 1923 – Gordon Mitchell, American bodybuilder and actor (d. 2003)
- 1924 – Lloyd Bochner, Canadian-American actor (d. 2005)
- 1924 – Elizabeth Short, American waitress and murder victim (d. 1947)
- 1924 – Robert Horton, American actor and singer
- 1925 – Harold W. Kuhn, American mathematician and academic (d. 2014)
- 1925 – Ted Lindsay, Canadian ice hockey player, manager, and sportscaster
- 1925 – Shivram Dattatreya Phadnis, Indian illustrator
- 1925 – Mikis Theodorakis, Greek composer
- 1926 – Robert Kilpatrick, Baron Kilpatrick of Kincraig, English academic and politician
- 1926 – James Wellbeloved, English politician (d. 2012)
- 1927 – Harry Mulisch, Dutch author, poet, and playwright (d. 2010)
- 1930 – Paul Taylor, American dancer and choreographer
- 1932 – Leslie Fielding, English diplomat
- 1932 – Nancy Kassebaum, American politician
- 1933 – Lou Albano, Italian-American wrestler, manager, and actor (d. 2009)
- 1933 – Colin Davis, English race car driver (d. 2012)
- 1933 – Robert Fuller, American actor
- 1935 – Peter Schreier, German tenor and conductor
- 1936 – Elizabeth Dole, American politician, 20th United States Secretary of Labor
- 1937 – Daniel McFadden, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize Laureate
- 1938 – Peter Jennings, Canadian-American journalist and author (d. 2005)
- 1938 – Jean Rochon, Canadian politician
- 1941 – Jennifer Dunn, American politician (d. 2007)
- 1941 – Goenawan Mohamad, Indonesian poet and playwright
- 1941 – David Warner, English actor
- 1942 – Doug Ashdown, Australian singer-songwriter
- 1942 – Tony Sirico, American actor
- 1943 – David Taylor, English snooker player
- 1945 – Sharon Creech, American author
- 1945 – Mircea Lucescu, Romanian footballer, coach, and manager
- 1946 – Ximena Armas, Chilean painter
- 1946 – Stig Blomqvist, Swedish race car driver
- 1946 – Neal Doughty, American keyboard player, songwriter, and producer (REO Speedwagon)
- 1946 – Alessandro Gogna, Italian mountaineer and adventurer
- 1946 – Diane Keen, English actress
- 1946 – Aleksei Tammiste, Estonian basketball player
- 1947 – Dick Harmon, American golfer and instructor (d. 2006)
- 1948 – John Clarke, New Zealand-Australian comedian and actor
- 1949 – Leslie Easterbrook, American actress
- 1949 – Jamil Mahuad, Ecuadorian lawyer and politician, 51st President of Ecuador
- 1949 – Sergio Martini, Italian mountaineer
- 1950 – Jenny Holzer, American artist
- 1950 – Mike Starr, American actor
- 1951 – Susan Blackmore, English psychologist and theorist
- 1951 – Dan Driessen, American baseball player and coach
- 1951 – Dean Pitchford, American actor, director, screenwriter, and composer
- 1952 – Norman Blackwell, Baron Blackwell, English businessman and politician
- 1952 – Joe Johnson, English snooker player
- 1952 – Marie Panayotopoulos-Cassiotou, Greek politician
- 1953 – Ken Burns, American director and producer
- 1953 – Frank McGuinness, Irish poet and playwright
- 1953 – Tim Gunn, American television host and actor
- 1953 – Geddy Lee, Canadian singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer (Rush and Big Dirty Band)
- 1953 – Patti Scialfa, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (E Street Band)
- 1955 – Jean-Hugues Anglade, French actor, director, and screenwriter
- 1955 – Dave Stevens, American illustrator (d. 2008)
- 1955 – Stephen Timms, English politician
- 1956 – Teddy Atlas, American boxer, trainer, and sportscaster
- 1956 – Ronnie Musgrove, American politician, 62nd Governor of Mississippi
- 1956 – Faustino Rupérez, Spanish cyclist
- 1957 – Liam Davison, Australian author and educator (d. 2014)
- 1957 – Viktor Gavrikov, Lithuanian-Swiss chess player
- 1957 – Nellie Kim, Russian gymnast
- 1957 – Alessandra Marc, American soprano
- 1958 – Gail Dines, English-American author, activist, and academic
- 1958 – Simon Nye, English screenwriter and producer
- 1958 – Cynthia Rowley, American fashion designer
- 1959 – Sanjay Dutt, Indian actor, singer, and producer
- 1959 – Ruud Janssen, Dutch blogger and illustrator
- 1959 – Dave LaPoint, American baseball player and manager
- 1959 – John Sykes, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (Thin Lizzy, Whitesnake, Tygers of Pan Tang, and Blue Murder)
- 1960 – Didier Van Cauwelaert, French author
- 1962 – Carl Cox, English DJ and producer
- 1962 – Frank Neubarth, German footballer and manager
- 1962 – Vincent Rousseau, Belgian runner
- 1962 – Scott Steiner, American wrestler
- 1963 – Hans-Holger Albrecht, Belgian-German businessman
- 1963 – Jim Beglin, Irish footballer
- 1963 – Julie Elliott, English politician
- 1963 – Alexandra Paul, American actress and producer
- 1963 – Graham Poll, English footballer, referee, and journalist
- 1964 – Jaanus Veensalu, Estonian footballer
- 1965 – Luis Alicea, Puerto Rican baseball player and coach
- 1965 – Dean Haglund, Canadian actor
- 1965 – Adam Holloway, English captain and politician
- 1965 – Stan Koziol, American soccer player (d. 2014)
- 1965 – Chang-Rae Lee, South Korean-American author
- 1965 – Woody Weatherman, American guitarist and songwriter (Corrosion of Conformity)
- 1966 – Sally Gunnell, English hurdler
- 1966 – Richard Steven Horvitz, American voice actor
- 1966 – Stuart Lampitt, English cricketer
- 1966 – Martina McBride, American singer-songwriter and producer
- 1968 – Gideon Henderson, Geologist
- 1968 – Paavo Lötjönen, Finnish cellist (Apocalyptica)
- 1968 – Rodney Allen Rippy, American actor
- 1969 – Timothy Omundson, American actor
- 1970 – Jonah Falcon, American actor
- 1970 – Adele Griffin, American author
- 1970 – Andi Peters, English journalist, actor, and producer
- 1970 – John Rennie, Zimbabwean cricketer
- 1971 – Monica Calhoun, American actress
- 1971 – Bryan Dattilo, American actor
- 1971 – Lisa Ekdahl, Swedish singer-songwriter
- 1971 – Andrea Philipp, German sprinter
- 1972 – Wil Wheaton, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
- 1973 – Stephen Dorff, American actor
- 1973 – Wanya Morris, American singer (Boyz II Men)
- 1973 – Denis Urubko, Kazakh mountaineer
- 1974 – Akram Khan, English dancer and choreographer
- 1974 – Josh Radnor, American actor
- 1975 – Yoshihiro Akiyama, South Korean-Japanese judoka
- 1975 – Will Conlon, Canadian actor
- 1975 – Lanka de Silva, Sri Lankan cricketer
- 1975 – Corrado Grabbi, Italian footballer
- 1975 – Jaanus Sirel, Estonian footballer
- 1977 – Rodney Jerkins, American rapper and producer
- 1978 – Bidisha, English journalist, author, and critic
- 1978 – Mike Adams, American baseball player
- 1978 – Silver Eensaar, Estonian orienteer and rogainer
- 1978 – Marina Lazarovska, Macedonian tennis player
- 1979 – Karim Essediri, Tunisian footballer
- 1979 – Ronald Murray, American basketball player
- 1979 – Juris Umbraško, Latvian basketball player
- 1980 – Ryan Braun, Canadian-American baseball player
- 1980 – Fernando González, Chilean tennis player
- 1980 – Rachel Miner, American actress and producer
- 1980 – Ben Koller, American drummer (Converge, United Nations, and All Pigs Must Die)
- 1981 – Fernando Alonso, Spanish race car driver
- 1981 – Emily Bauer, American actress, singer, and dancer
- 1981 – Matt Grice, American mixed martial artist
- 1981 – Dyana Liu, Taiwanese-American actress
- 1981 – Andrés Madrid, Argentinian footballer
- 1981 – Troy Perkins, American soccer player
- 1982 – Janez Aljančič, Slovenian footballer
- 1982 – Prince Azim of Brunei
- 1982 – Dominic Burgess, English actor
- 1982 – Jônatas Domingos, Brazilian footballer
- 1982 – Allison Mack, American actress and producer
- 1983 – Jason Belmonte, Australian bowler
- 1983 – Kim Dong-wook, South Korean actor
- 1983 – Inés Gómez Mont, Mexican journalist and actress
- 1983 – Tania Gunadi, Indonesian-American actress
- 1983 – Alexei Kaigorodov, Russian ice hockey player
- 1983 – Jerious Norwood, American football player
- 1983 – Elise Testone, American singer-songwriter
- 1984 – Oh Beom-Seok, South Korean footballer
- 1984 – Chad Billingsley, American baseball player
- 1984 – Todd Bosley, American actor
- 1984 – Wilson Palacios, Honduran footballer
- 1984 – J. Madison Wright Morris, American actress (d. 2006)
- 1985 – Besart Berisha, Albanian footballer
- 1985 – Simon Santoso, Indonesian badminton player
- 1986 – Adam Weisman, American actor
- 1987 – Sabra Johnson, Dutch-American dancer
- 1987 – Génesis Rodríguez, American actress
- 1987 – Alice Dellal, Brazilian-British model
- 1988 – Alexander Lee Eusebio, Hong Kong-South Korean singer (U-KISS)
- 1988 – Sabrina van der Donk, Dutch model, Miss Earth 2006
- 1989 – Grit Šadeiko, Estonian heptathlete
- 1990 – Penny Bae Bridges, American actress
- 1990 – Munro Chambers, Canadian actor
- 1990 – Joey Essex, English DJ
- 1990 – Valentina Golubenko, Russian-Croatian chess player
- 1990 – Matt Prokop, American actor
- 1990 – Shin Se-kyung, South Korean actress and singer
- 1990 – Anna Selezneva, Russian model
- 1990 – Joseph Wallace, American murder victim (d. 1993)
- 1991 – Dale Copley, Australian rugby league player
- 1991 – Maestro Harrell, American actor and singer
- 1991 – Miki Ishikawa, American actress and singer (T-Squad)
- 1991 – Irakli Logua, Russian footballer
- 1992 – Karen Torrez, Bolivian swimmer
- 1993 – Nicole Melichar, American tennis player
- 1994 – Tjaša Šrimpf, Slovenian tennis player
- 1995 – Kiray, Filipino actress
- 1998 – Anna Murashige, Japanese singer
Despatches
- 238 – Balbinus, Roman emperor (b. 165)
- 238 – Pupienus, Roman emperor (b. 178)
- 796 – Offa, king of Mercia (b. 730)
- 1030 – Olaf II of Norway (b. 995)
- 1095 – Ladislaus I of Hungary (b. 1040)
- 1099 – Pope Urban II (b. 1042)
- 1108 – Philip I of France (b. 1052)
- 1507 – Martin Behaim, German-Bohemian geographer and astronomer (b. 1459)
- 1573 – John Caius, English physician and academic (b. 1510)
- 1612 – Jacques Bongars, French scholar and diplomat (b. 1554)
- 1644 – Pope Urban VIII (b. 1568)
- 1752 – Peter Warren, Irish admiral and politician (b. 1703)
- 1781 – Johann Kies, German astronomer and mathematician (b. 1713)
- 1792 – René Nicolas Charles Augustin de Maupeou, French lawyer and politician, Chancellor of France (b. 1714)
- 1813 – Jean-Andoche Junot, French general (b. 1771)
- 1833 – William Wilberforce, English philanthropist and politician (b. 1759)
- 1839 – Gaspard de Prony, French mathematician and engineer (b. 1755)
- 1844 – Franz Xaver Wolfgang Mozart, Austrian pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1791)
- 1856 – Robert Schumann, German composer and critic (b. 1810)
- 1857 – Thomas Dick, Scottish minister, astronomer, and author (b. 1774)
- 1887 – Agostino Depretis, Italian politician, 9th Prime Minister of Italy (d. 1813)
- 1890 – Vincent van Gogh, Dutch painter (b. 1853)
- 1895 – Floriano Peixoto, Brazilian general and politician, 2nd President of Brazil (b. 1839)
- 1900 – Umberto I of Italy (b. 1844)
- 1913 – Tobias Asser, Dutch lawyer and jurist, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1838)
- 1918 – Ernest William Christmas, Australian painter (b. 1863)
- 1924 – Sotirios Krokidas, Greek educator and politician, 110th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1852)
- 1934 – Didier Pitre, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1883)
- 1938 – Nikolai Krylenko, Russian lawyer, jurist, and politician (b. 1885)
- 1950 – Joe Fry, English race car driver (b. 1915)
- 1954 – Coen de Koning, Dutch speed skater (b. 1879)
- 1962 – Leonardo De Lorenzo, Italian-American flute player and educator (b. 1875)
- 1964 – Vean Gregg, American baseball player (b. 1885)
- 1966 – Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi, Nigerian general and politician, 2nd Head of State of Nigeria (b. 1924)
- 1966 – Adekunle Fajuyi, Nigerian colonel (b. 1926)
- 1970 – John Barbirolli, English cellist and conductor (b. 1899)
- 1973 – Norm Smith, Australian footballer and coach (b. 1915)
- 1973 – Roger Williamson, English race car driver (b. 1948)
- 1974 – Cass Elliot, American vocalist (The Mamas & the Papas) (b. 1941)
- 1974 – Erich Kästner, German author and poet (b. 1899)
- 1976 – Mickey Cohen, American gangster (b. 1913)
- 1979 – Herbert Marcuse, German sociologist and philosopher (b. 1898)
- 1979 – Bill Todman, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1916)
- 1981 – Robert Moses, American urban planner, designed the Northern State Parkway and Southern State Parkway (b. 1888)
- 1982 – Harold Sakata, American wrestler and actor (b. 1920)
- 1982 – Vladimir K. Zworykin, Russian-American engineer, invented the Iconoscope (b. 1889)
- 1983 – Luis Buñuel, Spanish actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1900)
- 1983 – Raymond Massey, Canadian-American actor (b. 1896)
- 1983 – David Niven, English actor, singer, and producer (b. 1910)
- 1984 – Fred Waring, American television host and bandleader (b. 1900)
- 1987 – Bibhutibhushan Mukhopadhyay, Indian author, poet, and playwright (b. 1894)
- 1990 – Bruno Kreisky, Austrian politician, 22nd Chancellor of Austria (b. 1911)
- 1992 – Michel Larocque, Canadian ice hockey player and manager (b. 1952)
- 1994 – John Britton, American physician (b. 1925)
- 1994 – Dorothy Hodgkin, Egyptian-English biochemist and biophysicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1910)
- 1995 – Les Elgart, American trumpet player and bandleader (b. 1917)
- 1996 – Ric Nordman, Canadian politician (b. 1919)
- 1996 – Marcel-Paul Schützenberger, French mathematician and theorist (b. 1920)
- 1996 – Jason Thirsk, American singer and bass player (Pennywise and Humble Gods) (b. 1967)
- 1998 – Jerome Robbins, American director, producer, and choreographer (b. 1918)
- 2001 – Edward Gierek, Polish politician (b. 1913)
- 2001 – Wau Holland, German computer scientist, co-founded Chaos Computer Club (b. 1951)
- 2003 – Foday Sankoh, Sierra Leonean soldier, founded the Revolutionary United Front (b. 1937)
- 2004 – Rena Vlahopoulou, Greek actress and singer (b. 1923)
- 2007 – Mike Reid, English comedian, actor, and author (b. 1940)
- 2007 – Michel Serrault, French actor (b. 1928)
- 2007 – Tom Snyder, American journalist (b. 1936)
- 2007 – Marvin Zindler, American journalist (b. 1921)
- 2008 – Ishmeet Singh, Indian singer (b. 1988)
- 2009 – Gayatri Devi, English-Indian wife of Man Singh II (b. 1919)
- 2010 – Charles E. Wicks, American chemist and academic (b. 1925)
- 2012 – Tatiana Egorova, Russian footballer and manager (b. 1970)
- 2012 – John P. Finnegan, American actor (b. 1926)
- 2012 – August Kowalczyk, Polish actor and director (b. 1921)
- 2012 – Chris Marker, French photographer and journalist (b. 1921)
- 2012 – James Mellaart, English archaeologist and author (b. 1925)
- 2012 – Vempati Chinna Satyam, Indian dancer and guru (b. 1929)
- 2012 – John Stampe, Danish footballer and coach (b. 1957)
- 2013 – Christian Benítez, Ecuadorian footballer (b. 1986)
- 2013 – Bobby Crespino, American football player (b. 1938)
- 2013 – Peter Flanigan, American banker and civil servant (b. 1923)
- 2013 – Tony Gaze, Australian soldier, pilot, and race car driver (b. 1920)
- 2013 – Munir Hussain, Indian cricketer and sportscaster (b. 1929)
- 2013 – Draga Matković, Croatian-German pianist (b. 1907)
- 2014 – M. Caldwell Butler, American soldier, lawyer, and politician (b. 1925)
- 2014 – Jon R. Cavaiani, English-American sergeant, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1943)
- 2014 – Giorgio Gaslini, Italian pianist and composer (b. 1929)
- 2014 – María Antonia Iglesias, Spanish journalist and author (b. 1945)
- 2014 – Péter Kiss, Hungarian engineer and politician (b. 1959)
- 2014 – Idris Muhammad, American drummer and composer (b. 1939)
- 2014 – Thomas R. St. George, American soldier and author (b. 1919)
- 2014 – Sheik Umar Khan, Sierra Leonean physician (b. 1975)
2015
- Christian Feast Day:
- International Tiger Day
- National Anthem Day (Romania)
- National Thai Language Day (Thailand)
- Ólavsøka, opening of the Løgting session. (Faroe Islands)
ICAC owes Margaret Cunneen a public apology
Miranda Devine – Wednesday, July 29, 2015 (8:11am)
AT the very least, Margaret Cunneen, SC, is owed a public apology from ICAC commissioner Megan Latham.
Cunneen, her son Stephen and his girlfriend Sophia Tilley, have emerged unscathed from ICAC’s unaccountable and secretive star chamber.
But only after a tortuous year in which they had their homes raided, their phones seized, were dragged before secret hearings and threatened with jail. And only because Cunnen had the legal nous to fight back.
“This could happen to anyone,” she says.
“If this could happen to me in relation to some interaction that was thought to have happened with police, then it can happen to any citizen and any family and that’s why I have to speak up.
“I’m fortunate I know a bit about the law and I know hundreds, if not thousands of lawyers, many who have been of assistance to me but, if this happened to any other family without those resources, they’d just have to cop it.”
And all this pain was for what? An unsourced allegation, that Cunneen had told Sophia to fake chest pains after a car accident so she wouldn’t be breathalysed by police on the scene.
Cunnen denies the allegation. The fact that Sophia was taken by ambulance straight to hospital, and returned a blood alcohol test of 0.0, makes the triviality of the case even more perplexing.
But ICAC took Cunneen all the way to the High Court seemingly hell-bent on destroying her over a flimsy case that had nothing to do with corruption or had any relevance to her job as a public servant.
What is scary is that we can see now that ICAC pursued Cunneen with no evidence that could withstand scrutiny, and no jurisdiction to begin with.
Even when the High Court humiliatingly ruled that it had exceeded its powers, ICAC upped the ante, referring Cunneen to the DPP to consider criminal charges and issuing an extraordinarily intemperate and lengthy press release, claiming it had “information by a Federal law enforcement agency that indicated the commission of an attempt to pervert the course of justice by Ms Cunneen”.
Well, that ruse ended when the Solicitor General last week announced that an independent investigation of ICAC’s brief by Victoria’s Chief Crown Prosecutor found there was no grounds for prosecution.
“Whatever the suggestion was about this great piece of evidence they had, obviously was found to have no cogency or substance whatsoever by the solicitor general or the Victorian silk who examined it,” says Cunneen.
“The stupid thing about this is it was all so unnecessary.”
Cunneen is “well out of pocket” for legal fees. She says she doesn’t believe in litigation for herself, though her son and his girlfriend will seek advice about suing ICAC.
But the consequences for ICAC have to be serious. It has to be brought to account, and Friday’s report by former High Court chief justice Murray Gleeson, QC, and Bruce McClintock, SC, ought to give the government ammunition.
The greatest benefit to the taxpayer for ICAC’s $30million annual budget is that its mere presence serves as a deterrent to corruption in public office, but now that its own reputation has been tarnished, and it has proved vulnerable to legal challenge, that illusion has evaporated.
ICAC has become Frankenstein’s monster, with immense powers that no one knows how to control. Designed to do good, instead it has become a weapon of state thuggery.
Cunneen should never have been in its sights. She has done more than almost any other public servant to ensure that the state’s worst murderers and rapists are brought to justice.
This is what her detractors in the legal profession don’t understand; the reason for her popularity with the public is not because she has friends in the media.
It is because, over a career spanning almost 40 years, she has avenged thousands of victims and their families, not just with compassion, but, more importantly, by doing her job so diligently that justice unquestionably is done.
One of those victims wrote to me recently to explain what Cunneen meant to him: “Some 20 years back Margaret prosecuted more than 25 charges of sexual abuse against three separate individuals; I was one of some twelve or fifteen victims involved in these cases. Long story short, Ms Cunneen was successful in achieving convictions in regard to all three perpetrators.
“Had it not been for Margaret’s compassion, understanding and genuine support, many of the victims would not have had the confidence to appear as witnesses.
“The bumbling fools at ICAC should be held accountable for their unsupported attack on one of this state’s most professional public servants.
“I believe Margaret is owed an unconditional apology from the incompetent, tax-payer funded ICAC. Resignations and compensation would also be appropriate.”
Cunneen’s reputation is not vulnerable to legal vendettas or the whispering campaigns of frenemies. It rests on the opinion of the thousands of victims she has helped, and their families and friends. That’s why ICAC is in trouble.
Only Adam Goodes can stop the booing
Miranda Devine – Wednesday, July 29, 2015 (5:10am)
Do the geniuses who run AFL actually think they can command a crowd not to boo Adam Goodes? Next they’ll try walking on water.
No, nothing can be done to force people to like Goodes. Only he can change people’s perceptions of him.
A good start would be for the Swans star to apologise to the 13-year-old girl he singled out for rough treatment during a Collingwood game two years ago, after she shouted: “You’re an ape”.
Goodes understandably was upset at what he took as a racist slur. But as soon as he got close to the girl he should have seen she was a child and let it go.
The Collingwood fan was barely 13 - the daughter of a single mother on a disability pension, from a hard-scrabble town in Gippsland. She told me later through her mother she didn’t even know “ape” was racist. She was just sledging the opposition.
Despite her youth, Goodes was determined to make an example of her. He kept pointing until stadium officials took her away. The crying girl was paraded through the jeering crowd, and detained by stadium police past midnight, while her worried grandmother and little sisters were told to stay in their seats.
When she finally was released, Nana had to drive three hours home, with no offer of help.
“Racism had a face - and it was a 13-year-old girl,” Goodes said.
He had the grace later to accept her written apology, but the damage had been done.
He should have apologised to her a long time ago, but better late than never. At least he would show that he now understands what he did was wrong, unfair, and did nothing to combat racism.
He was a rich, powerful, 33-year-old elite sportsman; she was a defenseless, underprivileged child. And the AFL, if it cared about him, would have told him so, rather than pandering to his misplaced sense of victimhood.
Instead Goodes was hailed a hero for “calling out” racism, and made Australian of the Year where he kept telling Australians they are racist.
This is the root of the crowd antipathy to Goodes. It has nothing to do with the colour of his skin. It comes down to his “dobbing and sooking” after a little girl called him a rude name, as former player Karl Langdon put it this week.
Short of banning the fans, there’s not much the AFL can do about this vicious cycle, other than to counsel Goodes to remake his image. Enlisting other players to incite the crowd on his behalf will only make things worse.
Goodes is upset by the heckling and says he would be “really disappointed” if his career ended on a negative note.
Well, that’s in your hands, Adam. Apologise to the girl, and recognise that Australians don’t take kindly to being accused of being racists when they are not.
Then the crowd might fall back in love with you.
From one Bishop to the other: consider your position
Andrew Bolt July 29 2015 (9:48am)
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop suggests Bronwyn Bishop could - or even should - resign over her expenses scandal:
UPDATE
That lack of support for Bronwyn Bishop wasn’t accidental. Same thing on the ABC:
===“I understand that the Labor party will seek to use this to destabilise question time for example and I’m sure Speaker Bishop will take that into account as she considers her position,” Ms Bishop told the Nine Network’s Today program.Mind you, it’s easier for Julie Bishop than for Tony Abbott to cut loose an Abbott ally.
“But I believe it’s important the Department of Finance be able to carry out an investigation,” she added.
UPDATE
That lack of support for Bronwyn Bishop wasn’t accidental. Same thing on the ABC:
MICHAEL BRISSENDEN: Okay, just quickly on the speaker, Bronwyn Bishop, is her position now untenable?
JULIE BISHOP: I understand that the Department of Finance is carrying out an investigation into a number of the claims that have been made and I think it’s appropriate that the Department of Finance be able to continue that investigation and I’ll await the outcome of it.
Yes, we are all Charlie now, but not in the way I’d hoped
Andrew Bolt July 29 2015 (8:43am)
Back in January I said the protesters lied:
PROTESTERS around the West, horrified by the massacre in Paris, have held up pens and chanted “Je suis Charlie” — I am Charlie.In fact, the protesters turned out to be right, but not in the way I’d hoped:
They lie. The Islamist terrorists are winning, and the coordinated attacks on the Charlie Hebdo magazine and kosher shop will be just one more success. One more step to our gutless surrender.
Al-Qaeda in Yemen didn’t attack Charlie Hebdo because we are all Charlie Hebdo.
The opposite. It sent in the brothers Cherif and Said Kouachi because Charlie Hebdo was almost alone.
“Charlie Hebdo” editor Laurent Sourisseau has told “Stern” magazine he will no longer draw cartoons of the Muslim prophet Muhammad. Sourisseau’s statement comes six months after a deadly attack on the magazine’s offices. ..
“We have drawn Muhammad to defend the principle that one can draw whatever they want. It is a bit strange though: we are expected to exercise a freedom of expression that no one dares to,” Sourisseau told “Stern.”
ABC coaches tomorrow’s Leftists
Andrew Bolt July 29 2015 (8:32am)
The ABC’s bias starts with its children’s shows. You’d think only Bronwyn Bishop claimed more than she should:
(Thanks to readers Leigh, RightWingNuclearArmedDeathRabbit and How Awkward.)
===Meanwhile, Labor’s Tony Burke tries to explain why he had to repay expenses 16 times, including claims for flying his children and mother.
(Thanks to readers Leigh, RightWingNuclearArmedDeathRabbit and How Awkward.)
China’s panicking investors could flood Australia
Andrew Bolt July 29 2015 (8:01am)
China’s stock market meltdown could flood us with Chinese investment, warns Terry McCrann:
===THE near universal consensus that China’s market meltdown holds virtually no consequences for the rest of the world ... is just plain wrong…Then there’s the fear that the stock market meltdown could be the last straw when China’s real economy could be struggling even more than official statistics admit.
Two big things are significant. First, China Inc has crossed a line in the sand. It might succeed. It buys enough of the market… But even such ‘success’ won’t undo the damage done by this most fundamental suspension of the market…
But what if it doesn’t ‘succeed,’ at least relatively quickly? ...
Either way the line will have been crossed; China Inc will have reinforced the message to Western investors and businesses that government intervention is just a step away in every context…
Secondly and separately is the message sent to local Chinese savers. In moving to ‘keep safe’ the savings of share market punters, the Chinese Government has in fact announced that all savings are at risk.
At its simplest this will reinforce the tendency for all Chinese with significant assets or access to credit — domestic or offshore — to build up investment portfolios outside China.
We might find out that so far we’ve only seen a ripple of Chinese money flowing into our property market; the tsunami of money might be about to arrive.
To this must be added the indirect consequences of a shift in both the reality and the perception of China’s investment and financial position and the potential for intervention.
The Andrews snake pit
Andrew Bolt July 29 2015 (7:40am)
The Andrews Government, which has closed more projects than it’s started, now reveals its true preoccupation - knifing colleagues:
===SECRET witness statements not released in the final report damning sacked minister Adem Somyurek have been leaked, plunging the Andrews Government deeper into crisis…
In one statement, Mr Somyurek’s driver described bully accuser Dimity Paul raising her voice to the minister, and that in 15 years of driving he had “never witnessed a staffer talk to a minister in such a way”.
“She gave the minister a ‘serve’ for being late. With a raised voice, Ms Paul spoke directly to the minister and said words to the effect that: I told you a time,” the driver says…
Mr Somyurek on Tuesday accused Premier Daniel Andrews of being controlled by a union boss. And he says Mr Andrews can only reach his potential as Premier if he dumps deputy James Merlino and his chief-of-staff, John McLindon…
Mr Somyurek was forced to quit on Tuesday after a damning report from ex-judge and former Office of Police Integrity chief Michael Strong found he had manhandled his chief-of-staff, Ms Paul… One incident that clinched Mr Somyurek’s fate was described in the report as occurring after the then small business minister was embarrassed by a comment made by Ms Paul in a meeting. It is said he took “her chin in his hand and shook it gently from side to side as a form of admonition"…
The Premier told Mr Somyurek he would have to resign…
Mr Somyurek continues to deny the allegations that he touched Ms Paul on the face… Instead, he blamed the allegations on a union revenge plot, consequent on his leading a breakaway of SDA-aligned MPs and party members from the union.
Labor politicians cleanse Flinders University of sceptics of their warming faith
Andrew Bolt July 29 2015 (7:25am)
Even global warming activists should be alarmed by this government-backed attempt to stifle intellectual debate.
Are any academics at Flinders now safe to question the global warming orthodoxy or will they, too, be banned?
Jay Weatherill should reflect on this intellectual thuggery and intolerance. He should remember another green orthodoxy he once promoted and which the Left policed with similar intolerance:
===Tensions have escalated over the possibility of a $4 million policy centre linked to Danish academic Bjorn Lomborg being set up at Flinders University in Adelaide, after the South Australian government opposed it outright on “ideological” grounds…Incredible. The Weatherill Government is more worried about its reputation among warming activists than among academics and all who treasure free inquiry. For that it’s prepared to turn Flinders University into a green church, with heretics driven out.
South Australia’s Left-aligned Climate Change Minister Ian Hunter, a strong factional ally of Premier Jay Weatherill, yesterday described Dr Lomborg as a “discredited pundit”.
He said the Flinders University Council should immediately rule out establishing the centre…
“Our state has provided strong leadership on climate change in this country, and this centre here at Flinders would certainly damage our image and reputation in this area, which is precisely what the federal government intends.”
Are any academics at Flinders now safe to question the global warming orthodoxy or will they, too, be banned?
Jay Weatherill should reflect on this intellectual thuggery and intolerance. He should remember another green orthodoxy he once promoted and which the Left policed with similar intolerance:
Take Weatherill, South Australia’s Labor Premier. As a budding politician he was “opposed to nuclear power, all elements of it”, but this week said he’d changed his mind.
Now he was calling a royal commission to “consider what role our state can potentially play in the fuel cycle for the peaceful use of nuclear energy”.
Fitzgibbon’s answer was more honest. Also shorter
Andrew Bolt July 29 2015 (7:12am)
I like Joel Fitzgibbon. Labor’s agriculture spokesman prefers to say it straight and has a low tolerance for spin.
Check the difference between the way he and Shorten answer the same question about Labor’s mad promise to double renewable energy by 2030.
First, Fitzgibbon:
Next, Shorten:
Terry McCrann on Shorten’s global warming madness:
===Check the difference between the way he and Shorten answer the same question about Labor’s mad promise to double renewable energy by 2030.
First, Fitzgibbon:
ANDREW BOLT: Shorten is not just promising an ETS, a carbon tax. He’s also promising to double our renewable energy by 2030. How much will it cost?
JOEL FITZGIBBON: Well, no-one knows.
Next, Shorten:
Journalist: The Prime Minister says that your plan to introduce renewable energy to 50 per cent by 2030 is going to cost $60 billion …UPDATE
Shorten: Well, first of all, the Prime Minister just makes up numbers to scare people. He has no evidence or science. In fact, he is the most unscientific prime minister Australia has had in a long time. We know he and his government, Mr Abbott and his Liberals, are determined not to take action on climate change, and we know the rest of the world is. I do not think it is good for Australia’s future to be led by a man who doesn’t believe in climate change, who called it absolute crap, and he is at it again. Anyone who expects Mr Abbott to change his spots and become someone who is going to take real action on climate change when he has spent his adult life being sceptical of it I think is being overly optimistic. In terms of how Labor proposes improving a renewable energy mix, what we recognise is that when it comes to the large-scale program in terms of renewable energy, we can only increase that by bipartisanship. Now we’ve given ourselves 15 years, and one thing I know is that sooner or later, the once great Liberal Party of Menzies and Malcolm Fraser and indeed others who believe in action on climate, will restore and become far less extreme right-wing and come back to the mainstream when Mr Abbott is no longer their leader. So what we recognise is that for some of the policies, our goal of 50 per cent renewable energy, we need a Liberal Party equally committed to the future, equally committed to taking real action on climate change, equally committed to helping create jobs, investment, confidence and give consumers the ability to control their prices — so we will get there. The rest of the world is moving in that direction, we just need Mr Abbott to stop being stuck in the past and become part of the vision for the future.
Terry McCrann on Shorten’s global warming madness:
The world has not heated for now-approaching two decades… Were Australia to cut its CO2 emissions by 100 per cent, by 150 per cent — ie, close the country down completely and turn it into a carbon sink — it would make not the slightest difference to the world’s temperature…
And so to the current Leader of the Opposition… For someone to actually propose force-feeding a shift to generating 50 per cent of our electricity from renewables in just 15 years is so far removed from reality as to defy any serious discussion.... That is to say it simply could not be done, before we even got to any discussion of why on earth would you attempt something so utterly stupid and pointless.
For the dirty little secret which nah-nah-nah denying Climate Change true believers refuse to face is that all renewable capacity has to be backed by continuing power stations which actually work: carbon-based coal or gas, or nuclear. Because when the wind don’t blow, and the sun don’t shine, the power don’t flow. Even across the vast span of southern Australia there are hours on end when we get not a single megawatt out of “all” those wind turbines. Indeed, even in the home of wind energy, Denmark, the same is true. Then, to keep the lights — and, ahem, heaters — on, Denmark imports either hydro power or nuclear or even coal power from its neighbours.
Perhaps Bill is planning a long, long extension cord to New Zealand.
Why not just ban coal, she said, watching her solar-powered TV set at night
Andrew Bolt July 29 2015 (7:08am)
Another example of that intellectual disconnect, so common on the Left, between our wealth and the sources of it:
===The ABC’s Heather Ewart tweets during Q&A, Monday night:
Just don’t get the ongoing obsession with coal. The rest of world moving on. Why don’t we?…From the International Energy Agency website’s coal page:
Over 40 per cent of worldwide electricity is produced from coal … Coal use will be significant also in the future.
Posted by Darvin Atkeson on Tuesday, 28 July 2015
===
Hilarious when our wishes actually came true lolx
Posted by OMG Social on Tuesday, 5 May 2015
===
Isn't this so true? -- Helen
Posted by Helen Baylor on Tuesday, 10 March 2015
===
VIDEO: Muslim children suffer disgusting indoctrination from Sheik preaching martyrdom and hate on the streets of...
Posted by The Israel Project on Tuesday, 28 July 2015
Child abuse accepted by UN
===
Cant stop watching ....
Posted by Tintu-Mon on Sunday, 28 December 2014
===
Posted by Lumpsphinx on Monday, 27 July 2015
Illustrating ALP government
===
It's more than just a comma. Don't you agree?
Posted by Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing on Tuesday, 28 July 2015
===
College is not free. Even if students don't pay for it.
===
And Ukraine? Russia set to block MH17 investigation http://t.co/3anQib76z0 via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
===
Jehovah’s Witness ‘ministerial servant’ held in high regard by congregation while assaulting daughters http://t.co/ms3lxDPaYd
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
===
Jamie Gao: Unanswered questions http://t.co/n3AhhVDMsT via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
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NBA star Vin Baker lost everything to alcoholism and money woes http://t.co/gKHZLyK0x4 via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
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Eight-year-old Madyson Middleton knew alleged killer, aged 15, who lured her to her death http://t.co/avwGpNiFm6 via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
===
Mosquito What happened to this man? http://t.co/Y8lUP0c37P via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
===
‘I’m speaking up for Australia’: Does this woman represent the country? http://t.co/HYPReizrjm via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
===
Turkey embrace Is this the United States’ biggest mistake in the Middle East? http://t.co/UjFYqtxAvu via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
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Photo: Now if only a rock would pay the bill http://t.co/ekmsSpUrHL
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
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Kerry is working to help I hope Israel disappears, says Palestinian teen Merkel brought to tears http://t.co/EZ6oIukrs9 via @timesofisrael
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
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High Tea Films + One Fine Day - One Fine Day One Fine Day: http://t.co/06H1pHDakK
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
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A high quality operator. Maybe Nat will be bridesmaid? http://t.co/bf3pkx6qmc
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
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If people worked at Holden we might not be in this predicament. Union regulated workplaces have failed. http://t.co/fOdRiW9JWV
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
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This Frankenstein tree can grow 40 different kinds of fruit http://t.co/hgr1INhaIo via @ABC13Houston
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
===
Important issue http://t.co/GyYucCsOqc
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
===
Brilliant exposition on Math genius The Singular Mind of Terry Tao http://t.co/wIjxTTJ3fQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 29, 2015
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RIP, little one. Grieving family pays tribute to their brilliant daughter http://t.co/2dQUPkyO2P via @canberratimes
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 28, 2015
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Facebook posts cost ALP MP’s son his job http://t.co/ZlslzxLIVG via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 28, 2015
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Principals 'not best to spot extremism' http://t.co/ISK6WJMX9c via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 28, 2015
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"Wasn't a bad person" Husband decapitates wife before severing his own arm and removing eyeball http://t.co/OykqYQ38KM via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 28, 2015
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Stewart has it licked .. ‘We don’t need that near the vajayjay’ http://t.co/ledmZvnahI via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 28, 2015
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Meeting the terrorists who made you a widow http://t.co/DbS9ootajW via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 28, 2015
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And Ukraine ? MH17: Julie Bishop goes in to stop Russia vetoing UN tribunal vote http://t.co/bZ6Va9O3WN via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 28, 2015
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Partisan journalists hates Perry. .. Wannabe President’s absurd theory http://t.co/4db77Pyqvo via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 28, 2015
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The only doubt is the extent of his crimes .. Gaddafi’s son, Seif, sentenced to death by Libya http://t.co/CRfRCN5X4Y via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 28, 2015
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The truth about Australia’s sex trade http://t.co/AY3BvdUCnq via @newscomauHQ
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 28, 2015
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Just made my gourmet burger. Perfection on a bun. Now your turn #createyourtaste https://t.co/bGFfrZPvI5
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) July 28, 2015
=== Posts from last year ===
WAR ON TERRIERS
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 29, 2014 (3:48pm)
Malaysian Muslims are angry about little Scottish terriers:
The use of Scottish terrier dogs as mascots at the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow has been branded “shameful” and “offensive” …
An offensive Scottish shamehound
Mohamad Sabu, deputy president of Malaysia’s opposition Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party, said: “Malaysia and all Islamic countries deserve an apology from the organiser.“This is just so disrespectful to Malaysia and Muslims – especially as it happened during Ramadan. Muslims are not allowed to touch dogs, so the organiser should have been more aware and sensitive on this issue.“It is hoped this incident can teach other Western countries to be more respectful in the future.”Dato Ibrahim Bin Ali, founder the even more extreme Perkasa movement, added: “I think it is unbecoming. The hosts have not been sensitive enough – especially in a so-called knowledgeable and civilised society like Britain.“It is shameful and has offended not only Malaysia as a Muslim country, but Muslims around the world.”
Reader quiz: what breed of dog does Dato Ibrahim Bin Ali most closely resemble?
ARC DE STUPID
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 29, 2014 (12:15pm)
You want pretentious and witless 70s-style public art? You got it:
A wacky $3.5 million cloud-shaped arch towering 50m above George St is the centrepiece of Lord Mayor Clover Moore’s ambitious public art plan revealed today.
The giant sculpture by Japanese artist Junya Ishigami is one of three artworks announced today as part of a $9 million public art splurge in the CBD.
Read on to learn about Tracey Emin’s $2.1 million bronze birds, which certainly won’t be stolen as soon as they are installed. Not at all.
OBEY THE TORSO
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 29, 2014 (3:19pm)
It isn’t a genuine protest movement until the clothes come off:
Our protest gal is Australian model Robyn Lawley
Our protest gal is Australian model Robyn Lawley
Proving she has both model looks and brains, the 25-year-old wrote the direct words on her toned stomach with bright red lipstick in a bid to gain the attention of Australian politicians.
===
SUFFICIENT PROMINENCE
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 29, 2014 (4:36am)
Margo Kingston was offended by earlier Daily Telegraph coverage of Peter Slipper’s legal issues:
The Press Council has considered a complaint about an article in The Daily Telegraph on 13 December 2012, headed “Court rejects Slipper case”. The article reported a Federal Court decision on the previous day to dismiss as an abuse of process a legal action for sexual harassment brought against Peter Slipper MP by James Ashby. It appeared on page 17 of the newspaper and on the publication’s website.Margo Kingston complained that the report of the dismissal on page 17 did not give it sufficient prominence…
To make up for that lapse, today’s Daily Telegraph devotes its front page to Slipper’s latest courtroom drama. There is also an editorial. Curiously, ethical Margo hasn’t yet mentioned these developments herself.
UPDATE. Margo catches up.
ONE WORD
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 29, 2014 (4:01am)
Along with “so what?”, the question “why?” is always useful:
The High Court case launched by 157 asylum seekers against the federal government has collapsed with a full bench hearing abandoned because of the government’s move to bring them to the mainland.But lawyers acting for the Sri Lankan Tamils, mostly residents of India, have changed their case mid-stream, flagging the possibility of a new case to claim compensation against the government for keeping them at sea in a Customs vessel for three weeks …Representing the asylum-seekers, Ronald Merkel, QC, told the court he wanted the statement of claim amended to include “damages for unlawful detention”.His case sparked a flurry of questioning by Justice Kenneth Hayne, who asked “why?”
As it happens, “so what?” and “why?” are also remarkably effective in demolishing global warming arguments.
BEARS, CLOWNS, METH LABS
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 29, 2014 (3:22am)
According to this chart, our friend Dave Burge is moving from the 17th scariest state in the US to the third scariest.
FRIGHTBAT PROTOTYPE
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 29, 2014 (3:18am)
Long before several of today’s frightbats had gained their wings, the way forward was shown by American screecherMaryscott O’Connor.
FRIGHTBAT POLL UPDATE. Lead change! Clementine Ford has restored her poll advantage. According to the latest figures, Cankles McBabystopper is now ahead of Margo Kingston by 5085 votes to 5076.
Under Australian Electoral Commission regulations, this may call for a bat-off.
On 2GB tonight - mad sculptures for Sydney. And the rise again of Jew-hatred
Andrew Bolt July 29 2014 (4:56pm)
===Mike Carlton: didn’t the Holocaust teach the Jews a lesson? UPDATE: Jew-hatred rising
Andrew Bolt July 29 2014 (2:25pm)
Many Jewish friends are alarmed by the vilification of Israel and of Jews. They are scared of the increased threats to Jews around the world. They are distressed by grotesque and sinister historical analogies with the Holocaust that seem driven by a wish to vilify Jews today or even to diminish the genocide of Jews yesterday.
And then along come a Mike Carlton, sneering and jeering:
What is it about Islam that some of its most influential preachers urge others to kill? How safe is such a faith in the pluralistic West?
In Germany. the land of the Holocaust, the hatred has started again - but this time the slogans are usually in the mouths of the immigrants:
UPDATE
Maybe some of the less irrational Greens will finally realise their party is playing with an implacable fire:
===And then along come a Mike Carlton, sneering and jeering:
Mike Carlton, The Sydney Morning Herald, Saturday:UPDATE
IT is a breathtaking irony that these atrocities (in Gaza) can be committed by a people ... who hold the Warsaw Ghetto and the six million dead of the Holocaust at the centre of their race memory.Howard Jacobson, The Independent, February 18, 2009:
WHAT do we ... think we are doing when we call the Israelis Nazis and liken Gaza to the Warsaw Ghetto? ... In the early 1940s some 100,000 Jews and Romanis died of engineered starvation and disease in the Warsaw Ghetto, another quarter of a million were transported to the death camps, and when the Ghetto rose up it was liquidated, the last 50,000 residents being either shot on the spot or ... murdered ... in Treblinka. Don’t mistake me: every Palestinian killed in Gaza is a Palestinian too many, but there is not the remotest similarity, either in intention or in deed — even in the most grossly misreported deed — between Gaza and Warsaw.
What is it about Islam that some of its most influential preachers urge others to kill? How safe is such a faith in the pluralistic West?
An imam in Berlin has been filmed praying for the annihilation of the Jews, asking Allah “not to spare a single one of them” during a sermon at a mosque.The West’s intelligentsia can’t keep ignoring this kind of thing or excusing it as the natural reaction to “oppression”, whether of the West or the Jews - the usual scapegoats.
MEMRI, the Middle East Media Research Institute, released the video of Sheik Abu Bilal Ismail giving his Friday sermon at the Al-Nur Mosque ...
After accusing Arab leaders of conspiring against the people of Gaza, which he praised as “the land of Jihad (holy war),” he said the Gazans were facing “the strongest war machine, the Zionist Jews, these criminals, these slayers of prophets, those who shed blood, those who kill children, those who turn women into widows.” The film clip then jumps to another part of his sermon. “Oh Allah, destroy the Zionist Jews. They are no challenge for you,” the subtitles read. “Count them and kill them to the very last one. Don’t spare a single one of them. Shake the ground beneath their feet. Make them suffer terribly.”
In Germany. the land of the Holocaust, the hatred has started again - but this time the slogans are usually in the mouths of the immigrants:
In Berlin: “Jew Jew cowardly pig, come outside and fight on your own!’”
Berlin: “Jews, sons of whores.”
Gelsenkirchen, at 4:55: “Hamas, Hamas, gas the Jews.”
UPDATE
Maybe some of the less irrational Greens will finally realise their party is playing with an implacable fire:
[The pro-Palestinian] Brisbane rally, also on Saturday, ... proved to be the most heated… and somewhat of a public relations disaster for the Greens.
Jake Schoermer, a young Green’s Candidate for the Queensland electorate of Indooroopilly in the 2015 state election, spoke at the rally.
He was not only drowned out by protestors, but had a shoe thrown at him after refusing to hand over the microphone…
“I’d like to note that Hamas’ actions in the recent conflict were also condemned by the UN,” Schoermer said, before being drowned out by protestors…
“But it should also be noted that I don’t believe Hamas’ actions speak for all Palestinians,” Schoermer yelled back at protestors.
It drew even louder boos from the crowd. And yet Schoermer ploughed on… As the crowd grew angrier, an organiser tried to step in and take the microphone… That’s the point where Schoermer’s speech can no longer be heard above the crowd… followed shortly after by organisers turning off his microphone.
Journalism academic Jenna Price is sick of seeing Abbott do so well
Andrew Bolt July 29 2014 (12:26pm)
Jenna Price is the undergraduate coordinator in the journalism school of the University of Technology, Sydney.
Attention, journalism students. Observe how a journalism academic observes the profession’s standards in her latest wild and error-riddled Abbott-bash:
And it seems that Price isn’t speaking for the rest of Australia, to judge by today’s Newspoll, which has Abbott even with Shorten as preferred leader.
And, as I said, Newspoll has the two men now even.
It strikes me that Price consulted nothing but her prejudices is writing this. And she’s a journalism academic. How comfortable would conservatives students feel in the journalism school which employs her and the likes of fellow UTS journalism academic Wendy Bacon?
(Thanks to reader Paul.)
===Attention, journalism students. Observe how a journalism academic observes the profession’s standards in her latest wild and error-riddled Abbott-bash:
But for 10 days now, Tony Abbott has focused just on those 39 [who died in MH17]. He’s done the job a politician ought to have done. And now he needs to turn to the rest of us.Oh, did I mention Price really, really hates Tony Abbott? No wonder she is creeped out to hear him praised.
It is not too soon for Abbott to pay attention to the 23 million, and it creeps me out every time I read or hear a commentator say how statesmanlike Abbott has become over this period.
Because, the task of standing up for those who’ve died at the hands of terrorism is what could be described as a set piece.Er, false. Abbott actually set the lead for the other leaders. Dutch journalists were criticising their own Prime Minister for not being as strong. And note the tribute paid by the Dutch Foreign Minister to Julie Bishop, sent by Abbott to New York to whip the stragglers in behind a UN Security Council motion demanding an investigation and access to the crime scene: “Especially the personal commitment of Julie Bishop who made this possible. Without her, the resolution would not be carried today and adopted by the Security Council.”
This is what responsible adults do… Show me a world leader who wouldn’t have done precisely what Abbott did. Even the gormless ones made an attempt.
Now, Prime Minister, let me speak to you privately for a moment. I absolutely applaud your achievements, but it is time to move on.Note: Price doesn’t offer this advice because she really wants Abbott to do well. God, no. She offers this advice because he’s doing so well that she’s creeped out and wants him to “move on”. In fact, Price herself is desperate to move on to calling Abbott a murderer:
Not sure if you noticed the Galaxy polls. Most Australians say you have shown more leadership in response to the shooting down of MH17 than other leaders. Better than President Obama. Better than Prime Minister Cameron. You’ve been awesome in your opposition to murder (in the particular instance of murder for which you can’t be held responsible. You are not so awesome when responding to the murder of Reza Barati).And now Price enters fantasy land - and contradiction country:
Even though you’ve done good work (not that I’d be sending more Australians into a war zone, really I wouldn’t), Australians still don’t think you would do a good job representing our interests overseas. They think Bill Shorten would do a better job.Wait. Didn’t Price just say any world leader would have done “precisely what Abbott did” and that she “applauds” it? Yet now she suggests Abbott is going too far in sending our police and soldiers into a war zone. Yes, but no. Bob each way.
And it seems that Price isn’t speaking for the rest of Australia, to judge by today’s Newspoll, which has Abbott even with Shorten as preferred leader.
And even quiet old Bill is beating you now. Bill has been tilling the field, just hanging out at home, speaking to his party and the people of Australia. And he is so many points in front of you, I’m imagining you are finding it alarming.Pardon? Bill Shorten has not “just being hanging out at home”. He actually spent last week in the United States on a leadership dialogue, speaking to Americans. It was Abbott who stayed home, not Shorten.
And, as I said, Newspoll has the two men now even.
It strikes me that Price consulted nothing but her prejudices is writing this. And she’s a journalism academic. How comfortable would conservatives students feel in the journalism school which employs her and the likes of fellow UTS journalism academic Wendy Bacon?
(Thanks to reader Paul.)
Reith: Bishop for PM
Andrew Bolt July 29 2014 (11:36am)
Peter Reith sells the leadership qualities of Julie Bishop:
===The Coalition has not yet elected a female parliamentary leader but the day will come and it would not surprise me if it were Julie Bishop. But it would not be because she is female, nor because someone has written a book of her life story, but because she is a class act.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Foreign Minister Julie Bishop have not only done a good job handling the tragedy of MH17 but have enhanced Australia’s standing in the world…
Needless to say, Tony Abbott has set the right tone and provided the leadership that was so needed given the reluctance in Europe and elsewhere. But the role taken by Julie Bishop may have repercussions not yet fully appreciated. Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans, who has been respected around the world for his comments to the Security Council, paid our Foreign Minister this compliment in noting how Australia had taken the initiative for the successful MH17 resolution: “Especially the personal commitment of Julie Bishop who made this possible. Without her, the resolution would not be carried today and adopted by the Security Council.”
What is now evident is that Bishop is a totally professional and assured foreign minister. She is already on par internationally with Gareth Evans and, more recently, Alexander Downer. The first thing to say is that she has not put a foot wrong from day one. She started with more than her fair share of tricky problems but she did a good job managing Australian relations with Indonesia, especially at a time of tension following revelations of Labor’s spying on the Indonesians and the thorny matter of asylum boats. Bishop has some good qualities. She is consultative. She does not have too high an opinion of herself – a common flaw in politics. She can be feisty in her own polite way. A reliable source recounted to me that when, still in opposition, Tony Abbott announced on the ABC’s 7.30, without any consultation with the shadow cabinet, that the Coalition would abandon its support for individual contracts, she was the first person to Abbott’s office to confront him when he got back from the studio. She gave it to him with both barrels for his failure to consult and for abandoning a long-standing Coalition policy.
Breivik, sceptics - warmist Anne Manne draws the links
Andrew Bolt July 29 2014 (10:51am)
A madman slaughtering 77 people and sceptics “denying” apocalyptic man-made warming - you get the obvious connection:
(Thanks to reader Richard.)
===IN the wake of the 2011 Norway massacre, in which Anders Breivik killed 77 people (69 of them on the island of Utoya), a small and unseemly argument broke out among the commentariat about whether the killer’s actions constituted terrorism…Wow.
For Melbourne writer Anne Manne, author of The Life of I, this debate now has a general resonance. Before standing trial, Breivik was diagnosed with concurrent narcissistic personality disorder and anti-social personality disorder. Since all the evidence appears to suggest narcissism is on the rise, especially among American youths, it is thus a matter of some urgency to explore the relationship between psychology and culture as it plays itself out in this particular arena… In her final chapter, Manne suggests that narcissism is even mapped into the debate on climate change and that a failure to put the needs of others on a par with our own is a calamity in progress. As she puts it: “The omnipresent danger, the implication of a more narcissistic society, is that rather than change direction, questioning the way we live now, we will prefer a technological fix consistent with preserving the life of the consumer.”
(Thanks to reader Richard.)
Daniel Andrews pleads astonishing ignorance
Andrew Bolt July 29 2014 (8:31am)
Amazing. It seems everyone but the boss himself had their fingers on the stolen recording or its transcript:
His chief of staff did not tell Daniel Andrews about the tape.
His press secretary did not tell Daniel Andrews about the tape.
His party’s secretary did not tell Daniel Andrews about the tape.
His party’s assistant secretary did not tell Daniel Andrews about the tape.
His party’s lawyers did not tell Daniel Andrews about the tape.
Is Daniel Andrews telling the truth, or does he really not have a clue what his team does when he’s not in the room?
===Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews has denied any role in the theft or leaking of the stolen Age recordings, despite admitting that his own chief of staff and senior Labor officials listened to, copied and then destroyed the original dictaphone audio…How strange. How convenient.
On Monday, ALP Assistant Secretary Kosmos Samaras admitted to listening to the tape after it was handed into lost property at the Labor state conference in May…
After he listened to it, copies were made and played to Mr Andrews’ chief of staff John McLindon and ALP state secretary Noah Carroll. Mr Andrews’ press secretary Chris Reilly ferried a copy of the audio to Mr McLindon but did not listen to it. After seeking legal advice from Slater and Gordon, it was decided not to release the tapes. A decision was later made to destroy the audio and recorder.
His chief of staff did not tell Daniel Andrews about the tape.
His press secretary did not tell Daniel Andrews about the tape.
His party’s secretary did not tell Daniel Andrews about the tape.
His party’s assistant secretary did not tell Daniel Andrews about the tape.
His party’s lawyers did not tell Daniel Andrews about the tape.
Is Daniel Andrews telling the truth, or does he really not have a clue what his team does when he’s not in the room?
Abbott soars in poll, but Labor still way ahead
Andrew Bolt July 29 2014 (8:13am)
Tony Abbott has shown he’s a leader abroad. But Newspoll confirms voters need to see him leading at home:
I’d suggest Abbott quietly negotiate some kind of compromise on the Budget with the crossbenchers, strip down his ambit claims and just get a deal done. Then move on to governing. Do it fast, when it seems of a piece with this problem-solving Abbott.
===The 12-point leap in the Prime Minister’s net satisfaction rating is short of John Howard’s record gains after the September 11 and Bali bombing terror attacks, but has given Mr Abbott his best personal poll results since April…The sample is small, though. I wouldn’t be surprised if the gap were actually a little narrower.
There has been virtually no change in the standing of the parties in the past fortnight, with the Coalition and Labor both recording a primary vote of 36 per cent, the Greens on 12 per cent and others and independents, including Clive Palmer’s party, at 16 per cent. The two-party-preferred vote is unchanged, with Labor holding its commanding lead of 54 per cent to 46 per cent.
I’d suggest Abbott quietly negotiate some kind of compromise on the Budget with the crossbenchers, strip down his ambit claims and just get a deal done. Then move on to governing. Do it fast, when it seems of a piece with this problem-solving Abbott.
Will Mark Butler be monstered as was Tony Abbott, or was the “calm down” fuss the stunt it seemed?
Andrew Bolt July 29 2014 (7:41am)
Remember the cynical beat up of Tony Abbott’s response to heckling from Guardian journalist Bridie Jabour?
===QUESTION:Ho hum:
You just repeated your lines over and over again to me you haven’t answered any questions.
TONY ABBOTT:
Calm down. Gary Gray looked at this matter two years ago. He said there’s nothing to see here. Ok. Next question.
Complaints about Abbott’s language? Thousands.Reader Steve was watching Q&A last night and is waiting for the same outrage to be hurled at Labors’ environment spokesman, Mark Butler:
Jabour ‘s #calmdownbridie hashtag was blitzed by tweeters and Labor shrills. The usual suspects in the Canberra press gallery filed chin-stroking reports on this latest example of Abbott’s alleged sexism.
Mark Butler told Madonna King to ‘settle down’.
Will he be branded a misogynist?
Will the ABC go into meltdown for a week?
Will Sarah Sea Patrol call him a creep?
Will Tania Havasulk suggest he is not fit to govern?
Crickets chirping.
End this RET rort now
Andrew Bolt July 29 2014 (7:35am)
Nick Cater on the great renewable energy target rip-off:
===Wind farms may be ugly but they are certainly not cheap, nor is the electricity that trickles from them. No one in their right minds would buy one if they had to sell power for $30 to $40 a megawatt hour, the going rate for conventional producers.
But since the retailers are forced to buy a proportion of renewable power, the windmill mafia can charge two to three times that price, a practice that in any other market would be known as price gouging.
As if a $60 premium were not reward enough, the transaction is further sweetened with a renewable energy certificate that they can sell to energy producers who insist on generating power in a more disreputable manner.
The going rate of $40 a megawatt hour means the total income per megawatt for wind farms is three to five times that of conventional power, and unless the government changes the scheme that return is only going to get better.
In an act of rent-seeking genius, the renewable lobby managed to persuade the Rudd government to set the 2020 target as a quantity — 41 terawatt hours — rather than 20 per cent of overall power as originally proposed.
Since the target was set, the energy generation forecast for 2020 has fallen substantially, meaning the locked-in renewable target is now more like 28 per cent.
That will send conventional producers scrambling for certificates, pushing up their price beyond $100. It’s a mouth-watering prospect for the merchant bankers and venture capitalists who were smart enough to jump on board, ... but of little or any benefit to the planet. The cost of this speculative financial picnic will be about $17 billion by 2030 or thereabouts, according to Deloitte, which produced a report on the messy business last week.
Driving miners overseas will cripple us
Andrew Bolt July 29 2014 (7:19am)
My bet is that the warning and the facts will be ignored, the sledging will resume and we will be left with less wealth and fewer jobs:
===MINING magnate Gina Rinehart says the high cost of doing business in Australia is driving some multinational companies to pursue overseas projects that have the potential to further damage the country’s export revenue…
“For instance, Rio Tinto, which has been in Australia for decades, and made most of its revenue from Australia, is now arranging multi-billions of dollars of investment for a major resource project with substantial infrastructure in Guinea in Africa.
“When that’s operating, it will bring billions of tonnes of ore on to the market to compete against Australia, and push down commodity prices. Too few seem to recognise the impact this will have when we are competing with lower-cost countries and how it will hurt Australia for decades.”
Mrs Rinehart said Rio Tinto, Hancock’s partner in the giant Hope Downs iron ore project in Western Australia, should not be singled out, saying the nation must do more “to lower its costs and compete for investment”.
McKinsey & Co analysis released yesterday by the Business Council Australia ranked mining and energy as one of only three sectors of the economy where Australia enjoys an international competitive advantage. However, the BCA warned the competitiveness of the nation’s resources sector had “declined over the last decade … soaring costs of inputs, relatively low labour productivity and regulatory delays have caused capital costs to blow out and projects to be delayed,” the council says in a landmark report, Building Australia’s comparative advantages, released yesterday.
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It makes sense the burial was hidden near a known plot - ed===
even without the harassment, getting drunk and passing out is a sad indication of elevated risk of childhood death. - ed
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An election nears .. otherwise this tired issue would never be raised - ed
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Chilling headline missing substantive detail which would make it less sinister
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Hard to hide talent
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PHOTOGRAPHY business PixiFoto will sack more than 300 of its workers after its parent company plunged into administration late last week.
Sad, I liked that business .. they took good school photos - ed
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Australian Prime Minister Amazingly ignorant on Climate Matters
In the campaign leading up to his first incarnation as Prime Minister Kevin Rudd described "Climate Change" as ""the greatest moral, economic and social challenge of our time." Why is it, then that he is so ignorant on "climate change." In an interview with Andrew Bolt, he displayed amazing ignorance on 'climate change.' Interview link.
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It’s one thing to re-write history, but quite another to pretend as if a major historical event – involving a well-documented case of ethnic cleansing – never occurred.
A July 25th edition of the Guardian’s Data Blog, edited by Mona Chalabi, was titled ‘What happened to history’s refugees?‘ Here’s the strapline:
People have been forced to leave their countries since the very notion of a country was created. We take a look at some of the largest human movements in history to find out why people left their homes, where they went and what became of them.
This ambitious project includes Israelites: Canaan (740 BC), Edict of Fontainebleau (France 1685), Muhacirs (Ottoman Empire 1783), Pogroms (Russia 1881), WWI (Europe 1914), WWII (Europe 1945), Nakba (Palestine 1948), and others.
Regarding the “Nakba”, here’s their remarkably skewed narrative:
Nowhere are numbers on refugees more contentious than the 1948 Palestinian exodus. An attack by a Zionist military group on an Arab village realised the Palestinians’ worst fears and combined with Zionist expulsion orders, military advances, virtually non-existent Palestinian leadership and unwillingness to live under Jewish control on their homeland. The result was a mass exodus of around 80% of Arabs on the land that was to become Israel. Later absentees property law in Israel would prevent the return of those Arabs. Nakba, meaning “catastrophe” is commemorated on 15 May each year. The UN set up a special agency, UNRWA, to deal with the enormous numbers of refugees requiring assistance that now number around 5 million.
There are so many omissions, misleading and flatly untrue claims about their tale of the flight of Palestinians, but, suffice to say that, in reading the summary, you could be forgiven for not knowing that there was even an Arab-Israel War in the first place – a war of aggression against the nascent Jewish state without which there wouldn’t have been a refugee problem. However, this isn’t at all the most egregious historical error in the piece.
The Guardian then proceeds, from the “Nakba”, to the next refugee crisis: Idi Amin’s Order (Uganda 1972).
Did you notice an historical omission?
The Guardian completely whitewashed the expulsion of hundreds of thousands ofJews from Arab lands between 1948 and 1972.
Jewish Refugees, 1948
…under the heavy weight of Anti-Jewish governments and policy, nearly one million Jews [beginning in 1948] from the Middle East and North Africa had their property confiscated, basic human rights stripped, and were systematically persecuted and victimized. Ultimately these Jews were forced to flee their homes and surrender their nationalities, becoming the “Forgotten Refugees” of the Middle East and North Africa.Revisionist history of the Middle East conveniently excludes the fact that over half of Israel’s Jewish population live there not because European atrocities during World War II, but because of Anti-Jewish Arab governments who dispossessed and displaced their native Jewish populations following the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. Adopted narratives of the Arab-Israeli conflict fail to address the fact that Israel was the largest refugee camp in the Middle East, providing safe haven to…dispossessed Middle Eastern and North African Jewish refugees whose ancestors had a continuous presence in the region for over 3,000 years.
JIMENA reminds us that, though “UN Resolution 242 asserted that Jews fleeing Arab countries were ‘bona fide’ refugees” the international community, the media and educational systems have continuously ignored their plight.
Of the 800,000 or so Jewish refugees between 1948 and 1972, more than 200,000 found refuge in Europe and North America while 586,000 were resettled in Israel, ”without any compensation from the Arab governments who had confiscated their possessions.” Further, unlike Palestinian refugees who were displaced by war, a definitive report, co-authored by Irwin Cotler, concluded that Jews’ expulsion was part of an intentional and coordinated effort by Arab rulers:
These massive human rights violations were not events that occurred coincidently or haphazardly; nor were they the result only of state-sanctioned patterns of repression in each of the Arab countries, though this would be bad enough; rather, as the evidence discloses, they were the result of an international criminal conspiracy by the League of Arab States to target and persecute the Jewish populations in their respective countries.
It’s one thing to parrot the Palestinian narrative of the “Nakba”, but what the Guardian did was to completely erase from the historical record the well-documented (and completely undisputed) forced expulsion of hundreds of thousands of innocent Jews.
The Guardian’s ideologically inspired animosity towards the Jewish state has crossed a line, and the paper’s editors need to be held accountable for such completely ahistorical propaganda.
===Published on Jul 17, 2013
It is generally thought that the systematic diplomatic attacks against Israel in international institutions, many times through outright lies, are unfortunate, but they are really Israel's problem. However, ultimately over time they erode the credibility of bodies like the UN, which often embrace these false charges, only to find later that they are baseless. In the meantime, other, more pressing, international conflicts are completely ignored. This video graphically presents the problem.
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Good news for a change about ISRAEL'S FUTURE –
GAS - Israel's recent discovery of mega gas fields titled Tamar and Leviathan are located off the Israeli coast from Haifa. These massive discoveries will soon transform Israel as they will adequately look after Israel's domestic needs forever and thereafter to supply foreign markets. A number of countries are pursuing involvement in these finds. Among them are Russia, China, Europe and South Korea. Putin was in Israel two months ago pursuing a contractual relationship with Israel on its gas development projects. Nothing has been signed yet. Tamar is due to come online sometime in 2013 and Leviathan to follow in early 2014. Additional target areas are being explored all the way down the Mediterranean coast of Israel. The likelihood is that a pipeline from the gas discovery area will be built to Cyprus and on to Greece. This will help Greece with some of its financial troubles. It is expected there will be a plant built to liquefy the gas at the Greek end of the underwater pipeline.
OIL - geologists have recently completed a large mapping of most of southern Israel and preliminary findings indicate there are vast amounts of oil trapped in rock layers under about 15% of the State of Israel. This shale oil is technically difficult to extract but Israel and the companies involved are becoming very familiar with the methodology to extract this oil called ‘fracking’. Retired Canadian experts in this system are now resident in Israel working on this huge project.
The World Energy Council and Israel Energy Initiatives have completed a detailed study and presented it to the government on their estimates of Israel's shale oil potential. They estimate that Israel's shale reserves could contain as much as 250 billion barrels of potentially recoverable oil. This would be putting Israel on a par with Saudi Arabia in terms of its oil reserves!
Israeli planners believe that if the gas and oil finds reach the levels that the potential indicates, Israel's current group of allies, trading partners and opponents could drastically change. Israel's geo-political standing in the world will also change. It’s amazing what friends can be made when you have oil and gas to export!
MED-RED RAILWAY -China is in very serious negotiation (contracts have been exchanged) - the Chinese will build and finance most of a high speed railway from Eilat to Ashdod. This would allow tankers and freighters to avoid the Suez Canal as well as cut the time frame from canal usage in half, by using the railway. This is a huge development for Israel as it will open up the Negev, which was always the dream of David Ben Gurion. It would not be surprising that a major announcement on this development with all its details, should be expected by mid 2013.
CHINESE INVESTMENT IN ISRAEL - The Chinese Government, while they are negotiating the Med-Red Railway, have made it clear to Israel that they have a multi-billion dollar fund that they would put to use, to fund Israeli hi-tech start-ups and companies needing mezzanine financing. The Israeli Government is very amenable to this opportunity, and the Chinese have already agreed to the stringent conditions that Israel wants to apply on any of the investments. Look for an announcement on this in 2013.
You should be aware that the Israeli Government and various Agrarian companies are extremely busy today in China - assisting the Chinese with their need to get much more production out of their land, while following the Israeli system of water economy. Further, the Chinese are learning every possible method Israel has on how to maximize milk production, and other elements necessary for the Chinese to raise the level of feeding their huge population.This relationship is being very well received by the Chinese and its government.
ALIYAH - Numerous European countries are seeing their Jewish populations diminishing because of a resurgence of anti-Semitism and violence against their Jewish communities. Islam is on the march in many of the European countries. In particular, sizable numbers of French, British and smaller numbers of Jews from other EU countries, have left or are in the process of going to Israel. The Jewish Agency for Israel is planning for a significant aliyah to continue as well as increase over time with Jews leaving Ukraine and Russia.
Again the planning of the Jewish Agency indicates that Ben Gurion’s dream of large communities in the Negev is now nearer to realization than ever before. Hi-tech companies are being offered significant inducements by the government to establish their campuses and their R&D facilities in communities being formed in the Negev. Currently the hi-tech campuses are extremely crowded in an area south of Tel Aviv. Bear in mind that nothing is far in Israel.
EMP (Electromagnetic impulses) - The magnitude of this enormous devastating project is hard to fathom. Whoever develops this will have a commanding position facing any adversary. EMP could cripple a country by shutting down its electronics. It uses non-lethal gamma energy to react with the magnetic field and produces a powerful shock wave that can devastate any power grid and communications system. Although I tried, I could not get any kind of comment regarding an Israeli involvement. All I got were small, relatively short smiles.
CONCLUSION - The problems of Iran and the Palestinian State and a horrible neighbourhood need to be dealt with Israeli resolve. Assuming all of the things described previously like oil, gas, Chinese investment, Med-Red Railway, as well as things still to be developed, the future for Israel is extremely bright. The IDF, the IAF, the MOSSAD, the SHIN-BET, the AMAN, are amongst the best of their kind in the world and will do their utmost to safeguard the State of Israel and the Jewish people wherever they are to be found.
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"Most illegal immigrants flooding into Australia without papers are composed of Afghani Army personnel", an employee connected to Christmas Island has claimed.
The processing centre at Christmas Island is being manipulated by corrupt Iranian and Afghani interpreters who advise the army deserters to say they are lowly farmers.
Australian Officials, suspicious of their claims, have been jetting these dodgy detainees in their hundreds to the infamous Curtin Detention Centre in Western Australia.
The Centre, described as the "Hell Hole" is in a remote area 2,000, kilometres north of Perth.
Designed to hold 1400 of the most violent and suspect detainees, it was recently all but vacated after the disease Guillain-Barré syndrome broke out affecting locals.
In April 2010, the Rudd government decided to reopen the "horror centre" for what he termed "single male asylum seekers", and those who fall within the category of, "do not process".
In charge of security is Serco Plc, a UK publicly listed company, the Asia-Pacific arm of which has been contracted to the Australian Government.
It has each Australian employee on signed confidentiality agreements.
Serco has usurped billions of Australian taxpayer funds, mostly wasted on renting material and white goods that could be purchased outright for the cost of one week’s rent.
Marquees and air conditioning units are ready and rented at $10,000 per week in lots of ten to cater for the expected overflow from Christmas Island.
At least three passenger airliners are chartered permanently to shuffle detainees between centres. As few as three detainees at a time are flown into the Curtin Centre, claimed one employee.
Describing their company Serco Plc said: "We provide catering, recreation, education and excursions, manage accommodation, facilities, maintenance, transport and logistics, security, training and procurement. Our employees look after thousands of people in locations all over Australia, responding to their cultural, religious and individual needs." Mmmm.
Of most concern is the whereabouts of the 1,000 unprocessed illegal Curtin detainees who have now been dispersed to Australian cities.
"These blokes are rock-hard fit and looking for trouble", said one Curtin employee.
Sam (not her real name) is a small part Aboriginal girl once employed by Serco.
She is too frightened to talk but an angry relative explained that Sam’s job was to escort groups of these men to Canberra and Melbourne.
They were taken to holding centres before being given bridging visas and were then dispersed into the community, legally unable to work.
After six trips Sam resigned because of the sexual abuse she suffered. Traumatised, she is now living back with her family in Derby.
Enquires from Derby to Broome, including Police stations have been met with a terse "no comment."
"Waste is rampant", said one local. "Tradespeople are charging up to $10 a kilometre to drive to and from the Centre to fix a washer on a tap.
"I was charging $2 a kilometre until I found out what the other guys were charging, so I put my bill in at $10 per kilometre and they never said a word, they seem to just pay whatever you invoice them for.
"If one (of the detainees) gets a toothache or anything, someone has to come out from Derby and take them back for treatment. It’s often hours waiting before they are ready to go back."
"We are not allowed phones there", said another ex-employee, "but I tested the phones available to the detainees and I could phone anywhere in the world."
Another informant said that the local Derby refrigeration store, Lindsay Howard, was robbed of thousands of dollars of equipment which somehow found its way to the Curtin Centre on rental agreements. "Nothing came of it", he said.
"It seems this Serco mob spends more time covering stuff up than doing their job here."
So us Aussies can look forward to another tranche of thousands of Islamic Afghani army deserters soon to be scattered unprocessed throughout our communities.
Meanwhile, the Gillard Government equivocates over whether legitimate Afghani interpreters, currently risking their lives to assist our army in Afghanistan, should be allowed entry.
They are marked men once we leave.
Bloody good eh?
They are marked men once we leave.
Bloody good eh?
Asylum seekers, my arse! - Larry Pickering
===Even accepting his claims .. his story is ugly. He is 8 years older than the minor he impregnated and he was beating her because he 'had' to? - ed
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Me: Dad, the blanket is too pink, why did she buy her step son a really plush, yet pink blanket?
Dad: She's trying to impress you Sam, use it... now!
Me: But it looks... well... Gay... ish
Dad: what's gay?
Me: Nevermind.
===Me: But it looks... well... Gay... ish
Dad: what's gay?
Me: Nevermind.
- 1014 – Byzantine–Bulgarian wars: Forces of theByzantine Empire defeated troops of the Bulgarian Empire at the Battle of Kleidion (pictured) in theBelasica Mountains near present-day Klyuch, Bulgaria.
- 1836 – The Arc de Triomphe in Paris, commemorating those who fought and died for France in theFrench Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars, was formally inaugurated.
- 1862 – American Civil War: Confederate spy Belle Boyd was arrested by Union troops after her lover turned her in.
- 1967 – Vietnam War: During preparation for another strike in theGulf of Tonkin, the aircraft carrier USS Forrestal was hit by a series of chain-reaction explosions caused by an unusual electrical anomaly on its flight deck, killing 134 sailors and injuring 161 others.
- 2010 – An overloaded passenger ferry capsized on the Kasai River in Bandundu Province of the Democratic Republic of Congo, resulting in at least 80 deaths.
“I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”Philippians 3:14 NIV
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Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon
Morning
Remember this is the confession of the man after God's own heart; and in telling us his inner life, he writes, "So foolish was I, and ignorant." The word "foolish," here, means more than it signifies in ordinary language. David, in a former verse of the Psalm, writes, "I was envious at the foolish when I saw the prosperity of the wicked," which shows that the folly he intended had sin in it. He puts himself down as being thus "foolish," and adds a word which is to give intensity to it; "so foolish was I." How foolish he could not tell. It was a sinful folly, a folly which was not to be excused by frailty, but to be condemned because of its perverseness and wilful ignorance, for he had been envious of the present prosperity of the ungodly, forgetful of the dreadful end awaiting all such. And are we better than David that we should call ourselves wise! Do we profess that we have attained perfection, or to have been so chastened that the rod has taken all our wilfulness out of us? Ah, this were pride indeed! If David was foolish, how foolish should we be in our own esteem if we could but see ourselves! Look back, believer: think of your doubting God when he has been so faithful to you--think of your foolish outcry of "Not so, my Father," when he crossed his hands in affliction to give you the larger blessing; think of the many times when you have read his providences in the dark, misinterpreted his dispensations, and groaned out, "All these things are against me," when they are all working together for your good! Think how often you have chosen sin because of its pleasure, when indeed, that pleasure was a root of bitterness to you! Surely if we know our own heart we must plead guilty to the indictment of a sinful folly; and conscious of this "foolishness," we must make David's consequent resolve our own--"Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel."
Evening
"Who went about doing good."
Acts 10:38
Acts 10:38
Few words, but yet an exquisite miniature of the Lord Jesus Christ. There are not many touches, but they are the strokes of a master's pencil. Of the Saviour and only of the Saviour is it true in the fullest, broadest, and most unqualified sense. "He went about doing good." From this description it is evident that he did good personally. The evangelists constantly tell us that he touched the leper with his own finger, that he anointed the eyes of the blind, and that in cases where he was asked to speak the word only at a distance, he did not usually comply, but went himself to the sick bed, and there personally wrought the cure. A lesson to us, if we would do good, to do it ourselves. Give alms with your own hand; a kind look, or word, will enhance the value of the gift. Speak to a friend about his soul; your loving appeal will have more influence than a whole library of tracts. Our Lord's mode of doing good sets forth his incessant activity! He did not only the good which came close to hand, but he "went about" on his errands of mercy. Throughout the whole land of Judea there was scarcely a village or a hamlet which was not gladdened by the sight of him. How this reproves the creeping, loitering manner, in which many professors serve the Lord. Let us gird up the loins of our mind, and be not weary in well doing. Does not the text imply that Jesus Christ went out of his way to do good? "He went about doing good." He was never deterred by danger or difficulty. He sought out the objects of his gracious intentions. So must we. If old plans will not answer, we must try new ones, for fresh experiments sometimes achieve more than regular methods. Christ's perseverance, and the unity of his purpose, are also hinted at, and the practical application of the subject may be summed up in the words, "He hath left us an example that we should follow in his steps."
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Today's reading: Psalm 46-48, Acts 28 (NIV)
View today's reading on Bible GatewayToday's Old Testament reading: Psalm 46-48
For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. According to alamoth. A song.
1 God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.
an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.
4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
5 God is within her, she will not fall;
God will help her at break of day.
6 Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;
he lifts his voice, the earth melts....
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
5 God is within her, she will not fall;
God will help her at break of day.
6 Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;
he lifts his voice, the earth melts....
Today's New Testament reading: Acts 28
Paul Ashore on Malta
1 Once safely on shore, we found out that the island was called Malta. 2 The islanders showed us unusual kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all because it was raining and cold. 3 Paul gathered a pile of brushwood and, as he put it on the fire, a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand. 4 When the islanders saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, "This man must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, the goddess Justice has not allowed him to live." 5 But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects. 6 The people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall dead; but after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god....
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Gad
[Găd] - good fortune, a troop or a seer.
[Găd] - good fortune, a troop or a seer.
1. The seventh son of Jacob, first-born of Zilpah, Leah's maid, and full brother of Asher. A tribe also sprang from Gad (Gen. 30:11; 35:26; 46:16; 49:19; Exod. 1:4; 1 Chron. 5:11; 12:14).
The Man of Enlargement
No name in all the twelve tribes of Israel is so much played upon in Jacob's blessing as the name of Gad, meaning "a troop." Invaders and robbers might try to plunder Gad but victory would be his with resultant enlargement. Jacob predicted for the tribe of Gad a time of sore conflict, yet of final conquest. "He shall overcome at last." God enabled Gad to discomfit and defeat his foes (1 Chron. 5:18-22).
The men of Gad had faces like "the faces of lions," and when David needed help, the Gadites of lion-like character befriended the fugitive king. "They put to flight all them of the valleys, both of the east and of the west." These Gadite helpers of David "executed the justice of the Lord, and His judgments with Israel." Jephthah the Gileadite, of the tribe of Gad, judged Israel six years after delivering the nation from Ammonite oppression.
How fortunate Gad was to have God to enlarge him! "The place where we dwell... is too strait for us." Such an energetic, aggressive tribe could not remain static, so their inheritance was extended beyond its original limits until it covered the whole of Gilead. How loathe we are to possess our spiritual possessions! May ours be the enlargements of heart David prayed for (Ps. 119:32)! May ours also be the constant victorious Christian experience!
2. The prophet who joined David when in "the hold," and through whose advice he left it for the forest of Hareth ( 1 Sam. 22:5; 2 Sam. 24:11-19; 1 Chron. 21:9-19; 2 Chron. 29:25). Gad, "the king's seer," announced God's judgment upon David for numbering the people. "The arm of flesh will fail us, we dare not trust our own." Gad the prophet advised the erection of the altar, and is also before us as an associate of the prophet Nathan.
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