For some, at the moment, the Sex Party has more credibility.
=== from 2015 ===
Hitler hid the atrocities Jihadists proudly display. There were rumours of the widespread atrocities Nazis committed in the thirties. German peoples had been witnesses to local atrocities, but had not known how organised it was. FDR had been told about it, but had plausible deniability as he sacrificed the lives of Nazi victims. But jihadists are proud of exploiting children to kill prisoners captured in war and stolen from home. Children in lines used to execute prisoners. Children in circles beheading prisoners. These children are recorded on electric media which is circulated widely on social media. It is part of recruitment. And there is no 'good' side. This hell is a result of Obama foreign policy. In some ways, it isn't very different to how some jihadists have perpetrated atrocity for over a thousand years. But, it is bigger. It is organised. Former Indonesian foreign minister, Marty Natalegawa, is misrepresenting the situation. He had been reliable in opposing Australian government to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). And while he was in government, he could cover his lies. But saying, now, the clear lie that Australia does not have ministerial or even public service contact with Indonesia is demonstrably, verifiably, false. Australia has extensive contact with Indonesia at all levels of administration, including foreign ministers. There are security deals, trade agreements and all the regular issues that are part of good government. Indonesia is happy with Mr Abbott's policy regarding boat people as it takes a lot of pressure off them. They had had thousands of people flying in to be exploited by people smugglers. That had brought international condemnation and caused domestic strife for them. All that is gone, now, thanks to Mr Abbott. But Marty doesn't want to admit that.
ABC breaches her own code of conduct. Even people she chose to review her partisan position are themselves partisan. In her nightly news segment, this Sunday, she chose to show an update on so called Palestine following conflict with Israel. So called Palestine had launched tens of thousands of rockets into Israel's territory. Israel invaded her own territory so as to end the menace. Israel targeted weapons dumps and tunnels used to cache and transport WMD. So called Palestine responded by using human shields and children as hostages, placing weapons in schools and Mosques. The ABC reported that there was no need to go over the rights and wrongs of why the fighting took place, but decided to make it human interest instead. And so blaming Israel. One so called Palestinian boy said he wanted to be a bricklayer and build houses when he grows up. ABC reported he wanted to be an engineer. In fact, given his diet, he probably lays bricks now, albeit not regularly.
Greece faced with non vote. The best outcome is if they reject their government's irresponsible position. But the way the vote is set up the result is meaningless. The only way for Greece to ever prosper again is for them to make sacrifices. Ridiculously, austerity is being compared to terrorism. The truth is reckless spending is theft.
Targeting the one person not left wing. News reports are coming in of HRC's Mr Wilson, hand picked by Mr Abbott, spending $77k on travel in a year. Not mentioned is is the $400k salary or travel expenses of Gillian Triggs or any other on that council. Mr Wilson has good reasons for his expenses. There is no question of his expenses being legitimate. But the promotion of envy connected with Mr Abbott makes the reporting legitimate in the eyes of partisan editors. Note well, those same editors would hate to have their own salaries and expenses declared.
Same sex marriage is not an issue according to populations that have recently voted it in, like Ireland where some 34% of the population voted in support of it. But the media are bloviating wildly on the issue, making out the issue is not as it is. So Australia has a political reality constructed by media promotion. And it won't go away. Maybe Australia should adopt legislation that limits the damage to churches. The world won't end if there is gay marriage. But good government can end on an irrelevant issue.
In 328, the official opening of Constantine's Bridge built over the Danube between Sucidava (Corabia, Romania) and Oescus (Gigen, Bulgaria) by the Roman architect Theophilus Patricius 1295, Scotland and France formed an alliance, the so-called "Auld Alliance", against England. 1316, the Burgundian and Majorcan claimants of the Principality of Achaea met in the Battle of Manolada 1594, Portuguese forces under the command of Pedro Lopes de Sousa began an unsuccessful invasion of the Kingdom of Kandy during the Campaign of Danture in Sri Lanka. 1610, John Guy set sail from Bristol with 39 other colonists for Newfoundland. 1687, Isaac Newton published Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica. 1770, the Battle of Chesma between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire began. 1775, the Second Continental Congress adopted the Olive Branch Petition.
In 1803, the Convention of Artlenburg was signed, leading to the French occupation of Hanover (which had been ruled by the British king). 1809, the largest battle of the Napoleonic Wars, the Battle of Wagram was fought between the French and Austrian Empires. 1811, Venezuela declared independence from Spain. 1813, War of 1812: Three weeks of British raids on Fort Schlosser, Black Rock and Plattsburgh, New York commenced. 1814, War of 1812: Battle of Chippawa – American Major General Jacob Brown defeated British General Phineas Riall at Chippawa, Ontario. 1833, Lê Văn Khôi along with 27 soldiers staged a mutiny taking over the Phiên An citadel, developing into the Lê Văn Khôi revolt against Emperor Minh Mạng. Also 1833, Admiral Charles Napier vanquished the navy of the Portuguese usurper Dom Miguel at the third Battle of Cape St. Vincent. 1841, Thomas Cook organised the first package excursion, from Leicester to Loughborough 1878, the coat of arms of the Baku Governorate was established. 1884, Germany took possession of Cameroon.
In 1915, the Liberty Bell left Philadelphia by special train on its way to the Panama-Pacific International Exposition. This was the last trip outside Philadelphia that the custodians of the bell intended to permit. 1934, "Bloody Thursday" – Police opened fire on striking longshoremen in San Francisco. 1935, the National Labor Relations Act, which governed labor relations in the United States, was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. 1937, Spam, the luncheon meat, was introduced into the market by the Hormel Foods Corporation.
In 1940, World War II: The United Kingdom and the Vichy France government broke off diplomatic relations. 1941, World War II: Operation Barbarossa: German troops reached the Dnieper River. 1943, World War II: An Allied invasion fleet sailed for Sicily (Operation Husky, July 10, 1943). Also 1943, World War II: German forces began a massive offensive against the Soviet Union at the Battle of Kursk, also known as Operation Citadel. 1945, World War II: The liberation of the Philippines was declared. 1946, the bikini went on sale after debuting during an outdoor fashion show at the Molitor Pool in Paris, France. 1948, National Health Service Acts created the national public health systems in the United Kingdom. 1950, Korean War: Task Force Smith: American and North Korean forces first clashed, in the Battle of Osan. Also 1950, Zionism: The Knesset passed the Law of Return which grants all Jews the right to immigrate to Israel. 1954, the BBC broadcast its first television news bulletin. Also 1954, the Andhra Pradesh High Court was established. Also 1954, Elvis Presley recorded his first single, "That's All Right," at Sun Records in Memphis, Tennessee. 1962, Algeria becomes independent from France.
In 1971, Right to vote: The Twenty-sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution, lowering the voting age from 21 to 18 years, was formally certified by President Richard Nixon. 1973, A BLEVE (Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion) in Kingman, Arizona, followed a fire that broke out as propane was being transferred from a railroad car to a storage tank, killing eleven firefighters. 1975, Arthur Ashe became the first black man to win the Wimbledon singles title. Also 1975, Cape Verde gained its independence from Portugal. 1977, Military coup in Pakistan: Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the first elected Prime Minister of Pakistan, was overthrown. 1980, Swedish tennis player Björn Borg won his fifth Wimbledon final and became the first male tennis player to win the championships five times in a row (1976-1980). 1987, the LTTE used suicide attacks on the Sri Lankan Army for the first time. The Black Tigers were born and, in the following years, continued to kill with the tactic. 1989, Iran–Contra affair: Oliver North was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gerhard A. Gesell to a three-year suspended prison term, two years probation, $150,000 in fines and 1,200 hours community service. His convictions were later overturned.
In 1995, the Republic of Armenia adopted its constitution, four years after its independence from the Soviet Union. 1996, Dolly the sheep became the first mammal cloned from an adult cell. 1999, Wolverhampton, England was hit by storms, including a tornado. The area was hit again with severe storms on August 1. Also 1999, U.S. President Bill Clinton imposed trade and economic sanctions against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. 2004, the first Indonesian presidential election was held. 2006, North Korea tested four short-range missiles, one medium-range missile and a long-range Taepodong-2. The long-range Taepodong-2 reportedly failed in mid-air over the Sea of Japan. 2009, a series of violent riots broke out in Ürümqi, the capital city of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China. Also 2009, the largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold ever discovered, consisting of more than 1,500 items, was found near the village of Hammerwich, near Lichfield, in Staffordshire, England. 2012, The Shard in London was inaugurated as the tallest building in Europe, with a height of 310 metres (1,020 ft).
From 2014
The Bikini first went on sale on this day in 1946. Named after the atoll where nuclear testing was being done. It was marketing genius that took time to explode on the market. A few big time models wore it, and by the sixties it became standard wear in modern beach nations.
Prior to nuclear inspired fashion, the biggest explosion on this day came from Isaac Newton's published Principia Mathematica (1687). Newton is lauded for his invention of Integration calculus, and diminished because he contemporaneously worked on it with Liebniz making similar discovery independently. However, Newton's Principia went beyond calculus .. he described the working of gravity .. planetary motion .. cannon balls .. light waves .. prisms. When the sun has disappeared beneath the horizon, it can still be seen by ocular illusion, and Newton discovered why. Without an iPad. With Newton, the apple fell, and the penny dropped. He went on in old age to reform English Banking. But he was weird. He believed women weakened men's logic facility. At his university, he would have guards precede him everywhere and make sure that Newton would not accidentally meet a woman. He also dabbled in the occult. He was the ward for a niece of whom it is said he had peep holes put in his residence. Personally, I think it is more efficient to marry a good woman. When you talk to her, you can discover more .. and she will listen when others won't .. But Newton was a genius .. and a fool ..
PT Barnum was born on this day in 1810. A consummate showman. He did not invent the saying "There is a sucker born every minute" but he exploited that fact. When his business went south, he became a temperance speaker. He ran and was elected as a GOP man. His enduring fame is as the guy who brought together a menagerie of big animals and freaks.
Prior to nuclear inspired fashion, the biggest explosion on this day came from Isaac Newton's published Principia Mathematica (1687). Newton is lauded for his invention of Integration calculus, and diminished because he contemporaneously worked on it with Liebniz making similar discovery independently. However, Newton's Principia went beyond calculus .. he described the working of gravity .. planetary motion .. cannon balls .. light waves .. prisms. When the sun has disappeared beneath the horizon, it can still be seen by ocular illusion, and Newton discovered why. Without an iPad. With Newton, the apple fell, and the penny dropped. He went on in old age to reform English Banking. But he was weird. He believed women weakened men's logic facility. At his university, he would have guards precede him everywhere and make sure that Newton would not accidentally meet a woman. He also dabbled in the occult. He was the ward for a niece of whom it is said he had peep holes put in his residence. Personally, I think it is more efficient to marry a good woman. When you talk to her, you can discover more .. and she will listen when others won't .. But Newton was a genius .. and a fool ..
PT Barnum was born on this day in 1810. A consummate showman. He did not invent the saying "There is a sucker born every minute" but he exploited that fact. When his business went south, he became a temperance speaker. He ran and was elected as a GOP man. His enduring fame is as the guy who brought together a menagerie of big animals and freaks.
Historical perspective on this day
In 328, the official opening of Constantine's Bridge built over the Danube between Sucidava(Corabia, Romania) and Oescus (Gigen, Bulgaria) by the Roman architect Theophilus Patricius 1295, Scotland and France formed an alliance, the so-called "Auld Alliance", against England. 1316, the Burgundian and Majorcan claimants of the Principality of Achaea met in the Battle of Manolada 1594, Portuguese forces under the command of Pedro Lopes de Sousa began an unsuccessful invasion of the Kingdom of Kandy during the Campaign of Danture in Sri Lanka. 1610, John Guy set sail from Bristol with 39 other colonists for Newfoundland. 1687, Isaac Newton published Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica. 1770, the Battle of Chesmabetween the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire began. 1775, the Second Continental Congress adopted the Olive Branch Petition.
In 1803, the Convention of Artlenburg was signed, leading to the French occupation of Hanover (which had been ruled by the British king). 1809, the largest battle of the Napoleonic Wars, the Battle of Wagram was fought between the French and Austrian Empires. 1811, Venezuela declared independence from Spain. 1813, War of 1812: Three weeks of British raids on Fort Schlosser, Black Rock and Plattsburgh, New York commenced. 1814, War of 1812: Battle of Chippawa – American Major General Jacob Brown defeated BritishGeneral Phineas Riall at Chippawa, Ontario. 1833, Lê Văn Khôi along with 27 soldiers staged a mutiny taking over the Phiên An citadel, developing into the Lê Văn Khôi revolt against Emperor Minh Mạng. Also 1833, Admiral Charles Napier vanquished the navy of the Portuguese usurper Dom Miguel at the third Battle of Cape St. Vincent. 1841, Thomas Cookorganised the first package excursion, from Leicester to Loughborough 1878, the coat of armsof the Baku Governorate was established. 1884, Germany took possession of Cameroon.
In 1915, the Liberty Bell left Philadelphia by special train on its way to the Panama-Pacific International Exposition. This was the last trip outside Philadelphia that the custodians of the bell intended to permit. 1934, "Bloody Thursday" – Police opened fire on striking longshoremen in San Francisco. 1935, the National Labor Relations Act, which governed labor relations in the United States, was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. 1937, Spam, the luncheon meat, was introduced into the market by the Hormel Foods Corporation.
In 1940, World War II: The United Kingdom and the Vichy France government broke off diplomatic relations. 1941, World War II: Operation Barbarossa: German troops reached the Dnieper River. 1943, World War II: An Allied invasion fleet sailed for Sicily (Operation Husky, July 10, 1943). Also 1943, World War II: German forces began a massive offensive against the Soviet Union at the Battle of Kursk, also known as Operation Citadel. 1945, World War II: The liberation of the Philippines was declared. 1946, the bikini went on sale after debuting during an outdoor fashion show at the Molitor Pool in Paris, France. 1948, National Health ServiceActs created the national public health systems in the United Kingdom. 1950, Korean War: Task Force Smith: American and North Korean forces first clashed, in the Battle of Osan. Also 1950, Zionism: The Knesset passed the Law of Return which grants all Jews the right to immigrate to Israel. 1954, the BBC broadcast its first television news bulletin. Also 1954, the Andhra Pradesh High Court was established. Also 1954, Elvis Presley recorded his first single, "That's All Right," at Sun Records in Memphis, Tennessee. 1962, Algeria becomes independent from France.
In 1971, Right to vote: The Twenty-sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution, lowering the voting age from 21 to 18 years, was formally certified by President Richard Nixon. 1973, A BLEVE (Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion) in Kingman, Arizona, followed a fire that broke out as propane was being transferred from a railroad car to a storage tank, killing eleven firefighters. 1975, Arthur Ashe became the first black man to win the Wimbledon singles title. Also 1975, Cape Verde gained its independence from Portugal. 1977, Military coup in Pakistan: Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the first elected Prime Minister of Pakistan, was overthrown. 1980, Swedish tennis player Björn Borg won his fifth Wimbledon final and became the first male tennis player to win the championships five times in a row (1976-1980). 1987, the LTTE used suicide attacks on the Sri Lankan Army for the first time. The Black Tigers were born and, in the following years, continued to kill with the tactic. 1989, Iran–Contra affair: Oliver North was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gerhard A. Gesell to a three-year suspended prison term, two years probation, $150,000 in fines and 1,200 hours community service. His convictions were later overturned.
In 1995, the Republic of Armenia adopted its constitution, four years after its independence from the Soviet Union. 1996, Dolly the sheep became the first mammal cloned from an adult cell. 1999, Wolverhampton, England was hit by storms, including a tornado. The area was hit again with severe storms on August 1. Also 1999, U.S. President Bill Clinton imposed trade and economic sanctions against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. 2004, the first Indonesian presidential election was held. 2006, North Korea tested four short-range missiles, one medium-range missile and a long-range Taepodong-2. The long-range Taepodong-2 reportedly failed in mid-air over the Sea of Japan. 2009, a series of violent riots broke out in Ürümqi, the capital city of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China. Also 2009, the largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold ever discovered, consisting of more than 1,500 items, was found near the village of Hammerwich, near Lichfield, in Staffordshire, England. 2012, The Shard in London was inaugurated as the tallest building in Europe, with a height of 310 metres (1,020 ft).
In 1803, the Convention of Artlenburg was signed, leading to the French occupation of Hanover (which had been ruled by the British king). 1809, the largest battle of the Napoleonic Wars, the Battle of Wagram was fought between the French and Austrian Empires. 1811, Venezuela declared independence from Spain. 1813, War of 1812: Three weeks of British raids on Fort Schlosser, Black Rock and Plattsburgh, New York commenced. 1814, War of 1812: Battle of Chippawa – American Major General Jacob Brown defeated BritishGeneral Phineas Riall at Chippawa, Ontario. 1833, Lê Văn Khôi along with 27 soldiers staged a mutiny taking over the Phiên An citadel, developing into the Lê Văn Khôi revolt against Emperor Minh Mạng. Also 1833, Admiral Charles Napier vanquished the navy of the Portuguese usurper Dom Miguel at the third Battle of Cape St. Vincent. 1841, Thomas Cookorganised the first package excursion, from Leicester to Loughborough 1878, the coat of armsof the Baku Governorate was established. 1884, Germany took possession of Cameroon.
In 1915, the Liberty Bell left Philadelphia by special train on its way to the Panama-Pacific International Exposition. This was the last trip outside Philadelphia that the custodians of the bell intended to permit. 1934, "Bloody Thursday" – Police opened fire on striking longshoremen in San Francisco. 1935, the National Labor Relations Act, which governed labor relations in the United States, was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. 1937, Spam, the luncheon meat, was introduced into the market by the Hormel Foods Corporation.
In 1940, World War II: The United Kingdom and the Vichy France government broke off diplomatic relations. 1941, World War II: Operation Barbarossa: German troops reached the Dnieper River. 1943, World War II: An Allied invasion fleet sailed for Sicily (Operation Husky, July 10, 1943). Also 1943, World War II: German forces began a massive offensive against the Soviet Union at the Battle of Kursk, also known as Operation Citadel. 1945, World War II: The liberation of the Philippines was declared. 1946, the bikini went on sale after debuting during an outdoor fashion show at the Molitor Pool in Paris, France. 1948, National Health ServiceActs created the national public health systems in the United Kingdom. 1950, Korean War: Task Force Smith: American and North Korean forces first clashed, in the Battle of Osan. Also 1950, Zionism: The Knesset passed the Law of Return which grants all Jews the right to immigrate to Israel. 1954, the BBC broadcast its first television news bulletin. Also 1954, the Andhra Pradesh High Court was established. Also 1954, Elvis Presley recorded his first single, "That's All Right," at Sun Records in Memphis, Tennessee. 1962, Algeria becomes independent from France.
In 1971, Right to vote: The Twenty-sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution, lowering the voting age from 21 to 18 years, was formally certified by President Richard Nixon. 1973, A BLEVE (Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion) in Kingman, Arizona, followed a fire that broke out as propane was being transferred from a railroad car to a storage tank, killing eleven firefighters. 1975, Arthur Ashe became the first black man to win the Wimbledon singles title. Also 1975, Cape Verde gained its independence from Portugal. 1977, Military coup in Pakistan: Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the first elected Prime Minister of Pakistan, was overthrown. 1980, Swedish tennis player Björn Borg won his fifth Wimbledon final and became the first male tennis player to win the championships five times in a row (1976-1980). 1987, the LTTE used suicide attacks on the Sri Lankan Army for the first time. The Black Tigers were born and, in the following years, continued to kill with the tactic. 1989, Iran–Contra affair: Oliver North was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gerhard A. Gesell to a three-year suspended prison term, two years probation, $150,000 in fines and 1,200 hours community service. His convictions were later overturned.
In 1995, the Republic of Armenia adopted its constitution, four years after its independence from the Soviet Union. 1996, Dolly the sheep became the first mammal cloned from an adult cell. 1999, Wolverhampton, England was hit by storms, including a tornado. The area was hit again with severe storms on August 1. Also 1999, U.S. President Bill Clinton imposed trade and economic sanctions against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. 2004, the first Indonesian presidential election was held. 2006, North Korea tested four short-range missiles, one medium-range missile and a long-range Taepodong-2. The long-range Taepodong-2 reportedly failed in mid-air over the Sea of Japan. 2009, a series of violent riots broke out in Ürümqi, the capital city of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China. Also 2009, the largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold ever discovered, consisting of more than 1,500 items, was found near the village of Hammerwich, near Lichfield, in Staffordshire, England. 2012, The Shard in London was inaugurated as the tallest building in Europe, with a height of 310 metres (1,020 ft).
=== 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.
===
Thanks to Warren for this advice on watching Bolt
Warren Catton Get this for your PC or MAC https://www.foxtel.com.au/foxtelplay/how-it-works/pc-mac.html Once you have installed it start it up and press Live TV you don't need a login to watch Sky News!
===
I am publishing a book called Bread of Life: January.
Bread of Life is a daily bible quote with a layman's understanding of the meaning. I give one quote for each day, and also a series of personal stories illustrating key concepts eg Who is God? What is a miracle? Why is there tragedy?
January is the first of the anticipated year-long work of thirteen books. One for each month and the whole year. It costs to publish. It (Kindle version) should retail at about $2US online, but the paperback version would cost more, according to production cost.If you have a heart for giving, I fundraise at gofund.me/27tkwuc
Bread of Life is a daily bible quote with a layman's understanding of the meaning. I give one quote for each day, and also a series of personal stories illustrating key concepts eg Who is God? What is a miracle? Why is there tragedy?
January is the first of the anticipated year-long work of thirteen books. One for each month and the whole year. It costs to publish. It (Kindle version) should retail at about $2US online, but the paperback version would cost more, according to production cost.If you have a heart for giving, I fundraise at gofund.me/27tkwuc
===
Editorials will appear in the "History in a Year by the Conservative Voice" series, starting with August, September, October, 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 a free kindle version.
List of available items at Create Space
The Amazon Author Page for David Ball
UK .. http://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B01683ZOWGFrench .. http://www.amazon.fr/-/e/B01683ZOWG
Japan .. http://www.amazon.co.jp/-/e/B01683ZOWG
German .. http://www.amazon.de/-/e/B01683ZOWG
Happy birthday and many happy returns Thomas Pitt (1653), P.T. Barnum (1810), Cecil Rhodes (1853), John Howard Northrop (1891), Peter McNamara (1955). Born on the same day, across the years. In 1687, The Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica by Isaac Newton was first published, describing his laws of motion and his law of universal gravitation. In 1937, The Hormel Foods Corporation introduced Spam, the canned precooked meat product that would eventually enter into pop culture, folklore, and urban legend. In 1950, Korean War: In the first encounter between North Korean and American forces, the unprepared and undisciplined U.S. Army task force was routed. In 2006, The United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting hours after North Korea reportedly tested at least seven separate ballistic missiles. In 2009, A series of violent riots broke out in Ürümqi, the capital city of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China. You didn't become famous by leaving things unfinished. Cheers!
Deaths
July 5: Seventeenth of Tammuz (Judaism, 2015); Independence Day in Algeria (1962) and Cape Verde(1975); Saints Cyril and Methodius Day in the Czech Republic and Slovakia
Gravity man, that is heavy. We gave our assent. The Bikini is like the circle of life. The Ball is round, the game is long. Life in China is a riot. Let's party.
|
DRUM BEATEN
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 05, 2016 (4:02pm)
A sad day for lefties:
The ABC has axed its opinion website the Drum in a cost-saving move that is one of the first significant decisions in the reign of the new managing director, Michelle Guthrie.The ABC insisted the decision had been driven by the ABC’s head of news, Gaven Morris, in an attempt to corral the news division’s online output into one place rather than under a separate masthead ...The staff on the website, which pays freelance writers for contributions, were told the site would close this week.
We now pause in solemn remembrance of the Drum’s finest contributor.
TUESDAY NOTICEBOARD
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 05, 2016 (5:07am)
In the July edition of MotorSport magazine, veteran Formula One observer Murray Walker offers an absolutely perfect Australian tourism slogan:
World War II veteran Walker, now 92, has an impressive background in advertising and clearly maintains a gift for catchy lines. Post that slogan all over the tube in London or subways in New York and we’d have to build new airports to cope with tourist arrivals.
World War II veteran Walker, now 92, has an impressive background in advertising and clearly maintains a gift for catchy lines. Post that slogan all over the tube in London or subways in New York and we’d have to build new airports to cope with tourist arrivals.
Artistically inclined readers are invited to devise displays incorporating Walker’s words. Send any results to blairt@dailytelegraph.com.au – or post them elsewhere and send me a link.
EVERYONE SHE KNOWS
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 05, 2016 (4:24am)
Fairfax’s Elizabeth Farrelly in 2012:
Just about everyone I know loves Malcolm Turnbull. This is especially weird since my sample, though broad and random – greens and Christians, professionals and hobos, poets, Buddhists, anarchists, atheists, engineers and random reprobates – takes in few Liberal voters, if any.I don’t solicit the information. It just crops up. In voices tinged with gentle surprise, as if they can’t quite believe it themselves, they confess. Well, in fact, yes – if Malcolm stood for prime minister, they would vote for him in a flash. It’s love.
It isn’t. This is love: on Saturday night Collingwood defeated Carlton. My beautiful Italian wife, a Carlton supporter, only slightly stabbed me. For once I barely needed stitches.
(Via former NSW premier Bob Carr, who takes gentle issue with Elizabeth’s deeply considered analysis. Bob also deals with Fairfax’s Peter Hartcher: “They pay people for this?")
CHEERING FOR MAL
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 05, 2016 (4:01am)
A brilliant leftist response to yesterday’s column:
You can’t hide from the fact that Malcolm was YOUR man ... The electable conservative. And article after article you advocated and cheered for him . You told us that labor was toast ... Oh how wrong you were !! ... Lol ..Now in an extraordinary attempt at revisionism, you are hoping that the readership forgets just how hopelessly wrong you were ... And that for some inexplicable reason we should hold your current and future analysis and predictions in higher regard ....
Perhaps he has me confused with someone else.
RICH AND BLASTY
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 05, 2016 (3:44am)
Back in March, Sydney Labor councillor Linda Scott provoked a lively discussion on Sky by claiming that Islamic terrorism could be ended by giving Muslims access to education and economic advancement. It turns out that Dhakacafé suicide bomber Nibras Islam and his murderous mates had every possible privilege, but still chose to explode:
Young, smart and with boyish good looks, Nibras Islam came from a wealthy family and had a penchant for Bollywood.He also enjoyed a wide following of friends at a private university here where he studied commerce after arriving from Dhaka in 2012.No one could have guessed that the Bangladeshi, in his early 20s, would be brainwashed into the blood-thirsty terrorist who helped attack the Dhaka cafe where 20 hostages were brutally killed on Saturday …Nibras is believed to have studied in an English-medium school in Dhaka and later enrolled at an expensive private university in Bangladesh before coming to study in Malaysia.Web portal India Today reported that he was a student at Monash University Malaysia.
All of the 9/11 terrorists were well-to-do, and funded by a millionaire. All of the London tube bombers were middle class. The Boston bombers were cashed up. Is there any such thing as a genuinely poor Islamic terrorist?
(Via Alison Bevege and her extensive Bangladeshi contacts.)
BULL MORE OF A LAMB
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 05, 2016 (3:11am)
Confronted by Labor’s Medicare scare campaign, Malcolm Turnbull decided not to fight back:
Malcolm Turnbull had an arsenal of negative attack advertisements and scare campaigns at his disposal but chose not to use them because the party’s federal base believed it could win without them.Furious Queensland Liberals say the federal officials relied too heavily on the Prime Minister’s personality cult and didn’t do enough to promote its brand or local candidates.The party didn’t activate scare campaigns over a potential new carbon tax, Bill Shorten’s involvement at the royal commission into union corruption, the prospect of house prices plunging under Labor’s negative gearing policy, or border protection.
Turnbull fought longer, harder and dirtier against Tony Abbott than he did against Bill Shorten. The party needs to chuck him.
SPIRIT OF 1976
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 05, 2016 (1:52am)
MUTANTS BANNED
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 05, 2016 (1:45am)
According to Julian Burnside, the Australian government has outlawed boar people.
ESTABLISHMENT PLAYTHINGS
Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 05, 2016 (1:35am)
Paul Joseph Watson rips into Generation Snowflake:
RUNDLE MAUL
Tim Blair – Monday, July 04, 2016 (9:06pm)
Crikey‘s Guy Rundle, an odd individual, considers the relationship between Labor candidate David Feeney and Feeney’s wife, Liberty Sanger:
David and Liberty – I mean, what can that be? What the hell can that be? It’s gotta be tongue, right? It’s always tongue in these cases. I bet that fat man has a tongue like a big wet flesh carpet. I bet it’s like Oscars night.
Not for the first time, Rundle’s boss was subsequently forced to intervene:
On Monday morning the editor of Crikey, Cassidy Knowlton, initially defended its publication albeit admitting she found it “completely disgusting”.“Not my words,” Knowlton said on Twitter. “Guy Rundle’s words & agenda … But in a pro-Greens partisan piece I thought ppl needed to know how he writes about Feeney.”But a few hours later Knowlton had a change of mind and apologised. She told Guardian Australia Crikey had decided “in retrospect it was a mistake to publish those lines”.“In an earlier version of this story, Guy Rundle, high on election fever, went beyond the pale,” she said. “And in the cold light of day we’re happy to concede we shouldn’t have released those lines to the world. They have been removed. Crikey apologises for any offence caused.”
Feeney is likely to win.
On The Bolt Report and radio tonight - shouting down Pauline Hanson shows they still don’t get it
Andrew Bolt July 05 2016 (3:21pm)
On The Bolt Report on Sky News Live at 7pm tonight:
===Editorial: The public has spoken: don’t tell us to shut up. But still our toxic political class lords it over Pauline HansonOn 2GB, 3AW and 4BC with Steve Price from 8pm.
My guests:
The most successful Liberal MP in Victoria says conservatism - not wishy-washy brands of Liberalism - is a winner.Podcasts of the show here. Facebook page here.
Gerard Henderson on the media courtiers who helped Malcolm Turnbull to destroy the Liberals. We name some who should say sorry.
On the panel, IPA boss John Roskam and former Speaker and Liberal Minister Bronwyn Bishop. Turnbull still doesn’t get it, to judge from today’s media conference.
On the fall and fall of Malcolm Turnbull and the chances of a new election.Thanks very much to you all for supporting us. We had record ratings for The Bolt Report yesterday, nearly four times higher than what early scoffers claimed was our audience. Steve Price and I also topped the radio ratings for our slot in Melbourne and Sydney and had a big jump in Brisbane. I am very grateful to you all. I say all this here because you won’t read about it in The Age or ABC website.
Listen live here. Talkback: 131 873. Listen to all past shows here.
Liberal MPs can’t trust Turnbull to negotiate
Andrew Bolt July 05 2016 (11:15am)
Which Liberal MP could
trust a man so desperate, so of the Left and so politically incompetent
to strike a deal with independents for his survival? I’d suggest the
Nationals step in, too, before Malcolm Turnbull trashes their brand,
too:
UPDATE
Terry McCrann - and every word true:
===Malcolm Turnbull is facing a partyroom revolt from Coalition colleagues who are demanding a say in what he can offer independent MPs in order to secure power, setting the first major test of his leadership in the wake of the shock election result.Question: if the Liberals can’t even trust Turnbull to talk to independents, how on earth can they trust him to lead them to another election?
Ministers and backbenchers have held talks on plans for a partyroom meeting as soon as next week to ensure they are consulted on the crossbench negotiations and are not presented with a “fait accompli” if Mr Turnbull needs to strike a deal.
UPDATE
Terry McCrann - and every word true:
MALCOLM Turnbull and our triple-A credit rating are both going to go. For both it’s only a question of timing.
Is there anyone on God’s Green Earth — and getting greener by the day, thanks to wonderful life-creating carbon dioxide — apart from Malcolm and Lucy Turnbull who thinks he has the slightest possible chance of survival?
The lemmings in the Liberal Party who allowed him to lead them over the electoral cliff should ask themselves this one simple question: if he’s not going to lead them to the next election, what’s the point of him remaining leader for another day, far less another month?
The man Eric Beecher hired for “quality journalism”
Andrew Bolt July 05 2016 (10:47am)
As I’ve often said, the Left is the natural home of the barbarian, and Crikey even gives some a job. Take Greens-supporting Guy Rundle, here writing about Labor candidate David Feeney and his wife, Liberty Sanger:
Gross.
Remember, the owner of Crikey keeps preaching about the need for ”quality journalism”.
===David and Liberty – I mean, what can that be? What the hell can that be? It’s gotta be tongue, right? It’s always tongue in these cases. I bet that fat man has a tongue like a big wet flesh carpet. I bet it’s like Oscars night.How on earth did Crikey believe that should be published? Why does a man capable of writing that keep holding a job there as a pundit?
Gross.
Remember, the owner of Crikey keeps preaching about the need for ”quality journalism”.
Priest defends in Islam what he attacks in Christians
Andrew Bolt July 05 2016 (10:10am)
How much longer before Father Rod Bower coverts to Islam and ends his hypocrisy?
(Thanks to reader George.)
===Social media star and Anglican Church activist Rod Bowers, who has described the national plebiscite on same-sex marriage as a “hateful” platform for abuse, has defended the Grand Mufti who has called gay people sexual perverts.Mind you, Bower has no trouble at all to be the thought police when it comes to fellow Christians:
The Gosford Anglican Church priest, famous for posting progressive slogans in support of marriage equality, asylum-seekers and other vulnerable groups on his church billboard, said it was necessary to “have deep affections” for people with whom you disagree…
The nation’s top-ranking Sunni Islam scholar Ibrahim Abu Mohammed, elected to the position of Grand Mufti in 2011, has attacked critics of his colleagues on the national imams council because they disagree with the religion’s “longstanding” position on homosexuality.
Sheik Shady Alsuleiman has called homosexuality an “evil act” that spreads “diseases” while another member of the executive said the Islamic punishment for gay acts was death.
Father Bowers said it was “not easy” to reconcile his progressive activism and his friendship with the Grand Mufti…
“We can’t be the thought police; that cannot be the sort of country that we live in,” he said.
Outspoken Archdeacon of the Central Coast Fr Bower and 150 of his supporters held a “silent protest” over the government’s treatment of asylum seekers, its “failures” to meet renewable energy targets, and Parliament’s “inability” to pass same-sex marriage legislation.Hypocrite.
They turned their backs on Mr Abbott as he arrived at the Gosford Regional Gallery.
(Thanks to reader George.)
iTurnbull has a habit of blaming everyone but himself. UPDATE: Now takes “responsibility”
Andrew Bolt July 05 2016 (9:47am)
Dennis Shanahan on Malcolm Turnbull’s chronic failure to take responsibility:
This is Turnbull blaming other people on Saturday for the failure of his elitist campaign for election:
Peta Credlin on my show last night:
Ego killed the campaign. Steven Scott & Daniel Meers:
Turnbull at his press conference today says he takes full responsibility. But then promptly blames Labor’s Mediscare.
UPDATE
On 3AW today, I listed five reasons Turnbull lost.
(Thanks to reader Peter of Bellevue Hill.)
===Malcolm Turnbull has to man up and take responsibility for the Coalition’s clear loss in the 2016 election.But this is typical of Turnbull.
So far, the Prime Minister has refused to accept even a modicum of an obvious share of the calamitous result…
It’s not good enough for Turnbull to blame everyone else — from Tony Abbott to Bill Shorten’s scare campaign on Medicare — for the Coalition’s loss of support.
He has to take personal responsibility, he has to say he’s listened to the voters and understood the message… A refusal to admit a mistake only entrenches the Liberal leader’s arrogance and failure to recognise the backlash against the Coalition.
This is Turnbull blaming other people on Saturday for the failure of his elitist campaign for election:
We have never, the mass ranks of the union movement and all of their millions of dollars, telling vulnerable Australians that Medicare was going to be privatised or sold, frightening people in their bed and even today, even as voters went to the polls, as you would have seen in the press, there were text messages being sent to thousands of people across Australia saying that Medicare was about to be privatised by the Liberal Party.This is Turnbull blaming other people for his defeat as head of the Australian Republican Movement at the 1999 referendum, after his elitist campaign for a republic was defeated:
And the message, the message, the SMS message came from Medicare. It said it came from Medicare. An extraordinary act of dishonesty. No doubt the police will investigate. But this is, but this is the scale of the challenge we faced. And regrettably more than a few people were misled. There’s no doubt about that.
Whatever else John Howard achieves history will remember him for only one thing. He was the Prime Minister who broke this nations heart.UPDATE
Peta Credlin on my show last night:
Malcolm Turnbull, you’re the man who broke the Liberal Party’s heart.UPDATE
Ego killed the campaign. Steven Scott & Daniel Meers:
Turnbull had an arsenal of negative attack advertisements and scare campaigns at his disposal but chose not to use them because the party’s federal base believed it could win without them.UPDATE
Furious Queensland Liberals say the federal officials relied too heavily on the Prime Minister’s personality cult and didn’t do enough to promote its brand or local candidates.
The party didn’t activate scare campaigns over a potential new carbon tax, Bill Shorten’s involvement at the royal commission into union corruption, the prospect of house prices plunging under Labor’s negative gearing policy, or border protection…
Turnbull preferred to stick to his futuristic vision of Australia [and] selling the Government’s national economic plan [sic]…
Queensland LNP figures reacted with horror in the first week of the campaign when they saw a national mail out of postal vote application forms with a “presidential crest” that only mentioned Mr Turnbull.
“Once we saw that ... there was no candidate name and no (party) logo on it, we went into meltdown,” a senior LNP source told The Courier-Mail. The state party later ignored directions from federal campaign headquarters and insisted the LNP logo and candidate images be included on direct mail to voters in the final weeks of the campaign....
A… LNP source said Mr Turnbull found campaigning on national security or border protection “distasteful”, but added Mr Abbott would have ruthlessly used these issues if he were still PM.
Turnbull at his press conference today says he takes full responsibility. But then promptly blames Labor’s Mediscare.
UPDATE
On 3AW today, I listed five reasons Turnbull lost.
(Thanks to reader Peter of Bellevue Hill.)
The ABC uses taxpayers money to vilify an enemy of the Left
Andrew Bolt July 05 2016 (9:31am)
The ABC resumes its
sexists, sneering attacks on Pauline Hanson - the kind that enrage so
many taxpayers and encourage them to support the target of this
arrogance.
Tony Thomas:
Hanson calls out the journalists who are lions with her and mice with hate-preaching imams:
===Tony Thomas:
The ABC has just now displayed a caricature of her as “Pauline Pantsdown”. The ABC’s only pretext for this crudity is “Simon Hunt’s Pauline Pantsdown character (right) was popular in the 1990s.”Thomas notes one of Hanson’s policies that may explain the savagery of the ABC’s attacks. You see, here is a woman who blasphemes against the ABC’s house faith:
Somehow I can’t imagine our ABC running an equivalent caricature of Labor’s Penny Wong as “Penny Pantsdown”, ditto Julia Gillard.
Expect new ABC managing director, Michelle Guthrie, to crack down hard on her myrmidons responsible for this sexist crudity against Hanson. Expect feminist Anne Summers to fly to Hanson’s defence any minute now. Expect ex-General David Morrison, Australian of the Year, to issue a new missive deploring ABC sexism – as he says, the standard you walk past is the standard you accept. Oh, and expect pigs to fly.
The ABC illustration, published apropos of nothing at all, is below.
Hanson’s main climate policy is brilliant. Here it is (I’ve re-ordered the points somewhat):UPDATE
Hold a Royal Commission (or similar) into the corruption of climate science and identify whether any individual or organisation has misled government to effect climate and energy policy.
Remove all subsidies and financial advantages offered to the renewable energy industry and make them compete on an even playing field with other energy sources.
Support reliable, low-cost power generation. This has previously been Australia’s strongest competitive advantage.
Establish an independent Australian science body replacing the UN IPCC to report on climate science. It will be the beyond politicisation and be the basis of Australian policy on insurance and response to weather events.
One Nation will oppose all taxes levied on carbon dioxide, be it a flat carbon tax or a floating emissions trading scheme…
Abolish the Renewable Energy Target (RET) and support practical cost-effective research into energy efficiency, reliability and dependability.
Cancel all agreements obliging Australia to pay for foreign Climate Action and payment to the United Nations and foreign institutions…
Remove from the education system the teaching of a one-sided view of climate science. Teaching of climate science will begin in secondary school and will be based on the scientific method of scepticism until proven.
Hanson calls out the journalists who are lions with her and mice with hate-preaching imams:
Turnbull’s media manipulation exposed
Andrew Bolt July 05 2016 (9:21am)
Just one glimpse of Malcolm Turnbull’s media style
- to bully and punish media outlets who hired people he thought too
critical. And as you read this, ask yourself what deals did other media
outlets make to get access to this megalomaniac:
That’s your prime minister.
I noted on my show last night that one of Turnbull’s media shills and most vicious Abbott critics, Nikki Savva, last night (on Sky) attempted to blame Tony Abbott and his media “surrogates” for Turnbull’s election disaster.
In fact, Abbott went out of his way to save Turnbull, and in a way Turnbull would never have done for him:
UPDATE
Caroline Marcus:
===By early June, ... a debate over the debates had opened an electrifying chasm with one strand of the media, revealing a deep animosity in the Prime Minister’s Office towards leading commentators aligned with dumped prime minister Tony Abbott…So first the threats and intimidation, and then the lies to hide this shame.
On June 1, a senior member of Turnbull’s staff approached David Speers at Parliament House in Canberra. Speers was the top political reporter on Sky News, known for his professional acuity and even-handed style. It was made clear to Speers that while Sky might want to host more debates (after a first “people’s forum” conducted on May 13), there would be none on Sky involving the Prime Minister so long as Abbott’s former chief of staff, Peta Credlin, remained on the payroll as an election commentator… While she was on Sky, Turnbull would not appear…
[Sky boss Angelos] Frangopoulos was stunned and he contacted Turnbull’s office.
Before the election campaign had commenced, back in March, Sky had met with senior Liberals to discuss debate proposals. The first of these had been held at Windsor RSL, west of Sydney, on May 13 after negotiations with both political parties..
.[On] June 2, Sky emailed the Liberal and Labor parties to again invite them to a Brisbane forum on June 8. This event would also run live on Facebook. The ALP responded within minutes, accepting the proposal.
Turnbull’s office did not respond. Not then and not later. Instead, his office tied up an agreement for a debate with News Corp and Facebook.
Turnbull, giving no hint of the fight between his office and Sky over Credlin in previous days, announced that he had refused the Sky debate as it had been issued like “a decree” and should have been raised with his office. He said he wanted an innovative debate taking advantage of social media, and that it was an exciting time to be an Australian.
On Wednesday, June 8, Shorten faced the audience on his own at Sky’s people’s forum at the Brisbane Broncos Leagues Club. Turnbull instead bobbed up on the ABC’s 7.30 program. If he had wanted to poke a stick at Sky he could not have found a better way.
That’s your prime minister.
I noted on my show last night that one of Turnbull’s media shills and most vicious Abbott critics, Nikki Savva, last night (on Sky) attempted to blame Tony Abbott and his media “surrogates” for Turnbull’s election disaster.
In fact, Abbott went out of his way to save Turnbull, and in a way Turnbull would never have done for him:
Should Abbott decide to make serious trouble for Turnbull — agitating, planting stories, destabilising — there would be no Liberal victory. Abbott himself was more than aware of this rocky terrain… He quarantined himself from criticism from Coalition campaign headquarters by negotiating his planned interviews in advance with the office of Liberal party director Tony Nutt…For Savva. channelling the Turnbull camp, to now attempt to blame Abbott for this disaster is a complete joke.
Before he appeared on TV with the conservative commentator and ardent Abbott supporter Andrew Bolt, Abbott agreed with Nutt’s CHQ that he would help calm the conservative base, much of which was still seething…
Nutt wanted Abbott to “calm the del-cons” (a clever shorthand for “delusional conservatives”, penned by columnist Miranda Divine).
Abbott agreed. He would not criticise Turnbull on air and would avoid agreeing with Bolt’s propositions if they implied an attack on the Prime Minister. Abbott had no wish to be blamed for a defeat at the ballot box.
UPDATE
Caroline Marcus:
Despite the back-patting from some sections of the media over Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s bloody overthrow of Tony Abbott, what’s crystal clear is our new leader is completely out of touch with wider Australia.
One example of this is how Turnbull refuses repeated requests from programs like my own, A Current Affair, which has been asking him to appear since the day he seized power from Abbott.
But even though the show averages a million viewers a night — viewers that represent Middle Australia — the PM couldn’t even be bothered to grace us with a response.
Yet there he is, courting the same select, upper-crust audience with clockwork appearances on the ABC, including Q&A, 7.30 Report, Kitchen Cabinet and even 4 Corners, where he was last week justifying the coup to journalist Sarah Ferguson by claiming an Abbott government would have lost the election resoundingly.
The Liberals’ Julia Gillard
Andrew Bolt July 05 2016 (9:10am)
Reader Jacob recalls what former Prime Minister John Howard said of Julia Gillard after she formed her minority government, and notes how well it could now apply to Malcolm Turnbull:
===JOHN HOWARD: ...... There is a sense of drift. The biggest problem that the current Prime Minister has is that she (he) lacks authority, and even if you are an unpopular Prime Minister - and I went through periods of unpopularity; all of us do as prime ministers - you have to retain authority, and I think this is her (his) biggest problem, because she (he) didn’t win the last election outright and - having taken the job of a popularly-elected Prime Minister - she (he) really needed to win outright to have authority.
CHRIS UHLMANN: If you lose that, can you win it back?
JOHN HOWARD: Very hard. But she (he) never really had it. If you’ve had it in the first place and you lose it, it’s easy to get back, but she (he) has never really had it, because in a sense she (he) was on trial at the last election. You’ve got to remember that there are only three Labor leaders who have taken their party to government from Opposition since the war (same for coalition, 1949 Menzies, 1996 Howard, 2013 Abbott; Fraser in 1975 was from constitutional crisis but then won election anyway) - Whitlam (Menzies), Hawke (Howard) and Rudd (Abbott) - and they knocked off Rudd (Abbott) before he had a chance to face the people, so it was an extraordinary thing to have done. And all this talk about how he was rude to his colleagues and everything, I’m sure it was right, but that was not something that was apparent to the entire Australian community.
Bob Carr mocks two of Turnbull’s media fluffers
Andrew Bolt July 05 2016 (8:40am)
Former NSW Labor
Premier Bob Carr takes aim at two Sydney Morning Herald pundits who have
been proved to be hopelessly, dangerously in love with Malcolm Turnbull
and out of touch with the Australian public:
UPDATE
So many journalists believed Turnbull was a man who’d appeal the voters, and the same ones dismissed how effective Tony Abbott was in talking to exactly the voters the Liberals needed to impress to survive.
Hear now the truth from Labor:
===I will on tonight’s The Bolt Report discuss the journalists of the Left who cheered Malcolm Turnbull into the leadership of the Liberal party which he has now devastated, exactly as predicted.
UPDATE
So many journalists believed Turnbull was a man who’d appeal the voters, and the same ones dismissed how effective Tony Abbott was in talking to exactly the voters the Liberals needed to impress to survive.
Hear now the truth from Labor:
Seven Liberal MPs lost their seats and former NSW ALP state secretary, senator Sam Dastyari, said the Coalition had “paid the price” for underestimating how “loved and incredibly popular” Mr Abbott was in west and southwest Sydney.(Thanks to readers John and David.)
“His conservative social values, his personality traits: those same characteristics that were ridiculed and mocked by elements of the Sydney establishment elite were exactly the qualities that endeared him to many people in west and southwest Sydney,” Senator Dastyari said.
“There was this misconception in the establishment bubble that because a certain set found his views unpalatable, they underestimated how much he appealed to differing communities and they paid the price for that.” ‘
Peta cuts loose
Andrew Bolt July 05 2016 (7:04am)
Peta Credlin was on
fire on my show tonight. A slap for Nikki Savva, a reminder to Arthur
Sinodinos that he isn’t much of a campaign guru, and a shout-out to the
bedwetters. Watch it here.
A precis from Sarah Martin:
My editorial on the latest The Bolt Report - on Malcolm Turnbull’s election disaster, and the man who could help save a divided and devastated party:
===A precis from Sarah Martin:
Peta Credlin says Malcolm Turnbull is the man “who broke the Liberal Party’s heart” as she criticises the Prime Minister for running a “lacklustre” campaign that could see them lose government.UPDATE
After raising the spectre of Mr Turnbull’s failed leadership of the Republican campaign, the chief of staff to former Prime Minister Tony Abbott also hit out at the “hapless group of bedwetters” advising Mr Turnbull, and said other senior ministers should stand “condemned” by the election result…
But she poured cold water on suggestions [Tony Abbott] could return to the leadership, saying it would be “pretty tough”, given his previous experience as leader.
“He worked so hard for six years to get them in to a position of a landslide victory and seats and an agenda, and the only one really who had a plan for debt and deficit repair.
“Why would he do it? Because that hapless group of bedwetters are just as likely to see another couple of polls and say thanks Tony, but no thanks..
“That wonderful victory that they had in September 2013, where they had the faith and trust of the Australian people behind them, has been squandered in a term of infighting.
“We swore it would never happen to us, and it took us two years before we pulled ourselves apart."…
She also hit back at suggestions she had been acting as a “proxy” for Mr Abbott that could have destabilised the campaign. “If they think I have tried to settle scores, well they aint seen anything yet.”
My editorial on the latest The Bolt Report - on Malcolm Turnbull’s election disaster, and the man who could help save a divided and devastated party:
Only voters, not MPs, can redefine marriage
Piers Akerman – Saturday, July 04, 2015 (11:11pm)
THREE days ago, a reporter put to Prime Minister Tony Abbott that “the biggest talking point in Australia at the moment, arguably, is that of gay marriage”.
Continue reading 'Only voters, not MPs, can redefine marriage'On The Bolt Report today, July 5
Andrew Bolt July 05 2015 (7:01am)
On Channel 10 at 10am and 3pm.
My guests: Social Services Minister Scott Morrison; former NSW Labor Treasurer Michael Costa; Georgina Downer, former diplomat and member of the Victorian Liberals’ admin committee; and Gerard Henderson, Australian columnist and head of the Sydney Institute.
So much to talk about, including Tony Abbott’s battle with same-sex marriage, Bill Shorten’s moment of truth, the ABC’s stitch-up, the Greek disaster and one of the Islamic State’s scariest attacks yet;
The videos of the shows appear here.
From my interview with Social Service Minister Scott Morrison:
How Australians must learn the lesson from the Greek crisis:
Continue reading 'On The Bolt Report today, July 5'
===My guests: Social Services Minister Scott Morrison; former NSW Labor Treasurer Michael Costa; Georgina Downer, former diplomat and member of the Victorian Liberals’ admin committee; and Gerard Henderson, Australian columnist and head of the Sydney Institute.
So much to talk about, including Tony Abbott’s battle with same-sex marriage, Bill Shorten’s moment of truth, the ABC’s stitch-up, the Greek disaster and one of the Islamic State’s scariest attacks yet;
The videos of the shows appear here.
From my interview with Social Service Minister Scott Morrison:
How Australians must learn the lesson from the Greek crisis:
ANDREW BOLT: Now, Greece is an old country in this sense - something like one in five Greeks are aged 65 or over. And that makes it the sixth oldest country in the world. Pensions, etc, etc. How much does this explain Greece’s problems?Backing a plebiscite on same sex marriage:
SCOTT MORRISON: Well, it’s not a new problem. They’ve known about this since the early ‘80s and in the early ‘80s, they embarked on the biggest expansion on their social well fair system of pretty much any country in Europe at the time. And the OECD was warning way back then that the advancing age of the Greek community, the increase in their expenditures in this area, would come home to roost at some time. And that day has come today…
ANDREW BOLT: Now, how much of what Greece is facing is what we’re facing too?
SCOTT MORRISON: Well, I think the issue is the warning. I mean it’s a distant warning, but they had that warning back in the ‘80s and chose to do nothing about it, and in fact decided to go the other way, and they’re reaping what they sowed at that time. Now, for us, we’ve introduced some, as you know, pension changes in this budget. We are seeking to raise the pension age to 70 in 2035, not next week, in 2035, commencing for the scale-up from 2025. Those sorts of reforms are important, about ensuring the pension is there for the future. Now, we’re seeing pensioners… pictures of pensioners today in Greece crying, sitting on… sitting on the streets, just in absolute despair. Well, I don’t want to see that to happen to future pensioners in Australia. We need to make sure the pension is sustainable for the future, a targeted welfare-based scheme… ANDREW BOLT: Is it too much to say, “Look at Greece. Don’t let Australia become like that”?
SCOTT MORRISON: Well, I think that is a clear warning and this could happen into the future over the course of a generation, as it happened in Greece. I mean, they didn’t get to over 100% of GDP… debt to GDP overnight. It happened over time with policies that over time became unsustainable. That’s why it’s important to get your house in order while you can because, as we’re seeing in Greece, changing things now, it’s all too late and people suffer terribly as a result.
SCOTT MORRISON: I mean the more general debate now I think has shifted to issues of process and issues of plebiscites and whether Australians more broadly should have their say on these issues.On a referendum on constitutional recognition of Aborigines:
ANDREW BOLT: What’s your view?
SCOTT MORRISON: I have sympathy with those views.
ANDREW BOLT: You have sympathy with the plebiscites view? Put it to
the people, let them decide?
SCOTT MORRISON: I have sympathy with those views, but look, they’re matters that should be discussed more, I think, over time. I mean I’ve noticed particularly…
ANDREW BOLT: Let’s discuss them now. I mean, why would you be in favour of a plebiscite?
SCOTT MORRISON: Well, I think it is a substantial change. I think those who are proposing the change I think underestimate the sort of change this entails, and if you talk to the many ethnic communities across Australia, the linkage between their strong beliefs - and it doesn’t matter whether they’re Christian beliefs or Hindu beliefs or Muslim beliefs - and the connection between that and their culture is very… is very deeply felt, and they’re a voice that I don’t think we’ve heard a lot from on this debate and what the change means for them. We are a multicultural country and that means respecting culture in this question as much in any other.
Well, look, I sort of take the - not surprisingly - the middle road on this. I would like to see this be successful, but for it to be successful… I have never been in favour of the idea of two countries. We are not a country that has been based on a treaty such as in New Zealand, and other places where that has occurred, where there are indigenous populations and settlement communities. So, I think we are charting new ground here....The full transcript:
ANDREW BOLT: Should just say you’re against dividing Australians by race, I think.
SCOTT MORRISON: Well, I am against dividing Australians by race.
Continue reading 'On The Bolt Report today, July 5'Why only Wilson? Why aren’t the other commissioners mentioned?
Andrew Bolt July 05 2015 (5:53am)
Some very selective leaking against the one Human Rights Commissioner who fights for freedom, not further restrictions:
True, I believe the Human Rights Commissioners are overpaid, with president Gillian Triggs on more than $400,000 a year. But why isn’t her salary mentioned in this article? Why only Wilson’s?
===Tony Abbott’s hand-picked human rights adviser ran up more than $77,000 in taxpayer-funded expenses in his first year on the job, spending almost $15,000 on taxis…I note that it’s held against Wilson that he claims for routine office expenses and equipment, and spends a lot of time flying to meet people who want his help - which actually includes flying to and from Aboriginal communities:
The Australian Human Rights Commission declined to supply details of other commissioners’ expenses to see if they were comparable to Mr Wilson’s.
Mr Wilson also claimed for an iPhone, an iPad, a laptop and a $1400 standing desk. The so-called “Freedom Commissioner” has roamed far and wide in his job. He has spent about $11,000 on business class airfares abroad – although about $2000 of this was reimbursed by groups that hosted him – and $26,000 on domestic fares, including $10,800 for his partner…Also not acknowledged: unlike other commissioners, Wilson lives in Melbourne, not Sydney, and was not permitted to work from Melbourne, forcing him to commute.
“You’d rather I sit in my office all day?” was Mr Wilson’s response when contacted.
True, I believe the Human Rights Commissioners are overpaid, with president Gillian Triggs on more than $400,000 a year. But why isn’t her salary mentioned in this article? Why only Wilson’s?
No, same-sex marrage isn’t the biggest issue by a long shot
Andrew Bolt July 05 2015 (5:40am)
Both Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Employment Minister Eric Abetz have accused the media of pushing the same-sex marriage bandwagon. Piers Akerman has evidence:
===THREE days ago, a reporter put to Prime Minister Tony Abbott that “the biggest talking point in Australia at the moment, arguably, is that of gay marriage”.(Thanks to reader Peter of Bellevue Hill.)
It was the sort of proposition that would have challenged former NSW Labor Premier Neville Wran to respond with his famous line “are you from the ABC?"…
According to the latest of NAB’s authoritative surveys Biggest Issues Facing Australians Today, cost of living, access to health care, economy, employment/jobs, terrorism/security, housing affordability, ageing population, environment/climate change, law and order, asylum seekers, education, inequality/poverty, income, population growth/immigration, government red tape/regulation, taxation and infrastructure/transport all ranked well ahead of vague “other” concerns… [Same-sex marriage] is but one of the Green-Left issues which the ABC pushes but there will be no inquiry into the minority culture which infects the majority broadcast network and its groupthink propagandists.
Hitler at least hid many such atrocities. These people boast of them
Andrew Bolt July 05 2015 (5:34am)
It is now tit-for-tat depravity in a region with a disturbing culture of violence.
The latest pornographic savagery of the Islamic State:
(Thanks to readers Low Profile and WaG311.)
===The latest pornographic savagery of the Islamic State:
The latest reprisal from the Syrian rival jihadi group, Jaysh al-Islam:ISIS has released a shocking video of child executioners being forced to brutally shoot dead 25 regime soldiers on the stage of the Roman amphitheatre in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra. The condemned soldiers were marched into the amphitheatre by adult ISIS soldiers and forced to line up on their knees. Moments later a group of child executioners, all dressed in desert camouflage and bandanas, are marched into the Unesco-listed ruins. A giant ISIS flag hangs in the background while a blood-thirsty crowd of men and boys awaits the mass slaughter.
TERROR group ISIS have been given a taste of their own brutal medicine after a rival jihadist group in Syria released a brutal video showing the execution of 18 ISIS members.There are no goodies in this war.
The video, which runs for 19 minutes, shows members of Syrian rebel group Jaysh al-Islam (Army of Islam) dressed in orange and standing menacingly over captured ISIS fighters, chained together with ankle and hand shackles, and dressed in black.
The colours are a sick role reversal on the usual ISIS murder videos, which typically showcase ISIS fighters wearing black while their victims are dressed in orange…
The video includes starkly sectarian language, accusing ISIS of betraying Sunni Muslims and allying with Shiite Muslims and “Nusayris,” a derogatory terms for the Alawite sect to which Assad belongs.
(Thanks to readers Low Profile and WaG311.)
We’re getting on fine, Marty
Andrew Bolt July 05 2015 (5:29am)
Both governments now deny the ravings of Marty Natalegawa, for too long treated too seriously by many journalists:
===The Indonesian government has denied suggestions by former foreign minister Marty Natalegawa that Australia’s relationship with Indonesia is at its lowest point.Greg Sheridan isn’t standing for this nonsense:
During an interview on Sky on Monday, Dr Natalegawa said he believed there was no private communications between the two governments, which would represent an unprecedented collapse in relations. However, Foreign Ministry spokesman Arrmanatha Nasir said communication between the two countries occurred at all levels including between ministers.
The allegation by former Indonesian foreign minister Marty Natalegawa that there is no high-level communication between the Abbott government and that of Indonesian President Joko Widodo is absurd.(Thanks to reader Peter of Bellevue Hill.)
As Foreign Minister Julie Bishop points out, she is in frequent contact with her Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi.
Similarly, Natalegawa’s comments — that Australia-Indonesia relations are at a critical juncture — seem to be basically junk comments. Not only do the foreign ministers talk often but there is unprecedented intelligence co-operation. Counter-terrorism and intelligence co-operation are as good as they have generally been…
But Natalegawa himself did some very strange things towards the end of his term. One was leaking the confidential record of his conversation with Bishop at the UN in September 2013. It was gratuitous, bad-mannered and counter-productive…
No one doubts he is highly intelligent, so he must know his constantly repeated refrain about a “regional solution” to the boatpeople issue is fatuous. Any solution involving Australia resettling large numbers of people who came to Indonesia by boat would guarantee a huge influx of people into Indonesia. The regional solution is moonshine; every serious player knows it… (S)enior [Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono] officials told me that while they could not say so publicly, they were delighted with Tony Abbott’s policy. It reduced the numbers going to Indonesia and, because boats weren’t leaving for Australia, Jakarta didn’t have to deal with the issue publicly all the time.
Perrottet: ABC breaches its own code of practice and its contract with Australia
Andrew Bolt July 05 2015 (5:17am)
Dominic Perrottet, NSW Minister for Finances, on the unlawful bias of the ABC:
===According to its own code, the ABC is meant to ensure the gathering and presentation of news is impartial, reflects a diversity of views and does not [favour] one perspective over another. That’s their code, not mine.Reader Peter of Bellevue Hill suggests Insiders today confirms Perrottet’s point:
In practice, the ABC is simply a mouthpiece for left-of-centre views, and it is becoming more disconnected from the values of mainstream Australia. My concern with the ABC is that it continually attacks governments, of all political persuasions, but only from the Left.
All too often, you can only ever expect one point of view from the ABC on major issues like climate change and border protection. When was the last time you heard the ABC run lines criticising the government for being too soft on border control or not reforming our workplace relations laws? ...
From news to current affairs, on radio, TV and online, the ABC has zero tolerance for ideological diversity. This is not so much a party political bias as it is a cultural bias towards the Left. The result is that the ABC distorts the national conversation around important issues by amplifying some voices and virtually ignoring the rest… There’s a reason so many in my party are angry about the ABC. It is not only in breach of its code of practice, it is in breach of its social contract with mainstream Australia. The problem is not with individual Q&A;episodes or issues of free speech. The problem is with the ABC itself.
AB, not sure Sunday’s Insiders’ couch of David Marr, Mal Farr, Tory Shepherd and host Barrie Cassidy is a celebration of the ‘diversity of perspectives’ that the ABC is required by law to present. But it does represent a section of the diverse perspectives at News Corp: two of its political editors are on the couch, neither of whom are conservative.
“Terrorism”? The Greek Left’s monstrous sense of entitlement
Andrew Bolt July 05 2015 (5:12am)
You’d never think Europe was actually offering Greece more money it won’t repay:
===Greece’s finance minister accused creditors of trying to “terrorise” Greeks into accepting austerity, warning Europe stood to lose as much as Athens if the country is forced from the euro after a referendum on Sunday on bailout terms…
“What they’re doing with Greece has a name: terrorism,” he told El Mundo. “Why have they forced us to close the banks? To frighten people.”
Keep him out
Andrew Bolt July 05 2015 (5:07am)
The refugee lobby is missing the main point:
But to the main point: shouldn’t Australians be assured that this man will never be allowed into this country under any circumstances if the claims aren’t proved false?
===An asylum seeker accused of sexually assaulting four girls at the Nauru processing centre has been moved into isolation with his eight-year-old daughter, sparking concern for the child’s welfare and fresh criticism of the camp’s management.The complaint:
It is understood the middle-aged man was separated from the main population after the allegation was made in February. He was subsequently charged with sexual assault, and bailed by a Nauruan court on condition he remained in isolation.
“The situation this young girl was placed in is a blatant disregard by all service providers in the system to the psychological impact of exposure to the alleged perpetrator, the trauma of sexual abuse and their duty of care for her,” the anonymous submission says.That ignores the fact that the man has not yet been convicted, and separating the family has its own consequences.
But to the main point: shouldn’t Australians be assured that this man will never be allowed into this country under any circumstances if the claims aren’t proved false?
Which path are you taking?
Posted by Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing on Saturday, 4 July 2015
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HOLY WARMING
Tim Blair – Saturday, July 05, 2014 (1:16pm)
Churchy types plead for science:
The Anglican Church has told the Abbott government to change its approach to climate change, urging it to respect and base its policy on scientific evidence.
You go first, Anglicans.
THREATENED SPECIES
Tim Blair – Saturday, July 05, 2014 (1:06pm)
Somehow, the environment is going to have to get by with less government funding:
The federal Department of the Environment will make 250 of its leading specialists reapply for their jobs and make 30 of them redundant in the latest round of cost-cutting measures …Beth Vincent-Pietsch, deputy secretary of the Community and Public Sector Union, said morale within the department, which unveiled Gregory Andrews as the new threatened species commissioner on Wednesday, was “terribly low.”“[Staff] are anxious and depressed that the crucial work that they do is not being valued by this government,” she said.
A certain gravy train might be losing some momentum. In other environmental news, James Delingpole rocks the Glastonbury festival in a fine t-shirt. Suggested costume for Glastonbury 2015: Hector the coal mascot.
(Via the IPA)
MILESTONE MISSED
Tim Blair – Saturday, July 05, 2014 (12:38pm)
A glowing Fairfax review for a Melbourne ABC presenter:
It’s been a year of milestones for Red Symons.
It sure has – including this, which oddly now escapes Fairfax’s memory. As the review notes: “With the ABC as an employer, he can afford to be relaxed.”
With friends like that, who here needs Prabowo?
Andrew Bolt July 05 2014 (2:19pm)
Hmm. It is suddenly clear to me which of the two candidates in this week’s election I should support:
===About 1,000 people gathered at Grand Mosque in Yogyakarta on Tuesday at the invitation of a group of Islamic organizations that intended to declare presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto as the “war commander of Muslims”...(Thanks to reader Juliet.)
Gerakan Pemuda Kabah (GPK) ... Yogyakarta branch supervisory body chairman Muhammad Fuad said Muslim mass organizations in Yogyakarta ... regarded the retired lieutenant general, who was dismissed from military service for his involvement in the kidnapping of pro-democracy activists, as the only hope to prevent Indonesia becoming a secular country.
“This means we want him to protect Islam from the dangers of communists, Shiites and Ahmadis,” Fuad said.
Fuad expressed the hope that if elected, Prabowo would issue pro-Islam regulations…
The invitation to meet with Prabowo was signed by several groups, including Indonesian Mujahidin Council (MMI), Hisbullah, the GPK, and the former commander of the now defunct Laskar Jihad paramilitary group, Ja’far Umar Thalib.
Ja’far was involved in bloody conflict between Muslims and Christians in Maluku.
In a high profile sermon at the same mosque last month, he called on Muslims to wage jihad on infidels and pluralism, because pluralism tolerated the views of all religions… However, during Monday’s gathering, the groups were unable to confer the title of “war commander” on Prabowo. His close aides played down the title and put its meaning down to Prabowo being the former son-in-law of former president Soeharto.
Mark Serreze - more ice, less ice, just blame global warming
Andrew Bolt July 05 2014 (2:01pm)
I thought we wouldn’t hear from alarmist Mark Serreze again after this spectacularly dud prediction in 2007:
===Scientists in the US have presented one of the most dramatic forecasts yet for the disappearance of Arctic sea ice.But, no. Here he bobs up again to explain that global warming is actually causing something else he didn’t predict - record sea ice around Antarctica:
Their latest modelling studies indicate northern polar waters could be ice-free in summers within just 5-6 years.
Professor Wieslaw Maslowski told an American Geophysical Union meeting that previous projections had underestimated the processes now driving ice loss. ...
“Our projection of 2013 for the removal of ice in summer is not accounting for the last two minima, in 2005 and 2007,” the researcher from the Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California, explained to the BBC.
“So given that fact, you can argue that may be our projection of 2013 is already too conservative.” ... Dr Mark Serreze ... added: “I think Wieslaw is probably a little aggressive in his projections, simply because the luck of the draw means natural variability can kick in to give you a few years in which the ice loss is a little less than you’ve had in previous years. But Wieslaw is a smart guy and it would not surprise me if his projections came out.”
Earlier this year, global warming was blamed for the ‘irreversible retreat’ of west Antarctic glaciers.(Thanks to reader Spencer.)
But now scientists claim that warming of the planet is in fact behind a paradoxical growth in South Pole sea ice.
The comments come as Antarctica’s sea ice set a record this week, reaching 815,448 square miles (1,312,000 square km) of ice above its normal range… ‘The primary reason for this is the nature of the circulation of the Southern Ocean — water heated in high southern latitudes is carried equatorward, to be replaced by colder waters upwelling from below, which inhibits ice loss,’ Mark Serreze, director of the National Snow and Ice Data Centre, told Harold Ambler at Talking About the Weather.
If the sceptics made no sense, the BBC wouldn’t bother banning them
Andrew Bolt July 05 2014 (1:55pm)
The BBC’s gatekeepers have no confidence in the warmists arguments, so act to suppress the sceptics:
===The BBC’s Editorial Compliance unit has blasted its flagship Today programme over its failure to provide balance on a debate on climate change.(Thanks to reader Bob.)
The show’s editorial team was found to have given minority views and opinions ‘equal footing’ to those of the scientific consensus.
The programme, broadcast in February during the major flooding crisis featured climate change scientist Sir Brian Hoskins from Imperial College London who was debating the issue with a founder of the Global Warming Policy Foundation, which is sceptical as to its impact....
According to Fraser Steel, head of the unit: ‘Minority opinions and sceptical views should not be treated as if it were on an equal footing with the scientific consensus… ‘I do not believe it was made sufficiently clear that Lord Lawson’s views on climate change are not supported by the majority of climate scientists, and should not be regarded as carrying equal weight to those of experts such as Sir Brian Hopkins.’
The Bolt Report tomorrow
Andrew Bolt July 05 2014 (10:27am)
On Sunday on Channel 10 at 10am and 4pm…
How badly have we bungled immigration?
And has Malcolm Turnbull spat the dummy?
Plus: the fall of Fairfax, a hypocrisy alert on Jacqui Lambie and more.
On the show: Michael Kroger, Bruce Hawker, Dr Bob Birrell and Ben Hills. .
The videos of the shows appear here.
===How badly have we bungled immigration?
And has Malcolm Turnbull spat the dummy?
Plus: the fall of Fairfax, a hypocrisy alert on Jacqui Lambie and more.
On the show: Michael Kroger, Bruce Hawker, Dr Bob Birrell and Ben Hills. .
The videos of the shows appear here.
Herald says Tamil boat people are fleeing torture. A wife of one on board says, er, actually…
Andrew Bolt July 05 2014 (10:04am)
Sydney Morning Herald reporters are livid that Tony Abbott is turning back two boats of Sri Lankans:
Then after all that rage and hyping of horror, the Sydney Morning Herald finally quotes a relative of one of the Tamils on board to reveal their real motive for sailing. And, good heavens, it has nothing to do with tales of torture:
UPDATE
More context today:
UPDATE
India doesn’t think boat people who leave its care deserve to come back - and those who do have been warned Australia could send them to Sri Lanka:
===Wow.
Last night I saw upon the sea,All week, Scott Morrison had been wishing away the little boat from India. The Immigration Minister steadfastly refused to acknowledge its existence or that of its human cargo, 153 Tamil asylum seekers; or that of another boat carrying 50 Tamils, which had come from Sri Lanka. By week’s end, it seemed Morrison’s wish had come true.
A little boat that wasn’t there,
It wasn’t there again today,
Oh, how I wish it would go away*
In a high-stakes, high seas operation – which Morrison never confirmed, preferring to call it speculation – Australia set out to deliver these boat people back into the hands of Sri Lanka, the regime they had fled, a country the United Nations suspects of systematic abductions, torture, rape, extrajudicial killings and the “disappearing” of its citizens…
“Australia’s moral, ethical and legal compass has been lost at sea,” said Trevor Grant, from Australia’s Tamil Refugee Council…
The Abbott government has singled out Sri Lankans for special treatment, or mistreatment, if the conclusions of successive international reports on the country’s human rights abuses are accepted. Australia subjects only Sri Lankans to “enhanced”, or expedited, screening.... In the foreword to a 2014 report that documents the testimony of 40 Tamils who fled to Britain, South Africa’s Archbishop Desmond Tutu writes: “It shows how anyone remotely connected with the losing side in the civil war is being hunted down, tortured and raped, five years after the guns fell silent....”
Then after all that rage and hyping of horror, the Sydney Morning Herald finally quotes a relative of one of the Tamils on board to reveal their real motive for sailing. And, good heavens, it has nothing to do with tales of torture:
“I thought maybe [the final destination of those on board] was to Italy, or France, or Tunisia,” said Ragajini, the 32-year-old wife of one of the men on the fishing trawler. “I did not know where he was going and he did not know, either.”The paper’s agenda is exposed - and exploded.
Ragajini, who has their two children with her, sobbed as she spoke from the Aliyar camp for Tamil refugees in the Coimbatore district in the far west of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Her husband had crippling debts and had needed to escape to a country where he could earn money, she said.
UPDATE
More context today:
A TAMIL Sri Lankan man granted asylum in Australia more than three years ago has been arrested in Malaysia along with three others on suspicion of trying to revive the rebel Tamil Tiger movement and is expected to be deported to Sri Lanka…Puvaneswaran’s family say he’s innocent.
The Weekend Australian has learned Mr Puvaneswaran was arrested early on Thursday by plain clothed members of the Malaysian Police Counter Terrorism Unit, who have accused him of being a former explosives expert for the now-vanquished Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eeelam (LTTE).
Malaysian police chief Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said the arrests were made simultaneously at several locations around Kuala Lumpur and Maharashtra and that all four detainees were suspected of involvement in past terror attacks and plans to make Malaysia their base of operations.
“The first suspect is a card holder of High Commission of the United Nations for Refugees. He is said to be an expert in explosives. The second suspect was alleged to have been involved in the attempted murder of former president Chandirka Kumartunga,” Mr. Bakar said. A third suspect is accused of having helped plan attacks on Sri Lankan consulates in India and the fourth of gathering intelligence for the group. Counterfeit passports and other documents had been confiscated, he added.
UPDATE
India doesn’t think boat people who leave its care deserve to come back - and those who do have been warned Australia could send them to Sri Lanka:
Mr B. Anand, the Tamil Nadu principal secretary and commissioner for rehabilitation and welfare of non-resident Tamils, ... said India was not able to accept any Tamil refugees who left India illegally. ‘’The war in Sri Lanka ended in 2009, so it is difficult to accept that these people can still claim refugee status,’’ Mr Anand said. ‘’And if they were registered here as refugees, once they leave the country illegally, we cannot take them back here.’’
Mr Anand’s office showed Fairfax Media a pamphlet in Tamil published by the Australian government that has been distributed throughout the Tamil refugee community and clearly states that people who try to enter Australia without a visa will be returned to their homeland.
‘’Effective from July 19, 2013, illegal immigrants who come by boats to any province of Australia will be sent to Papua New Guinea,’’ the pamphlet says. ‘’Upon confirmation that they are genuine cases for refugee status, they will be allowed emigration at Papua New Guinea. “In other cases, people concerned will either be sent back to their homeland or a detention camp.’’
(Thanks to readers Matthew, GoldCoastSeer and Gab.)
I fear Senator Lambie may be delusional
Andrew Bolt July 05 2014 (9:55am)
She really has an estimate of her abilities that is scarily out of whack:
===A SENATOR who holds the key to passing the Federal Government’s agenda has declared she wants to be prime minister.
Tasmanian Palmer United Party Senator Jacqui Lambie, who secured only 1501 first-preference votes at the election and has called Prime Minister Tony Abbott a “psychopath” who needs a “bucket of cement” to “toughen up”, yesterday said she “absolutely” aspired to take on his job.
Senator Lambie, who ... only joined PUP because she was running out of money, has quickly emerged as the most outspoken of the eight new crossbenchers who hold the balance of power…
Before she joined up with Mr Palmer, Senator Lambie tried and failed to win Liberal preselection for the Tasmanian federal seat of Braddon… In the Liberal preselection ballot in 2012, Senator Lambie did not gain a single vote… PUP’s Queensland parliamentary leader, Alex Douglas ... [has described Senator Lambie] as a “bogan”.
How a warmist “expert” presents the normal as a sign of dangerous warming
Andrew Bolt July 05 2014 (9:35am)
How little does it take to convince even the most credentialed alarmist that the climate is changing before their horrified eyes?
Meet Professor Oppenheimer:
So this Oppenheimer is flying over the Arctic, his plane emitting the kind of gasses he deplores, when he glances out of his window and OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!:
(Thanks to reader Old Fellah.)
===Meet Professor Oppenheimer:
Michael Oppenheimer is the Albert G. Milbank Professor of Geosciences and International Affairs in the Woodrow Wilson School and the Department of Geosciences at Princeton University. He is the Director of the Program in Science, Technology and Environmental Policy (STEP) at the Woodrow Wilson School and Faculty Associate of the Atmospheric and Ocean Sciences Program, Princeton Environmental Institute, and the Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies.Impressive!
So this Oppenheimer is flying over the Arctic, his plane emitting the kind of gasses he deplores, when he glances out of his window and OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!:
Steve Goddard points out the obvious:
And some data:
This is not a simple gotcha. It really does signify something important. How can a man so credentialed have so eagerly presented the normal as alarming?
(Thanks to reader Old Fellah.)
Unions train delegates in using training money
Andrew Bolt July 05 2014 (9:30am)
Some unions show an astonishing sense of entitlement to members’ money and grants:
===THE Transport Workers Union continued to use large sums of “training” money from trucking companies as it saw fit for more than three years after pledging a swift clean-up of slush fund irregularities.(Thanks to reader Peter of Bellevue Hill.)
The TWU’s leadership promised to implement recommendations of a Deloitte report in February 2008 that found millions of dollars of employer contributions intended for a “training fund” were not kept separate from union accounts, properly managed or audited. But the TWU’s NSW secretary, Wayne Forno, confirmed to the royal commission into corruption yesterday that ...the TWU’s leadership kept using $1.4 million of “training” money sitting in union accounts in 2007 to pay for annual union delegate conferences at a Sydney racecourse until the funds dwindled to $45,000 in 2011. He claimed TWU delegates attending annual conferences received some training, but he was vague about its nature.
How much longer can Clive Palmer last?
Andrew Bolt July 05 2014 (9:18am)
Hedley Thomas:
UPDATE
Palmer might be about to out-bullied:
===The power he now wields on the national stage makes him far more menacing, even dangerous, there than Hanson, Katter and even Bjelke-Petersen during his reign as premier…Palmer denies any wrong doing at all.
But do not bet on this lasting. It could be over in months… If Palmer is to be blasted from politics, public life and even business, it will be because the Beijing-based leaders of the People’s Republic of China instruct their Australian lawyers to use the evidence to not just take him on but to take him out.
If it happens it will likely stem from the withdrawals, last August and September, of $12.167 million of Chinese funds. This is a relatively minuscule sum when seen in the context of China’s disastrous almost $10 billion development of Palmer’s iron ore tenements in Western Australia’s Pilbara region. These withdrawals potentially have given the Chinese an opportunity to rid themselves, the political arena and the Australia-China relationship of someone they have come to see as a sociopathic bully and menace.
On the analysis of senior criminal lawyers consulted by The Australian, the predicament for Palmer appears serious…
For now, it is still a commercial dispute. It gives the Chinese great leverage in their separate and ongoing dispute with Palmer over the payment of royalties. But it is unlikely to rest there or to be quietly resolved. The prima facie evidence in the documents points to possible serious offences — stealing and misappropriation — by someone in Palmer’s company. The Chinese give every impression of wanting these matters completely and promptly exposed to scrutiny by the public, media and the relevant authorities.
UPDATE
Palmer might be about to out-bullied:
In a boardroom overlooking Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour, Clive Palmer was in a frenetic rage. “You are an incompetent c---, a f---ing idiot,” the businessman yelled at one of the 10 investment bankers and lawyers seated around the table.(Thanks to reader Peter of Bellevue Hill.)
The tirade of expletives would continue for nearly two minutes, as the veins in Palmer’s neck bulged and he thumped the table....
It was July 2007 and Palmer was at the offices of investment bank UBS to begin the $5 billion float of his mining company, Resourcehouse ... (but) it was not questions over the company’s aggressive valuation or even its lack of an operating track record which had Palmer in a rage that day.
It was his title.
The businessman, who failed to complete his undergraduate degree, insisted on being referred to as Professor Clive Palmer in the prospectus – and was indignant that someone had dared to question him.
This is a consistent theme from those who have worked with the 60-year-old over the years…
His three PUP Senators ... insist they won’t be Palmer’s puppets… But they all should remember one thing about Palmer. “He really hates being questioned,” said the source who asked not to be named…
If Palmer’s business career is any guide, they will “wake up” shortly and there will be a major falling out accompanied by furious name calling and threats…
[Citic and Palmer] are fighting in court over ... allegations that Palmer used $12 million of Citic’s money to fund his election campaign – an allegation repeatedly denied by Palmer.... But it could have devastating consequences, as some analysts believe Citic will eventually tire of the fight and walk away from the project entirely…
Tim Murray, the managing partner at J Capital Research… believes the mine will never be profitable, even if all its debts are written off, leaving Citic with no choice but to shut it down. If that happens, Palmer’s $200 million in royalties are gone, along with his claim to being a billionaire – and most likely his ability to fund future election campaigns. The unofficial line from Citic in Hong Kong is that Palmer has picked the wrong fight this time. “He’s taken on the Chinese government,” was the view from within Citic’s headquarters.
A Senate of spenders
Andrew Bolt July 05 2014 (8:55am)
The problem with the Senate is that those with the balance of power are most powerful when they say no - which usually means no to the spending cuts we need:
===SENATORS are poised to veto more than $20 billion in budget savings, in a show of strength from micro-parties that have seized the balance of power in the upper house.
The crossbench forces will join up to block the government’s university reforms in one of the biggest blows to Tony Abbott’s agenda, amid fears of soaring fees for students. Attacking the government for its “clumsy” budget proposals, the independents and micro-parties will also smash the government’s plans to put new fees on Medicare services and scale back family tax benefits.
Exposing Christine Milne’s trashing of Sri Lanka
Andrew Bolt July 05 2014 (7:51am)
Greens leader Christine Milne is shocked that the Abbott Government is sending back boat people to Sri Lanka, a country she portrays as a hell-hole:
An insane anology, grossly offensive both to Sri Lanka and to the Jews and gypsies particularly who were the victims of Nazi genocide:
===“They have a shocking reputation for human rights,” she told a press conference this morning.Christine Milne plans a holiday in December 2011:
“It is now up to Prime Minister Abbott. Prime Minister tell Australians - are you going to send 153 people back to the people who have persecuted them?
“Is that what this nation has become under your leadership? Because I think the overwhelming majority of Australians will be horrified by this. “Not only is it shocking and cruel for the people who have been persecuted and are being treated like this, but it is absolutely in breach of our obligations under the refugee convention.”
For now, there is a holiday in Sri Lanka and a rare chance to relax, possibly with her head in a history book, for the few short months that school is out.Canada, 2010 - data shows many Tamil “refugees” actually think Sri Lanka is safe to visit:
A secret government survey reveals the majority of successful Tamil refugees travel back to Sri Lanka, raising questions about the legitimacy of their refugee status…The most famous Tamil last year said conditions for Tamils in Sri Lanka were vastly better:
“I think it’s been fairly common knowledge, that after asylum seekers get status they go back,” said James Bissett a former head of Immigration Canada… A total of 50 people were surveyed, 31 of them had successfully obtained refugee status and 22 had returned to Sri Lanka. The CBSA refuses to release further information and will not say if an expanded study will be conducted to examine the full nature of the problem.
U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron has been misled about conditions for Tamils in the north of the country, cricketer Muttiah Muralitharan, a Tamil and national hero, said today.United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees says it’s helping refugees return to Sri Lanka:
The lives of people are improving, Muralitharan, who took 800 test wickets, told reporters at an event in Colombo with Cameron to promote reconciliation on the island. Cameron, who traveled to the north yesterday, confronted President Mahinda Rajapaksa last night about refugees… “In wartime I went with the UN, I saw the place, how it was,” Muralitharan said. “Now I regularly go and I see the place and it is about a 1,000 percent improvement in facilities,” he said.
Five years after the end of the conflict in Sri Lanka, the majority of those who were IDPs [internally displaced persons] in the country have returned to their place of origin. However, an undetermined number of individuals remain in protracted displacement, unable to return home owing to housing, land and property issues…UNHCR now praises Sri Lanka for how it is resettling returning refugees and the displaced. In fact, refugees from other countries are fleeing to Sri Lanka:
In Sri Lanka, IDP and refugee returnees have difficulty in meeting their basic needs. The lack of a comprehensive national policy on land rights has had an adverse impact on sustainable return… The return of Sri Lankan refugees will continue, albeit at a slower pace… UNHCR will also facilitate the voluntary repatriation of Sri Lankan refugees in cooperation with the Governments of India and Sri Lanka.
In this global and regional context, Sri Lanka has made progress in reintegrating the returning Sri Lankan refugees and by being a host country to many of those that flee violence in the region. Since the conflict in Sri Lanka ended in May 2009, UNHCR has helped over 11,400 Sri Lankan refugees who have returned voluntarily to restart their lives. Similarly, though numbers remain low in comparison to other host countries in the region, Sri Lanka currently hosts 291 refugees and 1547 asylum seekers, all of whom are registered with UNHCR.UPDATE
Sri Lankan government has made great strides in reintegrating 573,651 returning internally displaced persons since the end of civil conflict in 2009. UNHCR continues to assist the government in finding durable solutions for the remaining IDPs. Likewise, Sri Lanka has very effectively dealt with the issue of statelessness on its territory by passing legislation enabling Tamils of Indian Origin, who had been previously disenfranchised, and a population of ethnic Chinese, who had been in the country since the 1940s, to access citizenship. Sri Lanka is often cited as the best practice in the region in resolving issues of statelessness.
An insane anology, grossly offensive both to Sri Lanka and to the Jews and gypsies particularly who were the victims of Nazi genocide:
Former Liberal prime minister Malcolm Fraser, an opponent of Operation Sovereign Borders, went further still yesterday, tweeting that handing asylum-seekers over to Sri Lanka at sea was redolent of handing Jews to Nazis in the 1930s.(Thanks to readers brett t r, pitman and others.)
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Post by Daniel Katz.
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Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale, A tale of a fateful government
That started from this group of incompetants
Aboard this Labor ship.
Beazley was a mighty Labor man,
Swan completely out of his depth.
Five comrades set sail that day
For a three year tour, a three year tour.
The in-fighting started getting rough,
The caucus was tossed,
If not for the courage of the fearless people
The nation would be lost, the nation would be lost.
The movement set ground on the shore of this uncharted desert isle
With Gilligan (Swan)
The Skipper too, (Beazley, before Rudd knifed him)
The millionaire and his wife, (Crean & Macklin)
The movie star (Gillard)
The professor and Mary Ann, (Rudd & Roxon)
Here on Labors Isle.
So this is the tale of the throwaways,
They're been here for a long, long time,
We'll have to make the best of things,
It's an uphill climb.
The first mate and the Skipper too,
Will do their very best,
To make the others uncomfortable,
In the tropic island mess.
No sense, no financial responsibility, no morality,
Not a single moment of accountability,
Like Robinson Crusoe,
As primative as can be.
So join us here each week my freinds,
You're sure to get a smile,
From seven stranded unworthy despots,
Here on "Labors Isle."
===
Dean Hamstead'
"When you're a sysadmin with a hammer, everyone's head looks like a nail."
===
Even so, there is hope, for what words have torn apart when friends bicker, the Lord can heal. One needs to put faith in the Lord, not in themselves. - ed
===
Pastor Rick Warren
Every great accomplishment is really a series of small accomplishments in a row.
===HOW EXPORTS TO CHINA SAVED OUR BACON
One of the great Labor lies that will be peddled at this election is that Australia was “saved” from the GFC by the brillance of Wayne Swan and wasteful government spending on the Pink Batts farce and B.E.R scandal.
What they won’t tell you, is how Australia’s exports to China boomed during the GFC, and how it was that additional export income flowing into the country (in combination with the sound position that Howard/Costello left the nations finances in) that saved our bacon.
The facts are that over the last 6 years, China as a nation has increased their purchases from Australia every single year.
And last financial year 2011/12 - China’s purchases from Australia were almost $50 billion higher than 2007/8.
===
Most Badass Elderly Couple Ever Lives In China.: http://bit.ly/12CNgPr
===
July 5: Independence Day in Algeria (1962), Cape Verde (1975) andVenezuela (1811); Saints Cyril and Methodius Day in the Czech Republic and Slovakia
- 1687 – The Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica by Isaac Newton was first published, describing his laws of motion and his law of universal gravitation.
- 1937 – The Hormel Foods Corporation introducedSpam, the canned precooked meat product that would eventually enter into pop culture, folklore, and urban legend.
- 1977 – General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq overthrew Pakistani Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in a military coup d'état.
- 1989 – United States National Security Council member Oliver North(pictured) was sentenced for his part in the Iran-Contra Affair.
- 2004 – Indonesia held its first direct presidential elections, that resulted in the election of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono as President of Indonesia after the second round on September 20.
- 328 – The official opening of Constantine's Bridge built over the Danube between Sucidava (Corabia, Romania) and Oescus (Gigen, Bulgaria) by the Roman architect Theophilus Patricius
- 1316 – The Burgundian and Majorcan claimants of the Principality of Achaea meet in the Battle of Manolada
- 1594 – Portuguese forces under the command of Pedro Lopes de Sousa begin an unsuccessful invasion of the Kingdom of Kandy during the Campaign of Danture in Sri Lanka.
- 1610 – John Guy sets sail from Bristol with 39 other colonists for Newfoundland.
- 1687 – Isaac Newton publishes Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica.
- 1770 – The Battle of Chesma between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire begins.
- 1775 – The Second Continental Congress adopts the Olive Branch Petition.
- 1803 – The Convention of Artlenburg is signed, leading to the French occupation of Hanover (which had been ruled by the British king).
- 1807 – In Buenos Aires the local militias repel the British soldiers within the Second English Invasion.
- 1809 – The largest battle of the Napoleonic Wars, the Battle of Wagram is fought between the French and Austrian Empires.
- 1811 – Venezuela declares independence from Spain.
- 1813 – War of 1812: Three weeks of British raids on Fort Schlosser, Black Rock and Plattsburgh, New York commence.
- 1814 – War of 1812: Battle of Chippawa: American Major General Jacob Brown defeats British General Phineas Riall at Chippawa, Ontario.
- 1833 – Lê Văn Khôi along with 27 soldiers stage a mutiny taking over the Phiên An citadel, developing into the Lê Văn Khôi revoltagainst Emperor Minh Mạng.
- 1833 – Admiral Charles Napier vanquishes the navy of the Portuguese usurper Dom Miguel at the third Battle of Cape St. Vincent.
- 1841 – Thomas Cook organises the first package excursion, from Leicester to Loughborough
- 1878 – The coat of arms of the Baku Governorate is established.
- 1884 – Germany takes possession of Cameroon.
- 1915 – The Liberty Bell leaves Philadelphia by special train on its way to the Panama–Pacific International Exposition. This is the last trip outside Philadelphia that the custodians of the bell intend to permit.
- 1934 – "Bloody Thursday": Police open fire on striking longshoremen in San Francisco.
- 1935 – The National Labor Relations Act, which governs labor relations in the United States, is signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
- 1937 – Spam, the luncheon meat, is introduced into the market by the Hormel Foods Corporation.
- 1940 – World War II: The United Kingdom and the Vichy France government break off diplomatic relations.
- 1941 – World War II: Operation Barbarossa: German troops reach the Dnieper river.
- 1943 – World War II: An Allied invasion fleet sails for Sicily (Operation Husky, July 10, 1943).
- 1943 – World War II: German forces begin a massive offensive against the Soviet Union at the Battle of Kursk, also known as Operation Citadel.
- 1945 – World War II: The liberation of the Philippines is declared.
- 1946 – The bikini goes on sale after debuting during an outdoor fashion show at the Molitor Pool in Paris, France.
- 1948 – National Health Service Acts create the national public health system in the United Kingdom.
- 1950 – Korean War: Task Force Smith: American and North Korean forces first clash, in the Battle of Osan.
- 1950 – Zionism: The Knesset passes the Law of Return which grants all Jews the right to immigrate to Israel.
- 1954 – The BBC broadcasts its first television news bulletin.
- 1954 – The Andhra Pradesh High Court is established.
- 1954 – Elvis Presley records his first single, "That's All Right," at Sun Records in Memphis, Tennessee.
- 1962 – Algeria becomes independent from France.
- 1971 – Right to vote: The Twenty-sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution, lowering the voting age from 21 to 18 years, is formally certified by President Richard Nixon.
- 1973 – A boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion (BLEVE) in Kingman, Arizona, following a fire that broke out as propane was being transferred from a railroad car to a storage tank, kills eleven firefighters.
- 1975 – Arthur Ashe becomes the first black man to win the Wimbledon singles title.
- 1975 – Cape Verde gains its independence from Portugal.
- 1977 – Military coup in Pakistan: Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the first elected Prime Minister of Pakistan, is overthrown.
- 1980 – Swedish tennis player Björn Borg wins his fifth Wimbledon final and becomes the first male tennis player to win the championships five times in a row (1976–1980).
- 1987 – Sri Lankan Civil War: The LTTE uses suicide attacks on the Sri Lankan Army for the first time. The Black Tigers are born and, in the following years, will continue to kill with the tactic.
- 1989 – Iran–Contra affair: Oliver North is sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gerhard A. Gesell to a three-year suspended prison term, two years probation, $150,000 in fines and 1,200 hours community service. His convictions are later overturned.
- 1995 – The Republic of Armenia adopts its constitution, four years after its independence from the Soviet Union.
- 1996 – Dolly the sheep becomes the first mammal cloned from an adult cell.
- 1997 – Sri Lankan Civil War: Sri Lankan Tamil MP A. Thangathurai is shot dead at Sri Shanmuga Hindu Ladies College in Trincomalee.
- 1999 – Wolverhampton, England is hit by storms, including a tornado. The area is hit again with severe storms on August 1.
- 1999 – U.S. President Bill Clinton imposes trade and economic sanctions against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan.
- 2004 – The first Indonesian presidential election is held.
- 2006 – North Korea tests four short-range missiles, one medium-range missile and a long-range Taepodong-2. The long-range Taepodong-2 reportedly fails in mid-air over the Sea of Japan.
- 2009 – A series of violent riots break out in Ürümqi, the capital city of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China.
- 2009 – The largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold ever discovered, consisting of more than 1,500 items, is found near the village of Hammerwich, near Lichfield, in Staffordshire, England.
- 2012 – The Shard in London is inaugurated as the tallest building in Europe, with a height of 310 metres (1,020 ft).
- 465 – Ahkal Mo' Naab' I, Mayan ruler (d. 524)
- 980 – Mokjong of Goryeo (d. 1009)
- 1029 – Al-Mustansir Billah, Egyptian Caliph (d. 1094)
- 1321 – Joan of the Tower, Scottish wife of David II of Scotland (d. 1362)
- 1466 – Giovanni Sforza, Italian lord (d. 1510)
- 1547 – Garzia de' Medici, Tuscan son of Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (d. 1562)
- 1549 – Francesco Maria del Monte, Italian cardinal and art collector (d. 1627)
- 1554 – Elisabeth of Austria, Queen of France (d. 1592)
- 1580 – Carlo Contarini, Doge of Venice (d. 1656)
- 1586 – Thomas Hooker, English-born founder of the Colony of Connecticut (d. 1647)
- 1593 – Achille d'Étampes de Valençay, French military leader (d. 1646)
- 1653 – Thomas Pitt, English businessman and politician (d. 1726)
- 1670 – Countess Palatine Dorothea Sophie of Neuburg (d. 1748)
- 1675 – Mary Walcott, American witness at the Salem witch trials (d. 1719)
- 1709 – Étienne de Silhouette, French translator and politician, Controller-General of Finances (d. 1767)
- 1717 – Peter III of Portugal (d. 1786)
- 1718 – Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (d. 1794)
- 1745 – Carl Arnold Kortum, German physician and poet (d. 1824)
- 1755 – Sarah Siddons, English actress (d. 1831)
- 1780 – François Carlo Antommarchi, French physician (d. 1838)
- 1793 – Pavel Pestel, Russian soldier (d. 1826)
- 1794 – Sylvester Graham, American minister and activist (d. 1851)
- 1801 – David Farragut, American admiral (d. 1870)
- 1802 – Pavel Nakhimov, Russian admiral (d. 1855)
- 1803 – George Borrow, British writer (d. 1881)
- 1805 – Jérôme Napoléon Bonaparte, English-American son of Jérôme Bonaparte (d. 1870)
- 1805 – Robert FitzRoy, English captain, meteorologist, and politician, 2nd Governor of New Zealand (d. 1865)
- 1810 – P. T. Barnum, American businessman, co-founded Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus (d. 1891)
- 1820 – William John Macquorn Rankine, Scottish physicist, mathematician, and engineer (d. 1872)
- 1829 – Ignacio Mariscal, Mexican politician and diplomat, Secretary of Foreign Affairs for Mexico (d. 1910)
- 1832 – Pavel Chistyakov, Russian painter and educator (d. 1919)
- 1841 – William Collins Whitney, American financier and politician, 31st United States Secretary of the Navy (d. 1904)
- 1849 – William Thomas Stead, English journalist (d. 1912)
- 1853 – Cecil Rhodes, English-South African businessman and politician, 6th Prime Minister of the Cape Colony (d. 1902)
- 1857 – Clara Zetkin, German theorist and activist (d. 1933)
- 1857 – Julien Tiersot, French musicologist and composer (d. 1936)
- 1860 – Robert Bacon, American colonel and politician, 39th United States Secretary of State (d. 1919)
- 1860 – Mathieu Jaboulay, French surgeon (d. 1913)
- 1862 – George Nuttall, American-British bacteriologist (d. 1937)
- 1862 – Horatio Caro, English chess master (d. 1920)
- 1864 – Stephan Krehl, German composer (d. 1924)
- 1867 – A. E. Douglass, American astronomer (d. 1962)
- 1872 – Édouard Herriot, French lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of France (d. 1957)
- 1874 – Eugen Fischer, German physician and academic (d. 1967)
- 1879 – Dwight F. Davis, American tennis player and politician, 49th United States Secretary of War (d. 1945)
- 1879 – Wanda Landowska, Polish-French harpsichord player and educator (d. 1959)
- 1880 – Jan Kubelík, Czech violinist and composer (d. 1940)
- 1880 – Constantin Tănase, Romanian actor and playwright (d. 1945)
- 1882 – Inayat Khan, Indian mystic and educator (d. 1927)
- 1883 – Gustave Lanctot, Canadian historian, author, and academic (d. 1975)
- 1884 – Enrico Dante, Italian cardinal (d. 1967)
- 1885 – Blas Infante, Spanish historian and politician (d. 1936)
- 1885 – André Lhote, French sculptor and painter (d. 1962)
- 1886 – Willem Drees, Dutch politician and historian, Prime Minister of the Netherlands (1948–1958) (d. 1988)
- 1886 – Prince John Konstantinovich of Russia (d. 1918)
- 1888 – Herbert Spencer Gasser, American physiologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1963)
- 1888 – Louise Freeland Jenkins, American astronomer and academic (d. 1970)
- 1889 – Jean Cocteau, French novelist, poet, and playwright (d. 1963)
- 1890 – Frederick Lewis Allen, American historian and journalist (d. 1954)
- 1891 – John Howard Northrop, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1987)
- 1891 – Tin Ujević, Croatian poet and translator (d. 1955)
- 1893 – Anthony Berkeley Cox, English writer (d. 1893)
- 1893 – Giuseppe Caselli, Italian painter (d. 1976)
- 1894 – Ants Lauter, Estonian actor and director (d. 1973)
- 1898 – Georgios Grivas, Greek general (d. 1974)
- 1899 – Marcel Achard, French playwright, screenwriter, and author (d. 1974)
- 1900 – Yoshimaro Yamashina, Japanese ornithologist, founded the Yamashina Institute for Ornithology (d. 1989)
- 1901 – Julio Libonatti, Italian Argentine footballer (d. 1981)
- 1902 – Henry Cabot Lodge Jr., American colonel and politician, 3rd United States Ambassador to the United Nations (d. 1985)
- 1904 – Harold Acton, English scholar and author (d. 1994)
- 1904 – Ernst Mayr, German-American biologist and ornithologist (d. 2005)
- 1904 – Milburn Stone, American actor (d. 1980)
- 1910 – Georges Vedel, French lawyer and academic (d. 2002)
- 1910 – S. Poniman, Indonesian singer and actor (d. 1978)
- 1911 – Endel Aruja, Estonian-Canadian physicist and academic (d. 2008)
- 1911 – Haydn Bunton, Sr., Australian footballer and coach (d. 1955)
- 1911 – Giorgio Borġ Olivier, Maltese lawyer and politician, 7th Prime Minister of Malta (d. 1980)
- 1911 – Georges Pompidou, French banker and politician, 19th President of France (d. 1974)
- 1913 – George Costakis, Russian art collector (d. 1990)
- 1913 – Smiley Lewis, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1966)
- 1914 – Annie Fischer, Hungarian pianist and composer (d. 1995)
- 1914 – Gerda Gilboe, Danish actress and singer (d. 2009)
- 1915 – Babe Paley, American socialite and style icon (d. 1978)
- 1915 – John Woodruff, American runner and commander (d. 2007)
- 1918 – K. Karunakaran, Indian lawyer and politician, 7th Chief Minister of Kerala (d. 2010)
- 1918 – Zakaria Mohieddin, Egyptian general and politician, 33rd Prime Minister of Egypt (d. 2012)
- 1918 – George Rochberg, American composer and educator (d. 2005)
- 1921 – Viktor Kulikov, Russian marshal (d. 2013)
- 1921 – Nanos Valaoritis, Greek author, poet, and playwright
- 1924 – János Starker, Hungarian-American cellist and educator (d. 2013)
- 1925 – Fernando de Szyszlo, Peruvian painter and sculptor
- 1925 – Jean Raspail, French author and explorer
- 1928 – Pierre Mauroy, French educator and politician, Prime Minister of France (d. 2013)
- 1928 – Warren Oates, American actor (d. 1982)
- 1929 – Katherine Helmond, American actress and director
- 1929 – Jovan Rašković, Serbian psychiatrist, academic, and politician (d. 1992)
- 1929 – Jiří Reynek, Czech poet and graphic artist (d. 2014)
- 1931 – Ismail Mahomed, South African lawyer and politician, 17th Chief Justice of South Africa (d. 2000)
- 1932 – Gyula Horn, Hungarian politician, 37th Prime Minister of Hungary (d. 2013)
- 1936 – Shirley Knight, American actress
- 1936 – James Mirrlees, Scottish economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1938 – Ronnie Self, American singer-songwriter (d. 1981)
- 1940 – Bud Andrews, American radio host and producer (d. 2014)
- 1940 – Chuck Close, American painter and photographer
- 1941 – Epeli Nailatikau, Fijian chief, President of Fiji
- 1942 – Matthias Bamert, Swiss composer and conductor
- 1942 – Hannes Löhr, German footballer, coach, and manager (d. 2016)
- 1943 – Curt Blefary, American baseball player and coach (d. 2001)
- 1943 – Mark Cox, English tennis player, coach and sportscaster
- 1943 – Robbie Robertson, Canadian singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actor (The Band)
- 1944 – Leni Björklund, Swedish politician, 28th Swedish Minister of Defence for Sweden
- 1945 – Michael Blake, American author and screenwriter (d. 2015)
- 1945 – Humberto Benítez Treviño, Mexican lawyer and politician, Attorney General of Mexico
- 1946 – Pierre-Marc Johnson, Canadian lawyer, physician, and politician, 24th Premier of Quebec
- 1946 – Paul Smith, English fashion designer
- 1946 – Gerard 't Hooft, Dutch physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1946 – Vladimir Mikhailovich Zakharov, Russian dancer and choreographer (d. 2013)
- 1947 – Todd Akin, American politician
- 1948 – William Hootkins, American actor (d. 2005)
- 1948 – Liliana Abud, Mexican actress and screenwriter
- 1949 – Ludwig G. Strauss, German physician and academic (d. 2013)
- 1950 – Huey Lewis, American singer-songwriter and actor (Huey Lewis and the News and Clover)
- 1950 – Michael Monarch, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer (Steppenwolf, Detective, and World Classic Rockers)
- 1950 – Carlos Caszely, Chilean footballer
- 1951 – Keiko Fuji, Japanese singer and actress (d. 2013)
- 1951 – Goose Gossage, American baseball player
- 1951 – Roger Wicker, American colonel, lawyer, and politician
- 1953 – Caryn Navy, American mathematician and computer scientist.
- 1954 – Jimmy Crespo, American guitarist and songwriter (Aerosmith and Stress)
- 1954 – John Wright, New Zealand cricketer and coach
- 1955 – Tony Hadley, English footballer
- 1955 – Peter McNamara, Australian tennis player and coach
- 1955 – Mia Couto, Mozambican writer
- 1956 – Horacio Cartes, Paraguayan businessman and politician, President of Paraguay
- 1956 – Terry Chimes, English drummer (The Clash, Generation X, Hanoi Rocks, and Cowboys International)
- 1956 – James Lofton, American football player and coach
- 1956 – Patsy Pease, American actress
- 1957 – Carlo Thränhardt, German high jumper
- 1957 – Doug Wilson, Canadian-American ice hockey player and manager
- 1958 – Bill Watterson, American author and illustrator
- 1959 – Marc Cohn, American singer-songwriter and keyboard player
- 1960 – Pruitt Taylor Vince, American actor and director
- 1962 – Amrozi bin Nurhasyim, Indonesian terrorist (d. 2008)
- 1962 – Sarina Hülsenbeck, German swimmer
- 1963 – Edie Falco, American actress
- 1964 – Ronald D. Moore, American screenwriter and producer
- 1965 – Eyran Katsenelenbogen, Israeli-American pianist and educator
- 1966 – Susannah Doyle, English actress, director, and playwright
- 1966 – Gianfranco Zola, Italian footballer and coach
- 1967 – Vinod Raj, Indian actor, singer, and dancer
- 1968 – Ken Akamatsu, Japanese illustrator
- 1968 – Kenji Ito, Japanese pianist and composer
- 1968 – Nardwuar the Human Serviette, Canadian singer-songwriter and keyboard player (The Evaporators)
- 1968 – Hedi Slimane, French fashion designer and photographer
- 1968 – Alex Zülle, Swiss cyclist
- 1968 – Susan Wojcicki, CEO of YouTube
- 1969 – RZA, American rapper, producer, actor, and director (Wu-Tang Clan and Gravediggaz)
- 1969 – Jenji Kohan, American screenwriter and producer
- 1969 – Armin Kõomägi, Estonian author and screenwriter
- 1969 – John LeClair, American ice hockey player
- 1970 – Mac Dre, American rapper and producer, founded Thizz Entertainment (d. 2004)
- 1970 – Valentí Massana, Spanish race walker
- 1971 – Derek McInnes, Scottish footballer and manager
- 1972 – Matthew Birir, Kenyan runner
- 1972 – Robert Esmie, Canadian sprinter
- 1972 – Gary Shteyngart, American writer
- 1973 – Marcus Allbäck, Swedish footballer and coach
- 1973 – Bengt Lagerberg, Swedish drummer (The Cardigans)
- 1973 – Róisín Murphy, Irish singer-songwriter and producer (Moloko)
- 1973 – René Spies, German bobsledder
- 1974 – Márcio Amoroso, Brazilian footballer
- 1975 – Hernán Crespo, Argentinian footballer and coach
- 1975 – Kip Gamblin, Australian dancer and actor
- 1975 – Ai Sugiyama, Japanese tennis player
- 1976 – Bizarre, American rapper (D12 and Outsidaz)
- 1976 – Nuno Gomes, Portuguese footballer
- 1976 – Çiğdem Can Rasna, Turkish volleyball player
- 1977 – Royce da 5'9", American rapper and producer (Bad Meets Evil and Slaughterhouse)
- 1977 – Nicolas Kiefer, German tennis player
- 1977 – Steven Sharp Nelson, American cellist
- 1978 – Britta Oppelt, German rower
- 1978 – Allan Simonsen, Danish race car driver (d. 2013)
- 1978 – İsmail YK, German-Turkish singer-songwriter (Yurtseven Kardeşler)
- 1979 – Shane Filan, Irish singer-songwriter (Westlife)
- 1979 – Amélie Mauresmo, French-Swiss tennis player
- 1979 – Stiliyan Petrov, Bulgarian footballer and manager
- 1980 – Pauly D, American DJ and producer
- 1980 – David Rozehnal, Czech footballer
- 1980 – Mads Tolling, Danish-American violinist and composer (Turtle Island Quartet)
- 1980 – Jason Wade, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Lifehouse)
- 1982 – Paíto, Mozambican footballer
- 1982 – Fabrício de Souza, Brazilian footballer
- 1982 – Alexander Dimitrenko, Ukrainian-German boxer
- 1982 – Julien Féret, French footballer
- 1982 – Alberto Gilardino, Italian footballer
- 1982 – Philippe Gilbert, Belgian cyclist
- 1982 – Kate Gynther, Australian water polo player
- 1982 – Dave Haywood, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Lady Antebellum)
- 1982 – Javier Paredes, Spanish footballer
- 1982 – Szabolcs Perenyi, Romanian-Hungarian footballer
- 1982 – Beno Udrih, Slovenian basketball player
- 1983 – Marco Estrada, Mexican baseball player
- 1983 – Jonás Gutiérrez, Argentinian footballer
- 1983 – Zheng Jie, Chinese tennis player
- 1983 – Taavi Peetre, Estonian shot putter (d. 2010)
- 1984 – Danay García, Cuban-American actress
- 1984 – Zack Miller, American golfer
- 1984 – Yu Yamada, Japanese model, actress, and singer
- 1985 – Alle Farben, German DJ and producer
- 1985 – Tess Holliday, American model
- 1985 – Stephanie McIntosh, Australian singer and actress
- 1985 – Nick O'Malley, English bass player (Arctic Monkeys)
- 1985 – Alexandre R. Picard, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1985 – Megan Rapinoe, American soccer player
- 1986 – Piermario Morosini, Italian footballer (d. 2012)
- 1986 – Alexander Radulov, Russian ice hockey player
- 1986 – Adam Young, American singer-songwriter and producer (Owl City and Sky Sailing)
- 1987 – Andrija Kaluđerović, Serbian footballer
- 1988 – Adriano Buzaid, Brazilian race car driver
- 1988 – Vincent Chepkok, Kenyan runner
- 1988 – Martin Liivamägi, Estonian swimmer
- 1988 – Samir Ujkani, Albanian footballer
- 1989 – Georgios Efrem, Cypriot footballer
- 1989 – Alona Fomina, Ukrainian tennis player
- 1989 – Dwight King, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1989 – Joseph King, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Canvas and Deadbeat Darling)
- 1989 – Sjinkie Knegt, Dutch speed skater
- 1989 – Dejan Lovren, Croatian footballer
- 1989 – Sean O'Pry, American model
- 1989 – Charlie Austin, English footballer
- 1990 – Abeba Aregawi, Ethiopian-Swedish runner
- 1991 – Jason Dolley, American actor
- 1992 – Alberto Moreno, Spanish footballer
- 1992 – Chiara Scholl, American tennis player
- 1993 – Yaroslav Kosov, Russian ice hockey player
- 1993 – Mehdi Tarfi, Belgian footballer
- 1995 – Hyuk, South Korean singer and actor (VIXX)
- 1995 – Baily Cargill, English footballer
- 1995 – Jouki Tikkanen, Finnish gymnast
- 1997 – Park Ji-min, South Korean singer
Births[edit]
- 967 – Emperor Murakami of Japan (b. 926)
- 1316 – Ferdinand of Majorca (b. 1278)
- 1375 – Charles III, Count of Alençon (b. 1337)
- 1507 – Crinitus, Italian scholar and academic (b. 1475)
- 1539 – Anthony Maria Zaccaria, Italian saint (b. 1502)
- 1666 – Albert VI, Duke of Bavaria (b. 1584)
- 1676 – Carl Gustaf Wrangel, Swedish field marshal and politician (b. 1613)
- 1715 – Charles Ancillon, French jurist and diplomat (b. 1659)
- 1719 – Meinhardt Schomberg, 3rd Duke of Schomberg, German-English general (b. 1641)
- 1773 – Francisco José Freire, Portuguese historian and philologist (b. 1719)
- 1819 – William Cornwallis, English admiral and politician (b.1744)
- 1826 – Stamford Raffles, English politician, founded Singapore (b. 1782)
- 1833 – Nicéphore Niépce, French inventor, created the first known photograph (b. 1765)
- 1859 – Charles Cagniard de la Tour, French physicist and engineer (b. 1777)
- 1862 – Heinrich Georg Bronn, German geologist and paleontologist (b. 1800)
- 1863 – Lewis Armistead, American general (b. 1817)
- 1884 – Victor Massé, French composer (b. 1822)
- 1908 – Jonas Lie, Norwegian author, poet, and playwright (b. 1833)
- 1920 – Max Klinger, German painter and sculptor (b. 1857)
- 1927 – Albrecht Kossel, German physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1853)
- 1929 – Henry Johnson, American sergeant (b. 1897)
- 1932 – Sasha Chorny, Russian poet and author (b. 1880)
- 1935 – Bernard de Pourtalès, Swiss captain and sailor (b. 1870)
- 1937 – Daniel Sawyer, American golfer (b. 1884)
- 1943 – Kazimierz Junosza-Stępowski, Polish actor (b. 1880)
- 1943 – Karin Swanström, Swedish actress, director, and producer (b. 1873)
- 1945 – John Curtin, Australian journalist and politician, 14th Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1885)
- 1948 – Georges Bernanos, French soldier and author (b. 1888)
- 1948 – Carole Landis, American actress and singer (b. 1919)
- 1957 – anugrah Narayan Sinha, Indian lawyer and politician, 1st Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar (b. 1887)
- 1965 – Porfirio Rubirosa, Dominican race car driver, polo player, and diplomat (b. 1909)
- 1966 – George de Hevesy, Hungarian-German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1885)
- 1969 – Wilhelm Backhaus, German pianist and educator (b. 1884)
- 1969 – Walter Gropius, German architect, designed the John F. Kennedy Federal Building and Werkbund Exhibition (b. 1883)
- 1969 – Tom Mboya, Kenyan politician, 1st Kenyan Minister of Justice (b. 1930)
- 1969 – Leo McCarey, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1898)
- 1975 – Gilda dalla Rizza, Italian soprano and actress (b. 1892)
- 1983 – Harry James, American trumpet player and actor (b. 1916)
- 1984 – Chic Murray, Canadian politician, 2nd Mayor of Mississauga (b.1914)
- 1991 – Howard Nemerov, American poet and essayist (b. 1920)
- 1995 – Jüri Järvet, Estonian actor and screenwriter (b. 1919)
- 1997 – Mrs. Elva Miller, American singer (b. 1907)
- 1997 – A. Thangathurai, Sri Lankan Tamil lawyer and politician (b. 1936)
- 1998 – Sid Luckman, American football player (b. 1916)
- 2001 – Ernie K-Doe, American singer (b. 1936)
- 2002 – Katy Jurado, Mexican actress (b. 1924)
- 2002 – Ted Williams, American baseball player and manager (b. 1918)
- 2004 – Hugh Shearer, Jamaican journalist and politician, 3rd Prime Minister of Jamaica (b. 1923)
- 2004 – Rodger Ward, American race car driver and sportscaster (b. 1921)
- 2005 – Shirley Goodman, American singer (Shirley & Company) (b. 1936)
- 2005 – James Stockdale, American admiral (b. 1923)
- 2006 – Gert Fredriksson, Swedish canoe racer (b. 1919)
- 2006 – Thirunalloor Karunakaran, Indian poet and scholar (b. 1924)
- 2006 – Kenneth Lay, American businessman (b. 1942)
- 2006 – Amzie Strickland, American actress (b. 1919)
- 2007 – Régine Crespin, French soprano (b. 1927)
- 2007 – Kerwin Mathews, American actor (b. 1926)
- 2007 – George Melly, English singer-songwriter and critic (b. 1926)
- 2008 – Hasan Doğan, Turkish businessman (b. 1956)
- 2010 – Bob Probert, Canadian ice hockey player and radio host (b. 1965)
- 2011 – Cy Twombly, American-Italian painter, sculptor, and photographer (b. 1928)
- 2012 – Rob Goris, Belgian cyclist (b. 1982)
- 2012 – Gerrit Komrij, Dutch author, poet, and playwright (b. 1944)
- 2012 – Colin Marshall, Baron Marshall of Knightsbridge, English businessman and politician (b. 1933)
- 2012 – Ruud van Hemert, Dutch actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1938)
- 2013 – Bud Asher, American lawyer and politician (b. 1925)
- 2013 – David Cargo, American politician, 22nd Governor of New Mexico (b. 1929)
- 2013 – Lambert Jackson Woodburne, South African admiral (b. 1939)
- 2014 – Rosemary Murphy, American actress (b. 1925)
- 2014 – Volodymyr Sabodan, Ukrainian metropolitan (b. 1935)
- 2014 – Hans-Ulrich Wehler, German historian and academic (b. 1931)
- 2014 – Brett Wiesner, American soccer player (b. 1983)
- 2015 – Archduchess Dorothea of Austria (b. 1920)
- 2015 – Uffe Haagerup, Danish mathematician and academic (b. 1949)
- 2015 – Yoichiro Nambu, Japanese-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1921)
Deaths[edit]
- Bloody Thursday (International Longshore and Warehouse Union)
- Christian feast day:
- Tynwald Day, if July 5 is on a weekend, the holiday is the following Monday. (Isle of Man)
- Arbor Day (New Zealand)
- Armed Forces Day (Venezuela)
- Constitution Day (Armenia)
- Independence Day (Algeria), celebrating the independence of Algeria from France in 1962.
- Independence Day, celebrating the independence of Cape Verde from Portugal in 1975.
- Independence Day, celebrating the independence of Venezuela from Spain in 1811.
- Emancipation Day, celebrating the emancipation of enslaved Africans in New York City in 1827.
- Poplifugia (Ancient Rome)
- X-Day (Church of the SubGenius)
Holidays and observances[edit]
“Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he chose for his inheritance.”Psalm 33:12NIV
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Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon
Morning
Sanctification begins in regeneration. The Spirit of God infuses into man that new living principle by which he becomes "a new creature" in Christ Jesus. This work, which begins in the new birth, is carried on in two ways--mortification, whereby the lusts of the flesh are subdued and kept under; and vivification, by which the life which God has put within us is made to be a well of water springing up unto everlasting life. This is carried on every day in what is called "perseverance," by which the Christian is preserved and continued in a gracious state, and is made to abound in good works unto the praise and glory of God; and it culminates or comes to perfection, in "glory," when the soul, being thoroughly purged, is caught up to dwell with holy beings at the right hand of the Majesty on high. But while the Spirit of God is thus the author of sanctification, yet there is a visible agency employed which must not be forgotten. "Sanctify them," said Jesus, "through thy truth: thy word is truth." The passages of Scripture which prove that the instrument of our sanctification is the Word of God are very many. The Spirit of God brings to our minds the precepts and doctrines of truth, and applies them with power. These are heard in the ear, and being received in the heart, they work in us to will and to do of God's good pleasure. The truth is the sanctifier, and if we do not hear or read the truth, we shall not grow in sanctification. We only progress in sound living as we progress in sound understanding. "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." Do not say of any error, "It is a mere matter of opinion." No man indulges an error of judgment, without sooner or later tolerating an error in practice. Hold fast the truth, for by so holding the truth shall you be sanctified by the Spirit of God.
Evening
"He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully."
Psalm 24:4
Psalm 24:4
Outward practical holiness is a very precious mark of grace. It is to be feared that many professors have perverted the doctrine of justification by faith in such a way as to treat good works with contempt; if so, they will receive everlasting contempt at the last great day. If our hands are not clean, let us wash them in Jesus' precious blood, and so let us lift up pure hands unto God. But "clean hands" will not suffice, unless they are connected with "a pure heart." True religion is heart-work. We may wash the outside of the cup and the platter as long as we please, but if the inward parts be filthy, we are filthy altogether in the sight of God, for our hearts are more truly ourselves than our hands are; the very life of our being lies in the inner nature, and hence the imperative need of purity within. The pure in heart shall see God, all others are but blind bats.
The man who is born for heaven "hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity." All men have their joys, by which their souls are lifted up; the worldling lifts up his soul in carnal delights, which are mere empty vanities; but the saint loves more substantial things; like Jehoshaphat, he is lifted up in the ways of the Lord. He who is content with husks, will be reckoned with the swine. Does the world satisfy thee? Then thou hast thy reward and portion in this life; make much of it, for thou shalt know no other joy.
"Nor sworn deceitfully." The saints are men of honour still. The Christian man's word is his only oath; but that is as good as twenty oaths of other men. False speaking will shut any man out of heaven, for a liar shall not enter into God's house, whatever may be his professions or doings. Reader, does the text before us condemn thee, or dost thou hope to ascend into the hill of the Lord?
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Vashti
The Woman Who Exalted Modesty
Scripture References - Esther 1; 2:1; 4:17
Name Meaning - Vashti corresponded to the significance of her name, "beautiful woman." She must have been one of the loveliest women in the realm of King Ahasuerus who thought so much of his wife's physical charms that at a drinking debauchery he wanted to exhibit her beauty for she "was fair to look upon."
Family Connections - Bullinger identifies this Persian beauty as the daughter of Alyattes, King of Lydia, but the only authentic record of Vashti is what we have in her brief appearance in Scripture as the queen of the court of Ahasuerus, or Artaxerxes. It would be interesting to know what became of the noble wife after her disgrace and divorce by her unworthy, wine-soaked husband.
While the Book of Esther holds a high place in the sacred literature of the Jews, it yet has no mention of God or of the Holy Land, and contains no definite religious teaching. Martin Luther is said to have tossed the book into the river Elbe, saying that he wished it did not exist for "it has too much of Judaism and a great deal of heathenish imagination." The book contains a genuine strain of human interest, but it is also heavy with the air of divine providence (compare Esther ). Although the story of Vashti only covers a few paragraphs in the book, yet in the setting of oriental grandeur we have the elements of imperishable drama. While the bulk of the book revolves around Esther, from our point of view the shining character in the story is the queenly Vashti, who was driven out because she refused to display her lovely face and figure before the lustful eyes of a drunken court.
By birth Vashti was a Persian princess, possessing along with her regal bearing, an extraordinary, fragile beauty. Although her husband was a king "who reigned from India even unto Ethiopia, over an hundred and seven and twenty provinces," her self-respect and high character meant more to her than her husband's vast realm. Rather than cater to the vanity and sensuality of drunkards, she courageously sacrificed a kingdom. Rather than lower the white banner of womanly modesty, Vashti accepted disgrace and dismissal. The only true ruler in that drunken court was the woman who refused to exhibit herself, even at the king's command.
The Demand
An impressive banquet was to be held in Susa the capital of Persia, lasting for seven days, with the king and his dignitaries joining with hundreds of invited guests in an unceasing whirl of festivities during which wine flowed freely. Both great and small were to be found "in the court of the garden of the palace." Then came the crowning touch of a drunken tyrant's caprice. When "the heart of the king was merry with wine" he commanded that Vashti, his royal consort, appear before the guests. For a week, inflamed with wine and adulation, he had displayed the magnificent wealth and power of his kingdom and the princes had poured flattery upon him. Now for the climax! Let all the half-drunken guests see his most lovely possession, Queen Vashti, who was probably the most beautiful woman in his kingdom. He wanted the intoxicated jubilant lords to feast their eyes on her. The Bible plainly declares that Ahasuerus summoned his wife to the feast simply "to show her beauty."
Had the king been sober he would not have considered such a breach of custom, for he knew that Eastern women lived in seclusion and that such a request as he made in his drunken condition amounted to a gross insult. "For Vashti to appear in the banquet hall, though dressed in her royal robes and crowned, would be almost as degrading as for a modern woman of our modern world to go naked into a man's party." What Ahasuerus demanded was a surrender of womanly honor, and Vashti, who was neither vain nor wanton, was unwilling to comply. Plutarch reminds us that it was the habit of a Persian king to have his queen beside him at a banquet, but when he wished to riot and drink, he sent his queen away and called in the wives of inferior rank - his concubines. Perhaps that is the historic clue to Vashti's indignant refusal for she knew only too well that Persian custom dictated that a queen be secluded during the feasts where rare wines flowed freely.
The Disobedience
To Vashti, the command of the king - her husband, who alone had the right to gaze upon her beautiful form - was most revolting to her sense of propriety, and knowing what the consequences of her refusal to appear before the half-drunken company would entail, refused in no uncertain terms to comply with the king's demand. She stood strong in womanly self-respect and "refused to come at the king's commandment." Her noble scorn at her threatened indignity deserves finer recognition. What the king sought would have infringed upon her noble, feminine modesty, therefore she had every right to disobey her wine-soaked husband. A wife need not and may not obey her husband in what opposes God's laws and the laws of feminine honor and decency. All praise to the heroic Vashti for her decent disobedience.
The Deposition
Vashti's disobedience excited the king to madness. No one, especially a woman, had ever dared to humiliate such a despot whose word was law in all his realm. Such a slight had but one issue, for forth went the decree, "that Vashti come no more before King Ahasuerus." This degradation also meant divorce, not only from her husband, but also from the life and luxury she had been used to. Thus amid the tragic darkness Queen Vashti - never more queenly than in her refusal - disappears like a shining shadow. The wise men, court astrologers and princes agreed with the king that banishment from the palace was the only fit punishment for such a crime. They knew that Vashti's bold stand might incite other Persian ladies to disobey their liege lords, and so the warrant, silly as it was royal, was enacted that "Every man be master in his own house, and that all the wives shall give to their husbands honour, both to great and small!"
As a Persian law once made could never be revoked, Ahasuerus, now sober, and likely regretful of his impulsive anger could not reinstate Vashti, thus Esther was chosen to succeed her as queen. It is quite probable that "Vashti continued to live in the royal household, stripped of the insignia of royalty, but with her own integrity clothed in purple." Surrendering the diadem of Persia, Vashti put on a crown which was beyond the power of a despot king to give or take away, namely, the crown of exalted womanhood. How apropos are the lines of Tennyson as we think of the fine character of Vashti, the pagan Persian -
Self-reverence, self-knowledge, self-control,
These three alone lead life to sovereign power.
Yet not for power (power by herself
Would come uncalled for), but to live by law,
Acting the law we live without fear;
And, because right is right, to follow right
Were wisdom in the scorn of consequence.
Vashti chose deposition rather than dishonor with a mortifying refusal to obey. Her refusal to exhibit herself was visited with "a punishment severe enough to reestablish the supremacy which it threatened to overthrow," but to Vashti, conscience and personal dignity occupied a higher supremacy and for this ideal she was dethroned. Allied to her beauty and regal charm were courage and heroism, securing her character from the rot of power. Vashti had a soul of her own, and preserved its integrity; and if women today fail to honor their life they will never win the best God has for them. It is to be regretted that in our modern world many women are not as careful as Vashti the pagan was in guarding the dignity of the body. Fashion and popularity are a poor price to pay for the loss of one's self-respect. Christian ideals in womanhood may be deemed old-fashioned and in conflict with the trend of the times, but divine favor rests upon those who have courage to be ridiculed for such high ideals. Any woman is one after God's own heart when, as Mary Hallet puts it, she determines by His grace -
To remain refined in speech and action, when it is the style to appear "hard-boiled" -
To be dignified when everyone else pretends to be "wild" -
To maintain a true perspective, a real sense of values, in an irresponsible age.
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Achbor
[Ăch'bôr] - a mouse.
[Ăch'bôr] - a mouse.
- Father of Baal-hanan and king of Edom (Gen. 36:38, 39; 1 Chron. 1:49).
- Son of Michaiah and one of Josiah's messengers (2 Kings 22:12, 14). Called Abdon in 2 Chronicles 34:20.
- A Jew, whose son Elnathanwas sent by Jehoiakim to bring back Urijah the prophet from Egypt ( Jer. 26:22; 36:12).
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Today's reading: Job 28-29, Acts 13:1-25 (NIV)
View today's reading on Bible GatewayToday's Old Testament reading: Job 28-29
Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found
1 There is a mine for silver
and a place where gold is refined.
2 Iron is taken from the earth,
and copper is smelted from ore.
3 Mortals put an end to the darkness;
they search out the farthest recesses
for ore in the blackest darkness.
4 Far from human dwellings they cut a shaft,
in places untouched by human feet;
far from other people they dangle and sway.
5 The earth, from which food comes,
is transformed below as by fire;
6 lapis lazuli comes from its rocks,
and its dust contains nuggets of gold.
7 No bird of prey knows that hidden path,
no falcon's eye has seen it.
8 Proud beasts do not set foot on it,
and no lion prowls there.
9 People assault the flinty rock with their hands
and lay bare the roots of the mountains.
10 They tunnel through the rock;
their eyes see all its treasures.
11 They search the sources of the rivers
and bring hidden things to light....
and a place where gold is refined.
2 Iron is taken from the earth,
and copper is smelted from ore.
3 Mortals put an end to the darkness;
they search out the farthest recesses
for ore in the blackest darkness.
4 Far from human dwellings they cut a shaft,
in places untouched by human feet;
far from other people they dangle and sway.
5 The earth, from which food comes,
is transformed below as by fire;
6 lapis lazuli comes from its rocks,
and its dust contains nuggets of gold.
7 No bird of prey knows that hidden path,
no falcon's eye has seen it.
8 Proud beasts do not set foot on it,
and no lion prowls there.
9 People assault the flinty rock with their hands
and lay bare the roots of the mountains.
10 They tunnel through the rock;
their eyes see all its treasures.
11 They search the sources of the rivers
and bring hidden things to light....
Today's New Testament reading: Acts 13:1-25
1 Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. 2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." 3 So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off....===
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