UK election and Conservatives have won an election and pundits are very unhappy. Teresa May has a working majority of 17 seats, just like the last parliament. German Chancellor Merkel is demanding that UK be ready for Brexit. May has to hit the ground running. Meanwhile, May has many critics calling her Hillary Clinton. But if one takes away corruption, there wouldn't be a Clinton, while May seems a woman of substance. The comments are just nasty.
Donald Trump may yet achieve Middle East Peace during his time in office. The speed with which he has isolated terrorist state Qatar is breathtaking. Still, more to do. Someone commented recently that the Trump administration was worse than Nixon's Watergate. The leaker trying to get Trump impeached, former FBI director Comey, was a higher rank than Felt. In many ways, the comment illustrates how maligned Nixon was. Almost as if he had won a UK election.
In 671, Emperor Tenji of Japan introduced a water clock (clepsydra) called Rokoku. The instrument, which measured time and indicated hours, was placed in the capital of Ōtsu. 1190, Third Crusade: Frederick I Barbarossa drowned in the river Saleph while leading an army to Jerusalem. Fredrick 'Red Beard' was admired for being strong, capable and organised. He had aged well. But on the day, he might have had a heart attack and fallen into the river at a crossing. 1329, the Battle of Pelekanon resulted in a Byzantine defeat by the Ottoman Empire. Byzantines had, in the times of Saladin, acted as informers for Saladin to warn him of the crusaders. They would lose more battles, including Constantinople.
In 1523, Copenhagen was surrounded by the army of Frederick I of Denmark, as the city would not recognise him as the successor of Christian II of Denmark. 1539, Council of Trent: Pope Paul III sent out letters to his bishops, delaying the Council due to war and the difficulty bishops had traveling to Venice. 1692, Salem witch trials: Bridget Bishop was hanged at Gallows Hill near Salem, Massachusetts, for "certaine Detestable Arts called Witchcraft & Sorceries". 1786, a landslide dam on the Dadu River created by an earthquake ten days earlier collapsed, killing 100,000 in the Sichuan province of China. 1793, the Jardin des Plantes museum opened in Paris. A year later, it became the first public zoo. Also in 1793, French Revolution: Following the arrests of Girondin leaders, the Jacobins gained control of the Committee of Public Safety installing the revolutionary dictatorship.
1838, Myall Creek massacre: Twenty-eight Aboriginal Australians were murdered. They were killed by a gang of bigoted stock men. The first trial was influenced by a magistrate. Someone claiming to be a juror wrote to a newspaper spouting bigotry of not wanting to kill a white man for killing a black man. A second trial produced a result. Seven of the eleven killers were found guilty. 1864, American Civil War: Battle of Brice's Crossroads: Confederate troops under Nathan Bedford Forrest defeated a much larger Union force led by General Samuel D. Sturgis in Mississippi. 1871, Sinmiyangyo: Captain McLane Tilton led 109 US Marines in a naval attack on Han River forts on Kanghwa Island, Korea. It was a misunderstanding. 1878, League of Prizren was established, to oppose the decisions of the Congress of Berlin and the Treaty of San Stephano, as a consequence of which the Albanian lands in Balkans were being partitioned and given to the neighbour states of Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria and Greece. 1886, Mount Tarawera in New Zealand erupted, killing 153 people and destroying the famous Pink and White Terraces. Eruptions continue for 3 months creating a large, 17 km long fissure across the mountain peak. 1898, Spanish–American War: U.S. Marines landed on the island of Cuba.
In 1940, World War II: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt denounced Italy's actions with his "Stab in the Back" speech at the graduation ceremonies of the University of Virginia. Also 1940, World War II: Norway surrendered to German forces. Also 1940, World War II: Italy declared war on France and the United Kingdom. 1942, World War II: Nazis burned the Czech village of Lidice in reprisal for the killing of Reinhard Heydrich. 1944, World War II: Six hundred forty-two men, women and children were killed in the Oradour-sur-Glane Massacre in France. Also 1944, World War II: In Distomo, Boeotia, Greece 218 men, women and children were massacred by German troops. Also 1944, in baseball, 15-year old Joe Nuxhall of the Cincinnati Reds became the youngest player ever in a major-league game.
In 1990, British Airways Flight 5390 landed safely at Southampton Airport after a blowout in the cockpit caused the captain to be partially sucked from the cockpit. There were no fatalities 1991, eleven-year-old Jaycee Lee Dugard was kidnapped in South Lake Tahoe, California; she would remain a captive until 2009. 1996, peace talks began in Northern Ireland without the participation of Sinn Féin. 1997, before fleeing his northern stronghold, Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot ordered the killing of his defence chief Son Sen and 11 of Sen's family members. 1999, Kosovo War: NATO suspended its air strikes after Slobodan Milošević agreed to withdraw Serbian forces from Kosovo. 2001, Pope John Paul II canonised Lebanon's first female saint, Saint Rafqa. 2002, the first direct electronic communication experiment between the nervous systems of two humans was carried out by Kevin Warwick in the United Kingdom. 2003, the Spirit Rover was launched, beginning NASA's Mars Exploration Rover mission. Also 2003, Wicked opened on Broadway, proceeding to win 40 awards just for the Broadway production.
I am very good and don't deserve the abuse given me. I created a video raising awareness of anti police feeling among western communities. I chose the senseless killing of Nicola Cotton, a Louisiana policewoman who joined post Katrina, to highlight the issue. I did this in order to get an income after having been illegally blacklisted from work in NSW for being a whistleblower. I have not done anything wrong. Local council appointees refused to endorse my work, so I did it for free. Youtube's Adsence refused to allow me to profit from their marketing it. Meanwhile, I am hostage to abysmal political leadership and hopeless journalists. My shopfront has opened on Facebook.
Here is a video I made The Gallant Gentleman
"Ginger Mick was a likeable rogue who, before he answered the call to arms to defend democracy, sold fresh rabbits in the streets of Melbourne. This book by CJ Dennis tells of his tender love for Rose and his experiences at war in North Africa. The verse is full of humour and pathos and truly captures the spirit of the era.
Contents:
INTRODUCTION
I. DUCK AN' FOWL
II. WAR
III. THE CALL OF STOUSH
IV. THE PUSH
V. SARI BAIR
VI. GINGER'S COBBER
VII. THE SINGING SOLDIERS
VIII. IN SPADGER'S LANE
IX. THE STRAIGHT GRIFFIN
X. A LETTER TO THE FRONT
XI. RABBITS
XII. TO THE BOYS WHO TOOK THE COUNT
XIII. THE GAME
XIV. "A GALLANT GENTLEMAN"
A month ago the world grew grey fer me;
A month ago the light went out fer Rose.
To ‘er they broke it gentle as might be;
But fer ‘is pal ‘twus one uv them swift blows
That stops the ‘eart-beat; fer to me it came
Jist, “Killed in Action,” an’ beneath ‘is name.
A month ago the light went out fer Rose.
To ‘er they broke it gentle as might be;
But fer ‘is pal ‘twus one uv them swift blows
That stops the ‘eart-beat; fer to me it came
Jist, “Killed in Action,” an’ beneath ‘is name.
‘Ow many times ‘ave I sat dreamin’ ‘ere
An’ seen the boys returnin’, gay an’ proud.
I’ve seen the greetin’s, ‘eard ‘is rousin’ cheer,
An’ watched ole Mick come stridin’ thro’ the crowd.
‘Ow many times ‘ave I sat in this chair
An’ seen ‘is ‘ard chiv grinnin’ over there.
An’ seen the boys returnin’, gay an’ proud.
I’ve seen the greetin’s, ‘eard ‘is rousin’ cheer,
An’ watched ole Mick come stridin’ thro’ the crowd.
‘Ow many times ‘ave I sat in this chair
An’ seen ‘is ‘ard chiv grinnin’ over there.
…
An’ now – well, wot’s the odds? I’m only one:
One out uv many ‘oo ‘as lost a friend.
Manlike, I’ll bounce again, an’ find me fun;
But fer Poor Rose it seems the bitter end.
Fer Rose, an’ sich as Rose, when one man dies
It seems the world goes black before their eyes.
One out uv many ‘oo ‘as lost a friend.
Manlike, I’ll bounce again, an’ find me fun;
But fer Poor Rose it seems the bitter end.
Fer Rose, an’ sich as Rose, when one man dies
It seems the world goes black before their eyes.
…
Trent tells ‘ow, when they found ‘im, near the end,
‘E starts a fag an’ grins orl bright an’ gay.
An’ when they arsts fer messages to send
To friends, ‘is look goes dreamin’ far away.
“Look after Rose,” ‘e sez, “when I move on.
Look after … Rose … Mafeesh!” An’ ‘e wus gone.
‘E starts a fag an’ grins orl bright an’ gay.
An’ when they arsts fer messages to send
To friends, ‘is look goes dreamin’ far away.
“Look after Rose,” ‘e sez, “when I move on.
Look after … Rose … Mafeesh!” An’ ‘e wus gone.
….
An’ so – Mafeesh! as Mick ‘ad learned to say.
‘E’s finished; an’ there’s few ‘as marked ‘im go.
Only one soljer, outed in the fray,
‘Oo took ‘is gamble, an’ ‘oo ‘a ‘is show.
There’s few to mourn ‘im: an’ the less they leave,
The less uv sorrer, fewer ‘earts to grieve.
‘E’s finished; an’ there’s few ‘as marked ‘im go.
Only one soljer, outed in the fray,
‘Oo took ‘is gamble, an’ ‘oo ‘a ‘is show.
There’s few to mourn ‘im: an’ the less they leave,
The less uv sorrer, fewer ‘earts to grieve.
…
A gallant gentleman … Well, let it go.
They sez they’ve put them words above ‘is ‘ead,
Out there where lonely graves stretch in a row;
But Mick ‘ell never mind it now ‘e’s dead.
An’ where ‘e’s gone, when they weigh praise an’ blame,
P’raps gentlemen an’ men is much the same.
They sez they’ve put them words above ‘is ‘ead,
Out there where lonely graves stretch in a row;
But Mick ‘ell never mind it now ‘e’s dead.
An’ where ‘e’s gone, when they weigh praise an’ blame,
P’raps gentlemen an’ men is much the same.
They fights; an’ orl the land is filled wiv cheers.
They dies; an’ ‘ere an’ there a ‘eart is broke.
An’ when I weighs it orl – the shouts, the tears –
I sees it’s well Mick wus a lonely bloke.
‘E found a game ‘e knoo, an’ played it well;
An’ now ‘e’s gone. Wot more is there to tell?
They dies; an’ ‘ere an’ there a ‘eart is broke.
An’ when I weighs it orl – the shouts, the tears –
I sees it’s well Mick wus a lonely bloke.
‘E found a game ‘e knoo, an’ played it well;
An’ now ‘e’s gone. Wot more is there to tell?
A month ago, fer me the world grew grey;
A month ago the light went out fer Rose;
Becos one common soljer crossed the way,
Leavin’ a common message as ‘e goes.
But ev’ry dyin’ soljer’s ‘ope lies there:
“Look after Rose. Mafeesh!” Gawd! It’s a pray’r!
A month ago the light went out fer Rose;
Becos one common soljer crossed the way,
Leavin’ a common message as ‘e goes.
But ev’ry dyin’ soljer’s ‘ope lies there:
“Look after Rose. Mafeesh!” Gawd! It’s a pray’r!
=== from 2016 ===
Today, a cure for Multiple Sclerosis was announced. It was discovered when leukaemia sufferers were being treated, who happened to also have MS. Their immune systems were replaced and rebuilt. The treatment has killed one, and some fifty percent have fully healed. Yesterday, MS was a death sentence. Possibly a very slow one. Today there is a treatment. It is an answered prayer.
If you lead a union you may never have to work again, for the rest of your life. Unlike a publicly listed company, you have no obligation to benefit members. And if you behave in a criminal fashion, your members will back you. And if your union is losing members, that is ok. You can allocate an industry superannuation to them and give them member details and fees. You can even choose to invest the funds into election campaigns. And if there is a union independent of the ALP, an ALP government can take out the leadership and put in someone else. And call them independent.
For some, at the moment, the Sex Party has more credibility.
If you lead a union you may never have to work again, for the rest of your life. Unlike a publicly listed company, you have no obligation to benefit members. And if you behave in a criminal fashion, your members will back you. And if your union is losing members, that is ok. You can allocate an industry superannuation to them and give them member details and fees. You can even choose to invest the funds into election campaigns. And if there is a union independent of the ALP, an ALP government can take out the leadership and put in someone else. And call them independent.
For some, at the moment, the Sex Party has more credibility.
=== from 2015 ===
The anger of the so called left drives them. Process is everything to the left, and often they call themselves centrist and look to the left. An angry Fran Kelly, interviewing Freedom Commissioner Tim Wilson, blew the dog whistle 'so called' to prefix his office. She would never have done that for the so called former Prime Minister Gillard or so called Opposition Leader Shorten. It is just that from Fran Kelly's so called centrist position, a libertarian centrist seems extreme right wing. But even if he were extreme right wing, why the dog whistle? Meanwhile a PETA loudmouth has asserted that fox hunting was terrible and foxes should be shot, not torn to pieces by dogs. So PETA hates the process, not the outcome. Shorten is not yet certain if he has forgotten if he profited from the fleecing of his union mates. It is hatred which guides him. Hatred of being found out. Hatred of the people he fleeced. Hatred of the general population for questioning him and not others who have done the same. Shorten should have followed Hockey's advice and worked to get his house.
Twin brother arrested over the murder of country school teacher Stephanie Scott. Marcus Stanford was arrested in South Australia. He is accused of being an accessory after the fact. Unlike Oscar Pistorius, neither identical twin looks like getting away with a mere ten months for a murder. Or in this tragic case, a rape and murder.
Trio of thieves, caught in Fairfield having robbed four service stations in a night, before being caught in a taxi. They allegedly used a knife to threaten employees. One, a female, is alleged to have got into shops after claiming she needed milk for her baby.
Twin brother arrested over the murder of country school teacher Stephanie Scott. Marcus Stanford was arrested in South Australia. He is accused of being an accessory after the fact. Unlike Oscar Pistorius, neither identical twin looks like getting away with a mere ten months for a murder. Or in this tragic case, a rape and murder.
Trio of thieves, caught in Fairfield having robbed four service stations in a night, before being caught in a taxi. They allegedly used a knife to threaten employees. One, a female, is alleged to have got into shops after claiming she needed milk for her baby.
From 2014
Judy Garland was an amazing talent, truly blessed, but she died tragically and young. Not too young so that the world was not aware of her talent. Her last performance she was sozzled and heckled by the audience. She delivered in reply what witnesses described as her greatest rendition of "Somewhere over the rainbow." She might not have been a good mother, but she had children. One needs to listen to others, but it is important that others aren't too enamoured in what they see they can't connect. I realised that today as I went to participate in a work for the dole scheme. I love work. I need to work. It has hurt me not being able to. But I was surrounded by people who did not share that enthusiasm. They wanted to be paid more for their effort. But it was raining, and so rather than physical effort I've been enlisted into a certificate 2 scheme familiarising me with computers. Not Macs, but old XP Windows systems. It is good to work with things that weren't meant to. I can't fail. It is Judy's birthday today. I wish her every joy.
It is a privilege to be given authority. But if you aren't a good person, you make bad choices, and Pol Pot was not a good person. But he was highly privileged. After his murderous government was faced with being removed from power from his northern stronghold on this day in 1997, Pot ordered the killing of his defence chief Son Sen and 11 of Sen's family. Son was not a good man either, he was a equivalent to Rudd, negotiating with UN until his disgusted compatriots finished him off. So many dead, so much had been given. So unworthy was the trust. Today, while I had a trainer talk continuously for four hours about himself, I was reminded of the reeducation camps those communists adore.
It is a privilege to be given authority. But if you aren't a good person, you make bad choices, and Pol Pot was not a good person. But he was highly privileged. After his murderous government was faced with being removed from power from his northern stronghold on this day in 1997, Pot ordered the killing of his defence chief Son Sen and 11 of Sen's family. Son was not a good man either, he was a equivalent to Rudd, negotiating with UN until his disgusted compatriots finished him off. So many dead, so much had been given. So unworthy was the trust. Today, while I had a trainer talk continuously for four hours about himself, I was reminded of the reeducation camps those communists adore.
Historical perspective on this day
In 671, Emperor Tenji of Japan introduced a water clock (clepsydra) called Rokoku. The instrument, which measured time and indicated hours, was placed in the capital of Ōtsu. 1190, Third Crusade: Frederick I Barbarossa drowned in the river Saleph while leading an army to Jerusalem. 1329, the Battle of Pelekanon resulted in a Byzantine defeat by the Ottoman Empire.
In 1523, Copenhagen was surrounded by the army of Frederick I of Denmark, as the city would not recognise him as the successor of Christian II of Denmark. 1539, Council of Trent: Pope Paul III sent out letters to his bishops, delaying the Council due to war and the difficulty bishops had traveling to Venice. 1596, Willem Barents and Jacob van Heemskerkdiscovered Bear Island. 1619, Thirty Years' War: Battle of Záblatí, a turning point in the Bohemian Revolt. 1624, signing of the Treaty of Compiègne between France and the Netherlands. 1692, Salem witch trials: Bridget Bishop was hanged at Gallows Hill near Salem, Massachusetts, for "certaine Detestable Arts called Witchcraft & Sorceries". 1719, Jacobite risings: Battle of Glen Shiel. 1786, a landslide dam on the Dadu River created by an earthquake ten days earlier collapsed, killing 100,000 in the Sichuan province of China. 1793, the Jardin des Plantes museum opened in Paris. A year later, it became the first public zoo. Also in 1793, French Revolution: Following the arrests of Girondin leaders, the Jacobinsgained control of the Committee of Public Safety installing the revolutionary dictatorship.
In 1805, First Barbary War: Yusuf Karamanli signed a treaty ending the hostilities between Tripolitania and the United States. 1829, the first Boat Race between the University of Oxfordand the University of Cambridge took place. 1838, Myall Creek massacre: Twenty-eight Aboriginal Australians were murdered. 1854, the first class of United States Naval Academystudents graduated. 1861, American Civil War: Battle of Big Bethel: Confederate troops under John B. Magruder defeated a much larger Union force led by General Ebenezer W. Pierce in Virginia. 1864, American Civil War: Battle of Brice's Crossroads: Confederate troops under Nathan Bedford Forrest defeated a much larger Union force led by General Samuel D. Sturgis in Mississippi. 1871, Sinmiyangyo: Captain McLane Tilton led 109 US Marines in a naval attack on Han River forts on Kanghwa Island, Korea. 1878, League of Prizren was established, to oppose the decisions of the Congress of Berlin and the Treaty of San Stephano, as a consequence of which the Albanian lands in Balkans were being partitioned and given to the neighbour states of Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria and Greece. 1886, Mount Tarawera in New Zealand erupted, killing 153 people and destroying the famous Pink and White Terraces. Eruptions continue for 3 months creating a large, 17 km long fissure across the mountain peak. 1898, Spanish–American War: U.S. Marines landed on the island of Cuba.
In 1912, the Villisca Axe Murders were discovered in Villisca, Iowa. 1916, an Arab Revoltagainst the Ottoman Empire led by Lawrence of Arabia broke out. 1918, the Austro-Hungarian battleship SMS Szent István sank off the Croatian coast after being torpedoed by an Italian MAS motorboat; the event was recorded by camera from a nearby vessel. 1924, Fascists kidnapped and killed Italian Socialist leader Giacomo Matteotti in Rome. 1925, Inaugural service for the United Church of Canada, a union of Presbyterian, Methodist, and Congregationalist churches, held in the Toronto Arena. 1935, Dr. Robert Smith took his last drink, and Alcoholics Anonymous was founded in Akron, Ohio, United States, by him and Bill Wilson. Also 1935, Chaco War ended: A truce was called between Bolivia and Paraguay who had been fighting since 1932. 1936, the Russian animation studio Soyuzmultfilm was founded.
In 1940, World War II: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt denounced Italy's actions with his "Stab in the Back" speech at the graduation ceremonies of the University of Virginia. Also 1940, World War II: Norway surrendered to German forces. Also 1940, World War II: Italy declared war on France and the United Kingdom. 1942, World War II: Nazis burned the Czech village of Lidice in reprisal for the killing of Reinhard Heydrich. 1944, World War II: Six hundred forty-two men, women and children were killed in the Oradour-sur-Glane Massacre in France. Also 1944, World War II: In Distomo, Boeotia, Greece 218 men, women and children were massacred by German troops. Also 1944, in baseball, 15-year old Joe Nuxhallof the Cincinnati Reds became the youngest player ever in a major-league game. 1945, Australian Imperial Forces landed in Brunei Bay to liberate Brunei. 1947, Saabproduced its first automobile.
In 1957, John Diefenbaker led the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada to a stunning upset in the Canadian federal election, 1957, ending 22 years of Liberal Party government. 1963, Equal Pay Act of 1963 aimed at abolishing wage disparity based on sex (see Gender pay gap). It was signed into law on June 10, 1963 by John F. Kennedy as part of his New Frontier Program 1964, United States Senate broke a 75-day filibuster against the Civil Rights Act of 1964, leading to the bill's passage. 1967, the Six-Day War ended: Israel and Syria agree to a cease-fire. Also 1967, Argentina became a member of the Berne Conventioncopyright treaty. 1977, James Earl Ray escaped from Brushy Mountain State Prison in Petros, Tennessee, but was recaptured on June 13. 1977, the Apple II, one of the first personal computers, went on sale. 1980, the African National Congress in South Africa published a call to fight from their imprisoned leader Nelson Mandela.
In 1990, British Airways Flight 5390 landed safely at Southampton Airport after a blowout in the cockpit caused the captain to be partially sucked from the cockpit. There were no fatalities 1991, eleven-year-old Jaycee Lee Dugard was kidnapped in South Lake Tahoe, California; she would remain a captive until 2009. 1996, peace talks began in Northern Ireland without the participation of Sinn Féin. 1997, before fleeing his northern stronghold, Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot ordered the killing of his defence chief Son Sen and 11 of Sen's family members. 1999, Kosovo War: NATO suspended its air strikes after Slobodan Milošević agreed to withdraw Serbian forces from Kosovo. 2001, Pope John Paul IIcanonised Lebanon's first female saint, Saint Rafqa. 2002, the first direct electronic communication experiment between the nervous systems of two humans was carried out by Kevin Warwick in the United Kingdom. 2003, the Spirit Rover was launched, beginning NASA's Mars Exploration Rover mission. Also 2003, Wicked opened on Broadway, proceeding to win 40 awards just for the Broadway production.
In 1523, Copenhagen was surrounded by the army of Frederick I of Denmark, as the city would not recognise him as the successor of Christian II of Denmark. 1539, Council of Trent: Pope Paul III sent out letters to his bishops, delaying the Council due to war and the difficulty bishops had traveling to Venice. 1596, Willem Barents and Jacob van Heemskerkdiscovered Bear Island. 1619, Thirty Years' War: Battle of Záblatí, a turning point in the Bohemian Revolt. 1624, signing of the Treaty of Compiègne between France and the Netherlands. 1692, Salem witch trials: Bridget Bishop was hanged at Gallows Hill near Salem, Massachusetts, for "certaine Detestable Arts called Witchcraft & Sorceries". 1719, Jacobite risings: Battle of Glen Shiel. 1786, a landslide dam on the Dadu River created by an earthquake ten days earlier collapsed, killing 100,000 in the Sichuan province of China. 1793, the Jardin des Plantes museum opened in Paris. A year later, it became the first public zoo. Also in 1793, French Revolution: Following the arrests of Girondin leaders, the Jacobinsgained control of the Committee of Public Safety installing the revolutionary dictatorship.
In 1805, First Barbary War: Yusuf Karamanli signed a treaty ending the hostilities between Tripolitania and the United States. 1829, the first Boat Race between the University of Oxfordand the University of Cambridge took place. 1838, Myall Creek massacre: Twenty-eight Aboriginal Australians were murdered. 1854, the first class of United States Naval Academystudents graduated. 1861, American Civil War: Battle of Big Bethel: Confederate troops under John B. Magruder defeated a much larger Union force led by General Ebenezer W. Pierce in Virginia. 1864, American Civil War: Battle of Brice's Crossroads: Confederate troops under Nathan Bedford Forrest defeated a much larger Union force led by General Samuel D. Sturgis in Mississippi. 1871, Sinmiyangyo: Captain McLane Tilton led 109 US Marines in a naval attack on Han River forts on Kanghwa Island, Korea. 1878, League of Prizren was established, to oppose the decisions of the Congress of Berlin and the Treaty of San Stephano, as a consequence of which the Albanian lands in Balkans were being partitioned and given to the neighbour states of Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria and Greece. 1886, Mount Tarawera in New Zealand erupted, killing 153 people and destroying the famous Pink and White Terraces. Eruptions continue for 3 months creating a large, 17 km long fissure across the mountain peak. 1898, Spanish–American War: U.S. Marines landed on the island of Cuba.
In 1912, the Villisca Axe Murders were discovered in Villisca, Iowa. 1916, an Arab Revoltagainst the Ottoman Empire led by Lawrence of Arabia broke out. 1918, the Austro-Hungarian battleship SMS Szent István sank off the Croatian coast after being torpedoed by an Italian MAS motorboat; the event was recorded by camera from a nearby vessel. 1924, Fascists kidnapped and killed Italian Socialist leader Giacomo Matteotti in Rome. 1925, Inaugural service for the United Church of Canada, a union of Presbyterian, Methodist, and Congregationalist churches, held in the Toronto Arena. 1935, Dr. Robert Smith took his last drink, and Alcoholics Anonymous was founded in Akron, Ohio, United States, by him and Bill Wilson. Also 1935, Chaco War ended: A truce was called between Bolivia and Paraguay who had been fighting since 1932. 1936, the Russian animation studio Soyuzmultfilm was founded.
In 1940, World War II: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt denounced Italy's actions with his "Stab in the Back" speech at the graduation ceremonies of the University of Virginia. Also 1940, World War II: Norway surrendered to German forces. Also 1940, World War II: Italy declared war on France and the United Kingdom. 1942, World War II: Nazis burned the Czech village of Lidice in reprisal for the killing of Reinhard Heydrich. 1944, World War II: Six hundred forty-two men, women and children were killed in the Oradour-sur-Glane Massacre in France. Also 1944, World War II: In Distomo, Boeotia, Greece 218 men, women and children were massacred by German troops. Also 1944, in baseball, 15-year old Joe Nuxhallof the Cincinnati Reds became the youngest player ever in a major-league game. 1945, Australian Imperial Forces landed in Brunei Bay to liberate Brunei. 1947, Saabproduced its first automobile.
In 1957, John Diefenbaker led the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada to a stunning upset in the Canadian federal election, 1957, ending 22 years of Liberal Party government. 1963, Equal Pay Act of 1963 aimed at abolishing wage disparity based on sex (see Gender pay gap). It was signed into law on June 10, 1963 by John F. Kennedy as part of his New Frontier Program 1964, United States Senate broke a 75-day filibuster against the Civil Rights Act of 1964, leading to the bill's passage. 1967, the Six-Day War ended: Israel and Syria agree to a cease-fire. Also 1967, Argentina became a member of the Berne Conventioncopyright treaty. 1977, James Earl Ray escaped from Brushy Mountain State Prison in Petros, Tennessee, but was recaptured on June 13. 1977, the Apple II, one of the first personal computers, went on sale. 1980, the African National Congress in South Africa published a call to fight from their imprisoned leader Nelson Mandela.
In 1990, British Airways Flight 5390 landed safely at Southampton Airport after a blowout in the cockpit caused the captain to be partially sucked from the cockpit. There were no fatalities 1991, eleven-year-old Jaycee Lee Dugard was kidnapped in South Lake Tahoe, California; she would remain a captive until 2009. 1996, peace talks began in Northern Ireland without the participation of Sinn Féin. 1997, before fleeing his northern stronghold, Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot ordered the killing of his defence chief Son Sen and 11 of Sen's family members. 1999, Kosovo War: NATO suspended its air strikes after Slobodan Milošević agreed to withdraw Serbian forces from Kosovo. 2001, Pope John Paul IIcanonised Lebanon's first female saint, Saint Rafqa. 2002, the first direct electronic communication experiment between the nervous systems of two humans was carried out by Kevin Warwick in the United Kingdom. 2003, the Spirit Rover was launched, beginning NASA's Mars Exploration Rover mission. Also 2003, Wicked opened on Broadway, proceeding to win 40 awards just for the Broadway production.
=== 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.
===
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 to those born on this day, across the years, along with
===- 1213 – Fakhr-al-Din Iraqi, Persian poet and philosopher (d. 1289)
- 1737 – Ruth Blay, American murderer (d. 1768)
- 1803 – Henry Darcy, French engineer (d. 1858)
- 1804 – Hermann Schlegel, German ornithologist and herpetologist (d. 1884)
- 1884 – Leone Sextus Tollemache, English captain (d. 1917)
- 1895 – Hattie McDaniel, American actress and singer (d. 1952)
- 1910 – Howlin' Wolf, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1976)
- 1918 – Barry Morse, English-Canadian actor and director (d. 2008)
- 1922 – Judy Garland, American actress and singer (d. 1969)
- 1923 – Robert Maxwell, Czech-English captain, publisher, and politician (d. 1991)
- 1929 – James McDivitt, American general, pilot, and astronaut
- 1929 – Ian Sinclair, Australian politician, 42nd Minister for Defence for Australia
- 1958 – Yu Suzuki, Japanese game designer and producer
- 1963 – Jeanne Tripplehorn, American actress
- 1965 – Elizabeth Hurley, English model and actress
- 1975 – Altiyan Childs, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist (Masonia)
- 1986 – Keith Harkin, Irish singer-songwriter and actor (Celtic Thunder)
- 1992 – Kate Upton, American model and actress
- 2001 – Sasha Obama, American daughter of Barack Obama
Despatches
- 323 BC – Alexander the Great, Macedonian king (b. 356 BC)
- 223 – Liu Bei, Chinese emperor (b. 161)
- 1552 – Alexander Barclay, English poet (b. 1476)
- 1692 – Bridget Bishop, English-American woman executed for witchcraft (b. 1632)
- 1901 – Robert Williams Buchanan, Scottish poet, author, and playwright (b. 1841)
- 1967 – Spencer Tracy, American actor and singer (b. 1900)
- 1829 – In rowing, Oxford defeated Cambridge in the first Boat Race(2002 race pictured) held on the Thames in London.
- 1865 – Richard Wagner's revolutionary Tristan und Isolde received its premiere in Munich.
- 1925 – The United Church of Canada, the country's largest Protestant church, held its inaugural service in Toronto's Mutual Street Arena.
- 1957 – Led by John Diefenbaker, the Progressive Conservative Party won a plurality of the seats in the Canadian House of Commons in the federal election, bringing an end to 22 years of Liberal Partyrule.
- 2008 – War in Afghanistan: An airstrike by the United States resulted in the deaths of eleven paramilitary troops of the Pakistan Army Frontier Corps and eight Taliban fighters in Pakistan's tribal areas.
Oxford won one. Isolde was pretty. United we stand. We are conservative. Friendly fire is not as it sounds. Let's party.
Tim Blair
HILLARY vs BERNIE II: THE BRITAINING
===Andrew Bolt
CNN GETS HEAT FOR WARMING BIAS
MARTIN HURTS
Tim Blair – Friday, June 10, 2016 (5:38pm)
Everybody’s favourite Marxist academic has been booted:
Deakin University has sacked journalism professor Martin Hirst for serious misconduct, citing three tweets they claimed breached the institution’s code of conduct for academics.Hirst, 59, was informed by letter on Thursday afternoon that his employment in Deakin’s school of communication and creative arts had been terminated. He has until 23 June to appeal.
Throw him on the pile.
===
THEY IDENTIFY AS INFANTS
Tim Blair – Friday, June 10, 2016 (4:02pm)
It’s the ultimate safe space:
A new business, a baby store for adults, is sparking outrage in suburban Mt. Prospect, Illinois, CBS Chicago reported.Dozens of residents showed up at village hall Tuesday night, calling for the business to be shut down or moved.However, officials said they had no legal basis to bar the business, Tykables, which includes features such as a seven-foot crib, an over-sized high chair and adult-sized playpen …“It’s hard for us to swallow in this community,” one concerned resident said at the village hall.
I’ll bet it is. Try mashing it all up into a yummy paste.
(Via Geoff M.)
===
YOUNG FAMILY SLIGHTLY OLDER
Tim Blair – Friday, June 10, 2016 (1:17pm)
Rather than face the wrath of voters in the 2013 federal election, former independent MP Rob Oakeshott quit politics:
“The demands on an independent MP in a regional seat are very high. It is for this reason that I cannot bring myself to commit to the coming three years.“It is out of respect for my community, for the role of Members of Parliament, and the commitment and time required to do the job, that I make today’s announcement.“I am looking forward to new challenges in life outside of the parliament, both in work and with my young family.”
Chicken Rob is now making a comeback in the seat of Cowper. May God have mercy on us all.
UPDATE: “Rob Oakeshott says he would lean towards supporting Malcolm Turnbull in a hung Parliament.”
===
WAVE POWER OVERPOWERS WAVE POWER PLANT
Tim Blair – Friday, June 10, 2016 (12:53pm)
Big waves lately pounded the NSW coast. This should have provided the moment for our old friend the Oceanlinxclean energy wave power generator to rise from the dead and finally demonstrate its awesome effectiveness at converting sea motion into electricity.
Alas, the official symbol of the Labor party only suffered further damage:
Weekend storms wreck wave generator
(Via Surfmaster)
===
Make these politicians tell you the truth about their mad spending
Andrew Bolt June 10 2016 (3:22pm)
I tried with Mark Latham last night to warn that all the big political parties were luring us over the cliff in this wickedly dishonest election campaign.
Hear it now from a financial expert:
Hear it now from a financial expert:
The Australian economy’s external position is worsening and the currency will fall below US50¢ once foreign investors realise the nation is spending like it is “stuck in 2006” and rates decline, a top bond fund manager argues.
Vimal Gor, who is head of income and fixed interest at BT Investment Management and one of the market’s more bearish thinkers, says he has been too optimistic on the Australian currency at US50¢ and “US40¢ is now our base case”. The Australian dollar is around US74¢.
===
Jane Garrett for Premier
Andrew Bolt June 10 2016 (11:54am)
I don’t know Jane Garrett, but I deeply admire a woman who’d rather resign than connive at a dirty political deal that would damage a wonderful volunteer organisation:
EMERGENCY Services Minister Jane Garrett has resigned from Cabinet in a major bombshell for the Victorian Government.
The CFA board also faces being sacked by the government.
Premier Daniel Andrews released a short statement this morning and claimed he had addressed all her issues with the CFA pay deal.
“Despite all concerns previously raised by Ms Garrett being addressed, she has indicated she refuses to support Cabinet proposals to end the long-running dispute over the CFA enterprise agreement,” Mr Andrews said.
“I have accepted the resignation of Jane Garrett from the Cabinet.”
===
“Dying” reef actually growing
Andrew Bolt June 10 2016 (9:01am)
Not something you’ll hear from a Tim Flannery or a Waleed Aly:
A survey of reefs off north Queensland has found an increase in the amount of coral despite the recent bleaching event on the Great Barrier Reef.
Scientists from Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) examined 12 reefs off the Townsville coast, between Northern Hinchinbrook and Cape Bowling Green.
AIMS found 11 reefs had continued to recover since being damaged by Cyclone Yasi in 2011. Scientists also found coral cover on seven of the reefs were at its highest levels since they were first surveyed 30 years ago.
===
A prize for blowing Jews to pieces
Andrew Bolt June 10 2016 (8:55am)
Another reason to treat the Nobel Peace Prize as a leper’s bell:
South African archbishop [and Nobel Peace Prize winner] Desmond Tutu has joined other activists in nominating imprisoned Palestinian arch-terrorist Marwan Barghouti for the Nobel Peace Prize...(Thanks to reader Grendel.)
Barghouti was jailed for five life terms in 2002, for masterminding scores of deadly suicide bombing attacks on Israeli civilian targets during the Second Intifada…
In his letter, Tutu characterized Barghouti’s actions as fighting “for freedom and peace,” and - even more ironically - hailed the mass-murderer as “an active advocate and defender of democracy and human rights, include women’s rights, and of pluralism, both religious and political, in a region and a world that desperately needs such advocates.”
===
Your next government: no mandate and an even more stroppy Senate
Andrew Bolt June 10 2016 (8:48am)
Jennifer Hewett on two terrible campaigns - and one terrible prospect:
UPDATE
Simon Benson on the rise and rise of a big-spending populist with a big say on your future:
...all this only sets up a Coalition government for an even more troubled second term if narrowly re-elected. The immediate problem will be the Senate. It’s likely to be much more obstreperous and less predictable than the one it replaces....Worse, the Senate will approve almost every handout and tax rise, but block most spending cuts. All accelerator and no brakes.
(T)h new system of voting is really a version of optional preferential voting. That means a lot of votes are exhausted more quickly, almost certainly reducing the percentage of the vote necessary to win the last one or two spots…
That is particularly risky in an environment when people are keen to express their disenchantment with the major parties. It ... offer[s] a much greater chance for two more of Nick Xenophon’s party to be elected in South Australia [and] also guarantees that a now well-known independent senator like Jacqui Lambie will be re-elected in Tasmania, along with a number of other possible independents there and in other states.
That can only make the Senate more rather than less difficult for the Coalition and any hope of getting its legislation through.. And beyond the promise of corporate tax cuts (over ten years!) and changes to super, there’s an extremely limited government agenda for which to claim a mandate anyway… It means this protracted election campaign may really only be the start of a much more protracted struggle for power in parliament.
UPDATE
Simon Benson on the rise and rise of a big-spending populist with a big say on your future:
If the polling can be believed, Xenophon will end up sharing or commanding the balance of power in the Senate after July 2…(Thanks to reader Peter of Bellevue Hill,)
Forget the spectre of Greens/Labor alliance. In terms of hypotheticals that politicians always refuse to comment on but privately obsess about, it could well end up being Xenophon who will decide who forms government in the unlikely event of a hung parliament…
At the last election [Xenophon] won 25 per cent of the Senate quota in SA, outpolling Labor and only slightly less than the Liberals… On current polling he stands to also potentially secure three Senate seats in South Australia. He is also half a chance of picking up a seat or two from the east coast states out of the 14 Senate candidates to have signed up to his party across the country. Queensland is a possibility for a Xenophon senator with the ignominious collapse of Clive Palmer. So suddenly Malcolm Turnbull’s grand plan of cleaning the independents out of the Senate doesn’t look so grand.
===
Search for Sasha’s camp
Andrew Bolt June 10 2016 (8:45am)
Reader Sasha. How do I get in touch with you to thank you for that wonderful gift?
In your reply can you mention the author’s name to sort the genuine from the frauds?
Sorry to everyone else for sounding so cryptic. I will explain when this is sorted out.
In your reply can you mention the author’s name to sort the genuine from the frauds?
Sorry to everyone else for sounding so cryptic. I will explain when this is sorted out.
===
Stop shaming mums
Miranda Devine – Wednesday, June 10, 2015 (10:53am)
The mummy blog industry has long been underpinned by self-pity. It’s full of whinges and moans and gripes about how tough it is to be a mother, how courageous and selfless we all are and how clueless and unfeeling men are.
The more whingeing, the more hits — that’s the business formula. There are whole books and newspaper and magazine articles and television advertisements devoted to the exquisite torture of motherhood, from sleep deprivation to sore nipples.
Maybe it’s a symptom of our narcissistic age, or because the average age of first time mothers has now risen above 30, or maybe it’s because women are pushed out of hospital too soon after giving birth.
But the prevailing narrative of modern day motherhood is that it is an ordeal.
God forbid anyone admit they enjoy being a mother, and find it easy and full of joy.
Whereas in a previous era, women would buy books showing them how to be better mothers, today such a concept is unthinkably sexist, misogynist, even.
Instead, our bookshelves groan with gruesome tomes dwelling on the sacrifices and petty inconveniences that come with giving birth, and their bellyaching authors are lauded for being brave and honest.
ABC newsreader Juanita Phillips gave us “A Pressure Cooker Saved My Life” recounting the ‘’thousands of small indignities inflicted by motherhood’’.
Another book, “All Joy and No Fun”, catalogues the grievances: “loss of sleep …; extensive confinement to the home and the resulting curtailment of their social contacts; giving up the satisfactions and income of outside employment; additional washing and ironing; guilt at not being a ‘better’ mother; long hours and seven day week necessary in caring for an infant; decline in their housekeeping standards, worry over their appearance.”
Internet memes of motherhood often feature celebrations when children go back to school after the holidays.
Here are the lyrics of one “Back to School Mom” rap video:
“School school school they’re back in school
“Be finally able to finally hear myself think
“Have a totally empty kitchen sink
“Drink my coffee while it’s still piping hot”
You get the picture. Sure, it’s all in good fun, but the underlying theme of modern motherhood is that children are a nuisance.
Pretty soon we come to believe the fantasy of what a brilliant career, toned body and spectacular life we would have had if we’d never had kids.
It is a destructive trend, because our behaviour is influenced by the social norms that develop from the stories we tell ourselves about our lives. When the complaints about motherhood become a habit, which distorts the truth, we have a problem.
Then like a breath of fresh air, along comes Jacinta Tynan with her new book “Mother Zen”, to puncture all the myths.
Yes, she says, motherhood is fun, rewarding and boundlessly wonderful and how lucky are we women that we get to do it!
Good for her.
The Sky News presenter is mother to two boys, Jasper, 5 and Otis, 4.
When she was first pregnant, she remembers being bombarded with tales of woe.
“Kiss goodbye to your life”, people told her. “You will never sleep again”. “Do you have any idea what you’re in for?”.
Her overall impression was that motherhood is a “career-sabotaging money sucking relationship killing sanity threatening body wrecking venture”.
The reality was the opposite. She loved being a mother.
But as soon as she wrote so in a newspaper column, she was stung by the angry backlash, accused of being a “smug mummy” and betraying the “sisterhood”.
“It’s a big taboo to actually say that you’re really enjoying your lot,” she says. “You’re not allowed to say that …
“If you do speak out and say you’re not having that [bad] experience, that you’re actually really enjoying yourself, oh my goodness, it’s like you’ve broken this unwritten motherhood code.”
Of course, some women do find motherhood tough, and some suffer post-natal depression. It’s good that social media gives them the comfort of sharing their experiences and realising that no one is perfect.
But Tynan thinks that, because “Women have fought so hard to be able to speak their truth and to be able to say they’re feeling isolated and struggling, to even hint that we’re not having that conversation any more is threatening.”
She wrote the book because she wanted other women to know that motherhood was so much better than they had been led to believe. And she found a silent army of women who craved her optimism. They told her they were too scared to admit how much they loved being mothers.
It was their guilty secret.
They would even go to mother’s group and pretend that they were sleepless and finding it all too hard. “You’re so brave to say you’re happy,” they told her. “I dare not speak up.”
Other women who hadn’t yet become mothers wrote to her: “My hopes have been lifted that I, too, will be able to survive motherhood when the time comes”.
And another wrote: “It’s nice to hear mothers talk about the joy of motherhood rather than scare the bejesus out of us non mothers”.
That’s the problem with the modern toxification of motherhood. It’s starting to scare women off having babies and persuading others they are hard done by, when, really, motherhood is the best job in the world.
The pendulum has swung too far from the 1950s-style deification of motherhood to the grim, joy-sapping phobias of today.
Time to recalibrate, ladies.
===
JUST SHOOT THEM
Tim Blair – Wednesday, June 10, 2015 (2:24pm)
A statement from PETA Australia’s Claire Fryer regarding the ABC’s mammal-tormenting Jonathan Green:
Hunting is just cruelty to animals, plain and simple. If there was a group of people chasing down dogs and cats for fun, we wouldn’t be calling it “sport”. We’d call it abuse, and that’s exactly what it is when it happens to foxes. These animals have the same capacity to feel pain and to suffer as the dogs and cats we share our homes with. Hunting, of any kind, has no place in modern society.
I’m torn – much in the manner of a dog-shredded fox – on this issue. On the one hand, foxes are vermin and should be eradicated. On the other hand, using dozens of dogs and horses does seem a very inefficient and overstaffed ABC-style method of achieving that eradication, the primary aim of which appears to be more to do with process than outcome.
===
PEERLESS SUB IN PAINLESS DEATH
Tim Blair – Wednesday, June 10, 2015 (2:11pm)
One of the greats leaves us:
Longtime New York Post news editor and film critic Vincent Musetto — who wrote what’s arguably the most famous headline in newspaper history — died on Tuesday.He had just turned 74 in May.
Musetto was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer three weeks ago. He passed away while in hospice care at Calvary Hospital in The Bronx with Claire, his wife of 50 years, by his side.“He wasn’t in any pain. He was comfortable,” said his daughter Carly VanTassell. “He passed peacefully in his sleep.”
(Via A. R. M. Jones)
UPDATE. US headlines ain’t what they used to be.
===
BOB WANTS TO KNOW
Tim Blair – Wednesday, June 10, 2015 (2:05pm)
Maybe he’s asking for a friend.
===
HEADLINE CHOKED
Tim Blair – Wednesday, June 10, 2015 (1:53pm)
A correction from the Guardian:
The words ‘Python’s venom’ were removed from the headline of this article on 6 June 2015, after John Cleese pointed out that pythons are not, in fact, venomous. Members of the Pythonidae family actually kill their prey by constriction, leading to asphyxiation.
===
WORKS WITH EITHER A FULL-BODIED RED OR A DRY WHITE WHINE
Tim Blair – Tuesday, June 09, 2015 (6:09pm)
The official Killing Season drinking game.
UPDATE. The game suggests Iced VoVos as an alcohol substitute, which might be a wise move otherwise everyone will be completely Schindler’s within 15 minutes.
===
FOUNDER OF MACROHARD
Tim Blair – Tuesday, June 09, 2015 (4:40pm)
In a logical universe, this chap would be one of the poorest people on earth:
Dr Bates Gill commenced as CEO of the US Studies Centre in October 2012 after a five year appointment as the Director of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
===
I’d like Di Natale to explain his own advice to home buyers. UPDATE: Herald unhinged
Andrew Bolt June 10 2015 (11:25am)
Can the Greens leader tell us what better advice he has for people wanting to buy their first home?
UPDATE
Astonishing. ABC AM actually leads its 7am edition with this beat up. Social media - which skews Left, young and angry - is repeatedly cited as the ABC’s measure of community reaction to Hockey’s “insensitivity”.
UPDATE
The obsession with the seeming continues. Fran Kelly and Michelle Grattan tee off about the “damage” and and “insensitive statements”. Kelly said she was in a “room full of 30 year olds” who were “apoplectic” about the comments.
Kelly even claims Hockey was “passing judgement on a whole lot of important jobs people were doing”, given people on $90,000 or so couldn’t afford houses in Sydney “very easily”.
Seriously?
UPDATE
The article is meant to incite class envy, but is financial advice more credible when it’s given by a rich man or a poor one?
The ABC starts The World Today with this same beat-up repeatedly making the false claim that Hockey told Sydney home buyers to just “get a better-paying job”. It also claims that today he acknowledges that housing prices in Sydney are high - falsely implying he hadn’t said exactly the same yesterday. If Hockey’s words were so offensive, why not quote them correctly?
UPDATE
Hockey last year sued the Sydney Morning Herald for falsely imply he was corrupt and “for sale”. I suggest this has influenced its hysterical coverage today:
Greens leader Richard Di Natale said Mr Hockey’s suggestion to first home buyers to go and get a well-paying job was “fantasy land stuff”.What is “fantasy” is to believe that getting a good, stable income is not important when contracting a big debt. But the Greens never were strong on economics.
UPDATE
Astonishing. ABC AM actually leads its 7am edition with this beat up. Social media - which skews Left, young and angry - is repeatedly cited as the ABC’s measure of community reaction to Hockey’s “insensitivity”.
UPDATE
The obsession with the seeming continues. Fran Kelly and Michelle Grattan tee off about the “damage” and and “insensitive statements”. Kelly said she was in a “room full of 30 year olds” who were “apoplectic” about the comments.
Kelly even claims Hockey was “passing judgement on a whole lot of important jobs people were doing”, given people on $90,000 or so couldn’t afford houses in Sydney “very easily”.
Seriously?
UPDATE
The article is meant to incite class envy, but is financial advice more credible when it’s given by a rich man or a poor one?
TREASURER Joe Hockey, who lives in a $6 million house on the north shore, has told first home buyers to “get a good job that pays good money”.UPDATE
The ABC starts The World Today with this same beat-up repeatedly making the false claim that Hockey told Sydney home buyers to just “get a better-paying job”. It also claims that today he acknowledges that housing prices in Sydney are high - falsely implying he hadn’t said exactly the same yesterday. If Hockey’s words were so offensive, why not quote them correctly?
UPDATE
Hockey last year sued the Sydney Morning Herald for falsely imply he was corrupt and “for sale”. I suggest this has influenced its hysterical coverage today:
Its editorial is simply abusive, emotive and irrational - a student-union-style harangue complete with class-war appeals to envy and grotesque caricatures of plutocrats sneering at “carers”, and underpinned by a seeming belief that people without much or even any income should be able to buy their own house in Sydney:
Many people would be tempted to return the favour with some personal advice for the Treasurer: find another job altogether; one that suits your apparent arrogance and disconnect from reality....May I respectfully suggest that the people running the Sydney Morning Herald are unhinged by hatred?
[Hockey] has proved yet again how out of touch he and many of his colleagues are with the people who pay politicians’ salaries.
What about the workers who staff our hospitals and care for the elderly on relatively low pay because they want to help people - are they to be excluded from home ownership in Sydney? What about young people juggling a job and study just to get ahead? Parents with young children, or carers who receive precious little by way of thanks let alone financial reward, or the local factory worker who doesn’t have the education and can’t demand the big bucks but has a family to raise and works hard but can’t risk being turfed out to some region where the jobless queue is growing?
These are the people Mr Hockey seems unable to recognise and incapable of understanding.
The Treasurer, by the way, has a $360,000-plus income package which helps maintain his family’s northern Sydney home, worth a conservative $6 million, not to mention millions of dollars in investment properties up and down the east coast.... There is also a lack of empathy that seems to surface too often from this government.
===
What did Shorten know?
Andrew Bolt June 10 2015 (9:37am)
Bill Shorten could just say no. But he refuses to simply deny he knew what Cesar Melham was up to:
OPPOSITION leader Bill Shorten came under intense pressure yesterday after a union mate of his was forced to resign from a plum political job over allegations that union members were signed up without their knowledge.The transcript is excruciating:
State Labor MP Cesar Melhem yesterday stood aside as the party’s chief whip in the Victorian upper house amid allegations that while he was state secretary of the AWU he signed a pay agreement that saved cleaning company Clean Event $6 million in wages in exchange for annual payments to the AWU to boost its membership and power base....
Mr Melhem, who is in the same faction as Mr Shorten, replaced the now Opposition leader as AWU state secretary in 2006....
Mr Shorten yesterday refused to explain if he had any knowledge of the alleged practices, despite being asked multiple times.
“I will stand by my record of what I’ve done standing up for the rights of working people in 14 years of the union movement, full stop,’’ he said.
JOURNALIST: Mr Shorten has the AWU turned its back on Cesar Melham?
SHORTEN: Labor has a very strong view on having zero tolerance for corruption in the workplace, be it from employers or unions. We have no time for that, I have no time for that. Having said that, we don’t want to run a running commentary on every bit of evidence which comes out of the royal commission.
JOURNALIST: Do you think he’s done anything wrong based on the evidence that has come out of the royal commission? I mean he is resigning from Government Whip.
SHORTEN: It does sound like, in all fairness, a question to make a running commentary on the royal commission, so again I’d refer you to the answers I’ve given since the start of the royal commission. But again, just to underline the seriousness which Labor takes all of the matters to do with integrity, we believe fundamentally that there is no time in Australia’s workplaces or anywhere else for corruption, whether it’s employer inspired or if there’s union representatives involved. There should be no tolerance for it.
JOURNALIST: Are you disappointed in his behaviour?
SHORTEN: He’s stood aside from his position, there’s nothing more I can add to the matter, thanks.
JOURNALIST: If he is found, I guess, to be guilty of what the royal commission has exposed, should he be standing down from parliament?
SHORTEN: Well you started the question with a hypothetical, again you are inviting me very politely to make a running commentary on the royal commission. I won’t do that. But I will reiterate again, Labor has no time for breaches of this sort of integrity of corruption that some people are say is going on in the workplace. So we are very clear, be it employer or union representative, Labor has zero tolerance for that.
JOURNALIST: We’re not talking about the royal commission, we’re talking about the behaviour of an individual person who you were quite close to. Surely you have got some opinion on his actual behaviour?
SHORTEN: Well in all fairness its evidence coming out of the royal commission. I’m not going to make a running commentary, he’s stood aside from his position as government whip. Again, Labor has no time, no time whatsoever for corruption of any sort be it in business or in the union movement or anywhere else.
JOURNALIST: Did you know about these allegations during your time at the AWU?
SHORTEN: Again you’re asking me to make a running commentary. As for my own record, I stand by my service towards making workplaces productive, standing up for workers’ rights and that’s all I’ve ever been committed to and indeed that is the role of the Labor Party now, to stand up for the rights of Australians. That’s why we’re here speaking on Family Tax Benefit payments because we do not believe that the Abbott Government’s cuts to working families are justified or a good idea for the future of families or Australia.
JOURNALIST: Mr Shorten the question was did you know?
SHORTEN: We’ll first of all you have asked me to make a running commentary –
JOURNALIST: No, no, the question was did you know, that’s was the question, not a running commentary on the royal commission, did you know about his individual behaviour, that was the question? SHORTEN: As I said yesterday and as I’ve said in the past and as I say again today, I will stand by my record of what I’ve done standing up for the rights of working people over 14 years in the union movement, full stop.
===
So-called impartial ABC presenter baulks at freedom word
Andrew Bolt June 10 2015 (9:14am)
The ABC’s Fran Kelly referred to interviewee Tim Wilson this morning as “the so-called Freedom Commissioner” and noted he’d been appointed by the Abbott Government.
For balance, will she in future refer to Wilson’s colleague Gillian Triggs as the “so-called president of the Human Rights Commission” and note she was appointed by the Gillard Government?
(Thanks to reader Stephen.)
For balance, will she in future refer to Wilson’s colleague Gillian Triggs as the “so-called president of the Human Rights Commission” and note she was appointed by the Gillard Government?
(Thanks to reader Stephen.)
===
“We don’t want to put race into the constitution.”
Andrew Bolt June 10 2015 (8:39am)
Say no to changing the constitution to divide us by “race”. If you won’t hear this from a white conservative, hear it from Warren Mundine, a man with Aboriginal ancestry and a former national president of the Labor party, who explains the bottom line of the ludicrous Pearson proposal to Chris Kenny from The Australian:
Watch the video at the link. It is very important.
(Thanks to reader John.)
“We don’t want to put race into the constitution.”Mundine still backs a form of recognition which I still think concedes a very important principle - that we must be one people under one law, not to be divided on the basis of the “race” of some of our ancestors.
Watch the video at the link. It is very important.
(Thanks to reader John.)
===
Rock lifted on dodgy union influence
Andrew Bolt June 10 2015 (7:20am)
The royal commission has so far triggered the resignation of a Labor MP in Victoria. Now this:
Does Labor represent voters or union bosses?
(Thanks to readers Peter of Bellevue Hill and Paul.)
The royal commission into trade union corruption appears to have claimed its first scalp with the resignation of NSW construction union boss, Brian Parker on Tuesday…UPDATE
An interim report by counsel assisting the royal commission last year accused Mr Parker of “gross misconduct”, saying he was “not a fit and proper person to hold office as the secretary of the NSW branch"…
The state secretary of the CFMEU faces allegations of deliberately lying in sworn evidence to the commission when he denied threatening to “f---ing bash” a long-serving union delegate.
The royal commission is considering a possible recommendation that Mr Parker be charged with perjury after giving evidence that was directly contradicted in voice recordings played during hearings.
Mr Parker has also denied allegations of “concocting a plan” to obtain confidential documents revealing the personal details of Cbus superannuation fund members that were hand-delivered to his office… Mr Parker is expected to face questions about his relationship with Sydney underworld figure George Alex whose labour-hire companies have been linked with alleged payments to the union. Witnesses gave evidence that the CFMEU allegedly received a weekly kickback of $2500 from companies linked to Mr Alex.
Does Labor represent voters or union bosses?
SECRET emails..., obtained by the Herald Sun, suggest that conservative Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association boss Michael Donovan’s tentacles of influence stretch into the [Victorian] Premier’s office.
Labor figures who have raised concerns about the extent of Mr Donovan’s influence say government policies to make Easter Sunday a public holiday and give a multimillion-dollar funding boost to Catholic schools were driven by his union, which has 50,000 members in Victoria.
They say the revelation of the emails — which cover a two-year period and reveal who is at the heart of the Donovan-aligned Right-wing faction — strengthen the claim that Small Business Minister Adem Somyurek was dumped as part of a political hit.
Earlier this year, Mr Somyurek angered Mr Donovan when he, along with Finance Minister Robyn Scott and Cabinet secretary Marlene Kairouz, abandoned the Right-wing SDA faction…
The emails reveal that as well as Deputy Premier James Merlino, the Premier’s chief-of-staff, John McLindon, is included on an invitation list to discuss ALP business with Mr Donovan at the SDA’s Southbank headquarters…
Factional bitterness inside the seven-month-old Labor Government is continuing to build. On Tuesday, embattled Upper House MP Cesar Melhem quit as Government Whip following allegations against him that were raised last week at the royal commission into trade union corruption.
Mr Melhem, a former Australian Workers Union state secretary, told the inquiry he was not responsible for a pay deal that saw a cleaning company’s low-paid workers lose out on penalty rates in return for payments used to boost AWU membership numbers. His evidence was later contradicted by John-Paul Blandthorn, a senior adviser in the Premier’s office. Mr Blandthorn’s father, Ian, and his mother, Anne, are both on the invitation list to the SDA meetings in Southbank, as is his sister, Lizzie, who was elected as a Lower House MP last November
(Thanks to readers Peter of Bellevue Hill and Paul.)
===
Seinfeld: too many students want to take offence
Andrew Bolt June 10 2015 (7:14am)
Too much professional offence-taking for Jerry Seinfeld:
Like Chris Rock and Larry the Cable Guy, Jerry Seinfeld avoids doing shows on college campuses. And while talking with ESPN’s Colin Cowherd on Thursday, the comedian revealed why: College kids today are too politically correct.(Thanks to reader fulchrum.)
“I hear that all the time,” Seinfeld said on The Herd with Colin Cowherd. “I don’t play colleges, but I hear a lot of people tell me, ‘Don’t go near colleges. They’re so PC.’”
Seinfeld says teens and college-aged kids don’t understand what it means to throw around certain politically-correct terms. “They just want to use these words: ‘That’s racist;’ ‘That’s sexist;’ ‘That’s prejudice,’” he said. “They don’t know what the f—k they’re talking about.”
===
Foreigners are buying our houses. How smart is this?
Andrew Bolt June 10 2015 (7:11am)
Wow. This doesn’t seem to be altogether a good thing, other than for the lucky sellers:
What on earth are we doing? And why are politicians permitting this?
During the first three months of this year one in five homes sold in NSW were bought by foreign investors according to NAB - many of them Chinese.So you’re worried about housing affordability? Why do none of the political parties discuss this obvious factor - insanely high levels of net immigration, more than 200,000 people a year, all needing a new home:
Add the other problems caused by immigration at these high levels - crowded cities, crowded roads, crowded trains, billions of dollars of infrastructure bills, assimilation problems, competition for jobs in an economy with unemployment more than 6 per cent.
What on earth are we doing? And why are politicians permitting this?
===
Meddling UN cross that the government returns Triggs’ hostile fire
Andrew Bolt June 10 2015 (6:40am)
What an extraordinary intervention from the United Nations, to tell an elected government not to criticise a human rights bureaucrat for making wild and partisan claims:
UPDATE
Triggs can at least rely on the ABC and other taxpayer-funded media outlets to not only defend her but to say black is white when excusing her more outrageous behavior:
The United Nations formally urged the Abbott government to stop attacking Gillian Triggs before Immigration Minister Peter Dutton branded her a “disgrace” and urged her to consider stepping down as president of the Human Rights Commission.Just the tribe looking after its unelected own. And if they could pass a law to quash debate, think they’d hesitate?
The UN’s special rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Michel Forst, issued the government with a “please explain” after Professor Triggs was subject to sustained criticism and a request to step down this year.
In a letter sent to Australia’s mission in Geneva in February, he also urged the government to “halt the alleged violations and prevent their recurrence”, saying the government’s response would form part of a report to the UN’s Human Rights Council.
The letter expressed “grave concern” over the verbal attacks on Professor Triggs…
UPDATE
Triggs can at least rely on the ABC and other taxpayer-funded media outlets to not only defend her but to say black is white when excusing her more outrageous behavior:
Gillian Triggs, Q & A, Adelaide, Thursday:
Have we thought what the consequences are of pushing people back to our neighbour Indonesia? Is it any wonder that Indonesia will not engage with us on other issues that we care about, like the death penalty?Joint statement George Brandis and Peter Dutton, Friday:
Gillian Triggs’, urgently needs to explain her comments ... Her comments on the execution of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran are poorly informed and foolish. They will also be offensive to Indonesia.Triggs responds, also Friday:
I was making the observation that any solution to the movement of asylum- seekers and refugees in our region should be by diplomatic negotiation ... At no time did I refer to the recent executions of the two Australians. Rather I spoke of the future need to work diplomatically to reach agreement on ending the death penalty in the region. This reflected my early public commentary on the need for a moratorium on the death penalty.The commentariat can take Triggs literally. Barrie Cassidy, Insiders, ABC television, Sunday:
She said she never made the link. You read the transcript and she didn’t.Or follow Michelle Grattan’s line from The Conversation on Monday:
It is the two ministers who should be called on to explain their statement.
===
Costs cut
Andrew Bolt June 10 2015 (5:35am)
The bill under Labor:
So this $30,000 solution for a whole boatload seems a bargain:
THE cost of supporting more than 40,000 asylum seekers expected to be in Australia next financial year is set to average more than $70,000 each person.That’s $70,000 per person per year.
So this $30,000 solution for a whole boatload seems a bargain:
Sixty-five people from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Myanmar, who were seeking asylum in New Zealand, had their boat intercepted by Australian navy and Customs officials in late May, and were then returned to the island of Rote.An opportunity missed to take credit.
The Indonesian police chief on Rote, Hidayat, said the six crew members said they had been given $US5000 each by Australian officials… The crew had $30,000 in total, which was wrapped in six black plastic bags, he said. When asked on Tuesday whether Australian officials had recently paid the crew of a boat carrying asylum seekers to stay away from Australia, Immigration Minister Peter Dutton simply said, “No.”
===
Can you trust Clive Palmer?
Andrew Bolt June 10 2015 (5:14am)
What is Clive Palmer’s word worth?:
Clive Palmer’s geologist has torn apart the MP’s claim to be the holder of the biggest iron ore deposits in Australia, telling the Federal Court that only a “very small” portion of the estimated 160 billion tonnes of iron ore under his control should be considered a resource.I ask again, what is Clive Palmer’s word worth?
Under questioning by Andrew Bell, the lawyer representing China’s Citic in its stoush with Mr Palmer’s Mineralogy over control of a Pilbara iron ore port, Mineralogy consultant geologist Arnold van der Heyden said the estimates of Mr Palmer’s holdings were based on only small amounts of drilling data…
Mr Palmer has regularly spoken of his extensive iron ore holdings, tweeting just weeks ago that “Mineralogy has more (iron ore) than BHP and Rio combined”. The website of Mr Palmer’s company refers to “the 160 billion tonnes of magnetite iron ore that Mineralogy owns”.
A confidential inquiry into spending by Clive Palmer, his confidants and his companies of about $23 million in Chinese funds has found some of the conduct had the appearance of being “dishonest” and “fraudulent”.
In a scathing judgment from a closed-door arbitration tribunal ... retired Supreme Court judge Richard Chesterman slammed “utter misrepresentation” over the funds. Mr Chesterman QC said it appeared that Mineralogy and a key Palmer executive “exploited the (Chinese funds) ruthlessly and cynically”, adding that cash was taken “without any regard” for the terms of deeds, which required the money to be spent on a remote iron ore port.
After months of evidence and investigation in the quasi-judicial tribunal in Brisbane last year, Mr Chesterman’s 58-page judgment said Mineralogy “had not shown any entitlement to any payment from the (Chinese funds) in respect of any of the years 2011, 2012 and 2013”.
The judgment explored the many withdrawals of the Chinese funds, including the biggest with two cheques — one for $10m and one for $2.167m — written by Mr Palmer to bankroll his Palmer United Party and pay its advertising agency, Media Circus, leading up to the 2013 federal election.
Mr Chesterman found: “… it cannot be accepted that the two payments totalling $12,167,065 were taken from the fund for any purpose made legitimate by clause 5 of the deeds....”
The Chinese side has asked police in Queensland and Western Australia to investigate the spending of the funds, which Mr Palmer repaid last year. He has repeatedly insisted that he did nothing wrong.
===
Posted by Random Kiwi on Monday, 8 June 2015
===
10 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT LABOR'S BUDGET2. NET DEBTLabor's $13.2 billion debt has broken the unenviable...
Posted by Liberal Party of Australia (SA Division) on Tuesday, 9 June 2015
===
Posted by 365 Days of Inspiration - by Impact on Tuesday, 9 June 2015
===
Yesterday was a fun time in New Mexico with Brandon Ivey and Marcus Gutierrez following their Storm Chasing Tour van. ...
Posted by Matt Granz on Tuesday, 9 June 2015
===
Well Joe Hockey's advice to first home buyers to get a 'good job' which pays 'good money' reminded me of this incredible...
Posted by Latika M Bourke on Tuesday, 9 June 2015
Joe's advice is sage compared to alternatives. Is Shorten's advice to those wanting a home (and car and cash) to become a union leader and not work? As for the excerpt, I'm reminded of the guy who insisted no Asians apply in his local paper advert. A journalist went to question him on his apparent bigotry. Turned out the illiterate guy meant no agents. I am sure Hockey's dad did not charge an agent's fee. Or are you of the opinion that a person's profession makes them impossible to be anything else? Even union leaders? Fairfax journalists?
===
Posted by Cheech and Chong on Thursday, 14 May 2015
===
'Well-dressed goat goes for a ride on Melbourne train': http://t.co/sjwvUKxWh6#railpage via @railpage
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) June 10, 2015
===
Good Question The question is, what earthly difference can we make? http://t.co/ganRsWJCvt via @smh
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) June 10, 2015
===
Meanwhile, the tortoise .. Mountain hare makes brave dash through Russian avalanche http://t.co/zRHKcr8Vtd
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) June 10, 2015
===
Meh, Obama worked as a male prostitute in Pakistan for the CIA. Explains everything. http://t.co/h5OoUQNUdo
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) June 10, 2015
===
At first I thought headline was euphemism. Mom Used Family Cat to Review Her Daughter's Clothing http://t.co/9c3jglHTcr via @CollegeHumor
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) June 10, 2015
===
How tolerant are progressives? Anger as Fred Nile joins Q&A to discuss 'queer issues' http://t.co/r9wHbh8Hoz via @theage
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) June 10, 2015
===
We’re still being censored! New @VirginMoney ad blocked for ‘offensive’ word http://t.co/PfnadeiTQ4 #borndifferent pic.twitter.com/oeJYScFrnU
— Richard Branson (@richardbranson) June 9, 2015
===
Photo: The most terrifying words in the English language are: I’m from the government and I’m here to... http://t.co/tQoe6GHfCV
— David Daniel Ball (@DaOddBall67) June 9, 2015
=== Posts from last year ===
Big nanny is watching you
Miranda Devine – Tuesday, June 10, 2014 (7:38pm)
NOWADAYS, thanks to double demerit points, long weekends seem to be the best way to lose your licence.
Continue reading 'Big nanny is watching you'
===
Multiculturalism at work
Andrew Bolt June 10 2014 (8:26pm)
British multiculturalism - and a demographic experiment that cannot be reversed:
Conservative Muslim school leaders in Britain’s second city, Birmingham, conducted an “organised campaign” to impose faith-based ideology on their pupils, Education Secretary Michael Gove says.(Thanks to reader Allan and many others.)
Clashes between Muslim governors and non-Muslim senior staff had led to a “culture of fear and intimidation” in which some head teachers felt forced to leave their jobs, leaving those remaining free to impose a narrow curriculum, the minister said on Monday. Mr Gove was reporting the findings of two investigations into allegations of an Islamist plot to take over the leadership of state-funded schools in Birmingham with the intention of imposing a religious agenda.
===
Gillard a victim? The real victims were the voters who trusted her
Andrew Bolt June 10 2014 (5:01pm)
Clinton knows this for a fact? Can she give for-instances of this outrageous sexism against a woman who actually became prime minister - and perhaps isn’t exactly the victim she pretends?
But I guess that explains these boo-hoo appeals to pity.
Hillary Clinton has leapt to the defence of Julia Gillard, saying in her new book that the former prime minister suffered ‘‘outrageous sexism’’.Nothing Gillard suffered by way of abuse and prejudice comes remotely near what the Left is heaping on Tony Abbott. Gillard should grow the hell up and accept her downfall was all her own work. Had she not been so catastrophically bad and deceitful, she would be prime minister still.
Mrs Clinton, whose book Hard Choices covers her time as US secretary of state, wrote that ‘‘women in public life still face an unfair double standard”. ”Even leaders like former prime minister Julia Gillard of Australia have faced outrageous sexism which shouldn’t be tolerated in any country,” Mrs Clinton wrote.
But I guess that explains these boo-hoo appeals to pity.
===
Faine is right to raise the question. But let’s not pretend he’s unbiased
Andrew Bolt June 10 2014 (11:37am)
ABC boss Mark Scott keeps claiming that the Leftist bias of almost all his presenters does not matter because they’re professionals. They are impartial.
What deceptive nonsense.
Take ABC Melbourne host Jon Faine.
In that statement, Wilson claims he was threatened and offered $200,000 to reveal the dirt on the scandal. He says this was offered to him by Harry Nowicki, a former union lawyer writing a book about the case. (Faine insists he is not saying these claims are true. Nowicki says Wilson made up these claims.) The statement concedes Nowicki allegedly demanded Wilson go to the cops. Faine also reports Wilson’s claims that whistleblower Ralph Blewitt, his former partner in the slush fund, faked a medical condition for a pension.
Faine:
But my point is this: Faine is biased. In a commercial broadcaster this would be no sin. But for Mark Scott to claim that the bias of his presenters does not manifest itself in the way they do their job is a fraud.
Whoever gave Faine that statement plainly does not believe what Scott suggests.
UPDATE
Watch the royal commission live from 10am here.
And note: Julia Gillard says she did nothing wrong and did not know what Wilson actually did with the slush fund she advised him in creating. She says she did not benefit from the slush fund. Wilson denies doing anything wrong.
UPDATE
The denials:
The counsel assisting the commission says copies of Wilson’s statement were given to those witnesses who might need to respond to it - and to their legal representatives. He gave as examples the AWU and Slater & Gordon.
UPDATE
Bottom line: we are asked to judge the relative credibility of two men, former friends and partners. One voluntarily confesses to police to having been a fraudster and implicates the other. The second man insists there was no fraud and his ex-friend is a crook. I’d say that without knowing anything else one of the two is inherently more credible.
UPDATE
Oddly enough, counsel assisting the commission takes a different view to Faine:
What deceptive nonsense.
Take ABC Melbourne host Jon Faine.
- He has played down or largely ignored the AWU slush fund scandal involving Julia Gillard.Today, Faine, who has given so little detail about the allegations against Gillard and her former boyfriend, AWU official Bruce Wilson, devotes much of his show to trashing her accusers instead, reading pages from a statement prepared for the royal commission by Wilson last week.
- He has fudged incriminating details.
- He dismissed the allegations - now being investigated by Victoria Police and a royal commission into union corruption - as ”a house of cards”.
- His belligerent and hostile interviews of journalists Michael Smith and Mark Baker, who uncovered many details of the scandal, have been criticised by the ABC as lacking “due impartiality”.
In that statement, Wilson claims he was threatened and offered $200,000 to reveal the dirt on the scandal. He says this was offered to him by Harry Nowicki, a former union lawyer writing a book about the case. (Faine insists he is not saying these claims are true. Nowicki says Wilson made up these claims.) The statement concedes Nowicki allegedly demanded Wilson go to the cops. Faine also reports Wilson’s claims that whistleblower Ralph Blewitt, his former partner in the slush fund, faked a medical condition for a pension.
Faine:
- attacks the royal commission as “intensely political”.In response I’d note:
- refers to the royal commission as an investigation into “skulduggery”, declining to use the word “corruption” in its title.
- says Wilson’s claims, if true, “destroy the credibility of many of the witnesses the royal commission seeks to rely on”.
- dismisses allegations against Gillard reported by the media as just a “relentless” campaign of “innuendo and speculation”.
- demands the royal commission investigate the Wilson claims he asserts are beyond its terms of reference.
- the claims, if true, are significant but not decisive. Several of the more important sources for the claims in this case include people not allegedly offered money by Nowicki.Faine is perfectly entitled to raise this story. He is perfectly entitled to doubt there’s much to the AWU scandal. He may even be proved right in his judgment.
- Nowicki is not accused of urging anyone to lie. As I understand him, he was instead eager for the truth to come out, as he understood it.
- many of the media reports which have been so damaging to Gillard in this matter have not been mere “innuendo and speculation”. They include legal documents, an interview conducted by Slater & Gordon partners with Gillard, and bank records.
- offering money to people to tell the truth is unwise but should not affect the ability of a good royal commission to sift truth from falsehood.
- Faine is relying on a document prepared by the person allegedly central to slush fund and the alleged rip offs. Wilson may have a vested interest in making these claims.
- Faine has not read from any of the other witness statements.
- Faine has not made the same this-is-explosive-if-true exposition of any other claims made regarding this scandal which actually go against the credibility of Wilson or Gillard.
- Wilson’s statement is not one week old yet it is given to Faine, presumably on the understanding that he will be sympathetic to the case it makes.
But my point is this: Faine is biased. In a commercial broadcaster this would be no sin. But for Mark Scott to claim that the bias of his presenters does not manifest itself in the way they do their job is a fraud.
Whoever gave Faine that statement plainly does not believe what Scott suggests.
UPDATE
Watch the royal commission live from 10am here.
And note: Julia Gillard says she did nothing wrong and did not know what Wilson actually did with the slush fund she advised him in creating. She says she did not benefit from the slush fund. Wilson denies doing anything wrong.
UPDATE
The denials:
Melbourne lawyer Harry Nowicki has angrily dismissed the claims of former union boss Bruce Wilson that Mr Nowicki offered him money in return for implicating Julia Gillard in the Australian Workers Union corruption scandal....UPDATE
Mr Nowicki ... said he had only ever offered to pay for Mr Wilson to stay in a Melbourne hotel in order to allow the former AWU boss to review documents dealing with the allegedly corrupt activities of Mr Wilson and fellow former AWU official Ralph Blewitt in the 1990s.
Mr Nowicki confirmed that he had arranged for media agent Max Markson to meet Mr Wilson to discuss the prospect of Mr Wilson selling his story to a media outlet.
‘’I arranged for Max Markson to attend. He is an expert in clients selling stories to the media. And Max Markson, Bruce and myself had a long conference exploring whether he would tell the truth on national television,’’ he said…
But he dismissed as a ‘’desperate rearguard action by a conman’’ the allegations about alleged financial incentives, which Mr Wilson has claimed were offered to him if he falsely implicated Ms Gillard in the AWU scandal…
It is understood that Mr Wilson’s statement has not yet been tendered to the unions royal commission, which resumed on Tuesday…
In the statement, Mr Wilson also said he had raised his concerns about the financial offers from Mr Nowicki to veteran investigative journalist Bob Bottom, who lives in the same town as Mr Wilson. Mr Bottom told Fairfax Media that Mr Wilson had raised these concerns with him but that Mr Bottom could not say if they were true… ‘’I was concerned that Wilson may have used my name to give himself credibility,’’ Mr Bottom said.
The counsel assisting the commission says copies of Wilson’s statement were given to those witnesses who might need to respond to it - and to their legal representatives. He gave as examples the AWU and Slater & Gordon.
UPDATE
Bottom line: we are asked to judge the relative credibility of two men, former friends and partners. One voluntarily confesses to police to having been a fraudster and implicates the other. The second man insists there was no fraud and his ex-friend is a crook. I’d say that without knowing anything else one of the two is inherently more credible.
UPDATE
Oddly enough, counsel assisting the commission takes a different view to Faine:
FORMER union official Bruce Wilson — the ex-boyfriend of Julia Gillard — should face criminal charges for conspiring to create sham invoices to justify secret payments running to hundreds of thousands of dollars, a royal commission has been told.
Counsel assisting Jeremy Stoljar SC told the royal commission into union corruption that evidence had established that Mr Wilson conspired with his then Australian Workers’ Union sidekick, confessed bagman Ralph Blewitt, to create a slush fund called the Workplace Reform Association in 1992 for the purpose of issuing false invoices to the Thiess construction company in Perth.
The association was meant to provide safety services to Thiess — but Mr Stoljar said it did not engage in any genuine work… Ms Gillard had a role in helping Mr Wilson set up the Workplace Reform Association by providing legal advice, although she insists she did nothing wrong.
In a 1995 formal interview Slater & Gordon’s head partner, Peter Gordon, Ms Gillard admitted that she thought the association was a union “slush fund” for election purposes but said she had no knowledge of its actual operations and did not play any role in the fund after providing legal advice to help set it up…
It was confirmed, Mr Stoljar said, that money from the slush fund was used to partly fund the purchase of property in the Melbourne suburb Fitzroy in Mr Blewitt’s name. The house was lived in by Mr Wilson when he moved from Perth to Melbourne to head the AWU’s Victorian branch in 1993.
Ms Gillard had no personal financial interest in this property, but she attended the auction with Mr Wilson and was involved in the drafting of a power of attorney document giving him the power to bid for it. She also arranged the conveyancing work. On a second point, about which the commission heard there remained “factual controversy”, Mr Stoljar said evidence would be heard that money from the slush fund was also used to pay for renovations on another Melbourne house in Abbotsford owned by Ms Gillard.
===
Leave scheme could have been a better promise to break
Andrew Bolt June 10 2014 (9:50am)
Not very surprising:
TONY Abbott has been told his paid parental leave scheme faces defeat in the Senate, with enough rebel Nationals and Liberal senators prepared to vote against the proposal to ensure its demise.
The Australian has confirmed that senior ministers have conveyed to the Prime Minister that Nationals senators Ron Boswell, Barry O’Sullivan and John Williams would vote against the PPL scheme in the upper house… Liberal senators Dean Smith from Western Australia, Cory Bernardi from South Australia and Ian Macdonald from Queensland have previously expressed public reservations about the scheme, which provides six months on full pay to new mothers.
With 39 votes required to pass legislation in the Senate, five Coalition senators failing to vote in favour of the scheme would ensure its defeat. The Coalition has 34 senators in the current Senate and would need the support of the nine Greens, who have indicated they will negotiate, to pass the PPL in the face of opposition from independent Nick Xenophon and DLP senator John Madigan.
===
The new journalism: report anonymous Twitter graffiti you like and dress it up as important
Andrew Bolt June 10 2014 (8:05am)
Another example of lazy room-of-mirrors journalism, where what some of the usual no-account Leftists predictably blurt out on Twitter about Tony Abbott is treated as news by fellow Leftists in the mainstream media - simply because it fits the preferred prejudice:
Once again, the example comes from the Sydney Morning Herald, which devotes a whole article to this:
Left-wing technology ZDnet website.
Their opinions are worth newsprint?
Once again, the example comes from the Sydney Morning Herald, which devotes a whole article to this:
Mr Abbott was the talk of Twitter yet again on Monday for a minor slip of the tongue during an official visit to Canada. Or is that Canadia?Strip the report to its essentials and we have the Sydney Morning Herald making a story of the opinions expressed on an insignificant slip by people identifying themselves as Coalition Tea Lady (identity unknown), Queen Nuggy Llas (506 followers) and Josh Taylor, some journalists on the little-known
Their opinions are worth newsprint?
===
Plibersek the Nigella no-friends of warming politics
Andrew Bolt June 10 2014 (7:59am)
Journalists bought this ill-advised sledge from Labor foreign affairs spokesman Tanya Plibersek, who days later is proved hopelessly wrong:
“Australians have to worry that [Tony Abbott will] be embarrassing us on the world stage,” she told reporters in Sydney…Is the shadow foreign minister calling the Canadian Prime Minister a “Nigel no-friends”, too?:
Plibersek said the rest of the world was moving forward on climate-change action but Abbott was a “Nigel no-friends” on the world stage.
TONY Abbott and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper have dismissed the need to escalate action on climate change in response to a new US edict to cut carbon emissions, insisting their own plans do enough to tackle the problem…Is Plibersek the Nigella no-friends of international politics?:
Both leaders, who are seen as “like-minded” conservatives on climate and other issues, emphasised the risk of going too far on climate change in ways that would destroy jobs and growth…
Mr Harper bluntly warned that no country would take action that hurt jobs no matter what it said in global councils on climate change targets…
“No country is going to undertake actions on climate change, no matter what they say, that are going to deliberately destroy jobs and growth in their country. “And we are just a little more frank about that, but that is the approach that everyone has.”
Harper, speaking of positions that Abbott has taken as this year’s chair of the G20 group of nations, commended his Australian counterpart for encouraging other countries “to boost economic growth, to lower taxes when possible and to eliminate harmful ones, most notably the job-killing carbon tax.”
===
Top 10 dud predictions from global warmists. Plus a few more…
Andrew Bolt June 10 2014 (7:23am)
Steven Goddard draws up a list:
(Thanks to reader Old Fellah.)
Ten climate forecasts which demonstrate that the world’s leading government climate experts have absolutely no clue what they are talking about.His list:
NASA’s top experts said that burning fossil fuels would trigger an ice age…Here are 10 top dud predictions from a longer list I’ve put together for a book to be published by the IPA.
Snow is a thing of the past…
Arctic ice free by 2000…
New ice age coming…
Manhattan underwater by 2008…
Arctic ice free by 2013…
Antarctica will soon be the only place to live…
Skiing is doomed…Six degrees warming by 2020…
Arctic ice-free by 2014...
(Thanks to reader Old Fellah.)
===
More boat people have left than arrived under Abbott
Andrew Bolt June 10 2014 (7:19am)
You can be certain this would not have happened under Labor:
In what is being described as a turning point in the Abbott government’s pledge to shut down the people-smuggling racket, the total number of asylum seekers either in detention or detained in the community has begun to go backward for the first time in six years.
Department of Immigration and Border Protection figures confirmed a total 1127 people, who the Abbott government considered illegal entries, had been returned to their country of origin since September 18… This now outnumbers the total number of arrivals since the start of the government’s controversial border protection policy, which peaked at 1111 before the flow of boats was brought to a halt.
===
Claim: union official paid painters at Gillard’s home
Andrew Bolt June 10 2014 (7:12am)
Sure, the claims now go back nearly two decades, but Julia Gillard’s denials were made as Prime Minister:
UPDATE
Watch the royal commission live from 10am here.
PAINTERS employed by Julia Gillard to help renovate her home were paid in cash by an Australian Workers Union official, Bill “the Greek” Telikostoglou, according to a former union employee.Julia Gillard has said she paid for her renovations herself. She says she did nothing wrong and did not know what Wilson actually did with the slush fund she advised him in creating.
Wayne Hem, who worked for the allegedly corrupt AWU official Bruce Wilson, the boyfriend and client of Ms Gillard, a salaried partner at Slater & Gordon lawyers in the 1990s, has made the claim to the royal commission into union corruption…
According to the evidence, Mr Telikostoglou, a heavily built AWU “enforcer” at the time, said to Mr Hem “that he had to go to this house to pay some tradesmen”. Mr Hem is expected to testify that in his presence at the Abbotsford house, Mr Telikostoglou, who was once described by Ms Gillard as a “big Greek bullshit artist”, handed an envelope to one of the painters doing work there…
Mr Hem has told The Australian of a separate transaction in which he paid $5000 in cash into Ms Gillard’s bank account on Mr Wilson’s instruction in 1995.
UPDATE
Watch the royal commission live from 10am here.
===
Palmer accused
Andrew Bolt June 10 2014 (7:05am)
The LNP should have reported this earlier, but better late than never:
UPDATE
Mike Willesee unmasks Clive Palmer and clueless politicians:
CLIVE Palmer offered to drop all litigation and claims against the Queensland government in return for favourable treatment for his proposed $8.4 billion coal project in the state’s north as part of a “settlement” the government believes would have amounted to corruption if accepted.Palmer denies the claims.
The remarkable settlement document, released to The Australian yesterday by Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney, will be examined by the Crime and Misconduct Commission as part of an assessment of potential “official corruption” under the Criminal Code.
It is the latest salvo in an escalating fight in which Mr Palmer is accused of starting the Palmer United Party to wreak revenge after being rebuffed in attempts to “bribe” and “buy” Premier Campbell Newman’s government…
Under the terms of the document, Waratah Coal would agree to “discontinue all current litigation” against the government and release the government from all claims Waratah had in relation to the China First Coal Project — an $8.4bn project involving coalmines, a 450km rail line and port operation in Queensland’s Galilee Basin.
In return, Mr Seeney and Mr Newman would have been required to bypass normal environmental and economic approval processes, effectively giving Mr Palmer’s project a golden rubber-stamp… Waratah, which is wholly owned by Mr Palmer’s Mineralogy, also demanded an effective immunity for the company, Mr Palmer and their related parties from any “future offences” against the Criminal Code for three years.
UPDATE
Mike Willesee unmasks Clive Palmer and clueless politicians:
(Thanks to reader Peter of Bellevue Hill.)
BEHIND the painted face of a clown you may find a serious man. So when Clive Palmer invited me to fly to Boston with a team from the Seven Network’s Sunday Night , I readily accepted…
Palmer was a no-show ... The excuses started: ... When I met him at his Coolum resort on the Sunshine Coast, the deceit would become full-blown...I have been criticised for exposing [Ricky Muir] to a television camera, but in editing he was comparatively protected.
My first question to him was what he wanted to achieve for motorists in the Senate. He told me he wanted to be able to customise his car. When asked how the Senate could help him do that he whispered that he could not answer the question…
As to the claim that we sneakily filmed [Palmer’s] conversations with some of his team: we miked them up and placed them behind me so as to be in shot.
Muir: “You being recorded right now?”
Palmer: “Don’t have a problem … yeah, I’m being recorded.”
Sneaky? Not possible. My conclusion: behind the painted face I found more paint.
===
===
===
===
===
===
Hajnal Ban[edit]
Can some more editors please keep an eye on this page? An editor is repeatedly adding claims that Ban has ties to far-right organisations, cited to an Australian article that doesn't actually remotely support the things claimed. The Drover's Wife (talk) 09:45, 9 June 2014 (UTC)
- Thanks for the heads up. Will add Hajnal Ban to watchlist. --Pete (talk) 22:31, 9 June 2014 (UTC)
- Just had a look. Who is the editor you say is repeatedly adding these claims? Are you talking about User:WWGB? If so, you are incorrect. The source indicates that the Australian Tea Party supports Black/Ban, but as you rightly point out she hasn't admitted it. --Pete (talk) 22:43, 9 June 2014 (UTC)
- No, if you look at the edit history WWGB had an edit conflict trying to fix a grammatical error that led to the stuff being re-inserted. This has actually been sitting on the page since at least March 2012, and the editor involved appears to be User:Ddball, who has been editing the page ever since. The statement is very clear that she "openly acknowledges" being backed by them, which is not remotely supported by the source. They did back her, yes, but I'm far from convinced that is notable since she does not appear to have acknowledged them in any way. Frickeg (talk) 23:24, 9 June 2014 (UTC)
- What Frickeg said. The editor is also making claims about Ban having ties to the Australian Defence League, which is a considerably nastier organisation than the "Australian TEA Party" and doesn't seem to be mentioned in the source at all. The Drover's Wife (talk) 00:13, 10 June 2014 (UTC)
- What Frickeg said. The editor is also making claims about Ban having ties to the Australian Defence League, which is a considerably nastier organisation than the "Australian TEA Party" and doesn't seem to be mentioned in the source at all. The Drover's Wife (talk) 00:13, 10 June 2014 (UTC)
- No, if you look at the edit history WWGB had an edit conflict trying to fix a grammatical error that led to the stuff being re-inserted. This has actually been sitting on the page since at least March 2012, and the editor involved appears to be User:Ddball, who has been editing the page ever since. The statement is very clear that she "openly acknowledges" being backed by them, which is not remotely supported by the source. They did back her, yes, but I'm far from convinced that is notable since she does not appear to have acknowledged them in any way. Frickeg (talk) 23:24, 9 June 2014 (UTC)
- The ADL and the Australian Tea Party are the same organisation. Under the leadership of David Goodridge the Australian Tea Party was created to tap into the US political funding cycle .. which is something he told me in a phone conversation while he was trying to recruit me. The issue is neither here nor there, Hajnal came out as the most senior member of that party having been elected. The ADL is a brother organisation to the ADL in the US which is from the EDL .. and BNP .. Those details are not in the article, but truths which Goodridge goes to great pains to obscure. The article should correctly position Hajnal's politics and connection to the far right party .. note, the EDL in UK style themselves occasionally as conservative too .. it doesn't make it true. ADL/Tea Party politics are reactionary anti immigration and opposing cultural pluralism while conservative politics is not. DDB (talk) 08:03, 10 June 2014 (UTC)
- But, even if that were all true, none of it is supported by the source you were citing. For something as controversial as this, it is even more important to have accurate, reliable citation, especially on a BLP. Your own experience is all well and good, but not a reliable source, as I'm sure you're aware. If you can find a reliable source indicating all of that, then, maybe, if it can be established as notable, we could think about including it. Frickeg (talk) 08:12, 10 June 2014 (UTC)
- The fact is fact and I am at arms length to the subject and the issue. I know neither Hajnal nor deal with the ADL/Australian Tea Party. The article was made with Hajnal's permission/cooperation. It was a puff piece at a time when the group were hoping to leverage support and the court case seems to be relevant only to her. My sole aim with the edits was to be encyclopaedic and accurate and precise. It is a wilful mislabel to cal Hajnal conservative .. she is not. Maybe Hajnal does not endorse the realities of the Australian Tea Party .. that is almost certainly true even if she were trying to adhere to their extremist dictates. I have no hidden agenda here and will happily ignore the page from now on. However, I respectfully point out it neither wrong, nor biased, to accurately portray the public position of a public figure. DDB (talk) 09:27, 10 June 2014 (UTC)
- It is basic wikipolicy to cite a reliable source. If an editor uses their own personal knowledge, it is Original Research and may not be used. Especially not in a BLP. Anything unsourced is subject to immediate removal. --Pete (talk) 09:30, 10 June 2014 (UTC)
- It is basic wikipolicy to cite a reliable source. If an editor uses their own personal knowledge, it is Original Research and may not be used. Especially not in a BLP. Anything unsourced is subject to immediate removal. --Pete (talk) 09:30, 10 June 2014 (UTC)
- The fact is fact and I am at arms length to the subject and the issue. I know neither Hajnal nor deal with the ADL/Australian Tea Party. The article was made with Hajnal's permission/cooperation. It was a puff piece at a time when the group were hoping to leverage support and the court case seems to be relevant only to her. My sole aim with the edits was to be encyclopaedic and accurate and precise. It is a wilful mislabel to cal Hajnal conservative .. she is not. Maybe Hajnal does not endorse the realities of the Australian Tea Party .. that is almost certainly true even if she were trying to adhere to their extremist dictates. I have no hidden agenda here and will happily ignore the page from now on. However, I respectfully point out it neither wrong, nor biased, to accurately portray the public position of a public figure. DDB (talk) 09:27, 10 June 2014 (UTC)
- But, even if that were all true, none of it is supported by the source you were citing. For something as controversial as this, it is even more important to have accurate, reliable citation, especially on a BLP. Your own experience is all well and good, but not a reliable source, as I'm sure you're aware. If you can find a reliable source indicating all of that, then, maybe, if it can be established as notable, we could think about including it. Frickeg (talk) 08:12, 10 June 2014 (UTC)
===
===
===
===
===
===
===
===
===
===
===
===
Larry Pickering
ONE MAN’S BOAT TRIP TO OZ
Esmail is a 22yo Iranian man. His family of four is considered middle class. His father, who works as an engineer for an Iranian oil company, decided to move his family to Australia but first Esmail had to get there using the services of an Indonesian people smuggler. This is how Esmail did it.
Esmail’s father had located a phone number in Kabul, Afghanistan. He was told to transfer $US10,000 to an Indonesian bank account and, once received, Esmail was to go by bus to Kabul where he would be met by a Pakistani man who would arrange for his passport and ID.
The cost of the ID would be $US3,000 and Esmail would need another $US4,000 for air fares and $US500 for his own expenses. He must take only a minimum of belongings.
All was arranged.
Esmail was met at the Kabul bus terminal and was taken by car with four other men to Jalalabad, close to the Pakistan border.
There, in a dirty office and along with the other men, Esmail was photographed, given a different birthdate (he didn’t understand why until later, but for now he would be 19). His new ID details were sent to Peshawar in Pakistan.
Esmail was then told that he must wait in Jalalabad until his passport was processed.
Ten days later the Pakistani man bundled Esmail and 14 other men of different nationalities into a van and drove over the border to Islamabad in Pakistan where Esmail gave the Pakistani $US4,000 for his airfare.
All the men were left at a staging point while the Pakistani man went to purchase the airfares. Soon the men were being driven to Islamabad airport and they were talking excitedly about the boat trip.
At the airport they were all given their new passports and air tickets and were told they would be landing in Bangkok, Thailand, where they would wait two hours in a transit lounge before flying to Jakarta where they would be met by an Indonesian man. All went as planned.
The first thing the Indonesian man did was collect all the passports. They were told they would be leaving without any ID. (Esmail understood the passports were sent back to the Pakistani forgers for reprocessing using different photographs.)
No-one complained as they were now completely at the mercy of the smugglers.
From Jakarta they were driven south for around four hours to a small coastal town and parked at another staging point where they were told some of them would be leaving the next day. Esmail was one of those who departed in the morning.
The sea trip was uneventful. The cramped boat stank of fumes and the toilets became blocked after a few hours. Fifty or more people, mostly men, took turns at cooking rice and bits of chicken soaked in salty water, much of which finished up overboard as half the occupants were seasick.
Esmail lost count of the days but the boat was soon being escorted to Christmas Island where he was interviewed for two hours and sent to a detention area.
A week later he was flown to Darwin where he was again interviewed, issued with a bridging visa, and flown to Melbourne.
Esmail is now on the Gold Coast, Queensland, sharing a flat with four bridging visa holders. He now has permanent residency and is studying English at school. He cannot work due to his poor English and intends to go to Griffith University next year.
He says he has no interest in Islam but claims he attends a local mosque (only to improve his English he explains). He has applied to have his family accepted under a family reunion provision but believes this may take years, if at all.
Now, I can’t say everything Esmail told me is true but one thing is certain, the level of sophistication in people smuggling has grown exponentially since Rudd dismantled our borders.
The route that Esmail took is just one of the many well-oiled ways for an illegal immigrant to get to Australia.
The pre-Abbott rush with the inevitable loss of life is set to continue and, interestingly, it appears that these passports are not chucked overboard as we have been told, but are returned to Pakistan for recycling.
I wonder if our insulated Canberra politicians understand what is really happening out there.
The cost of the ID would be $US3,000 and Esmail would need another $US4,000 for air fares and $US500 for his own expenses. He must take only a minimum of belongings.
All was arranged.
Esmail was met at the Kabul bus terminal and was taken by car with four other men to Jalalabad, close to the Pakistan border.
There, in a dirty office and along with the other men, Esmail was photographed, given a different birthdate (he didn’t understand why until later, but for now he would be 19). His new ID details were sent to Peshawar in Pakistan.
Esmail was then told that he must wait in Jalalabad until his passport was processed.
Ten days later the Pakistani man bundled Esmail and 14 other men of different nationalities into a van and drove over the border to Islamabad in Pakistan where Esmail gave the Pakistani $US4,000 for his airfare.
All the men were left at a staging point while the Pakistani man went to purchase the airfares. Soon the men were being driven to Islamabad airport and they were talking excitedly about the boat trip.
At the airport they were all given their new passports and air tickets and were told they would be landing in Bangkok, Thailand, where they would wait two hours in a transit lounge before flying to Jakarta where they would be met by an Indonesian man. All went as planned.
The first thing the Indonesian man did was collect all the passports. They were told they would be leaving without any ID. (Esmail understood the passports were sent back to the Pakistani forgers for reprocessing using different photographs.)
No-one complained as they were now completely at the mercy of the smugglers.
From Jakarta they were driven south for around four hours to a small coastal town and parked at another staging point where they were told some of them would be leaving the next day. Esmail was one of those who departed in the morning.
The sea trip was uneventful. The cramped boat stank of fumes and the toilets became blocked after a few hours. Fifty or more people, mostly men, took turns at cooking rice and bits of chicken soaked in salty water, much of which finished up overboard as half the occupants were seasick.
Esmail lost count of the days but the boat was soon being escorted to Christmas Island where he was interviewed for two hours and sent to a detention area.
A week later he was flown to Darwin where he was again interviewed, issued with a bridging visa, and flown to Melbourne.
Esmail is now on the Gold Coast, Queensland, sharing a flat with four bridging visa holders. He now has permanent residency and is studying English at school. He cannot work due to his poor English and intends to go to Griffith University next year.
He says he has no interest in Islam but claims he attends a local mosque (only to improve his English he explains). He has applied to have his family accepted under a family reunion provision but believes this may take years, if at all.
Now, I can’t say everything Esmail told me is true but one thing is certain, the level of sophistication in people smuggling has grown exponentially since Rudd dismantled our borders.
The route that Esmail took is just one of the many well-oiled ways for an illegal immigrant to get to Australia.
The pre-Abbott rush with the inevitable loss of life is set to continue and, interestingly, it appears that these passports are not chucked overboard as we have been told, but are returned to Pakistan for recycling.
I wonder if our insulated Canberra politicians understand what is really happening out there.
===
Viewer discretion advised! Do not scroll down unless your brain is made of steel and your nerves are Teflon. Some people simply cannot stand optical illusions. For the rest of you: Check out the awesommmmmmmez.
===
Take a tour of the world’s apparently robust supply of statues, buildings, and temples–and witness the surprising grandeur of dilapidation.
1. Christ of the Abyss, San Fruttuoso, Italy
(Italian: “Il Cristo degli Abissi”) is a submerged bronze statue of Jesus, of which the original is located in the Mediterranean Sea off San Fruttuoso between Camogli and Portofino on the Italian Riviera. It was placed in the water on 22 August 1954 at approximately 17 metres depth, and stands c. 2.5 metres tall. Various other casts of the statue are located in other places worldwide, both underwater and in churches and museums.
===
The evidence keeps mounting against global warming extremism.
Award-winning NASA climate scientist Dr. Roy Spencer posted this graph which shows 73 climate computer models projecting a warmer Earth than real world observations from satellite and weather balloons show.
Share this important information with everyone who needs the facts on global warming (including delegates to the UN climate conference in Bonn):http://www.cfact.org/2013/
Details from Dr. Spencer at: http://
===
By Larry Pickering
LABOR TIED TO A TOXIC GILLARD
The true believers are preparing to take their punishment on the chin. All are aware that Gillard is about to lead them into oblivion, and there’s not a damned thing they can do about it.
Is it loyalty to their dying heroine? Not really. The factions can be ruthlessly disloyal when it suits but they have stuffed up big time this time.
Union factions, who decide the structure and future of the ALP, have led their Party to the most frustrating political dilemma in history and the blame rests squarely with Ludwig, Carr, Shorten and to a lesser extent, Howes.
When the unions’ Left and Right called a temporary truce to bestow a socialist Left woman of criminal background and limited ability with a Prime Ministership it could only ever have ended in tears... but the tears are not shed by her. It is we the people who are crying for her removal.
Of course Shorten is pivotal in the Gillard dilemma. It was he who organised her anointment. The factions are now saying to Shorten, “You got us into this mess, Bill, now you damned well get us out of it!”
But does anyone seriously believe that good little Bill will organise the reinstatement of the despised Rudd?
Okay, so polling shows Rudd might save three front benchers. The truth is he can’t save anyone. Rudd would simply force a regurgitation of all that is historically wrong with this Labor Government.
The LNP has a vault of advertising material ready to run that would make cat’s meat of Rudd, including what his own Party says of him: “A psychotic megalomaniac”, and much more.
The factions might also consider that the focus of this election campaign will be illegal immigration and thousands of drownings.
And who was responsible for dismantling our borders? Oh yes, I remember now, it was the good ol’ recently well-fed Rudd.
His busloads of staged backslappers in shopping malls across marginal seats merely grate on Gillard. They have no electoral significance.
Six weeks of Coalition advertising would condemn Rudd to a worse electoral liability than Gillard. More Labor seats would be at risk.
Even Shorten isn’t that stupid... well, maybe he is that stupid because Labor’s powerbrokers rarely consider recent history.
Like Rudd, there was another Labor PM who was unceremoniously knifed in Office. People showed outrage and this time they weren’t busloads of paid backslappers.
Hundreds of thousands filled the capitals’ streets to declare their allegiance to the assassinated one. It seemed the whole nation was in outrage.
But when the nation came to vote it was jolted by massive memory recall. The reasons why this PM was killed off became crystal clear, the nation voted accordingly, and it was a Labor wipeout.
Could the assassinated Rudd’s chances be any different? Not really, but they could be much worse.
Whitlam was a statesman who had presence, vision and unfinished reforms to attend to. Rudd is an earwax-eating grubby public servant with a nasty history and women's hands who craves attention... and his Party detests him.
At least Whitlam’s Party was steadfastly behind him and even that wasn’t enough to attract the electorate. What hope does Rudd have to save some furniture? Zero and none.
Common sense dictates Rudd should never be reinstated but this is an ALP run by intellectually challenged unionists who have never entertained common sense.
If I was Abbott I would be wetting my pants with excitement at the prospect of a Rudd return... and if I was Shorten I would be shitting my pants at the very thought of it.
===
This is typical of Hanson's bigotry .. she also opposed the Pacific Solution which actually worked until Gillard/Rudd weakened it. I don't blame people for wanting to come to Australia. I blame a bad government for putting in place bigoted murderous policy under the guise of compassion. - ed
- David Daniel Ball Worse, like the independents, Gillard and Rudd who claimed to be conservative before election, Hanson is not conservative .. give her power and she will behave stupidly. She did that before.
- David Daniel Ball
ws that would probably love to be here and fit in quite well yet we don't defend our country from known criminal que jumping scum. I have been a strong lib supporter for a long time and yes I will vote for Pauline she is great and I think she will fit in well in the senate and will protect the things that I am concerned about. Go Pauline. But my supporting Pauline has fuck all to do with my views> - David Daniel Ball That last was his response to my observation. He was supposed to argue it, not prove it
===
Holly Sarah Nguyen
Dear God, Thank-you for the valleys, for without them I would not recognize the blessing of the mountain.
===
Holly Sarah Nguyen
If you feel that you have wasted your life, Jesus can take the fragments that are left and make sure nothing is wasted. (John 6:12)
===
Pedophiles are bad .. as are those who behave like them but might not be. - ed
I went to a dinner party at a friend’s home last weekend, and met her five-year-old daughter for the first time.
Little Maya was all curly brown hair, doe-like dark eyes, and adorable in her shiny pink nightgown. I wanted to squeal, “Maya, you’re so cute! Look at you! Turn around and model that pretty ruffled gown, you gorgeous thing!”
But I didn’t. I squelched myself. As I always bite my tongue when I meet little girls, restraining myself from my first impulse, which is to tell them how darn cute/ pretty/ beautiful/ well-dressed/ well-manicured/ well-coiffed they are.
What’s wrong with that? It’s our culture’s standard talking-to-little-girls icebreaker, isn’t it? And why not give them a sincere compliment to boost their self-esteem? Because they are so darling I just want to burst when I meet them, honestly.
Hold that thought for just a moment.
This week ABC news reported that nearly half of all three- to six-year-old girls worry about being fat. In my book, Think: Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumbed-Down World, I reveal that fifteen to eighteen percent of girls under twelve now wear mascara, eyeliner and lipstick regularly; eating disorders are up and self-esteem is down; and twenty-five percent of young American women would rather win America’s next top model than the Nobel Peace Prize. Even bright, successful college women say they’d rather be hot than smart. A Miami mom just died from cosmetic surgery, leaving behind two teenagers. This keeps happening, and it breaks my heart.
Teaching girls that their appearance is the first thing you notice tells them that looks are more important than anything. It sets them up for dieting at age 5 and foundation at age 11 and boob jobs at 17 and Botox at 23. As our cultural imperative for girls to be hot 24/7 has become the new normal, American women have become increasingly unhappy. What’s missing? A life of meaning, a life of ideas and reading books and being valued for our thoughts and accomplishments.
That’s why I force myself to talk to little girls as follows.
“Maya,” I said, crouching down at her level, looking into her eyes, “very nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you too,” she said, in that trained, polite, talking-to-adults good girl voice.
“Hey, what are you reading?” I asked, a twinkle in my eyes. I love books. I’m nuts for them. I let that show.
Her eyes got bigger, and the practiced, polite facial expression gave way to genuine excitement over this topic. She paused, though, a little shy of me, a stranger.
“I LOVE books,” I said. “Do you?”
Most kids do.
“YES,” she said. “And I can read them all by myself now!”
“Wow, amazing!” I said. And it is, for a five year old. You go on with your bad self, Maya.
“What’s your favorite book?” I asked.
“I’ll go get it! Can I read it to you?”
Purplicious was Maya’s pick and a new one to me, as Maya snuggled next to me on the sofa and proudly read aloud every word, about our heroine who loves pink but is tormented by a group of girls at school who only wear black. Alas, it was about girls and what they wore, and how their wardrobe choices defined their identities. But after Maya closed the final page, I steered the conversation to the deeper issues in the book: mean girls and peer pressure and not going along with the group. I told her my favorite color in the world is green, because I love nature, and she was down with that.
Not once did we discuss clothes or hair or bodies or who was pretty. It’s surprising how hard it is to stay away from those topics with little girls, but I’m stubborn.
I told her that I’d just written a book, and that I hoped she’d write one too one day. She was fairly psyched about that idea. We were both sad when Maya had to go to bed, but I told her next time to choose another book and we’d read it and talk about it. Oops. That got her too amped up to sleep, and she came down from her bedroom a few times, all jazzed up.
So, one tiny bit of opposition to a culture that sends all the wrong messages to our girls. One tiny nudge towards valuing female brains. One brief moment of intentional role modeling. Will my few minutes with Maya change our multibillion dollar beauty industry, reality shows that demean women, our celebrity-manic culture? No. But I did change Maya’s perspective for at least that evening.
Try this the next time you meet a little girl. She may be surprised and unsure at first, because few ask her about her mind, but be patient and stick with it. Ask her what she’s reading. What does she like and dislike, and why? There are no wrong answers. You’re just generating an intelligent conversation that respects her brain. For older girls, ask her about current events issues: pollution, wars, school budgets slashed. What bothers her out there in the world? How would she fix it if she had a magic wand? You may get some intriguing answers. Tell her about your ideas and accomplishments and your favorite books. Model for her what a thinking woman says and does.
And let me know the response you get at www.Twitter.com/lisabloom.
Here’s to changing the world, one little girl at a time.
===
- 1838 – More than 25 Australian Aborigines were massacred near Inverell, New South Wales.
- 1871 – Nine days after Korean shore batteries attacked two American warships, an American punitive expedition landed and captured several forts on Ganghwa Island.
- 1918 – First World War: Italian torpedo boats sank theAustro-Hungarian dreadnought SMS Szent István off the Dalmatiancoast.
- 1957 – Led by John Diefenbaker (pictured), the Progressive Conservative Party won a plurality of the seats in the Canadian House of Commons in the federal election, bringing an end to 22 years of Liberal Party rule.
- 1991 – Eleven-year-old Jaycee Lee Dugard was kidnapped in South Lake Tahoe, California; she would remain a captive until 2009.
- 671 – Emperor Tenji of Japan introduces a water clock (clepsydra) called Rokoku. The instrument, which measures time and indicates hours, is placed in the capital of Ōtsu.
- 1190 – Third Crusade: Frederick I Barbarossa drowns in the river Saleph while leading an army to Jerusalem.
- 1329 – The Battle of Pelekanon results in a Byzantine defeat by the Ottoman Empire.
- 1523 – Copenhagen is surrounded by the army of Frederick I of Denmark, as the city won't recognise him as the successor of Christian II of Denmark.
- 1539 – Council of Trent: Pope Paul III sends out letters to his bishops, delaying the Council due to war and the difficulty bishops had traveling to Venice.
- 1596 – Willem Barents and Jacob van Heemskerk discover Bear Island.
- 1619 – Thirty Years' War: Battle of Záblatí, a turning point in the Bohemian Revolt.
- 1624 – Signing of the Treaty of Compiègne between France and the Netherlands.
- 1692 – Salem witch trials: Bridget Bishop is hanged at Gallows Hill near Salem, Massachusetts, for "certaine Detestable Arts called Witchcraft & Sorceries".
- 1719 – Jacobite risings: Battle of Glen Shiel.
- 1786 – A landslide dam on the Dadu River created by an earthquake ten days earlier collapses, killing 100,000 in the Sichuan province of China.
- 1793 – The Jardin des Plantes museum opens in Paris. A year later, it becomes the first public zoo.
- 1793 – French Revolution: Following the arrests of Girondin leaders, the Jacobins gain control of the Committee of Public Safety installing the revolutionary dictatorship.
- 1805 – First Barbary War: Yusuf Karamanli signs a treaty ending the hostilities between Tripolitania and the United States.
- 1829 – The first Boat Race between the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge takes place on the Thames in London.
- 1838 – Myall Creek massacre: Twenty-eight Aboriginal Australians are murdered.
- 1854 – The first class of United States Naval Academy students graduate.
- 1861 – American Civil War: Battle of Big Bethel: Confederate troops under John B. Magruder defeat a much larger Union force led by General Ebenezer W. Pierce in Virginia.
- 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Brice's Crossroads: Confederate troops under Nathan Bedford Forrestdefeat a much larger Union force led by General Samuel D. Sturgis in Mississippi.
- 1871 – Sinmiyangyo: Captain McLane Tilton leads 109 US Marines in a naval attack on Han River forts on Kanghwa Island, Korea.
- 1878 – League of Prizren is established, to oppose the decisions of the Congress of Berlin and the Treaty of San Stefano, as a consequence of which the Albanian lands in Balkans were being partitioned and given to the neighbor states of Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria and Greece.
- 1886 – Mount Tarawera in New Zealand erupts, killing 153 people and burying the famous Pink and White Terraces. Eruptions continue for three months creating a large, 17 km long fissure across the mountain peak.
- 1898 – Spanish–American War: U.S. Marines land on the island of Cuba.
- 1916 – The Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire was declared by Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca.
- 1918 – The Austro-Hungarian battleship SMS Szent István sinks off the Croatian coast after being torpedoed by an Italian MAS motorboat; the event is recorded by camera from a nearby vessel.
- 1924 – Fascists kidnap and kill Italian Socialist leader Giacomo Matteotti in Rome.
- 1935 – Dr. Robert Smith takes his last drink, and Alcoholics Anonymous is founded in Akron, Ohio, United States, by him and Bill Wilson.
- 1935 – Chaco War ends: A truce is called between Bolivia and Paraguay who had been fighting since 1932.
- 1940 – World War II: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt denounces Italy's actions in his "Stab in the Back" speech at the graduation ceremonies of the University of Virginia.
- 1940 – World War II: Norway surrenders to German forces.
- 1940 – World War II: Italy declares war on France and the United Kingdom.
- 1942 – World War II: Nazis burn the Czech village of Lidice in reprisal for the killing of Reinhard Heydrich.
- 1944 – World War II: Six hundred forty-two men, women and children massacred at Oradour-sur-Glane, France.
- 1944 – World War II: In Distomo, Boeotia, Greece, 218 men, women and children are massacred by German troops.
- 1944 – In baseball, 15-year-old Joe Nuxhall of the Cincinnati Reds becomes the youngest player ever in a major-league game.
- 1945 – Australian Imperial Forces land in Brunei Bay to liberate Brunei.
- 1947 – Saab produces its first automobile.
- 1957 – John Diefenbaker leads the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada to a stunning upset in the Canadian federal election, 1957, ending 22 years of Liberal Party government.
- 1963 – The Equal Pay Act of 1963, aimed at abolishing wage disparity based on sex, was signed into law by John F. Kennedy as part of his New Frontier Program.
- 1964 – United States Senate breaks a 75-day filibuster against the Civil Rights Act of 1964, leading to the bill's passage.
- 1967 – The Six-Day War ends: Israel and Syria agree to a cease-fire.
- 1977 – James Earl Ray escapes from Brushy Mountain State Prison in Petros, Tennessee. He is recaptured three days later.
- 1980 – The African National Congress in South Africa publishes a call to fight from their imprisoned leader Nelson Mandela.
- 1990 – British Airways Flight 5390 lands safely at Southampton Airport after a blowout in the cockpit causes the captain to be partially sucked from the cockpit. There are no fatalities
- 1991 – Eleven-year-old Jaycee Lee Dugard is kidnapped in South Lake Tahoe, California; she would remain a captive until 2009.
- 1996 – Peace talks begin in Northern Ireland without the participation of Sinn Féin.
- 1997 – Before fleeing his northern stronghold, Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot orders the killing of his defense chief Son Sen and 11 of Sen's family members.
- 1999 – Kosovo War: NATO suspends its airstrikes after Slobodan Milošević agrees to withdraw Serbianforces from Kosovo.
- 2001 – Pope John Paul II canonizes Lebanon's first female saint, Saint Rafqa.
- 2002 – The first direct electronic communication experiment between the nervous systems of two humans is carried out by Kevin Warwick in the United Kingdom.
- 2003 – The Spirit rover is launched, beginning NASA's Mars Exploration Rover mission.
- 2016 – Former The Voice contestant Christina Grimmie is fatally shot in Orlando, Florida following a concert; she died from her injuries at the age of 22.
- 867 – Emperor Uda of Japan (d. 931)
- 940 – Abū al-Wafā' Būzjānī, Persian mathematician and astronomer (d. 998)
- 1213 – Fakhr-al-Din Iraqi, Persian poet and philosopher (d. 1289)
- 1465 – Mercurino Gattinara, Italian statesman and jurist (d. 1530)
- 1513 – Louis, Duke of Montpensier (1561–1582) (d. 1582)
- 1557 – Leandro Bassano, Italian painter (d. 1622)
- 1632 – Esprit Fléchier, French bishop and author (d. 1710)
- 1688 – James Francis Edward Stuart, claimant to the English and Scottish throne (d. 1766)
- 1713 – Princess Caroline of Great Britain (d. 1757)
- 1716 – Carl Gustaf Ekeberg, Swedish physician and explorer (d. 1784)
- 1753 – William Eustis, American physician and politician, 12th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1825)
- 1804 – Hermann Schlegel, German ornithologist and herpetologist (d. 1884)
- 1819 – Gustave Courbet, French-Swiss painter and sculptor (d. 1877)
- 1825 – Sondre Norheim, Norwegian-American skier (d. 1897)
- 1832 – Edwin Arnold, English poet and journalist (d. 1904)
- 1832 – Nikolaus Otto, German engineer (d. 1891)
- 1832 – Stephen Mosher Wood, American lieutenant and politician (d. 1920)
- 1835 – Rebecca Latimer Felton, American educator and politician (d. 1930)
- 1839 – Ludvig Holstein-Ledreborg, Danish lawyer and politician, 19th Prime Minister of Denmark (d. 1912)
- 1840 – Theodor Philipsen, Danish painter (d. 1920)
- 1843 – Heinrich von Herzogenberg, Austrian composer and conductor (d. 1900)
- 1847 – John Beresford, Irish polo player (d. 1925)
- 1854 – Sarah Grand, Irish feminist writer (d. 1943)
- 1859 – Emanuel Nobel, Swedish-Russian businessman (d. 1932)
- 1862 – Mrs. Leslie Carter, American actress (d. 1937)
- 1863 – Louis Couperus, Dutch author and poet (d. 1923)
- 1864 – Ninian Comper, Scottish architect (d. 1960)
- 1865 – Frederick Cook, American physician and explorer (d. 1940)
- 1880 – André Derain, French painter and sculptor (d. 1954)
- 1882 – Nils Økland, Norwegian Esperantist and teacher (d. 1969)
- 1884 – Leone Sextus Tollemache, English captain (d. 1917)
- 1889 – Sessue Hayakawa, Japanese actor and producer (d. 1973)
- 1891 – Al Dubin, Swiss-American songwriter (d. 1945)
- 1895 – Hattie McDaniel, American actress (d. 1952)
- 1897 – Grand Duchess Tatiana Nikolaevna of Russia (d. 1918)
- 1898 – Princess Marie-Auguste of Anhalt (d. 1983)
- 1899 – Stanisław Czaykowski, Polish race car driver (d. 1933)
- 1901 – Frederick Loewe, Austrian-American composer (d. 1988)
- 1904 – Lin Huiyin, Chinese architect and poet (d. 1955)
- 1907 – Fairfield Porter, American painter and critic (d. 1975)
- 1909 – Lang Hancock, Australian soldier and businessman (d. 1992)
- 1910 – Frank Demaree, American baseball player and manager (d. 1958)
- 1910 – Robert Still, English composer and educator (d. 1971)
- 1910 – Howlin' Wolf, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1976)
- 1911 – Ralph Kirkpatrick, American harpsichord player and musicologist (d. 1984)
- 1911 – Terence Rattigan, English playwright and screenwriter (d. 1977)
- 1912 – Jean Lesage, Canadian lawyer and politician, 11th Premier of Quebec (d. 1980)
- 1913 – Tikhon Khrennikov, Russian pianist and composer (d. 2007)
- 1913 – Benjamin Shapira, German-Israeli biochemist and academic (d. 1993)
- 1914 – Oktay Rıfat Horozcu, Turkish poet and playwright (d. 1988)
- 1915 – Saul Bellow, Canadian-American novelist, essayist and short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2005)
- 1916 – Peride Celal, Turkish author (d. 2013)
- 1916 – William Rosenberg, American entrepreneur, founded Dunkin' Donuts (d. 2002)
- 1918 – Patachou, French singer and actress (d. 2015)
- 1918 – Barry Morse, English-Canadian actor and director (d. 2008)
- 1919 – Haidar Abdel-Shafi, Palestinian physician and politician (d. 2007)
- 1919 – Kevin O'Flanagan, Irish footballer, rugby player, and physician (d. 2006)
- 1921 – Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
- 1921 – Jean Robic, French cyclist (d. 1980)
- 1922 – Judy Garland, American singer, actress, and vaudevillian (d. 1969)
- 1922 – Bill Kerr, South African-Australian actor (d. 2014)
- 1923 – Paul Brunelle, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1994)
- 1923 – Robert Maxwell, Czech-English captain, publisher, and politician (d. 1991)
- 1924 – Friedrich L. Bauer, German mathematician, computer scientist, and academic (d. 2015)
- 1925 – Leo Gravelle, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2013)
- 1925 – Nat Hentoff, American historian, author, and journalist (d. 2017)
- 1925 – James Salter, American novelist and short-story writer (d. 2015)
- 1926 – Bruno Bartoletti, Italian conductor (d. 2013)
- 1926 – Lionel Jeffries, English actor, screenwriter and film director (d. 2010)
- 1927 – Claudio Gilberto Froehlich, Brazilian zoologist
- 1927 – László Kubala, Hungarian footballer, coach, and manager (d. 2002)
- 1927 – Johnny Orr, American basketball player and coach (d. 2013)
- 1927 – Eugene Parker, American astrophysicist and academic
- 1927 – Lin Yang-kang, Chinese politician, 29th Vice Premier of the Republic of China (d. 2013)
- 1928 – Maurice Sendak, American author and illustrator (d. 2012)
- 1929 – James McDivitt, American general, pilot, and astronaut
- 1929 – Ian Sinclair, Australian farmer and politician, 42nd Australian Minister for Defence
- 1929 – E. O. Wilson, American biologist, author, and academic
- 1930 – Aranka Siegal, Czech-American author and Holocaust survivor
- 1930 – Chen Xitong, Chinese politician, 8th Mayor of Beijing (d. 2013)
- 1931 – Bryan Cartledge, English academic and diplomat, British Ambassador to Russia
- 1931 – João Gilberto, Brazilian singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1932 – Pierre Cartier, French mathematician and academic
- 1934 – Peter Gibson, English lawyer and judge
- 1934 – Tom Pendry, Baron Pendry, English politician
- 1935 – Vic Elford, English race car driver
- 1935 – Yoshihiro Tatsumi, Japanese author and illustrator (d. 2015)
- 1938 – Rahul Bajaj, Indian businessman and politician
- 1938 – Violetta Villas, Belgian-Polish singer-songwriter and actress (d. 2011)
- 1938 – Vasanti N. Bhat-Nayak, Indian mathematician and academic (d. 2009)
- 1940 – Augie Auer, American-New Zealand meteorologist (d. 2007)
- 1940 – John Stevens, English drummer (d. 1994)
- 1941 – Mickey Jones, American drummer
- 1941 – Shirley Owens, American singer
- 1941 – Jürgen Prochnow, German actor
- 1941 – David Walker, Australian race car driver
- 1942 – Gordon Burns, Northern Irish journalist
- 1942 – Chantal Goya, French singer and actress
- 1942 – Arthur Hamilton, Lord Hamilton, Scottish lawyer and judge
- 1942 – Preston Manning, Canadian politician
- 1943 – Simon Jenkins, English journalist and author
- 1944 – Ze'ev Friedman, Polish-Israeli weightlifter (d. 1972)
- 1944 – Rick Price, English rock bass player
- 1947 – Michel Bastarache, Canadian businessman, lawyer, and jurist
- 1947 – Ken Singleton, American baseball player and sportscaster
- 1947 – Robert Wright, English air marshal
- 1950 – Elías Sosa, Dominican-American baseball player
- 1951 – Dan Fouts, American football player and sportscaster
- 1951 – Tony Mundine, Australian boxer
- 1951 – Burglinde Pollak, German pentathlete
- 1952 – Kage Baker, American author (d. 2010)
- 1953 – Eileen Cooper, English painter and academic
- 1953 – John Edwards, American lawyer and politician
- 1953 – Garry Hynes, Irish director and producer
- 1953 – Christine St-Pierre, Canadian journalist and politician
- 1954 – Moya Greene, Canadian businesswoman
- 1954 – Rich Hall, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
- 1955 – Annette Schavan, German theologian and politician
- 1955 – Andrew Stevens, American actor and producer
- 1958 – Yu Suzuki, Japanese game designer and producer
- 1959 – Carlo Ancelotti, Italian footballer and manager
- 1959 – Eliot Spitzer, American lawyer and politician, 54th Governor of New York
- 1961 – Kelley Deal, American singer-songwriter and musician
- 1961 – Kim Deal, American singer-songwriter and musician
- 1961 – Maxi Priest, English singer-songwriter
- 1962 – Gina Gershon, American actress, singer and author
- 1962 – Anderson Bigode Herzer, Brazilian poet and author (d. 1982)
- 1962 – Wong Ka Kui, Hong Kong singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1993)
- 1962 – Brent Sutter, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
- 1963 – Brad Henry, American lawyer and politician, 26th Governor of Oklahoma
- 1963 – Jeanne Tripplehorn, American actress
- 1963 – Tony Ward, American model and actor
- 1964 – Jimmy Chamberlin, American drummer, songwriter, and producer
- 1964 – Tony Martin, New Zealand-Australian actor and comedian
- 1964 – Vincent Perez, Swiss actor, director and photographer
- 1965 – Susanne Albers, German computer scientist and academic
- 1965 – Elizabeth Hurley, English model, actress, and producer
- 1965 – Joey Santiago, American alternative rock musician (The Pixies)
- 1966 – David Platt, English footballer and manager
- 1967 – Emma Anderson, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1967 – Ferdy Doernberg, English-German heavy metal musician
- 1967 – Paul Maskey, Irish politician
- 1967 – Darren Robinson, American rapper (d. 1995)
- 1968 – Bill Burr, American comedian and actor
- 1968 – The D.O.C., American rapper
- 1968 – Derek Dooley, American football player and coach
- 1969 – Craig Hancock, Australian rugby league player
- 1969 – Ronny Johnsen, Norwegian footballer
- 1969 – Kate Snow, American journalist
- 1970 – Mike Doughty, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1970 – Alex Santos, Filipino journalist
- 1970 – Katsuhiro Harada, Japanese game designer, director, and producer
- 1971 – Joel "JoJo" Hailey, American singer-songwriter
- 1971 – Bobby Jindal, American journalist and politician, 55th Governor of Louisiana
- 1971 – Bruno N'Gotty, French footballer
- 1971 – Erik Rutan, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
- 1971 – Kyle Sandilands, Australian radio host
- 1972 – Steven Fischer, American director and producer
- 1972 – Radmila Šekerinska, Macedonian politician, Prime Minister of the Republic of Macedonia
- 1972 – Eric Upashantha, Sri Lankan cricketer
- 1973 – Faith Evans, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
- 1973 – Damian Kallabis, Polish-German runner
- 1973 – Pokey Reese, American baseball player
- 1974 – Dustin Lance Black, American director, producer, and screenwriter
- 1974 – Robert Rave, American author
- 1975 – Rebecca Cardon, American personal trainer and author
- 1975 – Altiyan Childs, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1975 – Risto Jussilainen, Finnish ski jumper
- 1975 – Henrik Pedersen, Danish footballer
- 1976 – Alari Lell, Estonian footballer
- 1976 – James Moore, Canadian journalist and politician, 22nd Canadian Minister of Aboriginal Affairs
- 1976 – Esther Ouwehand, Dutch politician
- 1976 – Stefan Postma, Dutch footballer and coach
- 1976 – Hadi Saei, Iranian martial artist
- 1977 – Adam Darski Polish singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1977 – Mike Rosenthal, American football player and coach
- 1978 – Raheem Brock, American football player
- 1978 – Shane West, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1979 – Evgeni Borounov, Russian ice dancer and coach
- 1979 – Kostas Louboutis, Greek footballer
- 1979 – Svetlana Zakharova, Russian ballerina
- 1980 – Matuzalém, Brazilian footballer
- 1980 – Ovie Mughelli, American football player
- 1980 – Dmitri Uchaykin, Russian ice hockey player (d. 2013)
- 1980 – Daniele Seccarecci, Italian bodybuilder (d. 2013)
- 1980 – James Walsh, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and pianist
- 1981 – Hoku, American singer-songwriter and musician
- 1981 – Mat Jackson, English race car driver
- 1981 – Albie Morkel, South African cricketer
- 1981 – Andrey Yepishin, Russian sprinter
- 1982 – Laleh, Iranian-Swedish singer-songwriter and actress
- 1982 – Tara Lipinski, American figure skater
- 1982 – Ana Lúcia Souza, Brazilian ballerina and journalist
- 1983 – Marion Barber III, American football player
- 1983 – Aaron Davey, Australian footballer
- 1983 – Leelee Sobieski, American actress and producer
- 1983 – Steve von Bergen, Swiss footballer
- 1984 – Johanna Kedzierski, German sprinter
- 1984 – Dirk Van Tichelt, Belgian martial artist
- 1985 – Richard Chambers, Irish rower
- 1985 – Gert Dorbek, Estonian basketball player
- 1985 – Kaia Kanepi, Estonian tennis player
- 1985 – Kristina Lundberg, Swedish ice hockey player
- 1985 – Dane Nielsen, Australian rugby league player
- 1985 – Andy Schleck, Luxembourger cyclist
- 1985 – Vasilis Torosidis, Greek footballer
- 1985 – Kreesha Turner, Canadian singer-songwriter and dancer
- 1986 – Al Alburquerque, Dominican baseball player
- 1986 – Marco Andreolli, Italian footballer
- 1987 – Martin Harnik, German-Austrian footballer
- 1987 – Amobi Okoye, Nigerian-American football player
- 1989 – DeAndre Kane, American basketball player
- 1989 – David Miller, South African cricketer
- 1989 – Mustapha Carayol, Gambian footballer
- 1989 – Alexandra Stan, Romanian singer-songwriter, dancer, and model
- 1991 – Alexa Scimeca Knierim, American figure skater
- 1992 – Saulius Ambrulevičius, Lithuanian figure skater
- 1992 – Kate Upton, American model and actress
- 1993 – Vita Chambers, Canadian singer-songwriter
- 1994 – Annefleur Kalvenhaar, Dutch cyclist (d. 2014)
- 2002 – Belinda Mariano, Filipino actress
Births[edit]
- 323 BC – Alexander the Great, Macedonian king (b. 356 BC)
- AD 38 – Julia Drusilla, Roman sister of Caligula (b. 16 AD)
- 223 – Liu Bei, Chinese emperor (b. 161)
- 754 – Abul Abbas al-Saffah, Muslim caliph (b. 721)
- 871 – Odo I, Frankish nobleman
- 903 – Cheng Rui, Chinese warlord
- 1075 – Ernest, Margrave of Austria (b. 1027)
- 1141 – Richenza of Northeim (b. 1087)
- 1190 – Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1122)
- 1261 – Matilda of Brandenburg, Duchess of Brunswick-Lüneburg (b. 1210)
- 1338 – Kitabatake Akiie, Japanese governor (b. 1318)
- 1364 – Agnes of Austria (b. 1281)
- 1424 – Ernest, Duke of Austria (b. 1377)
- 1437 – Joan of Navarre, Queen of England (b. 1370)
- 1552 – Alexander Barclay, English poet and author (b. 1476)
- 1556 – Martin Agricola, German composer and theorist (b. 1486)
- 1580 – Luís de Camões, Portuguese poet (b. 1524-25)
- 1604 – Isabella Andreini, Italian actress (b. 1562)
- 1607 – John Popham, English politician, Attorney General for England and Wales (b. 1531)
- 1654 – Alessandro Algardi, Italian sculptor (b. 1598)
- 1680 – Johan Göransson Gyllenstierna, Swedish lawyer and politician (b. 1635)
- 1692 – Bridget Bishop, Colonial Massachusetts woman hanged as a witch during the Salem witch trials (b. 1632)
- 1735 – Thomas Hearne, English historian and author (b. 1678)
- 1753 – Joachim Ludwig Schultheiss von Unfriedt, German architect (b. 1678)
- 1776 – Hsinbyushin, Burmese king (b. 1736)
- 1776 – Leopold Widhalm, Austrian instrument maker (b. 1722)
- 1791 – Toussaint-Guillaume Picquet de la Motte, French admiral (b. 1720)
- 1799 – Chevalier de Saint-Georges, Caribbean-French violinist, composer, and conductor (b. 1745)
- 1811 – Charles Frederick, Grand Duke of Baden (b. 1728)
- 1831 – Hans Karl von Diebitsch, German-Russian field marshal (b. 1785)
- 1836 – André-Marie Ampère, French physicist and mathematician (b. 1775)
- 1849 – Thomas Robert Bugeaud, French general and politician (b. 1784)
- 1849 – Robert Brown, Scottish botanist (b. 1773)
- 1868 – Mihailo Obrenović III, Prince of Serbia (b. 1823)
- 1899 – Ernest Chausson, French composer (b. 1855)
- 1901 – Robert Williams Buchanan, Scottish poet, author, and playwright (b. 1841)
- 1902 – Jacint Verdaguer, Catalan priest and poet (b. 1845)
- 1906 – Richard Seddon, English-New Zealand politician, 15th Prime Minister of New Zealand (b. 1845)
- 1909 – Edward Everett Hale, American minister, historian, and author (b. 1822)
- 1914 – Ödön Lechner, Hungarian architect (b. 1845)
- 1918 – Arrigo Boito, Italian author, poet, and composer (b. 1842)
- 1923 – Pierre Loti, French soldier and author (b. 1850)
- 1924 – Giacomo Matteotti, Italian lawyer and politician (b. 1885)
- 1926 – Antoni Gaudí, Spanish architect, designed the Park Güell (b. 1852)
- 1930 – Adolf von Harnack, German historian and theologian (b. 1851)
- 1934 – Frederick Delius, English composer and educator (b. 1862)
- 1936 – John Bowser, English-Australian politician, 26th Premier of Victoria (b. 1856)
- 1937 – Robert Borden, Canadian lawyer and politician, 8th Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1854)
- 1939 – Albert Ogilvie, Australian politician, 28th Premier of Tasmania (b. 1890)
- 1940 – Marcus Garvey, Jamaican journalist and activist, founded the Black Star Line (b. 1887)
- 1944 – Willem Jacob van Stockum, Dutch mathematician and academic (b. 1910)
- 1946 – Jack Johnson, American boxer (b. 1878)
- 1947 – Alexander Bethune, Canadian businessman and politician, 12th Mayor of Vancouver (b. 1852)
- 1949 – Sigrid Undset, Danish-Norwegian novelist, essayist, and translator, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1882)
- 1955 – Margaret Abbott, Indian-American golfer (b. 1876)
- 1958 – Angelina Weld Grimké, American journalist, poet, and playwright (b. 1880)
- 1959 – Zoltán Meskó, Hungarian politician (b. 1883)
- 1963 – Timothy Birdsall, English cartoonist (b. 1936)
- 1965 – Vahap Özaltay, Turkish footballer and manager (b. 1908)
- 1967 – Spencer Tracy, American actor (b. 1900)
- 1971 – Michael Rennie, English actor (b. 1909)
- 1973 – William Inge, American playwright and novelist (b. 1913)
- 1974 – Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester (b. 1900)
- 1976 – Adolph Zukor, American film producer, co-founded Paramount Pictures (b. 1873)
- 1982 – Rainer Werner Fassbinder, German actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1945)
- 1984 – Halide Nusret Zorlutuna, Turkish author and poet (b. 1901)
- 1986 – Merle Miller, American author and playwright (b. 1919)
- 1987 – Elizabeth Hartman, American actress (b. 1943)
- 1988 – Louis L'Amour, American novelist and short story writer (b. 1908)
- 1991 – Jean Bruller, French author and illustrator, co-founded Les Éditions de Minuit (b. 1902)
- 1992 – Hachidai Nakamura, Chinese-Japanese pianist and composer (b. 1931)
- 1993 – Les Dawson, English comedian, actor, writer and presenter (b. 1931)
- 1996 – George Hees, Canadian soldier, football player, and politician (b. 1910)
- 1996 – Jo Van Fleet, American actress (b. 1915)
- 1998 – Jim Hearn, American baseball player (b. 1921)
- 1998 – Hammond Innes, English soldier and author (b. 1914)
- 2000 – Hafez al-Assad, Syrian general and politician, 18th President of Syria (b. 1930)
- 2000 – Brian Statham, English cricketer (b. 1930)
- 2001 – Leila Pahlavi, Iranian princess (b. 1970)
- 2002 – John Gotti, American mobster (b. 1940)
- 2003 – Donald Regan, American colonel and politician, 11th White House Chief of Staff (b. 1918)
- 2003 – Bernard Williams, English philosopher and academic (b. 1929)
- 2003 – Phil Williams, Welsh academic and politician (b. 1939)
- 2004 – Ray Charles, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and actor (b. 1930)
- 2004 – Odette Laure, French actress and singer (b. 1917)
- 2004 – Xenophon Zolotas, Greek economist and politician, 177th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1904)
- 2005 – Curtis Pitts, American aircraft designer, designed the Pitts Special (b. 1915)
- 2007 – Augie Auer, American-New Zealand meteorologist (b. 1940)
- 2008 – Chinghiz Aitmatov, Kyrgyzstani author and diplomat (b. 1928)
- 2009 – Stelios Skevofilakas, Greek footballer (b. 1940)
- 2010 – Basil Schott, American archbishop (b. 1939)
- 2010 – Sigmar Polke, German painter and photographer (b. 1941)
- 2011 – Brian Lenihan, Jnr, Irish lawyer and politician, 25th Irish Minister for Finance (b. 1959)
- 2012 – Piero Bellugi, Italian conductor (b. 1924)
- 2012 – Warner Fusselle, American sportscaster (b. 1944)
- 2012 – Will Hoebee, Dutch songwriter and producer (b. 1947)
- 2012 – Georges Mathieu, French painter and academic (b. 1921)
- 2012 – Joshua Orwa Ojode, Kenyan politician (b. 1958)
- 2012 – George Saitoti, Kenyan economist and politician, 6th Vice-President of Kenya (b. 1945)
- 2012 – Sudono Salim, Chinese-Indonesian businessman, founded Bank Central Asia (b. 1916)
- 2012 – Gordon West, English footballer (b. 1943)
- 2013 – Doug Bailey, American political consultant (b. 1933)
- 2013 – Enrique Orizaola, Spanish footballer and coach (b. 1922)
- 2013 – Barbara Vucanovich, American lawyer and politician (b. 1921)
- 2014 – Marcello Alencar, Brazilian lawyer and politician, 57th Governor of Rio de Janeiro (b. 1925)
- 2014 – George A. Burton, American soldier, accountant, and politician (b. 1926)
- 2014 – Gary Gilmour, Australian cricketer and manager (b. 1951)
- 2014 – Robert M. Grant, American theologian and academic (b. 1917)
- 2014 – Jack Lee, American radio host and politician (b. 1920)
- 2015 – Robert Chartoff, American film producer and philanthropist (b. 1933)
- 2015 – Wolfgang Jeschke, German author and publisher (b. 1936)
- 2016 – Christina Grimmie, American singer-songwriter (b. 1994)
- 2016 – Gordie Howe, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1928)
Deaths[edit]
- Christian feast day:
- Abolition Day (French Guiana)
- Army Day (Jordan)
- Navy Day (Italy)
- Portugal Day (Portugal)
- Reconciliation Day (Republic of the Congo)
Holidays and observances[edit]
“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Matthew 7:13-14 NIV
===
Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon
Morning
Some Christians are sadly prone to look on the dark side of everything, and to dwell more upon what they have gone through than upon what God has done for them. Ask for their impression of the Christian life, and they will describe their continual conflicts, their deep afflictions, their sad adversities, and the sinfulness of their hearts, yet with scarcely any allusion to the mercy and help which God has vouchsafed them. But a Christian whose soul is in a healthy state, will come forward joyously, and say, "I will speak, not about myself, but to the honour of my God. He hath brought me up out of an horrible pit, and out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings: and he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God. The Lord hath done great things for me, whereof I am glad." Such an abstract of experience as this is the very best that any child of God can present. It is true that we endure trials, but it is just as true that we are delivered out of them. It is true that we have our corruptions, and mournfully do we know this, but it is quite as true that we have an all-sufficient Saviour, who overcomes these corruptions, and delivers us from their dominion. In looking back, it would be wrong to deny that we have been in the Slough of Despond, and have crept along the Valley of Humiliation, but it would be equally wicked to forget that we have been through them safely and profitably; we have not remained in them, thanks to our Almighty Helper and Leader, who has brought us "out into a wealthy place." The deeper our troubles, the louder our thanks to God, who has led us through all, and preserved us until now. Our griefs cannot mar the melody of our praise, we reckon them to be the bass part of our life's song, "He hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad."
Evening
The Greek word here rendered search signifies a strict, close, diligent, curious search, such as men make when they are seeking gold, or hunters when they are in earnest after game. We must not rest content with having given a superficial reading to a chapter or two, but with the candle of the Spirit we must deliberately seek out the hidden meaning of the word. Holy Scripture requires searching--much of it can only be learned by careful study. There is milk for babes, but also meat for strong men. The rabbis wisely say that a mountain of matter hangs upon every word, yea, upon every title of Scripture. Tertullian exclaims, "I adore the fulness of the Scriptures." No man who merely skims the book of God can profit thereby; we must dig and mine until we obtain the hid treasure. The door of the word only opens to the key of diligence. The Scriptures claim searching. They are the writings of God, bearing the divine stamp and imprimatur--who shall dare to treat them with levity? He who despises them despises the God who wrote them. God forbid that any of us should leave our Bibles to become swift witnesses against us in the great day of account. The word of God will repay searching. God does not bid us sift a mountain of chaff with here and there a grain of wheat in it, but the Bible is winnowed corn--we have but to open the granary door and find it. Scripture grows upon the student. It is full of surprises. Under the teaching of the Holy Spirit, to the searching eye it glows with splendour of revelation, like a vast temple paved with wrought gold, and roofed with rubies, emeralds, and all manner of gems. No merchandise is like the merchandise of Scripture truth. Lastly, the Scriptures reveal Jesus: "They are they which testify of me." No more powerful motive can be urged upon Bible readers than this: he who finds Jesus finds life, heaven, all things. Happy he who, searching his Bible, discovers his Saviour.
===
Apollos
[Ăpŏl'los] - a destroyer or youthful god of music. An eloquent and learned Jew born at Alexandria and deeply versed in Old Testament Scriptures (Acts 18:24; 19:1; 1 Cor. 1:12; 3:4-6, 22; 4:6; 16:12; Titus 3:13).
[Ăpŏl'los] - a destroyer or youthful god of music. An eloquent and learned Jew born at Alexandria and deeply versed in Old Testament Scriptures (Acts 18:24; 19:1; 1 Cor. 1:12; 3:4-6, 22; 4:6; 16:12; Titus 3:13).
The Man Whose Influence Was Enriched
This educated, cultured Alexandrian Jew was an orator and an efficient worker in the Church who knew only the baptism of John (Acts 18:24, 25 ). The influence of Apollos was ample and varied and, under Aquila and Priscilla, was heightened and enriched.
I. His was the influence of eloquence (Acts 18:24). Apollos wielded an ever powerful instrument of blessing - a consecrated eloquence.
II. His was the influence of exposition. Apollos was mighty in the Scriptures (Acts 18:26). What a tribute it is to be mighty in the mightiest of books!
III. His was the influence of spiritual knowledge. Apollos taught by word of mouth the things of the Lord.
IV. His was the influence of fervency. Apollos was also "fervent in spirit" (Acts 18:25). "A lively, affectionate preacher," as Matthew Henry calls him.
V. His was the influence of accuracy. Apollos taught "carefully" or "accurately" the truth of Christ (Acts 18:25 RV). Incorrectness in teaching is detrimental to all concerned.
VI. His was the influence of courage. Apollos spoke "boldly." He had no hesitation in his tone. Courage flashed in his eyes (Acts 18:26).
Yet with all his excellent gifts and goodly influence, Apollos had a distinct limitation. He knew that Christ was coming, but his was only a partial Christianity. Yet what he knew and taught profoundly impressed many in the synagogue. Under the tuition of Aquila and Priscilla, two deeply taught believers, Apollos was led into a deeper understanding of the truth. Instructed in the way of the Lord, Apollos went out to expound the truth more fully and accurately and thereafter became an unashamed herald of the Christian faith especially among the Jews (Acts 18:28).
Later on, Apollos became an apostle and one of Paul's trusted friends and companions, and remained active in his ministry during Paul's life (1 Cor. 16:12; Titus 3:13). So effective a preacher did he become that some of the Corinthians put him before both Peter and Paul. Martin Luther hazarded the guess that Apollos was the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews.
===
Today's reading: 2 Chronicles 32-33, John 18:19-40 (NIV)
View today's reading on Bible GatewayToday's Old Testament reading: 2 Chronicles 32-33
Sennacherib Threatens Jerusalem
1 After all that Hezekiah had so faithfully done, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah. He laid siege to the fortified cities, thinking to conquer them for himself. 2 When Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and that he intended to wage war against Jerusalem, 3 he consulted with his officials and military staff about blocking off the water from the springs outside the city, and they helped him. 4 They gathered a large group of people who blocked all the springs and the stream that flowed through the land. "Why should the kings of Assyria come and find plenty of water?" they said. 5 Then he worked hard repairing all the broken sections of the wall and building towers on it. He built another wall outside that one and reinforced the terraces of the City of David. He also made large numbers of weapons and shields....
Today's New Testament reading: John 18:19-40
The High Priest Questions Jesus
19 Meanwhile, the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching.
20 "I have spoken openly to the world," Jesus replied. "I always taught in synagogues or at the temple, where all the Jews come together. I said nothing in secret. 21 Why question me? Ask those who heard me. Surely they know what I said."
22 When Jesus said this, one of the officials nearby slapped him in the face. "Is this the way you answer the high priest?" he demanded.
23 "If I said something wrong," Jesus replied, "testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?"24 Then Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest....
===
No comments:
Post a Comment