Thursday, July 27, 2017

Thu Jul 27th Todays News

Some things should not happen, but they do. More on Senator Matt Canavan who is alleged to be a dual citizen of Italy and Australia. Dual citizens are not allowed into federal parliament and if it were true then Matt's seat would be given to another. Undisputed is the fact that Matt's mother made arrangements at an Italian consulate. Matt claims he never signed the documents. Allegedly the documents have been retrieved and show they were never signed. Confused journalists are saying that that could not happen and maybe Canavan is abusing power by being in parliament. The matter will soon be addressed by the high court. But the abysmal journalists will always be confused. Wait for them to find out apples fall from apple trees. Marvel at their expressions of wonder. 

Talking to a Melbourne mum on the train today. Jacky knows about Melbourne railways. And she has a telling affinity for forgiving ALP mismanagement. Jacky claims that Melbourne rail is aware sky-rail will fail, and cannot handle freight trains. Sydney rail carriages could work in Melbourne but the union does not want them. The Pakenham and Cranbourne line will not directly go to Melbourne CBD. According to Jacky, the bad decisions were not Dan Andrews government's fault, but Public Transport Victoria's fault. So which is it? Is Dan Andrews responsible for mismanagement? Or is Dan Andrews unable to prevent mismanagement? 

Something Dan Andrews is responsible for is the evil of grooming primary school children for sex, related to Safe Schools. NSW and Tasmania are both aware of the program's shortcomings. It was touted as an anti bullying program, but the material produced for it is inappropriate and fails to address bullying. But the program asks teachers and students to interact in a way that non teachers would be jailed for outside of a classroom. 

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 Hill Street Blues for Lyrically Challenged 

The theme for the 1980's hit tv program, Hill Street Blues
"Hill Street Blues is a serial police drama that was first aired on NBC in 1981 and ran for 146 episodes on primetime into 1987. It received high critical acclaim and its innovations proved highly influential on serious dramatic television series produced in North America. Its debut season was honored with eight Emmy awards, a debut season record surpassed only by The West Wing, and the show received a total of 98 Emmy Award nominations during its run."

The theme tune was written by Mike Post and reached #10 on Billboard's Hot 100.
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this was made for the Icomps site
http://www.icompositions.com/music/song.php?sid=91725
or at
The full lyric is "Cats and dogs"


=== from 2016 ===
 Remember the story of Thomas Becket. Thomas was a childhood friend of a man who became King Henry II of England. Henry promoted Thomas to Archbishop of Canterbury. Henry needed taxes to pay for his administration, but Thomas refused to allow the cannibalising of the church for the state. Henry viewed this as being ungracious and difficult, and the rumour was spread that Thomas was a venal man who would let England suffer in order to enjoy riches. But Thomas was nothing of the sort. He needed the wealth of the church to fund the works they did. He wore a hair shirt underneath his own clothing. Hair shirts are awful. They are itchy, too hot and too cold in all the wrong ways. It is called mortification of the flesh where one humbles themselves to God by making themselves uncomfortable in private. King Henry was heard to wonder aloud "Won't someone rid me of this meddlesome priest?" and some knights went to Canterbury Cathedral, confronted Thomas and killed him. Later the hair shirt was discovered, and the king was mortified at what had happened. Thomas Becket died on 29th December 1170. 

Yesterday a Catholic Priest in a Normandy Church was murdered by two men. They had broken in, armed with knives, and took several people hostage. They cut his throat in a way that was similar as to how children of ISIL are taught to behead, so that some reported he had been beheaded. A godly man was murdered by two terrorists for no reason. They had probably been told stories about Priests that aren't true. Worth thinking about as Cardinal Pell is smeared for no reason. The two terrorists have been killed by security forces. Who dares ascribe a reason for terror? The ABC might, as their anti Jewish tweets approved on Q and A show each episode. 

For some, at the moment, the Sex Party has more credibility.  
=== from 2015 ===
Free speech is good. It allows one to humble the hubris of fools. And there has been much hubris coming from a site called "Australia-Remember Your history". Which isn't to say the authors aren't sincere people saying what they have heard 'everyone else' say. But a highly repeated meme that is distant from truth and highly damaging to cultural assets must be addressed without holding back. And this is not a fierce battle of wits. The author's of that site have little idea of what they have written.

Nobody is two hundred years old. And if they were, they probably would not care too much how the nation was run. We are defined and informed by decisions made by our ancestors and their community. But we are not condemned by those decisions. It is incumbent upon us to work and build a world that will be inhabited by our children and those not yet born. It is a sacred trust. A similar trust had the greatest generation fight tooth and nail in WW2 against oppressors who sought to control the world. They weren't responsible for the war, but they had to fight it. Neither were the diggers of WW1 responsible for WW2, although it is true that the xenophobia of the Australian ALP PM who denied Japan's ambition as a "yellow peril" wrought a monster. We can make good or bad decisions, but the decisions are ours to make in sacred trust for those who will come. 


The Hume highway is not owned by Hume. Bankstown is not owned by Joseph Banks. Cooktown is not owned by Captain Cook and Nelson's Bay does not belong to Horatio Nelson. But each deserves the honour given them for what they did in service. Arthur Phillip was the first governor of New South Wales and acted as Governor for the penal colony that was early Sydney. There are those who characterise the early colony as an invasion. But it was a penal colony that had been set up after the US rebelled and the UK needed a place to send their convicts. There was no European government in Australia so they didn't see the need to make a European negotiation. The colony had room to expand and resources to bloom. Some early convicts fled the colony determined to walk north to China. Hope springs eternal. 

There were no developed areas Europeans expected. Flies, from the second fleet on, settled in Australia and became blow flies. Before the flies, the cow pats weren't bio degradable. Surveyor James Meehan developed a theory regarding why there were no local Aboriginal tribes in the Campbelltown Liverpool area related to Aboriginal Hunter Gatherer life style. Meehan could see where there had been recent inhabitants, and so he felt that it must have been the colony which somehow pushed the tribes away. Australia had large animals like Kangaroo. To hunt a kangaroo, the aborigines would wound it and chase it down for a few days, tracking it, and kill it. The chickens brought in by the colonists were not bad either. But hunting techniques don't translate to bulls. No sensible person wounds a bull expecting it to run away to be chased down. Europeans had learned to herd cattle and lead them to slaughterhouses. Not fight them. The land the Aborigines had left was considered bad land because of the imports. Aborigines were migratory, but they failed to return for a few years to those areas. 

Everywhere in the world, close proximity of diverse families requires police. Sydney colony needed police too, and there were murders and misunderstandings between Aborigines and colonists. European diseases spread through Aboriginal communities, decimating them all around Australia. Some early settlers made it their job to care for the sick in Aboriginal communities. Some churches set up with welfare responsibilities began converting Aborigines. 

There is a huge disconnect in the invasion lobby who characterise Australia as having been founded through invasion. They claim that Terra Nullius was a false premise and that Aboriginal peoples have been cheated of substantial wealth. They claim that colonists deliberately gave diseased rags to spread infection. And then churches conspired to steal children as a genocide. And then the lobby point to terrible conditions for some Aborigines today and they try to prevent the communities from being helped, but insist they have autonomous government which further isolates the communities. Some who have little or no connection to ancient tribes syphon funds from those that do. As if defining people by race would address inequity, when it had not in Nazi Germany or in South Africa. 

The way forward is not through division and blame. Aboriginal peoples don't need to become European, but they need the dignity of real work, real education and to be able to participate with the real community that is part of Australia. Those lying about history, denigrating those who worked to save people in need, advocating for apartheid and despising cultural assets have a lot to answer for, because their lies continue to harm those they claim to act for. 

Now we see children denied much because of their race. The invasion of European culture which harms Aboriginal peoples is not English government, but French Revolutionary style, socialist loving practices, which command the press, and ignore the reality. 
From 2014
A senior ALP politician in Victoria is alleged to have obtained a journalist's voice recorded notes, copied them, and given them to the press claiming to be a senior Liberal politician. It included background material essential for journalists to be able to write nuanced pieces, but highly prejudicial in the public domain. The Journalist worked for the Age and the Age carried on with the charade for many months, accusing the Liberal party of division with months leading up to an election. Only, the party is not divided, merely functioning transparently, as the ALP cannot. And the ALP leader has not distanced himself from the allegation, which if true should see him resign from public office. 

ABC News tonight reported that they feel the Abbott government has not kept election promises. They feel that the promise to cut the number of illegal boats may not have been met, only time will tell. Two boats in six months compared to a boat a day and the ABC don't feel there is a difference. Also, the budget surplus effort is stymied by the opposition not passing cuts. The truth is, that if you don't want the ALP messing up government you have to vote LNP and no one else. The ALP don't realise they must reform and cannot continue to be corrupt. And the ABC are too biased to realise that their support for the ALP is part of the problem. 

On this day in 1916 Germany executed a civilian captain of a civilian vessel. The captain had been chased by a U-Boat trying to torpedo her the year before. An extraordinary act of seamanship had the vessel escape by travelling faster than its' specifications. Charles Algernon Fryatt would later that year try to ram a u-boat that surfaced to torpedo him. He was given a gold watch for his effort, inscribed with detail. When his boat was surrounded and captured by German vessels in 1916, he was court martial-ed and sentenced to death based on the details of the inscription. The German command was aware he had not sunk the U-Boat, as it was fighting elsewhere. There was international outrage at Germany's action. 

Also on this day, Burnam wood came to Dunsinane for Macbeth in 1054. Georgia defeated Rum in 1202. Xavier made it to Japan in 1549. In 1663, England seems to have legalised piracy by passing the second Navigation Act which insisted ships to America had to come from English ports and be English vessels. In 1794, Robespierre was executed for crimes against humanity. In 1865 Chubut, Argentina, Welsh settlers arrived, which is why people from Chubut today can sing and dance. In 1866, the first permanent transatlantic telegraph cable was laid. In 1890 Vincent Van Gogh shot himself, dying two days later. In 1900, Kaiser Wilhelm II compared Germans to Huns. In 1919 Chicago erupted in race riots for five days between Irish ethnics and African Americans. In 1921, Insulin is shown to regulate blood sugar. In 1929, the Geneva Convention is signed by 53 nations, dealing with POWs. In 1940, Bugs bunny appeared in Wild Hare. 
Historical perspective on this day
In 1054, Siward, Earl of Northumbria invaded Scotland and defeated Macbeth, King of Scotland somewhere north of the Firth of Forth. 1189, Friedrich Barbarossaarrived at Niš, the capital of Serbian King Stefan Nemanja, during the Third Crusade. 1202, Georgian-Seljuk wars: At the Battle of Basian the Kingdom of Georgiadefeated the Sultanate of Rum. 1214, Battle of BouvinesPhilip II of Francedecisively defeated ImperialEnglish and Flemish armies, effectively ending John of England's Angevin Empire. 1299, according to Edward GibbonOsman I invaded the territory of Nicomedia for the first time, usually considered to be the founding day of the Ottoman state. 1302, Battle of Bapheus: Decisive Ottoman victory over the Byzantines opening up Bithynia for Turkish conquest.

In 1549, the Jesuit priest Francis Xavier's ship reached Japan. 1663, the English Parliament passed the second Navigation Act requiring that all goods bound for the American colonies had to be sent in English ships from English ports. 1689, Glorious Revolution: The Battle of Killiecrankie ended. 1694, a Royal charter was granted to the Bank of England. 1720, the Battle of Grengam marked the second important victory of the Russian Navy. 1778, American RevolutionFirst Battle of Ushant – British and French fleets fought to a standoff. 1789, the first U.S. federal government agency, the Department of Foreign Affairs, was established (it would be later renamed Department of State). 1794, French RevolutionMaximilien Robespierre was arrested after encouraging the execution of more than 17,000 "enemies of the Revolution".

In 1862, Sailing from San Francisco, California to Panama City, Panama, the SS Golden Gate caught fire and sank off Manzanillo, Mexico, killing 231. 1865, Welsh settlers arrived at Chubut in Argentina. 1866, he first permanent transatlantic telegraph cable was successfully completed, stretching from Valentia IslandIreland, to Heart's ContentNewfoundland. 1880, Second Anglo-Afghan WarBattle of Maiwand – Afghan forces led by Mohammad Ayub Khan defeated the British Armyin battle near MaiwandAfghanistan. 1890, Vincent van Gogh shot himself and died two days later.

In 1900, Kaiser Wilhelm II made a speech comparing Germans to Huns; for years afterwards, "Hun" would be a disparaging name for Germans. 1914, Felix Manaloregistered the Iglesia ni Cristo with the Philippine government. 1917, the Alliesreached the Yser Canal at the Battle of Passchendaele. 1919, the Chicago Race Riot erupted after a racial incident occurred on a South Side beach, leading to 38 fatalities and 537 injuries over a five-day period. 1921, researchers at the University of Toronto led by biochemist Frederick Banting proved that the hormone insulinregulated blood sugar. 1928, Tich Freeman became the only bowler ever to take 200 first-class wickets before the end of July. 1929, the Geneva Convention of 1929, dealing with treatment of prisoners-of-war, was signed by 53 nations.

In 1940, the animated short A Wild Hare was released, introducing the character of Bugs Bunny. 1941, Japanese troops occupied French Indochina. 1942, World War IIAllied forces successfully halted the final Axis advance into Egypt. 1949, Initial flight of the de Havilland Comet, the first jet-powered airliner. 1953, Fighting in the Korean War ended when the United States, China, and North Korea sign an armistice agreement. Syngman RheePresident of South Korea, refused to sign but pledged to observe the armistice. 1955, the Allied occupation of Austria stemming from World War II, ended.

In 1964, Vietnam War: Five thousand more American military advisers were sent to South Vietnam bringing the total number of United States forces in Vietnam to 21,000. 1974, Watergate scandal: The House of Representatives Judiciary Committee voted 27 to 11 to recommend the first article of impeachment (for obstruction of justice) against President Richard Nixon. 1976, former Japanese prime minister Kakuei Tanaka was arrested on suspicion of violating foreign exchange and foreign trade laws in connection with the Lockheed bribery scandals. 1981, British television: On Coronation StreetKen Barlow married Deirdre Langton, which proved to be a national event scoring massive viewer numbers for the show. Also 1981, Adam Walsh, 6-year-old son of John Walsh, was kidnapped in Hollywood, Florida and was found murdered two weeks later. 1983, Black July: Eighteen Tamil political prisoners at the Welikada high security prison in Colombo were massacred by Sinhalese prisoners, the second such massacre in two days. 1987, RMS Titanic Inc. began the first expedited salvage of wreckage of the RMS Titanic.

In 1990, the Supreme Soviet of the Belarusian Soviet Republic declared independence of Belarus from the Soviet Union. Until 1996 the day was celebrated as the Independence Day of Belarus; after a referendum held that year the celebration of independence was moved to June 3. Also 1990, the Jamaat al Muslimeen attempted a coup d'état in Trinidad and Tobago, occupying the Trinidadand the studios of Trinidad and Tobago Television, holding Prime Minister A. N. R. Robinson and most of his Cabinet as well as the staff at the television station hostage for six days. 1995, the Korean War Veterans Memorial was dedicated in Washington, D.C.. 1996, Centennial Olympic Park bombing: In Atlanta, United States, a pipe bomb exploded at Centennial Olympic Park during the 1996 Summer Olympics. One woman (Alice Hawthorne) was killed, and a cameraman suffered a heart attack fleeing the scene. One hundred eleven were injured. 1999, Tony Hawklanded the first 900 on a skateboard (two-and-a-half complete revolutions) at the fifth annual X Games in San Francisco, California.

In 2005, STS-114NASA grounded the Space Shuttle, pending an investigation of the continuing problem with the shedding of foam insulation from the external fuel tank. During ascent, the external tank of the Space Shuttle Discovery shed a piece of foam slightly smaller than the piece that caused the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster; this foam did not strike the spacecraft. 2006, the Federal Republic of Germany was deemed guilty in the loss of Bashkirian 2937 and DHL Flight 611, because it was illegal to outsource flight surveillance. 2012, the opening ceremonyof the 2012 Summer Olympics took place at the Olympic Stadium in London. 2014, centennial anniversary celebration of Iglesia ni Cristo in Philippine Arena, the largest arena in the world at Ciudad de Victoria complex which was built by the church itself.
=== 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.
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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
===
Editorials will appear in the "History in a Year by the Conservative Voice" series, starting with AugustSeptemberOctober, 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

Happy birthday and many happy returns Janine Nguyen  and May Wa Leng. Born on the same day as Johann Bernoulli (1667), Alexandre Dumas, fils (1824), Hilaire Belloc (1870), Geoffrey de Havilland (1882), Jerry Van Dyke (1931), Gary Gygax (1938), Donnie Yen (1963) and Max Power (1993). 1054 – Siward, Earl of Northumbria, led an invasion of Scotland and defeated Macbeth, King of Scotland, in a battle north of the Firth of Forth.
1694 – A Royal Charter was granted to the Bank of England as the English Government's banker.
1789 – The U.S. State Department, then known as the Department of Foreign Affairs, became the first federal agency created under the U.S. Constitution.
1916 – British mariner Charles Fryatt was executed at Bruges, Belgium, after a court-martial found him to be a franc-tireur.
1953 – An armistice was signed to end hostilities in the Korean War, officially making the Division of Korea indefinite by creating an approximately 4 km (2.5 mi) wide demilitarized zone across the Korean Peninsula. Burnham wood has come to Dunsinane, You have your royal charter. And your Department of State. You have your franc-tireur. The armistice is signed. You know what to do.
Deaths
Six molecules of insulin arranged in a hexamer
Six molecules of insulin arranged in a hexamer
We have chartered a bank, cruises were too blasé. Max had gone too far. We regulate our sugar. What's up, Bugs? Ignore the empty gestures. Let's party.
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Tim Blair

THE COMMA TOUCH

By human standards, Peter FitzSimons is obviously an abysmal writer. But consider this; as a gorilla, FitzSimons might just be the finest writer of his entire species.
27 Jul
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Andrew Bolt

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HE’S AT THE WRONG ADDRESS

Tim Blair – Wednesday, July 27, 2016 (6:40pm)

Bruce Hawker, allegedly reporting for Sky News from the Democratic National Convention, describes a magically cohesive and supportive gathering where everybody is united in their love for Hillary. Asked about the damage caused by leaked Democrat emails, this was Hawker’s reply: 
It could turn very ugly for the Trump camp. 
UPDATE. Bruce somehow missed all of this
Protests roiled Day 2 of the Democratic National Convention, as thousands of demonstrators forced their way down Broad Street, with smaller crowds turning unruly and threatening as the evening wound down …
Men and women sat on the floor of the convention - some with tape over their mouths - holding hands. Some wept openly. Many held signs and fists up in the air saying “Never Hillary,” “Wikileaks = DNC,” and “Bernie.” 
Go outside, Bruce. Meet some people.
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WEDNESDAY NOTICEBOARD

Tim Blair – Wednesday, July 27, 2016 (4:12am)

The great P.J. O’Rourke is speaking at the Sydney Opera House on August 9. Be there! I will.
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MARATHON MOTIVE MYSTERY

Tim Blair – Wednesday, July 27, 2016 (4:08am)

“A priest was killed and another person was seriously injured following an attack at a church in Normandy, France, where officials said police killed two hostage takers … The motive is not yet known.” – US ABC News following an attack that left elderly priest Father Jacques Hamel dead and a parishioner in serious condition.
“The identities of the attackers and motive for the attack are unclear.” – The Associated Press.
“Officials said the two assailants, whose motives were not released, slit the throat of a priest before they were eventually shot and killed by police.” – Cox Media Group.
“The rapid intervention brigade of elite police units went into action to ‘neutralise’ the two men whose motives are so far unknown.” – The Kuwait News Agency.
“The men shouted ‘Daesh’ and cut the priest’s throat before being ‘neutralised,’ police said. Le Figaro newspaper reported that the priest died after his throat was cut. The men’s motives are still unknown.” – The UK Telegraph.

Father Jacques Hamel, who is now said to have been beheaded by Islamic terrorists.

“French President Francois Hollande said today’s attack and hostage situation at a church in Normandy was carried out by ‘terrorists who claimed allegiance to ISIS’ … the motive is not yet known. – Yahoo news.
“The nun – who did not want to be named – told Le Figaro newspaper: ‘They entered brusquely and took over. They spoke in Arabic. I saw a knife.’ … It is believed that the men were carrying knives. It is unclear at this stage what their motives were.” – The International Catholic News Weekly.
“I will not talk about the motives of these individuals.” – French Interior Ministry spokesman Pierre-Henry Brandet.
“Police said the men, armed with knives, shouted ‘Daesh’ before slicing the priest’s throat, using an alternate name for the Islamic State militant group. The motives for the slaying are unclear, and IS – also identified as ISIS and ISIL – has not taken responsibility for the attack.” – United Press International.
“Two attackers backing the Islamic State stormed a village church during Mass in northern France on Tuesday … The Islamic State’s Amaq news agency described the attackers as ‘soldiers’ of the militant group.” – Finally, from the Washington Post, we have a motive.
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PREMIER’S DAUGHTER RECEIVES REPUTATIONAL DISCOUNT

Tim Blair – Wednesday, July 27, 2016 (3:46am)

Believe it or not, this actually happened
Harriet Wran’s sentence for harbouring a killer was reduced because of the impact media coverage of the crime had on her reputation.

Justice Ian Harrison, in fixing a two-year non-parole period that means Wran is free to leave prison in 17 days with time served, yesterday said press coverage of the former NSW premier’s daughter gave rise to “the unavoidable spectre of enduring damage to her reputation”. 
Harrison’s reasoning is further explained in his full judgment. Here’s the Daily Telegraph‘s editorial response: 
The judge also expressed concern over The Sunday Telegraph’s exclusive March 13 report on Wran’s life inside prison. “Its publication,” said Judge Harrison, “exposed Ms Wran to unwelcome attention from inmates and some prison staff.”
This is a case of someone not only failing to see the forest for the trees, but failing to see the forest for the veins in the leaves of those trees. The primary reason Wran was “exposed Ms Wran to unwelcome attention from inmates and some prison staff” was that she had been jailed while awaiting trial over a person’s murder.
Any subsequent issues with her imprisonment must be considered relatively trifling compared to that overwhelmingly central fact.
“On each occasion the articles were also published online where they will remain, continuing indefinitely the damage to Ms Wran’s reputation,” Judge Harrison continued. It is not easy to see how someone’s reputation could be furthered damaged once they’ve become an ice-addicted accessory to murder. Entirely without any assistance from The Daily Telegraph or The Sunday Telegraph, Wran earned her reputation completely by herself.
Most astonishing of all, Judge Harrison yesterday ruled that due to “the publication of these egregious articles” he would impose a lighter sentence upon Wran than he might otherwise have considered, on account of “the unavoidable spectre of enduring damage to her reputation”.
There is that word again. And, again, we re-state that Harriet Wran was the sole author of her reputation, written in the blood and squalor of a dead drug dealer’s home. 
This may quickly escalate.
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RUIN DNC

Tim Blair – Wednesday, July 27, 2016 (3:19am)

Day two of the Democratic National Convention begins in the calm, contemplative tradition of day one
A Texas delegation breakfast Tuesday morning broke out in a screaming match as a Bernie Sanders delegate told the crowd he was “condemning our presumptive nominee.”
Chaos then erupted as Hillary Clinton supporters and delegates booed the speaker and chanted Clinton’s name.
The tension at the breakfast comes as the Democratic Party is trying to unify the Sanders and Clinton supporters, but that task has proved to be difficult. 
You don’t say. Meanwhile, Marcia Fudge never stood a chance. With a name like that, no great surprise. We now turn to actor Randy Quaid for deeply considered political opinions.
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FRANCE ATTACKED, AGAIN

Tim Blair – Tuesday, July 26, 2016 (8:56pm)

Two armed men have been shot dead by police after taking hostages in a Normandy church: 
Police sources have told local media that there are between four and six people inside and those include a priest and two nuns and a worshipper.
Gunfire was heard, and the men have been shot and “neutralised”.
French media reported that five hostages are being held, and a sixth escaped and managed to tell others that there were more hostages inside.
The mens’ motives are still unknown. 
And it will remain ever so. Other reports claim that a priest’s throat was cut during the attack.
UPDATE. The UK Telegraph
The men shouted “Daesh” and cut the priest’s throat before being “neutralised,” police said.
Le Figaro newspaper reported that the priest died after his throat was cut.
The men’s motives are still unknown. 
Possibly not for long.
UPDATE II. Previously today: 
At least 10 people have been killed in two car bomb attacks near an entrance to the airport in Mogadishu, Somali police and eyewitnesses have said.
Thick smoke could be seen rising from the area, where there is also a base for African Union peacekeepers …
The militant Islamist group, al-Shabab, has said it was behind the blasts and its target was the AU force’s headquarters. 
UPDATE III. In Normandy, the murdered priest is named as 86-year-old Father Jacques Hamel. Another hostage is said to be in critical condition.
UPDATE IV. This is becoming ridiculous
French President Francois Hollande said today’s attack and hostage situation at a church in Normandy was carried out by “terrorists who claimed allegiance to ISIS.”
The motive is not yet known … 
Really.
===

Tell the full story first

Andrew Bolt July 27 2016 (7:52pm)

 YES, the footage shown by the ABC’s Four Corners of children in detention in the Northern Territory being abused was shocking.
The solitary confinement, the violent manhandling and the tear-gassing was disgraceful.
But let’s add perspective to better see our way forward.
Monday’s Four Corners opened with a particularly shocking scene of Dylan Voller, a teenager in Alice Springs, tied to a chair with a sack on his head.
No reason was given for what was presented as gratuitous torture. Indeed, presenter Sarah Henderson said: “The image you have just seen isn’t from Guantanamo Bay or Abu Ghraib but Australia in 2015 ...
“It is barbaric. This is juvenile justice in the Northern Territory, a system that punishes troubled children instead of rehabilitating them.”
But the ABC omitted the context that explains why he was restrained.
(Read the full story here.) 
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Who let them in?

Andrew Bolt July 27 2016 (5:40pm)

The last three successful terror attacks in Australia were all committed by refugees. The last four mass attacks in Germany were all carried out by asylum seekers or - in the Munich massacre - by the child or asylum seekers.
Now this:
TWO flatmates have pleaded guilty to making preparations for a terrorist attack but deny they intended to kill anyone instead saying they were planning to destroy property. 
Six days before they were set to face trial, Fairfield flatmates Omar Al-Kutobi, 25, and Mohammad Kiad, 26, pleaded guilty in the NSW Supreme Court this morning to one count each of conspiring to do an act in preparation for a terrorist act or acts… Al-Kutobi, an Iraqi refugee and Kiad, a Kuwaiti student, were arrested on February 11 last year ...
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On The Bolt Report and on radio tonight: James Hird’s dad

Andrew Bolt July 27 2016 (3:33pm)

On The Bolt Report on Sky News Live at 7pm tonight:
Editorial - Hillary Clinton sinks in the tribalism now threatening us, too
My guests:
Power Line founder  John Hinderaker. on Clinton’s fading hopes.
Allan Hird, father of former Essendon coach James Hird, on the hypocrisy of Sports Minister Sussan Ley over the Russian doping scandal.
Former Labor leader Mark Latham on Crikey’s sad search for “quality journalism”. He also opens his nominations for Australian of the Year.
The panel:  former Labor national president  Warren Mundine and former Victorian Labor vice-presidentKimberley Kitching.
Podcasts of the show here. Facebook page here
On 2GB, 3AW and 4BC with Steve Price from 8pm.
Why is Malcolm Turnbull backing Kevin Rudd?
Listen live here. Talkback:  131 873.  Listen to all past shows  here.
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How crooked is this?

Andrew Bolt July 27 2016 (9:45am)

It is incredible to me how the US might vote as its President a woman who accepted multi-billion dollar donations to her family’s charity from other governments while she was Secretary of State.
Tony Thomas:
Australian governments’ $85 million aid to the Clinton Foundation is a bit surprising, given that ex-President Bill and presidential candidate Hillary are synonyms for financial and personal sleaze. That total sum was paid by both Coalition and Labor governments over the past decade. Coalition and Labor have also despatched and committed $460m to the Clinton-affiliated Global Partnership for Education, chaired by our ex-PM Julia Gillard. Abbott’s Foreign Minister Julie Bishop threw Gillard’s show a lazy $140 million of taxpayer money in 2014, no questions asked. That aid was in the teeth of Gillard’s lusty presidential campaigning for Hillary against Trump. 
Ostensibly charitable, the Clinton Foundation is the centerpiece of the couple’s amassing of a vast personal fortune.  Bill was president from 1993-01. Hillary was Secretary of State for Obama from 2009-13.
In Hillary’s term at State, every variety of wealthy crook, influence-seeker and tyrannical government rushed to “donate” millions to the Clinton Foundation, its spin-offs, Bill Clinton personally or vague combinations of all/any of them. Lots of those crooked donors later scored disgrace, convictions and/or gaol on unrelated matters. Amid the sleaze, of course, the Clinton Foundation did manage to do some genuine charity work.
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Book sent to the mines

Andrew Bolt July 27 2016 (9:39am)

My book took off on an international frolic without me, visiting London, Lake Como, Ithaca, Scotland, the Bay of Naples and Fiji.
But reader Roger Brown has now caught it and sentenced it to work in the mines of Kalgoorlie:
To buy a copy for the miscreant in your life, go here.
The third edition of the Bolt Bulletin, sent to on-line buyers, has now gone out with thanks, a poem and a little introspection. A point is also made about the Trump critics attacking his speech. 
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Erdogan’s Reichstag fire

Andrew Bolt July 27 2016 (8:30am)

Paul Monk draws the correct analogy for the tyranny emerging in Turkey:
There is something deeply disturbing about the direction in which Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party are taking Turkey.... 
The scale and arbitrariness of what is happening are ... akin to Adolf Hitler’s state of emer­gency after the Reichstag fire in 1933, or Joseph Stalin’s reaction to the assassination of Sergei Kirov in 1934, than to the US in the 50s. There is also an analogy with Iran’s 1979-81 Islamic revolution. In the wake of a coup attempt whose source remains mysterious and that fizzled within hours, Erdogan’s regime began arresting or dismissing from their posts tens of thousands of people: military officers, soldiers, police, schoolteachers, academics, judges and civil servants. The scale and speed of the reaction have been breathtaking and cannot possibly be based on evidence of complicity in the failed coup. They can be based only on lists long prepared of those deemed to be politically and ideologically opposed to the Erdogan regime. 
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ABC apologises for another attack on Israeli Jews

Andrew Bolt July 27 2016 (8:20am)

As Gerard Henderson and I discussed on my show last night, there is a disturbing pattern to the ABC’s mistakes regarding Jews and Israel:
An ABC spokeswoman blamed “moderator error” for ­allowing the tweet by Twitter user supercatsimon to air prominently [on Q&A]. “Any young radicals who join ISIS or Israel should not be allowed into Australia,” it read… 
“An audience tweet was broadcast on Q&A which implied false equivalence between ‘radicals joining ISIS’ and Israel,” an ABC spokeswoman said. “It was a moderator error. Q&A apologises for any offence and removed the tweet from future broadcasts."…
Australia/Israel and Jewish Affairs Council’s executive director Colin Rubenstein last night said several tweets on Monday night displayed “raw bias” and the moderators should be reviewed… 
Last week [Communications Ministre Mitch] Fifield demanded the ABC explain how Muslim man Khaled Elomar, who had denigrated two female politicians online, was allowed to ask Pauline Hanson a question.
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Did anti-Trump journalists listen to their own?

Andrew Bolt July 27 2016 (8:09am)

L. Brent Bozell III and Tim Graham call out the commentators claiming to be shocked by Donald Trump’s aggression:
The Republican National Convention’s rowdy chants about Hillary Clinton — “Lock her up!” — have caused liberal journalists to get extremely distressed. In its lead editorial on July 21, The Washington Post fulminated that team Trump’s “descent from standard red-meat partisanship to unprecedented accusations of criminality displays contempt for the rule of law and a startling disinterest in fact and reason.” 
That’s strong brew. It’s too bad for them that it’s completely false. Somehow, the Post writers are acting like they were born yesterday, or slept through the last Republican presidency… 
Take CNN commentator Jack Cafferty, who on Oct. 17, 2005, gushed to Wolf Blitzer about the idea of Karl Rove in prison: “What should Karl Rove do if he is indicted? ... He might want to get measured for one of those extra-large orange jumpsuits, Wolf..” 
The legal expert known as Rosie O’Donnell insisted to Geraldo Rivera on April 30, 2005, “This president invaded a sovereign nation in defiance of the UN. He is basically a war criminal. Honestly. He should be tried at The Hague.” 
And Michael Moore delighted Chris Matthews on July 23, 2007: “Personally, I’d like to see a perp walk coming out of the West Wing of the White House.” Matthews inquired: “Do you think they’re guilty of war crimes?” Moore replied: “Absolutely. ... I think we need a trial, in this country, where Mr. Cheney and Mr. Bush would be brought up on charges for causing the deaths of so many people.” 
Al Franken, now a United States senator, wildly talked of executions for Bushies over the Valerie Plame matter on David Letterman’s “Late Show” on Oct. 22, 2005. “You know, George H. W. Bush, the president’s father, was the head of the CIA, and he has said that outing a CIA agent is treason.” Letterman agreed: “It is treason, yes.” Franken added: “And so basically, what it looks like is going to happen is that Libby and Karl Rove are going to be executed.”
(Thanks to reader fulchrum.) 
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A message to those who think control orders stop jihadists

Andrew Bolt July 27 2016 (7:58am)

No, control orders do not work - and keeping jihadists at home makes us less safe:
ONE of the Islamic State “soldiers” who stormed a church in France before slashing the throat of a priest at the altar has been identified. 
Adel Kermiche, 19, recorded the sickening murder while repeatedly shouting “Allahu Akbar” at the Catholic church in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, near Rouen, at 9am Tuesday (5pm Tuesday AEST).
French Prosecutor Francois Molins said Kermiche was known to security services, having twice been arrested on his way to Syria, and was under house arrest and wearing an electronic monitoring bracelet at the time of the attack. 
Molins said Kermiche and an unknown accomplice, armed with knives, took the 86-year-old priest Jacques Hamel, three nuns and two worshippers hostage.
UPDATE
One day the denialism will stop, but not yet:
That’s one way to put it. Headline, BBC website, Monday: 
Syrian migrant dies in German blast.
The Australian brings some clarity, yesterday: 
The Syrian refugee who blew himself up and injured 12 people in the southern German town of Ansbach was driven by religious extremism … “My personal view is that … it’s very likely this really was an Islamist suicide attack,” (said Bavaria’s Interior Minister) Joachim Herrmann.
We can think of some common threads. Raffaello Pantucci on the latest spate of terror attacks in Europe, The Age, yesterday: 
The profile of what we consider a terrorist attack is increasingly hard to define, in the same way that the specifics of what terrorists look like is ever harder to grasp.
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FROM GREAT TO HATE

Tim Blair – Monday, July 27, 2015 (4:01pm)

Fairfax t-shirt profiteer Clementine Ford celebrates the rich diversity of English expression: 
C**t is a bloody great word. 
But Clementine is outraged when someone uses that word – combined with another favourite Clementine phrase – against her: 
We got our refund and then as I turned to leave, the owner said “f**k off, you c**t”. I turned and said, “EXCUSE ME?” 
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WINNING THE WAR

Tim Blair – Monday, July 27, 2015 (2:26pm)

Readers may recall the brutal warning handed down last month by journalist and tax-funded art enthusiast Ben Eltham.
“The arts are a powerful latent force in Australia’s political landscape,” Eltham wrote following Arts Minister George Brandis’s rearrangement of arts funding.
“George Brandis and his colleagues would be wise to reflect on this, and whether they can win a war of symbols against some of the most creative and energetic people in our society.”
It’s time again to put on the Kevlar jacket, don the night vision goggles, arm the hashtags and wade into the bloody front lines of the Great Symbol War. Are Eltham’s insurgents winning? Or are Brandis and his troops somehow holding out against society’s “most creative and energetic” culture warriors?

 Continue reading 'WINNING THE WAR'
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BIG LEMON

Tim Blair – Monday, July 27, 2015 (2:16pm)

In the US, cash for comment candidate Hillary Clinton meets the powerful lemonade lobby:
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STRAIGHT TO THE BYN

Tim Blair – Monday, July 27, 2015 (2:03pm)

Britain’s first post-war election saw Labour’s Clement Attlee defeat Winston Churchill. It was the first election in which Labour won a majority of seats, and came as a shock following Churchill’s wartime leadership record.
Beating Hitler evidently didn’t mean much to a British public that was even more impressed by the Soviet Union’s wartime heroics and wanted themselves some of that tasty cradle-to-grave commie welfare action.
A similar mood is now settling again over the UK, where 66-year-old veteran socialist Jeremy Corbyn is currently the favourite to take over as Labour leader.
Younger voters are said to be especially taken by Corbyn’s habit of not wearing a tie. Presumably they are unaware that under Corbyn’s hard-left economic policies, they won’t be able to afford one. Between all of them.
 Continue reading 'STRAIGHT TO THE BYN'
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HE WANTS TO SEE NAMES

Tim Blair – Sunday, July 26, 2015 (7:29pm)

Buzzfeed interviews claimed Labor member Matthew, who is upset at the party’s decision to conditionally turn back boats
Matthew: People should put their names to this decision … I want to see people put their names to this piece of history that just occurred in there.
Buzzfeed News: What makes you so upset about it?
Matthew: No accountability. If you’re going to say you think turnbacks should be an option, I want you to put your name to it. 
Matthew evidently declined to give his own full name. Either that, or Buzzfeed’s cadet didn’t think to ask. 
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Don’t mention the war on gays

Andrew Bolt July 27 2015 (8:09am)

Not the principle but the side:
Right-wing nationalists in Sweden are planning a gay pride event to take place in Muslim-majority neighbourhoods of Stockholm. 
The organisers of Järva Pride are planning a march through the districts of Tensta and Husby in the Swedish capital on 29 July, areas that are known to have large Muslim populations… The march has been heavily criticised by left-wingers and some gay rights activists who see it as a provocation and have branded it “xenophobic"… A counter-demonstration is now also scheduled to take place.
It seems some on the Left believe some faiths should be allowed to hate gays.
And as I’ve shown before, gay lobby groups have been loud in damning Christians but shamefully silent on the jihadists now throwing gays off tall buildings.
(Thanks to reader Grendel.) 
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Victoria Police must explain its wild accusation against Catholic priests

Andrew Bolt July 27 2015 (8:01am)

How damaging has the anti-Catholic hysteria been?
Victoria Police has been exposed vastly overstating the number of suicides related to child-sex abuse by Catholic clergy, embroiling the force’s new Chief Commissioner in a scandal and further straining relations with the church. 
The Weekend Australian can reveal a secret police operation uncovered the force’s error when it claimed there had been up to 43 church-related suicides in Victoria.
Police now concede the real figure is one confirmed suicide with church-related sex abuse as a contributing factor and say that more than 40 per cent of victims on the suicide list could not be identified. 
The assertion that 43 suicide deaths were related to Catholic abuse was a central reason for the formation of the Victorian inquiry, which in turn was a key reason the national sex abuse royal commission was formed. Both inquiries subsequently confirmed catastrophic levels of child-sex abuse by members of the church.
A full explanation is needed. This is not the first time we have reasons to believe an anti-Catholicism has influenced even police involved in this issue.
(Thanks to reader Baden.) 
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Question for an Abbott-hater

Andrew Bolt July 27 2015 (7:59am)

Reader Nick:
Mark Kenny’s column in the SMH today had this interesting reveal - “Shorten’s argument was as sound as it was courageous. He concluded that stopping deaths at sea by stopping maritime attempts in unseaworthy boats via people smuggling, is the right policy setting”. 
Does Mark Kenny secretly think Mr Abbott is courageous and produces sound policy?
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Labor just spent more imaginary billions at its conference

Andrew Bolt July 27 2015 (7:46am)

How much more taxpayers’ money did Labor just promise to spend at its national conference?
More refugees:
He has promised to double Australia’s refugee intake to 27,000, phased in over 10 years from 2016 to 2025. This will be hugely expensive. Every refugee or asylum-seeker arriving in Australia costs the government, on average, $78,000 in their first year. Last financial year, the cost was $1.077 billion.
More money for the UN:
Labor would provide $450 million to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees for regional refugee processing centres.
Doubling renewable energy by 2030:
ACIL said the total capital cost would be in the order of $100bn — about three times the cost of the National Broadband Network.
Plus there’s the cost of changing the China free trade deal:
Trade Minister Andrew Robb has repudiated a resolution out of the national Labor conference to modify the China-Australia free-trade agreement, warning that any delay to its passage through parliament could cost Australian industries at least $300 million next year alone.
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Bill Shorten won’t turn back the boats. He’s actually opening the doors

Andrew Bolt July 27 2015 (7:31am)

 THE rest of the West is now desperately trying to save itself from mass immigration from the Third World.
Bill Shorten’s Labor Party alone is in denial, demanding weaker borders, not stronger. Demanding more refugees, not fewer.
Is Labor blind to what’s happening?
Vast populations are on the move from poor countries to rich ones.
Up to 500,000 people from Africa and the Middle East have gathered in Libya alone to cross to Italy, a voyage which has already cost the lives of 2000 of the 87,000 illegal immigrants who’ve sailed over this year.
In Greece, nearly 10 per cent of the population are now illegal immigrants — more than 1 million in a country barely able to feed itself.
North of Greece, Hungary is fencing its border to stop those immigrants from coming there, too.
Britain is, meanwhile, building bigger fences at the Calais entrance to the Eurotunnel to stop immigrants jumping into the back of trucks.
France, where an astonishing 70 per cent of jail inmates are now Muslim, closed its border with Italy this year to stop mainly Muslim immigrants from Africa flooding in.
The US increased patrols of its Mexican border, and over the past year, has caught 27,000 unaccompanied children from South America trying to cross over.
Closer to us, Thailand this year deployed its navy to stop people smugglers ferrying illegal workers from Bangladesh and Burma through Thailand to Malaysia.
The barriers are going up, particularly in the West. The people trying to get in are just too many — and from cultures too different — to easily assimilate.
But at Labor’s weekend national conference, Bill Shorten revealed his plan to not just re-open our back door to them but fling the front door open even wider by doubling our refugee intake.
(Read full column here.) 
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The AFL must ban this challenge to a race war

Andrew Bolt July 27 2015 (7:09am)

 Adam Goodes’ apologists first pretended his war dance was just an expression of pride. An educative demonstration to the public of Aboriginal culture.  An encouragement to young Aborigines. Even, absurdly, a step towards reconciliation.
But the public rejection of this racial division that Goodes now represents has prompted Lewis Jetta to make even clearer that this symbolic spear-throwing at (only) white supporters is actually an invitation to a race war - an inflammatory and threatening challenge that the AFL must stamp out fast before this gets out of hand:
 SYDNEY coach John Longmire said Lewis Jetta became upset at the continued loud booing of Adam Goodes before he directed an angry “war cry” goal celebration at West Coast supportersJetta celebrated a goal early in the final term by charging towards Eagles fans and ­producing an emotion-charged “spear throwing” dance, similar to Goodes’ own ­controversial celebration earlier in the season in front of Carlton supporters at the SCG.
We will pay a high price if the media class insists on promoting the division of Australians into “races”. Never has that folly - that insult to our common humanity - ended well. 
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Green totalitarians try to ban free thought at a second university

Andrew Bolt July 27 2015 (6:59am)

This attack on doubt and debate is shameful - a real throwback to the kind of persecution we’ve seen by communists, Nazis, Islamists and Inquisitors of other independent thinkers who dared to deviate from the official creed:
Controversial Danish academic Bjorn Lomborg has rejected claims he is a “climate-change denier” and has called on his ­opponents in Australia to stop misrepresenting his views. 
His comments came as Flinders University vice-chancellor Colin Stirling defended the ­Adelaide institution’s decision to explore the possibility of working with Dr Lomborg, saying he believed universities should “experiment bravely”. The Australian revealed last week that Flinders has held talks with the government about setting up a $4 million think tank based on Dr Lomborg’s methodology…
The revelation of the talks promoted an immediate backlash from Flinders staff and students who warned they would protest against any move by the university to host the centre.
Last Friday, the Flinders University Students Association and Greens acting leader Larissa Waters claimed Dr Lomborg had questioned the science of man-made climate change. FUSA general secretary Grace Hill said she was “outraged” by the news Flinders might establish a “climate-change denial centre” on campus.
This is embryonic totalitarianism. No university should even dare to surrender to this attack on intellectual inquiry. To do so, as the University of Western Australia has already, would be a disgraceful betrayal of the Western tradition of free thought.  
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Carr crashes into Plibersek after dodging boats

Andrew Bolt July 27 2015 (6:37am)

Labor frontbencher Kim Carr gave deputy Labor leader Tanya Plibersek a savaging yesterday, portraying her as a double-dealing backstabber:
We took the view [to support boat turnbacks] at a shadow cabinet two weeks ago — that was the position and I supported that along with many other delegates here…
Tanya spoke very strongly in support of the shadow cabinet position at the various meetings that I attended… She strongly supported the position that Bill Shorten had articulated on behalf of the whole shadow cabinet… 

It was clearly in my view that you should demonstrate the same attitudes you take at the shadow cabinet in the party as a whole.
Plibersek did herself no favors by showing the media those two faces, too:
The deputy Labor leader, from the NSW Left, avoided personally voting on the proposal to allow a future Labor government to adopt the policy at the ALP national conference on Saturday, instead handing her vote to a proxy. 
Quizzed on her position by journalists on Sunday, Ms Plibersek said Labor’s position was ‘humane, compassionate and sensible’. She ‘could not be prouder’ of Labor’s policy, which includes a plan to double Australia’s humanitarian intake.
David Crowe sums up the politicking:
The conference infighting includ­ed attacks on Ms Plibersek for playing a “double­ game” in the debate over boat turnbacks in a way that could diminish her influence within the Left. While she did not oppose the turnback policy in shadow cabinet and argued for it in meetings of the Left, she gave her vote to a proxy who cast it against Mr Shorten’s position. 
The Opposition Leader’s allies also took aim at Mr Albanese for openly voting against the tougher line on boat turnbacks, even though he did not challenge the policy when shadow cabinet agreed on the tougher line.
The Australian was told that only one frontbencher, Penny Wong, expressed reservations about supporting boat turnbacks when the stance was decided in shadow cabinet. Senator Wong’s vote at the party conference was also given to a proxy who cast it against Mr Shorten’s position.
Caucus members described the positioning within the Left as a quest to succeed Mr Shorten, with several arguing that Ms Plibersek had lost ground as a result of her handling of the passionate differences over asylum-seekers. 
Mr Albanese gained acclaim within the Left for taking his stand against turnbacks, raising suggestions that he could one day capitalise on the growing power of the Left to take the leadership.
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The Brits sure know how to do political scandal well. Story in The Sun: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/6561588/Lord-Sewel-bra-snap-released-as-he-resigns.html
Posted by Latika M Bourke on Sunday, 26 July 2015
He is Labour .. work to home continuity maintained

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Australia’s focus should be on Hockeyroos not Treasurer Joe Hockey’s new book

Piers Akerman – Saturday, July 26, 2014 (11:37pm)

ONLY three events have even come close to nudging the shooting down of MH17 from the headlines, the opening of the Commonwealth Games, the launch of Joe Hockey’s premature biography and Jacqui Lambie’s gross remarks about her sexual needs.
Predictably, our sports team has been doing well though the gold has not always fallen to those who were expected to shine.
 Continue reading 'Australia’s focus should be on Hockeyroos not Treasurer Joe Hockey’s new book'
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Being a bloke is now a crime except in the oasis of sport

Miranda Devine – Saturday, July 26, 2014 (11:35pm)

“POLICE were patrolling Rawson Park on Friday night when they spotted two teenage males standing in the darkness at about 10.30pm. Police deemed it to be suspicious and thought they may have been there to consume alcohol or drugs.
“The 18-year-olds stated they were just hanging out and eating lollies. After a search nothing was found but red frogs in their pockets. The pair were moved on ... by officers.”
The red frog crime wave in Mosman was reported in my local newspaper a couple of months ago. It is an amusing snapshot, but it is also a symptom of a terrible ailment in our culture: a concerted attempt to criminalise masculinity. Men and boys are always suspect.

Icon Arrow Continue reading 'Being a bloke is now a crime except in the oasis of sport'
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PODIUM

Tim Blair – Sunday, July 27, 2014 (10:47am)

Australia finishes third in an international IQ test:
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BACK FROM THE BACK OF THE FRONT

Tim Blair – Sunday, July 27, 2014 (9:49am)

Islamic preacher Musa Cerantonio returned to Australia last week after bravely fighting in Syria – from the unusual location of the Philippines
Mr Cerantonio was detained for questioning by the AFP, and likely ASIO, for more than two-and-a-half hours before clearing customs, after arriving on an overnight flight from Manilla.


Musa demonstrates his 1000-yard combat stare

He remained silent and expressionless as he was pursued by media while being escorted by police from the international arrivals gate to his father’s waiting car. 
And then they drove to Melbourne. Or maybe Mosul. Musa can’t really tell the difference.
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Shorten plays the tatty class war card he only yesterday condemned

Andrew Bolt July 27 2014 (5:53am)

Bill Shorten first married a multi-millionaire oil man’s daughter. He received the patronage of Australia’s then richest man, Richard Pratt. He then married the Governor-General’s daughter.
And now this man, of all people, has the hide to indulge in the cheapest of class war smears - the very tactic Labor declared was a mistake of the Gillard Government?
FEDERAL Opposition Leader Bill Shorten will attack Joe Hockey as an “arrogant, cigar-chomping Treasurer’’ in a speech to ALP delegates today where he will argue his personal wealth is to blame for his heartless budget. 
The Labor leader’s declaration of a new class war attack on Mr Hockey will be outlined in his pitch to ALP members at the NSW state conference…
“This arrogant, cigar-chomping Treasurer’s hopeless biography reveals that it took Tony Abbott to block him from deeper, harder cuts,’’ Mr Shorten says. 
“Seriously. If it’s up to Tony Abbott to tell you that you’ve gone too far, you’ve really gone too far. This is a budget brought to you by a conservative prime minister who doesn’t see it as his duty to care for everyone, by a conservative Treasurer whose personal comfort in life has robbed him of charity. And, I might say, judgment.’’
Sleazy. And hypocritical. 26 April: 
BILL Shorten ... said the party must turn its back on class warfare rhetoric and policies, and described an “us versus them” approach to politics as unhealthy.
(Thanks to reader Peter of Bellevue Hill.) 
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The Bolt Report today, July 27

Andrew Bolt July 27 2014 (5:51am)

On Channel 10 at 10am and 4pm…
Editorial: How far will Tony Abbott push Russia, the nuclear superpower?
My guest:  Foreign Minister Julie Bishop on grim new developments in the search for the MH17 bodies - and for justice.
The panel: Grahame Morris and Cassandra Wilkinson.
NewsWatch:  The great Rowan Dean.  On his menu - why is the ABC TV showing us two hours a day of the news service of a Middle Eastern regime?
Plus a lot more, including why can’t the lovely Asher Keddie play a conservative instead?:
The videos of the shows appear here.
UPDATE
I know, I know - Frank Underwood in the US version of House of Cards is a Democrat. I ran out of time to show the tape we prepared earlier.
UPDATE
Behind the scenes today:
UPDATE
Transcript:
ANDREW BOLT: How far we will push Russia to get back the bodies of our dead and to find out who exactly shot down MH17. Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has been instrumental in organising a coalition of the five countries who suffered the most in this tragedy including Holland and Britain. It is a coalition that wants to send police and some soldiers to the crime scene in a part of Ukraine actually held by Russian-backed rebels. Julie Bishop joins me now from Amsterdam. Foreign Minister, thank you so much for your time. When will Ukraine let our police and soldiers go to the crime scene? 
JULIE BISHOP Andrew, our police can go to the crime scene when we negotiate access with the Russian backed separatists and we’re doing that through the OSCE, this organisation that is helping broker our access with the separatists. So it will take some time, and of course if we bring in arms then, for self-defence, then it has to be ratified by the Ukraine parliament. That has been the delay over this weekend. The Ukraine government has been very supportive of what we’re seeking to do. They have agreed to handover the leadership of the investigation to the Dutch, they have agreed to allow Australia to bring in police and logistical support including arms to ensure that we can safely access this site but there was a delay on Friday. We now have to wait until next week in order to get the ratification from the parliament and that is why the Dutch Foreign Minister Timmermans and I are going back to Ukraine tomorrow to secure that agreement to ensure that we can get the parliament of Ukraine to ratify our deployment agreement.
BOLT: If Ukraine refuses to ratify that, will we still go in?
JULIE BISHOP We have every expectation that they will ratify it. We had an agreement with the President that we obtained last Thursday. I signed our deployment agreement with their foreign minister at about 2am on Friday morning. They wanted to put it into the parliament on Friday but then they had a crisis within their parliament. Their Prime Minister resigned and there were a lot of internal domestic issues that had to be addressed and then their parliament went into recess. They tell us that they will bring the parliament back for a special sitting next Thursday. We think that is too late, and so the Foreign Minister of the Netherlands and I will be urging for the parliament to be recalled earlier this week, hopefully Tuesday.
BOLT: What guarantees have you had from Russia that our police, this force, most of whom will be unarmed and in a war zone, will be safe?
JULIE BISHOP Prime Minister Abbott has been speaking to President Putin, on a number of occasions, and on each occasion President Putin has noted the need for our people to get in there so that we can retrieve the remains of those still on the site and he’s acknowledged that. And unarmed police are obviously no threat to Russia or to anybody else but we are still trying to negotiate with the separatists who are Russian-backed and owe their allegiance to Russia, to bring in some sort of defence, some sort of protection for our people on the site. And as Prime Minister Abbott has repeated time and time again, this is a humanitarian mission. All we want to do is secure the site, so that we can inspect it thoroughly and bring back any remains that are on that site. And of course we want to allow the investigation to begin that will be led by the Dutch so that we can find the answers as to how this happened.
BOLT: How many people in this coalition force going there will be armed to protect our people?
JULIE BISHOP A number, I won’t go into the operational aspects of it. But the main focus is on having police investigators, those who are expert in body identification and those who are expert in investigations, Dutch and Australian at this stage. We expect a number of other countries who have been affected to also offer resources and personnel. Indeed I have a phone call with a number of other countries’ foreign ministers lined up for tomorrow. So we are getting offers from elsewhere, as you would imagine, other countries affected by this. But our focus is very much on getting onto the site, finding the remains, collecting personal belongings and bringing them out to the Netherlands.
Andrew, we’ve got to understand the level of complexity. This commercial aeroplane was shot down over a war zone, where the Ukraine military is in daily conflict with separatists who owe their allegiance to Russia and are wanting to de-stabilise the Ukraine government. We can’t inspect the site without the agreement of these separatists and unlike any other airline crash we have to take the evidence and bodies away from the country in which it occurred to another country, in this case the Netherlands. So it’s extraordinarily complex and it’s painstaking work but we are determined to see it through, and we are determined, of achieving our goals of bringing our loved ones home. That’s the way the Netherlands government feels about it, that’s the way that the Australian government feels about it and we are absolutely united in our resolve to bring our people home.
BOLT: The Prime Minister called the shooting down of MH17 a crime rather than a terrible accident. What exactly was the crime and who is the main suspect?
JULIE BISHOP I have had significant intelligence briefings in Washington, our own intelligence community is working very hard to determine the cause of this. The investigation should conclude who is responsible. Already we have a lot of evidence that has been brought together. But we did, through the United Nations Security Council resolution, agree that there will be an open, thorough, transparent, independent, impartial investigation. That’s why it is being led by the Dutch and all credit to the Ukrainian government for agreeing to transfer the leadership of the investigation to the Netherlands government. Ukraine has the responsibility under international aviation law to carry out the investigation but because of the pressure from Russia they have agreed to hand it over to the Dutch so there can be no question that this is an impartial investigation.
BOLT: Has Russia allowed or agreed to let the investigators interview key witnesses such as Strelkhov, the rebel forces commander in chief and allegedly a Russian agent, where is he?
JULIE BISHOP These are all matters that the investigation will have to determine. Andrew, the point is we have got a unanimous UN Security Council resolution backing this investigation. All 15 countries signed up to that, plus it was co-sponsored by all the other countries that were affected by this crash. So we have international support for an independent investigation, that’s why we’re so determined to get access to the site so that it can begin. And it would be scandalous if any political leaders sought to use this tragedy for political gain. 
BOLT:  The weapon was obviously a missile launcher. Do you know where it is and have you asked the investigators to find it? 
 Continue reading 'The Bolt Report today, July 27'
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10 reasons for leaving the Left

Andrew Bolt July 27 2014 (5:48am)

Danusha V. Goska on the ”10 reasons I am no longer a Leftist”, in descending order:
10) Huffiness… 
9) Selective Outrage…
8.) It’s the thought that counts…
7) Leftists hate my people…
6) I believe in God…

5 & 4) Straw men and “In order to make an omelet you have to break a few eggs."…
2 & 3) It doesn’t work.  Other approaches work better…

1) Hate…
Read on.
(Thanks to reader Doubting Thomas.) 
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Why is ‘refugee’ Daniel Koum competing for the country he says he had to flee?

Andrew Bolt July 27 2014 (5:35am)

How typically stupid we were to believe weightlifter Daniel Koum:
Arriving in Australia, he had a sports visa that was valid for one month and allowed him to compete in the [Melbourne Commonwealth] games. However, seeking to put the hardship of life that encompasses Cameroonians behind him, he spoke with the Red Cross, in order to gain assistance in claiming asylum and remaining in Australia.... From there he spoke with Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre in Fitzroy and they provided him with a free migration officer, who assisted in having him placed on a bridging visa… After 2 years as an asylum seeker, under a permanent residency visa, he was granted full citizenship. 
Today he’s competing for the very country he says he had to flee for his life:
Koum’s protracted and bitter falling out with the Australian Weightlifting Federation saw him compete for his native Cameroon in Glasgow instead of Australia… 
“In January I put in my application to represent Australia and it was rejected. I immediately contacted Cameroon to say I am available and had been released by the Commonwealth Games Association so I was free to compete. I’m originally from Cameroon so it was easier for me to represent them again,” he said.
If we’d just given him a temporary protection visa we could now ship him right back to Cameroon.  
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Why can’t Daniel Andrews just deny this damaging allegation?

Andrew Bolt July 27 2014 (5:16am)

“No” is such an easy thing to say, so why didn’t - or couldn’t - Daniel Andrews say it?
Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews has refused to say whether his chief of staff listened to a stolen recording of Ted Baillieu only weeks before the damning conversation was leaked in a bid to destabilise the Napthine government… 
The issue came to a head on Friday when The Age revealed that a senior ALP official took a Fairfax journalist’s missing dictaphone, which was handed to lost property by security at Labor’s state conference in May and ended up at the party’s Docklands head office.
The official then made a copy of an off-the-record conversation between former premier Baillieu and the journalist and discussed with Labor figures, including Mr Andrews’ senior strategists, whether to release it.
Mr Andrews’ chief of staff, John McLindon, was named in the Herald Sun on Saturday as one of the people who had listened to the tape before it ended up in Liberal hands. 
But Mr Andrews - who on Friday said ‘’I don’t accept for a moment that any of my staff are implicated in this’’ - on Saturday dodged a series of questions, including whether his staff had listened to the taped conversation or were briefed on its contents. ‘’Any allegation that opposition staff were in any way involved in the theft or dissemination of this material is wrong and defamatory,’’ he said through a spokesman.
Very grubby, if true. As Premier Daniel Andrews would be privy to lots of confidential information. So would his staff. I think we need assurances about how they would handle such information. 
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Someone unidentified and uninformed is a good enough source for Fairfax

Andrew Bolt July 27 2014 (5:01am)

Strange story from Fairfax. What “defence figure”? Why not put his name to this warning? Does he have any real knowledge of the issue, when he says “what I’ve heard is”?  Why presume this multinational force will go in without some security assurances from Moscow?
Australian Defence Force personnel will be walking unprepared into a volatile situation at the MH17 crash site in Ukraine, a senior defence figure has warned. 
Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s announcement of Australia’s intention to send 190 armed Australian Federal Police and an unknown number of ADF personnel to help recover bodies and evidence from the site has been met with incredulity in some parts of Europe, with one analyst branding it ‘’nuts’’.
The senior defence figure, who did not wish to be named, said it was a poor idea for Australia.
‘’They can’t secure the site,’’ he said. ‘’It’s kilometres long and wide. They could escort Australian officials and provide close protection, but this is a civil task rather than a military task and it’s a terribly volatile area.
‘’We don’t have the language skills or knowledge of the area. 
‘’For any military deployment, you have to look at a status of forces agreement with the government and, given the area the aircraft is in, I don’t think there is anyone to make that agreement with. What I’ve heard is the rebels don’t want more than 30 investigators there.’’
Yes, there are security concerns with this mission, but it is dumb to assume those planning it don’t know this. It is also pusillanimous to assume that any risk is unacceptable.
UPDATE
Fairfax really has has enough of Abbott handling the MH17 disaster with compassion and strength.  Paul Malone is furious - and cheap::
Prime Minister Tony Abbott must have believed he’d found his nine/eleven moment when he fronted the media immediately after the Malaysian airliner tragedy… Howard was rescued from the depths of the polls by his anti-boat people policy and the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, which enabled him to rally support around his pledge of solidarity with the United States… Abbott too could do with a cause to rally the troops. So a confrontation where he could classify the combatants as goodies and baddies ... suited him down to the ground.
(Thanks to reader Peter of Bellevue Hill.) 
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Pastor Rick Warren
'We show we are servants of God by pure lives, understanding, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit and true love." 2 Cor.6:6
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Pastor Rick Warren
"God says 'My power works best in your weakness' therefore I brag about my weaknesses so that Christ's power may work through me!" 2 Cor. 12:9
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The article isn't wrong. Nathan Reese may well be a stand up bloke, although I know of no evidence to suggest that to be true. He was chief of staff to Milton. The witness to blow the whistle on Milton was treated appallingly because others looked away - ed
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There are so many words in the English language that it’s not surprising that the definitions for some of them have gotten mixed up over the years. It’s possible that you’ve gone your entire life without realizing your mistakes. I’m sure people have noticed. One day, you were probably walking down the street, casually chatting with an old friend, and one of these words slipped out of your mouth. Before you can move on to your story about how Mufasa would actually make a very attractive human, your friend stops to correct your error, and suddenly, your whole life starts to feel like one giant lie. How long have you been using that word incorrectly,
Phil Box Add decimate and bugger to that list. Most have no clue as to what these two words mean. Even professional news casters get decimate wrong.
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First, last Friday the EU announced it is imposing economic sanctions on Israel. The sanctions deny EU funds to Israeli entities with an address beyond the 1949 Armistice Lines. They also deny EU funds to Israeli entities countrywide that carry out activities beyond the 1949 Armistice Lines.

The areas beyond the 1949 Armistice Lines delineated by the EU directive include the Gaza Strip, which Israel abandoned eight years ago; the Golan Heights, which has been under Israeli sovereignty since 1981; eastern, northern and southern Jerusalem, which have been under Israeli sovereignty since 1967; and Judea and Samaria, over which Israel has shared governance with the PLO since 1994 in accordance with signed agreements witnessed by EU representatives.
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The EU's decision to initiate an economic war against the Jewish state forces Israel to abandon its long-held illusions. Israel has options for responding forcefully to Europe's aggression. If judiciously and firmly employed, these responses can diminish the Europeans' interest in escalating this economic war, by denying them the political victory they seek.
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This week on the Tribal Update, the weekly satirical newscast produced by Latma, we bring you a behind the scenes look at the woes of Palestinian prisoners, and Bibi's Plan B in the event that the upcoming round of talks with the PLO don't bring peace.
Enjoy! 
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Bibi is fighting intelligently and desperately against the Obama administration while still remaining an ally of the US .. it is heart breaking. I am sure that there is back ground that prevents him from getting more .. but he isn't able to discuss it. - ed
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Kerry isn't even in control of his own tongue. - ed
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It is ok to disagree. I get your frustration, but a point of difference in our philosophy, which is apparently expressed more broadly is my belief in wealth creation. Your analysis works under the assumption that all the factors are external. "Nothing we can do but make the most of what we have" is the adage of those unions and political mates. They have no responsibility for their failure. "There just wasn't enough." There is no need to demolish the city and begin again. All that needs to happen is to let the adults run the shop for awhile. I do not believe 700,000 US peoples have not got sufficient to be able to take care of themselves. It isn't a war zone. - ed
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He is wrong to believe soThe US is defending itself against terrorists whose claims to Islam are questionable. This particular terrorist killed vulnerable people for no sensible reason. - ed
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So much money in exploiting workers by unions .. no wonder they wriggle .. ed
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The issues are real and substantiated - ed
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Yes .. and a comic book treatment of the Bible would be easy to animate in in small, ground breaking ways .. ed

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July 27José Celso Barbosa Day in Puerto RicoParents' Day in the United States (2014)
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“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”Hebrews 11:1 NIV
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Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon

Morning


"Giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge, etc."
2 Peter 1:5-6
If thou wouldest enjoy the eminent grace of the full assurance of faith, under the blessed Spirit's influence, and assistance, do what the Scripture tells thee, "Give diligence." Take care that thy faith is of the right kind--that it is not a mere belief of doctrine, but a simple faith, depending on Christ, and on Christ alone. Give diligent heed to thy courage. Plead with God that he would give thee the face of a lion, that thou mayest, with a consciousness of right, go on boldly. Study well the Scriptures, and get knowledge; for a knowledge of doctrine will tend very much to confirm faith. Try to understand God's Word; let it dwell in thy heart richly.
When thou hast done this, "Add to thy knowledge temperance." Take heed to thy body: be temperate without. Take heed to thy soul: be temperate within. Get temperance of lip, life, heart, and thought. Add to this, by God's Holy Spirit, patience; ask him to give thee that patience which endureth affliction, which, when it is tried, shall come forth as gold. Array yourself with patience, that you may not murmur nor be depressed in your afflictions. When that grace is won look to godliness. Godliness is something more than religion. Make God's glory your object in life; live in his sight; dwell close to him; seek for fellowship with him; and thou hast "godliness"; and to that add brotherly love. Have a love to all the saints: and add to that a charity, which openeth its arms to all men, and loves their souls. When you are adorned with these jewels, and just in proportion as you practise these heavenly virtues, will you come to know by clearest evidence "your calling and election." "Give diligence," if you would get assurance, for lukewarmness and doubting very naturally go hand in hand.

Evening


"That he may set him with princes."
Psalm 113:8

Our spiritual privileges are of the highest order. "Among princes" is the place of select society. "Truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ." Speak of select society, there is none like this! "We are a chosen generation, a peculiar people, a royal priesthood." "We are come unto the general assembly and church of the first-born, whose names are written in heaven." The saints have courtly audience: princes have admittance to royalty when common people must stand afar off. The child of God has free access to the inner courts of heaven. "For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father." "Let us come boldly," says the apostle, "to the throne of the heavenly grace." Among princes there is abundant wealth, but what is the abundance of princes compared with the riches of believers? for "all things are yours, and ye are Christ's, and Christ is God's." "He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?" Princes have peculiar power. A prince of heaven's empire has great influence: he wields a sceptre in his own domain; he sits upon Jesus' throne, for "He hath made us kings and priests unto God, and we shall reign forever and ever." We reign over the united kingdom of time and eternity. Princes, again, have special honour. We may look down upon all earth-born dignity from the eminence upon which grace has placed us. For what is human grandeur to this, "He hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus"? We share the honour of Christ, and compared with this, earthly splendours are not worth a thought. Communion with Jesus is a richer gem than ever glittered in imperial diadem. Union with the Lord is a coronet of beauty outshining all the blaze of imperial pomp.
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Today's reading: Psalm 40-42, Acts 27:1-26 (NIV)

View today's reading on Bible Gateway

Today's Old Testament reading: Psalm 40-42


For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.

1 I waited patiently for the LORD;
he turned to me and heard my cry.
2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.
3 He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear the LORD
and put their trust in him....


Today's New Testament reading: Acts 27:1-26

Paul Sails for Rome
1 When it was decided that we would sail for Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a centurion named Julius, who belonged to the Imperial Regiment. 2 We boarded a ship from Adramyttium about to sail for ports along the coast of the province of Asia, and we put out to sea. Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, was with us.
3 The next day we landed at Sidon; and Julius, in kindness to Paul, allowed him to go to his friends so they might provide for his needs. 4From there we put out to sea again and passed to the lee of Cyprus because the winds were against us. 5 When we had sailed across the open sea off the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we landed at Myra in Lycia. 6 There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship sailing for Italy and put us on board.7 We made slow headway for many days and had difficulty arriving off Cnidus. When the wind did not allow us to hold our course, we sailed to the lee of Crete, opposite Salmone. 8 We moved along the coast with difficulty and came to a place called Fair Havens, near the town of Lasea....
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Nabal

[Nā'bal] - prominence or foolishA wealthy but churlish sheepmaster of Maon whose business was in Carmel (1 Sam. 25; 2 Sam. 2:2).

The Man Who Was a Fool by Name and Nature


Nabal is a striking illustration of a man with a name indicative of his nature. When David came to Nabal asking food for his hungry men, this churlish man refused. David set out to kill Nabal but Abigail, his beautiful wife, pled for the life of her unworthy husband. What a contrast they afford! Abigail so beautiful and Nabal so bestial - The Beauty and the Beast. Pleading for Nabal's life, Abigail said to David, "As is his name, so is he. Nabal is his name and folly is with him." In effect, she said, "Pay no attention to my churlish husband. He's a fool by name and a fool by nature."
After his drunken orgy, Nabal was told of David's threat to take his life and he died of fright. David afterwards married Abigail, a woman of good understanding and who, as Edith Deen tells us in her most valuable handbook, All the Women of the Bible, was "the greatest influence for good and helped David to remember that he was God's anointed into whose keeping the kingdom of Israel had been entrusted."
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