First up, developments ahead of the Dunkley by-election, which Rachel Baxendale of The Australian reported yesterday was “unlikely to be held before late February”:
• A Liberal preselection ballot scheduled for January 14 is expected to include Frankston mayor Nathan Conroy; Donna Hope, who as Donna Bauer held the state seat of Carrum from 2010 to 2014 and is now an electorate officer to Chris Crewther, former federal member for Dunkley and now state member for Mornington; Bec Buchanan, another staffer to Crewther and the party’s state candidate for Carrum in 2022; and Sorrento real estate agent David Burgess, who was on the party’s Legislative Council ticket for Eastern Victoria in 2022.
• Paul Sakkal of The Age today reports the widower of the late Labor member Peta Murphy, Rod Glover, is being encouraged to seek preselection by “senior Labor figures”. The report describes Glover as a “respected former staffer to Kevin Rudd, university professor and public policy expert”. Also mentioned in Rachel Baxendale’s report were Madison Child, an “international relations and public policy graduate in her mid twenties who grew up in Frankston”, and has lately worked as an electorate officer to Murphy; Georgia Fowler, a local nurse who ran in Mornington at the November 2022 state election; and Joshua Sinclair, chief executive of the Committee for Frankston and Mornington Peninsula.
Other preselection news:
• Tim Wilson has confirmed he will seek Liberal preselection to recover the Melbourne seat of Goldstein following his defeat at the hands of teal independent Zoe Daniel in 2022. Paul Sakkal of The Age reports he is “unlikely to face a challenger”.
• Lydia Lynch of The Australian today reports nominations for Liberal National Party preselection will close on January 15 in the inner Brisbane seat of Ryan, which the party lost to Elizabeth Watson-Brown of the Greens in 2022, and the Gold Coast seat of McPherson, which will be vacated with the retirement of Karen Andrews. The front-runner in the former case is said to be Maggie Forrest, barrister and the party’s honorary legal adviser. In addition to the previously identified Ben Naday, Leon Rebello and David Stevens in McPherson (the first two being rated the front-runners) is Adam Fitzgibbons, head of public affairs at Coles. Party insiders are said to be “increasingly concerned” about the emergence of a “McPherson Matters” group that is preparing a teal independent bid for the seat.
• Lily McCaffrey of the Herald-Sun reports Emanuele Cicchiello, deputy principal Lighthouse Christian College deputy principal, has been preselected as Liberal candidate for Aston, the Melbourne seat that was lost to the party in a historic by-election result on April 1. Cicchiello ran unsuccessfully in Bruce in 2013 and has made numerous other bids for preselection.
• Rochelle Pattison, chair of Transgender Victoria and director of corporate finance firm Chimaera Capital, has nominated for Liberal preselection in Kooyong, joining an existing field consisting of Amelia Hamer, Susan Morris and Michael Flynn.
• The New South Wales Liberal Party website records two unheralded federal election candidates in Sam Kayal, a local accountant who will again run in Werriwa following an unsuccessful bid in 2022, and Katie Mullens, conservative-aligned solicitor at Barrak Lawyers who ran for the state seat of Parramatta in March and has now been preselected for the federal seat of the same name.
Polling news:
• The Courier-Mail sought to read the temperature of Queensland politics post-Annastacia Palaszczuk without breaking the budget by commissioning a uComms robopoll, crediting the Liberal National Party opposition with a two-party lead of 51-49. The only detail provided on primary votes was that the LNP was on 36.2% and Labor 34.4% – no indication was provided as to whether this was exclusive of the uncommitted, which is often not the case withuComms. Steven Miles was viewed positively by 42.7% and negatively by 27.6%, with only the positive rating of 37.8% provided for David Crisafulli. A forced response question on preferred premier had Crisafulli leading Miles by 52.2-47.8. True to the Courier-Mail style guide, the report on this unremarkable set of numbers included the words “startling”, “explosive”, “whopping” and “stunning”. The initial report on Tuesday was accompanied by a hook to a follow-up that promised to tell “who Queenslanders really wanted as Annastacia Palaszczuk’s replacement”. The answer was revealed the next day to be Steven Miles, favoured by 37.8% over Shannon Fentiman on 35.0% and Cameron Dick on 27.1%. The poll was conducted December 21 and 22 from a sample of 1911.
• RedBridge Group has a poll of Victorian state voting intention showing Labor leading 55.9-44.1, little different to the 55.0-45.0 result at the November 2022 election. The primary votes are Labor 37% (36.7% at the election), Coalition 36% (34.5%) and Greens 13% (11.5%). Extensive further results include leadership ratings inclusive of “neither approve nor disapprove” option that find Jacinta Allan viewed positively by 24%, negatively by 30% and neutrally by 32%, John Pesutto at 16% positive, 36% neutral and 29% negative, and Greens leader Samantha Ratnam at 14% positive, 29% neutral and 35% negative. The poll was conducted December 2 to 12 from a sample of 2026.
• Nine Newspapers published results from Resolve Strategic on Thursday on whether various politicians were viewed positively, neutrally, negatively or not at all, which it had held back from its last national poll nearly a month ago. Whereas a similar recent exercise by Roy Morgan simply invited respondents to identify politicians they did and didn’t trust, this one took the to-my-mind more useful approach of presenting respondents with a set list of forty names. In the federal sphere, the five most positively rated were Penny Wong (net 14%, meaning the difference between her positive and negative results), Jacqui Lambie (10%), Jacinta Price (6%), David Pocock (5%) and Tanya Plibersek (3%). The lowest were Scott Morrison (minus 35%), Lidia Thorpe (minus 29%, a particularly remarkable result given what was presumably modest name recognition), Barnaby Joyce (minus 27%), Pauline Hanson (minus 25%) and, interestingly, Bob Katter (minus 15%). Of state leaders, Chris Minns (plus 14%) and David Crisafulli (plus 9%) did notably well, and John Pesutto (minus 7%) and the since-departed Annastacia Palaszczuk (minus 17%) notably poorly. The poll was conducted November 29 to December 3 from a sample of 1605.
BW and Victoria
Yes it’s not good up there and I ’had the conversation’ Re: the cause of the heat/wet, we don’t talk very often but I imagine they aren’t Cookers although they do love their ICE cars.
Just reading a post on an EV Facebook page I belong to and a bloke is using his MG4 EV with a Vehicle to Load (V2L) connection to run his fridge and a few other essentials. I’m getting one for my car soon but hopefully not for disaster mitigation.
Taylormade @ #47 Saturday, December 30th, 2023 – 8:50 am
Which will go back to being private sector jobs and apprenticeships. Surely you approve of that?
Frank Bruni of The New York Times curates sentences from other journalists. He has chosen his best for 2023. I’ll start with this one:
Tom Friedman cut to the chase:
“What Putin is doing in Ukraine is not just reckless, not just a war of choice, not just an invasion in a class of its own for overreach, mendacity, immorality and incompetence, all wrapped in a farrago of lies. What he is doing is evil.”
Taylormade @ #41 Saturday, December 30th, 2023 – 8:41 am
Definition of a doofus right here right now.
‘Taylormade says:
Saturday, December 30, 2023 at 8:50 am
Boerwarsays:
Saturday, December 30, 2023 at 8:31 am
Fancy Costello having a destructive opinion of the Victorian Government!
And fancy Taylormade repeating that like a parrot!
Squawk, squawk!
_____________________
59000 jobs including 6000 apprenticeships remember.
It was a con. Even you should be able to see that.’
=============
Polly want a cracker!
‘Victoria says:
Saturday, December 30, 2023 at 8:42 am
Boerwar
We all figured as a family, that if any of us have gotten to this stage of our life and are counting on an inheritance from our MIL, We have done something very wrong. lol!’
**********
I was always told that an inheritance was ‘just a bit of fruit’ on the mantle-piece, not to be relied upon. My family Re-enacted the medieval times and left the vast bulk of the farm to my brother…fortunately I was just glad not to be tied up with them, lol!
‘Oakeshott Country says:
Saturday, December 30, 2023 at 8:51 am
Someone asked yesterday if the decline in housing affordability was partially related to an increase in house sizes.
An article on affordable Australian housing in the 60s indicates that current average housing has increased in size by 2-3x at the same time as average households have decreased.
https://www.watoday.com.au/national/nsw/a-home-that-costs-two-cars-could-these-retro-masterpieces-help-solve-our-housing-crisis-20231212-p5er0c.html‘
—————————-
Thanks. It is actually a lot worse than I guessed it was.
This one’s a keeper.
Last UK and US Cartoons from me until mid January, so I have found a bumper crop – be great if somebody can post these on a daily basis:
UK Cartoons (which can be found @cartoon4sale):
US cartoons (found at @EandPCartoons, https://www.cagle.com/cartoons/ and https://theweek.com/cartoons):
Surely Copenhagen in 2009 demonstrated beyond a doubt the inability of humanity to deal with the threat of climate change via its various governments. 2023? Come on peoples, catch up!
Those were the days!
Small was beautiful!
Less was more!
Cat
Thanks for the roundup. It matches my own depressed mood in reflecting on a difficult year, but seems pretty accurate as far as current media is concerned.
On this one:
“ Ret Major General Mick Ryan on Australia’s Defence readiness and national security ponderings that should be considered by government.”
https://www.smh.com.au/national/why-australia-is-less-ready-to-face-a-more-dangerous-world-in-2024-20231227-p5etu9.html
I find Mick Ryan fairly accurate and one of the least bellicose in commentators on national security. It is in no way Labor’s fault that the Libs in office ran down the ADF for ten years just before the global security outlook became a lot less stable. Yet that is where we are at.
Dog’s brunch
(I was always told that an inheritance was ‘just a bit of fruit’ on the mantle-piece, not to be relied upon)
Never heard that phrase before. It’s a good one!
”
It’s not a good time to be a resident of Britain. Every review of Britain 2023 says the same. The country is not being well run.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/dec/29/british-politics-local-councils-ministers-town-hall-democracy
”
No kidding!
When even well governed countries like US and Australia are facing huge discontent and Cognitive dissonance, what chance UK has.
Yes people keep rabbiting about ‘Cost of Living ‘ crisis as main culprit for the discontent.
But Why did ‘Cost of Living ‘ crisis happened after over 30 years of low inflation and low “cost of living”?
Because suddenly China and Russia went rogue on West.
China was responsible for supply chain of low cost goods
Russia responsible for low cost Fossil fuels.
Since China and Russia went rogue, things became expensive around the world. Putin can ignore outside criticism because he is brutal dictator inside and overseas.
But China cannot ignore West for long because Chinese prosperity was as a result of West moving manufacturing to China. Ofcourse Chinese built on that leg up.
Now Investors and Manufacturers are either threatening or already moved out of China.
Chinese Communist party had a strangle hold Chinese political system because they promised prosperity for their people till now. Now things are unraveling because most of their property market went bust because of glutteny in property market. I digress.
However, My main point is that since the world increasingly dependent on Fossil fuels instead of moving towards renewable energy we have three crises on our hand in one go.
1. ‘Cost of living ‘ crisis
2. Climate change inaction crisis
3. Housing affordability crisis.
Younger generation, who are usually left leaning are buffeted by above crises. Hence, they are either opting far- left or far-right political spectrum. Don’t you ever imagine that younger generation are apathetic to politics.
As a result of younger generation politics Main left parties in US, Australia and other European countries are plummeting in approvals.
In normal times, Albanese government and Biden administration will be very much appreciated for their handling of their economy and social life. They did their best. But these are not normal times for atleast the younger generation.
Look approvals of Albanese and Biden.
Biden touched a low of 33% approval with a very good economic management. He is trailing Trump for crying out loud.
Albanese approvals are in early 40s. The horror of horrors Dutton is catching up on PM stakes.
2024 will be very interesting.
I had linked this a while again. It’s a good explainer about the housing crisis. Worth a look.
https://youtu.be/JqSbECqD7bc?si=TFZ3PoYBJWCz77zO
Looking at the cartoon Nostradamus predicts.
Bludgers could put forward some of their own predictions for 2024.
I am off for a while, but I will be back later with predictions of my own…..
BW
Average household size fell from 3.6 to 2.5 while average house size increased 2-3x between 1960 and now
https://aifs.gov.au/research/facts-and-figures/population-households-and-families#:~:text=While%20the%20number%20of%20households,%2C%20at%202.5%2C%20in%202021.
It is interesting to contemplate the change in carbon footprint. You would imagine it was a large increase but houses have become more enviro-friendly. (We had a coal fire for heating – imagine that!)
Re Socrates @9:21 ”It is in no way Labor’s fault that the Libs in office ran down the ADF for ten years just before the global security outlook became a lot less stable. Yet that is where we are at.”
And yet for some reason the Right-wing Coalition are regarded at being better on defence and security matters than their opponents. In fact, over their nine years in power, Defence was subject to the same level of neglect, patronage and incompetence as Medicare, the NDIS, employment services and public services and infrastructure generally.
What the Coalition are good at is loud, bellicose talk on security and Defence, wherever possible using these to wedge their opponents. When in comes to actually planning, building and acquiring capacity to actually defend the country, they are as useless as they are at everything else. Heaven help us if we have to deal with an actual existential war while the Coalition is in office.
Ven @ 9.22am,
I agree that what you outline is the case. However, I think that a missing piece of that puzzle is that at least we have governments in Australia and the US that are Progressive, and the general unbiased consensus is that they will be re-elected for another term. That will keep out the mendacious fossil fuel lobby from the halls of power again. And their SMR fig leaf. Something to be grateful for. Thus allowing the Renewable Energy transformation to continue apace, to the extent that the fossil fuel industry and their avatars in the Coalition are going to find it that much harder to dismantle the progress made, should they get back into government. It also gives Labor a great campaign line, ‘Vote Labor to prevent progress on dealing with Climate Change from being wound back by the Coalition’.
The Coalition couldn’t even build a canoe when they were in power. 😐
For 2023 – Penny Wong was our best politician. Calm, smart and effective.
For 2024, the domestic economy should start to improve, but more global conflict seems certain.
Have a good day all.
Another sentence of the year:
Bret Stephens contrasted the two Republicans who represent Texas in the Senate, John Cornyn and Ted Cruz:
“Whatever else you might say about Cornyn, he is to the junior senator from Texas what pumpkin pie is to a jack-o’-lantern.”
Another.
Jamelle Bouie diagnosed the problem with the Florida governor’s presidential campaign:
“Ron DeSantis cannot escape the fact that it makes no real sense to try to run as a more competent Donald Trump, for the simple reason that the entire question of competence is orthogonal to Trump’s appeal.”
There was an excellent example of how this blog works at times.
On the previous thread Irene wrote about:
‘Something else we won’t be reading tomorrow. What about the risks to Australia from global warming that the Albanese government wants to kept hidden from Australians?’
The response from the usual Albanese apologists (the My Party Right or Wrong Brigade), whose thought patterns and intellectual limitations are generated straight out of Labor HQ, came up with the usual, ‘I can’t take you seriously’, and ‘too many words’, responses. There was no attempt to discuss the information presented by Irene, rather just the simple recourse to personal put-downs of the messenger.
Sadly, this blog has been hijacked by a bunch of party hacks.
Victoria says:
Saturday, December 30, 2023 at 8:42 am
Boerwar
We all figured as a family, that if any of us have gotten to this stage of our life and are counting on an inheritance from our MIL, We have done something very wrong. lol!
___________________________________________
Waiting for an inheritance to solve financial problems is the most terrible life trap.
In a generally bad year, a little highlight for me was Labors surplus….it FINALLY shut up the media and the Coalition about ‘Labors hopeless with money, Labor never has a surplus, LNP better economic managers blah blah’…they had no answer.
(I am not a surplus fetishist, it was just such a delicious moment. And per-se not a bad thing to have with high inflation)
”
C@tmommasays:
Saturday, December 30, 2023 at 9:39 am
Ven @ 9.22am,
I agree that what you outline is the case. However, I think that a missing piece of that puzzle is that at least we have governments in Australia and the US that are Progressive, and the general unbiased consensus is that they will be re-elected for another term.
”
C@tmomma
“the general unbiased consensus they will be re-elected for another term. ”
Let us hope you are right in your prediction. But let’s not forget that “nothing is done till it is done”
Almost all political pundits thought Hillary Clinton will win in 2016.(I would go as far as to say that all political pundits even though some hoped Trump win).
After all the atrocities of Trump during his 4 year reign, Biden won in 2020 only by 47,000 against Trump although he got 81 million votes. All the purple states where Biden won but Republicans are in power like Georgia, Wisconsin, Nevada (?) and other Red states like Ohio, Florida and Texas are trying their best to disenfranchise Biden voters.
When it comes to Australia, we had we had destructive LNP governments in 20 out of 27 years, .defeat of Voice referendum and Albanese ALP won majority by about 1000 votes
So I repeat “nothing is done till it is done”.
The federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., on Friday ruled that former President Donald Trump is not immune from lawsuits brought by Capitol police officers regarding the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
The order, released on the docket Friday, stated that the former president failed to demonstrate that he was entitled to “absolute presidential immunity from certain civil damages claims against him.”
The judges rejected his argument that his alleged actions “constituted speech on matters of public concern” and that his speech was “invariably an official function.” “The salient question in Blassingame, we explained, was instead whether President Trump’s alleged actions reasonably could be understood as official functions of the presidency, in which case official-act immunity would attach, or, alternatively, whether they reasonably could be understood only as re-election activity, in which case it would not.”
The judges added that, after closer review, the claim simply “bears no inherent connection to the essential distinction between official and unofficial acts.”
Friday’s order comes shortly after three judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals ruled against Trump in a case brought by Capitol Police Officers James Blassingame and Sidney Hemby and lawmakers, including Reps. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., and Bennie Thompson, D-Mich.
@Victoria
If William Bowe unbanned Nostradamus we might be able to hear from the former resident soothsayer. I think he’s pretty impatient after having been banished back to the grave.
MelbourneMammoth @ #79 Saturday, December 30th, 2023 – 10:26 am
How do you know that!?!
Torchbearer says:
Saturday, December 30, 2023 at 10:02 am
In a generally bad year, a little highlight for me was Labors surplus….it FINALLY shut up the media and the Coalition about ‘Labors hopeless with money, Labor never has a surplus, LNP better economic managers blah blah’…they had no answer.
(I am not a surplus fetishist, it was just such a delicious moment. And per-se not a bad thing to have with high inflation)
————-
Labor were tricked.
Unlike today’s Liberals, Robert Menzies boasted of delivering large budget deficits…
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-08-30/liberal-party-of-robert-menzies-proudly-delivered-large-deficits/12609876
You can be very sure that the Liberals were fooling Labor during the Gillard years when they kept insisting that a budget surplus indicated ‘good economic managers’. They would be aware of Menzies policies.
But ignorant Labor, no knowledge of how the longest serving and popular Liberal PM Menzies, the father of the Liberal Party ran the country, had to crumble to what Howard and other Liberals said.
Menzies insisted on deficits to grow the country and the economy. His last budget in the mid 1960’s had a deficit equivalent to Wayne Swan’s in 2013.
And Federal Labor are still following, supporting most Liberal polices today. Including keeping quiet on what effects their study found that global warming will have on Australia.
Too hot to handle:
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/aug/30/office-of-national-intelligence-climate-crisis-security-threats-report-anthony-albanese-labor-government-refuses-to-release
Must try to keep Murdoch media on side. Even though most Australians don’t read/view his misinformation. Doing so has meant losing many disappointed once Labor voters with their first preference vote dropping last election to the lowest in 100 years. Hard to see them gaining voters with their continuing many Liberal/Howard/Morrison policies.
And we know Labor has abandoned Albanese’s statement at the 2022 election, ‘no one left behind ‘, since June 2010. Recent figures show homelessness is increasing, around 1600 per month. Not sure how children living in these situations will ever have a chance.
Boerwarsays:
Saturday, December 30, 2023 at 7:54 am
‘
There is also no doubt that there has been a substantial movement of sympathy in Australia arising from the daily feed of civilian deaths, shattered kids, outright hunger, lack of medical supplies, shattered infrastructure and shattered housing in Gaza. There is a strong natural sympathy for the underdog.
—————————————————————
If the things we see on the TV were happening to actual dogs in Australia (not underdogs elsewhere). All of Australia would be up in arms demanding the RSPCA do something about it immediately.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, from Putin to Ukrainians:
“Russia unleashed its largest air attack on Ukraine on Dec. 29, targeting multiple Ukrainian regions with 158 missiles and drones.
The attack killed 30 people and injured over 160 as of 7:30 p.m., according to Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko. The number of victims might increase as rescue operations continued as of 8 p.m. Casualties were previously reported in Kyiv, Odesa, Dnipro, Lviv, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhzhia.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said it was “the most massive attack.” Air Force also said it was “the largest air attack.””
https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-war-latest-russia-unleashes-largest-attack-in-months-killing-30-and-injuring-over-160/
How much longer will the West let Russia continue to bomb Ukraine and not expect to suffer bombings in return?
Putin is a plague who the world will be immeasurably better off without.
The response from citizens of Kyiv to Russia’s ruthless terror attack:
“‘Hit the Kremlin:’ Kyivans don’t hold back after Russia’s mass attack kills 9, wounds 30 in the capital”
https://kyivindependent.com/hit-the-kremlin-kyivans-dont-hold-back-after-russias-mass-attack-kills-9-wounds-30-in-the-capital/
I fully agree. Time somebody blew that fucking regime to smithereens. 😡
Putin was really pissed off that his ship got blown apart. So he takes it out on the people of Ukraine. 😡
Harry Litman on how Trump’s appeals are going. Short answer, not well.
https://youtu.be/lnUU7KYo-rI?si=5ZvXgLySwBH9X2RU
C@tmomma, the longer this invasion goes on, the more implacable becomes the anger of Ukrainians towards Russians. If Putin wanted to create the most heavily armed, combat hardened, radicalised resistance group against his continued existence on Earth right on his western doorstep, he is going exactly the right way about it. They will make ETA and the IRA look look like squabbling toddlers in comparison. 😐
Deluded former President today:
“THE ECONOMY IS TERRIBLE & INFLATION, WHICH BY SOME ACCOUNTS IS MORE THAN 30% OVER THE LAST THREE YEARS, HAS TOTALLY DESTROYED THE BUYING POWER OF THE CONSUMER,” Trump wrote. “THE ONLY THING THAT IS KEEPING THE ECONOMY ‘ALIVE’ IS THE FUMES OF WHAT WE ACCOMPLISHED DURING THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION. THE STOCK MARKET IS ONLY HIGH BECAUSE PEOPLE, & INSTITUTIONS, BELIEVE & EXPECT ME TO WIN THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 2024.” “IF I DON’T WIN, IT IS MY PREDICTION THAT WE WILL HAVE A STOCK MARKET ‘CRASH’ WORSE THAN THAT OF 1929 – A GREAT DEPRESSION!!!” he continued. “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
Socrates @ #40 Saturday, December 30th, 2023 – 8:38 am
Agreed, although I would put the year sometime in the 1980’s. It is clear looking back that this was when scientists really began to try to raise the alarm, and also when the Fossil Fuel Cartel ramped up their campaign to deny the truth. And they had all the advantages – they they knew exactly what to expect and were both well prepared and well financed.
However, I agree about it being a collective failure of political will – in particular, anyone who thinks either of Australia’s major political parties is serious about addressing climate change – even now – is simply delusional. As usual, you need to pay attention to what politicians actually do, not what they say they will do.
The COALition is at least consistent – they say they intend to do nothing, and then devise policies specifically intended to do nothing. Whereas Labor says they will do something but then adopts the very same COALition do-nothing policies, or spouts pious bullshit about the need to eliminate fossil fuels at COP28 while simultaneously approving new subsidized fossil fuel extraction at home.
But you know what? We like to blame our politicians, but if you somehow still believe we live in a democracy then you must also accept a share of responsibility – because you voted for those politicians, and you must surely have at least had an inkling by now that they have been lying to you for decades.
If you didn’t, you were being wilfuly ignorant.
Poland is not happy with the Kremlin over this:
“Russia has launched a huge wave of missile strikes on Ukrainian cities, including the capital, in one of the biggest attacks on the country since the start of the war.
Poland’s armed forces said an unknown airborne object, which they identified as a Russian missile, entered the country’s airspace from the direction of Ukraine for three minutes.
“Everything indicates that a Russian missile intruded in Poland’s airspace. It was monitored by us on radars and left the airspace,” said Poland’s defence chief, Gen Wiesław Kukuła.
Poland said the object penetrated about 25 miles into its airspace and left it after less than three minutes, adding that its radar and Nato radar both confirmed the object left Polish airspace.”
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/dec/29/russia-launches-huge-wave-missile-strikes-ukraine
“The Polish Foreign Ministry reported on Dec. 29 that it has summoned Russian charge d’affaires Andrei Ordasz after a Russian missile entered the Polish airspace during the morning mass attack against Ukraine.
Poland’s Deputy Foreign Minister Wladyslaw Teofil Bartoszewski handed Ordasz a note demanding an explanation of the incident and “an immediate cessation of such activities,” the ministry wrote.”
https://kyivindependent.com/polish-foreign-ministry-summons-russian-charge-daffaires-over-missile-incident/
“Russia faced strong criticism during the UN Security Council session on Dec. 29 following the largest air attack against Ukraine since the start of the full-scale war. The urgent meeting of the 15-member council was convened at the request of Kyiv and its allies to address these attacks.
“Tragically, 2023 is ending as it began – with devastating violence against the people of Ukraine,” UN Assistant Secretary-General Khaled Khiari said after briefing the council on the situation. “Once again, Ukrainians are forced to spend the holidays seeking shelter, clearing the rubble, and burying the dead, amidst freezing temperatures.””
https://kyivindependent.com/un-security-council-criticizes-russias-air-assault-on-ukraine/
Boerwarsays:
Saturday, December 30, 2023 at 8:13 am
66% of Australians own their own homes.
There is a trend decline in home ownership.
4. Introduce a tax on empty bedrooms.
——————————————————————-
Interesting idea but unworkable. People could just re-purpose the room as a home office etc to avoid the tax. A more workable alternative would allow a certain floor area per person living there.With excess floor space of the house then taxed at some rate.
So for instance you could allow 100 m2 as base. Then add 25 m2 for each occupant. So a single person in a house would be allowed 125 m2 with out attracting a excess house space tax. While a couple 150 m2 and family of 2 adults and 2 children 200 m2.
Macarthur,
I think, with Putin’s continued attacks on Ukraine, he’s also hardening the resolve of the Europeans to make sure he’s defeated and the war progresses no further into their countries. However, with the fact that his missile went over Polish territory yesterday it seems to me that he’s trying to lure them, and NATO, into WWIII. Which, it also seems to me, will be fought between Russia, it’s satellites (I’ve noticed the meetings he keeps having with them and Belarus’ nuclear weapons from Russia finally being put in place), China and the countries it has made deals with, the Islamic countries in the orbit of Iran and Iran itself, and various BRICS countries, against the countries who support democracy over dictatorships, religious or otherwise.
”
Andrew_Earlwoodsays:
Saturday, December 30, 2023 at 9:09 am
Surely Copenhagen in 2009 demonstrated beyond a doubt the inability of humanity to deal with the threat of climate change via its various governments. 2023? Come on peoples, catch up!
”
Surely the rise of China and India, the with 2 largest populations of world, was not anticipated even when George Bush Sr. was elected in 1988 and with that huge increase in Fossil fuels consumption was not anticipated.
Hence, we heard from Bush Sr saying at or after Earth Summit-1992, “American way of life is not negotiable. Period” especially with
1. the knowledge of Soviet Union collapse
2. Heady days of being only Superpower.
3. Victory in Iraq war 1 with UN coalition
His son Bush jr. took it to another level by invading Iraq for Fossil fuels with the rhetoric “You are with us or against us”.
It had been down hill for anti-fossil fuel agitators after that.
Copenhagen was where China opposed any curbing of fossil fuels measures because they were on fast track to become 2nd largest economy.
Copenhagen or not, Rudd’s timidity in implementing the Climate change measures he took to 2007 election led to repeat defeats at future elections, with Fossil fuels promoters like Abbott, Morrison becoming leaders on LNP side. The word ‘Climate Change’ became kryptonite for Labor. And it has been became uphill task to implement even modest climate change measures in Australia.
Donald Trump doesn’t deal well with the truth. 😐
Holdenhillbilly @ #88 Saturday, December 30th, 2023 – 11:00 am
Speaking of fumes,this is the guy who reportedly wears incontinence undies and has flatulance so bad it makes peoples eyes burn.
Irenesays:
Saturday, December 30, 2023 at 10:42 am
Torchbearer says:
Saturday, December 30, 2023 at 10:02 am
In a generally bad year, a little highlight for me was Labors surplus….it FINALLY shut up the media and the Coalition about ‘Labors hopeless with money, Labor never has a surplus, LNP better economic managers blah blah’…they had no answer.
(I am not a surplus fetishist, it was just such a delicious moment. And per-se not a bad thing to have with high inflation)
————-
Labor were tricked.
Unlike today’s Liberals, Robert Menzies boasted of delivering large budget deficits…
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-08-30/liberal-party-of-robert-menzies-proudly-delivered-large-deficits/12609876
=======================================================================
Labor was tricked in to making the LNP look like the biggest pack of incompetent money managers this country has ever seen. By easily doing what the LNP had never done in 9 years of nearly totally concentrating on just doing that one thing and failing. I don’t think anyone is actually buying what you are selling Irene but i can’t say you are not a Trier.
A very fine report on the Ukraine situation:
https://youtu.be/kD9WooyPJXs?si=2JUPlUwNqsYn1VPL
Yes, put any sort of tax on the family home – perfect way for a party to determine its baseline support