Reading

Notes for the Writers’ Room of the Second Cold War

https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/notes-for-the-writers-room-of-the-second-co…
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 05:00

“The House on Thursday approved a resolution denouncing socialism in a bipartisan vote that fractured the Democratic caucus.” — The Hill, 2/2/23

“US military fighter jets shot down the suspected Chinese surveillance balloon over the Atlantic Ocean … the operation ended a remarkable public drama that prompted a diplomatic fallout between Washington and Beijing, as the American public tracked the balloon from Montana all the way to the Carolinas.” – CNN, 2/4/23

Nuclear submarines: from “optimal” to “the best they can get”

https://johnmenadue.com/ssns-from-optimal-solution-to-the-best-they-can-get/
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 04:59
The announcement of the Australian Government’s decision on the purchase of nuclear powered submarines is looming and it is timely to take a cold hard look at the “facts” rather than the inevitable spin. The more Prime Minister Albanese maintains this will be a momentous decision for Australia the more it should have been the Continue reading »

America the strong

https://johnmenadue.com/america-the-strong/
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 04:57
The foundational story of the United States of America is its fight for freedom against tyranny. Every schoolchild learns of how the American revolutionaries fought bravely to be freed from the tyranny of King George III of England. They learn the indomitable freedom fighters’ heroic sayings, such as “Give me liberty or give me death!” Continue reading »

The role of alliances in Australia’s national security strategy

https://johnmenadue.com/australias-national-security-strategy-part-2/
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 04:56
While alliances and treaties offer some protection against an aggressor, they cannot be counted upon. Australia needs to maintain an independent military capability to deter possible future threats to our independence – not least because we cannot rely on the US in all possible future circumstances. Today Part 2 of this series on Australia’s national Continue reading »

Belling the cat in NSW private schools

https://johnmenadue.com/belling-the-cat/
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 04:55
NSW needs a government prepared to bell the cat when it comes to the ongoing provision of public funding to grossly over-resourced private schools. Funds provided on the grounds of assumed entitlement are funds diverted from distribution according to demonstrated need. Political pressure forced the Whitlam government to include high-fee, high-resource schools in its 1970s Continue reading »

Environmental apocalypse? Don’t blame us

https://johnmenadue.com/environmental-apocalypse-dont-blame-us/
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 04:53
Like the environment itself, discussions of our collective future are becoming heated. They are also contradictory, polarised and – in my case, at least – increasingly pessimistic. No doubt my views about climate change say as much about me as they do about the problem itself. Given incontrovertible and inescapable evidence of climate change, however, Continue reading »

Australia’s problems with cosmetic surgery: why they have happened and how to fix them

https://johnmenadue.com/australias-problems-with-cosmetic-surgery-why-they-have…
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 04:52
Hardly a month goes by without a new media report (and here) of alleged scandalous conduct of some doctors who call themselves ‘cosmetic surgeons’ but who lack recognised specialised surgical training. These reports have tended to focus on the harm done to patients and generally failed to explain to the public how and why the Continue reading »

Vale Richard Woolcott: one of the last great Australian diplomats

https://johnmenadue.com/vale-richard-woolcott-one-of-the-last-great-australian-…
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 04:50
Richard Woolcott leaves a legacy that all modern diplomats could emulate. Richard Woolcott, generally known as Dick, died on 2 February in Canberra aged 95. He is survived by two sons, Peter and Robert. Woolcott was one of the last great Australian diplomats, in the wake of those like Sir Arthur Tange and Sir James Continue reading »

The difference between logic and science

https://larspsyll.wordpress.com/2023/02/08/the-difference-between-logic-and-sci…
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 04:49
. In mainstream economics, both logic and mathematics are used extensively. And most mainstream economists sure look upon themselves as “twice blessed.” Is there any scientific ground for that blessedness? None whatsoever! If scientific progress in economics lies in our ability to tell ‘better and better stories’ one would, of course, expect economics journals to […]

The Happy Warrior meets the crazies

https://digbysblog.net/2023/02/08/the-happy-warrior-meets-the-crazies/
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 04:30
Biden’s State of the Union address was a triumph Last weekend Donald Trump gave a speech in South Carolina where he announced his state leadership team. Among them was Republican Congressman Joe Wilson, whom he introduced by saying: A friend of mine — that voice, that voice was so beautiful as he called it out in Congress, Congressman Joe Wilson. That was done from the heart, that was — I don’t know if you know or not but at the time people loved you for that because it showed honesty, dedication and the love of your country, right? He was referring to Wilson’s notorious outburst at the 2009 State of the Union address in which he shouted “you lie” at Barack Obama when the former president denied that his health care plan would cover undocumented immigrants. (It was not a lie.) The pundits all called for the smelling salts and Wilson was later reprimanded by Congress and subsequently issued an apology. At the time, it was a shocking breach of decorum that stunned the nation.

Open Rights Group responds to Shawcross review of Prevent

https://www.openrightsgroup.org/press-releases/open-rights-group-responds-to-sh…
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 04:12
Open rights Group has responded to the Shawcross review of Prevent, which was published today Policy Manager, Sophia Akram said: Open Rights Group and other other NGOs previously raised concerns about Sir William Shawcross’s ability to be objective given his history of making disparaging comments about Islam. Today’s review of Prevent confirms those fears. The […]

Just Because You Know How to Make Money, That Doesn’t Mean You Know How to Make Money

http://www.profstevekeen.com/2023/02/08/just-because-you-know-how-to-make-money…
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 03:43
Elon Musk has been making a lot of comments on government debt recently, and though I have a lot of respect for what he’s done in electric vehicles and space travel, I couldn’t restrain myself from ridiculing his views on government debt: That led to another tweeter having a go at me, because obviously someone … Continue reading "Just Because You Know How to Make Money, That Doesn’t Mean You Know How to Make Money"

Patrick Lawrence: No, Joey, It Still Isn’t Morning in America

https://scheerpost.com/2023/02/08/patrick-lawrence-no-joey-it-still-isnt-mornin…
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 03:30

By Patrick Lawrence / Original to ScheerPost O.K., you have a speech of 7,000–odd words to deliver to Congress. It ought to run about an hour as these things go. But you have nothing to say.  Call Joe Biden.  He certainly got the job done Tuesday evening. But I am confused as to our 46th […]

The post Patrick Lawrence: No, Joey, It Still Isn’t Morning in America appeared first on scheerpost.com.

Farha: The Netflix Film the Israeli Government Fears, with Darin Sallam

https://www.mintpressnews.com/farha-netflix-film-israeli-government-fears-darin…
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 02:44

Join Lowkey for a special episode with Darin J. Sallam, creator of the Netflix film "Farha". Sallam and Lowkey discuss the Israeli government's efforts to silence the film, which tells the true story of a Palestinian girl's fight for survival during the Nakba.

The post Farha: The Netflix Film the Israeli Government Fears, with Darin Sallam appeared first on MintPress News.

We’re paying GOP influencers

https://digbysblog.net/2023/02/08/were-paying-gop-influencers/
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 02:30
No agenda except trolling I missed this observation but Marcy didn’t: Former House Speaker Nacny Pelosi told CNN that the GOP heckling during the State of the Union Address was “showbiz” to cover putting Medicare and Social Security “on the table.” Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) told reporters after the SOTU that he considers Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) “a sick puppy” who had no business being there. Cameras caught their exchange on the House floor but not the dialogue. It’s who they are. It’s all they have left. Talk about waste, fraud, and abuse, we’re paying their salaries.

As Israel Pushes to Annex the Jordan Valley, Is the Threat Already Here?

https://www.mintpressnews.com/israel-pushes-annexation-jordan-valley-threat-alr…
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 02:27

Annexation of the Jordan Valley, which makes up approximately 30% of the occupied West Bank, is back on the agenda with the return of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing extremist coalition.

The post As Israel Pushes to Annex the Jordan Valley, Is the Threat Already Here? appeared first on MintPress News.

Spain’s Spycop Scandal

https://tribunemag.co.uk/2023/02/spains-spycop-scandal/
Created
Thu, 09/02/2023 - 02:27

In June 2020, as Spain’s public spaces slowly began to come back to life following one of the strictest lockdowns in Europe, two young men appeared for the first time in Barcelona. Little, if anything, would have seemed to connect them at the time. Marc, a prospective Social Education student at the University of Barcelona, […]