Reading

Is there any light in the Christian message in the face of the horrors in the Ukraine and Gaza? Apart from wishing peace on Earth does Christian belief actually change anything? Well, along with Nick Cave, I don’t believe in an interventionist God. At least not a God sitting above our lives pulling the strings Continue reading »

Out of our hearts can come thoughts that are pure and beautiful or “evil intentions, murder…” What we think and let influence our thinking shapes our words and actions, for good or ill. How important therefore are the choices we make! The choice to nurture love with words and actions that bring healing as compared Continue reading »

…our list is a genuine plea for you to bring us a greatly improved integrity-related system that addresses all the shortcomings in the current arrangements. Dear Santa, I am writing this wish list on behalf of the vast majority of Victorians. Please don’t think we are being greedy as that is not our intention. Rather, Continue reading »

Despite what we have we seen and learnt during 2023, the COP meeting failed again to take strong action on fossil fuels. Is nature for nature or only for humans?   COP out on phase out again The demand from climate activists at the recent COP28 meeting in Dubai was for a ‘Fast, Fair, Full, Continue reading »

Mark J. Valencia, an internationally renowned maritime policy analyst focused on Asia, passed away on 6 December 2023 in Hawaii, surrounded by his family. A regular author for Pearls and Irritations, Mark was an Adjunct Senior Scholar at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, Haikou, China; and a Non-Resident Fellow at the Huayang Continue reading »

Why was Christ born in a stable? Because the Israelis bombed all the houses. Truly. Every year Jesus is born, dies and is reborn. He is reborn into our world – that is part of what makes Christian symbology meaningful. This year Christ is a brown skinned Middle Eastern man about to be born in Continue reading »

A Meditation for Those who are Grieving Loss during this Christmas Season, 2023 To write about grief at any time is difficult. To write about grief, as we migrate into the Christmas season, even more so. The character of Christmas as a season of enchantment, makes grief an ill fit. The character of Christmas as Continue reading »

It’s time for governments around the world to condemn the injustice of Israeli apartheid and its brutal occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, to put sanctions on Israel as they did for apartheid South Africa. Israel’s friends amongst Western governments, including Australia, must stop being complicit in Israel’s moral self-destruction. The US veto of Continue reading »

All sides of Australian politics have sustained pressure on the United States to drop the charges against Julian Assange. While the Cheng Lei experience might provide an instructive lesson on how to negotiate with what is a political charge, this may have to wait until after the 2024 election. 2023 was the year when the Continue reading »

Beatlefan first was published just before Christmas in 1978, so we’re marking its 45th anniversary. Through various landmark anniversaries in the past, Executive Editor Al Sussman, our original New York correspondent, has interviewed Bill and Leslie King about how the … Continue reading →

People love to denigrate Joe Biden as being senile and incoherent. Here’s Joe Rogan doing just that. Only he makes a little mistake: Yes, it was Donald Trump who said it. And he is is far more incoherent and weird than Biden has ever been. Here’s my favorite: But really … tell me that this man is all there: I wish I understood why he is given a pass while Biden is harassed for his rather normal verbal stumbles. Maybe it’s the make-up and hairspray obscuring how old Trump really is. Happy Hollandaise!

Use to discuss topics unrelated to recent posts.

Randy Rainbow misses them too But not the 1950s, thank you very much. Take care out there while shopping. Watch out for spree shooters. Happy Hollandaise!

Well, you know that, thanks to Maria’s lovely post earlier this week. I’ll post a long, maybe self-indulgent, remembrance in a week or two (I’ve been overwhelmed by things this week, including the kind of staggering outpouring of affection ad memories on social media, in my inbox (Among the many messages came a lovely email […]

Plus, the EPA introduces limits on the toxic gas in the East Palestine disaster, Starbucks has to reopen union-busted locations, and old trees get new safeguards.

WHAT went viral? They seemed otherwise unstoppable. Then common terrestrial bacteria felled the invading Martians in “War of the Worlds.” Put a pin in that. Could it be important? A week or so ago, this post from Adam Kinzinger popped up and … whut? Whatever prompted that was unclear or I missed it and dismissed it. Then last night this pops up: The story on MeidasTouch includes video “testimony” from former The Apprentice staffer Noel Casler about “Diaper Don”: “The diapers is not a joke,” Casler began. “He would often soil himself on The Apprentice set. He’s incontinent from all the speed, all the Adderall he does, all the cocaine that he’s done for decades…His [bowels] are uncontrollable.” Casler claimed that Trump has been wearing diapers since the 1990s and the he had a chance to witness it firsthand in the late 2000s, while working on the set of The Apprentice. One hellsite user Xitted, “Wonder why Trump hasn’t sued Noel Casler for defamation yet? Prob cause discovery would be wild” “It’s true. Many people are saying,” quipped another X user.

In today's BCTV Daily Dispatch: Rick and Morty, Supernatural, Night Court, Doctor Who, What If...?, Joe Rogan, The Venture Bros., and more!

The highly unusual, English-language order for the Gaza war breaks from the secretive and informal way IDF censorship normally works.

The post Exclusive: Israeli Military Censor Bans Reporting on These 8 Subjects appeared first on The Intercept.

I was walking with my teenage son in a large shop the other day, and we passed by the children’s section. I saw a duvet cover that so much reminded me of Kretk – or, in English translation, the Little Mole. We were recalling which of the Kretk films that we saw we liked most […]

Been there, done that … For those of you who are wondering about how to deal with this problem, here’s a handy video from the cat whisperer, Jackson Galaxy:

Source - Patreon

Source - Patreon

Source - Patreon

I always thought that the official casualty numbers from Israel, both for their own soldiers and for how many Hamas they’ve killed were dubious. But now we’re getting confirmation. Likewise against Hezbollah.

Sure they have:

Against Hezbollah: