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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 08:08
Advocacy groups and human rights organisations have written to the Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham, and the Chief Constable of Greater Manchester, Stephen Watson, to ask them to investigate discriminatory police practices in the wake of the conviction of ten young Black men, known as the Manchester 10. In a recent interview with the Voice, Burnham […]
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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 08:00
Curious wingnut real estate investments I don’t know what this is about but it’s interesting: At first glance, the flurry of real estate sales two blocks east of the U.S. Capitol appeared unremarkable in a city where such sales are common. In the span of a year, a seemingly unrelated gaggle ofrecently formedcompanies bought nine properties, all within steps of one another. But the sales were not coincidental. Unbeknown to most of the sellers, the limited liability companies making the purchases — a shopping spree that added up to $41 million — are connected to a conservative nonprofit led by Mark Meadows, who was chief of staff to President Donald Trump.The organization has promoted MAGA stars like Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.). The Conservative Partnership Institute, as the nonprofit is known, now controls four commercial properties along a single Pennsylvania Avenue block, three adjoining rowhouses around the corner, and a garage and carriage house in the rear alley.
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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 06:13
2 pounds beef tenderloinButter or margarine1 tablespoon flour1 cup beef stock or bouillon½ pint sour cream3 tablespoons tomato paste¼ cup grated onion1 teaspoon salt⅛ teaspoon pepper Cut the beef in ¼ inch slices with a sharp knife. Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a large saucepan. Add and stir in the flour. Cook and stir, over […]
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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 06:00
Some more jurors in the Atlanta election case speak out The Atlanta Journal Constitution interviewed five members anonymously and got an inside look at what went on at the Special Grand Jury. They don’t appear to be quite as weird and cryptic as the jury foreperson who came forward earlier. But it’s truly fascinating. The jurors discussed details surrounding their eight months on the panel but declined to talk about their internal deliberations or share their indictment recommendations… “One of the most important things we’ll be a part of in our life was this eight month process that we did,” one juror told the AJC. It was “incredibly important to get it right.” […] The jurors who spoke to the AJC declined to talk about portions of the document which remain under seal, including who they recommended Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis indict. They also remained mum on their internal deliberations. In a previous interview with the AJC, jury foreperson Emily Kohrs said “it’s not a short list” when asked how many people the special grand jury suggested be indicted.
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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 05:30

Jeremy Hunt opened his budget speech today by arguing that the state of the UK economy was ‘proving the doubters wrong’. The country will, he argued, avoid a technical recession in 2023. Hunt’s budget—which he termed the ‘budget for growth’—centres on building on this apparent success. While Sir Keir Starmer delivered some typically ‘forensic’ responses […]

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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 04:59
Speaking out strongly against AUKUS at the Press Club yesterday, Paul Keating’s concern is that Australia’s security has been laid limp upon the altar of small target politics by the two key Ministers – Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Defence Minister Richard Marles. Australians have been denied knowledge and debate on existential matters, by Labor Continue reading »
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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 04:57
Whilst much has been made of the extremely intemperate attempt by the Channel Nine newspapers to stir up fear against China, and their lauding of the AUKUS agreements and the massive amounts to be spent on nuclear submarines, little has been said about how this has been a distraction from fundamental issues the country is Continue reading »
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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 04:55
Regular readers of this journal will be dismayed at the breakneck speed at which Australia is party to the goading of a potentially catastrophic war in our region. With Western mainstream media in anti-China mad dog mode, both sides of the aisle in Canberra sleepwalking, and with nothing at all to win and everything to Continue reading »
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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 04:54
Before the election I wrote our leaders were dancing on the edge of calamity shutting their eyes to the obvious gap between the Commonwealth’s revenue stream and its growing spending commitments. Decades of giving long term tax reductions funded by short term spurts of revenue, usually from mining, had come home to roost. Albanese, spooked Continue reading »
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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 04:52
Rex Patrick’s analysis of the government’s AUKUS nuclear-powered submarine decision (Michael West Media 14 March 2023) illustrates the one-sidedness of this insane deal. Patrick also sets out a rational and cost-effective alternative to the expensive and inappropriate nuclear subs which serves to highlight some of the significant opportunities lost by the wasteful and ill-considered over-spend. Continue reading »
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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 04:51
At exactly the same time as proclaimed “experts” from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute are telling us to prepare for war with China within three years or so, people who have done proper research on the situation with China studies are saying our record is disappointing, indeed getting worse, not better.   Early in March Continue reading »
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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 04:50
Among the breathless press announcements coming out of San Diego on 14 March was that the spent nuclear fuel reactor cells for our submarines would have to be stored in Australia. This on top of the unexplained escalating costs of the subs, estimated delivery not until 2042, and three hand-me-down stop-gap Virginias possibly available around Continue reading »
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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 04:30
Well, Trump and DeSantis anyway You know the presidential primary campaigns have begun in earnest when political reporters start trudging around Iowa and hanging out in diners to find out what the Real Americans are thinking. This week we got our first dose of this quadrennial ritual when both Donald Trump and his closest rival Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis showed up to give speeches and mingle with the hoi polloi. According to the Washington Post, Trump remains his “freewheeling” self while DeSantis is tightly scripted, which is not exactly news. But there are some subtle changes. For instance, Trump is making a point of showing up unannounced at some local businesses to pretend to be a regular guy in order to contrast himself with DeSantis who is known to be cold and off-putting. DeSantis, meanwhile, is sticking to his prepared speeches in order to appeal to Republicans who are sick of Trump’s incendiary rhetoric and want to hear a normal political speech. In other words, it’s all about style because when it comes to policy, they are clones of each other, furiously pandering to the base, each of them trying to out MAGA the other.
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Thu, 16/03/2023 - 03:55

[The Roman Senate is gathered at the Curia Pompeia, the senate house of the Roman Republic. The Roman general MARK ANTONY addresses the group.]

MARK ANTONY: Friends, Romans, co-workers, lend me your ears! It is once again time to enter the senate office pool for the annual Tournament of Gladiators. Sixty-eight teams from around the empire will compete, single-elimination (losers die) for the coveted City-State Championship Trophy. There are many exciting matchups to keep an eye on this year. Will the number VII seed Spartans go all the way, or will the number X seed Trojans be the tournament spoilers? Only time will tell…

[Two of the Romans, CASSIUS and BRUTUS, whisper to each other as Mark Antony gives his speech.]

CASSIUS: My money is on the Spartans.

BRUTUS: Oh please, the Spartans couldn’t land a death blow down the stretch if their lives depended on it, which they do.