Monday 10th of February 2025

catspaw .....

catspaw .....

Write them off as impromptu indiscretions, or as off-the-cuff remarks not to be taken as formal expressions of policy, but diplomatic time-bombs tossed casually in the past month by his Vice President and his Secretary of State are exposing President Barack Obama to something dangerously close to ridicule on the international stage.

At best Obama is presiding over an undisciplined cabinet; at worst, he is facing mutiny, publicly conducted by two people who only a year ago were claiming that their qualifications to be in the Oval Office were far superior to those of the junior senator from Illinois.

empty threats .....

empty threats .....

A judge ruled Thursday that one of the youngest detainees brought to Guantanamo Bay is being held illegally and must be released - 6½ years after the detainee from Afghanistan says he was tortured into confessing at age 12.

U.S. District Judge Ellen Huvelle's order does not end the case of Mohammed Jawad, however. Deputy Assistant Attorney General Ian Gershengorn told the judge that as the State Department negotiates with the detainee's home country for his return next month, the Justice Department also is pursuing a criminal investigation.

land rights robbery by stealth...

cape river

Picture by Gus.

When it comes to conservation, I have been somewhat at the forefront of it, soon after I arrived in this country — Australia... Sure I have made some errors at times, but I have made up for these in many ways. For example, I have strongly argued, scientifically, with creationists about evolution, in the 70s.

the belly flop .....

the belly flop .....

Move over weightlifting, shift aside professional cycling, and make some room you Olympic sprinters. We think we've found a sport that makes you three, regular gold, silver and bronze medallists in the title for least-credible sport, look positively sensible and well run.

more lipstick .....

more lipstick .....

America, it seems, can't wait to get back to business - risky business - as usual. No matter how atrocious business has been.

Newsweek's latest cover story declares that The Great Recession is over. A Merrill Lynch report concurs, saying, "The recession is over ... We are bullish on global equities." Goldman Sachs is placing riskier bets on the market than it did before the financial meltdown (and setting aside huge amounts of money to pay its executives).

the hu review .....

the hu review .....

In any other country, with any other company, at any other time, it might be considered a routine case of corporate espionage. But the arrests earlier this month of four employees of the mining giant Rio Tinto have thrown relations between China and Australia into an uproar and cast a dangerous chill on China's foreign business partners.

On July 5, the Shanghai State Security Bureau arrested Rio Tinto executive Stern Hu, a Chinese-born Australian, and three Chinese employees on suspicion of stealing state secrets.

mouseland .....

mouseland .....

It's the story of a place called Mouseland. Mouseland was a place where all the little mice lived and played, were born and died. And they lived much the same as you and I do.

They even had a Parliament. And every four years they had an election. Used to walk to the polls and cast their ballots. Some of them even got a ride to the polls. And got a ride for the next four years afterwards too. Just like you and me. And every time on election day all the little mice used to go to the ballot box and they used to elect a government. A government made up of big, fat, black cats.

rock, paper, scissors .....

rock, paper, scissors .....

The Shia Family Planning law was signed last March by President Hamid Karzai in an attempt, many believe, to appease powerful mullahs. The Afghan constitution allows Shias to have a separate family law from the Sunni majority based on traditional Shia jurisprudence, and some think the law is linked to the August elections and the Shia electorate who would have to abide by it (they could form up to 20% of the electorate).

sleight of hand .....

sleight of hand .....

As the battle over healthcare reform reaches a fever pitch, today came news that the Obama administration is refusing to release the names of health industry insiders who have met with Obama officials at the White House. From the LA Times:

romper room .....

romper room .....

Wall Street's biggest banks are setting aside billions of dollars more to pay their executives and other employees just months after these firms were rescued with a taxpayer bailout, renewing questions about compensation practices in the aftermath of the financial crisis.

The recent outcry over bonuses at bailed-out firms prompted public alarm and promises of reform from financial leaders, who acknowledged that pay and bonuses should not reward risky short-term business decisions -- such as those that contributed to the meltdown -- but instead longer-term financial performance.

time for a revolution .....

time for a revolution ....

Okay, so the United States of America has had a new puppet regime for six months now. I was never so much into giving Obama a "chance" and I think it's way past time to call Obama and his supporters out, like we called Bush and his supporters out.

Our Presidents are merely puppets for the Robber Class and Obama is no exception.

fractured fairytales .....

fractured fairytales .....

A Saudi Arabian princess who had an illegitimate child with a British man has secretly been granted asylum in this country after she claimed she would face the death penalty if she were forced to return home. The young woman, who has been granted anonymity by the courts, won her claim for refugee status after telling a judge that her adulterous affair made her liable to death by stoning.

forgot the wedding rings?...

uncle Tuck

From the SMH

"Well Wilson is still a member of the family and he will still be invited to Christmas dinner."

The coalition is facing an internal struggle over what stance it should take on what the government calls its carbon pollution reduction scheme.

The official coalition position is to delay a vote on government legislation until early 2010, following global climate change talks in Copenhagen and a decision by the US Congress on the Obama administration's draft laws.

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