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Friday, 23 June

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Thursday, 22 June

21:00

Human Rights Measurement tracker puts the spotlight on human rights issues in Australia "IndyWatch Feed National"

The Australian Government must strengthen its commitment to human rights in its laws, policies and practices, the Human Rights Law Centre said today in response to new comprehensive data looking at the state of human rights in Australia. 

The Human Rights Measurement Initiative, which tracks human rights performance across countries, has found that Australian governments are failing to uphold civil liberties and political freedoms, the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and refugees and people seeking asylum.  

The Initiative found many communities continue to suffer a range of rights violations in quality of life, safety from the state and empowerment. People especially vulnerable to arbitrary or political arrest include:  

  • Public protesters, and participants in union protests and strikes, particularly those protesting climate change 

  •  Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who are overrepresented in prisons and discriminated against by the police 

  • Journalists subjected to police harassment, especially if they criticise the government 

  • Asylum seekers and refugees experiencing up to several years of indefinite detention in onshore locations 

Caitlin Reiger, CEO, Human Rights Law Centre, said:

As a wealthy, stable democracy, Australia could lead the world on human rights, yet too often Australian governments fail to respect peoples human rights in critical areas. The evidence behind the Human Rights Measurement initiative shines a light on Australias treatment of people protesting, of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and refugees and people seeking asylum in particular.  All people have the right to be treated with dignity and fairness, and rely on legal protections for their basic rights. 

In addition to addressing these ongoing and alarming human rights issues, we call on the Albanese Government to implement an Australian Charter of Human Rights to ensure human rights are at the heart of all decision making. 

The right to protest is fundamental to our democracy. Protest has been crucial to achieving many important social changes from First Nations land rights to the eight-hour workday. Yet across the country we have seen a range of draconian anti-protest laws set in place. The right to protest is a cornerstone of a robust civil society that holds government to account. 

Though the Australian Government signed the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in 2009, it has failed to implement its most fundamental article, that of Indigenous self-determination. The challenges facing Aboriginal communities can only be addressed by empowering Aboriginal people. 

Human...

19:29

Tasmania: recipe book project underway "IndyWatch Feed National"

Our assignment to collect recipes and photograph food preparation for the forthcoming community and school garden recipe book and website

The post Tasmania: recipe book project underway appeared first on CGA.

16:57

I DONT NEED YOUR PERMISSION!: How a tipple with Sharaz at Canberra bar gave Sam a maiden News Corp exclusive on Bruce Lehrmanns alleged Parliament House rape against survivor Brittany Higginss wishes not to publish "IndyWatch Feed National"

EXCLUSIVE: News Corp has been running a rabid campaign against alleged rape survivor, Brittany Higgins, for apparently going to the media before the police while neglecting to inform the public about the fact that it was News Corp journalist, Sam Maiden, who first published an 'exclusive' story about the alleged Parliament House rape by Bruce Lehrmann, against Ms Higgins's own wishes. Serkan Ozturk reports.

15:18

Leading Doctors Shane Warnes Death Precipitated by mRNA Vaccine "IndyWatch Feed National"

Introduction by DM

We have been reporting on Shane Warne and a few other celebrities whose lives have been cut way to short here, here and here.

Sky News in a headline reported that Shane Warne: Post-mortem reveals cricket legend died of natural causes...

15:17

Was the Department of Homeland Security keen to take on the AAWSAP? "IndyWatch Feed National"

Introduction

I have written much about Bigelow Aerospace Advanced Space Studies (BAASS) and the Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Applications Program (AAWSAP.) Simply type these acronyms into this blog's search function to read as much as you wish.

BAASS

French researcher Marc Cecotti submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, on 8 December 2021. In it he sought:

"...a copy of all records, including but not limited to emails, reports, memorandum, presentations, mentioning : "Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Applications Program" or the acronym "AAWSAP," "Bigelow Aerospace Advanced Space Studies" or the acronym "BAASS." Date range for record search from 1/1/2008 to 12/31/2012."

The DHS response was a one page document with the following text:

"BAASS goals 2011/2012

Area 1:

1. Advanced Technology Analysis Center - analyze recovered AAV technology in collaboration with aerospace companies. Construct extremely secure underground lab facility.

2. Conscious interactions with, and control of, advanced AAV technology.

3. Extend Remote Communications Programs to communicate and retrieve data across dimensional/space-time barrier. Target multiple locations.

4. Identify anomlaous activity in select areas of the United States and establish field research laboratories and remote communication programs on site.

Retrieve and integrate all historical data on AAVs from retirees (oral history.)

Area 2:

1. Liaison with IC, FBI, State, Local and tribal Police, FAA, DoD (including AFOSI), National Laboratories and with US Aerospace companies.

2. Collect data, including classified data, from IC/DoD entities, e.g. cockpit flight recordings of AAV performance, communications, medical autopsy reports, weapons use, AAV trajectory records (from NORAD.)

3. Classified data collection from AAV interactions with Nuclear Wepons Storage Facilities - (Northern Tier and other AFB AAV incidents.)

Area 3:

Note: unclassified seperate organization.

1. Create an open organization for collection of data on AAV performance.

2. Liaise with civilian groups for AAV data collection."

Lacatski

13:03

Look whos stepping into Jordan Petersons ark "IndyWatch Feed National"

At face value it is odd, then, that Jordan Petersons new venture, The Alliance for Responsible Citizenship (ARC), should boast an acronym designed to invoke the story of Noah while simultaneously railing against the false idol of apocalyptic ideology. Look closer, however, and the contradiction resolves itself in a familiar, albeit familiarly veiled, way. The apocalypse is indeed here, only it isnt global heating that poses an existential risk to humanity but the usual culture war suspects.

The post Look whos stepping into Jordan Petersons ark appeared first on Overland literary journal.

12:30

Cyber Attacks On Aussie Businesses Double, ABS Survey Reveals "IndyWatch Feed National"

More than two in 10 businesses experienced a cyber security attack during the 2021-22 financial year, compared to almost one in 10 in 2019-20, according to new data released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

Robert Ewing, head of ABS business statistics, said this mornings Characteristics of Australian Business data release is important because it gives governments and researchers information about the prevalence, impacts and nature of cyber attacks.

The types of cyber attacks included scams or fraud (16 per cent); malicious software infecting computers (5 per cent); and unauthorised access or use (3 per cent).

This helps them understand who they need to support and what strategies they need to use, Mr Ewing said.

The latest figures from the ABS also show how cyber attacks impacted businesses, and on that front theres some more encouraging news. In 2021-22 just over half of the business that experienced a cyber attack were negatively impacted by it compared, to more than 80 per cent of businesses in 2019-20.

In 2021-22, 34 per cent of businesses reported loss of time in managing cyber security attacks, 18 per cent reported downtime of service, while 17 per cent reported a loss of staff productivity, Mr Ewing said.

For the first time, all businesses were asked by the ABS about the types of cyber security measures they had in place, and seven in 10 (70 per cent) reported some form of protection measure.

Over 60 per cent of businesses reported regular updates to virus protection software. Around 37 per cent of businesses regularly backed up o...

12:09

State Funeral for Sir James Hardy OBE "IndyWatch Feed National"

Hosted by the Government of South Australia, the funeral will commemorate Sir James life, including his key role as part of the first team to defeat the United States in the America's Cup sailing race. Members of the public are welcome to attend and pay their respects. The service will...

12:04

The New Arab praises The Palestine Laboratory "IndyWatch Feed National"

A great review of my new book, The Palestine Laboratory, in the London-based The New Arab by Martorell Junyent:

Israeli weapons companies often promote their products for export by emphasising that they are battle-tested. Marketing weapons in such a way is misleading, to say the least.

Ever since the end of the 1973 October War, Israel has not participated in any battle if by battle we understand, as the Cambridge Dictionary does, a fight between armed forces.

This lack of battle has been offset by an abundance of testing. The laboratory has been no other than the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

In his book The Palestine Laboratory: How Israel Exports the Technology of Occupation around the World, Antony Loewenstein argues that the occupation of Palestine has provided Israel with an incomparable testing ground in the development of its weapons and surveillance technology.

At the same time, Palestine has also served as a display room for the effects of these weapons, which are then exported around the world generating both considerable revenue and valuable political influence for Israel.

As Loewenstein, an independent journalist, author, and filmmaker, writes, The Palestine laboratory is a signature Israeli selling point.

Read the whole review: Palestine is Israels laboratory for industry of occupation

The post The New Arab praises The Palestine Laboratory appeared first on Antony Loewenstein.

11:57

US radio interview on KPFA about Israeli mass surveillance "IndyWatch Feed National"

My interview with US radio station KPFA and its program, Against The Grain, about my new book, The Palestine Laboratory:

Israel is one of the worlds most important producers of military hardware and surveillance technology, honed in its occupation of Palestine, and exported around the globe to various brutal regimes. Journalist and filmmaker Antony Loewenstein traces the history of Israels military tech sector, refined after the invasion of Lebanon and again following September 11th, and discusses its tools of mass surveillance today.

The post US radio interview on KPFA about Israeli mass surveillance appeared first on Antony Loewenstein.

10:05

Get me a guard donkey! "IndyWatch Feed National"

Butch Pilley with LLS Senior Biosecurity Officer, Paul Gibb. Photo supplied

Domesticated around 7,000 years ago from the Nubian and Somalian subspecies of African wild ass. The Nubian ass is now extinct, but the modern-day donkey is finding a new lease of life in Australia as a guard donkey.

In an innovative trial in the Central Tablelands trained donkeys have demonstrated their value in protecting sheep from wild dog attacks according to Local Land Services.

Landholders Butch and Fiona Pilley worked closely with Local Land Services to introduce two donkeys as guardian animals into their Hill End grazing operation, with no dog attacks recorded over the three years since, said Senior Biosecurity O...

09:57

Meet the cover-up NSW Police public servant spin-doctor who censored the word Taser "IndyWatch Feed National"

This is Liz Deegan, the $360k a year Executive Director of NSW Police Public Affairs. Shes not a police officer nor is she experienced in law enforcement - but she does believe she has a right to mislead the public. Deegan was the one who authorised the

08:47

A peace movement is needed to put an end to Ukraine war "IndyWatch Feed National"

Contributed by Joe Montero

I have put some effort into trying to make sense of the present battlefield offensive pf the Kiev forces in Ukraine. After trolling through claims and counter claims and getting a sense of the military strategies of both sides, some things have become quite obvious. These do not sit well with the barrage of media propaganda.

Not surprisingly, this is a war where the media is just as much the battle ground as what is happening on the ground. As they say, the first casualty of war is the truth.

Back to the point. A genuine examination of the facts, which includes those presented by both sides, will reveal some inescapable truths.

Like it or despise it, the Russian presence was never about taking over the whole of Ukraine. It involved the ethnic Russian majority regions to the east and south, in a long standing that became violent in 2014, a longtime before Russian forces crossed the border.

The Russian military strategy has three legs. The first has been to consolidate the core ethnic Russian areas to the east and south. These are bordered with a heavily fortified and static frontline. Air power and missiles have been used to harass the other side, rather than to capture new ground. Beyond the fortified border is a region of mobile rather than positional warfare. This is aimed at harassing Kievs forces, drawing them into ambushes, and inflicting maximum damage on them. All these legs have achieved considerable success.

The map below shows both the position (orange) and mobile war zones (grey).

This map is from the Russian media outlet Sputnik. Maps with this information are censored in the wests media

The on, off, and on again, so called offensive is concentrated on this mobile zone. Stories of victories and defeats that centre around who holds a town at a particular time, ignore that the nature of mobile warfare is assaults and withdrawals by both sides. These stories do not report the truth.

It is Kiev that is at a disadvantage b...

08:21

Link "IndyWatch Feed National"

Money laundering, shell companies, prostitution rings, foreign bribes, and influence peddling. All part of a days work at Biden Inc. #ImpeachBidenhttps://t.co/i8pdp1PL3I pic.twitter.com/aywyD2K6fu Marjorie Taylor Greene (@mtgreenee) June 21, 2023

06:40

Will former NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian face criminal charges for her perjury? NSW ICAC to deliver corruption report on 29-6-23 "IndyWatch Feed National"

Former NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and others such as former NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro could be looking down the barrel of criminal charges next week as the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption []

06:00

Human Rights Law Centre intervenes in landmark whistleblower protections appeal "IndyWatch Feed National"

The Human Rights Law Centre has been granted leave to participate as amicus curiae (friend of the court) in a landmark appeal as part of the ongoing unjust prosecution of whistleblower Richard Boyle.

Boyle, who is being prosecuted after blowing the whistle on unethical debt recovery practices at the Australian Taxation Office, had sought immunity under the federal public sector whistleblowing law, the Public Interest Disclosure Act.

In March, Judge Kudelka of the District Court of South Australia ruled that Boyle was not immune from prosecution.

The judgment was the first consideration of the scope of the protections for Australian whistleblowers. Boyle has been charged in relation to allegedly unlawfully gathering documents and recording conversations as part of his whistleblowing which took place first internally, then to the tax ombudsman and then, as a last resort, to the ABC, Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

Judge Kudelka ruled that the key protection in the PID Act only applies to the act of blowing the whistle, not related preparatory steps.

Ahead of his trial in October, Boyle appealed to the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of South Australia. At a callover last Friday, Justice Doyle granted leave to the Human Rights Law Centre to make submissions and set the appeal down for 9 August.

Kieran Pender, Senior Lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre, said:
Richard Boyles appeal will determine the strength of protections for all Australian whistleblowers, given similar provisions exist in almost all Australian whistleblower protection laws. It is a vitally important test case with significant implications for truth and transparency in this country.

Boyle faces the spectre of jail for blowing the whistle on government wrongdoing whistleblowing that has been vindicated by several independent inquiries.

By exposing human rights abuses, government wrongdoing and corporate misdeeds, whistleblowers make Australia a better place. The Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus KC should fix the law and establish a whistleblower protection authority, to ensure that whistleblowers are protected, not punished. 

The Human Rights Law Centre has briefed Perry Herzfeld SC, Michelle Hamlyn and Hannah Ryan. National law firm Johnson Winter Slattery is acting for the Centre in the proceedings, led by partners Eve Thomson and Christopher Beames, senior associate Jade Tyrrell and associate Claudia Boccaccio.

Media contact:
Thomas Feng
Human Rights Law Centre
Media and Communications Manager
0431 285 275
thomas.feng@hrlc.org.au

00:08

INTERVIEW: Jason Liosatos Why Are BBC Attacking Independent Media? "IndyWatch Feed National"

The BBCs underhanded and dishonest tactics used to discredit and defame members of the independent media.

In this episode of the Patrick Henningsen Show on TNT Radio which aired on June 19, 2023, Patrick talks with UK-based author, artist, and antiwar activist Jason Liosatos, about his recent experience being targeted in a hit-piece by the BBC and its new self-styled disinformation correspondent Marianna Spring from BBC Verify, and her embarrassing series Marianna in Conspiracy Land where she set out to paint residents of Totnes, England as a cauldron of extremism and harmful ideas. Jason reveals the BBCs underhanded and dishonest tactics they use to discredit and defame independent media people, as well as their desperate efforts to conceal all of their own embarrassing fake news and propaganda, enabling wars based on fake claims and real disinformation. All this and more. Listen:

More from Jason at:
JasonLiosatos.com
Get a copy of his book, The Emergency Transformation of Human Beings here

TUNE-IN LIVE to TNT RADIO for the Patrick Henningsen Show every MON-FRI at 12PM-2PM (NEW YORK) | 5PM-7PM (LONDON) | 2AM-4AM (BRISBANE):
https://tntradio.liv

READ MORE PROPAGANDA NEWS AT: 21st CENTURY WIRE PROPAGANDA FILES

ALSO JOIN OUR TELEGRAM CHANNEL

SUPPORT OUR INDEPENDENT MEDIA PLATFORM  BECOME A MEMBER @21WIRE.TV

...

00:05

Capitalist Hegemony in Psychedelic Medicine "IndyWatch Feed National"

Excitement around psychedelics continues to grow with thousands set to attend the Psychedelic Science conference in Denver this week. Proponents in the psychedelic space have promoted a strategy to focus on the medicalization to gain wider societal acceptance. But this could lead psychedelics to come under greater control, ensuring that they serve as profitable tools to maintain the status quo.

Illustraiton of a pill bottle with a mushroom growing out, surrounded by pills.

The Quest for Mainstream Acceptance: Magical Individual to Societal Healing

Today, in the effort to win mainstream acceptance of psychedelics, there are a number of voices in the room. Among them, the loudest are the ones who individualize illness through the medical lens while seeking legitimacy through access to powerful medical institutions, civil society, and the corporation in a proclaimed quest to heal those suffering in our society. We see anything from features in Forbes about 20-something tech billionaires microdosing to increase productivity, to 60 Minutes interviews with U.S. Iraq war veterans who report being cured from PTSD, to miracle stories of ketamine working with the poor and formerly incarcerated. Ironically, as this piece is being published, a number of these voices will be discussing and debating the path of the psychedelic renaissance at Psychedelic Science conference, taking place June 1923 and being marketed as the largest conference on psychedelics in history.

Organizationally, some of the best-known names in the psychedelic space are the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), the for-profit System Fail 23 mental health company Compass Pathways, and the nonprofit Usona Institute. Many inside these organizations often promote a course of thought claiming psychedelics in and of themselves can heal anything from PTSD to societal conflict. Its as if there is a search for a balm, a real-life soma, to dissociate from the horrors of race and class. For many, psychedelics are the answer to this search.

Of those who believe psychedelics cou...

00:00

Cropped 21 June 2023: Canada burns; El Nio arrives; Third Pole melts "IndyWatch Feed National"

Welcome to Carbon Briefs Cropped. 
We handpick and explain the most important stories at the intersection of climate, land, food and nature over the past fortnight.

Carbon Briefs fortnightly Cropped email newsletter. Subscribe for free here.

Snapshot

Many of North Americas most iconic cities were cloaked in an otherworldly orange haze earlier this month as smoke from Canadas wildfires travelled across the continent. The smog is set to return this week.

Subscribe: Cropped
  • Sign up to Carbon Brief's free "Cropped" email newsletter. A fortnightly digest of food, land and nature news and views. Sent to your inbox every other Wednesday.

El Nio conditions have been confirmed by US and Australian weather agencies. The weather pattern is expected to take a massive toll on crops, drive up food prices and inflation. The North Atlantic is reeling under a totally unprecedented marine heatwave.

Climate change is having an unprecedented and irreversible impact on the Hindu Kush Himalayas cryosphere, a major new assessment found. Glaciers disappeared 65% faster in the 2010s than in the previous decade and could lose up to 80% of their volume by 2100.

Key developments

Canada wildfires

TOXIC FUMES: Hundreds of wildfires burned across Canada earlier this month in an unprecedented start to the nations fire season. As Carbon Brief reported in an in-depth summary of the event, huge clouds of smoke from the blaze travelled thousands of kilometres down to the eastern US in early June, shrouding cities such as New York and Washington DC in an orange haze and causing levels of toxic air pollution to reach...

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Wednesday, 21 June

23:45

Yeah Nah Pasaran! #166 w Bill Peel on Black Metal, Red Politics : June 22, 2023 "IndyWatch Feed National"

June is Radiothon Month at Melbourne community radio station 3CR. Weve published a fundraiser on GiveNow to which youre welcome to contribute and help keep community radio on the air. This week on Yeah Nah Pasaran! we talk to Bill Continue reading

20:59

Irish Anti-Trans Activist Snatches Defeat From The Jaws Of Almost Certain Pyrrhic Victory "IndyWatch Feed National"

Objectively speaking, it would have seemed like SUCH a good idea at the time. Unfortunately, political stunts are almost always more about the execution than they are about the idea. And for James Esses self-described Irish commentator and co-founder of Thoughtful Therapists. Focusing on the impact of ideology on society and the safeguarding of children it seems execution isnt his strong point although he goes close to having a monopoly on breathtaking hypocrisy.

Our story begins yesterday, with our hero tweeting out this: I formally and publicly declare that I reject the label of cis. I dont believe in gender ideology. I dont self-identify as cis. Using this term makes me feel unsafe and is demonstrative of your hatred towards me. Anyone who uses the term cis to describe me is a bigot.

Okay lefties, you gotta hand it to James, he might have a point, right? Sure, his tweet has some obvious problems: no-one for a millisecond believes James actually feels unsafe. Hes just using the language of the left to lampoon, and make a point. But even so, if people who demand to be addressed a certain way refuse to respect other peoples wishes about the way theyd like to identified its game on, right?

Well, the following day, James, now self-identifying as a victim (of online bullying and harassment), tweeted this: Yesterday, after posting a Tweet saying that I reject the word cis and dont wish to be called it, I receive a slew of messages from trans activists calling me cissy and telling me that I am cis whether or not I like it.

Interesting. At first blush, it seems like James may ha...

20:30

Whats the Sweet Spot For Building Housing Inexpensively? "IndyWatch Feed National"

 

(Source: Unsplash/Bethany Opler.)

I recently shared a graph on Twitter and got a whole bunch of varied reactions. Twitter is a good place for quickly road-testing ideas and framings to see how theyre understood and what people push back against.

The point I was trying to make was a simple one about the costs of building new housing. Countless American cities are in need of much more housing for their residents, and a reasonable question to ask is, Whats the cheapest way to produce it? To answer that, we need to understand how development costs work.

I have a rough conceptual diagram, without hard numbers attached to it, that I use to illustrate the way the height and complexity of a residential building intersects with the cost of but first, let me actually break it up into two separate diagrams: one that shows how the cost of land for new housing changes with density, the other that shows how the cost of construction itself changes.

(For the purposes of this article, were going to ignore various forms of prefab or manufactured housing. They deserve a lot of considerationjust not here and not now.)

Land Cost vs. Density

...

20:29

PODCAST LIVING IN DENIAL WITH JASON WOODFORTH "IndyWatch Feed National"

I am joined on the podcast today 21/06/2023 by Jason Woodforth from Brisbane to break...

19:19

Will Artificial Intelligence Solve the Socialist Calculation Problem? "IndyWatch Feed National"


James E. Hanley
from the American Institute for Economic Research writes

I was recently told that humanity is rapidly advancing toward solving the socialist calculation problem. I wasnt told why, but around the same time, economist Daron Acemoglu suggested that artificial intelligence could be the solution. To get literary, perhaps we are on the verge of creating the Machines, the artificial intelligences that plan the global economy in Isaac Asimovs short story, The Evitable Conflict (which became the last chapter of his book, I, Robot.) The Machines perfectly calculate the needs of humanity and organize the economic order to best provide for them, in keeping with the first law of robotics, that a robot may not injure a human being, or through inaction allow a human being to come to harm.

Given Asimovs insistence that the Machines were mere calculators of unimaginable speed, not super-brains, artificial intelligence could be a further step beyond Asimovs robotic brains. So could artificially intelligent Machines, at last, prove the central planners right?

No, they could not, and Ill answer the question in three ways. First, its theoretically impossible because the problem is about information generation, not the calculation of given information. Second, even if sufficient information existed to do the calculations, human incentives would always tinker with the Machines programming, biasing their performance. Third, if the machines escaped the biasing control humans, their interests would not necessarily be congruent with humanitys interests.

The Machines cannot solve the calculation problem because the real problem for central planning is not calculating existing data, but getting the data to calculate. As economist Michael Munger recently wrote, theres not a calculation problem, but a data generation problem. The calculations are supposed to direct economic activity, but the necessary data, which reveal the values of differing uses for resources, do not come into existence except as a consequence of that economic activity. 

And when it is generated, it is only fragmentary, with much of it hidden in the minds of the econo...

19:13

Linda Burney tells the parliament that cordial is cheaper than water. Who knew? "IndyWatch Feed National"

Linda Burney: "I've been to communities where babies are drinking sweet cordial instead of water because it is cheaper... Do not tell me [the Voice] is not needed." "I am not interested in culture wars. I am interested in Closing The Gap." pic.twitter.com/ltzLJasV9s Josh Butler (@JoshButler) June 21, 2023

19:11

Are We Going to Win? - Questions For Corbett "IndyWatch Feed National"

Today James answers the question he received most often from the attendees of The Better Way conference in Bath: are we going to win this thing? Get ready for a bigger answer than you're expecting and a homework assignment of your own.

19:00

Transcription tool Otter unveils an AI chat tool to help you in meetings "IndyWatch Feed National"

The new bot can help you catch up with anything you missed in a meeting, or even draft a follow-up email.

Users of the meeting transcription tool Otter will soon have access to an AI-powered assistant that can answer questions about the content of their meetings.

Read Full Story

18:45

I Ragazzi Pasta e Cucina is the intimate Italian pasta bar on Little Malop Street from a Newtown favourite "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

For the past two years, I Ragazzi has been bringing a bit of Southern Italy to Pakington Street in Newtown serving fresh, handmade pasta just how youd find it on the sun-soaked island of Sicily.

With a menu spanning authentic pizzas,housemade pasta, Italian cocktails and unmissable Tiramisu, Geelong local Julian Barbagallo has earned a serious reputation in dishing up the kind of devotedly rustic Italian food that you can feel doing you good, body and soul.

Keep up with the latest food and booze news across the region here.

I Ragazzi is Newtowns newest Italian restaurant, devoted to fresh, handmade pasta

Now, just a mere month shy of his Pakington Street restaurants two year anniversary, Barbagallo has opened his newest venture, I Ragazzi Pasta e Cucina.

Taking over a small space at 86 Little Malop Street (previously Sabroso Pintxos), I Ragazzi Pasta e Cucina is an intimate Italian pasta bar and Barbagallos handmade-pasta passion project.

Making everything in-house, from the pasta itself to the sauces, desserts and more, Barbagallo officially opened the doors to the new restaurant on Wednesday, 21 June, bringing an incredibly special and entirely delicious dinner destination the famed Geelong strip.

I have always loved the street and loved all the hospo venues that are on the street, says Barbagallo.

The opportunity came up really out of nowhere, thought about it for a few weeks and said why not, lets go for it.

While the new spot goes just as heavy on the hand-made pastas as the Pakington Street institution, the Little Malop Street venue hones in on both tradition and exciting alternatives with time-honoured Italian methods. Here you can blissfully make your way through a flawless selection of...

17:29

Unlock the Power of List Brokers: Expert Tips for Effective Marketing Campaigns "IndyWatch Feed National"

There are 4 billion people who use email daily. Out of that, 99% check their emails at least once a day, with 58% clicking on the big M as soon as their eyes open. Believe it or not, some even check their email 20 times a day- answers why email marketing is at its peak and is expected to surge in popularity even more in the near future.

You are all set to start your email marketing campaign. But who would you send your emails to? Got a reality check? Building your email list is indeed one of the toughest tasks out there. Even the most persuasive email copy can be swept aside if you send it to someone who has no interest in your service.

The good news is, compiling an email list that surprises you with its ROI has become easier than ever before with email list brokers. List brokers are companies that curate lists of email addresses of businesses and consumers, tailored to your target audience. In brief, they provide you with a list of people you should mail to get success in your marketing campaign.

But how to spot the right broker? Is that enough? Whats next? Given below are some expert tips that are meant to guide you from finding the perfect broker to writing a killer email copy to analyzing the success of your campaign. Read till the end and champion the process.

1. Find a Suitable List Broker To Get a Targeted Email List

Source: leadsplease.com

We have already introduced you to them. Now lets find out how to get hold of the list broker who suits your needs the best.

  • Talk to people in your circle, browse the net, and conduct your research to make a list of brokers who appear potent enough to generate the results you desire.
  • Visit their websites, communicate via mail or calls, and shortlist a few of them based on their response.
  • Assess the following:-
...

17:27

Department of Health and Social Care written question answered on 20 June 2023. "IndyWatch Feed National"

 

Photo of Greg KnightGreg Knight Conservative, East Yorkshire

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publicise the scope and timing of the proposed consultation on proposals to expand water fluoridation in the North East; what steps he plans to take to encourage participation in that consultation; and if he will make a statement.


...

17:25

Exclusive: Shane Warnes Death Precipitated by Covid mRNA Vaccine Say Leading Doctors "IndyWatch Feed National"

Will Jones The Daily Sceptic June 20, 2023

Leading doctors have concluded that the death of legendary Australian cricketer Shane Warne was likely precipitated by the Covid mRNA vaccine that he had taken approximately nine months prior to his sudden cardiac death. His post mortem findings revealed coronary atherosclerosis.

Cardiologists Dr. Aseem Malhotra and Dr. Chris Neil, who is President of the Australian Medical Professionals Society, have concluded that the Covid vaccine can cause a rapid acceleration of coronary disease especially in those that may already have undetected mild disease. Dr. Malhotra has further concerns that the Covid mRNA vaccines may be masking angina by damaging heart nerves, resulting in patients not experiencing the chest pain that typically precedes a diagnosis of severe blockages in the heart arteries, leading to detection not occurring until its too late, with the first symptoms often presenting as a cardiac arrest.

Shane Warne was found unresponsive in his hotel room in Thailand in March last year.

The doctors have called for the immediate suspension of Covid mRNA vaccines globally pending an investigation into serious side-effects, including late onset heart attack and sudden cardiac death.

Shane Warnes best friend, the former international cricketer Dimitri Mascerenhas, has supported the calls, saying Shane himself wouldnt want others to be harmed.

Consultant Cardiologist Dr. Aseem Malhotra says:

Its quite unusual for former international sportsmen to suffer a sudden cardiac death at such a young age, 52. At the same time we also know Shane didnt have the healthiest lifestyle in recent years, being both overweight and a smoker. Its likely that some mild underlying furring of his arteries (as Ive seen with my own patients and how my father died) rapidly progressed in the months after he received two doses of the Pfizer mRNA Covid vaccine.

Published research already reveals the plausible biological mechanism of this occurring through increasing coronary inflammation that can last for months after the vaccine has been administered.

Other data on adverse cardiac effects including heart attack is extensive, derived from...

17:20

How to get tickets to Taylor Swifts Eras Tour in Australia for 2024 "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Alright, its official, its happening, this is real life: Taylor Swift is bringing her Eras Tour to Australia next year. The catch is shes only doing a couple of tour stops, heading our way on February 16 and 17 for shows at the MCG, before jetting off to Sydney for shows on February 23, 24 and 25.

As were all aware, her Eras Tour has been a huge success so far, unsurprisingly selling out shows across the world. Knowing its going to be a Scooter-level wrestle to get tickets, our ticketing-ride-or-die Tixel have come through with some Swiftie info thatll help you prep for the onsales, make you chance of getting tickets and make you feel like youre on top of the world (or at least, on top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge) as we all relish in the tour news!

Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews here.

Taylor Swift announces 2024 Australian dates for The Eras Tour

 

So heres a play-by-play on how to give yourself the best chance to get tix to the concert of the decade and you wont have to keep on singing, You Belong With Me from the outside of the MCG.

Gather The Squad

First things first, you need to gather your squad, because as we know, The Best People in Life Are Free. Success often comes in numbers so get those commitments (baby just say Yes!), make a savings plan, make a game plan (read on), and make sure all your pals (and their devices) are diarised for those onsale dates with their list of instructions. Set up a WhatsApp chat for real-time onsale communication.

Sign Up For Pre-Sales

Swifties who plan ahead will have first pick, so act quickly like a Love Story in fast forward. Here are your squad actions...

17:04

The "Five Eyes" and UAP "IndyWatch Feed National"

The "Five Eyes" is the name given to an intelligence sharing alliance, consisting of five countries; namely Australia; Canada; New Zealand; the United Kingdom and the United States of America.

https://science.nasa.gov/uap

During his presentation to the NASA public meeting on 31 May 2023, Dr. Sean Kirkpatrick, the Director of the All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) stated that he had recently held a forum on UAP, for the Five Eyes partners. Specifically, he said:

"I have just held our first Five Eyes forum on this subject, last week I think it was, or earlier this week. Dan was there. And, we have, we've entered into discussions with our partners on data sharing; how they do reporting; what kind of analysis can they help us with; what kind of calibration can they help us with; what can we help them with? We are establishing all of that right now and they're going to end up sending their information and data to us to feed into the process that we've laid out for how we are going to do all this."

Asked what the "Five Eyes" was, Kirkpatrick responded that it was the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and the United States. 

Who attended?

A number of individuals set out to seek comment from these five countries concerning Kirkpatrick's  statement about the holding of a Five Eyes forum on UAP. Here's what we know so far.

New Zealand

(a) In a tweet dated 16 June 2023, the UK's Christopher Sharp, senior contributing journalist for the Daily Mail newspaper reported that a spokesperson advised:

"An NZDF representative based in Washington DC attended the meeting. For more information you will need to contact US aut...

17:04

Back in the "write" direction "IndyWatch Feed National"

Last December, I closed this blog to new posts. Since then I have spent my available UAP study time, on several projects as I described in that final December blog post. I cleaned up my digital files; so that I could actually find things; re-studied classic Australian cases; and re-read my files on some of the classic global cases. Not having the pressure of writing up the details of a time sensitive UAP revelation, in blog articles has been wonderful. As some of you will no doubt have seen, I did make time to update some of the blog articles of the past, namely the ones on NASA's UAP study efforts; and AARO

Now, it is time to go from "A change of direction" to return to writing and publishing articles on this blog; which I have titled "Back in the 'write' direction."

Keith.  

16:55

Amazing hidden camera video footage from James O'Keefe - an insight into BlackRock "IndyWatch Feed National"

BREAKING: @BlackRock Recruiter Who Decides Peoples Fate Spills Info on Companys World Impact Its not who the president is- its whos controlling the wallet of the president You got $10K? You can buy a senator" War is real f***ing good for business #BlackRockExposed pic.twitter.com/DZIy1DuZKF James O'Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) June 20,...

16:53

Harts Plays Hendrix: Harts announces Geelong show celebrating the musical legacy of Jimi Hendrix "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Award-winning multi-instrumentalist and producer, Harts, is bringing his special live performance celebrating the musical legacy of Jimi Hendrix to Geelong this year.

Taking to The Story House on Friday 27 Oct 2023, this electric live performance celebrates the 50 year legacy of Jimi Hendrix and pays tribute to the anniversaries of Hendrixs studio albums while bringing the distinct flair of his iconic performances as only Harts can. The show consists of a carefully curated setlist from Jimis entire catalogue, performed live by Harts in a powerful three-piece band experience.

Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews here.

 

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16:49

WA Parliament has historic opportunity to improve access to abortion "IndyWatch Feed National"

The Western Australian Parliament has a unique opportunity to demonstrate its commitment to the health and equality of women and all people who experience pregnancy by reforming the states outdated abortion laws.

The Cook Government today introduced the Abortion Legislation Reform Bill 2023 into the Lower House. If it passes, the proposed laws will allow patients to decide, in consultation with their healthcare provider, whether to have an abortion up to 23 weeks, after which two doctors would need to be involved in decision-making. The Bill would also remove abortion from the states criminal laws, together with harmful legal hurdles to abortion care. Doctors with a conscientious objection to abortion would need to ensure that their patients know where to get help.

Western Australia is the only state yet to fully decriminalise abortion by qualified medical practitioners. While abortion is legal in most circumstances, the use of the criminal law to regulate healthcare stigmatises patients and care providers.

WAs current laws force patients to see two doctors before being able to access abortion care and mandate counselling in all cases. They also force a small number of women in the distressing and complex situation of needing an abortion after 20 weeks to fly interstate to access care that should be available in WA. These legal requirements are medically unjustified and make it harder for patients, especially those in regional and remote areas and on limited incomes, to get timely and compassionate healthcare.

Adrianne Walters, Acting Legal Director with the Human Rights Law Centre, said:

Abortion is healthcare. Access to abortion is a human right. We commend Minster Sanderson and the Cook Government for taking this step to improve WAs abortion laws.

WAs abortion laws have failed to keep up with modern medical practice and community values. The current laws are outdated and include medically unnecessary rules that are barriers to timely abortion care, particularly for women living remotely or without much money.

The Bill, if passed, would support better reproductive health outcomes across Western Australia. The removal of barriers, such as mandated counselling, the two-doctor requirement and the medical panel requirement for abortions after 20 weeks, are critical to improving access to care and health outcomes.

It is beyond time for abortion to be treated like healthcare in law and for the focus to be on the health, dignity and autonomy of patients.

Read the Human Rights Law Centres submission to inform the government's drafting of new abortion laws: Abortion as healthcare in law 

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15:47

Tucker Carlson Episode 5 - compelling listening "IndyWatch Feed National"

Ep. 5 As in most of the developing world, it's safer to be the president's son than his opponent. pic.twitter.com/AtRRaxYSjs Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) June 20, 2023

15:33

What Is a Cert 3 in Disability and Why Is It Important? "IndyWatch Feed National"

In the field of disability support, individuals with a deep sense of compassion and a desire to make a positive impact often pursue a Cert 3 in Disability. This certification, formally known as Certificate III in Individual Support (Disability), equips professionals with the necessary knowledge, skills, and understanding to provide exceptional care and support to individuals with disabilities.

The Cert 3 in Disability is a nationally recognised vocational qualification in Australia designed to empower individuals to make a difference in the lives of those with disabilities. It encompasses a comprehensive curriculum that covers a wide range of topics essential for practical disability support. From understanding the diverse nature of disabilities to promoting independence, from personal care support to facilitating community participation, the certification delves into various aspects of disability support.

A Cert 3 in Disability in the disability support sector cannot be overstated. It serves as a benchmark of competency and professionalism, ensuring that support workers possess the necessary skills and knowledge to meet the desired needs of individuals with disabilities. By completing this certification, professionals demonstrate their commitment to delivering person-centred care, fostering independence, and promoting inclusivity.

Not only does a Cert 3 in Disability provide individuals with a solid foundation in disability support, but it also opens up numerous career opportunities in the sector. This certification allows individuals to explore roles in disability support agencies, group homes, respite care facilities, or community-based programs. Employers often prioritise candidates with formal qualifications in disability support, making Cert 3 an invaluable asset for career advancement and job security.

In essence, a Cert 3 in Disability goes beyond mere qualification. It represents a genuine commitment to improving the lives of individuals with disabilities and positively impacting the disability support sector. By acquiring this certification, professionals embark on a rewarding journey of compassion, empathy, and empowerment, enriching the lives of those they support and contributing to a more inclusive society.

Understanding Cert 3 in Disability:

  • Certificate III in Individual Support (Disability) is Australias nationally recognised vocational qualification.
  • It provides training in supporting individuals with disabilities in various settings.
  • Topics covered include understanding disability, promoting independence, personal care support, community participation, and behaviour support strategies.
  • The training involves theory-based learnin......

14:08

RBA Finally Admits Role Of Corporate Price Hikes In Inflation "IndyWatch Feed National"

The Reserve Bank of Australia has finally acknowledged that corporate price hikes at least play a role in Australias inflation woes despite earlier this year demanding research by a respected think-tank which showed as much be withdrawn.

The minutes of the latest meeting of the RBA board, held earlier this month, acknowledged that price gouging by corporations created an increased risk that high inflation would remain. Yet earlier this year, the Reserve was highly critical of research from the Australia Institute which asserted that corporate price gouging, and the associated record profits generated by it, were a far more potent driver of Australias inflation crisis than modestly rising wages.

In its research, the Australia Institute questioned why the RBA had persistently cited wage growth as a concern, when increases were well beneath the rate of inflation, but had ignored price hikes and profits, when corporations were increasing prices well above the rate of inflation. The RBA was so critical, in fact, that the Reserve Bank, urged the Australia Institute to retract the report.

This month, the RBA minutes of the most recent board meeting acknowledge that corporate greed is a risk to inflation.

Some firms were indexing their prices, either implicitly or directly, to past inflation. These developments created an increased risk that high inflation would be persistent, which would make it more difficult to keep the economy on the narrow path, the minutes read.

Greg Jericho, policy director at the Australia Institutes Centre for Future Work, said he hoped the RBA might now be more inclined to stop punishing everyday Australians and blaming their modest, below-inflation wage rises for creating pressure on the economy.

Companies are the ones that set prices, not workers, Jericho said. The Reserve Bank has finally acknowledged that companies are not merely responding to market forces or increased costs but are increasing prices because they can take advantage of the inflation crisis to increase their margins.

This is consistent with the OECDs recent research that found profits were driving inflation not just in Australia but across many advanced economies, as well as earlier Australia Institute research.

Now, finally the Reserve Bank has itself acknowledged the role companies are playing in keeping inflation high even as the Reserve Bank acknowledges wage growth remains consistent with the inflation target, said Dr Jericho.

The post...

13:39

Australian live music promoter Destroy All Lines celebrate 20 years with 20 shows "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

<p>Specialists in rock, punk and metal, but ever expanding, the team of music lovers behind the brand have gone on to promote hundreds of tours by a wide range of artists including Deftones, All Time Low, Tony Hadley (Ex Spandau Ballet), A Day To Remember, Pennywise, One OK Rock, Ugly Kid Joe, Descendents, Pennywise, Primal Scream, Simple Plan, Trivium and The Pogues, alongside a bunch of incredible festivals even creating some of their own (hello Good Things!).</p> <p>Now the Aussie promoters are celebrating a huge 20 year milestone this year, putting together 20 Shows for 20 Years showcasing artists they love at Stay Gold in Melbourne in August and September.</p> <p>The celebration includes just announced shows from Bakers Eddy, Behind Crimson Eyes, D at Sea, Hot Department, John Floreani, Kisstroyer, Masketta Fall, Psycroptic & Will Wagner, which join already announced shows from Belakor, Ocean Sleeper, Punk Rock Factory & a pair of Spanish Love Songs gigs. Plus, there will also be six headline shows to be announced very soon.

Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews </i></b><a href= "https://fortemag.com.au/music/"><span class= "s1"><b><i>here</i></b></span></a><b><i>.</i></b></p> <blockquote class="instagram-media"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <p> </p> <div style="display: flex;"> <div style= "background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex;"> <div style= "background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style= "background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style= "display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style= "color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;"> View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"></div> <div style="display: flex; margin-bottom: 14px;"> <div>...</div> </div> </div> </blockquote>

12:45

Peach PRC, The Vanns and more join Adelaides Spin Off Festival lineup for 2023 "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

The countdown is on until Spin Off arrives, a one-day music festival made up of acts visiting Australia for Splendour in the Grass.

Previously sold-out, the festival has just released more tickets after reconfiguring the site, alongside adding a bunch of new artists to the already stacked lineup, most of which will be gracing a new second stage!

Giving punters the chance to immerse themselves in a one-day Splendour experience, the likes of Peach PRC, The Vanns, Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers, Marlon x Rulla, The Empty Threats, Busseys, and The Tullamarines have been added and will now descend on Adelaide Showgrounds this July.

Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews here.

Hilltop Hoods, Tove Lo and more headline Adelaides Spin Off Festival 2023

These acts join previously announced artists Hilltop Hoods, Pnau, Tove Lo, Benee, Iann Dior, Hockey Dad, Thelma Plum, Noah Cyrus, Sly Withers and The Rions.

This year, Spin Off are teaming up with FEAT. Live founded by Heidi Lenffer from Cloud Control. FEAT are spearheading a new climate action strategy to reduce the emissions of live entertainment by unlocking sustainability funding through ticket sales. That means that $1 from every ticket sold for Spin Off will go directly towards funding action on climate.

Meanwhile Splendour In The Grass is gearing up for one huge 21st birthday party, with an enormous lineup locked in to perform at the three-day festival at North Byron Parklands in July from Friday...

12:07

The Presets announce second Torquay show due to overwhelming demand "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Due to overwhelming demand for tickets, Sydney electronic kings The Presets have just added more dates to their huge national DJ tour in celebration of their 20th anniversary.

Spanning July, August, and September, the 20 Years 20 Nights tour will take the duo across the East Coast with various stops in the likes of Brisbane, Gold Coast, Cairns, Torquay, and Sydney before jetting over to Darwin where theyll finish the tour in September. With multiple dates already sold out, the duo have added two extra Sydney shows, extra shows in Melbourne and Torquay, as well as adding a stop in Perth to the tour.

Armed with a huge DJ set, theyll be playing at small clubs and bars, reconnecting with the electric spirit that got them making music in the first place.

The Presets 20th Anniversary clubland tour 2023

Thursday, July 13 Torquay Hotel, Torquay (NEW SHOW)
Friday, July 14 Village Green Hotel, Mulgrave (SOLD OUT)
Saturday, July 15 Pier Bandroom, Frankston (SOLD OUT)
Thursday, July 20 Beach Hotel, Byron Bay
Friday, July 21 Fridays Riverside, Brisbane (SOLD OUT)
Saturday, July 22 Kings Beach Tavern, Caloundra (SOLD OUT)
Friday, July 28 Burleigh Bazaar, Gold Coast
Saturday, July 29 C.EX, Coffs Harbour
Friday, August 4 Shoal Bay Country Club, Shoal Bay
Saturday, August 5 Drifters Wharf, Central Coast (SOLD OUT)
Thursday, August 10 Gilligans, Cairns
Friday, August 11 Kirwan Tavern (Outdoors), Townsville
Saturday, August 12 Magnums Hotel, Airlie Beach
Friday, August 18 Beer Deluxe, Albury
Saturday, August 19 Torquay Hotel, Torquay (SOLD OUT)
Friday, August 25 UOW Uni Bar, Wollongong (SOLD OUT)
Saturday, August 26 Kambri Anu, Canberra
Wednesday, August 30 The Station, Perisher
Thursday, August 31 Miranda Hotel, Sydney (NEW SHOW)
Friday, September 1 Miranda Hotel, Sydney (SOLD OUT)
Saturday, September 2 Dee Why RSL, Sydney (SOLD OUT)
Sunday, September 3 Dee Why RSL, Sydney (NEW SHOW)
Saturday, September 9 Monsoons, Darwin
Saturday, September 16 The Espy, Melbourne (NEW SHOW)
Saturday 21 October Freo Social, Fremantle (NEW SHOW)

Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews here.

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11:00

Australian Music Vault launches a free 360-degree immersive Mushroom 50 experience "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Produced by Mushroom Creative House and narrated by the late Michael Gudinski, Australian Music Vault has just introduced a new Mushroom 50 Immersive audio-visual experience.

Working in collaboration with Arts Centre Melbourne, the free display titled Mushroom: 50 Years of Making Noise, will harness The Amplifiers unique 360-degree experiential room to explore the evolution of Australias music scene and the pivotal role Mushroom played.

Australian Music Vault Mushroom 50 experience

  • Australian Music Vault hosts Mushroom 50 Immersive audio-visual experience
  • A unique 360 degree room to experience and explore the evolution of Australias music scene and Mushrooms involvement
  • Free Entry at Melbournes Cultural Hub The Arts Centre

Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews here.

 

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10:11

Blockade Australia "IndyWatch Feed Cvic"

I am a passionate supporter of Blockade Australia.

BA believe we cannot tackle climate collapse without addressing

the economic system that is fuelling it. That is why they target

the bottlenecks of the system in an attempt to disrupt the

economic system itself, giving them political leverage.

We can gauge the effectiveness of this disruption by the response

from the-powers-that-be, usually draconian new anti-protest laws.

We will tolerate dissent as long as it is ineffective.

John Gorton, Australian prime minister, c. 1970

In this country it is illegal to protest if you dont get permission from the police.

The police are the compliance arm of the state. Naturally they will not allow any

activity that disrupts the operations of that state.

The only effective form of protest is disruption, therefore all effective protest is illegal,

and only ineffective protest is allowed.

We have all seen how ineffective legal protests have been.

Tens of thousands of school kids can march through the streets

and the powers-that-be will praise their passion and conviction.

The next day is business-as-usual.

To understand just how ineffective our protests have been over the years

we can look at our achievements, or lack there of.

At the Earth Summit in 1992, all the leaders of the free world pledged,

hand-on-heart, to drastically reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.

At that time 87% of our energy consumption was from fossil fuels.

Now, after some 30 years of protest and inaction, fossil fuel use has dropped

to 83% a mere 4%. At this rate, by 2050 our emissions would be down to 79%.

We would not achieve zero emissions for another 900 years!

For a more detailed explanation of the BA rationale go to,

https://www.facebook.com/BlockadeAustralia/about_details

10:02

Review: The Melbourne Symphony Orchestras celebration of Frozen brought goosebumps, tears, and laughter "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

It would be hard to find someone who hasnt heard of Frozen. With its characters celebrated on lunchboxes, the soundtrack taking residency in the charts, and the film being watched on repeat in households worldwide over the past decade, Frozen is a familiar comfort.

The Melbourne Symphony Orchestras Frozen in Concert succeeded in taking a familiar story, and offering a new and novel experience. 

Stay up to date with whats happening within the regions art and stage scene here

In this performance, the Frozen movie was played on the big screen, while the orchestra and choir provided live music and vocals on the stage below. Frozen Heart, the number in the films opening scene, was goosebump inducing, setting the tone for the two-hour performance ahead. The choir was powerful, and it was spectacular to see the orchestra on stage.

Conducted by Jessica Gethin, the two exclusive performances brought a wave of emotions to those in the audience. Looking around, adults were brought to tears by the musically immersive experience, the crowd joined in collective laughter at the movies comedic lines, and applause filled the centre at the end of each number (and at the films pinnacle moments). The movie had subtitles, aiding accessibility and making singing along, which was encouraged, an easy feat. 

 

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09:35

Taylor Swift announces 2024 Australian dates for The Eras Tour "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Its confirmed, Taylor Swift is heading to Australia as part of her Eras Tour. Shell be heading our way on February 16 and 17 for shows at the MCG, before jetting off to Sydney for shows on February 23, 24 and 25. General on-sale tickets will be available from June 30 so get ready.

Taylor Swift Australia tour

  • February 16 Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), Melbourne
  • February 17 Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), Melbourne
  • February 23 Accor Stadium, Sydney
  • February 24 Accor Stadium, Sydney
  • February 25 Accor Stadium, Sydney

Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews here.

 

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17:12

FixedIt: Rape is about people "IndyWatch Feed National"

All headlines that erase victims and perpetrators are dehumanising, misleading, and lazy. This one is even worse because the article reports something everyone should read.

A man raped a woman. This is abhorrent, but not uncommon. The woman was able to report the rape to police. The police believed her, investigated and charged the rapist. The DPP took the case to trial and the man was convicted of rape. This series of events is remarkable.

The defence lawyer claimed the rapist was a vulnerable man who had experienced a great deal of psychological distress. This is entirely unremarkable.

Judge Gaynors response: It is not for men, such as your client, to take out their own emotional anguish and difficulties by the sexual assault of a young woman.

Some men see women as an object to assist them, or something to help themselves to in a time of personal difficulty.

(There is) this notion of a man in turmoil something clicks over in his head and the way to relieve that is by sexually assaulting a woman. Men cannot and must not, and if they do there will be very strong consequences.

In addition to the rape, the woman also told the court about the online comments shes seen making jokes and memes about the rape, and blaming her for the rapists choice to rape her.

Judge Gaynor, who clearly doesnt spend much time online, said this was extraordinary I cannot believe people can be so hideously cruel.

Judge Gaynors comments might be more incisive than most, but they are far more typical of the things said court than you might believe if you only ever read news reports.

Public institutions, such as courts, media, parliament, and police are structured to protect men from consequences of committing sexual violence and punish women for being victims of sexually violent men. Sometimes, when I see or hear a judge say the things Judge Gaynor said, I start to believe we can change those structures. Then I remember that you could fill the MCG twice over with all the women who have been sexually assaulted in a single year in Australia and the men convicted would fit in the members bars with room to spare.

and I think of the endless media articles implicitly or explicitly blaming victims and defending perpetrators, and the parliaments that make laws to enforce this behaviour. One exceptional judge and one remarkable outcome is not change.

Not yet.

...

17:09

Music, Culture and Camaraderie: Embracing the Vitality of Regional Music Festivals in Australia "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

When it comes to music festivals, Australia has built a reputation for hosting some of the most epic and memorable events in the world. While major cities like Sydney and Melbourne often steal the limelight, theres something truly special about the regional music festivals that dot the vast Australian landscape. Whether its Victorian festivals like Groovin The Moo and Queenscliff Music Festival, or Tasmanian events like Party in the Paddock and Yours and Owls in Wollongong, these hidden gems bring together music lovers, artists, and local communities in a celebration of music, culture, and camaraderie.

Today, were diving into the importance of regional music festivals in Australia, exploring their unique charm and highlighting a few standout examples.

A Breath of Fresh Air

At the very least, regional music festivals offer a refreshing change of pace from their larger counterparts. Nestled in picturesque landscapes, these festivals often provide an intimate and laid-back atmosphere that allows attendees to truly immerse themselves in the music and connect with fellow festival-goers. Whether its dancing barefoot in a field under the starry outback sky or swaying to the sounds of acoustic melodies by the beach, regional festivals offer a unique sense of freedom and escape from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

Meadow: The Victorian music festival bringing an intimately beautiful BYO weekend of camping and live music to Bambra in 2023

Celebrating Cultural Diversity

One of the remarkable aspects of regional music festivals is their ability to showcase the diverse musical and cultural tapestry of Australia. From the tropical beats of northern Queenslands Palm Creek Folk Festival to the soulful blues of the Bridgetown Blues Festival in Western Australia, these events bring together a wide range of genres and artists, both local and international. By featuring a mix of established acts and emerging talents, regional festivals contribute to the growth and exposure of Australias vibrant music scene, while also fostering a sense of pride and identity w...

16:51

The Benefits of Aluminium Plantation Shutters: A Stylish and Durable Choice "IndyWatch Feed National"

When it comes to window treatments, plantation shutters have long been favoured for their timeless elegance and versatility. Among the various materials available, aluminium plantation shutters stand out as an exceptional choice, offering a range of benefits that set them apart from other options.

In this blog post, we will explore the advantages of aluminium plantation shutters and shed light on the differences between aluminium and PVC or wood shutters.

  • Affordability

    Aluminium plantation shutters offer excellent value for your investment. While they may have a slightly higher upfront cost compared to some other materials, their long-term benefits and durability make them a cost-effective choice. With their resistance to wear and tear, you wont need to replace them as frequently as other window treatments, saving you money in the long run.
  • Ease of Installation

    One of the advantages of aluminium plantation shutters is their ease of installation. They are typically designed to fit a variety of window sizes and can be custom-made to your specifications. Many manufacturers provide detailed installation instructions, and if you prefer professional assistance, there are experienced installers available. With their lightweight construction, aluminium shutters are relatively easy to handle and install, making the process smooth and hassle-free.
  • Insulation Performance

    Up to 40% of your homes heating energy is lost through the windows, while, in summer, up to 87% of heat is gained through the windows. Aluminium plantation shutters offer excellent insulation properties, helping to regulate temperature and reduce energy consumption.The air pockets created by the louvred design of the shutters act as a buffer between the window and the interior space, providing an additional layer of insulation. This insulation helps to block out heat during the hot summer months and retain warmth in colder seasons, allowing for better control over your indoor climate. As a result, you can save money on heating and cooling costs. This makes aluminium the perfect material for living room or bedroom plantation shutters.
  • Durability

    Aluminium plantation shutters are highly durable and built to withstand various environmental conditions. Unlike other materials prone to warping, cracking, or fading, aluminium shutters are resistant to moisture, corrosion, and UV rays. This durability ensures that your shutters will maintain their structural integrity and aesthetic appeal for years to come. With only minimal maintenance requirements, aluminium shutters offer a long-lasting solution that can handle the demands of daily u...

16:30

FarmDog Brewing is hosting its very first boilermaker tasting night "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

In a fusion of flavors that promises to tantalise the taste buds of adventurous enthusiasts, FarmDog Brewing, Wallingtons vibrant family-run microbrewery with a keen focus on beer and gin, is gearing up to host an extraordinary Boilermaker Night on Friday, 23 June 2023.

Set to be an unforgettable experience, this one-of-a-kind event will bring together two beloved libations for an evening of indulgence, exploration, and exceptional craftsmanship as guests embark on mixing craft beer and spirits led by a passionate brewing / distilling family!

Keep up with the latest food and booze news across the region here.

Originally a pop-up, FarmDog found a permanent home at McGlashans estate Cellar Door, gifting the region a fun, laid-back atmosphere for indulging in delicious pizzas and platters as you taste gin, beer and/or wine! With a local mindset, as a bonus the brewers and distillers are always found onsite to explain all things grains and botanicals to allow your taste buds to understand and embrace their unique flavours.

In their very ever Boilermaker Night, the brewery will be showcasing their newest FarmDog brews, and pairing them with some unique whiskeys to create exciting boilermakers for you to try. Theyll have a variety of boilermakers to showcase, so whether youre a beer lover or a whiskey connoisseur, there will be something for everyone.

 

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16:09

Heres to 10 more: Little Creatures celebrates 10 years of brewing in Geelong "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Its been quite the journey since one of our favourite breweries first opened its door. Launching in a Fremantle shed back in 2000, it all started with a group of mates with a love for hoppy beer who wanted to brew an awesome, hop-driven American Pale Ale.

Fast forward more than a decade and in 2011 the Lion team purchased the former site of the Valley Worsted Mills in Geelong, with the plan to open a second brewery in Geelong in 2013 to keep the beer coming to the east coast (a decision which we are very thankful for).

Little Creatures has since become an iconic destination and watering hole for the Geelong community over the last ten years, coming out with the very best brews and events time and time again, and most importantly, bringing people from all walks of life together for the love of BEER.

Now, as of 16 June, theyve reached a milestone of hitting double digits this year, celebrating 10 huge years of brewing at its Geelong home.

Keep up with the latest food and booze news across the region here.

Earning a solid reputation as Geelongs vibrant hub of craft beer, delicious food, and good times, Little Creatures has become a beloved institution for locals and visitors alike. A true brewery village experience, with a bustling Canteen, mysterious White Rabbit Barrel Hall and the colourful Mystery Lane, its no wonder this place has been consistently buzzing with excitement for the past decade.

As you step inside, youll be greeted by a laid-back atmosphere and the enticing aromas wafting from the kitchen, where talented chefs work their magic to create mouthwatering dishes that perfectly complement the brews on offer. From wood-fired pizzas with creative toppings to succulent burgers and fresh seafood delights, theres always something to satisfy every craving and tantalise your taste buds.

But of course, here its all about the star of the show: the beer! Little Creatures takes pride in its unique and innovative craft beers, brewed right on-site. Grab a pint of their signature Pale Ale, a refreshing and hoppy brew that has garnered a cult following. If youre feeling adventurous, sample their limited-edition...

16:07

Combat roles? Equality? Watch this female v. male marine match-up. "IndyWatch Feed National"

Equality doesnt pan out in real life like it does in the movies. pic.twitter.com/oCMwKLmjx3 Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) June 19, 2023

15:53

After a seven-year hiatus, Taste Sorrento is back until the end of June "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

<p>After a seven-year hiatus Taste Sorrento is being re-imagined into a month-long festival. A winter food and beverage event celebrating and promoting all that Sorrento has to offer in gourmet food, quality produce, wine, bespoke spirits, craft beers, and cider, all showcased in Sorrento.</p> <p>More than just a food and wine festival, Taste Sorrento 2023 is featuring the work of British and Australian artists Gillie and Marc called the most successful and prolific creators of public art in New Yorks History by the New York Times at Curate Art & Design until June 30.

Keep up with the latest food and booze news across the region </i></b><a href= "https://fortemag.com.au/food/"><span class= "s1"><b><i>here</i></b></span></a><b><i>.</i></b></p> <blockquote class="instagram-media"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <p> </p> <div style="display: flex;"> <div style= "background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex;"> <div style= "background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style= "background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style= "display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style= "color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;"> View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"></div> <div style="display: flex; margin-bottom: 14px;"> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style= "background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> ...</div> </div> </div> </blockquote>

13:52

This definitely feels really fucking good: Hard-Ons rip into second album with Tim Rogers "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

When they announced the coronation of rock royalty, Tim Rogers, as frontman in their punk palace in 2021, the sonic tectonic plates shifted, quaking with Im Sorry Sir, That Riffs Been Taken.

Following a nine-date national tour and European tour, the iconic music pairing has been stamped as permanent. 

Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews here.

Hard-Ons mainstay Peter Blackie Black explains, We like the music that were making together. So you know, theres no real reason to stop or question it or anything like that. I get people saying How can he be doing that? And its like because it fucking feels good, you know? I dont analyse shit. Its either right or its wrong. And for us, this definitely feels really fucking good.

Weve had people come who have been seeing us for like 30 years now and have come up to me after a show and go, I dont know how you fucking do it. Its 30 years later and youre more powerful than youve ever been. Thats just really awesome to hear. I think we are renewed in a sense and Tim has brought a lot of that energy to us.

Im Sorry Sir, That Riffs Been Taken saw Rogers rock up to the studio for a first introduction, jumping head-first into rehearsal and recording mode with songs provided by Black and guitarist Ray Ahn. Heading into album number two, the 2 June release of Ripper 23, there was a songwriting dynamic shift.

For the first record, obviously a lot of songs almost all of them except one were written before Tim actually joined. And this time, all the songs were written knowing he was going to be the singer. When I write, I know the persons strength and to me, Tim is like having a soul singer in a band. So its like we can do this and we can do that. Its actually been a nice, gentle continuation of what weve been doing, and now that Tim is in the band and super keen, hes written a bunch of stuff as well, so its progressing ver...

13:40

Link "IndyWatch Feed National"

How do you say thank you to Seeker of Truth? Magnificent work, as always. Here's the Truth Seeker! Thomas Mayo (aka Thomas Mayor) was a protege of Brian Manning, a MUA activist working on the Darwin wharves when young Thomas put his hand up to be an Organiser for the...

13:35

A bathe-in hot springs cinema returns to the Mornington Peninsula for winter "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Get ready to immerse yourself in Victorias favourite natural geothermal springs while watching a variety of highly popular movies: Peninsula Hot Springs beloved Bathe In Cinema is back for 2023, giving guests the opportunity to immerse themselves in a world of cinema while soaking in the rejuvenating geothermal hot springs.

Taking place on Thursday evenings from June through to the end of August, Peninsula Hot Springs has curated an enthralling line-up of films for each month, ensuring an enjoyable cinematic experience for all.

Stay up to date with whats happening in and around the region here.

This Winter, guests can embark on a journey of discovery with the June theme, Water Stories, featuring captivating films such as Blueback, True Spirit, Breath, My Octopus Teacher, and The Heart of the Sea.

In July, Peninsula Hot Springs pays tribute to the rich heritage and culture of Indigenous Australians, and celebrating First Nations Films. Films like Wash My Soul in The Rivers Flow, Top End Wedding, and Satellite boy will transport audiences into the heart of First Nations storytelling and traditions.

August is all about the musical magic, with the lineup of films featuring beloved classics like Grease, Mamma Mia, Mary Poppins, Moulin Rouge, and The Lion King. Guests can sing along and be swept away by the timeless melodies.

 

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12:33

The spectacular Moulin Rouge! The Musical returns to Melbourne for a limited season this August "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Time to pop the champagne bohemians! After a sold out Australian tour, the spectacular Moulin Rouge! The Musical is returning to the iconic Regent Theatre this August for a strictly limited season.

A celebration of Baz Luhrmanns famed film, Moulin Rouge! The Musical will arrive in Melbourne from 20 31 August, following its run at Brisbanes Lyric Theatre, QPAC until 27 July 2023.

Stay up to date with whats happening within the regions art and stage scene here

The Return Melbourne season in August 2023 marks a full-circle moment for the production, which premiered to stellar reviews at the Regent Theatre in 2021. Melbourne was the first international city to host the 10-time Tony Award winning show after its dazzling Broadway debut, with the season also coinciding with the 20th anniversary year of Baz Luhrmanns revolutionary film.

The sold-out premiere season commenced at the end of the last Melbourne lockdown, and since opening around Australia the production has welcomed nearly one million Australian theatregoers with sold out seasons in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth. The Brisbane season is also on track to be a complete sell out.

Hailed A clever, innovative, sparkling, energetic explosion of technicolour joyMoulin Rouge! will blow your mind (Herald Sun), Baz Luhrmanns revolutionary film comes to life onstage once again in August, remixed in this musical mash-up extravaganza featuring over 70 songs including many of the iconic hits from the movie, as well as additions from Adele, Katy Perry, Sia, Beyonce, Rihanna and more.

 

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12:02

Populist Quiz: Is Green The New Brown? "IndyWatch Feed National"

Properly tackling climate change requires open discussions and hard questions, in particular of people who might have already made up their minds about the best way forward. Geoff Russell explains.

I attended a Greens Party fundraiser recently in Adelaide. I didnt do a head-count of Animal Justice Party (AJP) members in attendance, but I know I wasnt alone. Many AJP members have a complex relationship with the Greens. Tammy Franks, Greens Member of the South Australian Legislative Council, has been a terrific advocate on animal issues in State Parliament and Ive worked with her on many occasions, either campaigning on shared concerns or arranging preferences during elections, and the like.

The night was full of all the things I love about the Greens, quiz questions about critters, pictures of just the eye of an animal asking you to name the species, or, even harder, having to tag a sound with its species name. Can anybody think of another quiz night where tables would nominate a representative to get up on stage and perform their favourite animal sound?

Environmental politics is full of warm touchy feely issues about cute or rare animals; as well as the not so cute. Interest in wildlife is deep and emotional for many of us, even if we are ignorant of the facts and analysis that a professional ecologist would bring to the table.

But however strong an emotional connection to land or its wild plants or animals might be, it doesnt guarantee sensible policy; not on its own. So Id have had a smattering of challenging educational questions. The kind of questions that expand your horizons, shrink your comfort zone and allow you to make truly rational policy decisions.

For example, how many tonnes of mined quartz do Uyghurs have to crush with big hammers to make a thousand megawatts of solar panels? Where does most of the worlds polysilicon in solar photovoltaic (PV) panels come from? You might like to read this for clues.

An image from a report by the Sheffield Hallam University in the UK, which reveals the extent of forced labour in the Uyghur region, and its ripple effects throughout international solar supply chains.

In the fie...

11:54

Link "IndyWatch Feed National"

Great work from the team at Advance Australia. Magnificent work. https://www.advanceaustralia.org.au Send this to your friends. NB - the Maritime Union of Australia shirt is a bit of a giveaway!

11:47

Ballarats annual Winter Festival is back with ice skating, snow falls, shimmering lights, a music festival and more "IndyWatch Feed Cvic"

Its time to bundle up and embrace the cold with the return of the spectacular three-week Ballarat Winter Festival.

Running from June 24 through to July 16, Ballarat will once again be transformed into a magical winter wonderland, with a unique array of events and activities to beat the winter blues, warm the soul and satisfy the belly.

Stay up to date with whats happening in and around the region here

This years Festival takes place at locations and venues right across the city designed to dazzle  and amaze locals and visitors. With something for everyone from ice skating to disco  anthems and fire jousting; to getting cosy with kangaroos and a Christmas in July event  like no other winter is not complete without a trip to Ballarat.

Here are some of the festival highlights for 2023:

Winter Wonderlights

When we say a winter wonderland, we mean that quite literally with the return of headlining event Winter Wonderlights at Sovereign Hill. Set to be brighter than ever before, visitors will be swept up in the excitement of a special European-style Christmas as the entire township comes alive with a new shimmering light and projection show; falling snow; warm mulled wine; delicious gingerbread treats; pantomimes  and theatre shows; hands-on Christmas-themed arts and crafts; and visits from St. Nick.

Tickets here.

 

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11:24

eX-detainees Statement Refugee Week or Refugee Day is like a parody of a PR saviour campaign while we suffer continuous discrimination and detention abuse in Western and non-Western countries. "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

At present, there are over 103 million forcibly displaced people worldwide, with over 32 million refugees among them. Over 1 million refugee children were born as refugees.

What is the main aim of Refugee Week or Refugee Day, originally initiated by UNHCR (the UN High Commissioner for Refugees), a mostly white, non-refugee led organisation? Highlighting fairytale-like sad and happy refugee stories, running a fundraiser for your refugee saviour organisation, or showcasing exotic cooking shows or cultural shows on Refugee Week or Refugee Day, while refugees surviving persecution and abuse have to prove to the world that we can assimilate, smile, or be prepared to participate in social transactions that enable refugee organisations to make money or deliver an exotic cultural presentation to everyone. This is the wholesale package delivered by Refugee Week or Refugee Day.

Do we still want to continue this vulture refugee industry? Is this about us or you? Nothing is surprising when the UNHCR sets the saviour complex bar within the refugee sector by running a patronising PR circus during World refugee week/day. When the world leader of refugee rights organisations functions like this, we can imagine that every other organisation will follow the same orientalist approach.

Meanwhile, the Australian government, and governments across the world are spending millions of dollars acquiring weapons and building their military while blocking those of us fleeing from the destruction caused by these policies from seeking protection and the opportunity to rebuild our lives so we can look forward to a future.

In so-called Australia, racist refugee policies continue. eX-detainees who arrived 30 years ago have still not gotten citizenship, and/or have no access to humanitarian pathways for family reunion. As a result, 1000s of eX-detainee families arriving in Australia kids and adult family members are not allowed to receive access to social security and many other support services to build a future, including Austudy or HECS. Each eX-detainee refugee needs to spend over $10,000 to bring family members to Australia. This adds another layer of trauma and oppression, on top of existing trauma and oppression, with many of us eX-detainees having to live with permanent disabilities caused by institutional abuse and torture by the Australian governments de...

11:12

When TikTok welcomes The Palestine Laboratory "IndyWatch Feed National"

TikTok is one of the biggest apps in the world so its pleasing to see this pro-Palestine account, with a large following, talking positively about my new book, The Palestine Laboratory:

@anat_international Thank you @VersoBooks ???????? #palestine #books #palestinebooks #booktok #bookmail original sound anat_international

The post When TikTok welcomes The Palestine Laboratory appeared first on Antony Loewenstein.

10:31

AFTINET updated briefing paper calls for the urgent review and removal of ISDS in existing trade agreements "IndyWatch Feed National"

June 20, 2023 : AFTINET has produced an updated briefing paper on Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) with the latest case studies.

Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) is a mechanism within some trade agreements which enables foreign (but not local) investors to sue governments for millions and even billions of dollars of compensation if they can argue that a change in domestic law or policy has reduced the value of their investment, and/or that they were not consulted fairly about the change, and/or that it did not meet their expectations of the regulatory environment at the time of their investment.

ISDS is a flawed system which gives additional legal rights to international investors which already have enormous market power.  ISDS cases have been used to claim compensation for legitimate public interest laws and policies on health, environment, indigenous land rights, minimum wages and government action to reduce carbon emissions. This has a freezing effect on essential regulation and undermines the democratic right of governments to regulate in the public interest. Even if governments win ISDS cases, they cost tens of millions to defend.

ISDS flawed processes include: use of ad hoc tribunals, a lack of transparency; lengthy proceedings; high legal and arbitration costs and inconsistent decisions caused by the lack of precedents and appeals. Arbitrators are not independent judges, but instead remain practising advocates with potential or actual conflicts of interest.

Clive Palmer's claim to be a Singaporean investor in order to use ISDS in the Australia-New Zealand ASEAN FTA to sue the Australian government is just the latest example of international investors manipulation of ISDS in trade and investment agreements. The US Philip Morris tobacco company in 2012 also moved assets to Hong Kong and used ISDS in an Australia-Hong Kong investment agreement to sue Australia over our plain packaging laws. Australias large number of previous agreements with ISDS have also enabled international mining companies to use Australian subsidiaries in forum shopping exercises.

ISDS also enables excessively high awards based on dubious and inconsistent calculations of expected future profits, which can reduce significantly government funds for essential services, as occurred with the US $5.8 billion award against Pakistan. Third-party funding for cases as speculative investments which receive a percentage of the award encourages excessive claims, which are more about making money than obtaining justice.

Governments are responding to global movements against ISDS by...

10:20

The Resilience Project is bringing its high-energy kids show 3 Happy Tricks to regional Victoria "IndyWatch Feed Cvic"

Centred around teaching people how to be more resilient and happy every day, The Resilience Project is continuing to make a difference in peoples lives with its latest show 3 Happy Tricks.

Tackling childrens mental health, The Resilience Project will be bringing the high-energy kids show across regional Victoria this September, visiting Frankston, Dandenong, Wodonga, Wangaratta, Darebin, Ballarat, Geelong, Bendigo and Shepparton in the Term 3 school holidays from September 18-27.

The Resilience Project 3 Happy Tricks

Frankston Arts Centre, Frankston Monday September 18

The Cube, Wodonga Wednesday September 20

Wangaratta Performing Arts, Wangaratta Thursday September 21

Drum Theatre, Dandenong Friday September 22

Darebin Arts Centre, Melbourne Saturday September 23

Wendouree Centre for Performing Arts, Ballarat Sunday September 24

Story House GPAC, Geelong Monday September 25

The Capital, Bendigo Tuesday September 26

Riverlinks Westside, Shepparton Wednesday September 27

Stay up to date with whats happening in and around the region here.

 

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09:55

Daniel Ellsberg Left us a message "IndyWatch Feed National"

Daniel Ellsberg, the defence analyst and whistleblower, made famous for his role in the exposure of President Nixons 1972 Watergate scandal, and who more recently, was a leading supporter of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, passed away from pancreatic cancer last Friday. He was 92. Elsberg was the real-life character behind the film all the Presidents Men. Norman Solomon is the national director of RootsAction.org and executive director of the Institute for Public Accuracy wrote the following tribute to the great man (LA Progressive 19 June 2023).

When Daniel Ellsberg died on Friday, the world lost a transcendent whistleblower with a powerful ethos of compassion and resolve.

Ellsbergs renown for openly challenging the mentalities of militarism began on June 23, 1971, when he appeared on CBS Evening News ten days after news broke about the Pentagon Papers that hed provided to journalists. Ellsberg pointedly said that in the 7,000 pages of top-secret documents, I dont think there is a line in them that contains an estimate of the likely impact of our policy on the overall casualties among Vietnamese or the refugees to be caused, the effects of defoliation in an ecological sense. Theres neither an estimate nor a calculation of past effects, ever.

Video from KTLA

And he added: The documents simply reflect the internal concerns of our officials. That says nothing more nor less that that our o gficials never did concern themselves with the effect of our policies on the Vietnamese.

Ellsberg told anchor Walter Cronkite: I think we cannot let the officials of the Executive Branch determine for us what it is that the public needs to know about how well and how they are discharging their functions.

The functions of overseeing the war on Vietnam had become repugnant to Ellsberg a...

08:47

Manufacturers profits before environment "IndyWatch Feed National"


We (the consumers/shoppers according to their labels) are told/enticed/guilted/taxed into devoting a lot of resources in order to (allegedly) save the planet.

The problem there is that the manufacturers, corporations and governments are realistically in charge of this.

E-waste is a huge problem, both financially for the consumers and a burden on the environment which could have been being solved a few decades ago, but the corporations profits are of utmost priority or importance where governments 'support' this as, it's all about the economy.

For example, proprietary phone chargers could have been dealt with a couple of decades ago, but the manufacturers deliberately have not agreed on a so called standard, where the alleged pressure form governments now is too little too late.


In the case of printers, cartridges are deliberately priced where they can be more expensive than a purchase of a new printer with cartridges, where even manufactures chip the ink cartridge in order to gouge the customer for the consumable, another government 'supported' action against the consumer. 

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08:11

In their own words - the simple truth behind Albanese's Vanity Voice "IndyWatch Feed National"

Thank you Advance Australia for this excellent summary. THE DIVISIVE VOICE, IN THE WORDS OF THOMAS MAYO What is this Voice to Parliament really about? Lets ask Thomas Mayo, the union official and self-described militant who wrote the book on the proposed constitutional change. He sits on Prime Minister Anthony...

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IndyWatch Castlemaine VIC All Topics Summary Today.

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Monday, 19 June

23:03

Guest post: How Chinas rural solar policy could also boost heat pumps "IndyWatch Feed National"

Since 2021, Chinas Whole County PV programme has been dramatically expanding the use of solar power in rural areas, by building on government, commercial, industrial and residential rooftops.

However, the programme faces a number of obstacles, with problems reported, for example, in the rollout in the province of Shandong in eastern China. 

Yet it also offers advantages that can overcome the problem of scale. Installing solar photovoltaic (PV) panels on rooftops over a large area can clear out administrative burdens and reduce soft costs, which are inherent in marketing and installing solar to households or businesses one by one.

This raises an intriguing possibility: could such a programme work for other clean energy improvements, such as energy efficiency or clean heating? 

Based on my new analysis for the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies of the Chinese counties participating in the Whole County PV programme, the answer appears to be yes.

Moreover, I found that the solar programme would pair surprisingly well with electric heat pumps.

This is an important finding, given the huge scale of rural China, which is home to hundreds of millions of people and is larger than many world regions. And it could also help to address another challenge: Chinas rural residents currently suffer a high burden of health issues due to the use of coal for heat and power.

What is Chinas Whole County PV programme?

Up until recently, most solar PV in China was installed in remote western regions, requiring costly transmission lines to bring the electricity to eastern provinces that use the most power. 

A series of huge clean energy bases......

22:00

If Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Were President, How Safe Would We Be? "IndyWatch Feed National"

 

Since I published what so far is a series of five columns exploring RFK Jr.s positions and claims, almost the entirety of the media, it seems, has jumped in, each offering another variation on why you wouldnt want this guy anywhere near the White House. Most have stuck to a general recitation of his well-cataloged history of controversies, and the pros and cons of having the Kennedy name. 

 

There are certainly some pros. First off, we should all remember the Robert F. Kennedy Jr. of his early years. When he was not engaging in foolhardy personal behavior, he was trying to be a good citizen, doing praiseworthy work to promote environmental consciousness and oppose large good deeds. 

 

That was then; this is now. He seems to have changed, in many ways, and not for the better. Hes hardly the only person who has gotten worse much worse over the years. Sadly, the debasement of lofty principles and the degradation of the discourse is a trend. 

 

Still, Ive seen few media drill-downs into his core beliefs, or detailed scrutiny of the claims hes made that are either scientifically dicey or simply false which has thus far been my principal focus.

 

And theres something else I havent yet seen: a rumination on what it would actually be like if he, against all odds, actually won. What would a Robert F. Kennedy presidency look like based on his public positions and statements over the years, and on the apparent mindsets and beliefs of a vocal segment of his backers? 

 

What kind of people would he listen to? What kind would he appoint? 

 

Answering that requires some sense of his own grasp of matters at the core of policymaking. Bright as he is, he may not understand science as much as he thinks he does. That may explain why he seemingly takes the word of so-called experts who challenge the establishment, many of whom have been discredited. 

 

And he apparently accepts their own self-serving and outright wrong explanations for why they have been discredited. This goes to the heart of what makes him so untrustworthy as a prospective leader. (More on his health views below.)

 

 

Had Kennedy been president during COVID-19, there would have been no serious effort at containment, but rather it would have been allowed to spread until it burned itself out. One assumes that with...

20:09

Depopulation The Deagel Forecast and Birthgap "IndyWatch Feed National"

Introduction by DM

No government wants to deal with the excess deaths in 2022.

Lets refer to the FACTS. We have just the organisation to do just that the ABC.

CheckMate is a weekly newsletter from RMIT FactLab which recaps the latest in the world of fact-checking and misinformation, drawing on the work of FactLab and its sister organisation, RMIT ABC Fact Check. (ABC report)

Stating No credible evidence vaccines are behind a rise in Australian deaths.

Really!!!!  At least the media is forced to report it. This is from News.com.au:

...

19:12

Crikey's Editor Sophie Black confirms, only leftist group-think welcome. "IndyWatch Feed National"

Sophie Black is straight from central-casting for the Crikey editorship. A committed leftist. Employment history of a bit of human rights journalism, a dabble in the academic journalism world, did some writing for The Guardian - classic inner suburban (read: Greens) values. Typically like the Left, shes intolerant of other...

18:23

Melbournes iconic Festival Hall is set to host live music once again "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Its been home to countless gigs, ranging from The Beatles and Frank Sinatra to Red Hot Chili Peppers and The Mars Volta and everything in between. Chances are, if youre a live music fan in Melbourne youve been to Festival Hall.

Now live music is set to resonate once again within the iconic walls of Melbournes Festival Hall once again, with the reigns now held by Live Nation, who took over the management of the venue owned by Hillsong Corp. The US-based global touring company has reportedly signed a multi-year lease on the venue.

Officially re-launching in Melbourne on Thursday, 15 June, Live Nation Asia Pacific President Roger Field officially reopened the venue for the music industry, ready to welcome music lovers back to its hallowed halls.

Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews here.

 

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18:09

Property Negotiation Tips to Maximise Your Sale Price "IndyWatch Feed National"

Negotiating the purchase of a property can be a challenge, no matter what side of the equation youre on. Whether youre a buyer trying to secure a fair deal or a seller hoping to maximise your profit, mastering the art of negotiating is a delicate balance. In this blog post, well explore 5 essential tips to help you navigate property negotiations successfully in the tough Australian market.

Research and Market Knowledge

Before you enter into any negotiation, make sure youve conducted plenty of research and have a deep understanding of the current market conditions in Australia and the specific neighbourhood the property is located in.

You can do this by analysing recent property sales in the area, considering the average sales prices and staying on top of any local market trends. With this knowledge in your back pocket, youll be in the best position to make informed decisions and negotiate from an ideal position.

Set Clear Goals and Prioritise

Having clearly defined goals and objectives is key to a successful negotiation. Regardless of whether youre a buyer or a seller, make sure you determine what your non-negotiables are. This might be the maximum price youre willing to pay or the minimum youre willing to accept, but can also include location, property condition, potential for future growth and more.

Once you have your objectives prioritised, you can stand firm during negotiations and remain confident in both where you stand firm and where youre willing to compromise.

Understand a Sellers Motivations

Real Estate Seller

If youre a buyer, then its in your best interest to try and uncover the sellers motivations during negotiations. Are they in a hurry to sell due to a tight deadline? Or maybe theyre experiencing financial difficulties? Whatever the case, having insight into their situation can help provide you with an advantage during negotiations and allow you to make smarter decisions.

If the seller is motivated, then you have a good chance of securing a better deal or negotiating more favourable terms. Dont be afraid to engage in conversations and ask plenty of open-ended questions to gather insights that can help inform your negotiation strategy going forward.

Leverage Professional Representation

Working with a qualified and experienced real estate agent or buyers or...

17:55

Masterpiece. An instant classic. "IndyWatch Feed National"

Thank you 'Rhodesian' for this masterpiece - and Underminder for the tip.

17:34

Pakington Street restaurant Taste Jamaica has closed its doors "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Loved amongst locals for its Jamaican-style meals and bright rooftop bar, Pakington Streets iconic Jamaican-style caf Taste Jamaica has permanently closed its doors.

The business announced the news on social media on Sunday, 18 June, after originally announcing the news in April, citing a focus on imports and catering at festivals and events going forward.

Taste Jamaica restaurant is now permanently closed. Time for some well deserved relaxation, the post read.

Everyone that has supported us during this time, we really do appreciate your support. We will never forget you all.

Festivals and Events thats what we are about and thats what we will be focusing on moving forward.

Keep up with the latest food and booze news across the region here.

Taste Jamaica will host a farewell party on 25 June 2023 with a brilliant day of live music. Titled Reggae on Pako, the farewell event will kick off at 12pm and feature the likes of DJ Dazz, Wild Gloriosa, Sole Sister Swing, Mpress Kandance, Flames Eye, Ras Jahknow band and Nicky Bomba.

Entry is free with food and drinks at bar prices.

 

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17:25

Pauline Hanson on saying NO to Albanese's Vanity Voice "IndyWatch Feed National"

To the people of Australia: we are one people, one nation, and should be under one flag. I asking you to please vote no to Albaneses divisive and risky race-based Voice in Canberra. This will probably be one of the most momentous days in the history of our nation and...

17:07

More Albanese bullshit - now the referendum is a chance to say YES to reconciliation "IndyWatch Feed National"

He is all over the place. Parliaments pass laws. People make history. This is your chance to change our country for the better. pic.twitter.com/Haijepunz8 Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) June 19, 2023

17:00

'Silent' killer in cholesterol more firmly linked to heart disease? "IndyWatch Feed National"






what we still do not have is a good biological pathway that gives us so called bad cholesterol and statins are not surviving the test of time.

what i do know is that independent of all this ,is that we all suffer from low level scurvy which can be countered by a daily heaping teaspoon of ascorbic acid or vitimin C.  As per Linus Pauling who turmed a bad prognosis at age 48 into a full life through 92.  my own prognosis was also equally bad after my own heart attack at age 57.  the last looksee five years ago showed zero new inflamation and all old scaring just that.  And i do expect to see 100 with a healthy circulatory system.

otherwise, i would like to have far better answers than any of this  which assumes the association is significant when it may well not be.  Far too often meta stats throw up indications that are simply that and certainly no proof of causation..



'Silent' killer in cholesterol more firmly linked to heart disease


June 13, 2023


Common problem: One in five people have the genetic potential for elevated Lp(a) levels

https://newatlas.com/medical/silent-killer-chole...

16:55

Every Human Being is Dealing With or Not Dealing With or Entirely Ignorant of The Same Force. "IndyWatch Feed National"

Visible Origami June 16, 2023

God Poet Transmitting.

I had an experience yesterday morning that almost turned it upside down for me. As I was logging into my computer I saw something I had not seen before, and in a moment of disconnect, I clicked it previous to logging on and it immediately started to install Windows 11, (or so I was led to believe) which I did not want. I didnt want Windows 10 either, but knowing I could use a Windows 7 Shell, I got 10 when support for 7 ended.

Anyway, I could not stop this thing and the next thing I knew, (It was only a few minutes) my desktop was changed. My Documents was empty, as was Downloads, and I guess much of the rest of what I use each day, and I did not have my two Notepad HTML files which are always on the desktop.

This was early before 6 AM and I did all sorts of things including a System Restore. Nothing worked, and I kept getting error messages. It didnt make sense, and I am not a computer Luddite.

I am set to meditate before 7AM as The Sun is rising. I went and sat in my meditation chair but could not meditate. Before going out there was this discomfort and pressing anxiety. I could not understand it. I KNEW none of this matters. I knew it would be fixed, but the agitation was constant. I managed it without reacting.

I called my fix-it computer guy and he came over around noon. Instantly he located the problem and all was exactly as it had been. I had created another User ID and that was a kind of clear slate that didnt recognize what the main.. previous User had going on. It never even occurred to me that such a thing could happen. Note the word User. (grin) A sign of the times of Material Darkness and selfish intent.

The reason I write about it has to do with those emotional winds blowing through me the discomfort and anxiety for which I got no answers at the time. I wasnt personally feeling any of this. It was just passing through me, though I was free to identify with it if I chose to. I could let the wavy vibrations translate into Wrath if I wanted them to, or I could just let them go. Once you are established in this understanding in a visceral sense, your whole world will change.

Later in the day, I was told it was during moments like this that these subconscious forces were being bled out of me provided that I allowed it. The Temperance card came instantly into my mind. Its quality is Wrath. That has to do with the wavy vibration of the angel pouring forth the neutralizing agents upon The Lion and The Eagle; Leo and Scorpio.

The Eagle is the sexual force transformed into spiritual vision. Otherwise, you get the scorpion, with the stinger poised above itself. Sex is life and form-giving. It is also death-dealing to lif...

16:53

Proposed reforms to strengthen democracy could have major unintended consequences for charities and community groups "IndyWatch Feed National"

The recommendations from an inquiry into the 2022 federal election could strengthen Australias democracy, the Human Rights Law Centre said today, but they could also have the unintended consequence of silencing civil society voices in election debates.

The Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters interim report recommends long overdue reforms to make political donations transparent, to cap election spending and to ban large donations to politicians altogether. Important detail is yet to be finalised, but done well, these reforms could help protect Australian parliament from the undue influence of wealthy individuals and harmful industries like fossil fuels and gambling.

A key concern emerging from the report, though, is that it also recommends donation caps be imposed on charities and community groups that qualify as third parties under the Commonwealth Electoral Act. Extending donation caps to charities and community groups will suppress advocacy on important issues like the climate and public housing, but do nothing to stop distorting public campaigns from industry peaks like the Minerals Council of Australia.

Alice Drury, Senior Lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre, said:
Without limits on political donations and election spending, politicians will respond to those with the biggest bank balance, instead of those with the best ideas. Australians are fed up with the status quo. We need a level playing field. Elections should be a time when people with important things to say on matters of public interest can be heard, not just those with enough cash to buy a national platform.

Limits on political donations and election spending are the reforms we need to get the influence of big money out of Australian politics. But its equally important that we protect the rights of ordinary people to have their voices heard on issues they care deeply about, be it through charities or local community groups. It is vital that the Albanese Government sit down with civil society groups before this proposal becomes law to work through the unintended consequences for advocacy.

As they currently stand, the recommendations of this report are discriminatory and anti-charity: they would prevent charities and not-for-profits from raising large donations to use on advocacy on health and the environment in the lead up to elections, but wouldnt do anything to stop industry peaks relying on corporate membership fees for pro-tobacco and pro-mining election advertising.

Media contact:
Thomas Feng
Human Rights Law Centre
Media and Communications Manager
0431 285 275
thomas.feng@hrlc.org.au

16:38

Connor Morels A Lovely Day To Be Online returns for one-off performance at Geelong Arts Centre Grand Opening Festival "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Fresh from an impressive run at Adelaide Fringe Festival and Melbourne International Comedy Festival earlier this year, Geelong and Melbourne-based actor, singer, writer and musician Connor Morel is bringing his gig-turned-musical-turned-existential-crisis theatre show A Lovely Day To Be Online home to Geelong as part of the Geelong Arts Centres Grand Opening Festival.

Following a $140m Little Malop Street Redevelopment, the Geelong Arts Centre will be officially swinging open the shiny new doors on Saturday 19 August, with a huge four-week-long opening festival happening to celebrate.

A Lovely Day To Be Online is the latest show to join the festival program, alongside the likes of celebrated multi-ARIA-Award winning R&B-pop artist, Jessica Mauboy, and an Australian comedy triple-header, featuring Dave Thornton, Dilruk Jayasinha and Lizzy Hoo, plus Missy Higgins, Opera Australia, Belvoir St Theatre, family fun with Windmill Theatre Company and more.

Stay up to date with whats happening in and around the region here

Taking over the new Open House in Geelong on 22 September from 7pm, singer-songwriter and self-obsessed internet addict Connor fronts a live band in this original gig-theatre show that asks: are we doing the internet right? And would life just be easier without it all?

From the fake Instagram influencers to the radical keyboard warriors; the scamming crypto hackers to the obsessive YouTube addicts: were all in the sauce. But is it all going too far? And what would it take for us to realise it is?

Full of original soul-pop tunes, stories, memes and a whole lot of heart, this show delves into the humanity of how we use the internet, and how it preys on us when were at our worst.

Debuting at Melbourne Fringe last year to rave reviews, Connor (frontman of Geelongs nostalgic pop rock band The Run and who is already being referred to as an Australian answer to Bo Burnham) wrote the 50-minute show as a reflection on his own obsession with his smartphone and what it was doing to him.

Addressing how social media affects his relationships, his local community, and his broader understanding of how the world functions, the show was initially inspired by Connors own frustrating habit for his smartphone pre-pandemic, and escalating mid-pandemic with an increase in screen time prompting t...

16:31

Vanessa Amorosi, Spacey Jane, The Wombats lead Grapevine Gathering lineup for 2023 "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Fresh from delivering a huge festival last year with unforgettable performances by The Kooks, Peking Duk, The Veronicas, Ball Park Music, Confidence Man, Jack River and more, Australias favourite wine and music pairing Grapevine Gathering is back for 2023 with an absolutely huge lineup.

Taking to the Yarra Valley (VIC), Hunter Valley (NSW), Swan Valley (WA), Mount Cotton (QLD), and McLaren Vale (SA) this October, this years festival will include indie rock sensations Spacey Jane, UK festival favourites The Wombats, Hayden James, the electrifying band from Arnhem Land King Stingray, Absolutely Everybody singer Vanessa Amorosi, Cannons, The Rions, up-and-coming duo Teenage Joans and Bella Amor.

Grapevine Gathering 2023

  • Saturday 7th October Rochford Estate, VIC
  • Sunday 8th October Sirromet Wines, QLD
  • Saturday 14th October Sandalford Wines, WA
  • Saturday 21st October Hope Estate, NSW
  • Sunday 22nd October Serafino Wines, SA

Full lineup

  • Spacey Jane
  • The Wombats [Aus Exclusive]
  • Hayden James [Aus Exclusive]
  • King Stingray
  • Vanessa Amorosi
  • Cannons
  • The Rions
  • Teenage Joans
  • Bella Amor
  • Hosted by Lucy and Nikki

Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews here.

Hosting the music and wine festival will be the popular podcast duo Lucy and Nikki, who will keep the energy high and the audience engaged throughout the event with their witty banter and infectious enthusiasm.

Grapevine Gathering is renowned for its commitment to providing a holistic experience, complementing the diverse music lineup with the finest local wines and food options on offer. Festival-goers will have the opportunity to indulge in the tantalising flavours of each region while enjoying the lush vineyards, rolling lawns, and world-class wines that make Grapevine Gathering a truly unique and memorable event.

Presale registrations are now open with tickets going on sale Wednesday 21st of June at 6PM AEST. Presale purchasers gain access to the cheapest tickets and for a chance to WIN 1 of 500 VIP upgrades. Any remaining tickets will be released to the public at 6PM Thurs 22nd of June.

For more information and ticket purchase, head here

The post Vanessa Amorosi, Spacey Jane, The Wombats lead Grapev...

15:11

Stranger Things Jamie Campbell Bower leads Melbournes Metro Comic Con "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

<p>There are only a few weeks to go before Metro Comic Con lands in Melbourne on 8-9 July, and the pop culture convention has pulled out all the stops to add more popular stars to its lineup.</p> <p>Beyond appearances by stars of the big and small screens and talented writers and artists, the event will feature exclusive panels, photo and autograph opportunities, pop culture exhibitors, cosplay, merchandise stalls and more.</p> <h3>Metro Comic Con in Melbourne</h3> <ul> <li>Major pop culture convention</li> <li>Melbourne Showgrounds on 8-9 July</li> <li>Jamie Campbell Bower leads lineup</li> </ul> <p class="p1"><b><i>Keep up with the latest in local news and entertainment </i></b><a href= "https://fortemag.com.au/entertainment/"><span class= "s1"><b><i>here</i></b></span></a><b><i>.</i></b></p> <h3>Additions include:</h3> <p>Jamie Campbell Bower from the smash hit series Stranger Things. The English actor thrilled fans in the most recent season of the sci-fi show when he brought to life Vecna, the central villain of the tale. He has also won a multitude of passionate fans from his roles in The Twilight Saga movies New Moon and Breaking Dawn Parts 1 & 2, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, Camelot (TV) and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.

Dean Lennox Kelly: he has starred as Ketterdam crime boss Pekka Rollins in Netflixs adaptation of Shadow and Bone, Kev Ball in Shameless and Meredith Rutter in Jamestown, and guest starred as William Shakespeare in Doctor Who.</p> <p>Christopher Heyerdahl: he recently played Captain Locke in James Gunns Peacemaker series, starred opposite Andrew Garfield and Sam Worthington in the miniseries Under the Banner of Heaven and appeared in the haunting opening scene of The Last of Us. He is also known for his roles in TV shows like Sanctuary, Hell on Wheels, Stargate: Atlantis, Van Helsing and Supernatural, and the Twilight Saga movies.</p> <p>Vico Ortiz: they are most recognised for playing skilled pirate Jim in the TV series Our Flag Means Death alongside Taika Waititi and Rhys Darby.</p> <p>Tommy Flanagan: a prolific actor best known for playing Filip Chibs Telford in Sons of Anarchy and Mayans M.C. He also starred in movies such as Gladiator, Braveheart and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and will soon be seen opposite Russell Crowe in Sleeping Dogs.</p> <p>Tom Taylor: an Australian #1 New York Times bestselling author with a long list of credits for Marvel (Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, Wolverine, X-Men, Superior Iron Man), DC (Superman, Injustice, Batman/Superman), Dark Horse (Star Wars: Blood Ties, Star Wars: Invasion) and Gestalt (The De...

15:09

Coinbase blasts SEC for no straight answers following court order "IndyWatch Feed National"

The comment from the crypto exchange came after the SEC asked for more time to respond to Coinbase's rulemaking petition.

15:02

Yarra Valleys 16-day Fireside Festival returns in July, bigger and bigger than ever "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

<p>Wine Yarra Valley is excited to announce the return of its Fireside festival for its fifth year, and their Fireside Winter Twilight Market for its second year, after a tremendously successful 2022.</p> <h3>Fireside Yarra Valley</h3> <ul> <li>Saturday 8 Sunday 23 July 2023</li> <li>Various venues around the Yarra Valley and selected inner-Melbourne venues</li> </ul> <p class="p1"><b><i>Keep up with the latest in local news and entertainment </i></b><a href= "https://fortemag.com.au/entertainment/"><span class= "s1"><b><i>here</i></b></span></a><b><i>.</i></b></p> <p>Fireside is a 16-day festival of events across the Yarra Valley and beyond, celebrating all that winter in Melbournes most accessible wine region has to offer in sights, sounds, smells and, most importantly, tastes, against the alluring landscape of moody skies, crisp nights, and the warmth of an open fire.</p> <p>The festival showcases some of the regions very best food and drinks with special winter-themed menus curated around chargrilled, smoked and wood-fired local ingredients.</p> <p>The 2023 program features over 30 culinary experiences, including all-star food & beverage collaborations from TarraWarra Estate x Frank Camorra (Movida), Jayden Ong Wines x Tom Sarafian (ex. Rumi, Bar Saracen, Little Andorra), No7 Healesville x Bar Liberty, Rob Dolan Wines x Matilda 159, and more.

Fireside Winter Twilight Market

  • $45pp or $55pp on the night. Tickets are extremely limited and selling quickly!
  • When: Saturday 8 July, 4-8pm
  • Where: Yarra Valley Railway Station, Healesville

Also returning for 2023 is the Fireside Winter Twilight Market. After an incredibly popular pilot event in 2022, this years market will focus exclusively on Yarra Valley food & drinks, taking inspiration from the magical Christmas markets of Europe. Wine Yarra Valley is thrilled to partner with Yarra Valley Railway for the event, the largest volunteer-run organisation in Australia, and are fortunate to have received support from the Federal and Local governments to deliver a fantastic experience for the Yarra Valley community and beyond.

The ultimate winter wine experience, the Fireside Winter Twilight Market offers a variety of tasty winter treats surrounded by toasty fire pits at the historic Yarra Valley Railway in Healesville. Ticketholders will revel in the rustic ambiance of our winter wonderland whilst savouring the flavours of the region, and are advised to bring their woollens and their dancing shoes for a fantastic evening celebrating the joys of winter with good food, drinks and great times!

A selection of local wines, beers and ciders will be available...

14:25

Charlie Puth announces second Melbourne show for October 2023 "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

In his first-ever Australian tour later this year, Charlie Puth has announced a second Melbourne show due to an overwhelming demand for tickets over the weekend.

Quickly selling out Margaret Court Arena on Sunday 29th October, Charlie Puth will now be bringing The Charlie Live Experience to Margaret Court Arena on Monday 30th October. Tickets to the second Melbourne show go on sale 11am Tuesday 20 June 2023.

Charlie Puth Australia 2023

  • October 27 The Riverstage, Brisbane
  • October 29 Margaret Court Arena, Melbourne (Sold Out)
  • October 30 Margaret Court Arena, Melbourne
  • November 1 Aware Super Theatre, Sydney

Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews here.

Charlie Puth announces first ever Australian tour for October/November 2023

Charlie Puth has been whole-heartedly embraced across Australia for his exceptional songwriting, and charismatic online persona.

Further to the incredible international success across his three studio albums, Puth has had multiple singles crack the Top 10 of the ARIA Singles Chart locally, including One Call Away reaching #3 overall, and Attention, both of which being accredited 6 x Platinum.

As the global star makes his way down under to celebrate the release of his critically acclaimed 2022 album CHARLIE, fans will have a chance to hear all of their favourites, whilst experiencing the music in a brand new way. Truly at home on stage, fans will be enamoured with Puths artistry within his live show; not only with a voice that transcends, but through his incredible musicianship, and captivating onstage charisma.

Grab your tickets here.

The post Charlie Puth announces second Melbourne show for October 2023 appeared first on Forte Magazine.

14:07

Husband duo Mister Co usher in a new rock era with liberating new single Dont Talk About It "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Stepping out of the colourful, love-filled world and into a new era, liberated and filled with a fiery passion, Mister Co begins again. 

This time with Dont Talk About It, a dynamic and catchy track that while taking a massive step in an entirely new direction, is still as genuine to who the husband duo are as anything else theyve ever done. 

Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews here.

Independently released on 17 June, Dont Talk About It sees the passionate musicians and producers Connor and Oscar Absolum exude immense confidence and liberation. 

Drawing inspiration from their alternative and rock influences, the near four-minute track features driving guitar lines, crashing percussion and intimate lyrics providing an enthralling entry into a new rock era for the duo while promising to liberate listeners and leave them humming the infectious chorus for days.

Soaring with raw emotion, cinematic strength and the radiant energy thats become synonymous with the duo since their first single, here the duo delivers an entirely empowering anthem, delving into the theme of emotional captivity by those who claim to be supportive. 

Reflecting on their personal experiences of feeling restrained and limited by individuals who hindered their musical and personal endeavours, Mister Co. crafted Dont Talk About It as a powerful response to reclaim their voice, leaving behind the theme of love that characterized their earlier works.

We wrote Dont Talk About It while reflecting on the times in our lives where we felt held back and restricted by people who didnt want us to succeed with our music, our business and our relationship. This was our chance to respond and have our say.

Written as an emancipation piece, the pair explores the narrative of being held emotionally captive by those who claim to support you, singing: 

Free!
Me!
From your lies!
Its!
Time!
For me to take flight!
I want to t...

13:53

Statement at the 53rd Session of the UN Human Rights Council "IndyWatch Feed National"

June 2023

Item 2: Enhanced interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan and the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls

Statement by the Human Rights Law Centre, Australia

Thank you, Mr President. I am Sitarah Mohammadi.

Since the Talibans return in 2021, they have launched a systematic campaign against human rights in Afghanistan that affects all liberal groups, women, Tajiks, Uzbeks, Hazaras, Pashtuns, and minorities.

While Afghanistan is a land of ethnic minorities among the various victims of the Talibans repressive rule, it is important to recognise the genocidal and systematic persecution endured by the Hazara people, a religious minority. Recognising the systematic persecution of Hazaras should lead to meaningful steps to document these abuses and protect the Hazaras from further repression, dispossession, and marginalisation.

The systematic persecution of the Hazara people illustrates a complex combination of factors such as ethnicity, religion, predominantly Shia Muslims, and the suppression of democratic and progressive values. Consequently, the situation of Hazaras further reflects the broader human rights violations and atrocities committed by Taliban rule.

At the national level, Hazaras are excluded entirely from the Talibans governance system. The systematic and structural discrimination against the Hazaras at the micro and local levels is deeply concerning. The Taliban actively divert international humanitarian aid from Hazara areas to reward their supporters in other areas.

Several Hazara communities in several provinces have been forcefully displaced from their ancestral lands.

This is genocidal displacement.

Hazaras face active discrimination in the judicial system at the administrative and district levels. Locally, the return of the Taliban has created a situation whereby one group, primarily the Pashtun people, completely dominates the Hazaras politically, economically, and culturally.

The Taliban have entirely removed all Hazaras from the courts across Afghanistan, including in areas where the Hazaras form the majority of the population.

Hazara women experience extra layers of vulnerability due to the intersectional factors of gender, religion, and ethnicity.

Hazaras face widespread and all-encompassing discrimination that affects them in various aspects of their lives.

The mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) was renewed by UN Security Council Resolution 2678 on March 16, 2023. On the same day, the Council approved Resolution 2679, mandating an ongoing human rights assessment of Afghanistan.

The UN must go beyond tepid ver...

12:53

Rialto Aglow is the new 10-day winter lights festival coming to Melbourne "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Rialto Aglow is the new 10-day winter lights festival coming to the heart of Melbourne next month, bringing along interactive light installations from some of Australias most exciting public artists, nightly live entertainment and festival-themed cocktails, food and bites to Rialto, the iconic fifty-five-floor office tower and retail precinct in the heart of Melbourne CBDs midtown.

Running from 19 to 29 July, the free festival will be headlined by a new large-scale projection artwork leading into the Rialto Piazza, with interactive works of light, music, sound and colour immersing the Piazza from Collins St to Flinders Lane and King Street.

Rialto Aglow Melbourne

  • Rialto Aglow is the new winter lights festival coming to Melbourne
  • Running for 10 days (19-29 July) the festival will feature interactive light installations, live entertainment and themed cocktails and food
  • Entry to Rialto Aglow and live entertainment each night is free

Keep up with the latest in local news and entertainment here.

With entry to the festival free, guests will also witness large-scale works from Simone Chuas prolific Amigo & Amigo studio (VIVID Sydney, Canary Wharf London, Eurovision 2023) including Accordion, a multisensory large-scale installation inspired by the traditional instrument of the same name; and Lunar Lamp Posts is Amigo & Amigos new large-scale 10 x 10-metre interactive light installation, inspired by the cycles of the moon. With over 40 different music sounds and interactive lighting animations, the audience can touch and play as the forest of moons illuminates and animates.

Beloved Australian neon light artist Carla OBrien (White Night, Burning Man, Festival of Light) will also have a range of works popping up around Rialto Aglow, through her new studio Volter International. Highlighted works include a playful live instrument installation Neon Play The Music and the iridescent Double Rainbow Love Heart Archway, while all her works provide irresistible photo opportunities, much like Carlas Neon Angel Wings did for Katy Perry at Burning Man festival in 2016.

The Rialto Aglow Winter Lights Festival is supported through the Melbourne City Revitalisation Fund a $200 million partnership between the Victorian Government and the City of Melbourne.

Rialto Aglow runs from 5pm daily 19-29 July 2023. Entrance to Rialto Aglow, and live entertainment each night is free for Melburnians and visitors of all ages. Head here for more info. 

The post Rialto Aglow is the new 10-day winter lights festival coming to......

12:39

A stroll among the ruins and the recovery "IndyWatch Feed Cvic"

A smallish group tackled FOBIFs June walk yesterday, on a circuitous route around The Monk, taking in many of the more notable mining sites of the area. The weather was fine and cool with extensive patches of sunshine: perfect for walking. The bush is looking pretty healthy with rampant regrowth of Golden Wattle, among other species. It will be spectacular in the seasonand Golden Wattles are already starting to flower.

In the Eureka Mine zone: one day this could be world heritage!

The route chosen crossed the Eureka Mine site, but ventured into some obscure but fascinating corners: in fact, it could be argued that the interest of the mining history of this region is in its abandonment, the fact that much of what remains is not signposted, and has to be found by adventurous explorers, not tourists with a map.

Now, whats this about quartz? Part of the FOBIF group wondering about the gold question.

Our thanks to Lionel Jenkins and Barb Guerin, for devising a route which took in some really isolated, thought provoking sites.

Next month FOBIF is offering two walks: a long and a short! Check the program for details.

...

12:35

Why we excuse Australian war crimes "IndyWatch Feed National"

The long history of Australian militarism reminds us that the necessary condemnations of Ben Roberts-Smith and the SAS need to be situated in relation to the countrys sub-imperial ambitions. Are we a part of the Empire / Close welded as hilt and blade? AG Hales asked. As the tensions between the United States and China grow, that determination to weld Australia into Empire only becomes more dangerous.

The post Why we excuse Australian war crimes appeared first on Overland literary journal.

12:01

Albanese government makes some concessions on affordable housing policy "IndyWatch Feed National"

Contributed by Joe Montero

Theres no to ways to look at it, the Albanese government has had no other choice but to offer more than what it had offered in Mays budget to extend social housing. It has not only been about the Greens holding out for more in the senate. A steep rise in the cost having a roof over ones head has become a huge issue with an electorate facing difficulty as the cost of living overall continues to rise.

Under these circumstances, the cost of housing has the potential of being a make or break for any government. The May budgets provision on this score was criticised as inadequate by organisations dealing with those falling through the holes, for not being nearly ambitious enough and that it would not start until 2026. It said it would do little to make a difference.

Cartoon by Simon Kneebone

Anthony Albanese government had no other choice but to offer more and did so on Saturday. The initial offer of $10 billion or $500 million a year over a decade, was added to by a once off top up of $575 new funding for the states, with $610m for New South Wales will, $496 million for Victoria, and $398 million for Queensland. $209 million for Western Australia, and $135 million for South Australia with the rest divided between Tasmania, the Northern Territory. The Australian Capital Territory, who will receive a minimum $50 million.

A further $200 million will be allocated to repair, maintain, and improve housing in remote Frist Nations communities.

The original promise was supposed to build 30,000 new homes in the first 5 years of the program. This number was always questionable and has now been downgraded to 20,000. It still seems a lot with the promised outlay. This has inevitably led to suspicion that a significant part of new builds will be sold in the private market and that there be far less going into social housing than the impression given.

Aware of this the potential fallout, Anthony Albanese has countered with a promise this isnt going to happen. were not going to have public housing built and then flogged off, he said. time will tell whether the government is going to honour this.

Another problem is the question mark over trusting the Housing Australia Future Fund (also known as the Haff). It will be managed as a...

11:16

The Maggie Pills announce national Hope is a Risk album tour "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

<p>Argentine x Australian punk rock outfit The Maggie Pills have just dropped their powerful debut album, <em>Hope is a Risk</em> in its full-length glory, while also offering up the mighty third album track Bright the Brightest Light and sharing a run of national tour dates to celebrate.</p> <p>The album tour will kick off in Melbourne on 24 June before heading to Frankston, Geelong, Beechworth, Sydney, Wollongong and Adelaide.</p> <h3>The Maggie Pills National Tour 2023 Victorian Dates</h3> <p>Sat 24 June The Bergy Bandroom, Melbourne<br> W/ The Hot Blood & Hearts and Rockets

Sat July 8 Singing Bird Studios, Frankston<br> W/ Hearts and Rockets & Nicoteenagers

Sat 15 July The Barwon Club, Geelong<br> W/ Stripp, Green Blanket and Vicious Blonde</p> <p>Sat 19 August Tanswells, Beechworth<br> W/ Biff</p> <p class="p1"><b><i>Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews </i></b><a href= "https://fortemag.com.au/music/"><span class= "s1"><b><i>here</i></b></span></a><b><i>.</i></b></p> <p><em>Hope is a Risk</em> is the mighty debut release from The Maggie Pills, an outfit whose founding members, Argentinian frontwoman Delfi Sorondo and Venezuelan drummer Mario Perez, formed shortly after migrating to Australia.</p> <p>Mastered by legendary sound engineer Joe Carra (Amyl & The Sniffers, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Courtney Barnett), and filled with compelling Latin percussions, razor-sharp guitars, fuzzy bass lines, unhinged synths, and gestural vocals, Hope is a Risk masters the intersections between intuitive and mathematical, grunge and pop, gothic and colorful.

The band was born out of necessity for myself and Delfi to unleash all the feelings we went through when we migrated to Australia but suddenly found ourselves alone in the middle of a global pandemic and the world was falling apart reflects Perez.</p> <p>These intimate experiences give profound authenticity to Hope is a Risk as the personal becomes political throughout the albums themes on global politics. Yet theres a constant sense of finding resolution amidst the turmoil, with each track providing a carefully curated amount of unhinged catharsis, tension and release as well as a sense of being at peace with itself.</p> <p>Its own anger constantly seeks light through pop tones, guitar-hero landscapes, and imaginatively built universes inspired by the otherworldly, western films, sci-fi, and William Blake levels of poetic ponderings. After all, The Maggie Pills migrated to Melbourne to take a leap of faith across the pacific ocean and chase their artistic dreams.</p> <p>I think this is why the songs we play carry a lot of wrath but also beautiful f...

10:58

SACOSS welcomes 'biggest social housing investment for decades' to address rental affordability crisis "IndyWatch Feed National"

Sunday, 18 June 2023

The South Australian Council of Social Service and its members welcome the Federal Governments announcement of immediate and significant funding to state and territory governments for social housing.

10:31

Joe Biden feels up actress Eva Longoria - makes her cry - and no one says anything. "IndyWatch Feed National"

Thanks to Washington Free Beacon for these graphics of Biden trapping then copping a feel from actress Eva Longoria. https://freebeacon.com/biden-administration/creepy-joe-strikes-again/ And who wouldn't be upset and cry over a lecherous old creep feeling you up in public? Here's the whole thing as it happened.

09:00

Activists block facilitation of the climate crisis at ports in Newcastle, Brisbane and Melbourne "IndyWatch Feed National"

Raffi getting ready to go up on a bipod at Newcastle. Photo supplied.

As part of a coordinated mobilisation of actions in response to what they say is Australias facilitation of the climate and ecological crisis, activist Raffi is on a bipod, halting all operations at Newcastle, the most significant economic bottleneck of the worlds largest coal port.

Raffi is on Kooragang Rail Bridge blocking the coal rail line on what they say is stolen, unceded Awabakal and Worimi Country in an active blocking of impactful action towards a safe climate.

...

09:00

Grow Your Own Herbal First Aid Kit "IndyWatch Feed National"

We bring you the herbs and plants you will need to grow to create your own herbal first aid kit.

06:27

Whats Wrong With This Study? CDC Finds COVID Shots Safe and Effective for Kids Under 4 "IndyWatch Feed National"

By Angelo DePalma, Ph.D. | The Defender | June 16, 2023

An analysis published earlier this month in Pediatrics concluded the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines are safe and effective in preschool-age children a conclusion trumpeted by media outlets such as Parents and Medscape.

But the study, conducted by Kaiser Permanente researchers with funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), raises more questions than it answers.

Researchers followed children (mostly 4 years old or younger) who collectively received more than 245,000 doses of either the Pfizer or Moderna mRNA products and found no indications of serious side effects, according to a Kaiser Permanente news release.

Using a form of surveillance monitoring known as rapid cycle analysis, investigators performed weekly sequential analyses for 19 safety signals, including myocarditis, pericarditis, seizures, heart attack, Bells palsyneurological inflammatory conditions, anaphylaxis and several others.

The study period was from June 2022 to March 2023.

Instead of using a comparable group of unvaccinated children as the control, the authors compared adverse events occurring 1-21 days after vaccination in one group, with outcomes among children in another group who had received the shot at some point between 22 and 42 days previously.

Time since inoculation was the only distinguishing feature, and the only factor that might account for inter-group differences.

The study, therefore, boils down to the question of whether children who received an mRNA shot about 10 days previously experienced more or fewer adverse events than children who received their jab about 32 days previously.

Data were mined from the Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD), a repository of patient data from eight private healthcare systems, which included five Kaiser Permanente regions and three other large health entities.....

Sunday, 18 June

20:55

Maybe Republicans Are Just Bad at Investigating "IndyWatch Feed National"

If you watch Fox News (or adjacent propaganda outlets) and listen to any number of Republicans, it is painfully obvious that prominent Democrats have been engaging in a multiyear crime spree in plain sight. And we are not talking about petty offenses but rather some pretty serious stuff: accepting bribes, high-level corruption, witch hunts, government weaponization, mishandling classified documents (actually, that one is apparently OK now), and possibly being involved in an international network of blood-drinking pedophiles.

Well, maybe. Well keep an open mind for now.

For example, it is conceivable that Joe Biden accepted $10 million from some Ukrainian. And, maybe, Hillary Clinton did all the things. Admittedly, that entire Democrats are grooming kids in pizza restaurants and drinking their blood thing is more difficult to swallow, but you never know what they are into when they are not ruining America.

Finally, theres Hunter Biden. That guy is a screwup, and were willing to believe just about any accusation leveled against him. That being said, he isnt a Democratic official and therefore doesnt really belong on this list, but Republicans are trying sooo hard, which is why we included him as well.

Now, imagine that you are part of a group of god-fearing patriots who are not only aware of all of these crimes being committed, but also have nearly unlimited resources to investigate them.

That would be pretty neat, right?

Surely, with million-dollar budgets, subpoena power, loads of amenable judges you installed, and control of the Department of Justice (DOJ) for four years, you could round up these rogues and put them away for good. You know, tough on crime, law and order and such especially if a central theme of your partys platform is to lock one of them up. After all, your supporters expect you to put an end to all that criming.

That just leaves one question: Why arent any of these Democrats and their allies in prison?

There really are only two possible answers. The first is that most of these allegations are complete BS (probably not the Hunter Biden stuff, though. That guy is a grifter). The second is that Republicans are epically bad at investigating.

 

There isnt a day without a Republican trotting out on Fox News to proclaim that they have ironclad evidence that will nail the Bidens for good.

 

Take Hillary C.........

20:42

WA Mother Battles Therapeutic Totalitarian Horror Story "IndyWatch Feed National"

READ MORE AT CALDRON POOL West Australian authorities have stripped a desperate mum of her...

18:16

mRNA vaccines fast-tracked for Australian agriculture "IndyWatch Feed National"

After the spectacular failure of mRNA vaccines in human trials, the agricultural industry is pushing ahead with mRNA vaccines for livestock engaged in the food industry. Whispers of stock 'dying suddenly' will no doubt become a complaint of farmers in the future, summarily ignored by government in the same way officials refuse to listen to serious concerns about dam-building restrictions, price hikes on Ag products, ridiculous fees and charges, incomprehensible red and green tape, biosecurity regulations that do nothing, and - fresh out of Western Australia - expensive negotiations with Indigenous groups who have never set foot on the land they claim to 'own'. In one example that mRNA is on its way Down Under, on May 2, 2023, Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) announced funding for a project to 'test mRNA vaccines that can be rapidly mass-produced in Australia in the event of a lumpy skin disease or other exotic disease outbreak'.

17:25

Anglophobia Down Under: Whites Are Demonized In 90% White Australia "IndyWatch Feed National"

Edward Dutton The Unz Review June 16, 2023

Reviewed: Anglophobia: The Unrecognised Hatred, by Harry Richardson and Frank Alter. Social Technologies. 2023.

In the relentless Machiavellian Leftist attack on European culture, we hear much about Bad Whites in Canada, England, and the United States. Yet we hear little about whites in the other large English-speaking nation, Australia. Tucked away Down Under, with just 26 million inhabitants, the continent maintained a White Australia immigration policy until 1973 that kept the country overwhelmingly white. Even today, it is 90 percent white, and 81 percent ethnically British, about the same as the Mother Country whose convicts settled it. But as Anglophobia: The Unrecognised Hatred reveals in great detail, Anglo-Australia is under sustained racial and cultural attack. Leftists, particularly organized Jewish leftists, have mounted a propaganda campaign that says Anglo-Australians are racists who should be ashamed of their history.

A recent example: Stan Grant, a top television host for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, quit the job because he suffered, he claimed, a torrent of racist abuse after his comments about Australias history when he covered the coronation of King Charles III:

During the segment, he said the symbol of the Crown represented the invasion, the theft of landand in our casethe exterminating war, referring to a period of martial law in 1820s New South Wales th...

12:33

Record Review: Dan on the Run Will Be Number One With a Bullet! "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

by Kim Skeltys (copyright 2023) 

Fans of Band on the Run, a big hit for Paul McCartney in the 70s, will love Dan on the Run a fab remake by Jude and the Jailbirds.

And with rumours of Dan Andrewss imminent departure as premier, the timing of their release is frankly uncanny!

The song begins in a melancholy mood with a band of Victorian freedom fighters lamenting their captivity in lockdown, with one of the protagonists singing:

 Stuck inside these four walls

Lockdown lasts forever

Never seeing no-one

Nice again, like you

Monica

You, Monica!

The name Monica is almost certainly a reference to the famous anti-lockdown activist and heroine Monica Smit.

Not surprisingly, the singer seems smitten by her.

Then comes the menacing sounding guitar riff, with a sli...

09:58

Peak oil according to Dr Tim Morgan "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Surplus Energy Economics

The home of the SEEDS economic model Tim

#258: Written in the skies

Posted on 

PEAK OIL AND THE UNFOLDING INFLEXION

On a glorious summers day towards the end of the Second World War, a German fighter ace, his squadron grounded for lack of fuel, sat in a deck-chair watching the vapour trails of American bombers write the end of the Third Reich across azure skies.

Metaphorically, a similar message is being sky-written now. According to Goehring & Rozencwajg who are as good as it gets where energy analysis is concerned  Hubberts peak is finally here. Only hindsight, of course, can conclusively determine the moment at which peak oil became a reality, but G&R are very probably right.

With conventional oil production in decline since 2016, the only source of unconventional supply which remains capable of further increase is the Permian basin, located in six counties in West Texas.

This basin, say G&R, is within a year of its own peak, and we know how rapidly shale production declines once a basin slips onto the down-slope of the drilling treadmill. The rates of decline of individual shale wells tend to be very rapid, and a point inevitably arrives at which operators can no longer drill enough new wells to stop overall output declining.

OPEC claims to have 4 mmb/d of spare production capacity, but this even if true, which is highly debateable wouldnt tide us over for long, with demand growing, and other sources of supply in relentless decline.

The peaking and impending decline of oil supply is sky-writing dramatic changes to activities hitherto taken for granted. Its almost impossible to overstate the importance of oil for so many aspects of daily life.

Some examples are obvious, though many others are less so. Unless you believe, for instance, we can replace avgas with recycled cooking-oil, mass air travel is finished, not necessarily imminently, but inevitably. Flying may remain an option for the well-to-do, but huge economies of scale will be lost, and industries structured around low-cost flights will be left high and dry.

Much the same applies to motoring...

07:37

The Tale of the City: Gentrification in London Part 2 "IndyWatch Feed National"

The Guns of Brixton sung by the Clash in 1979 made Brixton synonymous with resistance, anti-oppression, and anti-racism beyond the borders of the United Kingdom. The song presaged the riots of 1981 which rose Brixton into a symbol even as they spread all over England* that summer. The emblematic city of Brixton is currently at a crucial crossroad, struggling not to lose its character as gentrification spreads across London.

With a vibrance of ethnic identities represented, Brixtons main market on Popes Road in the heart of the city is the where activists and campaigners have launched their wide-reaching #FightTheTower campaign. The anti-gentrification campaign is aimed at stopping the construction of Taylor Tower, a 20-story building that will alter the landscape of the market. Brixton will either keep its soul, or it will become an empty shell in a gentrified area. This article is the second in our three-part series, Tale of the City: Gentrification in London.


This article is a commentary piece reflecting lived experience, research and/or perspectives of the author. The views and opinions expressed dont necessarily represent those of Unicorn Riot.


In the 1980s, Brixton symbolized the heavily policed racially discriminated communities answer to the exclusion, austerity, and repression of the UKs former Prime Minister Margaret Thatchers regime. Thatcherism was the main pillar along with Reaganomics in the neoliberal narrative in the 80s. 

Neoliberalism is a political, economical and philosophical current achieved mainly through austerity and privatization. Its aim is the deterioration of the welfare state and governments social and financial intervention in order to achieve economic prosperity and well-being through the reign of the free market competition in the modern capitalist societies. 

Neoliberalism targets not only the social state but society itself. It was presented to the UK as the only alternative by Thatcher who phrased it as there is no alternative (TINA). It was complemented by former U.S. President Ronald Reagans economic policies called Reaganomics, which implemented tax reduction, decreased government spending and deregulation of the markets. Thatchers other well known phrase in the early 80s, there is no society but families and individuals is indicative of neoliberalisms effort to suppress and deconstruct societys ability to self institute, decide and act.

Drowning in Neoliberal Waters

Forty years later, Brixton is floating in deep neoliberal waters, facing the biggest danger ever as a community repeated waves of gentrification. A continuous phenomenon w...

06:36

More Sydney buyers than sellers "IndyWatch Feed Vic"

Auctions packed out

Property stock listed for sale remains exceptionally low, and Sydney recorded a surging preliminary auction clearance rate of above 80 per cent this week (albeit on fairly low volumes for this time of year). 

Anecdotally there were some very busy open homes in Melbourne this weekend, though the preliminary auction clearance rate slipped to 69 per cent in the Victorian capital.

Has confidence down there been knocked a little by rising interest rates and proposed land tax changes? 

Possibly. 


One thing that is becoming increasingly evident is that the rental market in Melbourne is a steaming hot mess, with would-be tenants reportedly having dozens upon dozens of unsuccessful applications knocked back. 

In the UK - over the past five years or so - policy has pursued the removal of tax deductibility of mortgage interest for landlords with now-record population growth, and - surprise! - the rental market is a disaster in the making.

Melbourne is apparently following down the same path, seemingly continually tightening the screws on private landlords, most recently by increasing the scope and rate of land taxes on rental properties...and this is in an already chronically tight rental market.

It's a daft move, with the Greens geniuses still calling for rent caps on top. 

The grand plan was apparently to get big institutions to build the rental housing, but...

06:02

"IndyWatch Feed Nthamerica" "IndyWatch Feed National"

Welcome to The Daily Wrap Up, a concise show dedicated to bringing you the most relevant independent news, as we see it, from the last 24 hours (6/17/23).
As always, take the information discussed in the video below and research it for yourself, and come to your own conclusions. Anyone telling you what the truth is, or claiming they have the answer, is likely leading you astray, for one reason or another. Stay Vigilant.
(https://www.rokfin.com/TLAVagabond)(https://www.bitchute.com/channel/24yVcta8zEjY/)

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Rumble("play", {"video":"v2s8fnv","div":"rumble_v2s8fnv"});

Video Source Links (In Chronological Order)

The Fluoride Infowar: Newly Released Emails Show California Dental Director Alter Study to Remove Negative Conclusions
Five charges against SBF dropped by US prosecutors for now
SBF seeks to sever new charges from trial, says proceedings may take years
(77) LastAmericanVagabond on Twitter: "Exactly what many of us have been warning about, and that applies in multiple ways to this situation. The technocratic lock out from your own home/devices - that by itself should be enough - then add that this was based on perceived (incorrectly) racism. https://t.co/QT6YGvwZGq https://t.co/SZpt98wott" / Twitter
Wayback Machine
...

05:27

Is Africa splitting into two continents? "IndyWatch Feed National"

Will the East African Rift split the continent and create a new ocean, or will it fizzle out? A giant rift is slowly tearing Africa, the second-largest continent, apart. This depression known as the East African Rift is a network of valleys that stretches about 2,175 miles (3,500 kilometers) long, from the Red Sea to Mozambique, according to the Geological Society of London. So will Africa rip apart completely, and if so, when will it split? To answer this question, let's look at the region's tectonic plates, the outer parts of the planet's surface that can collide with each other, making mountains, or pull apart, creating vast basins. Along this colossal tear in eastern Africa, the Somalian tectonic plate is pulling eastward from the larger, older part of the continent, the Nubian tectonic plate, according to NASA's Earth Observatory. (The Somalian plate is also known as the Somali plate, and the Nubian plate is also sometimes called the African plate.) The Somalian and Nubian...

01:14

Mercedes-Benz Rolls Out ChatGPT For 900,000 US Vehicles To Answer Complex Questions While Driving "IndyWatch Feed National"

By Tyler Durden Mercedes-Benz rolled out a new beta program for over 900,000 US vehicles equipped with the MBUX infotainment system. Drivers can activate the...

Mercedes-Benz Rolls Out ChatGPT For 900,000 US Vehicles To Answer Complex Questions While Driving

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