triffidations

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and an assortment of high-profile figures and policymakers are pushing for unregulated gene-editing technologies, the rollout of bio-synthetic food created in laboratories, the expanded use of patented seeds and the rollback of subsidies and support for farmers in places like India.

school for clowning

 Andrew Laming wrote to schools in his electorate using his Liberal MP letterhead to request early Naplan data for private research for his doctoral thesis, prompting a complaint from the teachers’ union.

The Queensland Teachers Union advised schools they were under “no obligation” to provide the test data, labelling the request “inappropriate”.

pigs

Rape allegations, gross misogyny, stalking and abuse, cover-ups, hiring prostitutes in Parliament House. What other reaction could you have but absolute disgust for the federal government? For six weeks, endless stories about the abuse of women by Liberal and National party staffers and politicians have featured in the news. Whether it’s carrying out the abuse, the attempted denials and cover-ups, the excuses made for the abusers or the dirt jobs on those who report or expose the abuse, the list of the Coalition’s crimes goes on and on.

lamington

The Australian Electoral Commission has asked Facebook to provide information about dozens of pages operated by Andrew Laming, as Labor calls for the government to cut ties with the besieged MP.

german unification

In her book “Discovering the World of the Ancient Greeks, (first published 1991) Dr Zofia Archibald MPhil, DPhil, gives us an insight into the beginnings of “democracy”. 

  "Democracy is the best-known of Greek political institutions, but in practice it was rare and short-lived. Most Greek states, for most of their history, were ruled by hereditary elites, with from the 5th century (BC) onwards, brief interruption of democratic government.”  

The subheading to this chapter, ARISTOCRATIC SOCIETY, states:  

pickwick

stoker

 Liberal senator Amanda Stoker has taken another swipe at Australian of the Year Grace Tame, who blasted the Queensland senator’s cabinet promotion.

Ms Tame has accused the new Assistant Minister for Women of supporting a “fake rape crisis” tour on university campuses.

She said last week the campaign was aimed at falsifying all counts of sexual abuse on campuses across the country.

Liberty Ship

The origins of the Liberty Ship can be traced to a design proposed by the British in 1940. Seeking to replace wartime losses, the British placed contracts with US shipyards for 60 steamers of the Ocean class. These steamers were of simple design and featured a single coal-fired 2,500 horsepower reciprocating steam engine. While the coal-fired reciprocating steam engine was obsolete, it was reliable and Britain possessed a large supply of coal. While the British ships were being constructed, the US Maritime Commission examined the design and made alterations to lessen coast and speed construction.

 water dragon 

games

US President Joe Biden has used a first official phone call with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to offer staunch support in Ukraine’s standoff over Russian troops near its border.

yourdemocracy

Michelle Obama tells schoolgirls to view pandemic as a ‘great blessing’

veil nebula

Understanding the universe is an adventure in exploration and observations, not in mythical assumptions. 

Using new techniques, scientists have released a breathtaking updated image of the Veil Nebula, the beautiful remains of a supernova which took place 10,000 years ago.

mask

assange...

WikiLeaks shared an image of the 20-meter-high Berlin mural 

surveillance

The panopticon is a disciplinary concept brought to life in the form of a central observation tower placed within a circle of prison cells.

From the tower, a guard can see every cell and inmate but the inmates can’t see into the tower. Prisoners will never know whether or not they are being watched.

This was introduced by English philosopher Jeremy Bentham. It was a manifestation of his belief that power should be visible and unverifiable. Through this seemingly constant surveillance, Bentham believed all groups of society could be altered. Morals would be reformed, health preserved, industry invigorated, and so on – they were all subject to observation.