US 2020 election remains questionable
It has been more than 4 years yet questions about the integrity of the 2020 US presidential election will not subside. In a most recent video Victor Davis Hanson (VDH) raises more questions on the election. There is an old saying that 'the ruth will out'. The concept is that truth will win eventually and all lies will be exposed. I am sure that is not always the case. I feel many historical truths are lost in time. But given the multitude of records created by our mass media today, the suppression of truth is becoming increasingly difficult.
Since the election of 2020 is just over 4 years old, there are extensive records that no doubt contain the truth. We know that widespread election 'shenanigans ' was reported even before, during and after the election, and despite a concerted effort by mass media to suppress all 'election denial', many questions have remained. Too many people are scarred by public shaming and cancel culture to articulate these views, consequently the clamor, so loud four years ago, is now but a whisper. But it has not died. In the most recent video VDH raises more questions regarding the integrity of those elections. Its a short one, well worth the view.
Trump certainly still believes the elections were stolen, but now has his hands full trying to run the world. Perhaps later in his term, he will establish a bipartisan 'electoral' commission, headed by trusted individuals, to oversee and investigate all claims of electoral anomalies. Such a commission would go a long way to re-establish trust in US elections.
Is there Free Speech in Australia?
Most people will think Australia, as a Western Democracy, enjoys the human rights that we assume are the hallmarks of a free democracy; freedom of religion, free speech, a free press, etc. Perhaps those who experienced the unprecedented excesses of the Pandemic lockdowns, many of us have been revising that view. Australia, even worse than many other free democracies, broke the rules. But it was only for the period that there was a perceived serious threat, at least that is the case given by those who are generous, and perhaps those who were most fearful at the time. That argument would, of course, fail under proper scrutiny, but let's put it aside. How well does Australia fare today in terms of human rights? it seems not so well. The most recent example is the way "Billboard Chris, a Canadian anti-trans activist, has been treated by Australian authorities. Billboard Chris actively protests against those pushing extreme transgenderism, the idea that one can select their gender, and then have all the rights of their selected gender as those who were biologically born with that gender.
By way of background watch this short video to explain what Billboard Chris has done and what he now faces.
A vast majority of Australians would certainly agree with Billboard Chris's views and his right to protest against transgenderism. But it seems the authorities, in the form of the eSafety Commissioner together with local law enforcement, have been trying to prevent his protests. This is being litigated, and we don't know the outcome. Billboard Chris may win his case, but, and this is a big but, there is NO Free Speech if you have to go to court to achieve it. This is another shameful episode for Australia, and I am guessing for many supposedly free democracies that have grown their political power to impose limits on their citizens' human rights.
Is Australia's Electoral Commission biased?
We all know how 'clickbait' works. A catchy headline, a simple click, and there you are spending time on a topic you really were not planning. Regularly, YouTube selects videos vaguely related to my past selections. This works ok for me, as I have a broad range of interests and will select based on my mood. Why am I explaining this? I am blaming YouTube for bringing this issue to my attention. I had no idea there was any bias in the way Australia's AEC (Australian Electoral Commission) managed Australia's elections. While I have not heard ot Topher Field, the presenter of this video, he places his arguments well. After the way our public bodies behaved during the COVID pandemic, I have lost the naive trust I once had. I am skeptical about anything the 'authorities' do, and will question everything.
In this short video, Topher Field presents a disconcerting but credible case for the AEC applying different standards in its management of Australia's elections. The smaller weaker independents are often ruled with an iron fist, applying very strict monitoring. At the same time, the Labor party is allowed leave to 'bend' the rules. Judge for yourself.
Halving America's annual deficit
Imagine if you could wave a magic wand and halve the government's annual deficit? Most Western governments would love to have one of those magic wands, please. In the US, Trump has created just such a magic wand in the form of DOGE. DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency, headed by genius billionaire Elon Musk, is just that magic wand. Musk has assembled an elite group of business leaders to tackle a seemingly straightforward task. Review all aspects of government operations and identify potential savings by eliminating waste and fraud. The small group have given itself an initial target of saving $1 trillion from the US government's annual $7 trillion budget, a saving of 14 %. That 1 trillion effectively halves the current $2 trillion deficit. These are enormous numbers.
So, how are they going? Incredibly well. They have identified some $200B savings to date and have only looked at Social Security and Foreign Aid. Even with Social Security, they have only scratched the surface, and then they still have all the other large departments to go, Defence, Education, Health, etc.
The media has picked up some of the more obscene instances of waste and fraud, both in foreign Aid and Social Security. These include; -
- USAID sending $20 million to a non-profit to produce Sesame Street in Iraq
- USAID sending $900,000 to a Gaza based 'charity' for environmental development
- USAID $1.5 million for a program to "advance diversity, equity and inclusion in Serbia's workplaces and business communities."
- The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the government's leading disaster-relief arm, giving over $59 million to house illegal immigrants in luxury New York City hotels
- and many more...
Given the high profile given to this work Musk has fronted the media a number of times. Here is a longer video where many of the DOGE team were interviewed regarding their methods and successes.
Well worth a view.
I believe DOGE will turn out to have been a brilliant innovation. It will be copied by many Western Democracies to try to take control of costs.
In Australia, the Opposition leader, Peter Dutton has already appointed a DOGE shadow minister. Now all he has to do is win office.
Gaza's reporters are propagandists
For over 12 months, pro-Palestinian demonstrators have screamed through our streets demanding we all condemn those who are terrorising the innocent Palestinian civilians. Many reporters were on the scene in Gaza, providing eyewitness accounts. We listened with some skepticism as the figures did not gel with reports from Israel. The veracity of these accounts, however, has suffered a fatal blow following the recent demonstrations by Gaza's civilians against Hamas. These demonstrators had no doubt who to blame for their suffering; they blamed Hamas, not Israel.
So, how did those on-the-scene reporters present this contradiction of their prior reporting? They simply ignored it! Yep, they failed to report it at all. I guess that tells us what we should do with their reporting. Simply ignore it. These so-called reporters are propagandists and do not report on what is happening; they simply support Hamas. We suspected this, but now we have proof.
Here is a short video that names some of the organisations that purport to report, but only propagandize.
Hamas retaliation
If there was any doubt about Hamas' iron control over Gaza's civilians, the retaliation for the recent anti-Hamas demonstrations puts those doubts to rest. Hamas has started their retaliation having kidnapped, tortured and murdered some of the organizers of the protests. One cannot help but ask where are the pro-Palestinian demonstrators calling out Hamas for these atrocities. Where indeed.
Here is the latest on the retaliation.
Message from Crown Prince of Iran
I was surprised when I saw this video from the Crown Prince of Iran. He is the son of the late Shah of Iran and has been living in exile for 45 years. Although I have only seen the video below, he has regularly posted messages on YouTube. This is s short video that really requires no introduction. Have a look.