Birds Aren't Real

@Baumann_Mac What have they done to your account?

Today's DP!

I was walking alone in the streets of Gaza City a short while ago, late at night. I did not expect this brief walk to become one of the most difficult moments I have experienced since the beginning of the war. The city is completely engulfed in darkness. There are no streetlights, no lit homes, and no signs of normal life. Among the tents spread everywhere, rats were moving in large numbers, as if they had become part of the daily scene people have grown used to seeing. I saw people lying on the sidewalks and sleeping on the roads because they had nowhere else to go. I saw a man searching through garbage bags in the dark of night for something to ease his hunger or meet his family’s needs. Along the roadside, dozens of people sat outside, escaping the suffocating heat inside the tents, which have turned into ovens with the arrival of summer. I also heard the sound of a severe, continuous cough coming from inside a tent an elderly woman coughing in a way that reflected deep exhaustion, as if her body could no longer endure, with no medicine or ability to help in that moment. In the midst of this darkness, I heard babies crying because there was no milk available, and a young girl screaming from inside a tent, crying to her mother because insects had bitten her feet again for the second or third time that night. I returned wishing I had not gone out that night. I realized more than ever that this city no longer resembles the life we once knew. What is happening here cannot be understood through images or numbers alone. Anyone who wants to see the true scale of the suffering must see Gaza after sunset, when everything disappears except pain.

@Baumann_Mac Morning Ron

Good morning, dirty lefties!

@Strongisgentle @Democracy_Duck Shop around …

So I got a notification for my latest electricity prices. Usage charges are falling from 39c to 33c per kwh. Yay! Access charge rises from $1 to $1.83 per day. WTF? Almost double? Keeping up their profit margins while the cost of power falls. Privatisation was such a good idea.

With all the hand-wringing over Pauline Hanson and her "mystery" rise, it's worth remembering Nine secretly flew her to clamber all over Uluru (with disgraced Ashby). Nine then labeled it a "social division" - a "culture war" that had "divided the nation" theklaxon.com.au/ulurustitch-up/

@jaguarclaws @COVID19_disease @stkirsch Naahh - probably just have a heart attack …

@COVID19_disease I wonder if anti-vaxers like @stkirsch spit out their morning coffee when they read these types of positive reports.

🚨 BREAKING: COVID vaccine linked to broader heart protection in new study researchers report nearly 40% lower risk of COVID-related cardiovascular events, including heart attack and stroke

Please sign and share this important petition: megaphone.org.au/petitions/paul… via @megaphoneau

Israel using children for target practice …

@IsraelinOZ Whataboutism is not helpful. It does not make what Israel has done any less culpable.

The Embassy of Israel in Australia notes recent reporting intoallegations of sexual assault made by participants of the Gaza flotilla. It is outrageous and offensive that these futile allegations are continuing to receive such widespread attention and being accepted at face value by some activists and public commentators. This is disrespectful to genuine victims of sexual assault and rape. It is also a moral outrage that some in the international community, including individuals who identify as feminists and women's rights advocates, have largely ignored or dismissed genuine, documented cases of sexual violence and rape by Hamas on October 7, 2023 while readily amplifying the flotilla allegations. If only the victims of October 7 had received a comparable level of attention and support. Israel strongly and unequivocally condemns any acts of sexual violence, wherever they may occur. Currently, no credible evidence has been submitted to the Embassy to suggest that any flotilla participants were sexually assaulted. The claims appear to be part of a coordinated international smear campaign against Israel. As with any serious allegations, determination of guilt requires a full investigation and must be backed by credible evidence, not media interviews and hearsay. Until such a process has taken place, individuals are entitled to the presumption of innocence, as is standard in any democracy with a rule of law. Until then, these allegations serve as nothing more than blood libels aimed at fueling anti-Israel hated and antisemitism worldwide. It is important to note that the flotilla members are professional anti-Israel activists with a track record of fabricating stories. Consistent with this, some participants have been photographed posing as injured. They then reveal miraculous recovery, posing in subsequent photos looking very healthy. Meanwhile, they claimed they were bringing aid to Gaza, but the flotilla carried no significant aid. They alleged that Israel was starving Gazans, but that was also proven to be a lie. The Australian flotilla activists have provided inconsistent accounts and appear more interested in advocating for sanctions against Israel than advancing truth and human rights. The Australian activists also show no visible signs of injury, and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade indicated at Senate Estimates that no immediate medical treatment was required on arrival in Türkiye. We also reiterate that some of the international flotilla members have documented links to organisations connected to Hamas and other terrorist groups, including IHH and the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad, which is an organisationdesignated by the United States. The United States has also imposed sanctions on activists associated with the flotilla. These links further expose the flotilla’s true intentions. Meanwhile, genuine footage of mistreatment has circulated online in relation to other countries, including Spain and Libya, yet these incidents have not provoked the same outcry. Once again, Israel is being subjected to double standards, showing this is more about political point scoring than genuine humanitarian concern. Israel will continue to engage constructively with the Australian Government and authorities on this matter.

@RonFilipkowski Is that blue stuff a waterproofing compound? Looks a lot like the stuff that’s just gone into my new bathroom …

The guy who bankrupted casinos decided to improve the Reflecting Pool with our money. Things are going about as well as I expected.

@SistaRuthDOPD Give those fuckers 30 years and they’d have the whole of Australia subjugated under their control. No thanks.

"That important culture, a very important culture, could flourish again if we also offered free land (near Townsville) ...for the Israelis. And encourage the Israelis to develop and build their advanced war drones... and improve upon their Israeli-style domes." ~Gina Rinehart

@cheryl_kernot @ChristineMilne The prospect of Hanson as PM is utterly spine chilling. She whinges, complains and spouts hate every time she speaks in public. I hope Australians can see through her ignorance, incompetence and lies before the next election.

I’m with Ronni on this. It’s time to take a lot of notice.

@MichaelPascoe01 This is such crap - of course you can sack people if they don’t do the job properly. Absolute bollocks.

Just to be clear, One Hanson is chasing the business owners' vote - the donors' vote - and doesn't give a toss about anyone who is an employee, hoping to pick up some sheep there with Islamaphobia and Trumpetteing.

England’s legendary 1,000 year old Major Oak tree dies The legendary Major Oak of Sherwood Forest, long linked to the Robin Hood story, reportedly failed to grow leaves this year. Experts cite age, drought and climate related stress as likely causes

@strangerous10 Gina’s looking very orange - has she spoken to The Oaf about what makeup to wear?

<cringe warning>🚨 Gina Rinehart at Newscorpse event gifts Pauline Hanson custom made ‘orange’ bulldozer—and asks the audience to make "grrrr" noises. This is unbelievably pathetic. Rinehart is trying to bring MAGA to Australia. Say no. #auspol

@JonesHowDareYou Well said Grace.

"We need to look to the 13-year-old girls for leadership." — Cathy Wilcox

How the fuck do we live in a country where Pauline Hanson can call Sarah Martin a “trashy journalist” on live TV at the @PressClubAust today and all the other journos didn’t get up and immediately walk out of there? #NewsCorpse

@atrupar Dear Dog, these republicans are so full of shit …

Rep. Brandon Gill: "This is something that if we don't stop now, it's gonna be my daughter and daughters across the country who are going to be going to public schools wearing burkas."

The 14-million-dollar money laundering scheme explained.

How the fuck do we live in a country where Pauline Hanson can publicly say “To abort a baby the day before birth is abhorrent and disgusting” and not one journo jumped up to remind her that abortion at 39 weeks aka the day before birth is … murder? #NewsCorpse @PressClubAust