We have solar, but haven't been able to negotiate a good night rate. I agree we should be pushing renewables a lot harder than we do. I think more weapons manufacture is the last thing the world needs.
Look who''s back... am I mistaken or did they cast Russel Crowe as Murdoch.... or is it Packer? Or are they aiming at both lol
Sometimes Stan Grant's interviews terrify me. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-01-...th-china-sea-geopolitical-conflict-us/9372972
Great article. Thank you for sharing it. What is missing is the internal gamesmanship occurring at the top levels of the Chinese government. Just mentioning a single name who appears to have a threatening attitude does not mean that the rest of those in power agree with him. Xi Jinping might be keeping him close in order to keep him under control. I have no doubt whatsoever that China has military strategists who have figured out exactly how to invade and conquer of the small nations on their borders. And yes, Australia does count as a small nation population wise even though it is an entire continent sizewise. But having the military capability and using it are two entirely different things. China would lose heavily if it came to a war against the western nations and there is no guarantee that it would ultimately prevail because I seriously doubt that Russia would stand idly by. Putin would opt for the lesser of two evils and side with the west because he knows that the Chinese cannot be trusted to not invade Russia after defeating the west if he was to side with them. China would lose if Russia is allied with the west. And that is what makes it unlikely that they will go to war IMO. Sun Tzu cautions against engaging in wars and battles that you cannot win. The Chinese are not going to ignore the advice of one of their own most famous and successful of all military strategists.
It will be interesting to see how things shake down. President Xi got the thumbs up at the National Congress, so I imagine his word will be the party line. Now that NK has fallen into reluctant line again, is it time to resume FONOPs again in the South China Sea?
If this guy is saying this stuff it is because Xi wants people to hear it. According to some very, very well informed China watchers I know, Xi is now the most powerful Chinese leader since Mao. He has gutted any serious internal opposition and the potential for it to arise any time soon. If China went to war with the US right now it would probably lose, but that would likely require allies such as Taiwan, Japan & Sth Korea to help, and 'lose' is a relative description here. America can't do substantial damage to China's war making capabilities. It might not even want to do so. China can sustain much greater losses than the US & for longer. A costly US 'victory' might actually prove a spur for further US withdrawal from the region. I would be surprised if Russia turned on China. Putin is certainly aware of the threat China poses, which is why he knows he can't afford China as an enemy. Russia is the third world nation with nukes. It can't afford conflict on two borders, and the threat posed by the EU is more fundamental than China. The EU & other Western nations provide an example of prosperous democracies - a threat the sort of Russia Putin wants & needs. China isn't going to stream across Russia's borders and risk nuclear war. What it will do is take over Russia economically, bit by bit. That has already begun, which is another reason Russia won't go to war. It will need Beijing's money to keep afloat, especially if Europe moves away from Russian gas. China also knows what sort of threat Russia might pose. Conventionally the PLA would wipe the floor with the Russian army, but that can change. And then there are the nukes. China will continue to tighten its grip on Russia economically & slowly move into Central Asia. Russia won't be able to compete with Chinese resources. This will be the 'insurance policy' while China secures its periphery elsewhere. I think this is one area where China is playing the 'long game' if only because there isn't a clear alternative, but if Russia opted for war it would make an enemy that it could never hope to defeat short of nuclear holocaust.
I forgot this wasn't Western Europe and wondered 'what now?' at the port of Calais. IDK, I hope Brexit doesn't stink.
After watching 4 Corners on TV tonight I wonder what do the bikies do with their drug dealing profits. It's an expensive business- people to pay off, weapons to maintain etc, but there must be profits and what would they be used for?
Milk bars? Night clubs - Ahh I'd forgotten about the strip club owned by a certain member of an OMCG.
An American university has replaced a professor who failed a student for saying Australia was a country. An online adjunct professor told a student that Australia is not a country and gave her a failing grade, prompting Southern New Hampshire University to replace the instructor. Buzzfeed News reports that the 27-year-old student in Idaho was assigned to compare American social norms to that of another country. She chose to study social media use in Australia, but the professor gave her a zero on that portion of the assignment, saying Australia is a continent, not a country. University officials tell WMUR-TV the instructor has been replaced following an investigation. In a statement, the university said it deeply regrets the interaction between the professor and student, and wished athletes from Australia good luck in the Olympic Games. https://www.sbs.com.au/news/australia-not-a-country-professor-sacked?cx_cid=edm:newsam:2017
I traveled in the US with my family a couple of times in the early 1980s. On more than one occasion we were complemented on our ability to speak English.
