The abortion debate in the USA has become incredibly dishonest – although credible in the current climate that it goes down this path.
They always want to quote an individual who was denied an abortion in her state, and had to travel to get it, or had something awful happen because she couldn’t.
If states can’t legislate on this matter, why have states? Each has its own governor, each has its own legislature, its own police force.If you don’t like your state you can move. If you can’t get an abortion there you can travel to another place, it’s not that expensive. People move all the time, like from NY to Florida, California to Florida, Blue State to Red state.
A woman’s ability to “control her own body” isn’t just about abortion.

Apparently looters are running amok in North Carolina.

Special persons of no describable description who have been unlucky in life with a desperate need for stuff.

Report: 8 Migrants Arrested for Looting in Flood-Ravaged Tennessee After Hurricane Helene (1 Oct)
Nothing to see here, move along.

Toad , you have made Sir Waffle worth the turd, kbg, omgisfg, diligaf esq. Very sad.
The imminent potential greatness of Florence will be revealed at the appropriate time.

“During dozens of operations spanning approximately 200 nights of raids, the IDF entered Hezbollah positions along the border with Lebanon, including underground infrastructure, up to 3 kilometers (less than 2 miles) from the border”
Israel did know and have been dismantling them for the last year.
https://allisrael.com/revealed-idf-destroyed-700-hezbollah-targets-including-tunnels-in-commando-raids-over-the-past-year

“And remember, first they come for the Saturday people and then they come for the Sunday people”

I am not religious so should be OK then. Right ?

Oh wait, how will the scumbag religion of peace people know I not religious? I am white but am considering identifying as camouflage in order to escape the bad guys when they come for the weekend people.

Seriously though am with the Jews and Israel all the way as this is a defining time in history.

And in glouriously stupid news;

Albanese announced that he would be going to QLD to ‘help and support’ Labor’s campaign.

The lack of self awareness is eye watering. He obviously believes that he still has influence and credibility – in QLD!!!

Justin Smith is useless and a waste of time on Chris Kenny’s show just as Jessica Tarlov is useless and a waste of time on Fox’s The Five.

JC

 October 2, 2024 8:14 pm

They fired 200 ballistics. No drones or cruise missiles this time. 181 reached Israel. So the failure rate is very low. Israeli and US AD couldn’t stop dozens of arrivals.

Approximately 20 got through the defensive perimeter.

They actually fired closer to 200.

19 were lost and 160 blown up in the sky.

Their success rate is 10%, which means their failure rate is 90%. I guess for a Mideast regime, 10% success rate is considered, pretty, pretty good.

That is how missile attacks should be conducted. When I saw the Hezbollah attacks I was surprised that they appeared to be only firing 10-12 at a time. Iran did it correctly, saturation attacks with the aim of overwhelming defenses. No-one expects the majority of missiles to strike heavily defended targets.

The problem for Israel and the USN is anti-missile missiles are very expensive. Iran can keep lobbing cheap stuff at Israel and unless they can maintain continual fighter patrols to use cheaper air to air aircraft missiles for interception they will run out of missiles and the costs will be enormous.

JC

 October 2, 2024 9:02 pm

John H

I hope it doesn’t happen praying it won’t get that far. If Israel considers its fate is existential, what choice do they have but use nuclear weapons?

It won’t fire first. If it has to retaliate though even nukes won’t take out the underground facilities. Israel will know if a nuke has been fired at it because even if the missile is destroyed in flight it will leave a radiation signature(?). We don’t know how many warheads Iran has but I suspect it is fewer than Israel and the odds of a nuke getting through the shield is very low. That leaves Iran with the prospect of having attempted a nuclear attack, failed, and dealing with the repercussions. That would also create a dilemma with their pals in the Kremlin and any country aligned with Iran.

People need to stop thinking that their enemies are stupid. Remember the “drug addled neo-Nazis” some fools were proclaiming?I don’t think Iran will go nuclear. They’re not stupid, even this attack demonstrates that. Poor aiming but the same is happening with Russian missiles in Ukraine and I vaguely recall that in the Gulf and Iraq Wars they kept quiet about how many Tomahawks went astray.

“Pretty small crater for a ballistic missile”
Sorry to disappoint.

Iran got a school they were aiming at.

Pretty small crater for a ballistic missile.

Looking the vision on early morning TV of some of the impacts, I was also struck by the modest craters. Being explosive, but not military minded, I wondered how many of these ballistic missiles Iran would have to launch to cause any significant damage.

Then I realised, it’s state terrorism, not really a military endeavour at all.

You’re wasting your own, Zulu.
Take your 300 quid and stand the bar at the Ensign Ewart, Sandy Bell’s or- my favourite- the Sheep Heid. So old they’re not really sure when it established. Also, contains a sheep’s heid. And a skittle alley. Huge fun.
Or git outta E’burg and out west to the Old Forge.

I wonder if our prime minister will be attending something like this …
….
President Donald J. Trump, 45th President of the United States of America, will participate in an October 7th Remembrance Event on Monday, October 7, 2024, at 6:00PM EDT. Jewish community leaders will gather to honor the 1,200 lives lost after being taken hostage and killed on that fateful morning one year ago. The event will also remember the victims of antisemitic violence that has continued to afflict communities worldwide since that tragic day

Grid Apocalypse Hits Carolinas: 360 Substations Down, Power Restoration Could Take “Months”

“Distribution transformers are a bedrock component of our energy infrastructure,” National Renewable Energy Laboratory researcher Killian McKenna said, who was recently quoted by PV Magazine. 

McKenna pointed out, “But utilities needing to add or replace them are currently facing high prices and long wait times due to supply chain shortages. This has the potential to affect energy accessibility, reliability, affordability—everything.”

Other reasons for the transformer shortages besides power grid upgrades include raw material sourcing problems, pandemic-related supply chain woes and backlogs, labor constraints, shipping issues, and geopolitical tensions. 

It appears the US is struggling to fix its system and the last 20 years of hollowing out the spares infrastructure is coming home to roost.
“How do you go bankrupt? Slowly at first then all in a rush.”.

…aand a little something from the Babylon Bee:

 After Minnesota Governor and U.S. Vice Presidential candidate Tim Walz claimed he was friends with them in Tuesday night’s debate, school shooters across the nation were quick to distance themselves from “that total weirdo.”

A spokesperson for the National Association of School Shooters clarified that “we didn’t really know him all that well” and “our moms just made us hang out with him and invite him to our birthday parties sometimes.”

Just to let you all know that the Babylon Bee is a satirical site – and Tim Walz is a dickhead.
There.
I said it out loud.
🙂

Another of my favourites in the Oz. For all Cats and Kittehs.

Re-elected Albanese: Champion of truth (under government regulation)
The Mocker

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese gives his first press conference following the 2025 election and his return from Government House …

Good morning, everyone. Can I begin by saying how proud I am to stand before you as the first prime minister since John Howard to serve a full term and be returned as the leader of this great nation. And to the Australian people, thank you for your continued faith in me and my government.

But I will not pretend this has been an easy campaign for Labor. We have retained government, but at a cost. The Noalition’s lies, negativity and scare campaigns were brutally effective. They have increased their parliamentary numbers, but only by deceiving voters. 

Make no mistake: dishonesty is in their DNA. Today they told another outright lie in claiming I told voters I would never do a deal with the Greens in the event of a hung parliament. But I gave no such undertaking. And consistent with my ethos of working to bring Australians together, I look forward to Greens leader Adam Bandt joining us in cabinet. 
During the campaign I met with and spoke to many Australians. And all of them, without exception, told me the times are such they find it impossible to separate truth and lies. “Albo,” they said, “you are doing a fantastic job, but we need your government to do more to protect us against disinformation”. 

Disinformation is a danger to democracy. It is the second-biggest threat to social cohesion after Islamophobia. Those who disseminate it are well-versed in deception, and many ordinary Australians do not have the skills to navigate the complexities of fast flowing information. That is why my government introduced the draft Combatting Misinformation and Disinformation Bill last year.

Much has been said about this bill, but my friend and colleague, Treasurer Jim Chalmers, said it best during an interview last year. He said, and I quote, “The steps that we are taking when it comes to misinformation and disinformation are about protecting and cherishing and advancing free speech, not censoring it”.

Jim was spot on. The only way to advance and cherish free speech is if my government controls, regulates, and removes information on digital platforms as we see fit. This is not censorship. I do not apologise for advancing free speech or for protecting Australians. 

Not surprisingly, the purveyors of disinformation fought furiously against this bill. They falsely claimed it would create a “chilling effect” on free speech. They said giving Communications Minister Michelle Rowland the power to order the Australian Communications and Media Authority to investigate a social media platform was “draconian”. Sadly, good does not always prevail over evil, and our bill was defeated.

Like many Labor politicians, I know too well what it is like to be the victim of disinformation. So many examples come to mind, all of which were intended to portray me as dishonest, evasive, and untrustworthy. I had allegedly promised to deliver the Morrison government’s stage three tax cuts in full. I had supposedly backed this up by saying, “My word is my bond”.

I had apparently dismissed as “complete nonsense” reports that I would appoint Kevin Rudd as ambassador to the US if Labor won. I had supposedly said I would not alter tax provisions for superannuation. But I never said any of these things. Next thing you know they will claim I promised I would not review negative gearing!

I want to talk more about the disinformation bill and the reason it was defeated. As you know we, in good faith, made the decision to exempt mainstream media from its application. That was because we in Labor believe, and we still do, that a free press is the cornerstone of a free society. 
The media exercises great power, and with that power comes responsibility. But as we have seen during the last three years, it sometimes falls short of that responsibility. It amplifies and perpetuates the disinformation of others. And increasingly, so-called journalists and commentators create disinformation. This situation cannot be allowed to continue.
 
We witnessed this during the voice referendum. Certain sections of the media – I’m not going to name which one – took a partisan stance, rather than observing their ethical obligation to report the facts. They poisoned the public mind. They lied in claiming I had refused to provide full details on how the voice would operate. They ridiculed my assurances this proposal was “just good manners”. They disputed my claims this was merely about recognising Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders in the constitution. 
As I said, I am not going to single out any particular outlet. But you know who they are. Like I said last year, “There are some journalists who [are] more stenographers, in particular in the right-wing media, than actual journalists”. They are a “cheer squad” for Opposition Leader Peter Dutton, I said. They intentionally blur news with opinion.

It is the role of the media to report facts and offer informed and fair commentary. But a noisy minority do not do this. They slander my government in alleging our response to the Middle East conflict is dictated by the demographics of Western Sydney seats. They contest the fact that renewables are the cheapest form of energy. They falsely claim that going nuclear will ensure reliable energy and net-zero emissions. They even ridicule Labor’s protests that nuclear reactors will result in three-eyed fish.
 
My government will ensure this pretend journalism no longer deceives the public. Accordingly, our revised disinformation bill will now apply to the media. For those journalists and commentators who take exception, I say you have nothing to fear if you report the truth. Just tell it straight and be upfront, like I always do. And for the Opposition, I say your vote on this issue will reveal to the world if you are for or against disinformation. It is as simple as that.

Lastly, I just want to mention misinformation. It is as insidious as disinformation. As Dr Chalmers said last year, misinformation can damage the economy, and it is incumbent on us to be alert to this. I want everyone to think carefully about what they say and write, particularly when it is detrimental to good government. 
Again, no names, but a certain RBA governor falsely claimed last year that government spending was prolonging high interest rates.

That is all I have to say about our disinformation bill. Remember, Labor stands for truthfulness. We stand for integrity. We stand for honesty. I am Labor to the core. You have no need to ask, ‘What does Albanese stand for’, because you already know. 

Journalist: It stands for “Another Longwinded Bullshit-Artist and a Notoriously Erratic and Spineless Embarrassment”? 

Albanese: That’s – that’s disinformation! Michelle! Michelle!