Wednesday, November 16, 2022

Fish can’t leave the water, nor melons leave the vines …

When Orwell wrote Nineteen Eighty-Four neither Putin nor Morrison had been born. Britain’s politics – a comedy and a tragedy played out over 45 days – and its warning for other democracies.

Oh no 🙊 🙉 🙈 making of policies public


God save Australia because America will not Pearls and Irritations. 



How to process the FTX news — a test

Here is one MR comment that illustrates my point:

How noble—stealing people’s life savings to increase African birth rates, navel-gaze about AI risk, make cows happier, and all the other nonsense.

Mostly a bunch of lost, hideous people with terrible moral intuitions proclaiming themselves the most holy tribe in existence.

Not a single worthwhile cause in there.




3D-printed guns are on the rise in Australia. How can we prevent them being made? The Conversation


How to Change Your Apple ID Email Address MakeUseOf: “If you get a new email address or lose access to an old one, you should change your Apple ID to protect your account. The updated email address will be your login for your iPhone, iPad, or Mac, as well as other Apple services like iTunes, the App Store, and iCloud. Don’t worry about losing your data; your account will remain the same (and all of your previous app and music purchases will be preserved), but it will now be linked to your new email address…”


In NSW a special task force, Strike Force Guard III, has been established to target environmental groups in a concerted state attempt to silence anyone they view as a threat to the prevailing fossil-fuel driven political order. Conditions imposed on activists are now more severe than those meted out to some perpetrators of domestic violence or members of bikie gangs.

NSW police ‘Strike Force Guard III’ formed to silence threats to fossil fuel driven political order


The Strengthening Medicare Taskforce: Making everyone equal at the front door of the health system

Following the outcome of this year’s Federal Election, Health Minister Mark Butler convened the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce (SMT). 


Roy Morgan survey: Who is the most trusted media dragon and distrusted media brand?

The latest Roy Morgan Trust and Distrust survey has listed the most distrusted media brands in Australia. Which brand came out on top? 


Lack of trust – indeed active distrust – of Scott Morrison was a major factor in his electoral defeat. Indeed, eight of the top ten most distrusted politicians in Australia were all LNP MPs and / or Ministers according to the Roy Morgan Research regular Trust and Distrust survey in research before the last election.

Feedback from focus groups also demonstrated that Morrison was a dead man walking and the two main factors participants mentioned were lying and attitudes to women.

But politicians are not alone in the distrust stakes as the latest Roy Morgan Trust and Distrust survey demonstrates.

For instance, the most distrusted media brand is NewsCorp with virtually no trust and massive distrust. News Corp is followed, in order, by Google, Fox News, Sky News, Fairfax Media, Foxtel, Nine, 7 and You Tube.

The News distrust levels are fascinating in the context of the company’s branding statement: “From breaking news in the morning to deciding dinner that night Australians trust our brands to inform, inspire and delight across the day.” The contrast suggests some branding person – and their client – were suffering delusions.

And for the most trusted media brand the ABC is still on top although its net trust (trust minus distrust) has declined in recent years. The ABC is followed in order by Netflix, SBS, The Guardian, The Age and the SMH. The anti-ABC campaigns by Morrison, Murdoch et al are obviously having an impact but not enough to topple the ABC from its preeminent position.


Scientific American – “Your questions answered about what RSV is, how it spreads, what vaccines are on the way and who is most at risk. As flu season picks up and experts weigh concerns about another possible COVID surge, children’s hospitals are already filling with patients with another viral threat: respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV. Even though many people haven’t heard of RSV, pretty much everyone has had it, probably multiple times, says Anthony Flores, chief of pediatric infectious diseases at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and a physician at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital. RSV is the leading cause of bronchiolitis—inflammation of the lung’s small airways—in infants, and the virus is so common that nearly all children have encountered it by their second birthday…”

Hear also – “A respiratory virus called RSV has a lot of kids in critical condition and hospitals overwhelmed. Vox public health reporter and epidemiologist Keren Landmanexplains newfound hope for a vaccine. This episode was produced by Victoria Chamberlin, edited by Matt Collette, fact-checked by Laura Bullard, engineered by Paul Robert Mo.”