JoNova
A science presenter, writer, speaker & former TV host; author of The Skeptic's Handbook (over 200,000 copies distributed & available in 15 languages).
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Statistics
Starting 2025
Finally a reason for the Kiwis to be ahead of Australia
In other locations may the New Year promote a transition to happiness.
220
To kick off the new year:
“My 41 wind-threatens-whales articles track federal deception”
By David Wojick
https://www.cfact.org/2024/12/30/my-41-wind-threatens-whales-articles-track-federal-deception/
The beginning: “A New Years’s retrospective. Many of these 41 CFACT articles were sent to key NOAA whale protection people when published over a period of 2.5 years. All have been carefully ignored, an ongoing deception. Trump has promised action.”
Ten dead Atlantic coast whales in the last 24 days! My fear is that the NOAA whale harassment authorization office is so far down in the basements of the science building that the Trumpers will never get there. Here’s hoping they do.
321
Happy New Year. Just been listening to an article on the World Service about the problems with the hospitality industry in OZ. Apparently 1 in 11 bars/restaurants etc have closed in the last year for a variety of reasons including inflation.
Apparently liquidations are second only to the construction industry. Anyone over there noticed your local cafe or bar etc closing?
210
The official inflation rate is 2.8% https://www.rba.gov.au/inflation-overview.html
But that is an obvious lie. Anyone who does their own shopping, unlike politicians or Elite bureaucrats in Canberrastan, know that the true rate of inflation is more like 25-30%.
Apart from that there are excessive electricity and natural gas and petrol costs, excessive rents and land prices (due to Australia importing people far faster than houses and other buildings can be constructed), high taxes and regulations, feral unions with excessive wage demands etc..
No wonder so many Australian businesses are shutting down, not just in the hospitality industry.
Australia is successfully transitioning to a Third World country where the primary income comes from the export of rocks and energy and non-Elites live in poverty.
390
Show “cost increase” since 20XX versus a current rate of inflation. Inflation can be, say 2% by quarter, while costs might be 40% higher over 4 years.
140
David Maddison,
Not by my reckoning (done a month or two ago when this topic was raised here and caught my interest). I have local shops for milk and bread, but do a regular expedition for other supplies to a larger supermarket further away. Have been doing so for about a decade. I did change from monthly to fortnighly expeditions and have noticed that what used to be my monthly spend is now my fortnighly spend. Also have electronic records of what I’ve paid. From memory, those jumped in 2019 and have been in the range 8-12% pa increase every year since.
I don’t know when they changed the inflation calculation, but the new way is definitely deceptive. The old “fixed basket of goods” is gone. At that RBA link they say:
The devil is in the that households typically buy. The figures are now calculated from what is actually sold. As people move from sirloin to chuck to mince to petfood it’s not that meat has become expensive, it’s just the changing tastes of the public.
The government loves it, not only because it lets them preen about the numbers, but also because things like indexed pensions are tied to the CPI. Oddly enough, the public servants don’t seem to so tightly tied to it. No surprise that it’s the pensioners are the first to resort to pet food.
320
Oddly enough, the public servants don’t seem to so tightly tied to it
Will you be getting a $20,000 pay increase in a couple of days? Therapeutic Albanese will.
Public Servant pay Increases over $20,000 as well
From the Comments
– The pollies and public service are a criminal gang looting the country.
– Tip of the iceberg if you add on all the other bureaucrats, advisers and assistants associated with all the different departments.
No wonder the country is broke…and this doesn’t include all the money Albo and Wong have been giving away to others.
– This is what Jim Chalmers means when he says 2025 outlook will be positive.
– Why do secretaries get paid so much more than the PM, they all get close to a million a year?
cos kneepads and lip balm are expensive – ok?
370
Since the beginning of 2019 I’ve effectively had to work an extra day a week to keep pace with inflation. My wife’s catering records show that many items have gone up 40% since 2018. Butter has gone up 60% but her rates have stayed the same or she would not get any business.
Mussolini famously said that no-one notices incremental change, rather like plucking a chicken one feather at a time.
We badly need to get rid of some of what we call “government” because it is costly and ineffective. I see this as partly due to the politicians being detached from reality and being paid irrespective of outcomes.
110
“We badly need to get rid of some of what we call “government” because it is costly and ineffective. I”
About 80 or 90% of it! They have entirely the wrong incentives, right through the public servant’s area- Efficiency is bad for their careers, the size of their empire and the corresponding size of their wallet is determined by being inefficient and blaming a lack of staff for it.
Probably most people on here have worked for the Govt an private industry at different times, and anyone can see that the cruisy jobs in the public sector just drag the private sector down. The country will grow fastest with the smallest Govt possible, and become moribund with the biggest Govt possible.
Take vocational education… Govt leaps in as usual with think tanks, surveys, discussion groups, appoints committees,takes reports and then pours billions into poor education of those who think they might get a job afterwards. It all collapses of course and the cycle of investigations and throwing money in starts again.
How about we do nothing and let the employers train their staff via apprenticeships etc. If they feel they need more academic training let the Employers Assns set up trade schools. That way the employers have incentives to make sure the kids get as fully educated as possible in the most efficient manner.
Now privatise every Govt Dept to the same degree.
50
Now you’re talking. Stupid to run around spending money putting band-aids on all the wounds. A national centralized efficient management is a ‘trough’ whether private or government run. The Argentinian President solved the problem by simply removing the departments.
Hasta la Vista
You do not have to deal with symptoms if you are no longer funding the spread of the disease.
50
As for the CPI figures, we know they are lying, they know we know they are lying but they continue doing it anyway.
200
My latest carefully worded Super statement says: “On 09 January 2025, your PSS pension will increase by 1.2%. This is to reflect the changes to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) recently announced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics”.
It only “reflects” the changes. They must have a pretty grubby mirror!
I effectively get $18 more a fortnight.
210
I believe there’s two of those increases per year, so the 1.2% is only intended to cover the past 6 months.
That said, the CPI is obviously a lowball number and designed precisely for the purpose of pretending that price inflation is not a problem. They should use median parliamentary salary as the reference for inflation.
40
Correct Tel.
10
The new year’s task for the Gov. must be to shore up our A$. Last night it dropped through US$ 62c. Seems only a couple of months ago it was 66.6c. There’s 6% of your inflation on imports which filter through to locally produced stuff.
May the new year treat you well.
270
Australian Dollar to Japanese Yen has gone from 109.16 on 11 Jul 24 to 97.37 on 31 Dec 24
while
GBP to AUD Chart – AUD $1.86.5 to buy 1 GBP 3 Jan 24 AUD $2.02 to buy 1 GBP on 31 Dec 24
Going overseas in 2025 from OZ, will be expensive!
190
tonyb, we live in a regional city, eat out lots for lunch. Many restaurants open only 3-4 days now, pubs are the go for reliable tables early in the week.
Our daughter was front of house manager for Rick Stein at his place here in our neck of the Oz woods, but when that went into shutdown during the plague she shifted to a logistics management role with an IT training company. Another set of skills lost to the hospitality industry that won’t be going back.
Construction is also interesting. Our son works in WA mining construction, FIFO crane operator, at twice the pay rate of city work, 2 weeks on, one off, swing back to Perth or Bali, loves remote work, will never go back to a “normal” regulated life here on the east coast.
Options are endless for people with flexible skills, including many British young travellers here, we know lots who have pitched up in our beachside locality under the present working visa system, including my sister’s new son-in-law from Cornwall, who is a talented carpenter and won’t be going back to Starmer Stasiland.
250
In a previous life when I worked hard and drank “a bit” I enjoyed the seedier pubs with the poor and infamous. They are all shut now.
70
Tonb, biggest hit to hospitality in OZ has been penalty wage rates for weekend work, friend with. Pub now paying $58/ hr, so owners/operators are very selective when it comes to opening.
220
You forgot Land Tax – increases paid by Lessee under Commercial Leases, and Labor Victoria & Labor NSW have King Hit Businesses with their Land Tax increases!
190
Yep. If you own a second property in Sydney, you pay. A tiny ex housing commission dwelling in Sydney’s East Gardens will set you back $6,000 a year. In Haberfield, you’ll be up for $28,000 per year.
It amuses me how the renters have no idea what landlords have to pay when they complain about rent.
150
Philip,
that is the problem that under Commerical Leases, the Lessee is responsible for all Land Tax Increases, whereas under Residential Leases, the Tenant has no knowledge that the Labor NSW/Victorian is screwing the Landlord with Land Tax,
My NSW Land Tax this year was $24,000 on investment properties, and will be selling – Not Worth Owning – hopefully in 2025 depending on RBA Rate Moves, but can defer to 2026 if need be!
80
A lot of people bitch because of MSM headlines and have idea about the subject matter. I had to explain to a guy on a property blog that negative gearing losses didnt come off your tax, they come off your income. He seemed surprised.
100
mareeS,
Perhaps you have to consider whether hospitality can really be named as an “industry”. There are some classes of employment that generate new money, example mining. There are others that merely circulate existing money, example horse racing. There might be national benefit in promoting the first type and discouraging the second. Our current social attitudes seem to be based on feelings, not on economics.
We had a Lord Mayor recently saying that by encouraging people to the central city, businesses like cafes and hotels prospered. The flip side of the coin is that revellers spent money on flippancy when they could have saved it to reduce the government subsidies that most of us now receive, like it or not. Or spent the money on a public good, like training more nurses, rather than beer that hits the porcelain on its way to the waste treatment plant.
People as a whole have lost the skills to optimise cash flows, their own as well as government. These is case after case of money spent unwisely, but who cares? The game is to maximise the freebies you get, with little thought about how to increase national wealth to enjoy the golden times of the 1980s.
Sure, we all like to have places of entertainment and social enrichment for our personal enjoyment. But we all can overspend on the fun part, leading to the spectre where the main national employment is baristas serving coffee to each other. I do not like the thought of Aussies being seen as the white trash pool of cheap servants to the rest of the world. That is where our devaluing dollar is heading, mainly because of policies of scientific and economic illiteracy.
Geoff S
142
I worked in the service sector of the economy for a long time. Drove me nuts knowing how fake it all is. I wanted to work in the primary industries, actually producing stuff, just for my own mental health. Much better now, though I earn way less money, but I don’t really care, I like my work, very much. Feels good actually producing product.
180
Seems we need to make up our minds whether we are overpaid or we are thw white trash pool of cheap servants.
Not so sure that extractive industries are the be all and end all of wealth creation, and they certainly cant exist without layers of service industries you seem to malign holding them up.
40
Pubs seem to be having a hard time, electricity costs have risen lots, younger folk don’t drink, people are economising a bit, staffing cost and govt and council taxes are on the rise.
Not aware of any cafes closing in my vicinity.
120
The other aspect for Pubs is the twice annual excise adjustments. These compounding increases are hitting the pain threshold for a lot of people.
I did some part time bottleshop work for about 18 months and noticed people brand shifting, reducing volume and evaporating to go elsewhere (I assume the supermarket owned shops)
Where I worked there was a total lack of investment and the place was falling apart, with the owners griping about falling gross profit and how they would need to increase prices. Seemed to be a downward spiral.
The saving grace is that its a tourist town and there are always the tourists to harvest, up to a point I guess.
60
A very popular, local Cafe/Coffee shop closed in December because the new landlord (city Rat) Put the rent up from $6000 per month to $10000 per month. This is a small rural town.
80
possibly has to cover his land tax ?
160
Working from home on an irregular basis works well but since covid and furloughs it seems that not going into work has become the norm.
Its taking the mickey though when employees are allowed to work from abroad
https://dailysceptic.org/2024/12/30/thousands-of-council-staff-allowed-to-work-from-beach/
As employment has been tight, workers have been able to get away with it, but if recession should bite the options will revert back to the employers. I must say that in general people don’t work as effectively from their own home as in an office with all the facilities and records and back up. Trying to get hold of anyone these days-especially in a branch of govt-is almost impossible.
Is it just me or have the simplest things now become so complicated? Things did seem to work much better pre internet. I speak as someone writing my own web pages back in 1995 so am not a technophobe but fearful of the likelihood that malicious hacking will bring down civilisation at some point.
240
Not really a new thing..
Maybe not so common for “admin” type rolls, but many of us have spent months and years in technical and similar rolls living and working overseas from our main management line.
I did it for much of my life.
My (Adult) daughter currently works from home in Au for a manager based in Singapore, with the company head office in London….and hers is very much a “desk” role.
Its a practical solution for employers to keep the right staff skills without having to pay relocation expences or CBD level salaries.
In some ways it an advantage to employers who can reduce office overheads.
But it certainly is not an easy life for those working remotely needing serious dicipline to work effectively.
31
“Its taking the mickey though when employees are allowed to work from abroad”
Dont see why if your presence is not required or not required at short notice.
10
It’s obviously because these people are plainly just having a holiday, but getting paid for working.
10
The Australian Feral Guv’ment is on the nose…………………….
“The data revealed the Government’s primary votes had dropped from 33 to 29 per cent in both NSW and Victoria since the last election, with Victorian voters giving the Coalition its biggest boost in support since the 2022 election among the mainland states.
The trend in Victoria has raised the Coalition’s primary vote from 33 to 38 per cent, while NSW voters have increased their Coalition support from 37 to 38 per cent.
The results will mean Labor must stage a dramatic turnaround in next year’s poll, due by May 17, to win key electorates.
Another survey released last week by Newspoll showed that Labor remains vulnerable among disillusioned 35-49-year-old voters in NSW and Victoria, many of whom have mortgages and are unhappy with high interest rates and cost of living pressures.
The suburbs of New South Wales, Sydney and Melbourne will be “ground zero” in the 2025 Federal Election, Kos Samaras, director of strategy and analytics at the Redbridge Group, told The Nightly.
These were the areas where lower income constituents who were “feeling the pinch the most” lived in the greatest number, explained Mr Samaras.”
https://thewest.com.au/politics/federal-politics/poll-albanese-more-popular-than-dutton-but-labor-struggling-in-victoria-nsw-c-17232816
130
“many of whom have mortgages and are unhappy with high interest rates and cost of living pressures.” …and they will be stupid enough to think that swapping one party for another will change that!
There is only one political option, either Govt will have to borrow more money to subsidise the most important group of voters. Neither party will put up taxes nor cut expenditure, they share exactly the same philosophy- ‘Promise anything to get power then do nothing to rock the boat while stripping the place of as much personal wealth as possible.’
You will need to elect a solid Libertarian party to make a difference, someone who will rip the welfare out of the country and make people self-reliant enough to solve their own problems. Perigo got up at a political meeting and said “There are 12 parties here and only one choice, Libertarians or more of the same!” The audience burst into cheers and 11 men on the stage looked very uncomfortable.
As it happened, Roger Douglas saved NZ through a totally unexpected blitzkrieg of freedom via the Labour Party, putting NZ way ahead of Aussie until those women got elected. I just can’t see that happening here..
140
I’d like to vote Libertarian in the Senate, but they are running that criminal money stealing fraudster Jordan Ditloff in Victoria. I just can’t vote for that, I have morals. I do not understand their thinking on this. He’s not even an outstanding talent, pretty ordinary.
He certainly has an ego though, and no shame. He claims to be reformed and very sorry, which is false because it was his ego that drove him to commit those significant crimes, and it is his ego driving him now. He is not addressing the core of his problems, his ego. An honest man who is truly repentant wouldn’t consider running for public office, even if asked to. These are not “crimes’ like Trump’s “crimes”. He repeatedly ripped many people off for a lot of money, in cold blood, ordinary people.
Further to my dismay, Ross Cameron and John Ruddick, both of whom I have liked for years, promote that Russian public nuisance, a very suspicious character of ill repute.
They disappoint me on these matters, makes me question their better judgement, sadly.
72
Please validate.
40
High interest rates? Not when compared with long term averages or what I paid on my first mortgage in “normal” times, not the ’70s.
30
Sadly wage multiples to buy a house havent stayed at long term averages.
10
Are you talking about Keating’s “recession we had to have”? 17.5% interest rates. And he never apologized for his massive incompetence.
30
Happy New Year everyone.
May this be a year of casting away of Leftism and restitution of Enlightenment values such as reason, evidence-based science, progress rather than regress, freedom and toleration of alternative viewpoints without people being “cancelled”.
May it also be the end of wokeness, the end of DEI (and people promoted for their competence not their race, gender or orientation) and only two genders (and people keeping the gender they are born with).
370
Reasonably good news here in NZ. Each university has to adopt a “freedom of speech statement” consistent with the central government’s expectations. David Seymour stated “Despite being required by the Education Act and the Bill of Rights Act to uphold academic freedom and freedom of expression, there is a growing trend of universities deplatforming speakers and cancelling events where they might be perceived as controversial or offensive.” “That’s why the National/ACT coalition agreement committed to introduce protections for academic freedom and freedom of speech to ensure universities perform their role as the critic and conscience of society.” Tertiary education minister Penny Simmonds said, “Universities should promote diversity of opinion and encourage students to explore new ideas and perspectives. This includes enabling them to hear from invited speakers with a range of viewpoints.” Naturally the left have thrown their toys out of the cot. Having spent years slowly infiltrating education, their current domination of what is allowable thinking, compelled speech and truly Orwellian Newspeak, they see this move not as a great step forward, but are squealing about fostering misinformation and conspiracy theories. The rest of us are hoping it will expose these leftist for what they truly are, zealots and bigots. As one university commentator put it, there will be a lot of resistance to this as the vast majority of academic staff and support staff are committed left supporters so will be very unhappy that their control of university campuses as left wing nurseries is being undermined.
350
Excellent news, Bronco.
130
I can only hope the current NZ government can make this stick.
What is proposed if a university just ignores this ?
130
Hi ianl, unfortunately there are no news reports on the consequences of ignoring this. However, it will become law in March. The universities will be required to submit annual reports and show a robust, open and fair handling of complaints. As this will be legislation, I understand that there can be legal proceedings under the Education Act and the Bill of Rights Act, as well as financial repercussions. I think we will have to see how this pans out over the next couple of years, or until a new left mob gets in, repeals it and re-instates the state sponsored repression of basic human rights.
160
Sadiq Kahn, Mayor of Londonistan, received a knighthood. He joins the PM of Once Great Britainistan, Keir Starmer who also has a knighthood
Isn’t it interesting how these extreme Leftists who have an avowed aversion to imperial honours, are quite happy to accept them?
Typical Leftist hypocrites.
460
Another flanking move in the march through the institutions.
90
They give each other honours so as to devalue the institution … proving they can destroy what others have created.
More like mockery than hypocrisy.
20
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/ever-decreasing-circles-why-worldwide-banking-ponzi-scheme-must-be-reset
Now this, the last paragraph, is something to contemplate in 2025!
“We must ‘grasp the nettle’ regarding the impending financial collapse, that cannot be far away. If we do not come up with a viable alternative plan, and very soon, we will be faced with a choice of the Great Reset or an unpredictable and chaotic implosion. Neither of these choices is going to be good for human civilization, so a credible alternative must be formulated while there is still time to implement one!”
80
Chaotic implosion isn’t necessarily a negative thing. Out of chaos the rot gets swept away and the strong and worthwhile survive to bring better times. Eventually. Not good for bureaucrats and system people, though.
100
Yes, if we are lucky gold metal will come back as coinage and sweep the impostors away! It would destroy Govts all over the world as they lost the ability to inflate.
71
The gold standard was a mistake and caused more problems than solutions.
Why not return to the Asian silver standard of the 1800’s instead?
ANY form of currency pegging hurts economies and trade as history shows.
Maybe peg the AUD to solar panels?
Back to basic economics school…
The standard deviation of inflation during the 53 years of the gold standard is nearly twice what it has been since the collapse of the Bretton Woods system in 1973 (denoted in the chart by the vertical red line). That is, even if we include the Great Inflation of the 1970s, inflation over the past 43 years has been more stable than it was under the gold standard. Focusing on the most recent quarter century, the interval when central banks have focused most intently on price stability, then the standard deviation of inflation is less than one-fifth of what it was during the gold standard epoch.
What about economic growth? Again, the gold standard was associated with greater volatility, not less.
So, on every score, the gold standard period was less stable. Prices were less stable; growth was less stable; and the financial system was less stable.
https://www.moneyandbanking.com/commentary/2016/12/14/why-a-gold-standard-is-a-very-bad-idea
The US debt is $31T, and expected to be $51T by the end of Trump’s term if the current trajectory continues, twice the entire US GDP.
Remember, that’s JUST the debt.
Reinstating a counterproductive, flawed system will just exacerbate the crisis.
The US has but one way out – cancellation.
Well at least you got that part right.
32
No JC, they are talking about a gold STANDARD, which includes fiat money being circulated as a proxy. I was talking about gold coinage, where you carry money made of gold.
As they noted, the rate of inflation is in the amount of gold mined each year, and that would be a far lesser inflation rate than we have had since 1970.
Gold currency did not inflate over a hundred years or more, a loaf of bread would cost the same when you died as when you were born.
Govts would be forced to live within their means, or collapse as France did as it gave rise to Napoleon. The destruction of that country as they introduced paper money to replace gold is well-written here. This essay was written to educate politicians about the folly of inflating currencies, it should be in every high school.
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/6949/6949-h/6949-h.htm
Read that and get back to me-
30
Spooner Cartoon The Australian on Australia in 2025 under Labor/Greens/TEALS
191
Howard, Costello’s warning: Labor budget ‘out of control’
John Howard and Peter Costello have delivered a twin blast, slamming the Albanese government’s financial management while lashing Treasury as an institution in decline.
TROY BRAMSTON
John Howard, Peter Costello lash Anthony Albanese and Jim Chalmers’ budget mismanagement
The former prime minister and treasurer criticised the Albanese government’s financial management, arguing the failure to arrest spending had put upward pressure on inflation and interest rates, worsening cost of living, while the economy had lost competitiveness and productivity was in decline.
Mr Howard said the budget was “out of control” and voters were “haunted by all the debt”, with the fiscal balance sheet awash in red ink over the forward estimates and government debt set to exceed $1 trillion, as revealed in the mid-year economic and fiscal outlook.
“There may be no immediate risk to your credit rating, but eventually it will be,” Mr Howard explained. “Investors compare what Australia used to be like, and there was a time when a Labor government put a great store on balancing the budget … this government is accepting of a long-term debt future.”
Mr Costello said the “rigour” within the Treasury had “declined considerably” and it should not be “turning a blind eye” to the fiscal profligacy of successive Labor and Coalition governments.
“You cannot rely on the Treasury any more to try and defend taxpayers,” Mr Costello argued. “They’ve thrown in their lot with this big government, big spend. So, even the Treasury as an institution, I think, has been demeaned by this process.”
130
Danger of big government is lesson for the new year
Cabinet papers from 2004 show the government was being forced to consider many of the issues that continue to dominate political minds
The stark difference was financial discipline then. The second Trump era will test reform mettle now.
The Australian EDITORIAL
As the new year begins and focus shifts to a federal election in the first half of 2025 there is a recurring theme of missed national opportunity.
The latest instalment comes from former prime minister John Howard and his treasurer, Peter Costello, to mark the release of cabinet papers from 2004, when the federal government was being forced to consider many of the issues that continue to dominate political minds today. They include war in the Middle East, immigration, aged care, access to medical services and Indigenous disadvantage.
The stark difference was the financial discipline imposed by government and watched over by Treasury. In 2004-05, the budget recorded a $13.5bn (1.5 per cent of GDP) surplus, the seventh of 10 budget surpluses Mr Costello would deliver between 1996 and 2007, and net debt fell to $11.5bn (1.3 per cent of GDP) and was on a trajectory to zero.
The budget still delivered tax cuts and boosted family assistance and maternity payments and funding for childcare places. Mr Howard said the contemporary lesson was that governments could still provide initiatives while being prudent overall with the budget.
The contrast today is stark, with Jim Chalmers projecting a sharp rise in borrowings and a string of deficit budgets into the future.
When off-balance sheet borrowing for energy projects, student debt relief and other measures are included, the situation is more dire.
120
Is “Jim’s Treasury” a franchise? I might buy one.
– Chalmers should be selling second hand cars.
@Garth He is, EV’s from China.
– The difference between Costell & Charmers. Costello creates the future fund for the future benefit of Australians, Charmers robbs the future fund for no future for Australians.
130
On profligate spending, a small example.
Our local council is spending $1.3 million on putting drainage beneath the local sportsground and knocking down existing toilet block to build a new gender neutral change room.
Well, that’s just improving facilities, what’s wrong with that? Well, there was nothing wrong with the existing field and changeroom. It’s just a local sportsground, no elite level here, nothing to be gained, no economic activity increase, at all!
Last year, they spent $600K on 2 netball courts. It sits there unused since. Kids still use the old basketball hoop because its closer to the shops.
It’s all just spending just because. Drives me NUTS!
140
A year in review: How the cascade of Australia’s woes in 2024 began
My new year’s wish is pretty clear after Labor spent 2024 driving Australia’s economy, energy security and reputation further into the ground, writes Louise Roberts.
As a nation moving through the last days of 2024, we face challenges that slice like a scalpel through our values and identity.
It’s easy to dismiss the Federal Government as hopeless when the daily news cycle has brought more evidence of what the Prime Minister and his team did and what we, as the alleged power-holding voters, believe they should have done.
Cast your mind back to the Bob Hawke era, his approach often described as pragmatic but with a broad social vision.
No one was left behind on his watch and even death threats to his family did not dilute his passion for being pro-Israel.
Anthony Albanese’s cautious approach to the top job, due in part to the wallop he got when the Voice referendum failed in 2023, means inertia has well and truly set in.
It has been a year rich in farce and fury.
The push toward net-zero emissions has meant the left and The Greens grinding our gears about the moral imperative of climate action.
But this distraction for the government, in particular globetrotting Energy Minister Chris Bowen, has delivered us declining investment in coal infrastructure twinned with dwindling energy security.
Have you ever faced Christmas wondering if the oven will die in a blackout while the turkey is basting and roasting? Me neither.
130
‘Worst in the OECD’: Grim warning for Australia’s living standards
Aussies are getting poorer and it seems unlikely to change in the near future – but it may not be all bad news, according to industry figures.
Cameron Micallef
Australia’s household recession has extended to its seventh consecutive quarter, with leading economists blaming weak wage growth and higher rates among other factors.
The latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows GDP grew 0.3 per cent in the September quarter, owing largely to government infrastructure projects and energy rebates.
The economy grew by 0.8 per cent in the 12 months to September – the slowest rate since the early 1990s recession, excluding the Covid pandemic.
The ABS data indicated household spending was flat in the September quarter, following a fall of 0.3 per cent in June.
The largest detractor from growth was electricity and gas spending due to the implementation of energy bill relief rates, which are treated as a shift from household to government expenditure in the national accounts.
On a per capita basis, Australia’s economy contracted 0.3 per cent as the amount of economic activity per person fell.
This means Australians are actually going backwards in terms of living standards, with real GDP per capita being a measurement of a country’s prosperity.
AMP chief economist Shane Oliver said real disposable income had been worse in Australia than across other OECD countries and has fallen significantly since 2020.
90
The pain and gain coming down the pipeline in 2025
There may be some cost-of-living relief on its way and housing values are likely to slow but energy bills could soar when subsidies end in 2025. Prepare for a year of uncertainty.
MATT BELL
What 2025 holds for Australian property prices, rents and the cost of living
Commonwealth Bank forecast the RBA will cut rates from February for a cash rate of 3.35 per cent by the end of the year, while ANZ, Westpac and NAB have all pencilled in the first rate cut in May. RateCity forecasts one 25 basis point rate cut would reduce repayments on a $500,000 loan by $75 per month.
Canstar data insights director Sally Tindall said while 2025 would bring some relief to households, it remained to be seen when any relief from lower interest rates would flow through.
“No one knows for certain when (rate cuts) will land,” she said. “In fact, there’s no iron-clad guarantee we’ll see cuts next year at all. If you have a mortgage, don’t just cross your fingers and hope for the best. Get on the front foot over summer by knocking down your interest rate as far as possible, either by haggling or refinancing.”
Companies with revenue greater than $500m, assets of more than $1bn, or more than 500 employees, will be required to disclose their climate-related risks and opportunities.
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There are two terms, “great reset” and “debt jubilee” that I have no idea what they mean.
One thing that won’t happen is that all current debts will be paid in full because virtually all nations, and certainly those with GDPs that matter, have nett debt so cannot call in the paper from their debtors lest their creditors call in theirs.
So where are the +ve balances? That would be the Rothschilds et al and they have no interest is breaking the system that serves them so well.
I am in the muddle through camp.
30
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It certainly isn’t ideal when 50% + 1 can pass legislation that picks the pockets of everyone, themselves included. I guess they assume they will gain more than they lose.
20
Happy New Year JoNovans.
2025 = 45×45; a perfect square; the only one any of us is going to see.
A good year for perfect squares bodes well for me.
170
2025 has many other interesting properties:
A copy some below.
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Thanks David. Interesting, though a bit on the geeky side, even for me.
Something I’m finding entertaining to think about are the people in my circle who are turning perfect squares in this perfect square year. The ones turning 1 and 4 may make a second perfect square year (in 91 years’ time), but are unlikely to remember this one. The nine-year-old would be remarkable in another way if he makes it to 2116: he’ll be 100, another perfect square age.
That’s about as geeky as I can get about it.
80
As Trump was the 45th President of the USA, one might say that 2025 is Trump Squared. 🙂
20
TRUMP will hopefully stop social(ist) media censoring conservative points of view by making sure Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act is applied correctly.
This protects media companies from legal consequences of material posted on their platforms on the false premise that they are equivalent to “common carriers” like a telephone or postal service and can’t be held responsible for misuse of their service.
However, social(ist) media like Farcebook, Goolag etc. do not act as common carriers. They act as publishers by virtue of their extensive censorship of ideas, in particular conservative ones. As publishers, they should therefore be held legally responsible for what they publish.
https://fortune.com/2024/11/19/trump-fcc-pick-repeal-section-230-meta-facebook-instagram-tiktok-x-youtube/
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Trump’s first problem is to get Elon Musk in line.
Musk has been accused of downgrading responses on X which disagree with his stance on H1B visas. The H1B visa system is said to have been widely rorted by big Tech.
60
“Musk has been accused of downgrading responses on X which disagree with his stance on H1B visas.”
..and why not?? Its his own business to do what he likes with.. Having a Govt tell a business what to do is the very definition of Fascism.
54
Mainly because he said he would not censor X!
Twitter had lots of secret algorithms to deplatform opposing views. Now x is doing the same thing.
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“Mainly because he said he would not censor X!
Twitter had lots of secret algorithms to deplatform opposing views. Now x is doing the same thing.”
Yes, but that’s completely unsurprising. No-one takes control without an interest in exercising that control themselves.
I wouldn’t expect any more freedom or truth from Trump, just a different version of the same stuff.
21
Dammit! Put a typo in my email address somewhere and started a new account!
10
What we have witnessed is a brilliant lesson in free speech and democracy. This has played out on social media in total transparency with many public opinions as well as Musks comments. Trump never attempted to shut this down as would have happened with the Democrats. Instead, a solution has been reached where criteria will be strengthened for visa applicants so that Americans are not unfairly disadvantaged. The MSM never had a chance and was completely ignored.
80
Peter C,
I suspect Trump will face bigger problems.
Trigger words in your comment: accused and said to have been. From these you conclude Musk is “out of line”. Allegations are enough?
From afar, the H1B kerfuffle looks like a wedge to me; that some of the voices want to see Trump fail. Immigration has been way out of control in the USA. It will be vastly better if the open border is closed. That would remain true *even* if the H1B visas were doubled (which I don’t think anyone’s proposing).
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More detail and references here!
https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2024/12/30/elon-musk-changes-twitter-algorithm-to-diminish-maga-opposition-to-silicon-valley-group-and-support-influence-over-trump-policy/
20
Thanks Peter C.
I read the article but it doesn’t hit at my point. Yeah, Musk has a big ego. Hardly news. I’m not a Musk fan, not a Twitter user. What I am is a sceptic — climate and all the other manias. This H1B thing strikes me as a mini-mania.
Who uses H1B visas? According to this randomly Googled article Amazon, IBM, Microsoft and Google are the top users. IOW big tech. Does Amazon bringing in overseas skilled workers take food off the table of the typical MAGA American? Are the loudest voices of H1B protest truly disaffected supporters of MAGA, or are they people who’ve been against MAGA all along? No question that sincere MAGA supporters have been drawn in to the pile-on, but I reckon they should give it more thought.
A properly controlled border and a well-run H1B program seem to go ok with the MAGA project.
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If the H1B visa program was well run, I would agree.
Musk started talking about a few exceptionally talented people getting the visas.
The realty is that big Tech Has abused the the system to suppress wages of suitably qualified American citizens. Most of the jobs are going to Indians, which racially selective.
Steve Bannon weighs in;
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2024/12/war-rooms-steve-bannon-ups-ante-calls-moratorium/
10
Peter C,
Still looks like a wedge, and not a sensible issue for Trump supporters.
Harvard and Stanford graduates have to put up with sub-$200,000 salaries because of competition from India. That must be disappointing for them, having spent so much on a so-so education, but they’re hardly from Trump’s heartland.
America might have a better chance of being great again if an ivy-league diploma stopped being an entry-ticket to the entitled classes.
20
Thing is, if Musk wants to hire highly intelligent Indians … why does he worry about and visas, or for that matter why bring them to the USA at all?
Tesla already has factories in China and offices around the world … all tech can be easily transported and people have been working from home at least since 2020. The visa program would only increase costs for Musk … just hire people wherever they are in the world and have the local office work out details like what type of chair they would like and which laptop to buy.
If he really is pushing hard for visas, there would presumably be some other reason.
10
FWIW
“H-1B DATA MEGA-THREAD ”
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1873174358535110953.html
Via https://instapundit.com/693299/#disqus_thread
He strains out some numbers
10
another ian,
Thanks for that. That does justify some outrage. Quite a lot. If the statutory limit is 85,000 H1Bs, how were 868,000 approved last year? And why do so many of the positions suggest no exceptional skills? Sounds like a job for the DOGE: get the bureaucrats to obey the law.
Then again, enforcing the law to its letter at this point might harm some pretty big US businesses. Musk at the head of the DOGE faces a tricky problem I think. Some relaxation of the rules might be needed.
Twitter should not have been Musk’s first choice for a brains trust, but he does have a big ego, and maybe his plan is to seek approval for (say) 500,000 total H1Bs. People are outraged at the 6x increase, he lets them work that out of their systems, then climb on board when they see 350,000 being sent home. Who knows?
I now know more about the H1B problem than I thought I wanted to. Still seems peripheral to the Trump scheme.
20
Well if his intention was to shut down debate, he didn’t do a very good job of it. There is a lot still there.
What he did do was cancel some rampant troll highly despicable vile accounts. And good on him.
11
Yes it is a wedge attempt. CNN have been fueling the fire. They want to make MAGA look like the mythical version the left want it to be. Many of the loud voices are from the far right (in name only, actually socialists), people who would never have voted for Trump in the first place.
20
” Immigration has been way out of control in the USA. ”
They will have to compete with the Chinese to get enough women to balance the number of men they’ve imported!
00
I agree. Elon should start behaving like a member of government, not his usual autistic self. There are far greater consequences to him shooting off his mouth than there were before.
30
Is he a member of the Government? I thought the relationship was more arms length than that.
10
“I agree. Elon should start behaving like a member of government,”
Govt hasn’t worked so far, maybe more Elon is what it needs! I’d put him in total charge in Aussie, the place would power ahead!
10
FWIW – vaccine safety testing
“Having been called a liar by Anthony Fauci for stating that “not one of the 72 vaccines mandated for children has ever been safety tested*”, RFK Jr. sued Fauci.
After a year of legal stalling, Fauci’s lawyers finally admitted that RFK Jr. had been correct all along.
“There’s no downstream liability, there’s no front-end safety testing… and there’s no marketing and advertising costs, because the federal government is ordering 78 million school kids to take that vaccine every year.” ”
More at
https://x.com/wideawake_media/status/1873672022783369711
Via https://instapundit.com/693272/#disqus_thread
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Any idea of what the next legal step is?
20
Watching Sky’s Shari Markson with her investigation into the covid saga…
She has compiled a host of high profile US figures from various authorities (FBI, etc) who have clearly stated that Fauchi was Hiding the truth about the Wuhan Lab as the source, from day one.
It makes interesting viewing for those interested.
50
on YouTube:
Vaccines Don’t Cause Autism* (included is a conversation with Dr Edwards, a renowned vaccine specialist)
Russell Brand
—–
I hope this is the year that ‘they’ will start to do some research into this:
‘Vaccines causes autism’
‘Vaccines don’t cause autism’
If you don’t have the time, you can listen from 15:00…. a conversation with Dr Edwards, a renowned vaccine specialist.
—–
comment: “My son went from normal to severely autistic the same day/week he received a double dose of MMR around 18 months (we had missed the 12 month one, the nurse said it was available, and I was returning to my profession)…..it INJURED my son….I have video and pictures that are time stamped and show the DRASTIC change in him….😢😢…at 20 yo now he requires 4:1 staffing at ALL times, completely non verbal, and needs help with all his needs. He is my second son, he was WELL AHEAD in all percentiles….even language he was putting two words together and had over 100 at 16 months (I wrote them down as they started disappearing and like I said, I have VIDEO)”
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Why don’t ‘they’ listen to these parents?
on YouTube:
-Robert DeNiro Debates Autism’s Link To Vaccines | TODAY April 13, 2016
De Niro has an autistic child.
De Niro: “Let’s find out the truth. I’m not anti vaccine. I’m pro safe vaccine.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJ7iPn39i08
-https://www.youtube.com/@vaxxedstorieschannelvaxxed9512/search?query=triplets Oct 27, 2016
triplets get vaxxed with MMR vaccine
all right so let’s talk about what happened
“well everyday in our life was a party, every single day they were holding hands
and smiling and laughing and looking at each other, …”
—-> not anymore, they became severely autistic
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Tweet from Senator Babet, United Australia Party senator for Sicktoria.
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Good point Senator Babet.
Since his election he has proved his worth over and over.
Senator Babbet was elected because just enough Victorians understood how to use our preferential voting system.
Topher Field explains it here.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YiLAx7kp4Rc
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Not sure Topher’s explanation applies to the Senate.
And when we were involved in vote counting one year, in our electorate, an instruction came from on high, that only the two candidates were to be considered and all other parties votes allocated to these two. One was Labor and the other an Independent, the Liberal guy didnt get in on the initial count! Looked really dodgy to us. How often does this happen I wonder.
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I hope that your experience is exceptional Brenda.
What you describe is a clear breach of the Election Act.
I was a scrutineer at the last Federal election. The counting seemed to go Ok but the Senate vote was not completed on the night. They were counted somewhere at another electoral office location which I was not invited to.
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We had watched Topher’s demonstration and when this happened, I thought “well that didnt work this time!” Who decided that only those two candidates were allocated the downvotes?
Certainly does look like a breach to me but is this standard practice I ask?
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>I was a scrutineer…(The senate vote counting) was not completed on the night. They were counted somewhere at another electoral office location which I was not invited to.
Dodgy as!
When the vote counting is complete, the scrutineers are supposed to be asked to affirm the legitimacy of the count or else call for a recount.
That’s how it was when I was a scrutineer, (a very long time ago).
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Read secs 268,268A and 269 to see what is a formal senate vote. It is NOT ONLY what you will be told when handed the ballot paper but a LEGAL way to reduce the number of squares required for a formal vote IF THIS IS YOUR WISH. WHO you vote for is your own decision , but not being told of ALL the options of placing a formal vote , does(In my opinion) means that you have been denied a legal formal vote and by default the ENTIRE election is INVALID!!!! (Is it democratic to not inform all the electorate of all the ways to make a formal vote ? I think not)
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https://principia-scientific.com/small-modular-reactor-idea-gaining-traction-around-the-globe/
SMRs gaining strength around the world! Might even find one small enough to fit inside BO Bowens head!
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Makes Bowen’s plans untenable does it not. Just plug and play. No transmission line controversies. No paddocks of glass. No eyesores on every hilltop. But constant power. OTOH we should be replacing old coal with new coal at a fraction of the cost and of immense benefit to crop production. When any one ever do the sums on the benefits of more CO2 in the atmosphere.
HAPPY NEW YEAR to all. Hopefully common sense might get a run in 25.
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That’s so correct Laurie. Just like BOBOs headspace
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Surely an SMR would have been a good fit for Mt Isa, instead of running transmission lines over that distance. Larger country town would surely benefit by having their own SMRs.
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Mmmm or Broken Hill
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Yes, but it seems that Broken Hill dug their own hole by wanting to be one of the first locations running 100% renewables. I think they received a sharp reminder about the folly of doing that. It may have been less traumatic if Transgrid had allowed the battery to be islanded, but in any case, the battery apparently discharged back into the grid so quickly ran out. And the diesels couldn’t keep up with the town’s consumption, let alone recharge the battery.
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The renewables enthusiasts are still claiming that SMRs don’t exist. Meanwhile, a nice little pebble-bed reactor, not requiring external water cooling, is ticking away, supplying power to a commercial grid, and has been doing so for about 12 months. And it looks like it another bigger SMR, currently under construction, will be up and running in 2026.
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Its funny how they fanboys will readily latch onto imminent, just around the corner, rapidly developing trends in their favoured technologies but think SMRs are somehow not doable.
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Yes, “real soon now” seems to have an appealing sound to the renewables enthusiasts.
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Back in the 70s my father would sometimes be flown to Dounreay, Scotland to look at problems with various research reactors. He said that next door to the UKAEA site was the Vulcan Naval Reactor test site and clearly small pressurised water reactors were developed and used in many British Naval vessels back then. What happened to all the tech knowledge? Why is Rolls Royce taking so long to produce a commercial mass production form of these little reactors? The only thing that’s significantly new is the mass production and business model.
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I believe RR has had a lot of red tape to overcome, as these reactors will be for commercial use, not for subs.
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Just remind them what the USA did in the ‘60s..
http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2017/ph240/li2/
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FWIW
IIRC Sir Walter Scott said something about “webs”
“Sanction 2234: Europe Screws Its Energy Supply”
https://chiefio.wordpress.com/2024/12/30/sanction-2234-europe-screws-its-energy-supply/
For the full effect watch the Alex M. video linked
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We know BO Bowen can’t count past 10 but if you enjoy maths read and disseminate this little gem!!
https://wattsupwiththat.com/2024/12/31/another-banger-x-post-from-chris-martz/
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I would think that 1+2 would exhaust his (Bowen’s) maths.
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Agree with his arithmetic, but because I do enjoy maths, I have to take marks off for his describing nuclear fission as:
Mathematically speaking, near infinite is like almost pregnant or nearly unique: it either is or it isn’t.
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An interesting article. Only recently somebody was claiming that the average U.S. residence consumes 30 kWh daily, and this figure seemed to be supported by various websites. However, this article claims that the average usage is only 10 kWh, two thirds of Australia’s average power usage. So who is correct?
Also the CF figures for U.S. wind and solar are interesting.
00
FWIW –
A New Year’s Day gift from China to Oz?
“Speaking of Australia… they export a lot off coking coal and iron ore to China. This advance in steel making will likely reduce that:
link: https://eurasiabusinessnews.com/2024/12/12/china-unveils-new-iron-making-technology-a-3600-fold-speed-boost/ ”
Via https://chiefio.wordpress.com/2024/12/31/happy-new-years-2025-open-thread/#comment-174606
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Those articles very carefully avoid explaining how the new furnace design becomes “superheated”.
Also avoided is the costings for continually grinding the iron ore to the relatively uniform particle size range needed for this process.
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Good luck with that! Smells like AI derived images. Nothing about how you get “pure” iron pellets from “low grade” ore.
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Could be a serious impediment to Australia riding ion China’s industrial might
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FWIW – posted as a message to end 2024
“We Win; They Lose”
https://accordingtohoyt.com/2024/12/31/we-win-they-lose/
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2025 will hopefully be the beginning of the end of Leftism and wokism, especially with TRUMP soon to be leader of the once-free world.
A lot of Leftists and grifters like wind and solar subsidy harvesters, and those working for government departments doing unuseful tasks like working on climate scams and policies (e.g. CSIRO and BoM “scientists”) will find themselves out of jobs as this end of Leftism spreads around the world.
I have in mind perfect jobs for these people.
Send them to Third World countries to perform tasks like litter clean up. They will personally pick up rubbish which is all over Third World countries. They can also train locals in cultural change so they don’t throw the rubbish on the ground or in rivers where it eventually finds its way into the oceans. This is where ocean plastic comes from, not Western countries so banning convenience products like plastic bags and disposable eating wares in woke Western countries like Australia has no impact on rubbish in oceans.
These jobs will enable them to do genuine good for the environment unlike, for example of the “scientists” of CSIRO or BoM doing their usual occupation sitting in climate-controlled offices playing with fake computer models they have no interest in or intent to validate (or even testing the hypothesis that CO2 causes global warming, the fundamental basis of the scam). Or subsidy harvesters building environmentally damaging and economy destroying wind and solar plantations.
These Leftists and grifters will work for minimal wages until such time as they are deemed to have worked off their debt to the Western Civilisation that they have worked so hard to destroy. They can be paid a minimal subsistence wage out of existing foreign aid budgets, which will be better than the money going into the pockets of corrupt foreign dictators.
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Why are wine bottles 750mls?
Copied from Quora Digest.
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Note that 50 imperial gallons is 227.304 litres so the amount has obviously been rounded down to 225 litres so it is not exactly 50 gallons as stated.
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Looks like there is rounding in that 750 ml too, as
26 Imp fluid ounces = 738.7396 ml
10
ullage
10
Did they historically ship wine to the UK in barrels , rather than bottles ?
I know wine is stored in barrels initially at the vinyards before blending etc..
But, I thought most wine has been traditionally “aged” in bottles .
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The wine trade to England used barrels for a long time.
It wasn’t just wine from Bordeaux either, but Portuguese, Spanish, Sicilian (after Nelson etc. got a taste by buying local wines around 1800). Also the Customs & Excise wanted standard barrels to collect taxes).
The strangest use was Champage wine was shipped to London in barrels during The Little Ice Age as the wine was frozen. The possible theory is that sparkling Champagne was developed in London (by a French Duc who had incurred the displeasure of Louis 14 and left before he could be punished). He noticed that London wine merchants were adding some sugar to cider before bottling, which resulted in a frothy drop. Don’t know, but British bottles were better stronger than French ones then.
Certainly Dom Perignon DID NOT invent champagne. He made still red wines which were highly fancied in France around 1700.
20
Happy New Year to all of Jo’s mob and Jo and don’t know whether this has been posted before but it’s a veeery interesting 1 hour and 20 minutes. “The Greatest Show on Earth 2023”. Derek Johnson is worth looking up too. ToM
https://rumble.com/v3gx680-the-greatest-show-on-earth-2023.html
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Wow, this is a real conspiracy theorists picnic. Great production values, but I am bamboozled as to who are the good guys, and who are the bad guys!
00
Tweaked solar rules will make household expenditure worthwhile
The Australian Energy Market Commission expects its rule change to improve returns to households and businesses which have rooftop solar panels and batteries.
Under Australia’s energy rules retailers previously pooled households with rooftop solar panels to create a so-called virtual power plant, supplementing their existing generation assets such as coal-powered plants.
The Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) has now altered its rules to ensure that these VPPs can compete against coal power stations and wind farms by bidding in the national electricity market. AEMC says this will be financially beneficial and reduce the need for new generating capacity to be built.
The rule change will give the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) much-needed oversight of the capacity and behaviour of what is expected to be the single largest source of electricity in the national electricity market. Currently, AEMO has little knowledge of the size and behaviour of a retailer’s VPP.
Some retailers will dispatch excess electricity from a battery at particular prices or when their own generation load allows.
But under the new rules, retailers must specify how they intend to trade excess electricity created by rooftop solar panels and stored within a battery.
The improved data armoury of AEMO is a much-needed boost to the agency, which is responsible for ensuring grid stability.
Australia’s energy market is increasingly fragmented, and rooftop solar panels are now the largest single source of power.
While the influx of solar reduces pressure on the grid, AEMO is often left in the dark about what is needed if rooftop solar fails to deliver as expected or the sun sets.
As a result, AEMO frequently has to intervene.
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From the Comments
– What increased return to households? No explanation on how this will work? More subsidies? I certainly isn’t increased feed in tariffs, which have been progressively decreasing, and will likely be phased out at some stage.
– Why bother with ‘renewables’ and all the associated paraphernalia. Just stick with coal and gas encourage exploration of reserves repeal the pointless ban on nuclear energy let market forces do the rest. Despite what some would have you believe on the global scale Australia’s teeny ’emissions’ just don’t matter.
– Remember….All this madness has to start all over again in 10 to 15 years when your battery power starts to wane and the solar panels come to the end of their life. And guess what happens when governments take the subsidy sugar off the table? Like they did in Germany a few years ago?….Nobody bothers anymore, that’s what. Farmers simply walked away from their windfarms and let them rot….why should they replace them with their own money?
– Just more bureaucratic demand for filling in forms. When you account for depreciation (say, over ten years) and opportunity cost of capital return foregone, as of course you must, roof top solar with or without a battery is a waste of money. I know, we’ve squandered more than $23,000 on this pipe dream.
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They must be getting desperate.
But they can’t forestall grid collapse forever.
It is already hidden by paying large amounts of taxpayer money to our few remaining large industrial consumers to load shed when the wind stops blowing and the sun stops shining.
Complete collapse is inevitable as more solar and wind plantations are added and as more power stations are destroyed.
160
A rather open statement:
” Australia’s energy market is increasingly fragmented, and rooftop solar panels are now the largest single source of power. ”
I reckon they should have included either:
” at times of greatest solar production. ” , or
“at times of lowest demand. “,
and/or both.
Maybe, if brevity is the greater wit:
” when least needed”.
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I wonder what their measure was to say that?
The talk power not energy. Installed nameplate or delivered. Instantaneous or over time.
10
Acres of “generators”?
10
BABYLON BEE HUMOUR – OR IS IT? (FROM 2021)
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2025 at least will see us enjoying Trump doing his thing and us having the chance to dump a hopeless and increasingly unpopular labor govt, hoping it all goes well.
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Thinking people will dump Australia’s Labor governments, federal and state.
But I’m not convinced that there are enough thinking people left to be able to vote them out.
And the alternative fake conservative Liberal Party are only slightly less bad than Labor anyway.
40
Fork….how much does it cost to reg and CTP a car in NSW these days?
00
“Fork… how much does it cost to reg and CTP a car in NSW these days?”
Rego $345, CTP same again, so $700 on an ’83 Corolla. Mine is due in two weeks…
10
Yemen’s Houthis a ‘menace’ for Israel despite weakened Iran
From the Comments in The Australian
– Should read… “Australian Labor Backed Houthis, Hamas and Hezbollah, headed by penny wong”
– Albo will welcome the Houthis here
– Well all the trading nations had best pull their collective finger out and help Israel like The US, UK, Australia and even China- a large exporter dependent upon these routes.
– Penny will sort this out well before anyone gets seriously hurt.
The stern face will scare the Houthis off. It doesn’t work with Israel as they know a pretender when they see one.
– Good on you Israel, go hard on the Houthis
The Original Article Referenced by the Australian in Agence France-Presse / December 31, 2024
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Israel kills Hamas commander who led heinous Oct. 7 attack on kibbutz that left dozens dead
From the Comments
– Have to love a feel good story. Way to end the year on a high note!
– It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood.
– May he not rest in…well, you know where.
– So-called innocent gazan bystanders? If they don’t inform the IDF where the terrorists are hiding then they’re part of the problem.
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Here is a link to a video where Tom Shula falsifies the greenhouse effect hypothesis and shows a good analysis of the processes in the atmosphere that have produced the data that, even by the best, has been misinterpreted as evidence of that effect.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtvRVNIEOMM
I would appreciate your thoughts on this work that seems to me to be valid and well reasoned. If it withstands review it should be the end of the CAGW hysteria.
—
David M. Albert, PLS
50
They correctly point out that back radiation does not exist.
Their major failure is continually talking about water vapour. Ice is by far the most important phase of the water in the atmosphere. It prevents around 29% of the incoming solar from being thermalised. Ice is also the dominant emitter of OLR. The average radiating temperature is 260K so well below the freezing point of water.
Any serious discussion on climate needs to explain why ocean surface cannot sustain more than 30c. That requires a detailed discussion on convective instability. The models need to have a very good handle of snow fall and snow melt. This will become increasingly important as Eartyh moves ever closer to the next NH glaciation.
Suggesting modern climate models are 1 dimensional is nonsense. They are primarily repurposed weather prediction models with relatively fine scales in three spatial dimensions including atmosphere and oceans as well as relatively small time intervals. They primarily fail because they do not incorporate anything like physical processes for cloud formation – they too are blind to the dynamics of ice.
10
Dr Roy Spencer was able to measure the existence of back radiation … although not from CO2, but from H2O, which is far stronger and easier to measure.
You can do a quick job of it, simply by buying a hand held pyrometer and going out late in the evening, at the same time each night … then point the pyrometer straight up and note the measurement, also note the condition of the sky at the same time.
The cloudy overcast days consistently show higher measurements than clear sky. This demonstrates the radiation from the clouds. Although the pyrometer isn’t calibrated to accurately measure temperature at such low levels of IR, it does at least give directionally correct indication.
In theory CO2 would also radiate much the same way, but it’s difficult to figure out how much CO2 is overhead on any given day … and the effect is weak so you would somehow need to filter out a narrow band of IR. Various people have tried this measurement and failed. At any rate, at least the concept of back radiation has been demonstrated.
20
I don’t think Shula and Ott are saying there is no back radiation just that it is mostly thermalised in the lower atmosphere and transported by convection to altitudes where it can be radiated to space. Their point which I believe falsifies the greenhouse effect hypothesis or maybe rather explains its weak effect is the rate of thermalisation and the decoupling of the OLR from the earth surface and the emission of radiation to space.
In response to RW: I do not think they are trying to fully explain energy transfer in the climate system. They really don’t need to address ice to conclude the flow of OLR from earth to space is largely a product of convection.
00
Pray for global warming: Wrecked by the climate agenda, the electricity grid will be at risk during the coming Arctic blast.
https://washingtonpost.com/weather/2024/12/30/eastern-cold-arctic-blast-forecast-snow-january/
60
Better to fail on Biden’s staffer watch than on Trump’s.
Maybe Rosatom has some nuclear floating power stations ready for market:
https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Russian-export-push-for-floating-nuclear-power-pla
10
Maybe Rosatom has some nuclear floating power stations ready for market:
Would they be able to meet Australian Electrical Standards?
Without a large $ investment and 4 years delay.
00
Don’t forget Karadeniz Powerships.
https://www.karadenizholding.com/group-companies-powership
Auto
00
If what you want is reliable power.
Woke virtue-signalling . . . not so much.
Auto
00
Tesla going all out for grid scale batteries, especially for China. 10 mins
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsT-uy29rEc
20
Interesting, but still a fair amount of BS included. Of course, no discussion about the limitations of obtaining sufficient materials over the next decade, or whether that predicted growth will actually happen.
20
Queensland’s new number plate slogan.
Save the reef.
Rape the wilderness.
110
Goes with that IMO
“Habitat Destruction Offsets for “Renewables” are just Indulgences”
https://wattsupwiththat.com/2024/12/28/habitat-destruction-offsets-for-renewables-are-just-indulgences/
00
If only they were just indulgences – they are land grabs
00
Wow – GIO NSW CTP Quote – Insurer’s Premium $546.70
Vs
Shannons NSW CTP Quote – Insurers Premium $288.75
Total – GIO $771 vs Shannons $487
40
Which is a bit of a mystery when they’re both owned by Suncorp.
10
Robert,
yes I know, as I have othe GIO Insurance, where they are miles cheaper than anyone else, but Neither Shannons, Suncorp (Wife has insurance with them)nor GIO ackowledge each other – so, no multi policy discounts.
NSW Green Slip CTP going Private was supposed to be compettitive – Seems not!
20
I’ve been sitting on this one for a while. It takes the breath away a bit. Talk about the end of history! It seems there are plenty of humans only interested in making a quick buck. We cant say we haven’t been warned.
The title says it fairly bluntly – “Expert shows AI doesn’t want to kill us; it has to.” 18 mins
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dp8zV3YwgdE&t=348s
30
Time to implement Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics plus Law Zero.
30
Nice line but how do you make that code any more immutable than the rest??
00
Easy: get AI to write it.
10
Laws may be “worked around”.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/9QxZHcwV4bQ
10
In Dune they instigated the ” Butlerian Jihad”. It got rid of all computers and AI.
00
The Year Of Lying Dangerously
Farcical falsehoods have underpinned the Biden administration from the beginning, but it all came crashing down in a TV studio in an Atlanta in late June of this year.
The wings melted – Icarus hit the water
The entire point of the existence of everyone around Joe had been to deny, defray, obfuscate, while simultaneously promising him personally that everything was all right.
The staff was Daedalus to his Icarus, building him wings of wax that they knew would be kept airborne by the press…until they weren’t and he plummeted to earth.
For it to remain in power, the Biden administration, since even before his 2021 inauguration, has required that the nation engage in a mass suspension of disbelief.
As the viewer of a sci-fi movie must, in order for the movie to make sense, simply accept that things like warp drive and transporters exist, that suspension of disbelief gives the viewer the ability to follow the plot, to care about the characters – as long as the events and tech in the movie make internal sense, the movie can be watched, tolerated, or even enjoyed.
But relying on the nation to keep up that suspension of disbelief forever was, obviously, doomed from the start. The administration spun more and more lies to keep up the pretense, developing into the political equivalent – both literally and figuratively – of “Battlefield Earth.”
It was akin the “floating world” of Tokugawa Japan, a concept so beautifully summed up by poet Matsuo Bashō in this haiku:
“Year’s end, all
corners of this
floating world, swept.”
Of course, before the June debate, Biden’s minions had spun lie after lie after lie. In 2020, he didn’t campaign publicly because of covid, nothing else, and the obvious falsehoods kept on from there.
110
Could be Describing Australia under Tennis Albo, Blackout Bowen, Penny Wong, Jim Charmers etc supported by ABC, Sydney Moaning Herald, Greens & TEALs!
Democrats lied repeatedly in 2024. Don’t let them gaslight us again in 2025. | Opinion
From inflation to President Joe Biden’s health and Vice President Kamala Harris’ competence as a presidential candidate, Democrats tried to lie their way to the White House.
Nicole Russell – USA TODAY
It’s that time of the year, so I’ll jump on the bandwagon for end-of-year-lists.
Person of the year? Donald Trump. Surprise of the year? The presidential election. Idea of the year? Conservatism.
Worst party of the year? The Democratic Party.
And it’s not particularly close.
I can’t welcome 2025 without remembering just how much Democratic leaders repeatedly lied, without remorse, to the American people in 2024.
Democrats chose to manipulate Americans with a specific type of deceit: Make voters doubt reality. From inflation to President Joe Biden’s health and Vice President Kamala Harris’ competence as a presidential candidate, Democrats tried to lie their way to the White House.
They failed, but that doesn’t mean we’ve forgotten.
– Democrats’ view of the economy was a lie
– If you’re against DEI programs, progressives say you’re a bigot
– Democrats claim puberty blockers are good for minors
– Democrats claimed Biden was healthy and strong
I’m a bit sad to see 2024 go. I loved watching more voters across America support conservative candidates this year. If current trends continue, our nation’s future will look a lot like Texas, and as a Texan, I love to see it.
We also saw the Democratic Party lose badly after trying to deceive Americans on a variety of issues and even on the strength of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris themselves.
I won’t let Democrats forget how they tried to gaslight us, and neither should you.
50
A bit later this comes out. A massive rush with ‘random’ fevers in Chinese hospitals. As someone said – malls and cinemas empty, hospitals packed! No death stats. 16 mins
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-IGSdSow4A&t=532s
20
Every day I read of a new problem in China. Do they go out with a bang or a whimper, the death of a thousand cuts?
00
They live happily behind a wall of Yankee propaganda..
00
https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/113743523410330688
And on and on. We see first lady Jill Biden, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-Sinister), and Reps. Jamie Raskin (D-Steven Van Zandt) and Jim Clyburn (D-Get Trump) as well. All these Democrat top dogs agree: Old Joe is sharp. He’s vigorous. He’s energetic. And now we know that all that time, Old Joe wasn’t any of those things, and his party and its propaganda arm, the establishment media, made concerted efforts to cover up his real condition.
Why haven’t any of these people resigned in disgrace? Why isn’t anyone demanding that they do so?
Why should any of them hold a position of public trust ever again?
130
That video is an ad by Trump.
It helps to show what blatant liars these people all are!
60
Oy vay!
Special Section: Clear Thinking about Climate
A Triple Threat to Humanity: Climate Change, Pandemics, and Anti-Science
Michael E. Mann and Peter J. Hotez
https://skepticalinquirer.org/2024/12/a-triple-threat-to-humanity-climate-change-pandemics-and-anti-science/
10
OMG ! its worse than I thought!!!
Where do I send more money?!
30
I can help you out with that. Jo has my email address. Actually Jo could use some as well but you will have tio be satisfied with chocolates in return.
00
Hotez and Mann.
Maybe they could go on Joe Rogan together.
I’d watch.
Please, Gaia Mother of All That Is, I beg you make this happen, for I Honk your recalcitrant subject.
I will not use a fossil fuel for an entire week.
00
FWIW
Have a look at the “suit and tie photo” in the on-line Courier Mail item headlined
” ‘Don’t kill us, Mr Goss’: How 71 per cent approval rating was demolished”
https://www.couriermail.com.au/
00
Was it Goss or Beattie famous for his heart-felt apologies? I wish you hadn’t reminded me of either.
00
Beattie. He was always ever so sorry about some stuff up or other.
Remember the cartoons of him as sad power point Pete?
00
H
The other face?
00
I’ve got my little dog on my lap. The weather has been constant for the last couple of weeks – days in the low 30s and nights just under 30. Today was a little hotter so a storm blew in, hence a dog that wants to be with me.
He isn’t a guard dog. lol
Even with the rain it is still 33 deg.
30
Similar weather here in semi-coastal CQ, Hanrahan. We just aren’t getting the storms. As usual they just seem to keep on avoiding us. These high pressure systems keep blocking the troughs from coming through and allowing storms to build up our side of the range. I watched them bringing some isolated storms and rain to the western side this last week or so, but they never get over the top of the range. A bit is coming up from the south/SE, but again just steers right on around us.
00
Lucky you. 38 outside and still climbing. Morning started off with 26.
00
Melbourne cracked 20C today.
Cool air coming in from the Southern Ocean at the moment.
There is a tropical low off WA that might head for the coast around Dampier. They usually bring water to the centre that cools central Australia.
40
I’m surprised that the BoM didn’t issue a catastrophic heatwave warning.
40
Opening the Door to 2025
https://www.armstrongeconomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/opening-door-to-2025.jpg
30
I am looking forward to 2025.
TRUMP will be leading the West and it will be the beginning of the end of Leftism and wokeness, except in the more fanatical followers of Leftism and wokeness like Australia.
31
I’m not sure of the veracity of this. The article contains a link to a press conference but it’s in Japanese, plus you have to download a special App to view the video, which I won’t do.
31
FWIW
“Met Office Claims to Have Been Recording Temperatures at “Stornoway Airport” 30 Years Before Aeroplanes Were Invented”
https://wattsupwiththat.com/2024/12/31/met-office-claims-to-have-been-recording-temperatures-at-stornoway-airport-30-years-before-aeroplanes-were-invented/
20
Well, isn’t that proof that the UK Met Office was a very forward looking institution back in 1873? If it could foresee the advent of aeroplanes and airpots why should we doubt it now when it forsesees gloom and doom?
10
FWIW – a salty view on bird flu and related matters
“Oh, You Want The Bird?”
https://market-ticker.org/akcs-www?post=252589
20
Hi JoNovaites.
Happy New Arbitrary Star Orbit.
I have not made a New Orbit resolution since the last arbitrarily denominated set of 100 orbits.
So I plan to attempt to recall and not follow the resolutions I made in 1975.
I’m sure they were way more fun than any I would make now.
20
This comment is based on moderated confidence that arbitrarily denominated New Orbit science is settled.
20
https://www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/somerset-news/asparagus-fortune-teller-predicts-2025-9829781 – as good a model as any
00