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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This quote from Polybius (c. 200 – c. 118 BCE) just about describes the situation in Australia and most Western “democracies” except the United States under TRUMP who is trying to repair decades of damage.
It is probably the origin of the widely misattributed similiar false quote of Alexander Tytler: (A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. …)
And this explains why, in the absence of leadership in the West (except the US) Western societies are probably doomed if people don’t stop voting for more “free stuff“.
QUOTE:
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And the following quote on the cycles of civilisations is usually misattributed to Alexander Tytler but it is not certain he wrote it. It is not in his known writings.
It’s first know appearance is in 1943 in a speech by H. W. Prentis in the US.
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Democracy is only temporary-
“Democracy, which had prevailed during Athens’ Golden Age, was replaced by a system of oligarchy” after 140years.
“In a new history of the 4th century BC, Cambridge University Classicist Dr. Michael Scott reveals how the implosion of Ancient Athens occurred amid a crippling economic downturn, while politicians committed financial misdemeanours, sent its army to fight unpopular foreign wars and struggled to cope with a surge in immigration….the emphasis on “people power” saw a revolving door of political leaders impeached, exiled and even executed as the inconstant international climate forced a tetchy political assembly into multiple changes in policy direction.
The name of “democracy” became an excuse to turn on anyone regarded as an enemy of the state… It survived the period through slippery-fish diplomacy, at the cost of a clear democratic conscience, a policy which, in the end, led it to accept a dictator King and make him a God.”
Well, who is going to be our ‘Dictator King for Life’ and no doubt establish a familial ruling system so we transition back into a monarchy. Will this be Trump’s game, or Putin’s?? Xi perhaps??
https://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/the-athenians-another-warning-from-history
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…and I see they had a far better idea of picking representatives of power than we do!!
“The Council (Boule) was a deliberative body of five hundred members selected every year by lot among the citizen population. The mandate lasted one year and no member could iterate his participation more than once, and not in consecutive years. ”
So there were no politicians!! We don’t have democracy at all!
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All Civilizations Follow the Same Pattern (John Glubb)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hUS0Q_lzNA
Also refers to Polybius.
Is Every Civilization Doomed to Fail? – Gregory Aldrete. Polybius
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqsBx58GxYY
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‘Who is going to be our Dictator King for Life’
The individual would need to be a benevolent dictator.
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Only Benevolent Dictator in my life time has been
Lee Kuan Yew: Benevolent Dictator
Lee Kuan Yew, the first Prime Minister of Singapore from 1959 to 1990, is often referred to as a benevolent dictator due to his significant role in transforming Singapore from a struggling British colony into one of the most developed nations in Asia and the world.
Under his leadership, Singapore experienced rapid economic growth, with its GDP per capita rising from about $425 in 1960 to $72,794 by 2021, significantly outpacing other countries like Jamaica.
Lee’s governance was marked by a focus on efficiency, meritocracy, and anti-corruption measures, leading to a stable and prosperous society.
However, his rule was also characterized by strict control and limited political freedoms. He brooked no dissent and did not tolerate corruption, implementing policies that some viewed as authoritarian.
Despite this, many Singaporeans did not express unhappiness with the paternalistic government, and Lee’s actions were often justified as necessary for the country’s early development.
Lee’s legacy remains highly regarded by many Singaporeans, with his values now studied at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.
His governance model has been the subject of both praise and criticism, with some viewing him as a benevolent dictator who achieved remarkable economic success, while others argue that his methods were undemocratic and restrictive.
His approach to governance has sparked debates about the effectiveness of benevolent autocracies versus democracies, particularly in the context of developing nations.
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I did early voting yesterday in Melbournistan. It was a long line I had to wait in, about 25 mins.
Hearing the conversations in the crowd, and the various party workers handing out flyers, was a rather disturbing experience. People simply didn’t have a clue, especially would be Green voters. But most were staggeringly clueless.
I held back from saying anything, I wasn’t going to change anyone’s mind in that short time.
I might add that the voting location was in Brighton, one of the more upmarket areas of Melbounistan with a high proportion of “professional” and “well educated” people.
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David,
That is everywhere.
97% of Australians haven’t got a clue what is going on.
They’re being side-lined by experts and our media does not help.
Will Albo win any seats outside the capital cities this time?
I certainly hope not because the people outside those seem
to have good heads on their shoulders. And we despair for our country
and how the people are being treated by these pollies who are
supposed to be there FOR the people.
And that’s a laugh.
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After experiencing the same thing over several elections, I now postal vote. You don’t have to listen to the clueless idiots waiting to destroy their own country.
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The Party workers, handing out “how to vote” flyers are highly committed to their parties, but even they do not understand all their policies, especially the Greens.
I also voted early. I took a flyer from the Greens and turned it over. Some policies were printed on the back, which included; “end the occupation of Palestine”. So I asked them what was meant by Palestine? No one seemed to know!
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Apart from not knowing which river and sea they mean to “liberate”, rabid socialist greenies don’t understand even HOW to end any “occupation” anywhere in the world .. since they also want to abolish the army so couldn’t even declare war on such “occupiers”.
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Just how clueless are we, my wife knows a lady who will vote for Albanese because she likes his dog, that’s how clueless we are.
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As I say “vote away”…
Vote away your futures as a result of terminal ignorance.
“The reason so many people misunderstand so many issues is not that these issues are so complex, but that people do not want a factual or analytical explanation that leaves them emotionally unsatisfied.”
– Thomas Sowell
People are driven by emotion and feelings, not logic and reasoning.
This election will change nothing – the cycle continues unabated…
What will the masses in Spain do after “the great blackout”?
Demand change? Demand going back to reliable energy? Or just go back to their daily routines mildly peeved.
Yep.
Maybe vote for our own Trumpet party?
The ones who want a “15% export license” and who can’t even proof their own tv ads…
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100 DAYS OF HOAXES: Cutting Through the Fake News
https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/04/100-days-of-hoaxes-cutting-through-the-fake-news/
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I have absolutely no problem with nuclear power as advocated by the fake conservative Liberals. We should have had it many decades, the Liberals cancelled the Jervis Bay reactor in 1970, already under construction.
But given the huge regulatory and lawfare hurdles in Australia, to do just about anything no matter how trivial, it is implausible that even if reactors were approved today, I can’t see them coming online in less than 15 years and more likely never.
Australia can’t wait 15 years. Or even one. We must get cheap reliable coal and gas power immediately or what remains of our economy will be completely destroyed.
Australia’s “green” energy subsidy-harvesting infrastructure must be dismantled immediately and the electricity grid returned to the state as it was before fake conservative Howard started dismantling it.
By all means, nuclear should be on the agenda but let market forces decide. Otherwise use coal or gas.
If Leftoid people want wind and solar, remove subsidies and let them pay full market price for it but don’t force the Thinking Community to buy it.
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DM,
France demonstrated that a dominant network of nuclear power stations could go from idea to production of more than 70% of total electricity in under a decade. That was back in the 1970-80 era. Articles about this French experience are being disappeared, so I have to add E&OE.
Leaving politics aside, it is likely that Australia could go from idea to the first online reactor in 5 years. The Koreans the Chinese and some others appear to be less than 5 years from go to show.
The problem in Australia, as before, is gross ignorance and a cling to green ideology by most current politicians and bureaucrats in relevant office. I can offer no solution to this.
I was actively involved in the aborted Jervis Bay plan at junior level. It was sunk in 1971 by ignorant officials. Whatever will be, will be.
Where there is a will, there is a way.
The will is lacking.
Spanish style blackouts will hit Australia. AEMO lacks the will to prevent them, should be sacked on the spot. Maybe that is the “salvation” for our nuclear future, which is inevitable. Geoff S
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Remember at that time engineers used sliding rules and accountants – mechanical arithmometers.
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Thanks, I second that!
I even took the trouble to reply to one of Dutton’s emails promising I’ll vote LNP again if they stop all subsidies to W&S and restart coal power plants even if it means to nationalise them.
The standard form letter I got in return was so non-committal and lukewarm including increased “renewables” that I despair at the lack of vision and courage they demonstrate.
One Nation gets my vote again; Clive’s deal to preference the Greens means the TOP go down in my preferences … what a pity.
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Comment by George Christensen.
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That’s spot on David, Albosleazy has lied and lied and then lied again (how can you tell a politician is lying? = his lips are moving!) and Dutton didn’t have the balls to stand up and call him out, Labour is not really winning this election rather the coalition is loosing.
I’m in Richmond it was one of the safest Country Party seats in Australia with Doug Anthony. Over the last 30 years the seat has been infested with leafty loony greens in places like Byron Bay, moving from Melbourne for a ‘sea change’ and bringing their twisted ideology with them. This year Richmond could go to the greens from Labor and the locals the farmers and country people who built this beautiful area have lost their voice because there is no one who will stand up for them, they have become Labor light losers. I will vote for Ian Mye I grew up with his family, he knows how to call a spade a spade.
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It seems that the plan is for Labor to have a second term.
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If George Christiansen is correct we should see a surge in the vote for the Freedom Loving Minor Parties!
I am hoping for that.
Both PHON and Family First are fielding candidates in my electorate. There was a sole person handing out flyers for Family First and none for PHON. To my dismay, Family First preferences the Liberal Party above other small parties,
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“whereas in Australia, the major centre-right party is called the Liberal Party).”
haha.. Australia doesn’t have a major centre-right party, it has two indistinguishable Left feet and walks into the future just as you would expect… round and round in a circle!
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Correct.
The Liberals haven’t even been moderately conservative since Sir Robert Menzies.
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“Let me say it straight: Pierre Poilievre was supposed to be Canada’s great white hope. ”
It just goes to prove no conservative will get elected by trying to become a pale imitation of a socialist, it’s either go hard, all guns blazing or go home.
Dutton has fallen into the trap of trying to look like a less worse version of labor, it just won’t cut through.
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Australians must be among the most ignorant voters in the world, a bit of ‘free’ stuff trumps anything else.
Young ones see a few handouts as worth their vote because they just don’t know.
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The Energy Realists of Australia have declared that the net zero experiment has failed and it is time to pivot towards peace freedom and prosperity, bearing in mind that one of the five pillars of peace freedom and prosperity is abundant affordable and reliable energy with a minimal environmental footprint.
We have convened a working group to start drafting a plan for the kind of energy system that Australia really needs and we hope that this will be the first of many such plans around the world. As usual Australia is leading the way as we led the way in wind-watching where the pioneers of this field identified wind droughts which are the immovable optical in the way of the dirty transition to wind and solar power
Adopting a more modest tone, President Trump always wanted a rational energy system, like Jim Simpson, so they really led the way, and Jim is a founding member of the Energy Realists of course.
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A minor problem (rather than the politicians gullible blindness) is the excess solar power that can be available then gone in 5 seconds (or less) as Spain & Portugal have shown.
Also the Broken Hill blackouts where there was excess of “renewables” but the lights went on/off etc.
The believers now think that batteries (which some have realised the cost) aren’t the answer and want to use hydrogen as a reserve. So “renewables” are so cheap that excess can be used to generate hydrogen which is stores until conversion back into electricity. No clue about losses – at best hydrogen generation (& some losses) would be about 50% then conversion (once a suitable method has been developed) about 50%. So hydrogen will have to be 4 times the cost of the cheap initial electricity.
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Only a minority of people in the UK believe NetZero will succeed by 2050, let alone 2030.
https://order-order.com/2025/04/30/just-1-of-britons-think-uk-will-definitely-achieve-net-zero-by-2050/
Except the politicians!
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I am avoiding disappointment this weekend by fully expecting a Green Labor win.
If the fake conservative Liberals win, it will be a bonus, and slightly less bad than a Green Labor win.
I will be enjoying myself at the Lake Goldsmith Steam Rally.
I wonder if Green Labor will ban vintage steam and internal combustion engines as well, in their ongoing quest to reduce non-Elites to the Palaeolithic Age?
https://www.lakegoldsmithsteamrally.org.au/
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Enjoy the Lake Goldsmith Steam Rally.
The last time I went it was about 5 degrees and raining. I hope you have better weather this time.
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Thanks Peter. According to the BoM it will be 5C – 19C Sat and 8C – 21C Sunday with 5% chance of rain both days.
But those lows will be minimum overnight temps, not daytime.
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Love those old open crank engines where everything is visible.
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Word of the day:
absquatulate
to flee or abscond
US 1830’s slang.
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Then Climate Change and Pandemic are The Great Absquatulations.
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Well the toxic mess in Spain and the states of Washington and Oregon have now combined to tell us the true story of the toxic W & S disasters.
The true future cost of toxic W & S in the two US NW states is about 1 trillion $, BUT these states combined already generate at least 50% of their electricity from Hydro,so Aussies would be very lucky to come in at Bloomberg’s and McKinsey’s etc cost of 2.75 trillion $.
Population of Washington state and Oregon combined is about 12 million and are tiny compared to Australian land mass.
See at about 26 minutes for the true cost video for the two states of 1 trillion $.
Of course no change to climate by 2100, but these toxic disasters will destroy our environments and economies in very quick time.
https://wattsupwiththat.com/2025/04/27/what-does-it-cost-the-consequences-of-the-net-zero-energy-agenda/
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FWIW – USA but
“Is a college degree worth the money?”
https://bayourenaissanceman.blogspot.com/2025/04/is-college-degree-worth-money.html
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FWIW
“6th Grader’s Science Experiment Answers, ‘Do Cat Buttholes Touch Every Surface They Sit On?’ ”
https://hotair.com/headlines/2025/04/30/6th-graders-science-experiment-answers-do-cat-buttholes-touch-every-surface-they-sit-on-n3802284
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FWIW – re Spain’s electricity problem
https://instapundit.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/steve_guest_reuters_spain_spanish_blackouts_04-30_2025-768×1366.jpg
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FWIW
“Is Subaru turning me into a lesbian?”
https://archive.is/L22l5
There is the acronym LAV – Lesbian Attack Vehicle
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I was behind a Tesla yesterday and he gunned it, so I did too, keeping the same distance.
All your rainforest destroying/slave labour pansymobiles don’t cut it.
Yes, my lesbian attack vehicle is slick and fast, and way better than the other LAV’s, namely Jeep Wrangler, Toyota Prius, Honda CR-V and VW Golf.
Lesbians come and go…but Subarus will always just GO!. 😉
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FWIW – the size of the stick
“Europe Just Proved Trump Right About NATO”
https://pjmedia.com/vodkapundit/2025/04/30/europe-just-proved-trump-right-about-nato-n4939369
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Farage’s Reform party are expected to win hundreds of seats in local elections according to Blair’s former adviser.
And the clueless Blair donkey now joins Conservative leader Badenoch and tells the world that net zero is just more BS and will hurt pensioners and the poor.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/politics/government/local-elections-live-labour-are-toast-warns-former-blair-adviser-ahead-of-polling-day-after-net-zero-clash/ar-AA1DTBIH?ocid=BingNewsSerp
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Everyone knows that Australia is a land of droughts and flooding rain. Thanks to the recent pain in Spain we now know that it’s not just rain that falls on the plain in Spain because there are also floods of solar power. Moreover they are capricious floods because they can very suddenly switch off and due to the almost complete lack of inertia in the Spanish grid that kind of fluctuation preduces the predictable result.
It was really just a matter of when it was going to happen and the risk of sudden collapse of the grid is growing wherever net zero policies are in place because they are becoming more vulnerable both to prolonged wind droughts and to fluctuations in the wind and solar input from minute to minute.
As for the fluctuations in the wind in Australia, Anton has updated his study of fluctuations and of course they are much larger now than they were years ago when he did his first study.
https://www.flickerpower.com/index.php/search/categories/wind-power/21-6-short-term-fluctuations-in-the-supply-of-wind-power
I only saw the numbers in an email so I won’t reproduce them until Anton has gone public and he probably has already but I haven’t checked.
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FWIW – maybe the message is gotten?
“‘We Are Winning The Argument!’: Solar Blackout Prompts UK Great Reset Rethink”
https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2025/04/30/we-are-winning-the-argument-solar-blackout-prompts-uk-great-reset-rethink/
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FWIW
“Y2Kyoto: Baywatch”
That vanishing coast line!
https://x.com/EricLDaugh/status/1916131224000852355
Via https://www.smalldeadanimals.com/2025/04/30/y2kyoto-baywatch/
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Three years ago Mark Mills explained the net zero fra-d and con trick in about 5 minutes and every few seconds are packed with data and physics.
Definitely worth 5 minutes of our time and makes a quick, useful reference to send to the ignorant true believers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDOI-uLvTnY
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FWIW – noticing from outside
“TUCKER CARLSON SLAMS AUSTRALIA’S ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY: “PROFOUND HUMILIATION RITUAL” ”
https://richardsonpost.com/staff-writer-cauldron-pool/39474/tucker-carlson-slams-australias-acknowledgement-of-country-profound-humiliation-ritual/
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As expected: May Day! May Day!
Last weekend’s Newcastle Low* drifted across the Tasman Sea and wrapped itself around the islands of New Zealand (*clockwise for Northerners) providing a day or two’s surf up north and thigh-deep frigid snow for Mt Hutt and other southern ski areas.
Braindead State (BS) media is hyperventilating over a beaut little storm which poignantly arrived on May 1st and let loose with some wonderfully wild weather, its 987 hPa ‘eye’ just off the coast of the capital, in Cook Strait, this morning. Baring Heads CO2-monitoring site recorded sustained winds of 125 km/h with a gust of 160 km/h. Gosh it must be a Thursday!
Wellington residents were warned by their council to: “Take care when walking or cycling [due to] flooding and debris … fallen trees and powerlines or damaged infrastructure”. Newsreaders always have difficulty saying the word infrastructure, especially after attempting to ride their green e-bike to work in the middle of a raging storm at 5am.
And… it’s now Code Red: flying roofing iron, 8-metre swells, flooding, airports closed, blackouts and power outrages (!) and the snow keeps falling…
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Wonders of nature: the Yosemite firefall
https://va.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_svjblfEpOd1z23obp.mp4
Once a year the people gather hoping for ideal conditions.
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Headed down to Melbourne last night to see Hans Zimmer in concert, the concert was awesome, but once again these artists cannot stop adding some anti Trump political commentary.
While on the road into the city I caught a glimpse of some political posturing BS on one of the roadside bill boards, I usually do my darnedest to ignore any advertising, but this one caught me. It was an add for the SEC, with the tag, “Powering Victoria.” With what, what does this SEC actually do to power Victoria?
They don’t own and run the gas and coal power stations, they don’t own and run the solar and wind “farms” The SEC is just another government bureaucracy employing more public serpents sucking on the teat of our paid taxes. I wonder how many of the older Victorians see this as oh, power generation is back in State control, wow how awesome, while the youths would have no damn idea, and thinks this is great and just vote for the idiots who thought this was a good idea.
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I think Australia has now passed the critical threshold such that a decline into a failed state is inevitable.
We will become a “socialist paradise” much like Venezuela, although we haven’t yet had to resort to eating the zoo animals.
Australian Governments (states and federal) have already shown their propensity for authoritarianism, socialism, censorship, massive wasteful spending, massive taxation, useless projects, plus we have an inept Opposition party (Liberals) etc..
It’s not going to end well.
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Congratulations on joining the big picture club.😁
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Star Wars has arrived: the Volonaut flying bike
https://x.com/Volonaut/status/1917564614109454393
No propellers, claimed 200km/h top speed, runtime unknown.
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What – no wipeout section?
Wipeout crashes are the best, especially in the river with all that gravel and rock and dust…
Meh, I’ll stick to my electric skateboard on the road.
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Given that it doesn’t generate any lift and relies entirely on jet motors to generate vertical thrust, I don’t imagine its endurance would be much more than about ten minutes with a package of that size.
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Only 48 hours to go for you to vote for your choice
Major parties
Lunatics
Morons
Mentally retarded.
Or Minor parties and Independents
No hopes
Very, very little hope.
We have a compulsory voting system (unlike the UK & USA) so the majors can get money from the number of voters.
End compulsory voting.
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