APRIL 2017


SYRIA.

7th April:  The uncontested news today is that ~80 people in Syria have died of chemical poisoning as a result of bombs being dropped by Assad.  About 20 of the victims were children, and many of the civilians were found in their beds in houses surrounding the bomb target.

The Liberal media immediately castigated Assad for using chemical warfare against civilians.

The alternate explanation offered by Russia and Syria and various right wing media (e.g. http://thelibertarianrepublic.com) is that the target of Assad's conventional explosive bombs was a warehouse where chemical weapons were manufactured and stored.  The bombing caused the activation & release of the chemical weapons.

8th April:
  • Trump has bombed the Syrian airfield from which the bombers flew.
  • Reportedly the Russians were warned in advance & there were no Russian casualties.  Six Syrian military casualties are claimed.
  • The Russian response is furious.  Iranians and Syrians response so far is muted.
I assume that Trump had advice that the Syrians used gas.  We were not advised whether there was any advice that Assad might have used conventional HE bombs (as suggested by the Russians) on a gas warehouse and thus released ISIS gas.  Trump chose to believe the advisers who thought Assad had used gas and reacted accordingly.

Since this response by Trump I assume that all talk of senate investigations of a Putin conspiracy with Trump supporters and the possibility of impeachment is now dead.

Putin Is a smart man.  He has picked up on Trump's strategy without missing a step.

The Liberal media has suggested that Putin organized the gas bombing to give Trump an opportunity to righteously bomb the airbase.  I reckon they have it wrong.  Putin did not plan it.  Trump found an opportunity caused by unfortunate circumstances, and after listening to the Democrat's response he calculated his own response.

Trump caused very few Syrian deaths.  I suspect that the Russians would have warned the Syrians on base, but the slowest got caught.

I blame it all on Obama & Hillary.  If they had not caused the vicious Democrat response to Trump's election, including the Senate enquiry, there would have been no need for Trump to establish anti Russian credentials by an attack on the Syrian airfield.

Because let's face it.  Nobody denies it was a weapons manufacturing warehouse of ISIS.  It is predictable if a poison gas weapons manufacturing facility is bombed that poisonous gas might be released.  Trump chose to believe the adviser who suggested that the Syrian's used gas.

21st April;

OK so the Trump apologists are saying the gas was Sarin or Sarin lookalike.  They presuppose that (a) Sarin is higher technology than Isis could achieve, buy or steal, (b) That it was Sarin lookalike.

I am not outright sold on either


DPRKOREA

China's Xi is about to travel to the USA & meet Trump.

Trump appears determined to stop DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) from obtaining a nuclear threat to the USA.

Xi does not want THAAD in South Korea.

My prediction?  Both will get what they want.  And trade sanctions will be "reasonable", (meaning not ruinous to China, but more jobs in the USA.)

(The China Sea/Taiwan question is already settled.)

21st April;

Not war (Yet). 

The US probably has THAAD or Aegis or similar waiting on another missile firing.  Of course it could only be a test, but maybe an attack?

If DPRNK decides to bombard Seoul in the meantime, the USA has demonstrated a 10 tonne MOAB that would, no doubt, if carpet bombed on the artillery pointed at Saigon, eliminate that threat.

But my money is on a microdrone.

30th April

Kim fired off another medium range rocket.  It crashed before 50KM.

My suspicion? The chinese have sold the Koreans "doctored" chips.  But in any case, it looks as though DPRK has only empty threats of making nuclear war on Japan or USA.

I expect that either DPRK has caved or Kim is dead before June.


DEMALGAMATION

First they amalgamated Queensland councils, but I thought Queenslanders are ozzie rednecks and far away, and it could not happen here.

Then we heard the next Queensland government got elected on the promise referenda on de-amalgamation, which they won, and then hugely rigged.

Then they amalgamated councils in Victoria, which concerned me slightly.  Victorians are uncultured peasants who choose to live in an unfriendly climate amongst unremarkable architecture.  But they are proper Australians and don't think XXXX is God's greatest gift to mankind.

But still, when our NSW government was last elected I made a point of selecting the government that promised "NO AMALGAMATION".

NOW they have broken that promise, and are amalgamating NSW Councils.  We are fighting it in the courts, but even I can see, those crooked politicians are going to make so much money that we are stuffed chooks.


I am becoming quite disillusioned by the "Elite" who rule our "Representative Democracy".  I suspect that similar disillusions among other world citizens caused Brexit, Trump, Hanson, Wilder and Frexit.

In a representative democracy we vote for outcomes.  We select the political representative whose promises are most closely aligned to our desires.  Trouble is, many of our representatives are so busy with finance (Party & Personal) that our concerns are sold out.

I chose the Liberals because they PROMISED not to amalgamate local government.  I just do not want to risk joining up with Waverley, whose parking police are feral.  In Woollahra you have to call council and practically beg them to send a ranger if someone is on your driveway!

The biggest game in town at local government level is "BUILDING DEVELOPMENT".  Like who gets the license to build a 20 floor apartment when the local code is 10 floors.  Who gets beachfront rights?

Of course at State Government level "building development" is not quite as valuable compared to the "mining license power".  Just ask Jailbird Eddie.  Still, it is a good training ground.  So the issue for the Elite is, "what to do to make local government the preserve of the big parties?"  The short answer is, grow (i.e. merge) the councils.  It is then harder for local celebrities to gain power.

Presto! We will then have Liberal/Labor control of local government.  We will have political favours to hand out. Money making opportunities will exist!

Let us set the cat among the pigeons.

Lets create a DEMERGE party.  I would suggest that it give warning that, if it gains power at the next elections, their policy would be:
  • Reverse all council mergers unless a plebiscite shows that all parties wanted the merge.
  • Reverse all council deals made in the interim with developers. Developers to bear the costs associated.
  • Investigate (Royal Commission) any government members who appear to have directly or indirectly benefited from mergers.
Unless I am very much mistaken, the powers of the NSW government given under the NSW and Federal constitutions allow it to legislate as above:


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