As prophetic as I may be
1 I don’t see myself as being particularly gifted in prophetic wisdom, but on at least three occasions in 2019 I said that it would take an event of catastrophic proportion to wake the Australian population from its malaise over climate heating.
That it has happened gives no pleasure to my words. That they make for a catalyst for action does.
The unsurprising drop in Scott Morrison’s approval rating confirms my prediction that the public mood for action is as hot as the flames that have caused so much devastation.
Although the Prime Minister is still insisting on a no-change policy it is as obvious as the nose on one’s face that he will have to move with the mood or get run over by a bus.
The Prime Minister’s interview with David Speers did nothing to change my view that he and his government are guilty of the greatest incompetence.
Every word he uttered that referred to environmental problems we needed to overcome are ones that could have been acted on two years ago.
Various warnings were thrust upon a deaf-eared government. Finally, at least the public knows that Morrison and his predecessors have been lying by omission about the carbon credits for almost a decade.
Four points:
(i) The PM has at long admitted that he intends using carry over credits to meet our targets. If he does so the rest of the world will view us as cheats. The credits are 50 per cent of our target. Why had he not mentioned the credits in years past?
Again, it’s called lying by omission.
It is unfortunate but fitting that the Australian government is now scorned and reviled around the world. It’s a unique achievement that only conservatives could pull off.
(ii) If the credits are not allowed, and this is highly likely, then we will not reach our targets and the rest of the world will view us as no better than Trump’s US. Deservedly so.
(iii) Using the “We only produce 1.3 per cent emissions” argument doesn’t cut it either. All the countries around this figure in total form one third of the world’s emissions.
Imagine being part of that group and doing nothing.
(iv) Nor will the excuse of damaging the economy or losing jobs. The opposite is the truth. There are more jobs and economic pluses in an economy that takes advantage of renewable energy.
I have been espousing these points for 7 years now but coal always seems to get in the way.
The disaster that has been the recent bush fires might also have been the catalyst for some truth telling about Rupert Murdoch’s News Corps lying media.
That the Fourth Estate as the custodians of the public’s right to know might act responsibly and report fact and not just express biased opinion.
2 Anyone who has had the misfortune of reading any Murdoch masthead or watched Sky News would be sympathetic too to the views published last week of the younger Murdoch and daughter in law regarding climate heating and the companies reporting of the subject.
James and Kathryn Murdoch are quoted as saying that:
“They are particularly disappointed with the ongoing denial of the role of climate change among the news outlets in Australia, given obvious evidence to the contrary.”
Anyone that has a capacity for thinking would know that Murdoch journalists, opinion makers, editors and news presenters would know that Murdoch media has been misrepresenting the science of climate change for as long as I can remember.
Finding the truth and reporting it is more important than creating a narrative where controversy matters more.
Recently News Corp commercial finance manager Emily Townsend who resigned in December gave Murdoch a serve for spreading “misinformation” about climate change.
Walking out the door she sent an email:
“I find it unconscionable to continue working for this company, knowing I am contributing to the spread of climate change denial and lies,” the email said.
“The reporting I have witnessed in The Australian, the Daily Telegraph and the Herald Sun is not only irresponsible, but dangerous and damaging to our communities and beautiful planet that needs us more than ever now to acknowledge the destruction we have caused and start doing something about it.”
Lying in the media is wrong at any time, however when they do it by deliberate omission it is even more so. Murdoch’s papers seem to do it with impunity.
Media Watch on 9 September 2013 gave us a snap shot of what Rupert Murdoch did for Tony Abbott. They reported that:
“The final tally of (the Daily Telegraph’s) coverage in the election campaign stacks up like this. Out of a total of 293 political stories we scored only six as pro Labor. While 43 were pro coalition. On the negative side there were just five articles that we judged to be anti-coalition. While a remarkable 134 were anti Labor.”
That summary takes no account of the front page splashes that ridiculed Labor, day after day. Or the coverage by Murdoch’s other papers outside Sydney.
In the media – generally speaking – balancing a proposition (the amount of space you give it) is attributable to the volume of evidence each side of the debate brings to the table. When 95% of Climate Scientists say we have a problem one would expect that their argument would deserve the greater exposure.
To do otherwise is to display a bias for whatever reason. In his quarterly essay “Bad News,” Robert Manne analysed climate change articles printed by The Australian newspaper between January 2004 and April 2011 and found that 700 articles were “unfavorable” to action on climate change. Balanced against these 700 articles, there were 180 stories and columns ‘favorable’ to action on climate change.
That is, they disagreed with the consensus of climate science, didn’t support Australia’s ratification of the Kyoto protocol or didn’t support previous governments’ steps towards a carbon-trading scheme.
Murdoch is responsible for this and it continues today. The Australian some time back had to write a correction and then a retraction on misrepresenting the latest IPCC report where the paper deliberately and falsely reported the data and findings. The Australian in their retraction stated the errors were due to errors in their production process.
Then of course we have Andrew Bolt; that champion of all things contentious. A Murdoch man through and through. Global warming denial is his speciality and he has been writing rubbish about it for years, in spite of the fact that on a few occasions his dishonesty has been revealed he still commands an enormous Murdoch audience.
Shock Jock Alan Jones also has been made to retract lies on this subject and when he has done so increased his audience. Brainwashing is indeed their forte.
And so we have a landslide of anti-science propaganda from all around the world. From religion, from the media, big business, self-interest groups, the mining industry and neo-conservatives from the lunatic fringe of right-wing politics.
“Why is it so?” Prof Julius Sumner Miller once asked.
Murdoch is the supreme commander of the troops. It would be naïve to think that Murdoch isn’t expecting something in return for his support. It may not be spelt out but it will be implied.
We don’t need science to be hijacked by the likes of this boorish primordial example of capitalistic gluttony.
My thought for the day
The ideas of today need to be honed with critical reason, factual evidence and scientific methods of enquiry so that they clearly articulate the currency of tomorrow.
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Return to home pageOh dear JL , I wish your words gave me some comfort.
I see no chance of an awakening by this government anytime soon, and Albo is rushing to keep in step.
We are doomed.
On ya John lord ,, well articulated on Murcock and his puppet papers and Journalists !
MURCOCK ,( Truely is the master of his puppets !!!!!! )
They get paid to lie and deceive , spread mis-information , The lengths ,theses puppets go to sell out for money !………………………………………………………….
( The love of money is the root of all evil ) – Bible quote ,
Look forward to some social justice articles from you John through the year,.
( Let the rich – become Poor !. And the Poor – become Rich !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! .)
The head Moron is the ugliest in Australia, inside and outside the skull. A drenched and rotten superstitious righteous fool, he defies truth, decency, facts to live in a world driven by mystery, fantasy, fraud and foolishness. Mediaeval misfits are not fit to make decisions (I would’t let the Moron choose a car, wine, coat, movie, for anyone) so we must work to get these deficient types OUT.
Will do Jano.
Thanx John …cheers ,
JL you are being reasonable, a quality that simply does NOT exist in the parlance of the Smirko Morriscum Liarbral Nazianal$ misgovernment.
“Anyone who has had the misfortune of reading any Murdoch masthead or watched Sky News”
Viewer surveys show that SKY News (Propaganda) reaches only THREE PERCENT (3%) of the viewing public, mostly in my experience the psychotic losers looking for an excuse for their own failings. (OK, so it is a sample of one (1) in a population of 25,000).
Wishful thinking, it will take multiple disasters of unimaginable magnitude to awaken the sheeole
If the lnp really want to use ‘Kyoto credits’, lets make it emission reductions AFTER the Kyoto protocol was ratified in parliament.
Once again John, I totally agree with all that you have said, the unfortunate problem is that the majority of Australian voters will have forgotten all about this by the time the next election comes around, unless the bushfires are still burning and most of Australia is a blackened ruin.
People have short memories and are easily fooled and bribed. This government are liars, thinking people all know that, but most voters are in the position now (this has been an obvious tactic since Howard) of just trying to make ends meet on a daily basis, throw them a little tax bonus at election time and you have their vote.
2-3 years is a long time until the next election to get rid of these lying thieving cretins, but I am eternally hopeful.
If we assume that Nature, or Mother Nature, if you prefer, is a conscious entity, then we may see this gigantic wake up that is being thrust upon us humans, as a final warning. We could even assume that Nature has suffered as well by giving us this warning, choosing to decimate the millions of hectares, choosing to eradicate the millions of critters, all with the purpose of waking us up.
This current disaster has had the purpose of waking up the world, showing us all the reality of climate change, no longer an intellectual exercise but our new reality. Various tipping points grow closer every moment, “our house is still on fire and we have done nothing”, whilst we live our collective delusion that politics and politicians will save the day.
What a choice, the sanctimonious smirker or me too albanese, all being played out world wide, each country with its own affliction, a fcking deadbeat at the helm.
Wakey wakey everyone, Nature hasn’t finished with the warnings, this is just the start.
“an event of catastrophic proportion”
I felt the same after the Chernobyl meltdown.
However, when there’s a dollar to be made …
As for Bolt still commanding an enormous Murdoch audience, that just confirms my opinion of a large % of the Australian people in my gloomier moments.
And while Rupert can’t last for ever, I hear Lachlan, heir apparent, is even more conservative than old Rupert, if you can imagine that !
I expect he will inherit a large audience of “quiet Australians”.
Wow what a giggle today, lord. Not often do you hear the sound of no one agreeing with you?
The prof’s question led to science and not commerce and I miss his honesty and energy..
Your causerie describes the advertising industry to a T in that omission, innuendo and techniques to give people alternative truths are vital.. Rupert and the morning shows are sellers who know honesty doesn’t sell but truth does whether it is true or not.
Consequently to tell the truth of the moment overcomes honest reporting..
Outright lying, beyond as an escape from pressure, a la the rabbott, is rare but lying through ignorance ie truth, is rampant on facebook, eh lord?
ps not just murdoch, remember this??
pps
how is the religious fiasco progressing??
The bill also contains a protection for “associates of religious individuals” to protect people from discrimination based on the religion of their friends or relatives, such as discrimination against a woman because she married a Muslim man.
More than incompetence and beware of false prophets, starting with Morrison and Murdoch.
Thanks John, another Xclnt article.
Surely it’s against Australia’s national interest to have a foreigner, (Murdoch), control a monopoly of print media and interests in television and radio. Legislation must be enacted to outlaw this from happening, we must demand that his propaganda empire be broken up. Has any party got the balls to do what’s best for the Australian people?
Murdoch finds these politicians who have an unfettered belief in an invisible friend as easy prey.They have proven their gullibility therefore are willing disciples of Murdochs subterfuge. He gives them limited power all in the knowledge that he is the king maker and he and only he can also turn them into feather dusters. In return Murdoch gains more power and much more wealth. Ain’t democracy grand.
I second what Stefano said ….100% ,,Break free Australia ..Become Independant ,,
Get out of our nappies to other countries ..Lets not be controlled by any one .!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
.Australia ..should be run by Australians ! ..Australia first .! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
( Not money first – For the Mur Cock empire !!!) – Aussie news and media duped -subservient to its slave master – MUR Cock !!! – Illuminatti…..
Nothing less .Nothing more ..
Get ya Balls to the walls and piss of foreign take over’s in this country ..!
trouble is, which party is Australia first ! – ON ya , Stefano .! …………………..
Michael West and Greenpeace have produced a very interesting documentary/report called Dirty Power. This is just a taste of what they report:
“Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s senior staff is dominated by former executives and employees of the coal industry, its lobbyists, and pro-coal mastheads at News Corp. They include:
• Scott Morrison’s Principal Private Secretary, Yaron Finkelstein, was the former CEO of Crosby Textor (now C|T).
• Morrison’s chief of staff, John Kunkel, was previously Deputy CEO of the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) and a lobbyist for Rio Tinto.
• News Corp staffers dominate Morrison’s communications team, including his speech-writer, Matthew Fynes-Clinton (formerly with The Courier Mail); his press secretary, Andrew Carswell (formerly chief of staff at The Daily Telegraph); and advisor Thomas Adolph (formerly with The Australian).
• Stephanie Wawn, a senior Morrison advisor, previously worked for Capital Hill Advisory, whose clients have included coal miner Glencore, as well as the pro-coal think tank the Menzies Research Centre.”
http://act.greenpeace.org.au/dirtypower
It explains a great deal. You can either watch the documentary (15 mins) or download the report if you are interested.
The IPA, of which Sir Keith Murdoch ( Rupert’s father ) was a founding member and strident advocate, has the commercial media as its propaganda purveyor and the Right wing Parties as its political arm.
Its membership is thoroughly commercial and entirely avaricious, with tremendous resources of both money and property as well as a sense of self-righteous priviledge.
We, the hoi polloi exist only by their patronage, and only for as long as we serve some usefulness in their endless greed for even more wealth and power.
Trouble is how do we stop the likes of Murdoch………..
KL,well at least he’s been well advised,and doesn’t it show? To back up this excellent advice, he’s got the happy clappy prayer group and some f*cking conspiracy theorist to round out the inner circle.Makes one wonder why it’s all going so well.Wonders will never cease.I trust the Lying Rodent was included for a fat consultancy fee, otherwise he’d have to go out to the shed and rake his eyebrows in disgust.
KL,
Thank you for that link to info on the entourage trailing/leading Scott from marketing.
A dodgy cadre of coal courtiers and former presstitutes from Murdoch’s dens.
How utterly unsurprising.
Isn’t there a deeper problem that is not resolved by blaming Murdoch? Successive governments have allowed the concentration of print media ownership in this country to the point where the vast majority were essentially owned by two companies. On most causes they were Tweedle dum and Tweedle Dee.
If you analysed the editorial content of what was the Fairfax media I suspect the percentages would not be vastly different.
Successive governments have allowed this concentration of power. That is the real root of the problem. When did you last hear of a senior Labor figure making a speech against Australia’s endless addiction to fighting America’s wars? One of your earlier correspondents quoted the bible. I have another quotation: as you reap so shall you sew.
The Australian public is the author of its own misfortunes for allowing this sorry state of affairs to develop and continue.
The Dirty Power listings made for shuddersome reading.
We need to start thinking in terms of an actuality, an entrenched and long term Murdoch dictatorship. Morrison is only a pathetic meat puppet.
Think once again to the $hundred billion plus costs of the bushfires alone, let alone water and envir opolicy as a whole as some thing imposed by fiat against advice; think how it transpired that the fires disaster even occurred, both long and short term and you will recognise from history a regime quite as dislocated from reality, deeply greedy and ego driven, as mad as the regimes that had tens of millions killed in the world wars of last century.
Nor is Murdoch any more than a satrap.
He is part of a collusion that dominates the globe and others even further up would bust him in a moment if he did other than what he does.
Paul Walter,
A demonstration of the malignant influence of Murdoch’s corporate empire on straya’s allegedly democratic process is the fact that our last federal election debate was not hosted by our free-to-air national broadcaster the ABC (who are theoretically bound by a charter of accuracy and impartiality), but instead held on a pay-per-view channel (Sky ‘news’) that is happy to give a sympathetic platform to self-confessed nazi sympathisers with criminal convictions, not to mention being owned by a person who has not only overseen systemic corruption and criminality in overseas law and politics (phone hacks, judicial bribes et al), but has also paid out money to officially become an un-Australian citizen.
The fact that the ALP either acquiesced to or colluded with hosting the election debate on pimp-tv is added salt to the wound.
And then there is 2GB….
2GB’S COAL CONNECTIONS
“Besides his controlling interest in radio station 2GB, John Singleton is a major shareholder in TerraCom and Bonython Coal.
Bloomberg shows Singleton’s Bonython Coal with 55.9 million shares in TerraCom, or 14.09 per cent of the issued capital.
Singleton’s friend Wal King, formerly the head of mining contractor Leighton Holdings, is a director and shareholder in junior coal miner TerraCom, which bought Rio’s Blair Athol mine in Queensland for $1 in 2016, four years after it had closed.
The company has interests in the Bowen Basin and Singleton’s Bonython Coal last year underwrote TerraCom’s $15 million capital raising. Further, King and Singleton also have interests in the Galilee Basin and therefore a personal interest in seeing Adani’s rail project succeed as it would open up the Galilee for other coal miners. The TerraCom portfolio controls the Hughenden tenements which sit to the north of the Galilee.”
And Matt Canavan’s brother John….
Australia’s Stanmore Coal said it had received a takeover proposal from privately held Winfield Energy valuing the coal miner at up to A$435 million.
Privately held Winfield Group has boosted its coal exposure this year, buying a 12.5-percent stake in Queensland’s Rolleston thermal coal mine from Japanese trading house Itochu in February, which gives it access to 2 million tonnes a year of thermal coal.
It is run and owned by former executives of top U.S. coal producer Peabody Energy (BTU.N), including Managing Director John Canavan and Executive Chairman Rob Hammond.
“While Matt Canavan says it’s not necessary to disclose his brother’s coal interests, it wouldn’t help even if he did. John doesn’t actually own Winfield— since last November the 59 per cent Canavan stake is held by John’s wife, Tanya. Completely arm’s length then.”
https://www.afr.com/rear-window/matt-canavan-s-family-obsession-with-coal-20190822-p52jm0
KL,
Are you providing evidence to suggest that singleton’s persistent sponsorship of rabid climate denial was impurely influenced by motivations of personal profit?
Perish the thought.
The people who deny the science are either doing so for a profit motive or they have chosen to believe the people who are rather than the people who know. Singo chooses who he employs. Jones has cost them a fortune in litigation yet he still gets a guernsey. Imagine if people chose to attack Jones the way he attacks others. There is plenty of ugly ammunition. But that’s not what progressives do.
It is past time to take off the gloves,these pricks are playing the whole country for mugs.
Who knew?It is always about the
MONEY.
“Prophecy provides us with foresight into the mind and heart of God. We see what He sees and our life opens up to new developments. Without insight however, many prophetic words are relegated to words in a file. It is possible to live with a sense of promise but have small means of fulfillment.” – graham cooke
or
http://www.spiritofislam.co.in/spiritnew/index.php/prophetic-wisdom
ps
albo cannot win against, smirko, whomever the lnp have, hanson, di natali and his boys and murdoch witouth feeding controversy to the morning shows.
pps
spot on harry booby’s caravan got the loonies an extra $3m money overcomes lots of principles
Harry Lime,
Ever been in one of those conversations where, no matter what the subject, some pettily obsessed bore is constantly injecting with garbled invective about what a bitch their ex-wife is?
I have reread many of my posts and see that they show me not to be a nice person and I am sorry to say much of my negativity is directed toward the lord both gammon and real.
I apologise to all I offended both un and intentionally especially to this author.
Thanks Wam. Your comments have been hurtful at times and I have failed to understand the reason for them. However, l hold no grudges. Please continue to voice your opinion tempered by your experience and judgement.
Corvusboreus,
The wisdom of the ages has taught me to ignore the ignorati. Unless it is particularly egregious,which seems to be rather often these days.By some strange quirk of fate, my current opponent tolerates my foibles.
Good of you to do that, wam.
Harry Lime,
Here’s to the tolerance of foibles and the foiling of intolerables.
Yes corvusboreus.
Also unknown knowns and known unknowns.
I see John Lord offers Wam enough rope to hang him/herself?
Headline should read as Pathetic as I may be in relation to the photo of our hapless PM.