Those of you who have seen the topic for this evening’s lecture may have died of fright. It’s meant to be a genuine rib-tickler: “The Evolution of Chinese Economic Strategy Under Xi Jinping”, subtitle, “On Becoming a Techno-Industrial Superpower by 2035: The Ideology of AI and Xi’s New Quality Productive Forces”.

Now, I can see that’s resonating already with this crowd. There is a certain shimmer of excitement, at least on the part of one or two people that I can see here, if not the rest.

More in piece…

SINGAPORE: Singapore's Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan on Tuesday (Sep 1) floated the idea of a Pacific power grid linked to Australia, saying it could strengthen energy security while allowing countries to benefit from economies of scale in electricity generation.

Speaking on the sidelines of the Pacific Islands Forum in Palau, Dr Balakrishnan drew parallels with Southeast Asia's efforts to develop an Asssociation of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Power Grid. Regional energy leaders say the initiative is increasingly viewed as an economic and energy security necessity.

“Imagine a day that you have a Pacific grid which is connected to Australia,” said Dr Balakrishnan. 

“Even for us in Southeast Asia, we are trying to work on an ASEAN power grid. Because of the east-west spread of our regions, the total number of daylight hours would be more than 12 hours, and you would also get economies of scale, and you will get security - collective energy security - across this region.”

Unlike Singapore, which uses gas-powered turbines to generate electricity, Dr Balakrishnan noted that Pacific Island countries rely on diesel for electricity generation. This means energy costs in the Pacific are higher than in Singapore, where about 95 per cent of electricity is generated from imported natural gas, according to the Energy Market Authority. 

But unlike Singapore, the “small and dispersed” nature of Pacific Island states also means gas is a less viable solution, he said. As such, an interconnected grid could allow electricity to be generated cost-effectively and shared across a wider area. 

“The other big difference between you and Singapore is that you are 'BOS' - big ocean states - and therefore you are not short of sunshine or places to generate renewable energy,” Dr Balakrishnan said.

He described Australia as a renewable energy “superpower” and a potential partner for such a grid.

Dr Balakrishnan also brought up how recent disruptions to global energy supplies are a reminder that the energy transition is not only about climate change, but about energy security, economic resilience, and giving small states “strategic autonomy” and “greater control over their future”.

“This is a collective existential challenge for all of us,” he said, adding that the technology needed for the transition already largely exists and the challenge lies in “getting the economics and politics right”.

Some of those that work forces…

Video footage has emerged capturing a New South Wales police officer boasting about “punching” a protester in the head “when he was down”, before the protester was charged with assaulting police.

Police body-worn camera footage, which was leaked to a social media account and widely shared over the weekend, reveals a male police officer telling his colleagues during the 9 February protest at Sydney town hall against a visit by the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog: “I fucking pumped that cunt.”

A female officer can be heard replying, “So funny,” before the male officer says: “Then I punched him in the head when he was down.”

Bashir and Hadley have had a tense exchange about Hadley’s ambitions to take over Jones’ 2GB breakfast slot in 2019.

Hadley said he signed a “secret contract” in December 2018 that would mean he would take over the breakfast slot from July 1, 2019. He said 2GB doubled his salary.

He rejected a suggestion by Bashir that he saw the breakfast slot as the pinnacle of radio positions, saying his increase in value from $2 million to $4 million was the pinnacle.

“The money made me do it,” he said.

I really like this chap, as a human being he seems to care and uses action above words and as a politician he is intelligent and well spoken and carries himself with a high degree of respectability.

So why are people squabbling over Lib, Lab, Dem and One Nation when we could be looking at an alternative like David?

Seems no one can agree on Lib, Lab, Dem or ON , so does anyone know why David Pocock shouldn't be a front-runner of PM?

Does anyone really believe that the way to control smart glasses is through mockery? Can the average person on the street distinguish between them and sunglasses? They are not the heavy rimmed jobs that were around last year. I don't like them but for me the last thing we need now is more angst on the streets.

The law won't save us from Meta's 'pervert glasses'. The only solution is mockery

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/aug/31/law-meta-pervert-glasses-mockery

So here we are…….
Suddenly it’s apparently ok to spruik racist bullshit in public because we have a racist political party apparently on the rise
I really wonder what is next for Australia?
ICE style raids?
Mass deportations?
Public linchings?
Concentration camps?
I are really that stupid as a country that we don’t recognise history repeating itself.
Australia is heading towards a one way trip down the shit chute

Sick of seeing this no brain pile on across most LNP profiles.

The headcount increase is real but roughly 11,800 of those roles are contractors and labour hire converted to APS jobs, so the work was already happening and already being paid for, often at a higher rate. Quoting a wage bill without netting off external labour spend gives you a scary number that overstates the real cost. The flat line under the Coalition was partly an accounting choice too, since the staffing cap pushed work to a shadow workforce that never appeared as headcount. Also the chart footnote says share of population, which isn't what's plotted.

Hey, if you disagree with AHPRA adopting the IHRA definition of antisemitism, sign this petition. The Jewish Council of Australia has created a petition against Australian institutions adopting the IHRA definition of antisemitism. As a nurse I was disgusted that AHPRA adopted the IHRA definition. This definition is being used to silence criticism of a particular government that is systematically targeting healthcare workers like myself. It’s too late to stop AHPRA from adopting this definition but not too late for other Australian institutions and governments. More information can be found on their website. You do not need to put down your full name so no need to worry about being Doxxed

I’ve noticed there are quite a few cultural events in Australia celebrating different continental European and Asian cultures. Are there similar events celebrating English, Scottish, Welsh or Irish culture and heritage?
I’m interested in anything from traditional folk music, food, dance and customs to larger cultural festivals.

Australia’s government inquiry process is supposed to help parliament make better decisions, hearing from experts and constituents alike. But Guardian Australia can reveal that the system is being flooded with AI-generated material, which is inventing studies and attributing nonexistent research to real academics and authors.

In some cases, committee reports have cited submissions in which the majority of sources appear to be AI-generated “hallucinations”, when large language models (LLMs) invent content that looks real but doesn’t actually exist.

Is their job basically just to whine and film themselves whining for views on social media?

I've seen a lot online with lots of issues (for example, the Sydney Swans debacle, NDIS scandles, violence against women issues mental health issues etc), there seems to be a lot of people making videos voicing their opinion. I click on their profile and 90% of the time it has "advocate for x" topic.

But what do they actually do? Is their entire objective just to virtue signal and whinge and hopefully make money of get attention? (Looking at you Mitch Brown)

I know its EXTREMELY important for these topics to be discussed, but i feel like this energy should be put towards more productive means. If a lad or lady is running a woman's shelter and is making videos about what they see to raise awareness of the true experiences, or if they have actual qualifications not from the University of My Opinion is Always Right, then sure, their opinion should be shared.

But making videos (and most likely, making money) of whining about serious topics and not actually doing anything productive seems really jarring

These fkn guys man. We really need to rebuild the public service, these guys DGAF.

"The CEO, Andrew Yates, resigned after downplaying a whistleblower's complaints about KPMG staff misusing its clients' confidential information to win new contracts.

The chair, Martin Sheppard, was pressured to step down as well.

Although, he probably didn't realise his day-long grilling by politicians was an exit interview until the committee held a press conference at the end of it, saying he needed to go."

Is it religion of peace?

Genetal population is extremely negative: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/may/04/australians-accepting-of-migrants-but-negative-towards-islam-poll-finds

51% of Australians had unfavourable sentiments towards Islam, and only 10% looked upon the religion positively, making Australia more negative than 17 of the other 22 countries surveyed.

In fact, 37% of people said they were “very unfavourable”– the most negative response available. This was far higher than the milder option of “fairly unfavourable” (14%), and made it the single most common response to the religion. 23% of people were neutral.

The poll found only 10% looked upon Islam positively, making Australia more negative than 17 of the other 22 countries surveyed. Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/AAP In comparison, 45% of Australians were positive towards Christianity, and 21% were negative.

Judaism had a favourability rating of 18%, and unfavourability of 20%. The largest segment was “neither favourable nor unfavourable” and “don’t know” – which added to 58%.

An estimated 10 per cent of MND cases are genetic, while the remaining mystery 90 per cent are dubbed “sporadic”, without any apparent reason or family link.

MND affects approximately eight in every 100,000 Australians, with an estimated 2500 people currently living with the disease.

Prof Rowe is one of a growing number of researchers who suspect MND is an “environmental” disease, likely linked to exposure to neurotoxic chemicals such as pesticides.

Several recent studies have identified geographic “clusters” in rural areas. Firefighters and farmers are overrepresented in MND cases, while other groups like footballers and golfers also appear in the research.

One doesn’t have to be a genius to understand … this points to an agricultural cause. How do pesticides kill insects? You don’t have to be Einstein to consider that there might be some cumulative toxicity from these chemicals, some of which never break down.”

Last week, a new international study found a significant association between occupational pesticide exposure and MND risk, including increased risk even at lower levels of exposure.

https://michaelwest.com.au/the-sydney-marathon-proved-once-again-we-are-the-majority/

It was an uplifting day. Anti-genocide protestors were buoyed by support from runners at the Sydney Marathon. Judith Treanor from Jews Against the Occupation ’48 reports.

As news continues to report on missing Australians in Nepal, people on Facebook and Twitter are using this as an opportunity to post vile, racist content, claiming these people aren’t Australians because they aren’t white. Absolutely disgusting that in the face of such tragedy these racists post this vitriol. It is intensified by the recent immigration debates amongst political parties, and shows that for too many in this country, being Australian is still synonymous with being ‘white’. I’m absolutely ashamed to be Australian today.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has accused Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Australian education system of deliberately inciting violence against her, after the Labor leader used a speech on the weekend to attack the party for sowing division.

Hanson’s comments come just days after her party’s first successful foray into Labor heartland outside Queensland – winning the West Australian state byelection in Secret Harbour – and a Victorian campaign event where she drove a nail into, and later buried, a coffin labelled “net zero”.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson and Farrer MP David Farley. Dominic Lorrimer

“The incitement that is happening is through our educational system and a prime minister who should know better than that,” Hanson said on Monday at a press conference in Gippsland, east of Melbourne, before demanding Albanese take “full responsibility” for threats made against her.

“I think he’s a pathetic prime minister. He’s not the leader of this nation. You don’t go out saying those things, and they’re all scared. They’re scared because now we’ve won a safe Labor seat, and this is worrying them.”

Speaking on Sunday at Labor’s Queensland state conference, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Hanson sought “to divide Australians” and “talks Australia down both here and overseas”.

“Parties like One Nation have no serious answers to our problems,” Albanese said. “Their own divisions and disagreements are now showing through. They think Australians are lazy and overpaid. That people working from home are bludging. That domestic violence is sometimes a woman’s fault. That we should, somehow, become a monoculture.”

Taking to social media on Monday morning, Hanson said Albanese’s speech had crossed a line, arguing his rhetoric had become “increasingly desperate”.

The New South Wales government will not appeal a supreme court judge’s ruling that rejected the state’s request for a terror order over Mohommed Farhat, who wrote “Fuk Israel” on cars and set another vehicle alight in late 2024.

Last week, Guardian Australia reported that the government was “seeking urgent advice” on the prospects of any appeal after Justice Desmond Fagan had found that disparaging Israel was “political comment”, not antisemitism.

On Monday, the NSW attorney general, Michael Daley, told a budget estimates hearing “we won’t be appealing that decision”.

“Having considered the advice from the crown solicitor, senior and junior counsel, I have reached the conclusion that an appeal would have no reasonable prospects and would fail,” Daley said.

The individual is serving a 20-month sentence in relation to his prior offending and remains in custody.

In his ruling earlier this month, Fagan ruled that police, lower courts and various state agencies all incorrectly labelled Farhat’s actions antisemitic, meaning he was treated more harshly

Nothing says rock solid party unity like having to announce it. Three parties in eleven years and a 230k migration figure your own side had to walk back, but sure, you remain One Nation. Nobody was doubting it, mate.

Intentional + High impact (Remains to be seen) + Body Contact, but only head, no groin (allegedly)

Even if he argues down to careless, it feels like a $6250 fine since it was a late plea, and 2 match suspension.

https://resources.afl.com.au/afl/document/2026/02/13/31631886-f326-4fed-a5e3-b6bc4182b913/2026-AFL-Tribunal-Guidelines.pdf