Is it hypocritical to write an op-ed about my hatred of op-eds and how they are an outdated medium? Probably, but fuck it, hear me out, and I’ll explain why “I hate free speech in the marketplace of ideas.”
Tag: bullshit
Why Morrison and Taylor talk is BULLSHIT
his rebrand was so consistent that ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods, Chevron CEO Michael Wirth, Shell Oil President Gretchen Watkins, BP America CEO David Lawler, and American Petroleum Institute President Mike Sommers all touted their commitment to a “low carbon” or “lower carbon” future in their scripted opening statements. And what are these low carbon solutions? Largely natural gas, which as science has repeatedly shown, is roughly as bad for the climate as coal when methane leaks and total emissions are added to the equation. Natural gas is so problematic that to meet the 1.5 C Paris goal, production will have to decline 3 percent per year to 2030, starting last year.
If there is one lesson to be learned from these executives, it is that their climate pledges depend almost entirely on convincing members of Congress that they are doing something that they are clearly not doing: significantly reducing emissions from their products over the next ten years.
Enter natural gas, the “low tar” cigarette of fossil fuels.
Source: How ‘Low Carbon’ Energy Became the New ‘Low Tar’ Cigarette | The Smirking Chimp
Philip Morris announced it would UNSMOKE the world and is better than any public enforcement or Quit campaign.
In recent years, “corporate social responsibility” has been viewed by some as the answer to the multiple failings of capitalism. Chief executives have responded to all sorts of problems – worsening climate change, widening inequality, soaring healthcare costs and so on – by promising their corporations will lead the way to solutions because they’re committed to being “socially responsible”.
Source: Why corporate social responsibility is BS | Robert Reich | The Guardian
Guess who was wearing a mask
With Australia under pressure from China, the French President declared: “You are at the forefront of the tensions that exist in the region, of the threats, and sometimes of the intimidation. I want to reiterate here how much we stand by your side.” “We are good friends, we are good partners”, Morrison told Macron later in remarks over an official dinner. “We share common goals and we share common values and that’s why our partnership with liberty and affinity I think is one that we’ll be able to progress further this evening.” ‘It’s a stab in the back’ What the PM didn’t mention was that he had just held talks in Cornwall with US President Joe Biden and UK PM Boris Johnson about a proposal for a tripartite alliance, the most spectacular immediate element of which would be dumping the $90 billion plan underway to build French submarines in Australia in favour of some (yet to be worked out) plan to build American (or British) ones (for some unspecified amount of money). In fact, nobody bothered mentioning this rather significant change of heart to the French until hours before the announcement was made jointly, with much pomp early on Thursday morning Australian time, with Morris
Source: Australia’s nuclear submarine deal fundamentally changes our relationship with the world – ABC News
Morrison is telling us it will be “safe” to open up when fully vaccinated. Israel proves he’s bullshitting and pandering for the next election.
Israel has begun offering a COVID-19 booster to children as young as 12, and its prime minister says a campaign that began a month ago among seniors has slowed a rise in severe illness caused by the Delta variant.
Source: Israel offers COVID booster vaccine for ages 12 and above | Coronavirus pandemic News | Al Jazeera
Given current polling and the vaccination schmozzle, the odds are favouring the government hanging on to the benefits of incumbency as long as possible, hoping the vaccine bungles will fade, the shots work, peace breaks out over our internal borders, and the promises of opening up start to look more credible. That would mean a repeat of the 2019 timetable – an April budget ahead of a May election. Given the government’s denial, dissembling and deflection over blatant and systemic corruption last time, fasten your seat belts for even more rorting of the public purse for political purposes.
Source: Michael Pascoe: Beware the promises in next election budget
Anyone who argues the Trump Republican rioters were mere tourists, were sekrit FBI agents, or Antifa in disguise, are lying. It’s clear what the Republican Party is defending in this video: rabid white nationalists using violence in an attempt to overthrow democracy.
Source: New Body Cam Footage From Jan 6 Shows A Lack Of ‘Tourists’ | Crooks and Liars
The Minerals Council of Australia, a foreign-controlled mining lobby, has duped Australia’s major media in an $80bn PR scam by falsely claiming more than $72 billion of GST payments to exaggerate the contribution of the minerals industry to Australia. Callum Foote reports.
What the Fuck? To pull this family out of the miserable bog our government has dropped them in, we need no “courage,” no “ifs” no “buts” and no Old Testament-type laws to hide behind. No “thou shalt nots!” It is simply evil to do the inhumane thing, the barbaric thing, the thing that is done in the darkest heart of a jungle. It is a quintessential part-and-parcel of being human. –– ADVERTISEMENT –– It’s what humans do.
Source: This word “courage” – » The Australian Independent Media Network
On March 16, eight people, including six Asian women, were shot and killed by a gunman who embarked on a shooting spree through three Atlanta spas. Despite evidence that the gunman targeted Asian businesses, Tucker Carlson skipped over any attempt to inform the public of the events that took place or to memorialize the victims, instead diving straight into attacking anyone discussing the potential role of race in the attacks as divisive.
Tucker Carlson shifts blame from white supremacists to Black people for rise in violence against Asian Americans | Media Matters for America
“A thing that happens when you lie compulsively for years…is that NO ONE F***ING BELIEVES YOU.”
But unless you say BULLSHIT he gets away with it and reinforces his behaviour. Why isn’t he being charged fro “Wilful Murder”? (ODT)
Timeline of Trump’s Illness Confounds Experts, But Critics Say What’s Clear Is President ‘Knowingly Exposed People’ to Covid-19 | Common Dreams News
We have been subjected to much nonsensical disinformation that Sweden has kept its economy open and is faring no worse in infections than countries with closed economies and without the economic consequences of closed-downed economies. The fact of the matter is that de facto Sweden’s economy is closed and is doing no better than anyone’s else’s, and its infection rate is still rising.
Sweden closed universities and high schools, banned gatherings of large groups, asked people to avoid non-essential travel, and advised those ill and over 70 to stay at home. Sweden did not require restaurants, bars, and gyms to close, but business is down by 70% as people have avoided the risk. That decline could be larger than in the US where restaurants are permitted to provide takeouts. In Sweden the hotel occupancy rate has dropped from 60% to 10%. Sweden’s economy is “open” only in words.
via In Effect Sweden’s Economy Is Also Closed, by Paul Craig Roberts – The Unz Review
Thankfully, The Guardian gave space to ecologist Graeme Redfearn to fact-check Barnaby’s claims and – surprise, surprise – they are false.
We were duped, but Blair, Bush and Howard got their invasion. The take-away lesson that they and other politicians learned was that you can fool all of the people some of the time and some of the people all of the time. To this day, John Howard has defended his decision and Australia’s role in the destruction of Iraq and Tony Blair has always stopped far short of admitting his deception.
My thought for the day
I used to believe that Americans were the only people in the world that believed their own bullshit but we are now their equal. John Lord
Soundbytes won the last election in Australia because of short memories and Media (ODT)
5. Trump claims that U.S. economy is better than ever
Trump obviously realizes that many Americans, like himself, have short attention spans. Democrats are much better at nuance, but when so many Americans respond instinctively to soundbites — not nuance or intricate details — Democrats are fighting an uphill battle. Trump has repeatedly congratulated himself for the United States’ low unemployment rates of 2018 and 2019, but the devil is in the details: the country was recovering significantly from the Great Recession when Obama was still president — and not all Americans have been feeling the recovery. But when Trump stresses that “our economy is better than it has been in many decades” and tries to take credit for it, his base is going to buy into it — even if they’re still struggling.
Women with imposter syndrome, take note: young, rich males are inclined to bluff and get away with it, a UCL study shows
For those of us who wonder what this government has actually achieved, the Liberal Party have provided a handy list of “key achievements”.
via The Liberal Party’s list of “key achievements” – » The Australian Independent Media Network
It was a promise of trickle down Bullshit and Trump delivered
“President Trump and Republicans gave huge tax cuts to big drug companies, big oil, and other corporations, but corporations are giving back little—if anything—to working families.”
by
via New Analysis of GOP Tax Scam Shows “Corporate Cheapskates” Not Sharing Windfall With Workers
With rapidly evaporating respect Mr Turnbull, that’s crap. The rest of the world is moving to fibre whilst you have made us a communications backwater, ranking 50th in the world behind places like Thailand, Estonia, Bulgaria and Kenya. With rapidly evaporating respect Mr Turnbull, that’s crap – » The Australian Independent Media Network
Bullshit. It’s so pervasive right now in our politics and media that we are losing respect for the truth. Disturbed by this barrage of bluff, a Princeton professor of philosophy Harry Frankfu…
Source: On Bullshit | The Failed Estate
“ISIL will claim that our involvement in this international effort is the reason they are targeting us, but these people do not attack us for what we do, but for who we are and how we live.”
Despite this narrative’s denial of the truth, the harsh reality is Australia has caused the threat to itself by striding clumsily with guns blazing and meddling in Middle Eastern affairs — something that began with military action in Afghanistan in 2001.
Last Monday, in a call for action against it enemies, ISIS urged its members to kill civilians and soldiers of the nations aligned against it, naming Australia.
They did this not because Australia is a liberal democratic country, but rather because Australia has allowed itself to become embroiled in Middle East politics and line up as an ally and soldier on the battlefield with the United States.
Why then would the PM come out and claim differently?
The prime minister is playing a political game, attempting to frame the threat to Australia in a way that absolves Australia as the cause of the threats itself.
Government needed to own the intervention and breakage it made, respectively, in 2001 and 2003 to show good faith with voters and to reduce the vicious Islamophobia we are now, unfortunately, seeing spread like wildfire through the community.
olddogthoughts 