#WarRavagedPortland

Well done former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in his interview yesterday. “If Trump abuses them, seeks to bully them, puts crippling tariffs on them, countries will naturally edge closer to China,” the former prime minister said.
if you suck up to bullies, you just get more bullying.

Turkiye was also mixed up in all these deals. Now let's watch some new ones emerge as they all work together to form a government. Israel taking credit for weakening Iran and Hezbollah! There's truth in that!

Russia then made a deal with the rebels that they would allow Russia to keep their port and access to the Mediterranean in return for not intervening in the push to take over. The rebels had the green light to proceed. Assad fled to Russia. Deal done! Politics is all about deals (syn. negotiation).

Come on people! So many pundits expressing surprise at the speed of this rebel takeover of Syria. Here's what I think. Assad went to Russia and was told he couldn't be supported militarily any longer because Russia needed the men and weaponry for Ukraine. He was told to get his family and wealth out

Australia has become the first country in the world to ban social media for children under 16 after the Albanese government’s legislation passed the Senate late last night. The government will take up to a year to run trials and finalise the regulations before they come into effect.

America - you've been conned! The tariffs are designed to take money out of the hands of everyday citizens and build a massive war chest for Trump and his cronies. Tariffs are a great big new TAX!

Have you ever wondered why Trump picks those people for high office despite a dangerous lack of any qualifications? We know they are loyalists but they are also telegenic. He watches a lot of television and wants people who can perform well on air spruiking his crazy messages.

And another one bites the dust.... Looks like it got too hot in the kitchen for Matt Gaetz. Oh wait! Did he just say that he was becoming a distraction for King Donald and hogging the limelight? Can't have that!

Congratulations to the Maori people of Atearoa for mounting the biggest protest ever seen against a parliamentary bill to remove some of their rights enshrined in the Treaty of Waitangi. If white supremacists think they can pull down societal values to enrich themselves - think again.

Here are some sobering statistics. Unless the US does something about their education system, they will continue to slide backwards and have a growing underclass dependent on welfare. Advancing technology requires workers at many levels to be well educated.

Trump's simplistic solutions might appeal to the poorly educated but they don't wash with the rest of us both in the US and abroad. The US has always deprived poorer communities of quality education. Time for a big change.

According to Google Search data as reported in the SMH today, American women are embracing South Korea’s controversial “4B” movement – no dating, no sex, no marriage and no babies – in the aftermath of Donald Trump’s win.

Hi from Australia