The Native Iowan

I was watching TV and saw a well produced commercial asking for donations to aid “Homelessness”. A mini drama designed to provoke tears. Children, a battered mom, and old lady, a young male… all images to squeeze the heart and loosen the purse strings.

Makes me ponder the “Big Business” homelessness-do-gooding is:

I find that here in Aus: Total Government Expenditure (2024–25 Financial Year)Total recurrent expenditure by Commonwealth, state, and territory governments on specialist homelessness services was $1.8 billion in 2024–25 (equivalent to about $64 per person in the population).

And in the USA: The Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Homeless Assistance Grants (HAG), including the Continuum of Care (CoC) program, represented the largest single source, with appropriations around $4 billion. This funded shelters, permanent supportive housing, rapid rehousing, and services.

So, how many folks are homeless in the USA: The most recent official estimate of the homeless population in the United States comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)’s 2024 Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) Part 1, based on the Point-in-Time (PIT) count conducted in January 2024. This reported 771,480 people experiencing homelessness on a single night, the highest number since data collection began in 2007.

And here in Aus: Some advocacy or organizational reports (e.g., during Homelessness Week 2025) cite unofficial estimates around 135,000 people, suggesting a ~21% increase since the mid-2010s, but these are not derived from a new census and appear to be extrapolations.

This gives us: In Aus the nominal cost of homelessness is high, over 10k per head. In the USA it is higher numbers but lower per person cost @ around 5k per head.

I am confident there is more money that flows and more people that are involved. The numbers are seldom clean enough to make assumptions but, BUT… My idea is that “caring” for the homeless, doing-good is indeed big, big business.

I know a little bit about homelessness…

In the summer of 1977 I chose to be homeless. Yes, it was a choice between spending money to have a permanent place, or not to spend money. I had a clapped out, rusted out 61Ford. I worked various jobs, mostly labouring for construction. I was going to attend “higher education” in the fall of the year. So I chose to be homeless. My car’s back seat was big enough to fully lie down. I had a good tent and sleeping bag. Who needed to pay rent?

My choice at that time was to not have a “home” in the common sense of things. Of course my parents were able to offer me a bed, but in my Father’s house was ruled by my Father’s rules. I only showed up at the house when I knew my Father was not there.

I know that when discussing homelessness my example is weak. I never suffered, was never unable to care for myself, always safe. My choice to be homeless for a few months was based on monetary considerations. And my youthful ability to accept the conditions my homelessness created.

My elder brother and I would discuss homelessness and laugh about small things like “living in a tent”… when you live in a tent your world gets small quickly. It becomes very important to maintain your tent. When you live in/ out of a tent your world gets simple. Tho I knew what living in/ out of a tent my brother had much more insight, experience, knowledge…

My brother had spent the 1990s homeless, living in a tent. His choices were much different to mine. As a life-long abuser of substances my brother “ended up” in a tent, ended up homeless after he made his choices about substances.

His choices about substances got him kicked out of the US Navy in the 80s. After well over a decade in the Navy they’d had enough. My brother was very bright and very skilled. He’d entered the Navy straight out of high school, did well, excelled, travelled the world, was given security clearances, but always had issues with substances. After many interventions and detox sessions the Navy said enough is enough.

The next decade and more of my dear brother’s life was that of a homeless person. Much of that time my family had no idea where he was, if he was alive. It is only much later, after the turn of the millennium that he crawled out from his stupor.

As my elder brother, 5years older than I, he was the guy I looked up to. I was an early teen when he joined the USN. His annual visits on home-leave were highlights to my young male life. My brother always brought very cool stuff home. Exotic currency. Cool things like a full wet suit and snorkel gear. Knives and guns. Trinkets and curios from far and wide. The books he left behind were an influence. His stories of the great glorious world were mesmerising for a simple minded Iowa teen. We shared a bedroom when he came home on leave. He was great to be around… He bought a 4speaker turntable-unit stereo, then left it when he went back to duty. His left-behind gear were trophies to me… worn uniforms, boots, hats, and once an authentic USN Pea Coat. That Pea Coat was what I wore through many an Iowa winter.

Through this all he was a terrible drunk. I was too young then to understand the “substances”, and to his credit he never influenced me in regards to substances abuse. I managed that on my own.

When he came home he’d usually be very well behaved. Not out of order that I can recall. It was later in life that I learned my brother was a compulsive abuser. A compulsive drunk. A compulsive drug user. Once he got started he simply had no off button.

When the USN cut him off I was living overseas, teaching school on a remote Pacific island. We’d been exchanging letters for years. One day his letters simply stopped. It was several years later I learned what had happened.

When the USN cut him off his first reaction was to fall down the rabbit-hole. To run and hide and avoid reality.

That lasted over a decade.

In later years my brother and I would sit and talk. Exchange tales or world travel and risk and adventure. Though I had spent a short time in the 70s choosing to be homeless, I did not have the experiences of fringe dwelling my brother had.

He was very clear-minded with his thoughts and opinions when it came to homelessness. He considered it to be a matter of choice, a matter of circumstances that started with and ended with choices. He knew well that the choices he’d made ages ago led him to his homeless state, and, the choices he later made when homeless brought him, literally, home.

Part of the problem according to my brother is that while making bad choices he alienated his familial foundation. After so, so many bad choices, so much stretching and tearing of familial fabric, he’d lost all his friends, supporters, family. He was on his own. What happens when there is no one you can call to say “help”.

It was after the tent-city he was living in got bulldozed that he “woke up”. He was based in New Jersey when dumped by the USN. He ended up in Trenton. As a highly skilled metal worker/ welder he could always pick up small jobs. Even as a drunk, a junkie, he could earn enough money for the day, maybe the next. One day he returned to his tent in the tent-city to see the City Officials had decided to doze the place. Everything he owned, possessed, considered important was in his tent. That was the beginning of his “coming back”.

We were in Vegas in 2015. We threw a party for Mom on her Birthday. Had family fly in for a weekend. Called it “Granny Does Vegas”… As we walked around the Vegas Strip, my wife decided to put some money in a “homeless” person’s hat. My brother stopped her. He said that she was not assisting hime at all by giving him money. My brother put a couple cigarettes in the hat instead of money, explaining that money would only cause more of the same problems in that sorry soul’s life. He said that if one wanted to “help”, food was better, or a couple ciggs. But not money. Never money.

That eve, with the family, my brother discussed more about his belief that enabling the continuation of the bad habits/ choices was a profound negative. He was adamant that buying the homeless person a meal was much better than handing over a few dollars. That all the money did little more than maintain the sad status quo.

And, as we see above, it appears to be the gross sums of money that keep folks homeless. Support folks in their homelessness. Enable folks to be homeless. It is clear that the money being spent on an ever increasing population of homeless folks is not a remedy at all.

I know my simple examples are not definitive. There is much that is involved. Mental Illness is a huge factor. And according to my brother, in his words, “..once I didn’t give a shit, it was fucking difficult to change…”. My brother explained that it was a lot easier to fall down the rabbit-hole, than it was to crawl out.

A very old picture of my brother, Monk:

More later

I’m watching the Aussie Political Scene with a smile on my face. I find it quite entertaining, interesting.

I have written much about Politics A la’ Aussie. Here is a recent post: https://nativeiowan.com/2026/02/06/26-v2-party-politics-a-la-land-of-aus/

As I said then, I fear the Dunces are directing the show, managing the stage, printing the play-bills, making it all happen in a managed downward spiral. I have known, been a fan of The Land Of Aus for many decades. I retired and immigrated 15 years ago. I am proud to claim Australian Citizenship. Lucky to claim Australian Citizenship.

And I say “DAMN!” the place sure has changed. And not for the better.

The Political Scene is now a mess. In the past couple Federal Elections the two main parties within the two party system, The Liberal/National Coalition and the Labor Party, have been competing for who could out bid the other for the electorate… Free daycare, cash payment to power bills, free abortions, Paternity leave, MegaBillions to the great glorious green scam, MegaBucks to aged care, free university, free, free, freeeeeee….

Labor won by importing voters. Not building, no. Not building homes or roads or… But by importing new voters and promising them free stuff.

Sound familiar?

Very little has been done in regards to law and order, standards of education, healthcare, road systems, general infrastructure (mainly dams and water management), the rampant spending by elected officials (how many trips has Albo done this year alone?)…

And now, as the Proud Liberal/ National Coalition unravels at the seams, they think bandaids and last minute changes will help.

Labor as a political party is a farce, worse, a menace. Filled with Aus-hating members, the true roots of the Labor Party, Socialism, are clear for all to see. And the Coalition have thought their only chance of survival has been to follow Labor’s lead. Become Socialists too.

One Nation is the party that has held course, maintained equilibrium. For better for worse One Nation has been touting the same policy for 30 years.

All I can say is that being honest, faithful to your beliefs is important in life. This past of “Policy by Polling” has certainly failed. Failed for both Labor and the Coalition. Both are attempting, striving, fighting to find Success in Failing.

Just having a conversation with a friend. We don’t always and all ways agree on much, but we agree today we are both confused, perplexed, riddling through complex conundrums…

A group of “activists” enter a church during Sunday family worship, shout and accost, and they are said to be practicing their rights of free speech and assembly.

A group of “Muslims” kneel and pray in a busy public thoroughfare, are moved on by police, and we see outrage that a peaceful religion service is disrupted.

A father sells his underaged daughter as a sex slave in America and he is a heinous man engaged in trafficking.

A father sells his underaged daughter as a sex slave in Pakistan and we’re told it is part of his culture.

A grown man sodomises a young boy in the USA and he is a pedophile, a criminal.

A grown man sodomises a young boy in Afghanistan and we’re told it is part of his culture.

perplexing conundrums me thinks…

I see a couple interesting things happening that are worthy of note, worthy of comment…

We have heard the Dems state for ages that demanding an ID to vote would disenfranchise the black electorate, the minorities. Basically the claim is stating that the average black citizen, the average minority citizen Cannot get an ID. That getting an ID is “too difficult” for these folks. Basically, the rationale is that these folks simply are not smart enough to get an ID.

Now I hear the same rationale being used for female citizens. Yep, you heard it, females are not smart enough o get a legal ID. It is simply too hard. Glad my Mom ain’t around to hear this… She’d kick someone’s arse.

After many, many years of squirming through and around the issue… after we had St BarackO assuring all of us that there was no voter fraud, zero, zilch, nada… After evidence of fraud is on the table… The Dems keep their mantra up.

But we know different.

Why is the ID such an issue for the Dems – IF its wasn’t a big, big deal, essential to their existence?

I state for the record that I believe Citizens and Citizens alone have the right to vote. Anything less devalues Citizenship.

We have another shooting of innocents by what is reportedly another mentally ill individual.

CRIMECANADA
Canada mass shooting suspect had mental health issues
1 hour ago1 hour ago
The teenage shooter, who killed six people at a school after slaying her mother and stepbrother, had a history of police visits to her home. The suspect killed eight people. Five of those killed at the school were students aged 12 and 13, while the sixth was a teacher. The suspect is a transgender, that began to transition to female six years ago

I am confused and disgusted by a modern trend to allow, promote and support the mental illness that I believe is the “Trans” gig. I know many folks out there will disagree, be angry with me when I state Trans is a mental illness. My answer is basically that it was considered a mental illness until 2019:

Gender dysphoria refers to clinically significant distress or impairment arising from incongruence between one’s experienced gender and assigned sex at birth. This is a diagnosable condition in the DSM-5 (used by the APA), but the identity alone is not pathologized.
The WHO removed transgender-related categories from mental health disorders in ICD-11 (effective 2019), reclassifying “gender incongruence” under sexual health conditions.

It sure is a confused, sick world we share. A world on fire.

All I can say is “Wood not War”… And please, please, please leave the children alone.

Please

When the magician says “look over here” he is performing “sleight of hand”. Its call prestidigitation.

“Prestidigitation” means sleight of hand, especially the skillful performance of magic tricks using the hands; more broadly, it can also imply clever or deceptive trickery.

Deception and Trickery is the name of the game…

Sadly, nowadays, there is little that is skilful on our political stage.

Mostly I see ineptitude and plain ol dollars and cents. Ineptitude leads to the dollars and cents being spent foolishly, mistakenly, corruptly. Any “leader” or “official” or “functionary” that is any good at what they do, has “POLICY”. A plan. A direction.

I have been in trouble on the high seas a few times in my career. Ive spent some long, long hours simply fighting to stay afloat, to stay alive. And such is what I see in politics these days.

I do not see much positive policy. What I see is reactionary fighting for survival.

And worse, where there might be a bit of policy to guide and direct, those in “opposition” have nothing but negativity. No alternate plan or direction. No, just bile and outrage.

I see this clearly in Aus politics… Albo&Co are in their second term of driving this lovely land into the dirt. Inflation, cost of living, cost of everything, decrease in productivity and standard of living… And when a team like the “One Nation” party comes along with a plan for the future, all we get is “anti”… anti, anti, anti… a fight for the status quo. The status quo that is destroying us as a Nation. I am not saying I think One Nation has the answers, but they are not masturbating in public like the other fools.

In the USofA it’s the same. Being no fan of DJT, I do think his overall plan is better than what we have had. It has been a while since politics in the USofA has had any forward plan other than stay in power…

Places like LA, Seattle, NYC, etc are all allowing their standards to drop in order to maintain power. Sure, shit on the sidewalk. Sure, let kids out of school to go protest and call it a civics class. Sure, allow our children to become illiterate and still give them a diploma, because we’re such kind and sharing folks. Sure, agree that black folks are too stupid to get an ID, so allow everyone to vote. Again, lower the standards so everyone loses. As the incumbents stay in power.

I miss the ocean. I miss being small, being out on the briney-blue, defying nature and the odds… been too long… Here’s a fun tale of near death adventure…

More later

For those of my faithful readers that are not literate in regards to Politics A la’ Aus…

During one of my very first trips to Australia, somewhere in the mid 1980s, I had the TV in my hotel room on, and unknowingly was watching a session of parliament. I need to set the scene a bit… I’m visiting Aus from Solomons Islands where I was an “aid-worker”, living remote, enjoying zero, absolutely zero interaction with TV. It did not exist in the Solomons then.

So when I got my hotel room in Brisbane, I automatically turned on the boob-tube.

I know now that it is practice here for sessions of parliament to be televised. But back then, I initially thought what I was watching was some sort of spoof. A mix of Monty Python and Saturday Night Live… remember, this was the 80s.

I am watching as the speakers, Parliamentarians, yelled and heckled and laughed and shouted, and boo’ed and basically carried on like a bunch of fools/actors pretending they were the leaders of a Nation. I recall sitting there in wonder.

But I soon learned that what I watched WAS INDEED Aussie Parliament in action. It continues to this day…

Much like the night in late 1980, my brother and I are watching Saturday Night Live. Our 80 year-old grandmother is watching with us. She walked in as Chevy Chase and Jane Curtain were doing their “Weekend Update” skit. Granny thought it was the late news, but when Chevy started sticking his tongue out and making lewd gestures, as my brother and I laughed foolishly, Granny figured it out and left the room a bit peeved.

Now, over 40 years later… no longer a stranger in a strange land… a fully fledged Aussie (and proud of it)… I still find the televised sessions of Parliament to be a very comic and tragic skit.

The Political Scene here in Australia is still farcical.

Reminds me of an old line… “When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are all in confederacy against him.”

I do believe that the dunces have been in control here in Aus way too long.

More later

I am wondering this morning… pondering… ruminating… Where does all the Impotent Rage we are witnessing come from?

The septuagenarian in me places it one the modern, coddled, childish folks that have never suffered, been told no, been whooped, lost a fight, won a fight, been seriously punished in the corporal sense.

World wide we have a “soft” population that has bene invaded by a rock-hard population. A population that understands violence well. No doubt which “side” will win any altercation.

I often discuss the “Pussification” of the modern world…

Just had a conversation regarding the “modern generation(s)”… I still have calluses on my hands. They have been there since I was about 10. Sure, as an ol-fart my calluses are not what they once were. As my hands age and lose strength I tend to wear gloves. Maybe I am getting smart? doubtful… But my calluses tell a tale of labouring and hard work.

My hands are scarred and seldom do not have a contusion, a cut, or an abrasion. In many ways it’s kinda amazing I still have all my digits. My hands work. My hands do things. Hold tools, fix machines, handle livestock, build, work and suffer.

The modern world, just perhaps, have let their hands go soft?

NAFTA sent the work away. Open boarders closed the door to hard work to the modern citizenry. Here in the Land of Aus all dirty work has been exported. Thats why productivity in Australia is at terminal levels.

Soft hands are idle hands. Cant be too productive if you be idle, too much.

I am thinking the rage I see on the city streets (world wide) comes from boredom, sedentary life styles? A lack of purpose and identity. No identity so I join a group that rages on street corners… ???

Like a working dogs brought into the house and made into a pet… they get lazy and fat quickly, if not “worked”.

Here’s a picture of one of many injuries to my hands:

Just a small injury, I didnt go see a doctor for, but it did slow me down a bunch.

I watched an ol timer, about 1969, stitch his torn hand up in the field. We were fencing… It was a big gash, more of a tear, (like I had above). The ol-dude put it back together with a simple field dressing. Mind you the old-dude had been a marine medic in WW2. One hell of a tough dude. He put a big smear of grease on the cut after suturing, went back to finish the job we were doing.

And the beat goes on…

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Most folks treat Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS) as a joke, a funny situation, something to laugh about…

I playfully have suggested folks take their TDS pills.

But I’ll not do such any longer.

I am very saddened, even heart-sick of the division and anxiety witnessed for… how long… how long has this real and possibly deadly affliction been with us? Like most diseases, TDS has an epicentre. A ground-zero.

My ground-zero TDS occurrence is easy to trace…

There was a time when Donald J Trump traveled down the escalator in his NY building to announce his candidacy for the POTUS. At that time I wrote that I didn’t think DJT had a chance. he was running against the Clinton-Machine. Not the Democrat-Machine, no, in 2016 the DNC was owned and managed by the Clintons. I never gave DJT a chance.

I posted this after DJT won the 2016 election:
Here we gooo…I gotta comment… after over 12 months of voyeurism and arm-chair punditry… Donald Trump is President Elect… AND… I am gob-smacked! Damn! So, the next few days/ weeks/ months shall be very interesting… Damn! Did I say Damn?

I never thought DJT would become the POTUS. I never was a “Trumpeter”. But one very dear, old and good friend decided back then I was evil. Not because I supported and voted for DJT (because I did not) but because I did not support the Clinton-Machine.

I carry on discussion with numerous folks all around the globe. I consider myself a “commentator”. I read, listen, research, study and write my thoughts. My above referenced “dear old friend” and I carried on a running conversation throughout the 2026 election. We chewed the topics, discussed the candidates. My dear old friend was a card carrying member of the “Pant Suit Brigade”… “Pantsuit Nation was a private Facebook group and Twitter hashtag used to rally Hillary Clinton supporters during her 2016 presidential campaign in the United States.”

I joined the PSB at one point to follow my friend’s discussions. And, immediately after DJT won the 2016 election, my dear old friend went ballistic on my ass. I had been saying for a long, long time that “The Clintons should be in Prison”. My friend would never agree with this but I feel she was soooo confident that Hillary was the next POTUS she never chose to be angry at me, attack me for my views. We were still friends and respected each other. But that did not last long.

Immediately after DJT was confirmed as President-Elect my dear old friend went into melt down. We were emailing back and forth in real time… we had a habit of long, on-going conversations by email. When it broke down, harsh words were said by my dear old friend. I am not thin skinned and did not react negatively (I still have the emails) and tried to softly discuss the situation… and things got worse.

My dear old friend shut me out of her life. Called me names, decided I was too vile and evil to be associated with.

In July 2023, out of the blue, I received an email from my dear old friend. She told me she’d been diagnosed with aggressive cancer and was not going to live long. I responded as a friend, spoke of the “old times” and smiled through the tears. I never heard from her again.

On the 1st of April, 2024 I received an email from my dear old friend’s family telling me the sad news.

My very good, long serving friend and I had been sharing, talking, arguing since 1985, when we first met. After years and miles and changes in life, we were still talking. Enjoying each other’s time and attention. And after 30 years of close friendship it all ends, completely. And then she died.

From 2016 to her death in 2023, 7years, we lost each other because of political division. Not that I was opposed to what my dear old friend supported, but because I did not support what she so fervently supported. There was no room in her life for me.

And I find that all so terribly sad and wasteful.

I refer to this because, just this past week, another dear old friend of almost 60 years of association closed the door on me. Decided to end our friendship because I did not support his political position, and worse, because I would question his political position(s).

It is a tragedy.

I am too old and too nostalgic to give up old friends.

Life is tragic.

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Almost as sad as waking to hear of another ol compadre passing…

A dear, old friend, a guy I have known since the 4th grade, has allowed his dysfunctional mental illness to go too far. After over 60 years of interaction we have called it quits.

I am no quitter, I make a point of being very “view-point” sensitive. Just because we disagree, maybe even cant agree, we can still be friends and respect one another. But we gotta talk. We gotta listen.

I blame it on the modern mania that pervades and invades… Trump Derangement Syndrome is a real thing.

I can’t explain why, really, but I have a close connection with my ol’buddy, Tony. He has always been thoughtful, articulate and interesting. But things have changed.

I blame it on old age and personal unhappiness. And a lack of personal and professional achievement. My friend has become mad, mean and malicious. The world is no longer a good place in his mind. Sadly, Tony has lost his child-like-wonder.

And worse of all, he has closed the door to open discussion.

After a bit of discourse yesterday I received this: So please do not expect replies anymore. In fact, I would not mind if you did not reply to anything I wrote.

I heard this not long ago…

“Certainty is found only in a closed mind”

Sad that.

Another on bites the dust…

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My how time flies… One down, eleven to go… I’m not in a hurry, no rush here on my side of the fence… Time can take it’s time, as far as I’m concerned…

Sunday morn, the day is heating up quickly. Targeting 90f/32c today. The sun is bright and radiant. Ive closed the house up, lowered the shades, and have the aircons cranking. A full day of bloodsports coming on. Some good fights going to happen. I shall sit and ruminate and write as I watch…

Lady Godzilla, all 4kgs/10lbs of her is snuggled into the chair with me. I do believe she thinks my back-side to be too large. She is constantly squirming for more room.

I’ll talk about wood and whittling and turning timber into saw dust… One of my favourite things to do is “work wood”…

Ive discussed before how I scavenge old timber from around my farm. I have a few piles of old split-rail fencing that dates back 100 years or more. I know the oral tradition of this land going back almost 100 years. I’ve met old folks that lived here, grew up here. One neighbour has been living here all his 80years. His father once owned the land I am on. Through him I met a gentleman that was born on this land in the 1930s.

The original “settlers” that came here used the trees growing on the land to erect their first fence lines. This region, the Stanley River catchment, was originally settled by two brothers, the Archers, in 1840. The remnants of those early hands working the land are still well evident.

The old fence posts are valuable wood… Mostly all some kind of “Gum”, these posts and rails have been sitting in the weather, drying out, hardening, aging for a long, long, long time… It is brutally hard to cut. I wear out blades and bits quickly.

This shows how dense the old wood is…

This past week I put a couple sticks on the table…one is for my bird-watching buddy in the USofA. Named Kingfisher, its is a change from what I have done in the past. It is of a “crook handle” style. I really like it a lot…

Another stick is for a friend I sent a stick to a while ago. The first stick, Fearsome, was designed as a traditional walking stick. My friend said that a longer stick for hiking would be useful so I made “Standup 44″…

Branding a stick is my favorite part of the job…

Whittled by Mike…

And remember…

Wood, Not War…

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I have written about my “thing” with watching commercial TV, watching the commercials, learning much from what is being advertised to the non-ppv-viewers.

My old compadre, KTWD, always watched and happily paid for “Able TV”. Not “Cable TV”. Able… what his TV was able to pick up. He was vehemently opposed to paying to sit in front of the “boob tube”.

Our modern world of subscribing to “news”, or “breaking information”, or movies or porn or weather reports or… pick your bubble, choose your poison… Our modern world offers many escape routes, many bubbles one can retreat to, hide behind, get lost in. Turn the TV “on” and you connect to the www. Download “Apps” and access in-depth info on any topic, positive or negative… YouTube, Netflix, Disney, Fox, CNN, MNwhateveritis, Al Jazeera, BBC, CNBC, XYZD, SIBC… All offer a “service”, normally behind a pay-wall, All intend to capture you, your attention, your time, support, money…

Like KTWD said, folks are paying to be brainwashed, indoctrinated, recruited.

I must admit… My Name Is Mike And I Flip Channels…

I am a TV watcher. I pay for quite a bit of “TV”. And I like watching commercials. I learn a lot about society seeing what is being marketed. I switch channels often. Stop and watch what catches my attention. I pay attention to what is being advertised. Trends in ads are as telling as polls. What are people watching? What are people buying?

An old saying, “if it dont pay it dont stay” is most visible in TV.

If a commercial is regularly played, the product is selling big.

I use the example of a series of commercials for underwear here in Aus. Very clever, very entertaining and made a star out of a guy named Lawrence. Simply called “Step One”. Good ads. Clever use of local celebs. Very clever all in all.

Aus has traditionally been very clever and riske’ with their made for TV commercials. Some have become icons… check out “Antz Pantz” and the 4X ads from the. 80s.

So, to my friends that are stuck in a Netflix rut, living in a “newz” bubble, listening to too much Maddow, or Hannity, or Sharpton… Go commercial for a while, flip the channels, travel through a few bubbles.

Please don’t get stuck in bubbles, echo chambers, dead zones… It may well be terminal.

Smiles

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It is Australia Day here in the “Land Down Under”.

What is Australia Day, you may ask? “It marks the anniversary of the 1788 arrival of the First Fleet of British ships at Sydney Cove (Port Jackson, New South Wales), led by Captain Arthur Phillip. On that day, Phillip formally raised the Union Jack flag and claimed the eastern part of the continent for Britain, establishing the first permanent European settlement (which became the colony of New South Wales). This event is seen as the foundation of modern Australia.”

As a very proud Aussie Immigrant, I feel fortunate, very fortunate, to have been allowed to become, be welcomed into the Land of Aus. It is a very good place to “be”.

How and why did I end up in Aus? Firstly, I got lucky. My timing was fortuitously perfect.

Things were different 15 years ago. Australia, and specifically Queensland, was then keen to attract “older investors”. There was a specific Visa Class just for a guy like me, a retiring individual with money to invest. As well, I was only in my mid 50s. I was still considered “young enough” to contribute to this fair Land. I was allowed to come, invest, live and enjoy life here, but I had to prove to the authorities I had $$. In the words of the rules at that time, I had to prove I ” …would not place financial burden or obligation on the “Common Wealth”.

I jumped through all those hoops, was a very good poodle. Had a number of well paid “Agents” that took my money and managed my submissions, applications, responses to hundreds of questions. Every application came with a hefty fee. When I and my wife finally received our approvals, we paid a lump sum of over $150,000.00 that was compensation to the Common Wealth of us being older, not having contributed to the communal fund for the previous 30 years, and, importantly, because they could.

In some venues it is thought that Australia, and specifically Queensland, were “selling” citizenships. And in many way they were, and I am fine with that. It was a calculated program to entice and attract a certain class of folks with $$. And in 2010, post Global Financial Collapse times, folks with business skills, cash-in-hand, and a desire to live in the Land O’ The Lucky were what was wanted.

In 2010 I bought my first property. A new house that had sat for 2years, empty, unsold. The economy (world wide) at that time was pretty beat up. In the neighbourhood where I bought-in, there were many “zombie” properties. Properties where the owners had ceased making their payments, walked away from the banks, dropped the ball, maybe gone bankrupt. When I bought into the area of QLD known as “The Sunny Coast”, ours was the first land transaction, land purchase in the area for quite a while.

Things are very different these days. No longer the “Land O’ The Lucky”, Aus is now a strange, sad parody of itself. I’m going to check something real quick… Hey Grok…

Population of Australia in 2026 place it at approximately 27.8–28 million with an annual growth of about 420,100 people (1.5%). For Comparison: Population in 2010Australia’s estimated resident population was:22,342,000 as of 30 June 2010.
22,477,400 as of 31 December 2010. This represents growth of about 5.5–6 million people over the intervening 15–16 years, driven largely by migration and natural increase.

How much of this 5.5 – 6mil increase is due to immigration? Cumulative net overseas migration from ~2010 to mid-2025 is estimated at 3.4–3.8 million people (based on annual averages: ~220,000 pre-COVID, low/negative during 2020–2021, and 300,000–550,000 annually in 2022–2025).

Makes me wonder how many new homes are built annually? Australia completes approximately 170,000–180,000 new dwellings (homes) each year in recent periods, based on Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data and industry reports.

So, we see 300,000 to 550,000 new immigrants annually while only building 170,000 to 180,000 new home annually.

And that is only one side of the discussion… As we are experiencing right now, today… Whom are these folks immigrating? How well are they vetted? I hope they too are being asked to ensure that they will never place any financial burden or obligation on the “Common Wealth”.

Hmmm… As we say in Aus… “Kinda suss, Mate!”.

In my 15 years residing here in The Land of Aus, things have changed very, very, very drastically.

And to recap, the main problem, issue at hand… For the past 15 years, 2010 to 2015, we have been building at the most, 180,000 new homes each year, for a total of 2,700,000 (two million seven hundred thousand). While importing no less than 500,000 new residents annually, for a total of 7,500,000 (seven million five hundred thousand) folks requiring a home. And this does not account or cater for the natural, domestic population growth.

I knew the situation was skewed, but damn, I say Damn!

One more thought… What protests/ marches are planned for Australia Day, 20226…

Invasion Day Protests and Marches on Australia Day 2026 (January 26)Today, January 26, 2026, marks Australia Day, but for many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and allies, it is observed as Invasion Day, Survival Day, or a Day of Mourning. Numerous protests, rallies, marches, and community events are taking place nationwide, focusing on issues like black deaths in custody, child removals, sovereignty, and calls to “change the date.” Thousands are expected in capital cities, with significant police presence (e.g., 1,500 officers in Sydney).

• Counter-protest: “March for Australia” (anti-immigration rally) authorized from Prince Alfred Park to Moore Park.
• Melbourne (Naarm)Invasion Day Protest: 10:00 AM–2:00 PM, starting at Parliament House (Spring St). March to Flinders Street Station or similar routes. Annual large rally protesting ongoing colonial impacts.
• Brisbane (Meanjin/Magan-djin)Invasion Day Rally: Speeches from 10:00 AM at Queens Gardens; march from noon to Musgrave Park.
• Perth (Boorloo)Invasion Day Protest: 12:00 PM rally at Forrest Chase (Wellington St); march from ~1:30 PM to Stirling Gardens for Survival Day events.
• Hobart (Nipaluna/Lutruwita)Invasion Day March: From 11:00 AM, starting at Tasmania Aboriginal Centre (198 Elizabeth St), marching to Parliament House lawns.
• CanberraSovereignty Day Event: Gather 9:30 AM at Garema Place; march to Old Parliament House lawns. Organized by Aboriginal Tent Embassy, highlighting resistance.

As we say in Aus… “Kinda suss, Mate!”.

More later

I have been watching that star-studded circle-jerk that is the annual Davos get-together of the rich, influential, and deluded. I very much enjoyed the coup perpetrated by DJT & Co.

All I can say is that the USofA schooled the rest of the world on what to expect to come down the ski slope. I have been reading this morn (it is 738am) what transpired while I was sleeping. I enjoy the right and left view points. I find it interesting to figure out what folks have seen, heard, experienced, emoted.

It takes all of our senses to distill what we understand, then construct an interpretable story-line. Folks see and hear things so differently.

In my vernacular I discuss filters we each have, use to navigate the world. The old term was “seeing through rose-colored glasses”. And, of course, the opposite of rose-colored glasses exists.

I have discussed the world-wide angst I see and hear, the mental illness I witness and am subjected to, the fact the TDS is real, debilitating and oft times terminal. And alive and well on stage in Davos.

Davos exemplifies, usually, the waste and foolishness of the rich and famous. I have written on this topic in the past: https://nativeiowan.com/2024/01/19/2024-v1-dizzy-in-davos/

In my past writing I stated: “Davos is a crime scene, sanctioned and supported by anyone that wants to be a who’s-who.”

This year is different I think. I think the US0fA changed the tone, stole the show, Made fools of so, so, so many “impotent people”.

Like the old man who was having difficulties performing in bed… he went to the doctor, had numerous tests, was told he is impotent and sent home.

On his way home he stopped at the haberdashery, bought a coat with tails, a bow tie, a top hat and a walking stick. When he got home his wife said “Fool, why you dresses up so funny?”. “Honey, the Dr said I was impotent, I’m gonna dress impotent.”

more later

It started in the 70s. The idea that those poor unfortunate folks in the “county home” or the “mental health institute” would be better off “at home” or “on their own”. It was Liberal Blindness looking for an outlet, a pat on the back, recognition.

It was Liberal Blindness that increased the suffering of those “ill”, or affected. It was the Liberal Blindness that considered it “progressive” to “release” those “patients” who were considered “well enough”.

I was 18 years old in 1976. I worked the 2nd-shift at the Iowa State Mental Health Institute (MHI), in Independence, Iowa. I was a Psych Aide. I wore a white uniform and was there to “assist” the nurses and doctors and therapists. I had a key that opened every single door in the entire facility. It was a huge facility.

Above is the “Main Building”. There were at least a dozen large, old buildings, and one large, new, “Children’s” facility.

Established in 1893. With up to 2000 beds, it saw its highest number of patients in the mid-1900s. At one time it was a working farm where patients (some patients) got to work. Somewhere in the 60s it was determined that patients working, though good for their mental health, was close to slave labor, so that had to end.

By the time I was there in the 70s the population was quite small. Not more than a couple hundred people. Most of the wards were closed off. The once bustling facility was a ghost town. We only had the Mens ward, the female ward, the chronic ward, the geriatric ward and the teen ward. With the children in their own facility.

I worked all wards, got to know the facility and the patients pretty well.

My job was that of the basic “strong-arm”. I was on the ward to be the enforcer for the nurse or the therapist or the doctor. The population was kept pliant through medication.

Ever hear the song “Kill Your Son”? By Lou Reed, it was about dosing patients with Thorazine. Here’s a blurb about Lou Reed… “Kill Your Sons” refers to Lou Reed’s tragic upbringing, consisting of electroshock conversion therapy. Locations such as Creedmoor and Payne Whitney are mentioned as facilities Lou was sent to during his teenage years.’

In those days, before kids had rights, parents could send their kids to an “institute” for being unruly, disagreeable or, as in Reeds case, Bisexual.

It was during my tenure at the MHI that policy started changing. Patients that were considered “able to” were “sent home” with a 60day supply of meds.

I was very friendly with one such man, Charlie Martin.

Charlie had all the symptoms of a socially unacceptable dude. He was big (huge), black, quite uneducated, probably unemployable, and suffered from narcolepsy: “Narcolepsy is a chronic neurological disorder causing uncontrollable daytime sleepiness and sudden “sleep attacks,” stemming from the brain’s inability to regulate sleep-wake cycles, often linked to low orexin levels and an autoimmune response, leading to symptoms like cataplexy (muscle weakness), sleep paralysis, and hallucinations, manageable with stimulants, naps, and other medications, but with no cure.”

Charlie’s medical condition was treated by the Drs through administering 5mg dexedrine 3 times a day. This made Charlie unable to sleep (15mgs Dex will keep you awake very nicely, thank you). For the uneducated, dexedrine is pure speed. 5mg would keep me awake for a day or more. Charlie got 15mg everyday, and could never, ever sleep.

So they administered a big dose of Seconal at bedtime. “Seconal (secobarbital) is a short-acting barbiturate, a central nervous system depressant once used for insomnia, anxiety, and pre-surgery sedation, but it is now rarely prescribed in the U.S. due to high addiction potential and safer alternatives”

So my buddy, Charlie, gets released with a big bottle of speed and a big bottle of downers. He was back in a week, handcuffed, in a police car, in trouble, again. He’d sold his drugs, got all drunked-up, passed out hard, woke up in the jail house in Waterloo, Iowa, and proceeded to tear the place to pieces.

Charlie was in and out, in and out. The State was downsizing, allowed a revolving door scenario for Charlie and others like him.

Charlie simply could not cope in public. He’d last a day or two, sell his medication on the street, raise hell and have a party, pass out somewhere in public, then be wild and uncontrollable when he woke up.

I left the MHI at the end of the summer of ’76. Moved on to attend College and pursue a degree in psychology.

I heard later that year that Charlie had been shot dead by police.

So now, 50 years after releasing the mentally ill patients from the institutes across the the USofA, spending megabucks to mange an unmanageable situation, Trump is looking to rebuild, reinstitute the wholesale care and housing of those homeless and unable to care for themselves.

I thought the decision in the 70 to be a lazy move in the name of do-gooding. I believe from an educated stance that safe care of those suffering mental illness is essential in a modern society.

As I said, The Liberal Blindness = Mental Illness.

I am not known for my agile thought processes, or my acerbic wit. I’m rather slow of thought and action. Ive been wrong so many times in my life, I am scarred, broken in many places, and these days hesitant to react quickly to much more than snake bite and run-away dogs…

I see murder in the streets of Iran. I see people risking EVERYTHING to make their voices heard. They are fighting for their physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual freedoms.

As we watch, we have folks on the sidelines making excuses. Rationalising and reasoning their way out of the paper bag that is their pliant mind.

I watch as streets in the USofA are on fire. One side of the discussion (it is a violent argument) is simply saying “enforce the laws on the books”. The other side of the discussion screams hysterically, impedes law enforcement and cries like babies when they get pepper sprayed, hurt, arrested or tragically lose their lives while “peacefully protesting”.

I have yet to really see what those loud hysterical voices are saying. It don’t make much sense, I think. But it must either be a powerful emotion that brings them out in subzero Minnesota weather, or they are being paid. I personally would have to be very, very bored and/ or paid very, very well to stand and act stoopid on a cold MN winter’s eve.

It is a matter of semantics mostly… Claiming “sanctuary” from federal law only goes so far. And quite frankly makes very little sense for anyone but the elected Elite of the society. What positives do those receiving sanctuary really add to the community at large? I just spoke to a friend in Minneapolis. She is going out to a birthday party. Her words, “I hope I don’t go through any protests”.

Speaking of hysteria, and semantics… The US has a sitting Supreme Court Justice that cannot tell us what a “female” is. A woman herself, Justice Kentanji Brown cant bring herself to buck the leftist loony ideal of transexual men being women and transsexual women being men that she has to lie, yes LIE from the bench. She continues to prevaricate and dissemble with word salads in order to stay pertinent. Which she is not.

Here in the Land of Aus… Our “gang of four and a half” are very much losing grasp of the narrative. PM Albo simply cannot keep the ball(s) spinning fast enough. He is one of those politicos that will say anything to get through the interview, the meeting, the press conference, the day… We can see his skin getting thin. The entire “X ban” foolishness is because folks are getting AI to parody and make-fun of Albo & Co. The mass murder of Jews at Bondi still has Mr. Albo scared and trembling. He can blame guns, white supremacy, lack of cohesion… but he cannot blame islamic hate.

Much like Mr Tim and Small Frey in MN, Albo & Co are losing control quickly, and are scrambling to not go-down-with-the-ship.

It simply cant go on. The damage being done (on all fronts) is huge… the finical implication of the fee-for-all buying of votes, the fast n furious spending on big$$ schemes (scams) such as solar rebates, wind farm incentives, hydrogen power plants that never go anywhere, mega batteries that melt when they are turned on… There is a right way and a wrong way to do things. We are not being very intelligent as is, unless lining your pockets as quickly as possible is considered ok, rational, and intelligent.

I have read a lot of sci-fi novels. Old Skool and modern. The prediction, the promise of a dystopian future has always been a theme in sci-fi.

I refer to an older movie… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3IbGPUt6p4

It is Wild in the Streets…

I use the term “Evil Twin” to refer to siblings born within months of each other. In the old vernacular I grew up with such siblings were referred to as “Dutch Twins”.

I have two sets of Evil Twins in my family. Sons, Don and Paul, both had daughters born in quick succession. G.G. in Feb, Dawn In April. Both are now 10/11. Then Vera and Nova. These two are 9/10. It’s a double set of evil twins.

And its pretty cool.

Dawn and Vera have been with me for over 6weeks. Connie showed up before Cmas with her 4yrold, Brimstone.

It’s been a fun, confusing, entertaining, loud, stress filled family few weeks.

It all ends early tomorrow morn. At 4am we shall hop in the 8seater people-mover and head to the airport for their return trip to the Solomon Islands.

Years back, when the respective moms were with their second child each, we took both G.G. and Dawn and had them here with us. Aim was to give the Moms a break. That period was defined by a fine line between homicide and suicide. Gracie and I have raised soooo sooo many kids we kinda make it look easy… but it sure as shit aint.

Dawn n GG, way back when…

So, with the house in shambles, the floors sticky and the tables and chairs covered in debris. I was just thinking “I’ll start cleaning up a bit”, then thought “That dont make sense”. Save it all for when they are gone.

Here’s Dawn n Vera “helping” in the kitchen:

Here is Brimstone with his dashhound, Lady Godzilla:

They shall be gone tomorrow.

Dont tell anyone but it’ll be very quiet, and even a bit boring without them.

Family is guuud.

Kids n Dawgs are guuud.

More later

Australia is an interesting place. Used to be one of the highest standard of living lands on the planet.

One of the “things” about Aus is that we basically shut-down from 15 December to 15 January. Not retail and such but general business, service providers, private contractors and such all take a month long break. Aus traditionally was a very (is a very) life style oriented land. Surf and sun and beach and beer and shrimps on the barrbie…

I like Aus a lot. It is a good place. It has changed quite a bit in the 40+ years Ive been kicking around here. In the late 80s everything was shut on Sunday. When I first arrived, my very first visit, I arrived late in the eve. Got to my cheap hotel about 8pm. No food joints were opened in Brisbane, then, that time of the “night”. Everything was closed for the day.

My how things have changed.

Australia is still a really good place. I got lucky and was allowed to emigrate in my 50s.

It took me over 10years (and quite a bot of $$ in consultants and fees) to gain citizenship.

I had to be very seriously vetted. As a business man I had traveled extensively previous to retiring. One requirement was I had to supply dates and places for all my travel for the 10years previous to my application for citizenship. If, in that 10 years, I had spent more than 3 months in any place I had to obtain a “Police Clearance” from each and any. This list included: Solomon Islands, PNG, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, both California and Iowa in the USofA, and the UK/ city of London.

The entire process required a well paid Visa Consultant. The entire process took years. Each scrap of paper, each submission, each part of the puzzle being submitted came with a hefty fee.

For much of the process of applying and being granted status, I was on a “bridging-visa”. This stated I could not leave the country, or my application expired immediately. I had to sit here and wait patiently.

Once I submitted my application and was granted status, a visa to wait n see, I could travel but I could not work here. I had to wait. I was allowed to buy land, a house, but my purchase gave me no rights to reside. For over 10 years I lived in a limbo of NOT KNOWING. They could decide that I was not going to become a citizen and give me a 2week notice to depart.

And all that was OK by me. I took the chance, paid my bills, played the game, sat when I was told to sit, jumped when I was told to jump. I was a very good poodle.

I note for editorial purposes that I also emigrated to Solomon Islands. That too was onerous 10years of playing the game.

So, I watch now as folks melt down, lose their self control, scream and rant at officials when folks that are in the USofA illegally are legally deported.

All I can say is folks in the US are soft, uneducated, self indulgent idiots.

I saw something today that made me laugh…

This was posted by an old friend in the USofA. His title to this was “Fox Propaganda”:

Sad, how smart people are so stoopid.

More later

Sunday afternoon. Ive got Green Bay V Chicago Bears on. It’s a playoff game. Both these teams are from “my neck of the woods” and though I don’t follow the great game of American football much, I take pleasure in watching a good game. Especially between two teams I grew up with.

The world is ablaze, again, and the TDS among my close friends and relatives is heating up, and boiling over. I hear a fevered pitch of angst and concern and fear and uncertainty. And… not much of it is reasoned, reasonable or sensible. I really like the Venezuela gig… Everyone kinda agreed over the past several years that Maduro was a Narco. All those crying and ranting and carrying-on forget Maduro was charged quite a few years ago: “On March 26, 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) unsealed criminal indictments in the Southern District of New York against Maduro and more than a dozen current and former Venezuelan officials. The case, originally filed under seal as early as 2011 (under a related name, United States v. Carvajal-Barrios), accused Maduro of leading a narco-terrorism conspiracy.“

We have many bits of old info where leftist-leaders (and loonies) attack the incumbent Prez for not being harder on both Maduro and Venezuela. I like this one from Chucky Schumer: “Schumer’s 2020 remarks during Trump’s first term, where he slammed Trump for failing to oust Maduro despite promises to “smash and break” the regime. In a 2020 Senate speech, Schumer said: “He hasn’t brought an end to the Maduro regime. The Maduro regime is more powerful today and more entrenched today than when the president began.”

So now its all changed, both the regime in Venezuela, and Chucky’s words.

And, oh no, the sky is falling the sky is falling… Trump is talking about Greenland. This is not new by any standard: “The United States first considered acquiring Greenland in 1867, shortly after the successful Alaska Purchase from Russia earlier that year. This marked the earliest documented internal U.S. government discussion of obtaining the Danish-controlled island.”

But now, with TDS running wild, its a terrible idea, an evil idea.

Much like the illness of the mind that infects folks and allows them believe that Che Guevara was a “good-guy”, a woman in Minneapolis is tragically shot while interfering with ICE officers. She is now the angel of virtue that, like the Maryland Dad, did nothing wrong, was never out of line and becomes an icon for those in the throes of TDS.

A repeat of the George Floyd BS, methinks.

I am thinking that TDS fogs folks’ reason, disables their historic perspective, and makes them susceptible to suggestion. Like a stage-hypnotist, using the power of suggestion to get you to believe you’re riding a horse when you are sitting in a chair (I watched my bro-in-law do this) folks disbelieve their lying eyes.

All my TDS infected friends and family think I am wrong, stupid, blind. With affection, they may be right, but let’s talk about it. I’m always and all ways up to discuss any topic. Only proviso I insist upon is that FACTS (yep those pesky things) are allowed in the discussion. I’m always welcoming to other folks opinions but, for instance, when someone says to me “ANTIFA is nonviolent”, I want to be able to review the past openly. Access info from all venues. Not just the one’s approved by those that move to control the narrative. I have a number of friends that refuse to look at info that does not originate within their bubble.

Same with Climate Change/ GlowBall Warming… I get told to “check the science”, which tells me anthropomorphic influence on the climate is hard to prove. Just a year ago a friend of mine in Minnesota was crying over the “brown Christmas”. I was told “it’s here, the end is near.”.. this year that same friend complains about the snow and cold.

Last, wishing Iran some peace. I remember well the fall of the Shah. My father worked with a man that fled Iran in the 70s. A young man, he escaped with nothing. Lost all his family because they were staunch Shah supporters. I have another friend from the Solomons, an officer in the Iranian Air Force in the 70s. He had to flee, was an ayatollah refugee because he was Bahai. His entire family was wiped out.

And the beat goes on.

more later

I feel confident that saying “All Dictators fall” And when they do, they fall hard. In some cases the fall becomes generational. I think of Assad in Syria. Of course the Kims in NKorea have held on now for their third generation. Will their time come?

Maduro’s time came quietly, in the dark of night, without time to escape, run away, hide… Like the Shah of Iran in the 70s. Or the Marcos’. Or Baby Doc. They got to run, like Assad did, before the cage closed ’round. He got out, got to safety, with his bags of loot in tow.

I am not a fan of covert-ops, and kidnapping, and regime change. I am even less of a fan of bad actors, acting very badly.

Sadly, the historic record for success, post external regime change, sucks. How many times has a powerful Nation attempted regime change only to regret it after wards? The US got bogged in Afghanistan after Russia gave up. I think of Gaddafi, and the scenes of Libya post regime change. Iraq… not a good outcome there, too.

I fear the modern-mind’s lack of historic reference leaves most incapable of completely understanding the situation(s), the technical and social influences and challenges to remove a long term “Strong-Man”.

Change is always very slippery, hard to grasp hold of. Positive change is slippery-er than negative change. Always easier to make things worse, than it is to make things better.

I hear talking heads say that Maduro had much support within the foundations of Venezuela. Within the Military, within the Government, within the Commercial sector… But, in reality, I believe “Strong-Men” dont have the support they believe their do… their support is purchased, extorted, or comes from fear… I think of Mussolini:

This is how Mussolini ended up.

I have no doubt in my mind that our modern world does not need Narco/Military Strong Men acting as War Lords.

Those days are gone. No longer required.

Time now to see how well, or poorly, this situation shall be managed.

Time will tell.

The Ying and Yang of life spins and smiles upon us.

More later

The Year has started with long legs. Been bizzy. Lots to do. Getting lots dunn.

The weather has been mild at best, and often chilly. Great way to start the year. If this is “summer’, I’ll take it!

A thought I am having… Karma is real. I know this to be true. Karma and I have been dancing partners for a very long time.

I believe that Karma has come back to bite unprincipled and self serving actors in the proverbial arse… I am watching Minnesota and Venezuela… I think also of the “no good deed goes unpunished” theory of existence. A certain class of citizenry have been living high in both places, for too long, at Communal Expense. And its been coming too long, been needed, too long…

It has been Political Party policy to buy votes with tax dollars… Politicos use the “free-be” trick too often. Student loans, free day care, subsidies for NGOs and huge budgets for Govt Bodies… The fast rail in CA, the EV mandate, the “green” mandates… each and everyone represents money misspent, misused, misappropriated… by Politicos and Cronies… Lavishly spending from the public purse, all the while growing personally wealthy.

Name all the players, anyone, young and old, left and right… They start with nothing and end up wealthy, elite, better than you and I.

Is the curtain being raised? Has the curtain been raised? Are things ever going to change?

There appears to be a house-of-cards, world-wide, that is beginning to be strained, that is becoming unstable. Instability and pressures both external and internal threaten many folks’ “way of life”… I caught one clip where a woman in Minnesota was crying about being caught for fraud. She admits it was fraud then went on to cry in tears, “how will I pay my bills”…

The global quantum of misused, abused, diverted, misspent, corrupted and pocketed dollars, meant for “good”, is bigger than anyone can guess. One small billion dollar scam in a place like Minnesota is just a fly one the horse’s back. World wide. Here in Aus…

The fraud that has been the Labor Party is shaky. PmAlbo is hiding. Doing appearances on friendly turf only. Refusing a “Royal Commission” into the Bondi tragedy. The incumbent “leaders” of the Labor Party are running scared in their ineptitude. They never had “policy”. The played the ol slight-of hand tricks to get a second term. And have wallowed and prevaricated since reelection.

We are hearing reports of Minnesota type industrial-scale-fraud going on here in Aus, in certain suburbs, with certain demographics…
* Recent and Projected NDIS Expenditure (in AUD billions):2023–24: ~$38.0 billion
* 2024–25 (current financial year as of January 2026): Approximately $48–49 billion (projections vary slightly across sources, e.g., $48.5–48.98 billion, with recent data showing spending tracking lower than initial forecasts due to reforms)
* 2025–26: Projected at around $52.3 billion (some earlier forecasts cited lower figures like $44.6 billion, but updated budget papers reflect higher growth moderation)

So, 50billion spread over a population of 25million… roughly $2000.00 per citizen. Hmmm… all that money going into one funnel… got be some getting spilt, no?

My next question would be to look at which constituencies receive the most federal funding. I see its not an original question:
https://x.com/SpambotX/status/2007021217816138209?s=20

I also like the new disclosure that shows the Somali Ambassador being the registered Principal in day care centres in Ohio. And make no doubt about it, none what so ever… the likes of Tim Walsh’s future depends on the support and consideration of Minnesota’s Somalian voters.

Independent Journalism is on the rise…. go team go… Legacy Journalism has been dead a long, long time.

Yes, indeed, the Year do start out on an interesting tangent… Oh yea, News flash: Looks like it’s regime change time in Venezuela.

I’m never a real fan of force, aggression, military incursion.

But I know that if white ants are in the timber, you’re best to burn it before your rebuild.

More later

Smiles