words matter

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The ABC has reported that the Macquarie Group through its Next Payment’s ATMs is profiting from the black market tobacco trade in Australia. This multibillion dollar trade downunder is fuelling gang war slayings and making the nation a much more unsafe place. Macquarie bank raking in black market tobacco profits. Yet another loophole exists for criminals to launder their ill gotten gains in Australia – through private ATM machines. You get the strongest sense that authorities are not serious about stopping such things when they continue to allow flagrant violations by banks.
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Those Americans detained by ICE are being housed in private prisons and have already proved to be a half a billion dollar motza for one such corporation running them. America is home of the financialized and privatized everything, where transparency is an outdated concept. No, it is all about profits and returns on investments for companies and their shareholders. The Trump administration is feeding its backers with the promised billions. The disgusting American business of incarceration. ICE is going after mums and school kids too. ICE is not limiting itself to targeting gang members and illegal aliens. No, that is way too restrictive on the numbers to fill these private prisons.
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Ill-disciplined Swans players look frustrated out on the field. This has resulted in a number of incidents and free kicks, which have cost suspensions and goals. An injury hit side like the Sydney Swans can little afford to lose more players to suspension. A losing team like the Swans can ill afford to give away 50m penalties and free kicks which directly cost goals to the opposition. It has been a perfect storm of poor play, lack of effort, weak tackling, loss of contest and ill discipline over the last 12 weeks. This is not the red and white team that the competition has grown to respect over many years for its unstinting application to the job at hand.
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AI is coming for your job. As someone who has just been replaced by an automated program this is real, let me tell you. In light of this it is pertinent to remember that Australia punishes the unemployed economically. It is bipartisan policy of Australian governments to provide below the poverty line welfare payments to the unemployed. This has been going on for decades and is one of the reasons why we have a substantial number of older Australians living in poverty. These folk cannot afford to visit the dentist to get treatment because it is too expensive and dental is not included in Medicare. This in one of the wealthiest nations on earth.
The Trump regime is attacking boats from Venezuela, blowing them up in international waters. Why this focus on a South American nation? Venezuela has the world’s largest oil reserves. The US has a great tradition of going after countries with lots of oil and administrations that don’t bend over backwards for them. Donald Trump is a firm believer in fossil fuels. His administration has already reversed much of the good work that was done under Joe Biden, when it came to renewables and the transition away from climate damaging fossil fuels. Trump is the ultimate head in the sand guy, when it comes to global warming.
We do not have a progressive national news platform in Australia. We have a rabid right wing News Corp, which controls most of the nation’s newspapers, has a national radio network and produces Sky News Australia and Fox News. Nine Fairfax and Seven West Media can be comfortably described as corporate legacy media on the right of centre, politically speaking. The ABC, our only truly national broadcaster, follows the News Corp lead in what it sets as the daily news agenda. This was not always the case, as a couple of decades ago the ABC contained the most intelligent and passionate journalists working around the nation. How the ABC lost its progressive soul? Is a question well worth asking.
The Australian economic landscape has seen a succession of Australian corporations declaring record profits. The big insurers were the latest, joining the banks, the supermarket duopoly, the airlines, and a host of miners and fossil fuel companies in achieving record profits. Is it fair for Australian corporations to make record profits during a cost of living crisis? Many ordinary citizens are struggling to afford to put food on the table and meet their rent or mortgage payments. High inflation in the local economy has been the given reason but analysis by pundits has revealed that many companies have been price gouging on the back of a lack of competition in the market. This means these companies can set the price and consumers are bereft of power in the equation.

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I thought that it could be useful, in light of the apparent rise in the populist politics of grievance, to ask, so, what does it mean to be Australian? Anti-immigration is the flag waving vanguard theme of One Nation and the remnants of the Liberal party. Blame it on the immigrant appears number one on the political grievance charts downunder. Therefore, it provokes the question – what does it mean to be Australian? If it is not out-and-out racism, as those on the Right deny it to be, who, then, qualifies to be considered an acceptable Australian?
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I thought that it could be useful, in light of the apparent rise in the populist politics of grievance, to ask, so, what does it mean to be Australian? Anti-immigration is the flag waving vanguard theme of One Nation and the remnants of the Liberal party. Blame it on the immigrant appears number one on the political grievance charts downunder. Therefore, it provokes the question – what does it mean to be Australian? If it is not out-and-out racism, as those on the Right deny it to be, who, then, qualifies to be considered an acceptable Australian?
Culture Democracy Fresh Government Politics PowerI thought that it could be useful, in light of the apparent rise in the populist politics of grievance, to ask, so, what does it mean to be Australian? Anti-immigration is the flag waving vanguard theme of One Nation and the remnants of the Liberal party. Blame it on the immigrant appears number one on the political grievance charts downunder. Therefore, it provokes the question – what does it mean to be Australian? If it is not out-and-out racism, as those on the Right deny it to be, who, then, qualifies to be considered an acceptable Australian?
Culture Democracy Fresh Government Politics PowerWe have seen a spate of one-size-fits-all welfare payments and subsidies. You know, instead of governments helping the most needy they make stuff free for all. This is done for political purposes in attracting votes at elections. All this does is increase wealth inequality. Well off property owners should not be receiving government assistance in maintaining their lifestyles. This brings us to the Alan Kohler call for free childcare downunder. While I support the general idea, I question why wealthy Australians should qualify for these types of assistance. How about a carve out for those over a certain income and capital asset threshold? We need to reverse the widening wealth divide after decades of American style neoliberalism funnelling riches to a select few in Australia.
Democracy Fresh Government Politics Power WorkersTrump starts war with Iran in concert with Israel and vandalises the world economy. This irresponsible fool then passes the buck to America’s former allies, demanding they re-open the Strait of Hormuz. Nobody wants to follow the US into this mess of their own making. This is what you get when you elect a convicted felon and multiple bankrupt to the presidency. The stupidity of America is on full display. The greed and selfishness of Americans is up on the world stage for all to see. Listening to a lying, loud mouthed idiot is taking the United States and the world to the brink of collapse and destruction.
Democracy Fresh Government News Politics PowerWe need an Inquiry into why LPG gas deals have been so financially bad for the nation as a whole. Why do the gas companies pay so little tax and royalties on the huge amounts of gas they export for enormous profits? When elected representatives are deaf to their constituents, you know something is wrong with our democracy. Polling has indicated that 75% of Australians support a 25% export tax on LPG gas. Yet, this federal Labor government has knocked back proposed legislation to make this happen.
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Here in Australia and in America the energy companies are taking us all for a very expensive ride. Why do we unquestioningly accept being fleeced by big business? Gas and oil prices have gone through the roof and then some over the last 12 months. Yes, we have heard the excuses about the war in Ukraine but come on these companies are making record profits in the trillions and hundreds of billions of dollars. Inflation is at 7.2% in Australia, as of November 2022, and the Reserve Bank tips it to reach 8% by the end of the year. The cost of living for essential items like energy and food have gone up substantially. The RBA is rising interest rates to dampen demand within the economy.
Bribie Island is a popular tourist destination and home to many lovers of its great lifestyle. This island retreat, just north of Brisbane, combines relaxed living with 4WD adventures and beautiful beaches. Bribie Island businesses: SEO and content marketing can help spread the good news about this accessible paradise. If your digital presence is less than ideal or waning, we can assist you with optimising the situation. Words For Web is all about helping our clients reach their full potential via connecting with the market. Websites and social media work best when fed with fresh content, which targets what your customers are searching for on Google.
The world is made of stories and this is how we engage with it. The great trove of myths lies at the heart of who we are. Rational lists of details and events do not move us until they are formed into cogent narratives. Everyone and every group are plying their stories hoping to interest and entangle you within their magical spell. Like a recipe of a favourite dish, it is not until you taste it that you are moved by its wonder. Prior to that it is a mundane list of ingredients printed on a screen or in a book.
The fact that Donald Trump cheats at golf may come as no big surprise for those unfamiliar with the game. But for real golfers, those of us who bleed green and chew grass when we get hungry, there is nothing lower and more despicable than cheating at golf. If you garner a reputation as a cheater in clubland golf nobody wants to play with you. If there is the merest sniff of doubt about your adherence to the rules of golf, then, plenty of folks will cross the room to avoid your company in the clubhouse. Golf is all about the rules. ‘Play it as it lies’ is the fundamental ethos underpinning the game of golf.
The fact that women are better with words will come as no surprise to many. The female of our species seems to be hardwired to communicate more effectively than the male. The male is a simpler beast tasked by evolution with muscles to provide security like the nightclub bouncer. Men will get their point across by speaking louder and imbuing their delivery with more force. Despite women clearly outpointing men via their communication skills they have been consigned to lesser roles on the basis of might being right. Leadership has traditionally been the domain of those victors in combat.
Here we are in the election wars with Scomo and Albo fighting it out with words. Yes words are the weapons of choice in realpolitik. Nasty jibes based on half truths or mere lies are flung about will nilly during the campaign (another military term). The two generals are facing off in the media and prodding the electorate with fear based salvos to engender your vote. “It will be worse under the other bloke’s watch,” is the main message. Morrison is clearly the more accomplished liar, so, he is winning the contest, it seems, on our TV screens. Scomo should have been an actor because he feigns sincerity with the best of them.
It is sometimes difficult to know what to do to get your website working effectively for your business. Finding the right words for your website can be challenging. What to say and how to say it are perennial questions for small business owners and operators. Going down the path of organic SEO can open up a whole lot of questioning worms. Although ultimately it will save you a lot of money and deliver better results in terms of attracting business via your digital presence. It will also focus you on the key words and search terms your potential customers are using.
Creating SEO enhanced content for your website is like anything else in life, there are no instant answers. You can pay others to do it for you. There is no shame in employing experts to establish a body of work on and around your digital presence. However, do not think you can pay peanuts for this utilising ESL writers via low budget SEO companies. You get what you pay for in this life! Remember this truism, as we go further forward into this article. Ultimately, becoming a better creator of SEO enhanced content yourself will best serve your interests.
In the beginning was the word, and the word was …. maybe not God, but definitely the most important tool for all things to do with the internet and world wide web. Logos is the Greek term thought to refer to words – how we name things with verbal and written symbols that refer to things in the real world. Words my friend are the instruments, the units, by which we populate the digital universe and describe the flesh and blood world online.
We watch war on our TV screens in a far away place called Ukraine. People are dying, women and children, in the carnage of blown up buildings, which once were homes. We observe this strange little man called Putin sitting at enormous white tables virtually alone. We wonder why he sits alone in deserted rooms. Does he fear the company of human beings? Is he allergic to the body odour of his compatriots? We are told that Putin is the President of the Russian Federation. He is responsible for sending in the tanks and soldiers. He gave the order to kill the population of this place called Ukraine.