Paris YINBY (yes in my backyard) movement happened under Napoleon III*... Firenze YINBY movement stopped in 1436*... Both were spectacular movements that have created a special cultural essence. Presently, the new (modern) YINBY movement (started in Sweden) is pedestrian, awful and destructive of heritage — by neglect, by decree, GREED and by sheer stupidity. the YINBY should be stopped in Sydney and we invite Sydney Councils where heritage architecture of entire suburbs like Newtown, Paddington and many others should be preserved and cherished as important moments in time of Australia.

MORE TO COME.

FREE JULIAN ASSANGE NOW, PLEASE.............

Why do wars still exist? Why has this scourge of humanity not been annihilated yet like pestilence? Is there something rooted in our human genes which drives us into raising arms against our fellow human beings? Are there family traits of belligerence? Often this question prompts a simplifying and pessimistic response: There have always been wars and that´s just the way it is and will be for ever as long as humankind exists.

Thoughts on the famous correspondence between Albert Einstein and Sigmund Freud

by Peter Küpfer

The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense says it has purchased 50,000 sets of women’s uniforms for the first time since the start of the conflict. The announcement by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov comes a day before an expected parliamentary vote on amendments to the law on mobilization.

The proposed changes have caused a public outcry, with some calling them “unconstitutional” and aimed mainly at cracking down on draft dodgers. While it has been said that the changes to legislation do not foresee the conscription of women, such proposals have been previously voiced.

“For the first time, the Ministry of Defense purchased 50,000 sets of women’s uniforms, 100,000 electric heaters, and 15,000 active headphones,” Defense Minister Rustem Umerov wrote in a Facebook post on Monday.

The Pentagon released more information Monday about Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's hospitalization after facing questions over why President Biden, Congress and the public were not aware of Austin's hospitalization for several days.

The White House and Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks, who took over some responsibilities on Jan. 2, did not know Austin had been hospitalized until Jan. 4, when Austin's chief of staff notified them, according to Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder. 

Ryder said Monday that the delay was due in part to the fact that Austin's chief of staff, Kelly Magsamen, was sick with the flu. 

Tucker Carlson: So you’re saying that an international health organization could just end the First Amendment in the United States?

Bret Weinstein: Yes. And in fact as much as this sounds, I know that it sounds preposterous, the ability to do it is currently under discussion at the international level, and it’s almost impossible to exaggerate how troubling what is being discussed is.

Macron is relying on Attal to rejuvenate his government, in part, with an appeal to a younger demographic of voters who have become disillusioned, notably ahead of crucial EU parliamentary elections in June. 

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US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby called the South African application “meritless, counterproductive and completely without any basis in fact whatsoever.”

According to a report from November, the former Vice President said in the wake of the 2020 presidential election that Trump had surrounded himself with “crank” attorneys, embraced “un-American” legal theories, and nearly Pushed the US toward a “constitutional crisis”.

On Sunday, former Vice President Mike Pence denounced the debunked conspiracy theory that the US Federal Bureau of Investigation was responsible for instigating the January 6, 2021 attack or “insurrection”. Pence was the VP under former President Donald Trump, who is taking on new legal battles as Maine and Colorado have pushed him off of their primary election ballots after citing an insurrection clause in the US Constitution as their reasoning.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby have a tense relationship sharing the podium, Axios reported on Friday, citing White House sources.

While Jean-Pierre holds the sole press secretary position, in practice, she tends to speak on domestic policy matters, while Kirby handles foreign policy, because President Biden reportedly wants both of them to function as spokespeople for the White House.

Moscow: A Russian politician calling for peace in Ukraine has lost her appeal against election officials’ refusal to accept her nomination for the country’s presidential race that President Vladimir Putin is all but certain to win.

Former regional legislator Yekaterina Duntsova has promoted her vision of a “humane” Russia “that’s peaceful, friendly and ready to co-operate with everyone on the principle of respect”.

The tight control that Putin has established during 24 years in power makes his re-election in March’s presidential vote all but assured. Prominent critics who could challenge him are either in prison or living abroad, and most independent media have been banned.

Cop29, the next round of UN talks to tackle the climate crisis, will be led by another veteran of the oil and gas industry.

Mukhtar Babayev, Azerbaijan’s ecology and natural resources minister, has been appointed the president-in-waiting for the Cop29 climate talks when they take place in the country in November.

Before his entry into politics in the autocratic country in western Asia, once a Soviet republic, Babayev spent 26 years working for the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic (Socar).

On the surface, US foreign policy seems to be utterly irrational. The US gets into one disastrous war after another — Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Ukraine, and Gaza. In recent days, the US stands globally isolated in its support of Israel’s genocidal actions against the Palestinians, voting against a UN General Assembly resolution for a Gaza ceasefire backed by 153 countries with 89% of the world population, and opposed by just the US and 9 small countries with less than 1% of the world population. 

By Jeffrey D. Sachs / Common Dreams

As soon as we elect someone, we get an autocrat in charge….

In our western constructs, the majority is often managed by a powerful minusculity — whichever majority we elect. Our choices become manipulated not by wisdom but by media, itself under control from the small gangsterous mob — and so is the new somewhat in charge subject to the pressures of this small group of devious influential grabbers. We’re stuffed.

In Russia, the majority loves Putin. The minisculity isn't powerful... That's democracy....

In China, the majority is running a single party... That's democracy....

In the West, the best person to run America isn't born yet... That's cacacracy...

There are far too many fronts on which another horrific war in the Middle East could potentially erupt, and things are far too close to the brink on all of them.

by Caitlin Johnstone

The broadcaster’s response to my editing of international news stories amounted to a show trial, reflecting a malaise within mainstream media.

In this tumultuous time of war and global conflict the ability of journalists to do their jobs effectively within mainstream media has never been more limited.