@DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

DavidPenington

@DavidPenington@mastodon.au

Sailor, father, database developer. I ride bicycles for transport.
Studied mathematics, physics & some meterology.
Wurundjeri country, Melbourne Australia
I talk quite a lot about Australian politics, Ukraine war, renewables/global warming. Some IT & military history.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

GottaLaff, to random
@GottaLaff@mastodon.social avatar

“Speaker Mike Johnson told GOP lawmakers that he’ll try to pass four bills this week to send aid to Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan — each in separate bills, according to two Republicans in the private Monday meeting.

A fourth proposed bill would include a package of related measures, including a lend-lease deal for military aid, a ban on TikTok in the U.S. and provisions to sell off assets seized from Russian oligarchs.”

https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2024/04/15/congress/johnsons-ukraine-israel-proposal-00152375

DavidPenington,
@DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

@GottaLaff So

  1. Johnson will not let the bill for aid to Israel, Ukraine & Taiwan that has already passed the senate be voted on, instead his own new versions.
  2. Watch for the Ukraine bill to suddenly be delayed.
  3. Will these bills be acceptable to the senate? They will have rushed the drafting.
    Note: Johnson has no problem getting congress to approve the Senate's aid bill. His congress problem is avoiding the crazy wing of the Republicans deposing him.
fulelo, to worldwithoutus
@fulelo@journa.host avatar

- : Tracking the world's biggest in
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-f4de435a-d215-4a7c-86e9-9b838701c993

DavidPenington,
@DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

@fulelo Is this a Brexit effect? The standard unit of large Antarctic iceberg area is Luxembourg, not Greater London, which is ill defined and changes over time.
From 2017-2020 Iceberg A-68 was 2.2 Luxembourgs area. A23a is 1.1 Luxembourgs, so it's currently the biggest but only half the size A-68 was.

raymondpert, to uk
@raymondpert@mastodon.cloud avatar

The #UK government said Wednesday it will back legislation banning foreign state ownership of British #newspapers and magazines, a move that could upend a planned takeover by a United Arab Emirates-led consortium of the #TelegraphMediaGroup.

> The development comes after numerous lawmakers from across the political divide urged an explicit ban, rather than using a regulatory approach to ensure that publications don’t parrot views of state actors.
https://apnews.com/article/telegraph-spectator-foreign-state-ownership-ban-859bfcb3afd849e3cf388cf1fab32f41 #journalism #UAE

DavidPenington,
@DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

@raymondpert The UK has to carefully ban only foreign staye owned organisations from buying UK newspapers, because they dare not ban the American Murdoch group despite its harmful effects.

Alice, to random
@Alice@beige.party avatar

I’m always surprised when I go into an old house and find a dumb waiter that's still working because I would have stopped working a long time ago if everyone called me that.

DavidPenington,
@DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

@Alice @Gogs
My favourite bastard vending machine: Ravenous after a morning of touring on bicycles, we roll into a tiny French village & find a fresh bread vending machine! How French! No other source of food. Bastard machine wouldn't accept my Australian credit card, leaving me salivating & hungry.

raymondpert, to Ukraine
@raymondpert@mstdn.social avatar

deleted_by_author

    •
    DavidPenington,
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    @raymondpert "We are not at war with Russia," but Russia says, for internal consumption, that it is at war with all of NATO and all "The West".
    Russia is, in fact, at war with us. The 2022 energy crisis, engineered by Russia, is an example. We need to respond strongly.

    raymondpert, to Israel
    @raymondpert@mstdn.social avatar

    deleted_by_author

    •
    DavidPenington,
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    @raymondpert The 100+ hostages have been held for 5 months, with no Red Cross visit (agreed to by Hamas in November but they reneged), terrible conditions. The reported terms are 40 hostages, one per day over 6 more weeks & negotiate about later possible release of male soldier hostages. It's a terrible deal for the remaining 60 hostages & resolves nothing, but may be the best deal Israel can get.

    raymondpert, to Israel
    @raymondpert@mstdn.social avatar

    deleted_by_author

    •
    DavidPenington,
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    @raymondpert I don't think Iran's PressTV outlet should be trusted or promoted.

    simon_brooke, to random
    @simon_brooke@mastodon.scot avatar

    OK, suppose we reformed the relationship between central and local government in the UK by switching the proceeds of one major tax from central government to local government, which should it be? Switching income tax (£250bn) would obviously benefit richer areas at the expense of poorer. My hunch is that switching VAT (£162bn) would be a better idea.

    Comments?
    @RichardJMurphy
    @thecommongreen

    DavidPenington,
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    @simon_brooke @RichardJMurphy @thecommongreen
    Per capita is basically the only formula that doesn't get messedup by politicians or entrench poverty.

    DavidPenington,
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    @simon_brooke @RichardJMurphy @thecommongreen
    Switch that revenue by allocating it per capita, not trying to attribute it to its origins.

    DavidPenington, to random
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    There are a lot of Hamas tunnels in Gaza - An average of over 20 entrances per square km & 400+ km of tunnel in a 40km long territory.
    https://archive.is/hs80B

    hanse_mina, to Ukraine
    @hanse_mina@nafo.uk avatar

    The wants to sharpen its plan for fighting ’s invasion as the war heads into its third year and is expected to raise the issue with President Volodymyr in next week.

    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-01-10/us-set-to-push-zelenskiy-at-davos-for-clearer-war-plan

    DavidPenington,
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    @VikingChieftain @hanse_mina
    Plan:
    -Destroy Kerch brIdge & transports to Crimea with ATACAMS

    • destroy Russian strategic bombers with Tomahawk
    • destroy Russian drone, missile & ammunition production with Tomahawk
      Destroy Russian railways near Ukraine with ATACAMS
    • Fit Trophy APS or equivalent to numerous tanks
      -Attack weakened, undersupplied Russian forces in Kherson Oblast.
    raymondpert, to Israel
    @raymondpert@mstdn.social avatar

    deleted_by_author

    •
    DavidPenington,
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    @raymondpert Correction/clarification: UNRWA says Israeli Forces Fired on Aid Convoy. UNRWA are known to make extreme & biased statements. In Gaza they are intermingled with Hamas & dare not publicly disagree with Hamas.

    raymondpert, to MIjazz
    @raymondpert@mstdn.social avatar

    deleted_by_author

    •
    DavidPenington,
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    @raymondpert "ignition" means laser energy in = heat energy produced. Electrical energy in was 5 times that.
    Heat conversion to electricity is rarely better than 30% so to produce useful electricity from this approach needs:

    • working out how to usefully capture the energy produced in the fusion & cope with the vast numbers of high energy neutrons which cause materials problems
    • improving efficiency more than 15 fold, to break even.
      So this "breakthrough" is arbitrary milestone a very long way from delivering any usable energy.
    GottaLaff, to random
    @GottaLaff@mastodon.social avatar

    “The U.S. and a host of other nations are creating a new force to protect ships transiting the Red Sea that have come under attack by drones and ballistic missiles fired from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced early Tuesday in Bahrain.”

    https://apnews.com/article/attacks-red-sea-navy-mission-missiles-286d51bfd65e741e839e185f0f4a455b?taid=6580bb99010d8800015dc157

    DavidPenington,
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    @GottaLaff So far the missiles & drones from the Houthi are being treated in the way Somali pirates were/are handled, but pirates were a local problem & this is an organised government level attack.

    DavidPenington, to random
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    This has a very impressive video of the Hamas tunnels under al Shifa hospital. The tunnels got power and water from the hospital, including its solar system & generators. That is a clear abuse of the requirement to not be used to harm "the enemy". Al Shifa had zero right to protection under the Geneva Conventions.
    https://idfspokesperson.substack.com/p/this-is-the-last-stop-for-the-gaza

    DavidPenington, to random
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    Context is dead.

    https://youtu.be/ojJtGGPn47s?si=A-brrru6qJU-Hq2o

    DavidPenington, to random
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    After 2 1/2 years COVID finally got me. I might have forgotten the face mask at a toilet stop on the drive home on Tuesday. Otherwise I've been very careful.
    Asthma & high blood pressure cintrolled by a combination of 2 medicines are risk factors for me.

    DavidPenington, to random
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    Iceland PM joins crowd of 100,000 for full-day women’s strike

    Katrín Jakobsdóttir says she wants nation to achieve full gender equality by 2030 as over a quarter of population attend event in capital!

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/oct/24/iceland-prime-minister-joins-womens-strike-katrin-jakobsdottir

    DavidPenington, to random
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    Good riddance, eventually, to RMIT's Traditional Chinese Medicine undergraduate program.
    TCM was standardised after 1948 as the only medicine China could afford for the bulk of the population.
    Chinese TCM researchers are required to produce positive results or be in trouble with their bosses. TCM materials are a big Chinese export & a Chinese doctor has been prosecuted for criticising it. They lack a consistent or reality based diagnostic system.
    The Australian TCM acupuncture research I have seen was terrible - showing bias, not evidence.
    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-10-21/rmits-face-criticism-over-discontinuing-chinese-medicine-program/102836548

    DavidPenington, to random
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    Egypt rejected the idea of safe corridors for civilians to protect “the right of Palestinians to hold on to their cause and their land” 😣
    Protecting their right to be forced to die for the cause?
    https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2023/oct/11/israel-hamas-war-live-updates-death-toll-us-egypt-passage-gaza?page=with:block-6526e9278f08868e610b8f24#block-6526e9278f08868e610b8f24

    DavidPenington, to random
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    On Thursday there was a de-escalation agreement in Gaza, with workers allowed to cross into Israel again on Friday, in part because Palestinian families need the income to survive. On Saturday morning, the Iran aligned Palestinian groups attacked.

    DavidPenington, to Mushrooms
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    Massive flat, misshapen mushrooms emerged in our garden overnight on Thursday night! They've made a hole about 8cm deep.

    image/jpeg
    image/jpeg
    image/jpeg

    DavidPenington, to random
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    Wow! 1980s Psychology professor to class with 1 black student:

    "He proclaimed that we were ranked intellectually with Asian people being more intelligent than whites and Blacks being more or less intelligent than white people.

    "A student asked at that time, 'Is this always the case? Can we always guarantee that this will be the case?' And he then turned to the class and said there is some variation except if you are Black. If you are Black, you are genetically inferior and intellectually inferior to all other races."

    The arrogance, inhumanity & this is a meaningless statement "you are genetically inferior and intellectually inferior to all other races."

    https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/london/black-student-never-got-apology-philippe-rushton-teachings-1.5657024

    DavidPenington, to random
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    Ukraine should negotiate with Russia. Negotiate on reparations, Russian disarmament, guarantees, & the ex-Soviet position on the security council. I suggest full nuclear disarmament, 10% of GDP for 15 years in reparations & Rostov, Belgorod & Bryansk oblasts demilitarised by Russia & secured by Ukraine as guarantees.
    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-21/zelenskyy-lavrov-at-un-general-assembly-stop-war-veto-power/102882162

    GottaLaff, to random
    @GottaLaff@mastodon.social avatar

    Judge Kelly is talking now, in the case, prior to his sentencing.

    Thing is, he always starts out with such condemnation, then disappoints us with the number of years in the sentence.

    Sigh.

    DavidPenington,
    @DavidPenington@mastodon.au avatar

    @GottaLaff I disagree with Judge Kelly. The Proud Boys planned to sieze parliament & hold it hostage until they overturned the US constitution & elected Trump. Holding congress by violence for a political goal is terrorist. They didn't bring guns because 200 PBs with guns would be less able to achieve that goal than 200 PBs manipulating the mob.
    They failed because congress & senate escaped, by seconds.

  • All
  • Subscribed
  • Moderated
  • Favorites
  • •
  • JUstTest
  • rosin
  • InstantRegret
  • khanakhh
  • ngwrru68w68
  • osvaldo12
  • DreamBathrooms
  • mdbf
  • magazineikmin
  • thenastyranch
  • everett
  • Youngstown
  • slotface
  • kavyap
  • provamag3
  • GTA5RPClips
  • Durango
  • cubers
  • modclub
  • tester
  • tacticalgear
  • cisconetworking
  • ethstaker
  • anitta
  • Leos
  • megavids
  • normalnudes
  • lostlight
  • All magazines
    •