Peace Be With You

We form a covenant. 

They came like flocks of birds in a dark night, and formed here for an instance. 

In the surreal world that was not the real world, the world seen through the lens of Australian media, he evoked, provoked, they came like a storm of winter birds, trees overhang, dark whispers occur beneath the mossy trails, fireflies line the banks, a whispering continues, an echo chamber, an amplification device, and all, here, we welcome you; and in that instance all was clear.

This shadow boxing, these frail intents, this country as it mourned its dead, this future that was already passing, also passed, this species, these dreaded fights, the blood, their blood, as if they mattered, as if any of it mattered, why the birds nestled in the early dawn, why the lake wa so silent before daybreak, why this moment in history was so forlorn, why people buried themselves ever deeper in their own discontents, disengaged from the political process, without hope of redemption or representation, without hope the future would be better than the past, with no faith in their leaders; that was how this country was already beginning to dissolve; corrosive intent, and the sheer, unadulterated dishonesty of it all.

He could walk forth into those temples of the ancients, the Earth's ancient forests; he could hear the echoes already; they trailed through these times as if on a snivelling watch, sniffing an evil wind, a black wicked swirl of ill intent, and if you think they care about the humans, you have another think coming. 

This was why, then, they had landed here. 

The charade, the post-revelation charade, was sickening to watch.

Their leaders spouted formulae, there was so little genuine intent. It became a battle of false promises. The devolution of government into a two-horse race, a miserable piece of political theatre; he was disengaged and embittered, like so many with whom he made brief encounter, and perhaps it was this disengagement, the result of betrayal front and centre, which would form the corrosive glue which would etch away the fault lines of the society, which in the end would do so much harm. 

They were not protected; but this place would prosper. 

Blessed art thou.

And so it was, and so it would be, these early stages of utter dissolution. The collapse of all promise. And they had no one else to blame but themselves.

They failed to take care of the common people. And therefore they failed their own futures, their own descendants. 

It was lucky, fortunate perhaps, that there were others in the mix. That it was possible to be saved, at least in part, at least in place.

We direct your fortune.

THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA

THE NEW DAILY

Prime Minister Scott Morrison questioning if Labor was loyal to China prompted the most heated exchange in a pre-election leaders debate that saw Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese outpoint the PM.

Mr Albanese landed no killer blow but countered attempts by Mr Morrison to lure him into a debate on home affairs policy and worked his advantages on COVID-19 management, a federal anti-corruption commission and Pacific security.

In the end, the Sky News “People’s Forum” in Brisbane was always about the wisdom of the undecided voter.

And on that measure, Mr Albanese emerged the winner of a 100-person straw poll, 40 to 35.

Although he charged hard on national security, the Prime Minister seemed less energised trying to talk up his economic record.

“Our strong economic plan has been delivering,” Mr Morrison said.

“Our strong economic plan is getting people off welfare into work, about helping Australians realise their big aspirations”.

Mr Morrison acknowledged the national debt had blown out under his watch but said the government had overseen a $100 billion turnaround in addition to falling unemployment.

Mr Albanese characterised the government as dithering instead of pursuing any substantial reforms.

‘You have to shape the future’

“The problem with this government is that it’s just treading water, not pursuing any significant economic, social or environmental reforms,” Mr Albanese said.

“You have to shape the future, otherwise the future will shape you.”

SKY

Labor leader Anthony Albanese has narrowly defeated Prime Minister Scott Morrison at The People's Forum debate which saw the pair make their pitch to the Australian population ahead of the Federal Election on May 21.

The clear result out of the first debate on Wednesday night was that neither leader dominated the support of the audience in Brisbane, with Mr Albanese securing 40 per cent of the vote to Mr Morrison’s 35 per cent.

A shocking 25 per cent were not convinced either way, after both leaders failed to land a firm blow on their opponent while going head-to-head.

Sky News Australia host Paul Murray said the result reflected recent opinion polls and indicated that “we are on our way to a hung parliament”.

THE GUARDIAN

A court has formally approved the extradition of Julian Assange to the US on espionage charges, in what will ultimately be a decision for the UK home secretary, Priti Patel.

The Wikileaks co-founder, who has the right of appeal, appeared by videolink during the Westminster magistrates court hearing, which one of his barristers described as a “brief but significant moment in the case”.

Mark Summers QC, for Assange, told the chief magistrate that he had no option but to send the case to the home secretary. It was not open, at this point, for Assange’s team to raise fresh evidence but there had been “fresh developments”, he added.

Summers said “serious submissions” would be made to the home secretary regarding US sentencing and conditions.

The brief hearing was taking place after the supreme court last month refused Assange’s appeal against his extradition. He had sought to challenge a judgment by the high court in December that ruled he could be extradited after assurances from the US authorities with regard to his prison conditions there.

An extradition order was issued by the chief magistrate, Paul Goldspring, during the seven-minute hearing.

Goldspring told Assange: “In layman’s terms, I am duty bound to send your case to the secretary of state for a decision.”

As well as being able to make submissions to Patel, Assange’s lawyers can also access other routes to fight his extradition. This could include mounting a challenge on other issues of law raised at first instance on which he lost and have not yet been subject to appeal.

Assange, wearing a jacket and tie, appeared via a video link from Belmarsh prison, where he was married last month to his partner, Stella Moris, and spoke only to confirm his name and date of birth.

ABC

When Harold MacMillan was asked what was most likely to throw governments off course, the former British prime minister is reported to have responded: "Events, dear boy. Events."

And in the Nerf war that has been the 2022 election campaign so far — in which 90 per cent of the noise has been candidates caterwauling about something dastardly their opponent is secretly planning to do — the arrival of an Event, an Actual Thing That Has Actually Happened, had a shocking effect today.

China has signed a security pact with Solomon Islands. The terms are undisclosed but if it's anything like the draft that leaked recently, it'll create a hell of a potential Chinese military toe-hold right in our backyard.

Such a decision was probably inevitable and most likely timed during an election campaign for strategic cover but Shadow Foreign Minister Penny Wong described the development as the greatest foreign policy failure in the Pacific region since World War II.

Dealing with local bullies is difficult, as any primary school kid knows. And if the bully is hugely cashed-up and renting out local tree houses for silly money so they can potentially get a clear shot at you, it's unsettling for sure.