“Gabrielle” towed to Discovery Bay, 2014

"Gabrielle" on tow. Central Hong Kong in background

The wooden boat I built, with a lot of help from Arlene, in our backyard in 2013. Blog here. 

We're towing her back across the harbour, from the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club, where I'd installed the mast and sails (a gift from North Sails), back to home base at the DB Yacht Club. 

With mate Jonathan Rechen driving the towing boat.

"Tucker Carlson on Christians in Israel" | Ari Kozak

 

I watched some of the recent interview Tucker Carlson did with the nun from Judea and Samaria (aka the "West Bank"). It was horrid. She was horrid. Carlson was horrid.  

It was full of misinformation, malice and hate on Israel. While lauding the people — Palestinians — that have crushed the number of Christians in the very land she's spend the last two decades in. 

The stupidity is breathtaking. 

A jewish comedian, Ari Kozak, does a much better job than me, in mocking Carlson and this nun-who-looks-like-a-man. (She's supposed to be  George Stephanopoulos' sister. Brother maybe). 

Here's the Carslon interview. The counter to the Carlson with Dana Loesch, here. 

“Uefa’s ‘Stop killing children’ banner isn’t fooling anyone” | Brendan O’Neill

Who does Uefa think it’s kidding? It says the huge banner saying ‘Stop killing children’ unfurled at a Super Cup match last night was ‘not political’. It was ‘about humanity’, insists an insider. ‘In fact, you could just say it is common sense’, they said. They must think we were born yesterday. Everyone whose moral faculties have not been entirely fried by the Gaza war knows this banner was likely a political dig at that state it is fashionable to hate – Israel.

To display such a banner ahead of a Spurs match – a team with deep links to Britain’s Jewish community – is especially egregious

The banner said ‘Stop Killing Children – Stop Killing Civilians’. It was displayed on the pitch in Udine, Italy ahead of the clash between Tottenham Hotspur and Paris Saint-Germain. Children from conflict zones around the world stood by the banner, including two Palestinian kids. Uefa’s rules forbid the display of political messages before, during or after matches. But this wasn’t political, it says – it was a cry of concern for littl’uns everywhere.

I call BS. I suppose it is wholly coincidental that such a banner has been displayed at a time when Europe’s chattering classes feverishly accuse the Jewish State of being a child-killing entity. Spend more than 60 seconds on social media and you’ll encounter this calumny. Browse the ‘respectable’ press and there it is. Venture into your city centre when there’s a ‘pro-Palestine’ march and you’ll hear the mob holler it: ‘Israel spills the blood of children!’

This view of Israel as a uniquely murderous state, as a nation that takes pleasure in the butchery of children, is all the rage right now. ‘Israel is annihilating Palestinian children’, op-ed writers cry. It is ‘targeting childhood’ itself, we’re told. A Unicef official described Israel’s war in Gaza as a ‘war on children’. It is no such thing, of course; it is a war on the neo-fascists of Hamas who invaded Israel on 7 October 2023 to rape and massacre Jews. Read on…

Who's Gerry Mander? Or.. WHAT is Gerrymander?

Searches for "Gerrymandering" have spiked

Gerrymandering suddenly in the news. And I learned some things. Which is all going to be a bit nerdy. So if you don't like nerdy, bail now!

First, definitions, and then WHY is "gerrymandering" in the news. 

I thought that "gerrymandering" was just the rude way of saying "redistricting" (which is adjusting electoral boundaries). But, no. One is OK -- "redistricting" -- and the other is kind of underhand -- "gerrymandering". 

Gerrymandering:

Gerrymandering is the deliberate manipulation of electoral district boundaries to favor one political party or group, often by "packing" (concentrating opponents’ voters into few districts) or "cracking" (spreading them across many districts) to skew representation disproportionately to the popular vote.

I asked "where's the word from?":

The word "gerrymander" comes from a combination of the name Elbridge Gerry, a former governor of Massachusetts, and the word "salamander". In 1812, Gerry signed a redistricting bill that created oddly shaped electoral districts to favor his Democratic-Republican Party. One district in Massachusetts resembled a salamander, prompting critics to coin the term "gerrymander" as a pejorative, blending Gerry’s name with the creature’s shape. The term, first used in a Boston newspaper, has since described partisan manipulation of district boundaries.

Redistricting:

Redistricting is the process of redrawing electoral district boundaries, typically after a census, to reflect population changes and ensure equal representation, often based on population size. It aims to adjust districts to comply with legal requirements like the Voting Rights Act, but can be manipulated (gerrymandering) to favor a political party or group.

So, we see the difference. One is kosher, the other dodgy. Redistricting good. Gerrymandering bad. 

And why has Gerrymandering suddenly been in the news?

Because the Governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, has said he plans to do some Redistricting. He thinks the result will be around 5 Congressional Seats going Republican.

Reaction: the Dems are howling blue murder. And of course they say what Abbott is doing is Gerrymandering. 

California Governor Gavin Newsom threatens to do his own Redistricting, admitting that it'll also be Gerrymandering. And that he'll get back whatever seats are gained by Abbott in Texas. He is saying "fight fire with fire". (which is a kind of inept metphor, given the recent LA fires that were so disastrously mishandled by his own government. But what the heck). 

All this is terribly consequential. The balance in the House of Representatives is at stake. The Reps could continue to maintain control right through the mid-terms in 2026. Or not.

The Reps are saying that the mid-term Redistricting is perfectly legal. It is.... But also challengeable. 

The Dems are saying that they'll respond in kind if Texas goes ahead with the Redistricting, which of course they frame as Gerrymandering. 

The Reps then respond: "well go ahead, do your worst". Because they believe, they say, that the Dems have already done so much Redistricting (aka "Gerrymandering" per the Reps) that they can't do much more. 

I've done a bit of a deep dive on this, including coming up with a measure of the extent of Gerrymandering, which Grok called "a novel measure". This shows that both sides have done about the same amount of Redistricting, which could be classed as Gerrymandering. It's a tie across the 50 States. 

My guess is that Texas will go ahead with its Redistricting. And that Gavin Newsome will try to do his own, but that local CA laws will stop him from going ahead at the speed he seems to think he can. Reason being that there's provisions in the CA Constitution that require any Redistricting proposals to go via an independent body. And then to be approved by the electorate. This can't be done in a hurry. Whereas it does appear that Texas can. 

I got into a long discussion cum argument this morning with Grok on the issue. I learned a lot, including about Congressional Districts, aka Congressional Seats, the difference between them and Electoral College votes (which are Congressional Seats + Senate seats (ie, 2 per state). The Congressional Seats are based on population of the State, with about 700,000 population being one seat. I realise as I write this that it's all TMI. Boring, yawn country. But if you're interested in the hard graft of it all, my discussion cum argument with Grok, is here. 

As I say to the ever patient Grok, when I've had enough of a tussle, and am exhausted, TTFN. 

John’s birthday

Lijiang, Yunnan, China

Post-Hamas Gaza reality taking shape | Haviv Rettig Gur

	Haviv Rettig Gur ⁦‪@havivrettiggur‬⁩ The post-war, post-Hamas Gazan reality is already taking shape. The region is preparing to rehabilitate and rebuild. At this point, the parties holding it up are Hamas itself, of course, together with the "pro-Palestinian" campaign around the world that's still desperate for   14/8/2025, 11:41 pm

Sent from my iPad

“…we are so far from rationality… [we need] a generational moratorium” | Dr Philip Kiszely

	Dr Philip Kiszely ⁦‪@KiszelyPhilip‬⁩ I'm from an immigrant background. My uncle came here, from Hungary, in 1947. He married a German woman and they settled in Coventry. My father arrived in Britain in 1959. I know all about post-war migration. It's as much my family story as anyone else's. That first wave of   14/8/2025, 10:29 pm

Sent from my iPad

What's with Sarah Silverman and Jimmy Kimmel??

Comedian Sarah Silverman talks to late show host Jimmy Kimmel. 

The bit I found quite amazing, was the clip above. 

Where they bemoan the Trump second term win, and agree with each other that it's "way worse than we thought".

Kimmel: "As bad as you thought it was going to be, it's way worse"...."It's worse than even he [Trump] would like it to be".

And I'm thinking... WTF??!! As in classic case of one screen two movies. Where two people view one event, but have two diametrically opposed views of it. 

What's he upset about? What are they upset about? That the southern border is now secure? That inflation is down? That gas and egg prices are down? That food cost inflation is zero? That Trillions of foreign investment to the US have been committed? That the stock market has hit record highs? That Iran has had its nuclear program bombed back to the stone age? That Trump's has negotiated the end of six previously intractable conflicts? That men are no longer allowed in women's sports? That racism is being extirpated from institutions? 

[ADDED: Joe Kernen of the Squawk Box on CNBC, asks Democrat Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, the same thing. Referring to a similar list as I set out above and asking: "Where is the calamity?". Jeffries doesn't answer that question, or any other. He just deflects to "Trump bad"]

What is it, Jimmy? What is it that's "so much worse"? So bad that you talk of exiling yourself to Italy? (yeah, sure, Jimmy, sure....). 

Oh.. I get it! It's the Deportion thing. Our caring Sarah and empathetic Jimmy don't like that. They don't like the the Trump administration is doing what it said it would do, which is to deport criminal illegal aliens. Do they know that that policy is popular with 70-80% of the population? If they do, it doesn't register. 

Our dear Sarah and Jimmy are so caring their upset, and so "it's way worse that we thought". 

Sarah and Jimmy find it awful. Makes them feel... I dunno... yuck?! 

I guess they feel like this because they're the Elite. But then they say they don't like the Elite! That the Democratic Party must move away from the Elite. That it must start appealing to the Working Class. (Ok, but how? Nothing mentioned; let alone discussed). 

Jimmy delivers this gem: 

"There are repulsive Democrats. In the sense that what they say and how they say it repulses people".

"They're the loud voices in the party that scare people from saying what they believe, or think twice about telling a joke, or whatever....".  "Sometimes they're wrong. But they can't admit it. Admitting you're wrong is so hard". 

Too right, Jimmy! You ought to try it yourself, sometime. 

And to which one commenter says: "Talk of 'Repulsive' Jimmy? Look in the mirror!" Jimmy Kimmel has been the prime one doing exactly what it is that he's criticising, above! No self-awareness. None whatever. 

The lack of self-awareness of these two -- representative of so many in their Party -- is amazing. 

Kimmel, after all, was the one who said, during Covid, that unvaccinated people who went to the hospital should be left to die. Has he ever uttered a single word of apology, of shame, of regret, for this murderous malice? 

[The whole podcast is here, but warning: it's a bit hard to take, at least for me. Smug sententiousness on open display].

ADDED: Megyn Kelly tears these two apart, here. There's plenty of other mockery of this pod, around the conservative pod-sphere. 

Trouble at Sea

  

 Hmmm...

The Philippine vessels are operating according the the UNCLOS, and within their own EEZ, by the Scarborough Shoals (which we've sailed past on our Xena).  

The Chinese navy and coast guard are harassing a Philippine Coast Guard vessel which is replenishing supplies for its fishing vessels operating in its own EEZ. Chinese vessels are operating in breach of the findings of a court case back in 2013: 

The arbitration case between the Philippines and China regarding their maritime disputes in the South China Sea, specifically concerning the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs), was conducted under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). 

The Philippines initiated the arbitration on January 22, 2013, by serving China with a “Notification and Statement of Claim” over maritime jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea. The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague served as the registry for the case.

On July 12, 2016, the PCA’s Arbitral Tribunal issued its final Award, ruling overwhelmingly in favor of the Philippines. The Tribunal determined that China’s “nine-dash line” claim and its asserted historic rights had no legal basis under UNCLOS. 

It clarified that certain maritime features, such as Scarborough Shoal and parts of the Spratly Islands, were not islands capable of generating EEZs but were rocks or low-tide elevations, thus falling within the Philippines’ 200-nautical-mile EEZ. The ruling also found China’s actions, including land reclamation and fishing activities, violated the Philippines’ sovereign rights and caused environmental harm. [Source]

But China's like, "yeah, but nah." 

We're seeing Karma here, in the South China Sea, by the Scarborough Shoals. I'd like to think... if I believed in Karma... which I don't. But I sure as hell can say "they deserved it". And, by the way, what shocking seamanship is shown in the vid, by the Chinese Navy. Not only the crash, but then not offering immediate aid to their sister ship??! WTF?...

"My thoughts on what's happening in Gaza" | Coleman Hughes

 

Coleman Hughes is one of the most thoughtful young philosophers out there. 

I've followed him since soon after his graduation from Stanford, majoring in philosophy. I've bought and read his first book, "The End of Race Politics. Arguments for a Colourblind America", which he talked about at a Ted Conference, and gained a whole lot of attention and controversy. I wrote about that whole fascinating episode here. 

I find him a refreshing voice that cuts through cant and drivel, attacking nonsense on both the right and the left. He's been a guest on left-wing shows like the View, CNN, The Young Turks, and on conservative shows and podcasts like Joe Rogan's, Dave Rubin's and Jimmy Dore's. 

In this video of his thoughts, above, he says he says there are "good guys" and "bad guys" and then admits that that sounds rather "cartoonish". Well, I don't know. I also see good guys and bad guys -- have said so for years --  even if the good guys sometimes do bad things. War crimes happen on both sides. But it's only Israel that has 1,000 of its own soldiers in prison awaiting trial for alleged war crimes. Hamas most certainly do not. As Coleman says, Hamas is one big apparatus of War Crimes. 

He also notes that while in most wars, war crimes are committed against the enemy, in the case of the Gaza war, the war crimes by Hamas are mostly committed against its own citizens. For which it has zero duty of care and zero sympathy for. 

At the end he talks of the issue of Genocide, declaring it to be the "most ridiculous" of the charges against Israel. I agree. Nothing it does fits either the definition or the practice of genocide. Consider that if Israel had wanted to commit genocide, it could have wiped out Gazans in a few weeks. It did not do so. That's pretty much QED right there. I've also posted Harvard's law professor emeritus Alan Dershowitz's piece on genocide, here. 

But do listen to Coleman, as he expresses things so much more clearly and eloquently than I do. 

“Gabrielle”, the wooden boat I built, Nim Shue Wan, Discovery Bay, Hong Kong

Nim Shue Wan beach, Discovery Bay. Around 2014

Named "Gabrielle" because she's the side-kick of or big boat, Xena. Which was named after the Warrior Princess, played in the TV series by the lovely NZ actress Lucy Lawless. In the show, Xena had a side-kick called Gabrielle. 

In the background is the "Bounty" a recreation of the famous one from the "Mutiny on the Bounty". She was here for several years, a project of one the Cha family who own the company that develops Discovery Bay. We went on her several times, had Christmas and other parties on her, lots of fun. She's now been sailed away, to where I know not. 

Walk right along this beach, about one kilometre and you get to what they call locally "the Philippine village". It's mostly Filipinos who work at odd jobs in DB. Nice friendly folks. Sometimes they do BBQ kebabs and sell them to passing hikers for a dollar a two a stick. Often they're dancing and singing. The Filipinos love to love. And love to have fun. And love to sing and dance.

Albanese's "Two State Solution" -- shades of the Black Knight

 

 We, to Albo and Wong: "The Two State Solution is on its death bed."

Albo and Wong: "No, it's not. It's just a flesh wound." 

We: "You're a loony!" 

Hamas (from the rubble): "Alright then, we'll call it a draw!"

Albanese and Wong are dangerously deluded.

I nominate this Albo/Wong "policy" of Australia, to announce we're going to "recognise the State of Palestine" at the next UN General Assembly, as the most deluded delusional figment of delusional deluded political minds, EVER. Demented.

I mean, can there be a more ridiculous set of "preconditions" as set out by Albanese for Recognition of the state, EVER??! There is not a one of these that Mahmoud Abbas will adhere to. Not one. Albo is candidate for the asylum. Poor man. No, not poor man. History-making dangerous man. Shame he's our PM. Sigh... 

"I will debunk ANY Pro-Palestinian video (starting with: the war didn’t start on October 7th)" | Oren Cahanovitc

 

A tiny fact-check on a figure Oren Cahanovitc quotes. The number of Arabs living as citizens of Israel, a total of 22% of the Israeli population, who way they would rather live in Israel than an Arab state, is according to various polls, between 60% and 93%. That's still a healthy number, but not the 99% Oren mentions. 

Ok, I'm quibbling. 

I like this video because not only debunks the errors of the egregious Max Blumenthal -- who drips with jew-hatred and Israel hatred, and he a Jew... --  but also what the even more horrid Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, said immediately after the October 7th massacre: "There's context to this". Meaning the same thing as Blumenthal is referring to -- a war in 1948 at the time of the establishment of the State of Israel. All of which Oren tears apart in his video above. 

It's also a common trope amongst the Hamas-nicks -- "it didn't start on October 7th!" -- from the luvvies who march along to support the Horrid Hamas, in their kewl keffiyehs, their Black Flags of ISIS, who march across the Harbour Bridge in support of genocidal barbarians, these ones who think they know a little bit. And of course, do end up knowing just a little bit and a little bit of knowledge is always dangerous. 

Tesla Robotaxis up to SIX times cheaper than Waymo, Uber, Lyft

From here

Multiples of Tesla Robotaxi price, August 2025, San Francisco, for 3 mile ride:

Multiple of Tesla fare in $US per mile:

• Tesla:      ($2.32 per mile). Multiple of 1.
• Waymo:  6.0 times the price of Robotaxi, per mile
• Uber:      4.6 times the price of Robotaxi, per mile
• Lyft:        3.1 times the price of Robotaxi, per mile

When Tesla rolls out tens of thousands of Robotaxis, which it has the capacity to do, and do quickly, they will kill the competition. 

This will have an impact on human drivers. On their employment. Musk recognises this, and says it has to be addressed. But no one listens to him, because, you know, "Elon bad". 

White Chapel, Discovery Bay, Hong Kong

Multi faith, wedding and funeral space. Park Siena, Discovery Bay, Hong Kong

Worth remembering. By President Kennedy

	Akash Maniam ⁦‪@ManiamAkash‬⁩ Worth remembering pic.x.com/huS9JJEpL7   9/8/2025, 11:12 pm

“I made my parents very proud by murdering a Jewish woman…” | Arafat Irfaiya

	Vivid.🇮🇱 ⁦‪@VividProwess‬⁩ In February 2019, Arafat Irfaiya, a Muslim Palestinian, kidnapped, raped, and beheaded a 19-year-old Jewish woman. In court, he said, "I made my parents very proud by murdering a Jewish woman," smirked and smiled. Do you honestly think Jews can co-exist with those demons? pic.x.com/izZmIF3tkR   10/8/2025, 10:00 am

Remember how many October 7th murderers phoned home to Gaza, boasting to their parents how many Jews they'd killed? To the delight of their parents. Which they posted online immediately. 

They're PROUD of mass murder and decapitating Jews.

UN Report: “UN Reports not widely read”

	Hillel Neuer ⁦‪@HillelNeuer‬⁩ U.N. report reveals: "U.N. reports are not widely read." The organization has become a parody of itself. pic.x.com/BwdBfLZ9Kh   10/8/2025, 7:31 am

Heh!

Hamas Terrorist Explains Complex, Nuanced Goals In Palestinian Conflict

 

Satire as documentary.

 A commenter says: "Give the interviewer a British accent and this is the actual BBC"

It's sadly true. The MSM in the west twists and turns into every shape to try to excuse the foundational truth of Islam: that it hates Jews and tries to kill them everywhere. Especially Israel. Or.. starting with Israel.

 Could we not learn that? Acknowledge that? Deal with that? Or, at least, try to deal with that?

Are we going crazy? Britain out to ban books

Are we going crazy? We in the West? Becoming as censorious as any communist country? As any authoritarian state? 

Britain out to ban books. CS Lewis, Tolkien, Orwell among works tagged as triggers for 'far-right' extremism by anti-terrorism group, "Prevent". 

Not just any books, but the books and authors that are the very soul of our enlightenment. Books from George Orwell, for example, and even the plays of Shakespeare. We are to avoid these, according the the UK government's Prevent quango. 

Read on for the craziness, clipped here: 

A government anti-terrorism unit in the U.K. has reportedly flagged key English literature as potential triggers for right-wing extremism – leading one author whose work is on the list to bash the agency's strategy.

Classic authors such as C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, George Orwell, Joseph Conrad and Aldous Huxley were included on the list of potentially problematic texts compiled by Prevent’s Research Information and Communications Unit, according to Douglas Murray in The Spectator.

Other authors whose work is allegedly shared by people sympathetic with "the far-right and Brexit" also reportedly include Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Edmund Burke, Thomas Carlyle, Adam Smith and William Shakespeare.

John and Basil, Spring 2011, Siena Park, Discovery Bay, Hong Kong

‘The tide is shifting’: Massive Australian protest over Gaza crisis seen as a sign of growing global alarm | CNN

You see? 

CNN tells me (and some ORs tell me): “you’ve got to get with the program”.

And this is why I'm supposed to "get with the program"…. Because there is "growing alarm". Because there are so MANY. Just so many who "care for humanity". Who march for "Free Palestine". 

But I'm NOT down with the program. I'm NOT going to join the mobs. I'm NOT going to march for "Free Palestine".

Because of reasons I set out yesterday. And ought to be clear from the rest of this blog.  

"Tides" sometimes flow in bad directions….

Source: CNN
https://share.google/Sm7WBocyDK62frA3d

Sent from my iPhone

ADDED: “The tide is shifting…” is a pretty flimsy and confusing metaphor. I let Grok tear it apart.

Let’s not FREE PALESTINE! 7 good reasons why we shouldn’t free Palestine

This by Oren Cahanovitc is also my reasons for why I couldn't have attended last week's huge rally in Sydney -- the pro-Palestine rally -- that took over the Harbour Bridge. 

For which I'd been told: "you have to get with the program. Look at all the people that are siding with the Palestinians now and against the genocide in Gaza".... Well, yeah, but nah. 

There are just too many reasons for NOT supporting the demo. A lot of people taking part doesn't make it right. Millions of volk at the 1930s rallies in Germany didn't make them right. Even more millions at Red Guard rallies in China in the 1960s didn't make them right either. 

Here goes with some of my reasons I couldn't support the Sunday Bridge Rally... to "Free Palestine":

I support women's rights. The Sunday Marchers, the "Free Palestine" mob, the Bridge Bigots, do not support women's rights. They support an outfit -- Hamas -- that very much does not support women's rights. That treats women as worth half a man; that demands women in public be accompanied by a man; that says a man may -- indeed must - beat a woman if she disobeys him. 

I support LGBTQ rights. The Sunday Marchers, the "Free Palestine" mob, the Bridge Bigots, do not support LGBTQ rights. They support an outfit -- Hamas -- that very much does not support LGBT rights. Hamas loathe gays. They hang them from cranes in the public square. They throw them off roofs. The number of openly gay people in Gaza = Zero. 

I support not killing people who don't believe as you do. The Sunday Marchers, the "Free Palestine" mob, the Bridge Bigots, do not support being tolerant to those who do not think the same as they. In this case, who do not think the same as Hamas. The Charter of Hamas specifically calls for the world to be under the control of Islam. And these folks, these Bridge Bozos, marching "for humanity" are in fact marching for the killing of non-believers. 

I support not starving hostages to death. The Sunday Marchers, the "Free Palestine" mob, the Bridge Bigots, do not support this. The verified authentic video of a skeletal Israeli hostage being forced to dig his own grave is not only a war crime it is the worst of humanity. But that's what the marchers are marching in support of. 

"But What about the starving children?" they cry. Indeed what about the starving children. Of which we have seen hoax photos, since revealed to be hoaxes by none other than the New York Times, splashed across western media without any verification at all. To the extent that we know the truth of what's going on in Gaza, there is hunger, but it's brought about by Hamas. Even the othersise complicit United Nations admits this. Yet the Bridge Bigots are marching in support of this hoaxing of the public. 

I support the Jews. The Sunday Marchers, the "Free Palestine" mob, the Bridge Bigots, do not support Jews. Way, way not.  They support an outfit -- Hamas -- whose Charter calls for the massacre, the murder, the genocide of Jews everywhere. 

I support the Jewish State of Israel. The Sunday Marchers, the "Free Palestine" mob, the Bridge Bigots, do not support a Jewish state. They support an outfit -- Hamas -- that wants to obliterate Israel. Hamas don't want a Two State Solution --  they've said openly many times. They support One State, Palestine -- "Free Palestine" -- with no Jews, Free of Jews, Judenrein. The very same vision as the German man with the little moustache. Hamas are Nazis, plain and simple. And literally. Where I mean "literally" literally. In fact, one could easily argue they are worse, because of the religious element to their beliefs. Their "perfect man", Muhammad, told them that they must forever hate the Jews and seek to annihilate them. That's all they're up to now. The Bridge Bigots go along with that. 

Given all this, I really do wonder how I'm the one, apparently, who's in the minority. I'm the one who's expected to "get with the program", and to support the Bridge Bigots, because that's the clear trend. 

I say NO. I will not do it. Even if I lose every friend and relative in my life. I will not side with genocidal, homophobic, misogynist, Jew-hating nazis. End of. For me. 

Madagascar Lily. Tiger head mountain. Lantau Island, Hong Kong

On my bike trip around Siena Park, Discovery Bay, Hong Kong. That's Tiger Head Mountain in the middle at back, up which we've climbed many times. It's a grand trek. On the other side, goes down to the town of Mui Wo, 20 or so miles south of us here. 

The domed structure is Discovery Bay College, a private school teaching the International Baccalaureate. Our son, John, attended for a few years. 

"The Lie of the Century: The Origin of COVID-19" | Jeff M. Smith

Kind of dated, but still relevant. If you go ask AI it'll tell you that the prevailing theory is that the origin was Zoonotic. Aka, natural transmission. Even though there is little evidence of that. And there's plenty of evidence for the Lab Leak theory. 

One day we may learn the truth. If a worker at the Wuhan Institute of Virology decides to blow the whistle. 

Anhoo, this is a good summary. Because I agree with it... 

Key Takeaways:

• The evidence supporting natural spillover has always been thin. Conversely, the evidence pointing to a lab leak has always been compelling.
• China acted pretty much exactly as you would expect from a paranoid communist country trying to cover up a lab leak.
• Supporting with the lab-leak theory was “siding with President Trump” and nothing—not science, honesty, morality, credibility, or public health—was more important.

"The Lie of the Century: The Origin of COVID-19" 

Bike by Bay

Sam Pak Bay, Discovery Bay, towards Central Hong Kong 

Oh, boy!... it's dog food again!"

What I saw in Gaza | Andrew Fox

 

 

Brendan O'Neill talks to Andrew Fox.

 Some key points: 

3,000 calories per person per day has gone into Gaza since the war started. The issue is not food aid, but its distribution. 

85% of the food entering Gaza via the UN is intercepted by HAMAS. The UN doesn't care because it is anti-Israel. Corrupted beyond saving. 

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) is the food distribution org of the United States and Israel. It has ZERO of its food aid intercepted. 

 It suits HAMAS for Gazans to go hungry. Allows them to sell the food aid they captured for huge prices. 

 If the world changes to unrestricted foreign food aid going into Gaza, it will help HAMAS to rebuild. 

 Fatality and casualty figures are more correct on the IDF side than on the HAmas side, which exaggerate all the numbers. (22:30). 

The figures show that IDF is concentrating on targeting combatants, not civilians. But the western media never mentions the number of Hamas combatants killed when they talk of casualty figures. 

In what other war in history do you get a running tally of deaths and the requirement to feed the enemy? None. (25:00).

The charge of "genocide" is ridiculous, it's so demonstrably not so. It's a modern blood libel. (32:00).

Media outlets in the west only use IDF figures 3% of the time. The rest of the time they relay on Hamas figures. There's a tendency: No figures from the IDF are believed, unless there's strong evidence in support. All figures from Hamas are believed and reported on the spot, unless they can be immediately debunked. (27:30).

Israel is investigating 1,000 of its soldiers for potential war crimes, right now. The number on the Hamas side being so investigated: Zero.

What's going on in Gaza is demonstrably not a genocide. Claiming it's genocide is a modern blood libel against Israel. (30:00). 

And a lot more.... 

"The establishment of Israel inflamed Palestinian anger". Not true

"The establishment of Israel inflamed Palestinian anger".

First of all they weren't known as "Palestinians" at the time. They were known as "Arabs". The term "Palestinians" has referred, since Roman times, to the Jews, and then under the British Mandate, to both Jews and Arabs. 

The "Harbour Bridge Bigots" who marched in Sydney last Sunday, believe -- completely wrongly -- that prior to Israeli independence in 1948, the "Palestinians" were Arab only. They believe, again wrongly, that there were a small number of  Jews in the land, but that the majority came from Europe and stole their land. That was not true because (i) the number of Jews already in the land was close to the number of Arabs and (ii) the land that new arrivals acquired in Palestine was bought from absentee Turkish landlords (this is well documented and not in dispute). 

The Bridge Bigots believe a fantasy: that before Israel was established all was good in the land of "Palestine".  A mostly Arab Palestine. "We were fine with the Jews. We all go along. Until they came in from Europe, stole our land and established their illegitimate state." 

Not true. The Jew hatred did not start from the establishment of the Jewish state of Israel. 

There were hundreds of cases of Muslims attacking and massacring Jews, since Muhammad first killed jews in the Battle of Banu Qurayza, in 627 -- where he and his followers decapitated 600 to 900 Jewish men. That battle is recorded, in exultant and celebratory detail, by Ibn Ishaq in his "Sirah of Muhammad", The Life of Muhammad (which I have). This is core doctrine to Muslims. Muhammad, this mass murderer, is the Jesus of the Muslim community. He is "the perfect man". To be emulated. 

It's important for we non-Muslims to know that. It's foundational to Muslims, core and important to their belief system: Muhammad is the perfect man who must be emulated at all times. 

To keep the numbers of Muslim attacks on Jews down to a manageable level I've looked only at those between 1900 and 1947 (just before the establishment of the State of Israel).

Muslim attacks on Jews in Palestine: 

April 4-7, 1920: Jerusalem Riots (Nebi Musa Riots) – Arab mobs attacked Jews in Jerusalem during the Nebi Musa pilgrimage, killing 5 Jews and injuring 211.

May 1-6, 1921: Jaffa Riots – Arab rioters attacked Jewish residents in Jaffa, killing 47 Jews and injuring 146, spreading to other areas.

August 23-29, 1929: Hebron Massacre – Arab mobs in Hebron killed 67 Jews, looting homes and synagogues; survivors were evacuated by British authorities.

August 23-29, 1929: Safed Massacre – Arab rioters in Safed killed 18-20 Jews, burning and looting Jewish homes and businesses.

1936-1939: Arab Revolt in Palestine – Widespread Arab attacks during the revolt killed 415 Jews, targeting settlements and civilians across Mandatory Palestine. [Source]

Ok, but what about Jews attacking Muslims in the same period?

Let's see....

Hmm... The answer is: None! There were no attacks recorded in history, by Jews on Muslims before the 1948 Israel War of Independence. 

"No major documented massacres by Jewish groups against Arab Muslims in the Middle East from 1900 to 1947 meet the criteria of deliberate, large-scale attacks causing significant civilian deaths." [Source]

The corollary is: there were no cases of Jews attacking Muslim villages and driving them out of those villages. That did happen post 1948, as a part of the war effort. Israel was attacked, after all. Unilaterally and unprovoked, by all the surrounding Arab states. Which themselves had driven Muslims out of their villages -- on the grounds that they didn't want them in the way when they went about destroying the Jews, and with the promise that they could return once that genocide had been completed. 

Sadly, for the Arab armies, and for their Muslim populations, they did not succeed in massacring the Jews or in defeating their new army. They lost. This was their Nakba. Their "disaster". Which they spin today as their "holocaust". And which they spin as the Jews kicking them out of their land. 

Did not happen. 

All this above is one or two of the many reasons I don't agree with the Bigots on the Bridge, the crowds who marched across Sydney Harbour Bridge, for "Humanity", in reality, whether they knew it or not, they marched for the victory by Hamas over the Jewish state. For the victory of a supremacist, misogynist, homophobic, exclusionary, genocidal, apartheid terrorist outfit called Hamas. That's what they do, if they know it or not. 

I do not stand with them. They are either deluded or outright terror supporting. If not outright Hamas supporters, they are useful idiots. And I'm done with them. Even if I'm in the minority. Even if millions more march. Numbers don't make the truth here. Numbers are not the morality here. Numbers are not a persuasive argument here.