Killer science, Karing Katerist environmentalist, and the Major on the march ... are you not entertained? Possibly not ...

 

Finally an explanation for why the reptiles have assiduously avoided mentioning any climate news at either the top of the digital edition or on the front page of the tree killer version. 

They were waiting for some Killer science to disperse idle talk and false alarums ...

Killer, it will be remembered, is not just an expert in Covid and masks, he's also an expert in climate science and there's absolutely no reason to put quote marks about that expert use of 'expert':

At this point the pond should note that the usual trigger words produced the usual trigger response in the emaciated, once proud reptile graphics department, and the pond would like to get them out of the way quickly ...

 

Should a reptile reader have landed by accident on this page, they would have immediately had a panic attack by being assaulted by the sight of those Medusas, designed to terrify the reptiles' aging demographic ...

As a bonus, the Killer Klimate Kult can also be done in shorter gobbets ...

Actually climate scientists have spent many years constructing pretty reliable records of the earth's climate over thousands of years. If only Killer had bothered to look at NASA, or taken in a Nat Geo story - didn't chairman Rupert eat Nat Geo? - but never mind, on with more Killer science ...

That's quite a parade of scientists and as usual the pond has to turn to DeSmog to do a check. In the case of Koonin, his publications are listed as ...

A general keyword search of Google Scholar returns a report by the Steering Committee on Computational Physics where Koonin is listed as a member. He also wrote an article related to BP (formerly British Petroleum) in Physics World entitled “A physicist’s view of energy supply.”

Google Scholar returns a report for The Novim Group on “Climate Engineering Responses to Climate Emergencies.” In that report, Koonin is introduced with his affiliation as Chief Scientist at BP.58

The report includes this note under a section on conflicts of interest:

”[…] [I]n this instance, Dr. Koonin has an extensive history of devoting a part of each year to small-group studies of societally-relevant science. These activities long predate Dr Koonin’s joining BP, and BP allowed him to continue this practice in his individual capacity. BP contributed no funds into this study and had no influence over its content. Moreover, as discussed in the report Prelude, all participants share the belief that the relationship between climate engineering and CO2 policy is so complex and multi-faceted that directionality cannot straightforwardly be assigned between encouragement of climate engineering research and discouragement of CO2 reduction policies.”

And there was this background ...

In the case of Clauser, his publications are listed as ...

According to his listed publications,15 and his profile on Google Scholar, John F. Clauser has written primarily in the areas of quantum mechanics and atom and X-ray interferometry.

He does not appear to have written any peer-reviewed publications directly relating to climate science. A targeted search of Google Scholar for articles containing “climate change” written by John F. Clauser returned zero results.

And this was his background ...

Killer sources and the pond felt positively fatigued at all the googling, and so turned back to Killer with relief, what with Killer being mightily impressed by talk of quantums and entangled photons and such like exotica ...

Passing strange. The pond headed off to the IMF, and in its elibrary stumbled across a paper peddling the usual blather, already decisively defeated and cleverly denounced by Killer's expert reading ...

Extreme heat waves. Extreme heat waves, such as the deadly one that occurred in many parts of North America in summer 2021, are already about five times more likely to occur with existing warming of 1.2°C. With global warming of 2°C, this frequency increases to 14 times as likely to occur. Heat waves are getting hotter, and with 2°C of global warming, the hottest temperatures would reach nearly 3°C higher than previous heat waves.

If only Killer had provided a link or perhaps even a footnote, just something to show his expert research and incredible findings ... the pond might then have been able to understand if he'd been referring to the Dust Bowl years of the 1930s in the United States, or a world wide phenomenon, or perhaps even an EPA paper ... which manages to chew gum and rub tummy at the same time ...

Well it wouldn't be a Killer piece without talk of a Kovid Konspiracy, and the dire consequences of mask wearing, with Killer likely at this moment tearing into operating theatres to tear masks off foolish doctors and nurses, for indulging in idle superstition ...

Luckily vaccines and masks helped the pond make it through the Covid years, and each time the pond turns to the reading of Killer, it dons a mask, just to make sure that loonacy isn't a catchable condition...

And so to the Katerist this day, himself having turned something of a Killer Karer for the environment.

It's an astonishing transformation and it has transfixed the pond ...

You see? The Caterist has turned caring New Matilda reader, and at this point the pond would like to do the ritual disembowelling of the trigger images that turn up later ...

  

No good would come of featuring the monstrous Albo up against the pristine environment the Caterist, expert flood waters in quarries whisperer,  cares so much about ... 

Does he speak on behalf of the Caterist, noble custodian of the environment and of  ancient tribal wisdoms and learnings, passing on what he knows about the movements of flood waters in quarries to younger generations? Or do they merely speak on behalf of that more recent creation, the cash in the paw merchants grabbing cash from governments to run think tanks based in Canberra ...

Of course not, the Caterist has turned from sociology to anthropology and is brimming with traditional insights ... such as the one that cash in the paw is better than tea and sugar rations ...

Some might think that think tanks of the Menzies Research Centre are only lightly accountable. There they go, scoring cash in the paw, and for what? A grab bag of gobbledegook ...

The purpose of the Grant is to allow the Menzies Research Centre Ltd to provide research and encourage discussions related to social, political and public policy issues, fund ongoing website development and engagement, produce publications and reports pertaining to matters of public policy, liberal heritage and legacy of Sir Robert Menzies. Funding from the Grant would also cover the general expenses of the organisation to the extent that these expenses further the projects of the centre and meet the objectives of the centre.

That's why the Caterist is an expert in accountability ...

Yep, and as for that federal government cash in the paw to the lightly accountable MRC, just think of it as a sound investment in vested interests keen to maintain the Voice and the climate science denialist status quo ...

And so to the Major for a bonus. Sure, the pond remembers that ancient superstition about lighting three reptiles with one match, but it's got to be done, it's a Monday tradition at the pond ...

The Major is keen to sound like a member of Yothu Yindi, and he's singing his heart out ... because what better way to confuse the punters and conflate the issues than to sing of treaty now instead of Voice referendum yes ...

The Major of course is fully in touch, what with Warren now a fully fledged member of the Polonial patriarchy ...

Indeed, indeed, though the pond personally thinks that the best way forward is localised property development designed to kick out Aboriginal people. Why it worked perfectly well in Redfern, just ask Mick ...

And so to a snap of that proud member of the Polonial patriarchy ... (or should that be pawtriarchy, given Polonius's desire to dress up as a furry each Friday and pretend that he's an ABC wabbit hunting hound?)

By this time the pond was deeply fatigued and settled for one last long gobbet of Major insights ...

If the reptiles have their way, at some point a new Major might be referencing the Voice as yet another failure. 

And as for Sky News not relentlessly campaigning against the Voice? Sorry, one pathetic dog botherer up against a pack of raging Bolters and hysterical Corys doesn't count ... The Voice is one of the ‘worst things’ ever proposed for Australia pretty much sums up Sky coverage ...

Sorry, that's a link to an actual Cory sighting, approach it with caution, because Sky News remains bigot and climate denialist central, always has been, and so long as chairman Rupert is alive and counting the shekels he makes from angertainment, always will be ...

And now what a relief to return to an immortal Rowe for a closer, with a cartoon that has absolutely nothing to do with anything above ...

In which the pond eventually turns to Polonius for a prattle and the Angelic one, working out her plans for Nigel ...

 

Before getting on to a generous serve of bothsiderism and whataboutism, the pond realised it was remiss yesterday and didn't feature the lizard Oz tree killer edition, and what a beauty it was, with the demonic Fauci risen from the grave to dominate, hand on worried forehead, exuding black and white criminality...

Is there an irony in the lizard Oz denouncing the silencing of science, while routinely disappearing climate science and climate change news into the cornfield? 

Possibly, but the pond was too overwhelmed to notice. Sunday is a quieter time, a time for a little prattle and a few cartoons and guests overlooked in yesterday's comments section ...

Now there were some doozies. Ramesh Thakur's reference to "sectarian ancestry" was beyond the valley of the fruity. 

In ancient times, the pond understood that "sectarian" as a tribal thing, as per the dictionary definition of an excessive attachment to a particular sect or party, especially in religion. Suddenly...

Using sectarian ancestry as the organising principle to add a chapter to the nation’s foundational governance document will inject the poison of race-based preferential access to parliament and government into the heart of the body politic.

What was even more astonishing was the tag:

Ramesh Thakur is emeritus professor at ANU’s Crawford School of Public Policy and is a former UN assistant secretary-general.

The pond had noted some correspondents had been sniping at ANU, and thought it a never no mind, but maybe things were as dire as had been proposed ...

If an emeritus prof can abuse the meaning of "sectarian", what on earth is happening to the freshers?

It was simply too much, and there were other items that the pond gave short shrift to ... the 'here no conflict of interest' offering from simpleton Simon, and the oscillating fan blowing in the wind in his usual way could be summed up as being just more reptile sludge, space fillers, makeweight padding...

The pond also discounted Dame Slap, still doing what she must do to attract attention to her land above the faraway tree with a never ending attention to the Lehrmann matter ...

How close is too close? Is a paranoid obsessive compulsive relentless scribbling on the matter too close. And yesterday the Rice cooker seemed shattered by bad news, while the pond went sailing by ...

No, it was just going to be a quiet, meditative day, a little both siderism here, a little whataboutism there, and a few cartoons to help it all go down ...

Now in his frantic bids to save the Catholic church and Pellism, Polonius has been trotting out this sort of bothsidirist whataboutism for yonks. 

Back in March 2022 brave souls who visited the Sydney Institute might read ...

...The Royal Commission found that some 60 per cent of those who complained of child sexual abuse – most of which related to the period of the 1960s and 1970s – in a religious institution were in Catholic institutions. But it overlooked the fact that, at this time, the Catholic Church ran its own education system – along with numerous orphanages, hospitals and the like. In other words, around 80 per cent of children in religious institutions at this time would have been in Catholic institutions.

This suggests that a child in a religious institution in the 1960s and 1970s would have been safer in a Catholic than in a non-Catholic religious institution. When I asked Robert Fitzgerald, a member of the Royal Commission, about this he said that he and his colleagues had made no prevalence studies of this kind. He then avoided the question and, soon after, went into off-the-record mode. In short, Mr Fitzgerald refused to address the issue.

Due to its overwhelming focus on the Catholic Church – and, to a lesser extent, the  Anglican Church – the Royal Commission let many a government institution off-the-hook. In particular, State police forces and government education departments.

In its innocence, the pond thought that child abuse should be above tribalism, and that pointing the fingers at others to excuse the behaviour of your own tribe was beyond the pale.

Did not Matthew 7, v 3-5 say:

And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?

Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?

Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.

True, there's not much concern for thy sister's eye, but the point holds, a point resolutely ignored by Polonius's constant harping on about the mote in other eyes, while routinely downplaying the mote in Catholic and Pellist eyes ...

It reminds the pond of that old song, the lyrics of which the pond can barely remember, but it ran something like this ...

Well there's a little Polonius waitin' at the Royal Commission store

He's been waitin' down there, waitin' half the day.

They never seen to have the time

Catholics get pushed around

Knocked to the ground

Sure they did it, but why does the RC care

He gets to his feet and he says.

"What about them? It isn't fair.

We've copped enough, now they should get their share

Can't you see? The way to forgive

Is to just dole out more to them than what we tried to avoid copping..."

Hmm, doesn't really scan ...

At this point the reptiles interrupted the pond's musical musings with a shot of a dreadful harridan who really should have been taken out to sea in a chaff bag, it being the next best thing after the Inquisition for dealing with trouble makers ...

Speaking of harridans, the Church still knows how to deal with them and so does the GOP...

Sorry, the pond has been over this turf with Polonius so many times and it's not just the mote in the eye, it's in the enduring chip on the shoulder, the sense that the whole world is agin him and barking mad crooked tykes embedded in a deeply corrupt Ponzi scheme running church ...

Could it be that for all the both siderism and the whataboutism, the Catholic church had a particularly shameful record, producing a dire legacy still not resolved? 

With the church still fighting cases to avoid responsibility ...

The pond has no sectarian axe to grind in this matter (as the word was once understood). 

The pond had enough experience in public schools to know that child abuse of one kind or another was common in the dark days in many areas ...but that doesn't serve as a distraction from other crimes ...(paywall) ...and not just your average ones, but ones committed on an astonishing scale around the planet ...

And so on and on, and all over the shop, and it's the international scale of the dank and dire corruption that continues to astonish ... but when you're desperate to distract, there's nothing like whataboutism to help ...

In his own humble way, Polonius is part of the sickness, and the disease. If it were a crusade to expose the abuse of minors in all sorts of places by all kinds of people, well and good, but at bottom, it's the classic way of the criminal, a matter of confusing and conflating and distracting, and in a perverse way, almost an excusing ...

It wasn't just me that done it, your honour, he did it too ... maybe you've been too hard on me, maybe you should give me a lighter sentence, because while I might be guilty as hell, so is he ... (or she, as the case may be).

Well one serve of bothsiderism and whataboutism deserves another, and so the pond can move on to the Angelic one making plans for Nigel ...

Usually when confronted by gibberish about 'woke' and cancel culture and all the rest of the moronic overuse of reptile shorthand, the pond would go the obvious ...

But there's another disconnect here. It's possible to have a matching contempt for banks and for Nigel. 

The pond decided to put on a Kettle and have a cup of char to work out why ...

Well yes, who cares if a bottom feeding leech, who sucked the life out of the country with his Brexit lies, has had trouble banking with the dead Queen's banker and, pride hurt, felt slighted and didn't want to do his banking with common folk...

And that's why the pond finds the Angelic one so piquant, reaching like a prize maroon for the usual sort of abuse of the English language by egregiously evoking for the zillionth time "cancel culture" ...

Whatever a disingenuous grifter is? Must the pond explain even the most obvious things to the Angelic one ...

At this point the reptiles stuck in a snap of a banking person as if the pond might care ...

But the pond decided it would be better off putting the Kettle on for another cup of tea, while learning you can chew gum and talk before having your first sip  ...

Well yes, you don't have to be in the business of defending banks to find Nigel completely indefensible ...

That's a bit like recent attempts to defend slavery for the alleged benefits it produces ...

Sorry, the pond did promise cartoons, but it was a tad cheeky to sneak in so many before the Angelic one had her final word. On the other hand, it seems that like Spartacus, we are all Nigels ...

Oh the poor, pathetic, timid little mouse, still frightened by teh gaze and teh voice and all the rest of it ... 

The pond must bear her fear and suffering in mind the next time it opens a Swiss bank account or sets up a tax dodge in the Cayman islands ...

And now to a quick bonus, the lizard Oz editorialist gassed up and full of gas ...

Truth to tell, the pond only went with that gaseous outburst, (1), to confirm that you can never tear fossil fuels from the cold dead claws of the reptiles and (2) because the pond could segue to a couple of climate cartoons ...

As for these cartoons, the pond has no excuse and no segue, they simply are that they are ... and very suited to a Sunday meditation on recent events elsewhere ...