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We still have AAA rating , which Murdochs Minions will never Mention. That affects the rate of Interest the Gov't Pays on borrowngs. The big debt was for AUKUS which Sco-Mo got us into. Nev

He says "he will work with them" IF they behave themselves?? 2 years to go. He might not live that Long. He certainly won't behave in a more rational way. He's a person where "everything is NOT Enough". They won't be installed for a couple of Months, but the results are astounding. Nev

I heard a couple of sound bites of Trump answwering questions after the election. He seemed very subdued, not his usual bombastic self.

Closing the Southern border may have been a success but Trumps reliance on ICE which appears to be run as a total authoritarian outfit by its hierarchy has completely backfired. The only other thing he has been successful at it enriching himself and his family and lowering taxes for all of his billionaire cronies.

Google AI says they're one and the same, generally called split pins in Australia. They use AIMS Industrial Supplies as a reference. The AI also says the Brits call them split pins or split cotter pins, the Americans call them cotter pins, then it goes on to describe a true cotter pin. https://aimsindustrial.com.au/blogs/product-guides/split-pin-cotter-pin-guide

Tocumwal is a great destination for a flying coffee.

I didnt know they finished after Trumps term...the Dems will for sure put it all back on again as they are spendriffs the same as Labor here. The Dems give money away to all sorts of worthy causes like Trans education in Somalia or other ridiculous things Well if thats true then why is austrlia hit with tarriffs from the EU and many other countries despite us not charging them tarriffs..sort of a oxymoron there dont you think? We dont charge tarriffs on the incomming here although the USA thinks the GST is a tarriff but then again you have to remember they have always thought of themselves as the centre of the universe. European Union There is no FTA in force yet (negotiations concluded in March 2026, but the deal is still going through domestic ratification processes in Australia and the EU). As a result, many Australian agricultural products (especially beef, dairy, grains and some processed foods) face relatively high EU Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) tariffs or restrictive tariff-rate quotas. And there are many others China Most goods enter at zero or low rates under the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA) and RCEP. However, China currently applies a 55% additional safeguard tariff on Australian beef that exceeds the annual country-specific quota (around 205,000 tonnes). The quota was filled in mid-June 2026, so the higher rate has applied for the rest of the year. It resets at the start of each calendar year.⁠ We dont charge them anything for their goods no matter what it is...is this fair? No different here with the tax on the rich..they system is designed so that a lot escape them. Companies like Apple whose offices are based overseas for tax purposes..I think theirs is in Ireland and so are a lot of others. Heaps rag on Gina Rhinehart but she and her companies pay her taxes at the correct rates Hancock Prospecting (Gina Rinehart’s main company) paid about $2.3 billion in Commonwealth and state taxes for the financial year ended 30 June 2026.⁠Hancockprospecting This figure comes from the company’s 2026 annual report and media release (around 31 October 2026). Key details include Net profit after tax of $2.8 billion. Total comprehensive income of $5.2 billion (including investment portfolio gains). Over the past decade, Hancock’s total federal and state tax contributions reached $24.5 billion (plus additional taxes via employee salaries). The core mining division, Hancock Iron Ore, accounted for roughly $1.59 billion of that (corporate tax, iron ore royalties, state payroll taxes, and Native Title contributions). The remaining ~$710 million related to other interests. Apple Australia (primarily Apple Pty Ltd) paid approximately $188–200 million in corporate income tax to the ATO in the most recent reported period. Apples income for last year was about 13.1 BILLION dollars where Hancock prospecting was only 5.2 Billion

Our OP Shop has to give an annual report to NSW Fair Trading. It has to be done online, and the required fee paid with plastic. Here's the gripe: The payment of teh fee can be done by credit card. It can also be paid using a debit card, provided it is a Visa debit card. The Op Shop banks with the only bank in town - Bendigo Bank, which is not tied in with Visa. A physical debit card works well for the shop since it can't be used for fraud by anyone associated with the shop. The payment of the annual fee to Fair Trading is the only payment that would require the use of a credit card. The annual fees for a credit card would exceed the fee to Fair Trading. So, in order to pay the fee, one of the members who has a credit card has to be with the Treasurer at the computer in the person's home ( we don't have in the shop because we don't need one) so that person's card can be used and then the Treasurer has to reimburse the person. The job gets done, but how inconvenient? The coming problem for a lot of people is that Banks will not issue personal credit cards to pensioners, but will issue debit cards. It seems that the officials at Treasury, who are in employment so can get a credit card, are not aware of this problem and blithely introduce payment systems that are impossible for amny people to use.