thaibeachlovers

WHAT!!!!!!! It's israel that has closed the crossing. That's hardly "grappling with humanitarian challenges". Israel is entirely to blame for halting the supply of aid into Gaza.

Ah, so long as it's not too many dead children that's OK then- full steam ahead. Considering israeli told them all to go to Rafah as a "safe place" so it became overcrowded, and now it wants to conduct an offensive in a crowded place, it's going to be acceptable if it's not as many dead Palestinians as it might have been it's hypocrisy and the US is up to it's neck in the hypocrisy. Not so long ago the US was telling israel not to go into Rafah at all, and now it's OK as long as an acceptable number of women and children are killed. Who decides what is an acceptable number of dead children? Meanwhile the bastions of "human rights" in Europe do no more than wring their hands and say how bad it is that so many women and children are dead, but it's OK because it's Hamas numbers and it's probably less, all the while sending more munitions to kill those women and children.

Shouldn't that be "a wave of western leader's outrage". I doubt many other countries are outraged, and more likely approving of the proposed arrest warrants. IMO only western leaders are excusing atrocities that if done by a certain other country would be eliciting outrage from those same leaders that excuse israel for the same crimes. I also say "western leaders" as it's apparent that many citizens of western countries do not approve of israeli actions.

Talk about co incidence! I had just read this thread and turned on radio talkback to find the subject of the day is depression!

I don't know why it would be punishing, except for snowflakes never had discipline in their lives. The only problem for me doing it was some of the fellow recruits which were not nice people. The actual training was mostly enjoyable, even drill, though I always dreaded being put into a position of being marker.

Agree 100%. I'd love to see most of the US congress sent to Ukraine to serve in the front line ( including Biden, who avoided the military during Vietnam ). I think any politician that hasn't served should be banned from voting on any war declaration. I think it's a bit rich that there are plenty of posters on here that have never served, but wanting a couple of wars, while not prepared to put themselves in harm's way. It's OK for other people to die, apparently.

The Grace had a saying " the Grace is the place". Alas, when I finally got around to visiting it the good times were already gone. For naked girls that never put anything on, the G Spot was the place. Like Hollywood Royale ( the best gogo in Nana ) long gone. Happy days back then.

Don't know which version you are talking about but the one in the basement certainly had stairs going down. They were outside the building entrance.

I once looked through the curtain to Woodstock, didn't like what I saw and went back to Hollywood Royale. Had a drink in TQ, but didn't like being so close to the stage, so never went back.

Nothing wrong with shock therapy if done properly. I saw quite a few when doing my mental health training component. Nothing to do with stun guns- where did you get that BS from?

Are not most parents mentally damaging to their children? Mine certainly were, and most parents I know are doing a bad job. Why is it that we need qualifications to do almost every job above the labouring level, yet the most important job of all- raising children- requires no qualifications at all? Many people think they are depressed ( when they are not clinically depressed ), and need some pills to make them feel better, but they are not depressed. That sort of thing can be rectified with a life change or such like. Depression is not so easily cured. It's not helped when GPs have no proper training, and trained psychologists are too few or too expensive to help most, and just hand out pills.

Were you forced to read it?

Why? Unlike most western professionals, like lawyers and consultants, cleaners actually do a worthwhile job. Hospitals have to be clean to prevent infection. Cleaners should be proud, that like other essential workers ( garbage men, plumbers, electricians, sewage workers etc ) they fill a real need in society, and their lives are not about BS.

LOL. if you were not as addicted to the electronic monster that rules so many lives ( computers and the internet ) as I, you would not be wasting your time on here like me.

I loath Gates and his vile windows, but, like millions, it is something I've always used, and it's just not worth trying to learn something else at my age. It's not like I'll be around much longer. Perhaps I'll just give up computers altogether and do something more worthwhile with my remaining time, like watching grass grow. Frankly, knowing what I know now, if I could I'd go back in time and slap myself whenever I thought it was a good idea to buy a computer. I know a guy my age never had a computer, and never wants one- he is the more intelligent one IMO. I don't know why you bring Whinehouse into a discussion about computers, but I regard her with as much affection as Gates.

LOL. IMO the electorate ( or at least most of them ) will vote for the party that promises more "stuff" ie election bribes. Meanwhile, the Tories seem to have a "policy" problem, promoting universal National Service, which, while a good idea, will be as popular as a poll tax for the general populace.

IMO she wasn't elected because she was a horrible person, nothing to do with being imperfect. Loads of women have been PMs and presidents in various countries and none of them have been "perfect".

Exactly. Non military types have no idea of how many jobs in the military are nothing to do with fighting. More are involved behind the lines than the uninformed realise.

As an ex military man myself I would not hesitate to send a son or daughter of mine to do National Service, as long as it did not entail being sent to die in some useless war for the 1% to get rich off. A bit of discipline never hurt anyone.

"Brink"? I know what that is as in "on the brink", but I don't know what you are using it for. Please explain.

The days in NZ where we could do almost any job we chose are long gone, as most industry has been outsourced to China and there isn't much requirement for farm labour any more- everything has been mechanised. I know that it's more pronounced in the UK because you have that vile class structure, but AI robotics is going to make such a difference that IMO most people can't comprehend how different it will be. It's not a question of doing something different, as EVERYTHING can be done by AI robotics. We haven't even begun to see what the reality will be, though we can see many examples of jobs that have been replaced by machines. EG farm workers- a farm I know had 3 workers full time in the 60s ( 4 if including the boss ), now it's the boss and one worker- everything is contracted out. AI robotics can replace the one worker. Milking cows, a machine can do what a human used to be needed to do- and it's likely factories will make milk instead of cows in the future. They are even making machines to pick fruit- no need for seasonal workers any more. I don't know how it's going to end up, but if the 1% own all the machines it's not looking good. Perhaps National Service for life will be the only work available for the rest of the population.

No idea what you are on about. Kiwis only need a valid passport to enter Australia. What "millions" are you referring to? Only 5 million in NZ. Millions plural would remove over a third of the population ( mind you, that would be a good thing as too many people in NZ at the moment- the infrastructure can't cope with the numbers )

You really must believe Dem's propaganda. What does it feel like to be so consumed by hatred for Trump that you keep posting such hateful posts saying the same thing over and over? You obviously don't think Biden is the answer as you apparently don't have anything positive to offer voters instead of Trump. That is understandable as it looks like being Biden/ Harris, the worst possible combination to put up against Trump. Biden is like you, all he has is "Trump is so bad that you should vote for me"- nothing positive to offer instead.

Slight difference. NZ citizens don't need to arrive in leaky boats as they have a legal right to be in Australia. They can arrive on a plane and stay as long as they want.

Indeed they are, however, using force has not succeeded in subduing the desire for freedom among Palestinians since 1967, and is not going to in the future. If israel can't see that it's time for a new approach, one recognising that Palestinians have as much right to freedom and self determination as israelis do, then israel is condemned to repeating the cycle of violence and death till the politics in the US changes and israel no longer gets cover from the US. One hopes that after this, the rest of the world does not go back to ignoring what happens in Palestine. I would like to see a campaign similar to the anti apartheid campaign that removed the white South Africans from power. That took a while, but eventually right prevailed. The 2 state solution is possible, but only if israel returns to it's legal borders of 1949 and Palestinians reclaim their part of the country. One hopes that such an option is rightly opposed by the international community. The idea that an entire race is subject to forced displacement from their own land should be rejected outright- that is the sort of thing that happened in Russia during Stalin's time. What unaffiliated with Hamas or the Western-backed Palestinian Authority organisations would that be? I can't believe that is a serious proposal. It can't be the PA as that is despised by Palestinians for collaborating with the israelis. Arab leaders will be well aware that colluding with israel to suppress Palestinians will not go down well with their own populations. BTW, why should any country other than israel and the western countries that colluded in the destruction of Gaza pay to rebuild it. They were not complicit in dropping 2,000 lb bombs on residential buildings, and destroying hospitals and schools. Seems to me that it's going to be business as usual, as apparently most israelis do not want to give up the West Bank, and we will continue to see more disruption in the running sore that is Palestine for decades to come. IMO the only hope for change is that the politics in the US will change and the israeli lobby will lose it's power to influence US M E policies.