Some countries use a year of compulsory military service as a rite of passage for young adults. Looking at our 18 year olds today, some might say we need to bring in this kind of enforced ‘gap year’ for the good of the individual and of our whole society. And of course, it would strengthen the country militarily to have a national service corps. But at what cost? Would this be worth it?

This cult film is loved by so many, and yet there are many overlooked ideas in the movie. Did Cameron really make things better with his dad? What’s the deal with Ferris, anyway? He’s so sure of himself, and his parents love him and he can do whatever he wants, and he knows it! Cameron is the real MVP. Recognition is needed.

The horrors of war are making the planet unliveable. Every decent human being wants it to end.

When humanity becomes humane, starts listening to people, rather than propaganda, regimes that torture and control will be exposed and stopped. The psychiatric regime has been going on for over 200 in various countries, enabling genital mutilation on women who opposed their husbands, LSD testing in the 1960s, and various torturous procedures.
The people forcefully tested with insulin shock and LSD, haven’t received compensation, because our government declares the medical profession were allowed to torture people that way in the 1960s & 70s.
The people who are being currently subjected to torture by the psychiatric regime, are also unlikely to receive compensation, unless there is wide-spread condemnation for the psychiatric procedures forcefully done in our government’s name on innocent people as young as two and as old as people can be. Electroshock used on 4 year olds, pills fed daily to tranquilise two year olds. Not to mention what they do to people in their prime.
It is physically obvious what psychiatric torture does to people. It must be stopped.
How dare anyone think our country is a democracy when this is going on. How dare the organisations of festivals censor psychiatric survivors who speak out because of sponsorship deals. How dare the Australian people be so unaware of what is happening to their citizens.
The question is when? The answer should be now.

In Australia we’ve got the dominant view that hung parliaments and large cross benches are ‘unworkable’ and ‘feral’. Why? In Europe hung parliaments are normal, and there are often many parties represented in the parliament.

Would we benefit from more diverse parties and viewpoints in parliament?

Because I’ve never heard a satisfactory answer.

Many people form opinions not based on the facts. Women are often told to trust their intuition to empower themselves. Opinions not based on the facts lead to actions. These actions can harm.

I really want to know!

I guess I find it a fascinating question because, if the answer is ‘yes’ (and I think it probably is), that runs quite contrary to the current obsession with science and truth and makes story-telling and art-play far more important.

Despite increases in living standards and access to technologies, like the internet and social media, measures of happiness haven’t increased. Is social media making people feel connected but actually making them more isolated?

Think about the various ways seeing and how expertise is allotted in our society and which point of view is given privilege of expression, employment, publicity and notoriety…

Like many others, my husband and I are increasingly convinced that living like this is the best thing we can do for the planet. However, I recently read an article that spoke of the many who believe the opposite. They argue that developing increasingly sophisticated technologies, such as higher levels of artificial intelligence, is the best solution to most, if not all, of our problems – and they have the money and power to make these technologies reality. The article also posited the question, ‘Would I want a future foisted upon me by [Silicon Valley venture capitalist Marc] Andreessen and his fellow founders?’ This prospect frightens me – as it would many others. Can we resist this vision of the future?