bust

It's amazing you never really hear Popes condemning them considering most of them are manufactured in Italy

This is brilliant however Bill Maher didn't think so Larry David: My Dinner With Adolf Credit...Lia Darjes, "Plate VII" Imagine my surprise when in the spring of 1939 a letter arrived at my house inviting me to dinner at the Old Chancellery with the world’s most reviled man, Adolf Hitler. I had been a vocal critic of his on the radio from the beginning, pretty much predicting everything he was going to do on the road to dictatorship. No one I knew encouraged me to go. “He’s Hitler. He’s a monster.” But eventually I concluded that hate gets us nowhere. I knew I couldn’t change his views, but we need to talk to the other side — even if it has invaded and annexed other countries and committed unspeakable crimes against humanity. Two weeks later, I found myself on the front steps of the Old Chancellery and was led into an opulent living room, where a few of the Führer’s most vocal supporters had gathered: Himmler, Göring, Leni Riefenstahl and the Duke of Windsor, formerly King Edward VIII. We talked about some of the beautiful art on the walls that had been taken from the homes of Jews. But our conversation ended abruptly when we heard loud footsteps coming down the hallway. Everyone stiffened as Hitler entered the room. He was wearing a tan suit with a swastika armband and gave me an enthusiastic greeting that caught me off guard. Frankly, it was a warmer greeting than I normally get from my parents, and it was accompanied by a slap on my back. I found the whole thing quite disarming. I joked that I was surprised to see him in a tan suit because if he wore that out, it would be perceived as un-Führer-like. That amused him to no end, and I realized I’d never seen him laugh before. Suddenly he seemed so human. Here I was, prepared to meet Hitler, the one I’d seen and heard — the public Hitler. But this private Hitler was a completely different animal. And oddly enough, this one seemed more authentic, like this was the real Hitler. The whole thing had my head spinning. He said he was starving and led us into the dining room, where he gestured for me to sit next to him. Göring immediately grabbed a slice of pumpernickel, whereupon Hitler turned to me, gave me an eye roll, then whispered, “Watch. He’ll be done with his entire meal before you’ve taken two bites.” That one really got me. Göring, with his mouth full, asked what was so funny, and Hitler said, “I was just telling him about the time my dog had diarrhea in the Reichstag.” Göring remembered. How could he forget? He loved that story, especially the part where Hitler shot the dog before it got back into the car. Then a beaming Hitler said, “Hey, if I can kill Jews, Gypsies and homosexuals, I can certainly kill a dog!” That perhaps got the biggest laugh of the night — and believe me, there were plenty. But it wasn’t just a one-way street, with the Führer dominating the conversation. He was quite inquisitive and asked me a lot of questions about myself. I told him I had just gone through a brutal breakup with my girlfriend because every time I went someplace without her, she was always insistent that I tell her everything I talked about. I can’t stand having to remember every detail of every conversation. Hitler said he could relate — he hated that, too. “What am I, a secretary?” He advised me it was best not to have any more contact with her or else I’d be right back where I started and eventually I’d have to go through the whole thing all over again. I said it must be easy for a dictator to go through a breakup. He said, “You’d be surprised. There are still feelings.” Hmm … there are still feelings. That really resonated with me. We’re not that different, after all. I thought that if only the world could see this side of him, people might have a completely different opinion. Two hours later, the dinner was over, and the Führer escorted me to the door. “I am so glad to have met you. I hope I’m no longer the monster you thought I was.” “I must say, mein Führer, I’m so thankful I came. Although we disagree on many issues, it doesn’t mean that we have to hate each other.” And with that, I gave him a Nazi salute and walked out into the night.

Many not happy with these acts of disrespect.

Nobody wears a nurse's outfit like you OH

The war is over, the danger is not They found one while digging the foundations of a new hotel. Another was discovered in the middle of a park. A family spotted one in their garden. And Ho Van Lai and his cousins found several in the sand dunes, strange, rusted objects, no larger than a tennis ball. "I was just a 10-year-old boy, I was reckless," Lai said through a translator. Ho Van Lai was just 10-years-old when his life was forever changed by explosives from the war in Vietnam. (Picture: Supplied) Lai was playing with something that can be found across Vietnam: cluster munitions. And not understanding the risk, he picked up a rock and knocked it against those munitions. "The explosion killed my two cousins immediately," he said. "I lost my right hand, my right arm and part of my left hand. I lost my two legs and one of my eyes." South Vietnamese troops and western TV crews run for cover as a North Vietnamese mortar round explodes on Newport Bridge on the outskirts of Saigon. (AP) Lai lived near a former US military base in central Vietnam, not far from the "demilitarised zone" that once separated the communist North from the capitalist South. The explosives were the remnants of a two-decade struggle between these two powers and their ideological allies, including China and the Soviet Union in the north and the United States and Australia in the south. The war involved one of the largest aerial bombing campaigns in history, with the US dropping double the tonnage of explosives on Vietnam than were dropped by all of the allies during World War II. A Vietnamese sapper checks for mines in no mans land between Cambodian and Vietnamese border in 1989. (Reuters: Andrew Wong) And while these bombs killed countless soldiers and civilians, some never detonated. They were swallowed by the jungle, buried underground or covered by reconstruction. And since 1975, these explosives have caused an estimated 100,000 causalities, including 40,000 deaths, according to the Vietnam National Mine Action Center. "The Vietnamese people should have peaceful and safe lives," Lai said. "The war ended many years ago but bombs and mines left from that war still pose a lingering threat." Area 'the size of Tasmania' still contaminated Vietnamese authorities estimate around a fifth of the country is contaminated with unexploded ordnance. (ABC News: Graphics by Jarrod Fankhauser) This year marks the 50th anniversary of The Fall of Saigon, the moment when northern forces overran the capital, ended the war and reunited Vietnam. But despite decades of investment by the Vietnam government, former adversaries like the United States and Australia, not-for-profits and communities, clearing the country of unexploded ordnance is proving almost impossible. That's partly due to the sheer scale of the task, according to Sabina Stein from the United Nations Development Program. "We're talking about a landmass roughly the size of the state of Tasmania that is still contaminated," she said. "And a lot of this territory is not idle. A lot of development has taken place and at times this has led to incidents." Vietnamese authorities estimate 18 per cent of the country is contaminated, a figure that has decreased by just 1 per cent in the past decade. Risk-education programs, particularly those targeting children, farmers and those who sell scrap metal, have helped reduce the number of deaths and injuries. But physical harm isn't the only harm that has endured long after the fighting stopped. Investors wary of the risks A worker breaks a concrete culvert as part of a road expansion project in Hanoi. (Reuters) Vietnam is in the midst of rapid urbanisation, with major infrastructure projects across the nation. But Ms Stein said projects were often delayed or made more expensive by the discovery of unexploded ordnance. "While development has not stopped, it has slowed," she said. "Many of the areas most affected are rural and more remote areas." The added time, cost and liability of removing explosives can discourage investors, particularly in places like A Loui province, where large areas are contaminated by landmines and ordnance. "This is a place that has huge tourist potential, it's beautiful," Ms Stein said. "And definitely that potential has been highly constrained by an inability to develop major infrastructure projects." Unexploded ordnance collected by not-for-profits in Vietnam. (Picture: Supplied) But some locals don't have the luxury of avoiding contaminated regions. "Farmers continue often to use land even though they know it's dangerous, but this is a result of land scarcity," Ms Stein said. "It has meant that a lot of farming avoids mechanised farming methods, which can be more high risk. "Which is problematic in a country that has ambitious development goals and wants to continue in what has been really an admirable path of poverty reduction." Removing bombs is back-breaking work Efforts to clear land of unexploded ordnance are coordinated with local authorities and communities. (Supplied) The labour-intensive nature of explosive clearance often requires strong coordination between governments, not-for-profits and local communities. Sarah Goring leads the Vietnam wing of the Mine Advisory Group (MAG), which has worked to remove landmines, cluster munitions and unexploded bombs in more than 70 countries since 1989. "We're trying to clear the priority areas. So where people are working, where people are living," she said. "Maybe they're building a new kindergarten and we go and clear it before they build." Some of the items found are so unstable that they need to be detonated on site. (Supplied) Alongside risk education, MAG do the painstaking work of clearing land in the highly contaminated provinces such as Quang Tri and Quang Bing. When explosives are uncovered, some are sent to regional depots for disposal. Others are so volatile they are detonated on site. Ms Goring remembers one instance where a 330-kilogram bomb was found during a home renovation. "This is real life for people. They find bombs all the time," he said. "Despite the legacy of the war and that it continues to impact people today, they are so positive and so about moving forward and making the best of a situation." Explosive legacy casts a long shadow A member of the Mine Advisory Group uses a metal detector to search for any explosives hidden beneath the surface. (Supplied) Those dedicated to the cause know it may be impossible to locate absolutely every explosive hiding above or below the surface. But new techniques, including satellite imagery, mobile phone reporting and social media education campaigns are helping reduce the threat. Today, Lai shares his story with students as part of a risk-education program at the Mine Action Visitor Centre, which is run by humanitarian organisation Project RENEW. "I've been doing quite meaningful work to prevent harmful accidents," he said. "I feel I am living as a helpful person to the society now." Ho Van Lai shows young Vietnamese students the extent of land mine contamination. (Supplied) One day, the risk of unexploded ordnance may be so low that this work will no longer be necessary. But Ms Stein warns that many other countries will have to tackle the same challenges as Vietnam. "It's going to be the reality for an increasing number of countries that have experienced such intensive bomb campaigns. We can think of countries like Iraq, Syria, occupied Palestinian territories, Ukraine," she said. "As we near the 50th anniversary of the end of the war, it is a very strong reminder of the multi-generational effects of such devastating aerial bombing campaigns."

I was referring to the Hannah Dugan arrest. Had no idea about the New Mexico incident. Any plans for the Orange King to be in Dallas on November 22 🙏

Pot/Kettle/Black

Any word on the penguins response? 😊

The judge is a woman so she's wearing the DEI target as well if that is true. Might also add there's a lot of misinformation around. The fact is her courtroom, her rules.

Yeah I was just watching that. Arresting Judges!!!! Pure intimidation. And remember it only one side of the story we are hearing.

We Will Remember Them

No he just had someone Photoshop them on to his knuckles

Trump Makes His Most Unhinged Claim Yet About Kilmar Abrego Garcia Donald Trump has taken his tirade against immigrants with tattoos to new heights, baselessly claiming that Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s knuckle tattoos clearly associate him with MS-13. “This is the man, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, that the Courts are trying to save from being deported?” the president wrote on Truth Social Monday night. “He was supposed to be, according to the Judge and the Democrats, a wonderful father from Maryland, but then they noticed he had ‘MS-13’ tattooed onto his knuckles (and lots of really bad stories about his past!).” The post includes a photo of Trump holding up a photo of a hand, supposedly Abrego Garcia’s, with a marijuana leaf, smiley face, cross, and skull tattooed across the knuckles. On top of each individual tattoo is written M-S-1-3, the president’s way of explaining each tattoo clearly translates to an individual letter or number, which all together spell … MS-13? “This is the gang that is, perhaps, the worst of them all. What is wrong with our Country?” Trump’s post concluded, leaving out any explanation for how he broke the tattoo code.

Lest We Forget While standing at the Dawn Service earlier today, an elderly gentleman related the story of the 30th Battalion who were assigned to defend Ari Burnu on the Gallipoli Peninsular. Their only protection a couple of sand bags which they would frequently retreat from to fire their rifles. As he finished he reflected on the sacrifices of the many which allowed us to be standing there this morning. As I watch what is unfolding around the world, I feel blessed to be here in Australia so far removed from all the hostilities abroad.

I would be too. Your fellow countryman is very quiet 😊