Now I have turned 55, I have an increased interest in superannuation and retirement if I want to meet my goal of retiring at age 60. In Australia, if you are able to support yourself, you can gain access to your superannuation and begin retirement. Likewise, you can also transition to retirement and reduce your working hours and move to part-time employment.

The challenge is now to manage the final decade of my career to retire debt free with more than adequate funds in my retirement account to give me a 20 year retirement account beginning at 60. Naturally I wish to live above the poverty line, there is no value retiring early and then having to live a life of poverty unable to experience life. In such a scenario, I would be better off remaining in the workforce because at least then I would hold a degree of financial freedom.

As an individual with no net debt, the critical criteria is to remain debt free during that period. For me, that’s not going to happen as I need to upgrade my motor vehicle. So I would expect to undertake a 3 year motor vehicle loan during that period. Fortunately, I have no mortgage as my primary residence is owned and I just need to finance the outgoings in my retirement. I want to enjoy retirement just like everyone and that will include travel, I have to travel cheaply – that’s the challenge.

I won’t qualify for a pensioner card until I at least turn 65, that should be 5 years into my retirement so I won’t receive discounts on state government charges such as water, electricity and rates until then. Really, the final decade of my career should be to maximise my earning potential, remain largely debt free during that period and to ensure I make maximum contributions to my retirement account during that period.

This will also include maximising employer contributions in this period, that will require full employment and minimising sick leave. That might be a little harder to plan, who knows where I will be physically in 8 years time, I have to keep fit and healthy. Finally, reducing income tax along with maximising tax efficient investments during the decade under the continuing onslaught of federal government changes to the superannuation system. That is the challenge, the government changes.

The Breitling Exospace B55 is an interesting take on a smartwatch, this is a quartz watch with three analog hands and a digital readout. So we could consider the Exospace B55 as a hybrid timepiece, a digital/analogue wristwatch. 

A handshake agreement is the highest form of business respect, a handshake agreement is an unwritten example of trust and confidence. Yet, a handshake agreement is worth little as so many individuals do not value the ethics of a handshake agreement.  

I have learnt, a handshake agreement is worthless unless supported by a document trail – this is unfortunate. That being said, I personally honour the handshake agreements I make. I believe I have personal honour, so a handshake agreement is as good as a written contract in my view. You never back down from a handshake agreement even if you have a loss-making deal, sometimes you just need to wear it. Sometimes you just need to get on with it regardless. 

So why do so many people refuse to acknowledge a handshake agreement as a binding contract?  Certainly, I wish to document details, this removes ambiguity leading to future misunderstandings, a written agreement is easy to interpret. However, once the details are agreed upon, personal values and integrity must take precedence. You make a verbal agreement, then you need to honour that agreement – no matter what. You should be as good as your word, you need to back up your actions. It really isn’t that difficult.

I have no issue with discrimination laws, they have to be fair and just, they need to offer protection to vulnerable people and they need to be applied equally. Racism is bad, yet there is no such thing as reverse racism, there is racism, it is as easy as that. Racial vilification laws in Western Australia were brought in when white supremacists targeted a range of people.

This white supremacist group is a bunch of morons, there is no argument here, they are pathetic bigots. I despise white supremacist groups and I have no issue with these particular laws being brought in front of Parliament to be used as a tool to stop these idiots. What I do have an issue with is these laws being used selectively.

They are laws to equalise society after all, and as I am a firm believer in equality. So we need to move to the next pertinent point, these laws need to be applied equally to be fair. So when a case arose where a young white female was physically assaulted and racially abused, do these laws not apply?

In Kalgoorlie, an outback city with a wild west reputation was a textbook example of laws not being applied equally. At the end of the day, racial abuse is racial abuse so the laws must be applied equally. An attack occurred where Melissa Blackney was sitting in a car on a street outside a house waiting for her mother when she was approached by two girls, one fourteen and one fifteen and a woman aged twenty one.

A rock was thrown at the vehicle and an altercation occurred where Ms Blackney was attacked by the group. She was kicked on the ground by the thirteen year old and given sixty hours community service and four months of intensive supervision. The charge of racial vilification was dismissed as common street language against the fifteen year old who urged her sister on as “patois of the street” by the Magistrate.

There were three people involved in an altercation with one person, who was sitting in her vehicle when an unprovoked attack occurred. According to the report Ms Blackney did not request racial vilification laws to be applied, this occurred when the police arrived and abuse was hurled at her in front of police officers. Whilst the Human Rights Commission attempted to tarnish the reputation of Ms Blackney, there is no evidence to support their claims, so they really need to pull their heads in and just deal in facts.

What the world saw when the Russian forces massed in a long convoy on the road to Kyiv was the destruction of Russian armour on a scale not seen in a long time. The javelin missile saved Kyiv from certain destruction with shells of burnt out tanks littering the highway. Then there was the logistics failures and even the maintenance of the support vehicles.

Whilst Russian forces were defeated and the invasion was stopped dead, the destruction of Russian tanks continues. Ukrainian drone pilots and grenades dropped through open hatches igniting the shells in the turret resulting in firstly a cookoff and the turret launched into the lower atmosphere. This is not just one or two tanks, this has been a constant cause of Russian losses – brilliant.

What drives me mad is receiving an email on a Sunday from a job application informing me I was unsuccessful for the job. This means the computer program scanning for keywords rejected my application, it never even made it to a person. 

This clearly has no human interaction, this is an auto scan program. Human resources do not work on a Sunday, this is an office position, they are not working a continuous roster as this is a Monday to Friday job. So I need to ask, where do I learn the exact keywords the want for the job position? This isn’t something they really publish, sure you use some of the job application terms, but this alone is not enough.

I was once asked to apply for a job by a former colleague, he gave me a list of keywords to put in my application. I never ended up applying, at that time I was happy in the job I was in. Well, that changed big time, working in a state government job is full of frustrations, a lack of a career path and working with unmotivated individuals. So Monday morning I sent them a pretty irate email and they decided to review my application, I didn’t get he job but at least it made it to human eyes. 

In our family, we have a new saying, we also have a new way about going about things too. We go about doing things the right way, not the wright way. This has become a very contentious issue and we aren’t backing down on this. 

Right 

adjective

1. Morally good, justified, or acceptable.
2. True or correct as a fact.

adverb

1. To the furthest or most complete extent or degree (used for emphasis).
2. Correctly.

noun

1. That which is morally correct, just, or honourable.
2. A moral or legal entitlement to have or do something.

verb

1. Restore to a normal or upright position.
2. Restore to a normal or correct state.

exclamation

1. Used to indicate agreement or to acknowledge a statement or order.

Wright

adjective

1. Unprincipled, unjustified, morally reprehensible.
2. Facts are optional.
3. Entitlement. 

adverb

Demanding, controlling, subjection and narcissistic tendencies. 

noun

1. No honor whatsoever. 
2. A perceived moral and legal entitlement to take everything.

verb

1. Shoddy and half-arsed workmanship.

exclamation

1. It’s just a fucking holiday house. 

The modern battlefield tactic of using quad-copters to drop small bombs and grenades on troops was significantly enhanced in Ukraine. Whilst Ukrainian troops have become very efficient at dropping small ordnance on Russian trenches and into open tank hatches, this form of warfare was developed by ISIS fighters in Syria.

Yet, we have all seen the effectiveness of the Ukrainian drone army attacking Russian positions, this is daily YouTube viewing. So I was absolutely amazed when a group of Israeli soldiers all congregated in the same place to take a break allowing a Hamas drone pilot to drop an explosive device right in the middle of the group.

The Israeli Defence Force has the reputation of being the most effective and professional of all militaries. Yet, what we witnessed was nothing short of undisciplined behaviour that one would not expect from the Israeli Defence Force. Surely their soldiers would have been briefed on what to expect based on learnings in the Ukraine war where Russia is routinely attacked by drone pilots with grenades.I would bet the memo has gone out now and we will not be seeing any more of this.

Ukraine is outnumbered, out gunned and struggling with munitions. This situation clearly needs to be directed towards the Republican Party and Donald Trump supporters. One has to question Republican Party motives, they are playing straight into Russian demands. I have to question Russian influence here and the hold they have over the Republican Party.

The sad truth is Russia is gaining ground right now, the hold up of weapons delivered to Ukraine is criminal. Ukrainian lives are being lost, they are losing territory they fought for and won back in 2022. Russia is firing 10 shells to one Ukrainian shell, they have no answers, they are trying to hold ground and not lose too much territory. Ukraine is fighting a much larger army with an enemy intent on using their manpower advantage, their artillery advantage, their tank advantage and their airpower advantage.

Ukraine needs weapons and they do not need NATO constraints, Ukraine is the country invaded here, why are they the ones dealing with constraints? Russia has massed troops on the Ukraine border, intelligence was aware but were unable to do anything about it. These troops then moved over the border to attack Ukrainian positions – madness. Ukraine is attacking targets inside of Russia with Ukrainian developed weapons, but they cannot use European or US supplied weapons.

From my observations, the prevalence of yes men being offered positions due to their ability to provide unquestionable support is breathtakingly common. I have seen this situation repeat in the government service at an alarming rate.

They are not the best qualified, the best performing, the hardest working or the smartest. What I will grant them is their ability to adapt, to drop to their knees when required and offer their support unequivocally in the form of yes to any request. How they are selected is generally through a weak leader who requires a posse of people to back him up. They would not normally be selected to staff these positions in a competitive selection process. Now they owe a debt of gratitude to the person who selected them and they do as they are told and fall into line.

They will not challenge the authority of the weak leader, this is exactly why they were selected – he doesn’t want any challengers to his authority. If they have not earned this position through their own knowledge, skills and abilities then are grateful beyond belief. They will fall into line obediently and support the individual who granted them this unearned power.

So, how do you take down this group? Firstly, you do not target the leader as many would suspect. You target the weakest member of the group. They are drawn to this arrangement not because of their own strength but because of their own weakness. Firstly, the weakest member is removed from this protective group, that weakens the whole group. Then, the next weakest member is targeted, now the other members who looked to the weak leader are becoming concerned, can this group leader not protect them?

This has an effect on the group, who will be targeted next? The implied protection this group was offering is crumbling, the leader is exposed as weak, their influence diminished and the leader is becoming exposed himself. Now the remaining members are not only concerned, they are stressed and agitated, they are feeling threatened. All of a sudden, there is a revolt in the ranks, place them under pressure and see how they handle such pressure.

The results are interesting, all of a sudden this becomes fun, watch them buckled under the pressure you apply. Never lead with your biggest point, begin with a smaller issue that is actually of little relevance to you. Move to a point that is unimportant to you, argue this point with 100% energy, this is really a side issue that is unimportant to you so you actually care little anyway. Negotiate a settlement, be willing to concede points that are unimportant to you.

Make concessions to be flexible, be constructive then pull back, don’t let them settle then increase the pressure further. Vary the intensity, but under no circumstances become personal, the minute you become personal is the minute you lose. The strategy is to apply pressure, they never earned the position, so make them regret they ever joined this group because they never earned it. Ok, so they were gifted privileges, all of a sudden, these privileges hardly seem worth the minimal effort they are expelling and the stress is not worth it.