When discussing issues on newspaper and electronic media forums, I see a plethora of people attempting to shut down informed and lively discussion as they pursue their private agendas attacking individuals and not their argument – this corrupts press freedom.

The function of the press in a free and democratic society is to perform a check on the executive and judicial processes of government. In a democratic society, a free press serves as a regulatory function holding government and bureaucratic leaders accountable to the public preventing power without responsibility. Educating citizens so  informed decisions can be undertaken maintaining transparency and public scrutiny. A free press publishes issues of importance to ordinary citizens allowing freedom of speech and advocacy with an exchange of ideas maintaining a watchdog function.

Sadly, without a free and independent press; the responsibility for public information and dissemination resides solely the government. As has been seen in so many totalitarian regimes; this process is abused allowing the government to control the issues and discussion. But when allowed to function freely, the press acts as the building blocks of democracy. By keeping citizens informed, individuals have access to government allowing transparency.

One has to remember, the news is not only watched and read by its citizens, the authorities do so as well. Public opinion and influence are formed by the press, the very reason why politicians and government spokespeople appear on news services, talk-back radio and in print media. They are well aware that public perception is important and need to reinforce their message by appearing in media that may not support their views, they need to sell their policy.

When they are able to function freely, local newspapers and radio and television stations can be important building blocks of democracy. In addition to serving as a watchdog on local institutions and alerting the public to safety issues, they can help citizens understand and access their distant government. We all know it is difficult to gain access to political figures and discuss important policy, we all ave the opportunity to watch the news or read the newspaper.

The news is watched by the authorities as well as the citizens. When the government tried to shut down the station at one point in order to control its political influence, the public and sponsors protested, and the government had to let it reopen. This civic information is the fuel of democracy. The people become better educated and take more responsibility for their own well being. The media can act as a safety valve by offering a forum for diverse voices to be heard. 

The kitchen is old school, this is what I love most about this place, the wood fire, the view from the kitchen window out over the grass on the yard to the rear fence. When I gaze out the window in the morning, we have kangaroos grazing on the lawn by the rear fence. The fence is a new edition, we were sick of people sneaking in and stealing our possessions and its sole purpose is to keep unwanted people out.

There is no telephone there, these days we all carry mobile phones but prior to that, this was a telephone free house. We have no internet, I can go down to the holiday house and work offline and I love it. I have finally updated my phone plan and now have mobile data, previously my mobile phone was restricted to phone calls and text messages and that was exactly what I wanted. I was left with no choice, despite my protests, Telstra updated my plan against my wishes and I am now connected.

I preferred old style, I would generally get up late on weekends, make breakfast and eat it out the front on the veranda sharing some of it with the resident magpies. As soon as they see me, they run across the road, jump the boundary fence and get ready. I hold the food up for them as they sit on the rail and watch me, apparently magpies recognise faces so never antagonise them as they can be very aggressive if they are threatened. Likewise, they can also be your best friend in the bird world once you get to know them.

In what has already been an interesting week where Senator Linda Reynolds will enter mediation with Brittany Higgins and David Shiraz for publishing defamatory material against her and preventing her from publishing further material. Brittany Higgins had previously been a prolific social media user with Twitter and Instagram her accounts of choice.

Senator Linda Reynolds has settled with the Australian Capital Territory government, received a formal apology for comments made by former Public Prosecutor Shane Drumgold and received $90,000 in compensation that includes legal costs. Former Public Prosecutor Shane Drumgold accused Senator Linda Reynolds of [suspected] political interference after she sought transcripts of the testimony given by Brittany Higgins in the trial. Shane Drumgold later withdrew the accusation during a Board of Enquiry of how the trial was handled. 

Both Brittany Higgins and David Shiraz have now returned to Australia from France to enter face to face mediation with Senator Linda Reynolds beginning today. Should both Higgins and Sharaz fail to apologise and refrain from publishing defamatory material, then they are looking at a six week trial in the Western Australian Supreme Court. What Higgins may learn is defamation, whilst a tricky business, may be her undoing. You cannot just make unfounded accusations in social media, whilst David Sharaz and Brittany Higgins believe they excuse power, they may just be horribly wrong.  

The Autavia was first introduced by the Heuer Watch Company in 1933, this was a dashboard timer that was in production until 1957. The name Autavia is a marriage of automotive [Aut] and aviation [avia] and was used on the dashboards of both racing automobiles and aircraft.

The Autavia was then released as a wristwatch in 1962, this came in the form of a racing chronograph to time race laps until production stopped in 1985. The entire Heuer catalog contained chronographs, they did not not have a three hand watch as they were a strong motor racing timer. They had the Skipper, a yacht racing chronograph based on the Carrera, whilst I love chronographs, the three hand version of the Autavia is pretty special, this is a great looking timepiece.

The Autavia Isograph was released in 2019 as a three hand watch, this is somewhat a difference to the classic Heuer Autavia that was only a chronograph. So, this isn’t a reissue, this takes one of the most popular Heuer models and creates a new persona. The COSC chronometer certified Calibre 5 movement features a carbon composite hairspring that is anti-magnetic and anti-shock.

This isn’t hard to imagine as the Autavia morphed from a dashboard timer to a wristwatch, the Autavia features large Arabic numerals, a grain (fumé) textured dial, a quick release strap, a 42 mm stainless steel case and bidirectional ceramic bezel. This timepiece is striking, it looks pretty good and will pop on the wrist.

Plastics in the ocean are in my opinion a greater threat to humanity than climate change. Whilst climate change is hotly contested by some, plastics dumped in the ocean are highly visible and a greater threat to life on earth. We are polluting our world, people just don’t care, they do not change their behaviour, nothing is happening. I am certainly no climate change denier, I believe more should be done to address these issues, this is the most pressing issue for humanity.

They have found plastic at the bottom of the Mariana Trench, the deepest section of the ocean. I haven’t seen the whole world, but parts of it and I have seen are horribly polluted by plastic waste, this is an absolute shame. Jon Sanders in his last circumnavigation of the world took water samples in some of the most inaccessible locations on the planet, the results were not good.

Plastic is the scourge of our time, this is the world’s population fault, they are quick to discard plastic into streams and rivers that flow into seas and oceans. Plastic bags blow across streets, parks and fields; we just let it happen. There are no excuses, we are creating this hazard to our health and we are sleepwalking into oblivion. This is an issue that can be addressed and rectified by every person on earth, all our individual efforts can make significant progress to make this problem a relic of history.

Heuer also produced countdown timers for yacht racing. The Yacht-Timer, Skipper and Regatta are excellent examples of some pretty decent start timers of the era, I reckon they look pretty decent.

As a yachtie, the countdown timers of the early 1970s are very interesting. These days we are wearing digital countdown timers and we mostly hate them. My last one had a plastic strap, it was broken during a jib change and I lost it overboard. I really don’t want to have super expensive timepieces on my wrist during a race, it makes me a little nervous.

I would love to wear a modern chronograph sailing. They are available but are pricey, I would love to wear one though. As long as it was designed for sailing, it requires a programmable countdown timer, we mostly require a 5 minute countdown, sometimes 3 minutes and 10 minutes isn’t unheard of. Getting a good start is important for getting an early advantage, then you need to build on the early advantage and build a lead. Sure, you can catch up and overtake the leaders, but it is better to use that advantage to increase your lead.

Heuer no longer manufactures sailing chronographs, if I want one, I will have to head onto the second hand vintage market. I would be extremely hesitant to wear a vintage Heuer chronograph during a yacht race, the chances of smashing it or losing it overboard are high. Heuer made their reputation producing motor racing chronographs, Heuer were all about chronographs. A yacht timer is a pretty good use of a chronograph function, the tool watch aesthetics really suit my style.

Tudor is a brand created by Rolex founder Hans Wilsdorf in 1946 to build a high quality but lower priced watch than Rolex. Wilsdorf founded Rolex in 1908 and Tudor was more of a value proposition, a Rolex at reasonable prices so to speak.

The newly developed inhouse movements such as the MT5602, MT5612 and MT5621 all have a 70 hour power reserve so it is pretty easy to differentiate between the two specifications. What I do like about the Black Bay 36 is the lack of date window, that makes for a nice dial. In the watch community people are raving about Tudor, for me, not so. I took a look and really didn’t like their designs or feel on the wrist. Not that I am saying Tudor produce a bad product, it is just not the styling that appeals to me.

Despite being protected by the Kremlin, Igor Girkin made a horrendous mistake publicly rebuking and criticising Russian President Vladimir Putin. There was no way this type of public outburst was going to go unpunished.

Sure, Igor Girkin was responsible for the downing of Malaysian Airlines MH17 over Ukraine in 2014, but terrorism isn’t an issue in Russia as long as Russia [or their leadership] is not targeted. The Buk missile was launched by pro-Russian separatists in Eastern Ukraine. The 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade of the Russian Federation had been transported from Russia on the day of the terrorist act and returned to Russian territory the very same day.

Shortly after the downing of the commercial aircraft, Igor Girkin, the leader of the Donbas separatists took to social media claiming recognition for shooting down a Ukrainian Antonov An-26 military transport aircraft. The separatists then denied involvement despite just 40 minutes after Prime Minister Alexander Borodai of the Donbas People’s Republic reporting they had just shot down a commercial airliner. So, paradoxically, Igor gherkin has now been arrested for insulting Vladimir Girkin but will not be brought to justice for murdering 283 passengers and 15 crew.

What makes me laugh more than anything is the second rate politics played in the government department I called home for a decade and a half. I let them play their silly games, when it counts, I make sure they feel the pain.

They think I lost, they thought I was frustrated and they thought they have defeated me – they are so wrong. Firstly, I have to thank my former manager, I say former because he was moved on. He had a habit of getting rid of the people he didn’t like – that’s true. He is gone, but I am still there; sure, he sandbagged my career – that’s true. However, what one has to learn to do is to turn defeat into victory. Whilst I won’t use his real name, Larry is the gift that keeps on giving. I chose the name Larry as that is one of the three stooges.

I can’t be fired, he broke the law and I worked it out and that is bad in the state government. What’s worse, he called me into the office and held me accountable for the Corruption and Crime Commission report – big mistake. That’s breaking the law, not only that, if I had reported him, he could be up for a two-year prison sentence. So, that buys me some goodwill; sure, I will never be promoted – I accept that. If they ever want to push the issue, I can defend myself in the Equal Opportunity Commission, the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2003 clearly articulates that requirement.

However, that also makes me immune from dismissal, that’s clearly described in the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2003. Poor judgement got the department in this position, their lack of leadership and management ability created this mess – this is on them. So now I am free to pursue consulting roles in the public sector and retain my role in the government – you can’t fire a whistleblower. After trying to bully me they learned that I fight back and despite defending from a perceived position of weakness – my strategy is far superior to theirs.

I could not help but laugh, the drone attack on the Kremlin in the lead up to Russian World War II celebrations was truly remarkable. Yes, we saw the footage of the drones explode close to the Kremlin, but please – come on. That had to be the smallest drone explosion in the Ukrainian invasion and fightback.

Was this a Ukrainian plot to assassinate Russian President Vladimir Putin? The Ukrainians have been known to target military assets within Russian borders, but the Kremlin has no military value whatsoever. There seems to be an increase in train derailments including refinery and fuel depot fires attributed to the Russian resistance movement. This is unlikely to be Ukraine though, this is more likely to be an internal uprising.

What was even funnier, there were clearly two people climbing up and onto the roof when the drones approached. Yes, the drones did explode over the Kremlin; however, their explosive force was so weak it didn’t even knock the flagpole over, and the drone exploded right alongside the flagpole. Sure, the flag fluttered a little, but even that wasn’t damaged. So we are supposed to believe the Ukrainian military flew a drone all the way from Ukrainian territory through Russian airspace all the way to the Kremlin, the most heavily guarded building in Moscow, most likely in all of Russia without enough explosives to knock a flag pole over – give it up.

Then, after Ukrainian denials the Kremlin tried to frame this as an American plot to assassinate Putin in the Kremlin. If the US wanted to strike the Kremlin, they would have flattened the entire structure with any one of the stealth weapons they have at their disposal. The Russians did not want to damage the Kremlin, they wanted to put on enough of a show for the camera to justify to an internal audience that they are protecting the people of Russia against the fascists when they really need to fear the fascists in the Kremlin.