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Viv Smythe

@vivsmythe.bsky.social

ex-blogger & current #GuardianAus minion (views my own) - signal-boosting, socialising, snark Alt text - Avatar: cockatoo headshot, sulphur crest raised. Banner: sunrise above low hills and a lake, large trees in the foreground, puffy clouds up high.

581 Followers  |  796 Following  |  302 Posts  |  Joined: 28.11.2024  |  2.197

Latest posts by vivsmythe.bsky.social on Bluesky

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Controversial apple cider vinegar weight-loss study retracted A scientific journal has retracted a study that claimed apple cider vinegar rivalled Ozempic as a weight-loss agent.

Rony Abou-Khalil www.abc.net.au/news/health/...

24.09.2025 08:34 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 1    ๐Ÿ” 1    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

We occasionally see some rosellas around our Sydney neighborhood. More common parrot sightings of lorikeets, corellas, galahs and the occasional sulphur-crested cockatoo.

24.09.2025 09:28 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 0    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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I don't know why this lad is building a subterranean city for cats, but I'm all for it.

16.08.2025 23:12 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 9418    ๐Ÿ” 3144    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 8    ๐Ÿ“Œ 476
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Gazaโ€™s journalists are talented, professional and dignified. Thatโ€™s why Israel targets them | Nesrine Malik Recent killings have dazed the world and provoked condemnation. But little is said about the calibre of Palestinian journalism, says Guardian columnist Nesrine Malik

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... Sent a warning by Israeli intelligence to stop reporting. When he refused, his father was killed in an airstrike. Dahdouh told its a dangerous job, no one would fault him for returning to his wife &child. He refused, & was decapitated in a targeted strike.

18.08.2025 12:31 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 4    ๐Ÿ” 6    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Gone.

18.08.2025 12:34 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 8    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Dolly Parton who has gifted 287,502,435 books to inspire young children with the love of reading. The key to a lifetimeโ€™s fun & mind expanding ideas.

Dolly Parton who has gifted 287,502,435 books to inspire young children with the love of reading. The key to a lifetimeโ€™s fun & mind expanding ideas.

This amazing woman has gifted millions of children with a book to start them off on a lifelong exploration of new worlds, histories,cultures, ideas & entertainment.

05.08.2025 15:41 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 4    ๐Ÿ” 1    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

A very good article and worth reading.

The key line for me was the question on relying on US support, where Evans questions whether we ever really could. The answer is no. The alliance was always one sided, and there is reasonable evidence to suggest that the U.S. denied assistance in the past. ๐Ÿงต

12.07.2025 21:11 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 8    ๐Ÿ” 4    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Eva Marie Saint , left at her 100 yo celebration,  right as a young actress.

Eva Marie Saint , left at her 100 yo celebration, right as a young actress.

Bill Withers

Bill Withers

Born today- the great Eva Marie Saint, still alive at 101(!) and Bill Withers, who passed in 2020

04.07.2025 16:32 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 47    ๐Ÿ” 3    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

I feel seen. Dammit.

04.07.2025 21:48 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 0    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Outerborough New Yorker of a certain age who grew up in the real estate business damn well knows what it means, meant what he said, and relishes the reaction.

04.07.2025 17:43 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 6    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

This, of course, is why the Project 2025 architects are systematically dismantling anything that provides for the common good in any way.

They are hoping scared, desperate people will be too busy fighting over scraps to mount a resistance.

On the Fourth of July, Iโ€™d love to see them proven wrong.

04.07.2025 21:14 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 2    ๐Ÿ” 1    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

This ๐Ÿงต.

For US corporate media, the only thing worse than a Muslim politician is
a principled, disciplined, truth-telling, popular, courageous Muslim politician.

04.07.2025 21:24 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 19    ๐Ÿ” 7    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

All too familiar.
Hopefully the Murdochs have the same 'success' in their campaigning for fellow billionaires as they did in the Australian election.

26.06.2025 21:57 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 8    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Zohran Mamdani: Cautionary Tale Or Model For Democratic Success? After Mamdani's surprise victory, Democrats should be taking notes

Cuomo had the endorsements, the money, and the party machine behind him. But Zohran Mamdani had a coalition that cut across age, race, and boroughsโ€”and it carried him to victory in NYC's mayoral primary. Now, Democrats are asking: is Mamdaniโ€™s win a one-off or a model for the partyโ€™s future?

26.06.2025 22:12 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 2156    ๐Ÿ” 243    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 190    ๐Ÿ“Œ 20
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Billionairesโ€™ wealth surged $6.5tn over past decade, Oxfam reports Real-terms gains of $33.9tn for worldโ€™s richest 1% โ€˜enough to end annual global poverty 22 times overโ€™, charity says

"A survey by Oxfam found that 86% of people supported paying for public services by 'closing loopholes' that allow wealthy individuals and large corporations to use tax havens."

www.theguardian.com/news/2025/ju...

26.06.2025 22:18 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Labor accused of โ€˜gaslightingโ€™ Australians on climate crisis as fossil fuel projects keep getting approved โ€˜They offer sympathy and then just go and approve massive fossil fuel projects anyway,โ€™ one advocate says

โ€œItโ€™s gaslighting, because you have to actually reduce emissions or climate change will just run away"

OK, there is a difference between the Coalition and Labor on climate policy:

The LNP has no interest in carbon reduction.
The Albanese govt just pretends to.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...

05.06.2025 21:08 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 27    ๐Ÿ” 14    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
@clairewillett

honestly the best marketing scheme in history is men successfully getting away with calling women the "more emotional" gender for like, EONS, because they've successfully rebranded anger as Not An Emotion

6:00 PM โ€ข Aug 12, 2020

@clairewillett honestly the best marketing scheme in history is men successfully getting away with calling women the "more emotional" gender for like, EONS, because they've successfully rebranded anger as Not An Emotion 6:00 PM โ€ข Aug 12, 2020

once again I must tap my own sign

05.06.2025 21:13 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 26551    ๐Ÿ” 6029    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 230    ๐Ÿ“Œ 127
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Musk calls for Trump to be impeached as extraordinary feud escalates Former adviser taunts president over links to Epstein while Trump threatens to cancel contracts for Musk companies

Well well well: who could have foreseen this meeting of egos turning so sour?

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

05.06.2025 21:17 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 2    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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As winter is upon us - We are in breeding season 2025: Pewter the Powerful Owl upon-clean-creek with ringtail prey dinner for his mate Sheba in the hollow #birds

27.05.2025 05:34 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 13    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

The problem is that Twitter really was the last big critical mass of people who were on a social media platform that was difficult to monetise. Facebook and insta have become completely enshittified, blogsites died with the pivot to video.

Twitter was the last major non-commodified community space.

27.05.2025 01:39 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 3    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Other countries tax their oil and gas industries. Australia subsidies ours.

Our research found while gas prices boomed in 2022, LNG companies made windfall gains of up to $40 billion. PRRT take increased by less than $1 billion.

It's time to fix the tax loopholes that Big Gas exploits. #auspol

27.05.2025 02:03 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 427    ๐Ÿ” 195    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 15    ๐Ÿ“Œ 15

Rather shockingly, this video is no longer on the ABC's website

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-05...

27.05.2025 03:20 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 477    ๐Ÿ” 208    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 24    ๐Ÿ“Œ 6
Screen shot of the process

Screen shot of the process

Just in case your #cyber threat landscape wasnโ€™t busy enough self replicating #AI is here ๐Ÿ˜ฑ

https://arxiv.org/abs/2412.12140

27.05.2025 04:55 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 2    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 2    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

This government approving the further destruction of Murujuga will devastate rock art over 50000 years old and add momentum to climate collapse for every future generation.
Theyโ€™re pulling off the most epoch spanning crime in human history.
So congrats I guess.

22.05.2025 10:01 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 49    ๐Ÿ” 27    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 3
Ginger cat, longhaired, pretending to not want chin scritches

Ginger cat, longhaired, pretending to not want chin scritches

Pussycat likes scritches

22.05.2025 10:34 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 2    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Wow.

There really is no bottom, is there?

19.05.2025 19:59 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 14    ๐Ÿ” 8    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 3    ๐Ÿ“Œ 1

It's very nice out there right now, agreed.

16.05.2025 22:29 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 2    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

"Norway's (Equinor's) oil and gas extraction has caused climate damage of over 2000 billion kroner according to a new study. It is difficult to find words to describe the actions of the oil state, they know that they are causing death and suffering, but the pursuit of money controls everything."

16.05.2025 08:36 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 8    ๐Ÿ” 3    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Watched it a while ago, agreed!
Should rewatch.

16.05.2025 12:11 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 2    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

It's also worth watching the latest series in chunks of 3 episodes - the exposition is designed to work best that way.

16.05.2025 10:59 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 1    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

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