Toms Blog on Life and Livingness
Your best defense against today’s (and tomorrow’s) global health threats is a strong immune system. Yet, too many still remain uninformed about the best protocols to prevent illness and defeat diseases like autoimmune disorders, cancer, heart disease and the looming threat of “superbugs,” which are on pace to be MORE deadly than any other health condition.
The government should direct the Auditor-General to conduct an independent audit of Australia’s Big Four banks, in light of the collapsing property bubble to which the major banks are massively exposed.
Presently the banks are not independently audited. There is an even bigger “Big Four” that sign off on the banks’ books, the Big Four global accounting firms, an accounting cartel which audits 98 per cent of the world’s largest banks and corporations, and actively covers up the fraud and dodgy bookkeeping that has become the defining feature of the global financial system. The four firms are PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), Ernst and Young (EY), KPMG, and Deloitte.
An explosive new report commissioned by the UK Labour Party’s shadow chancellor of the exchequer, John McDonnell, called Reforming the Auditing Industry, exposes the Big Four accounting firms as complicit in the crimes of banks and big corporations. These Big Four are supposed to conduct the independent audits of companies mandated by law, but they make two-thirds of their tens of billions in revenue from consultancy services to those same corporations. The banks that triggered the 2008 crash in London and on Wall Street had all received clean bills of health from Big Four auditors—some, like Northern Rock in the UK, just days before they collapsed. The report also documents a “parade of scandals” involving UK and multinational corporations which have collapsed after being looted by their management and major shareholders, robbing employees, pension funds and small creditors of enormous sums of money owed to them. In every case, the Big Four firms covered up the looting. And the Big Four firms have captured governments and regulators, the most glaring example being their influence over tax laws, which they help to write so that they can help their corporate and super-rich clients avoid paying them.
(Click here to read the full report, Reforming the Auditing Industry http://visar.csustan.edu/aaba/LabourPolicymaking-AuditingReformsDec2018.pdf. For a summary of the report click here to read a two-page article in the 16 January 2019 issue of the CEC’s Australian Alert Service, “Criminal masterminds: the real Big Four” “Criminal masterminds: the real Big Four”,http://cecaust.com.au/aas/AASVol21No03_real-big-four.pdf, by Robert Barwick.)
The report calls for the establishment of a statutory (public) auditor, to conduct truly independent and honest audits of all financial companies and the largest corporations, to which the regulators would have complete access. It also calls for the Big Four and all accounting firms to be broken up, to end the conflict of interest of firms that audit companies also providing consultancy services.
Independently audit Australia’s banks!
The Big Four global accounting firms also dominate Australia’s financial system. Most worryingly, PwC audits CBA and Westpac, EY audits NAB, and KPMG audits ANZ. Given their track record laid bare in Reforming the Auditing Industry, the Australian government and public can have no confidence in the Big Four auditors’ reports of Australia’s Big Four banks. Last year’s banking royal commission has already shredded confidence in the major banks, proving that they are not the best banks in the world as was claimed. It’s a small step to go from lying about their behaviour to lying about their financial position, assisted by their corrupt auditors. As the four major banks control 80 per cent of the banking system, and each have over 60 per cent of their assets concentrated in mortgages, with house prices plunging the government must direct the Auditor-General to conduct independent audits of each of the Big Four, to ascertain their true financial position and the level of risk facing the Australian economy.
Such audits would also expose more details of the criminality of the Big Four global accounting firms in Australia. On 29 November 2017, the Greens and the National Party agreed to include the Big Four auditors in their terms of reference for a banking royal commission to investigate; the next day, 30 November, a panicked then-Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull hurriedly called the royal commission with different terms of reference, approved by the banks, in which the Big Four accountants were not included.
Conducting audits of the private banks was once a standard function of the Auditor-General. It was recommended in the report of the 1937 Banking Royal Commission, and first legislated in the 1945 Banking Act, and reaffirmed in the 1953 and 1959 Banking Acts. It remained a function of the Auditor-General until the establishment of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) in 1998, when the Financial Sector Reform (Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Act amended the 1959 Banking Act to allow APRA to appoint any firm to audit the banks. And which auditors has the failed and discredited regulator APRA chosen to use? You guessed it—the Big Four.
The reason the 1937 Banking Royal Commission report recommended the Auditor-General regularly audit the private banks was so the government bank, the Commonwealth Bank, would know if it needed to take over a failing private bank to protect its deposits, by either fixing up the private bank or closing it down and taking over its customers. Australia must face the reality of likely banking failures today: Australia’s banks are more exposed to the collapsing housing bubble than their US, UK, Irish and Spanish counterparts were in 2008, when they were wiped out in large numbers. No other banks in the world have come close to having 60 per cent of their loans in mortgages; before their crashes, US and UK interest-only lending peaked at 25 and 18 per cent respectively of all mortgages, compared with almost 50 per cent in Australia in 2016; and Australia’s household debt at 190 per cent of household income is much higher than in those other countries in 2008.
The Citizens Electoral Council has issued a five-point program for Australia to survive economic catastrophe, which includes a call for a moratorium on home and family farm foreclosures, to stop the banks from executing a US-style mass-eviction of homeowners in a housing crash. The policy would require the government to take the measures recommended by the 1937 Banking Royal Commission and know if it needs to take over the banks to protect the public’s deposits, and either reorganise them or shut them down. Accurate audits of their books are therefore essential.
Demand your MP support independent audits of the Big Four banks!
Forward this release to your local MP and Senators with the message that they must demand an independent audit of the banks. (Follow up with a phone call to make sure they received it.)
Labor MPs especially should be challenged: with the ALP expected to win the election this year, will they follow the lead of their UK counterparts and take on the real Big Four, or will they let this global criminal racket go untouched?
(Just a preface from me. This is testing that was mandated to be done in the US but after a lengthy Freedom of Information request process, Robert F. Kennedy Jr got the appropriate government department to admit that the SAFETY TESTING HAS NEVER BEEN CONDUCTED!)
In December 2018, the Italian research company, Corvelva, released an explosive research paper. Vaxxter reported on their findings, exposing the ingredients in the vaccine Infanrix Hexa, the combination vaccine given to infants across Europe. Of course, the pro-vaccine machine immediately went into high gear, attacking and discrediting Corvelva’s testing methodologies. In response, Corvelva issued a technical report documenting their methods, declaring:
Protein detection is carried out using a standard approach using trypsin enzyme, a technique that has been internationally recognized for over 10 years. The peptides are then separated using chromatography and analyzed by mass spectrometry.
With this technology, there should be little doubt about the accuracy of their findings which concluded that Infanrix Hexa:
Has a molecular profile that is generally complex and largely unknown.
Contains protein contaminations with variable compositions that are not declared on the leaflet [package insert].
The entire Infanrix Hexa analysis can be found here in English.
Emboldened by these findings, researchers tested two more vaccines, Hexyon and Gardasil 9.
Hexyon – Hexacima
Hexyon is a six-in-one shot to vaccinate against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTaP), polio, hepatitis B and Haemophilus influenza b (Hib). It is called a six-in-one vaccine; however, 8 vaccine antigens are actually present because the polio vaccine has three antigens (three separate viruses). The vaccine, manufactured by a partnership between Sanofi Pasteur and MSD (Merck), was approved for use in 2013 in Western European Countries; simultaneously, it was approved for use in Eastern European countries under the brand name Hexacima. Here is the package insert.
Using the same methods used to analyze Infanrix Hexa, Hexyon was found to have 216 toxic chemicals and contaminants, of which 70% could not be identified. An additional 16 toxic residues were present and thought to be cross-contaminants from different vaccines, meaning, the machines were not thoroughly cleaned between production runs.
Researchers confirmed that all three of the DTaP toxoid antigens were present in Hexyon. However, they shockingly discovered that the antigens for hepatitis B, HiB and polioviruses 1, 2 and 3 were all missing. The entire analysis of Hexyon can be found here in English.
For those who trust that vaccines provide protection, how can Hexyon be “effective” when only 3 of the 8 stated antigens are present? Even more, how can Hexyon be called “safe” when it contains cross-contaminants and more than 150 compounds that cannot be identified in any chemical databases?
In December 2018, the FDA approved Vaxelis for use in American children from 6 weeks through 4 years of age (prior to the 5th birthday). This is the same vaccine (Hexyon) produced by the same manufacturers (Sanofi Pasteur and MSD). The FDA’s provisional approval letter to the manufacturers clearly states:
You must submit reports of biological product deviations under 21 CFR 600.14. You should identify and investigate all manufacturing deviations promptly, including those associated with processing, testing, packaging, labeling, storage, holding and distribution. If the deviation involves a distributed product, may affect the safety, purity, or potency of the product, and meets the other criteria in the regulation, you must submit a report on Form FDA 3486 to the Director, Office of Compliance and Biologics Quality.
Corvelva’s published findings regarding the contaminants and unidentifiable compounds need to be urgently submitted to the FDA and CBER so approval of Vaxelis can be reviewed and hopefully, withdrawn.
Gardasil 9
Even though Gardasil is not mandatory in Italy, the vaccine has been associated with a large number of serious injuries and even death in countries around the world, including the US. Gardasil, the vaccine promoted to prevent cervical cancer and venereal warts associated with human papillomaviruses (HPV), was approved for use in girls in 2006 and then approved for boys in 2009. The vaccine contained four antigens: HPV subtypes 6, 11, 16 and 18.
In 2014, the FDA approved Gardasil 9 for use in girls. The following year, it was approved for boys and in 2018, approval was granted to give Gardasil 9 to individuals up to 45 years of age. The new formulation added five HPV subtypes to the mix – 31, 33, 45, 52 and 58 – and increased the amount of aluminum in each injection from 250mcg to 500mcg.
Corvelva’s analysis of Gardasil 9 found:
Only 7 of 9 HPV antigens were present; subtypes 11 and 58 were not detected.
338 signals of chemical contaminants were detected, of which 78% were unknown.
10 chemical toxins, thought to be cross-contaminants from manufacturing of other vaccine production lines.
These findings again open questions about product compliance and clean manufacturing processes. The evidence should quickly be corroborated by other laboratories and if confirmed, reported immediately to the FDA, the European Commission on Vaccine Safety, the WHO, UNICEF, GAVI and corresponding bodies in all countries of the world.
If there is any doubt that vaccines may contain unknown, untested chemical contaminants, there can be no doubt that children must be protected from what is coming through that needle. A worldwide moratorium of the entire vaccination program must be implemented immediately until this investigation is concluded.
Over the holidays the SSC has contemplated an embarrassing litany of NSW Government Planning failures during 2018. We have come up with the Top 10:
1. $2b+ Sydney Light Rail project – appears to be multiple project planning and project management failures. From the absence of a credible business case, to budget blowouts, construction delays, unfair impacts on small business, residents and visitors – it all adds up to one stinky light fail project.
2. Westconnex – rumoured to now cost more than the entire NBN project, not sure if we will ever know the full cost, but it is estimated at over $17b. Critics believe a lack of transparency and meaningful consultation has also been a project highlight. Future users can contemplate relative merits, when they travel on Transurban’s private road, breathe in the unfiltered smoke stack air, and pay a road toll for the next 42 years.
3. Stadium splurge – with all the priorities facing NSW the Berejiklian Government decided that what they really needed to do was to spend billions destroying and rebuilding relatively OK sporting stadiums.
4. Powerhouse Museum move from Ultimo to Parramatta. The new Powerhouse will be located on flood prone land and the project will involve the destruction of heritage buildings including Victorian era Willow Grove and 1881 c terrace houses. Critics suggest the City of Parramatta could have a museum in its own right without relocating the Powerhouse Museum .
5. Opal Tower – the ‘poster child’ for all that is wrong with NSW Planning under the Berejiklian Government.
6. The NSW planning regime – critics consider NSW Planning is broken. Features include arbitrary housing targets, undue influence of vested commercial interests, poor building quality, inadequate consumer protection, dubious private certification processes (developers responsible for private certification reports including building quality, environmental impact studies, traffic studies , flood impact etc). And lastly, (to our future peril) a complete failure to factor climate change into urban design and planning processes.
7. Sydenham to Bankstown Metro – developers were delighted with this proposal but it brought a wave of very vocal community opposition and the proposal continues to be a big headache for NSW Planning Minister Roberts.
8. The Low Rise Medium Density Code – this code was introduced in July 2018. Concerns about community impact led to 50 councils applying for and receiving a 12 month exemption from the code until July 2019. The new code will allow developers to use the private certification process to build unit and town house development in low density housing areas. Critics believe this will pit resident against resident with local councils unable to intervene.
9. Failure to act in the public interest for the public good – critics believe the community has lost an important advocate and voice with the planning demotion of local councils. Critics also believe consultation on significant projects is token (at best) and there is a propensity to plough right ahead even when there is significant public disquiet – think Windsor Bridge, Parramatta Pool, Stadiums, Badgery’s Creek, and sale of inner city social housing e.g. Millers Point, Waterloo, Redfern, & Sirius building just to name a few.
10. Environmental Vandalism – critics believe the State Significant project process is being used to bypass important heritage, environmental and Aboriginal heritage legislated protection. Observers suggest that vested and commercial interests are prioritised over other interests. Think decline in river system health, Blue Mountains wilderness destruction, removal of trees and wildlife habitat, and approval of housing, infrastructure, mining and farming activities at the expense of the environment and even when there is significant scientific disquiet. https://www.smh.com.au/sydney-news/how-to-save-sydney-20180301-p4z2eu.html
Specific respiratory microbiome communities may be linked to influenza susceptibility, according to a study published January 9, 2019 by Betsy Foxman from the University of Michigan, USA, and colleagues. Influenza virus, the causative agent of flu, primarily targets and infects the epithelial cells in the respiratory tract. The epithelial cells of the nose and throat are enveloped by complex bacterial communities, leading Foxman and colleagues to hypothesize that this respiratory microbiome might interact with the virus — and could play a role in the body’s defences against flu. In this study, 144 Nicaraguan households with a member identified as having influenza were enrolled between 2012 and 2014 and all household adults and children monitored for up to two weeks. Study staff visited each household five times, sampling the respiratory microbiomes of all household members as well as testing for influenza infection; participants also kept symptom diaries. Using statistical modeling, the authors were able to categorize each participant’s respiratory microbiome into one of five distinct community types at every visit, though approximately half of participants underwent changes in microbiome type between study visits. The authors could then compare participants’ microbiome types to the likelihood of their contracting flu. One of the five respiratory microbiome community types across age groups clearly demonstrated decreased susceptibility to the flu. This microbiome type was significantly less common in infants and young children, and when present also appeared less stable in these age groups compared to older children and adults. While the link between microbiome and influenza susceptibility was not shown to be causal in this study, the authors suggest that these microbiome differences might contribute to the increased influenza risk observed among young children. The authors note that the further work could examine whether the high degree of change to microbiome types seen in many participants represents normal variation among healthy individuals or a response to influenza exposure. Nonetheless, the authors believe this is the first human population study to indicate that your respiratory microbiome may affect your susceptibility to flu. https://www.nexusnewsfeed.com/article/climate-ecology/respiratory-microbiome-may-influence-your-susceptibility-to-flu/
