Yes, we did. The @smh story credits us

We thank the @smh and @jamesmassola for the credit given to @TrueNewsWeekly for our excellent investigative journalism from almost a decade ago about the sexual harassment scandal surrounding Greens senator Jordon Steele-John that has this week exploded 🧨 smh.com.au/politics/federal/…

Thank you @DavidShoebridge. It took 10 years, but action has finally been taken on alleged serial sexual harassing creep Greens politician @SenatorJordon. It only took a decade after @TrueNewsWeekly was the ONLY media outlet - MSM, independent or otherwise - to do its job!

Senator Wong has kindly offered to mark the ballots by hand for Palestinians who have lost their arms in Israel’s genocide. Give Penny a round of applause. @AlboMP @SenatorWong

🚨 Many of you have asked about our legendary friend, Sydney artist Shayne Chester. Well, he currently needs all our help as he is the latest victim of Zionist lawfare for speaking out against Israel's genocide. This is yet another case of harassment... gofundme.com/f/legal-funding…

AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM ANTHONY ALBANESE My fellow Australians, Following my recent address to the United Nations, in which I performed the delicate diplomatic manoeuvre of speaking at length while saying as little as possible about Israel’s destruction of Gaza, I was invited to Tel Aviv for the annual International Zionist Cheerleading Competition. The standard was fierce. Contestants were judged on their ability to wave the flag, applaud on cue and avoid any sentence that might inconvenience a powerful friend. I am delighted to announce that I won the overall event, along with the Bibi Netanyahu Medal for Excellence in ZioFascism. It was a proud moment for Australia. I represented our nation with distinction as the Israeli Governor Down Under, a role I’ve been maintaining while insisting that our foreign policy remains entirely independent. I will wear the medal at every official occasion from now on. It will sit proudly beside the carefully worded statements, the solemn calls for restraint and the conspicuous silences that have become the government’s most reliable exports. Some people may ask whether the medal comes with any responsibilities. I can confirm that it does: keep smiling, keep applauding and never let a difficult question from the dumbed down MSM get in the way of our narrative. Aussie, Aussie, Aussie. Goy, Goy, Goy. I am, and continue to be, Your Zionist Australian Governor, (formerly Prime Minister), Albo Donate for more biting satire – truenewsweekly.com/donate/ #AlboPomPomPremier, #GovernorDownUnder, #BibiMedalCeremony, #DiplomacyByJazzHands, #TheGreatGazaOmission, #CanberraCheerSquad, #ForeignPolicyBackflipRoutine, #UNSpeechWithTheVolumeDown, #NetanyahuFanClubCaptain, #PomPomsBeforePrinciples, #TelAvivTrophyTour, #TheMedalOfMoralEvasion, #AustraliaOnAutopilot, #SilenceInSequins, #TheBibiBlingAwards, #CabinetOfCheerleaders, #FlagWavingAndQuestionDodging, #DiplomaticTumbleTurns, #GazaMentionPending, #AussieAussieGoyGoyGoy, #TheGovernorGivesItFiveStars, #PrimeMinisterialSpiritSquad, #GoldMedalInGoingQuiet, #ApplauseWithoutAPolicy, #FromTheCaucusToThePomPoms

There's only one answer to the question: Q: What can I do to help bring about change? A: Support independent journalism. Donate today – truenewsweekly.com/donate/. #IndependentJournalism, #SupportIndependentMedia, #PressFreedom, #FreePress, #ProtectJournalists, #JournalismMatters, #IndependentNews, #SupportJournalists, #InvestigativeJournalism, #MediaFreedom, #JournalismIsNotACrime, #IndependentMedia, #CitizenJournalism, #IndieJournalism, #DefendPressFreedom, #StandWithThePress, #SupportIndieMedia, #WatchdogJournalism, #TruthMatters, #HoldPowerToAccount, #FreeThePress, #ValueIndependentJournalism, #NonprofitNews, #IndependentReporting, #SupportFreePress

THE CRIPPLED MINER GOT HALF THE MONEY: BHP’s Crooked Lawyers Embezzled the Rest At its rotten core, the Simon Turner affair combines contradictory insurer records, a purported employer with no employment relationship, supposedly independent advice pursued by the opposing solicitors, and a lawyer who crossed into the witness box. The result reeks of institutional corruption, professional misconduct, manipulated justice and criminality demanding an immediate investigation by authorities. Damning report by Adam Greenwood. BHP can move mountains, ship coal across oceans and account for billions of dollars in global revenue. But ask the mining giant to explain the $630,000 discrepancy in one injured miner’s compensation payout, and this corporate colossus suddenly squints at its own accounts like a stunned wombat caught in headlights. That’s the revolting spectacle exposed by a May 2024 email stream between MinterEllison partner Trent Forno, acting for BHP, and Tom Hunter-Leahy of Conrad Curry Law, acting for Simon Turner. The emails read like the administrative paperwork from a robbery in which everyone remembered to wear a tie. Donate to True News Weekly – truenewsweekly.com/donate/ Forno asserted that Turner had received $1,214,827.58, comprising a $700,000 BHP settlement and $514,827.58 in statutory workers’ compensation benefits. It’s a majestic figure, the kind corporations love, because it makes an injured worker sound less like a victim and more like a lottery winner with a grievance problem. Hunter-Leahy demolished that description. He said Turner received $585,740.03 in total: a $280,000 redemption payment around 30 March 2021 and $305,740.03 from the $700,000 settlement around 24 August 2022. The difference is a staggering $629,087.55. And so begins BHP’s greatest magic trick of all time. The lawyers wave a deed, the insurers release a cloud of statutory jargon, and more than half the supposed bounty is nowhere near Turner’s bank account. Full report at the True News Weekly website – tinyurl.com/TheCriminalCarte… Donate to True News Weekly – truenewsweekly.com/donate/ #SimonTurner, #BHP, #SimonTurnerVsBHP, #BHPCompensation, #WorkersCompensation, #MiningIndustry, #MountArthurCoalMine, #MinterEllison, #CorporateAccountability, #CorporateCorruption, #LegalAccountability, #JusticeForSimonTurner, #InjuredWorker, #WorkersRights, #MiningJustice, #CompensationDispute, #LegalEthics, #ProfessionalMisconduct, #InstitutionalCorruption, #FederalCourt, #AustralianMining, #WhistleblowerNews, #InvestigativeJournalism, #TrueNewsWeekly, #JusticeMatters @MichaelWestBiz @Simon27120122 @BHP @MintersEllison @crikey_news @ConversationEDU @SatPaper @THEMONTHLY @independentaus @johnmenadue @renew_economy @TheNewDailyAu @BetootaAdvocate @TheShovel @WomensAgenda @IndigenousX @greenleftonline @AusIndiMedia

Mr Dave Hughes, “Hughesy”, 666 Elitist Ave, Toorak. VIC. 3142. Dear Dave, Australia misses the bloke you used to be. Once upon a time, you were one of us. A one-time battler on the dole, an up-and-coming comedian, and a regular Aussie who could walk onto a stage, tear strips off privilege and pomposity, and make ordinary people laugh because you understood their world. Then success arrived. Your career took off. The money rolled in. The property portfolio grew. And somewhere along the way, the bloke who once seemed to stand with ordinary Australians, started sounding increasingly comfortable with the people he once mocked. That’s the disappointment. Nobody begrudges your success. You earned it through talent and hard work. But success doesn’t require forgetting where you came from. There was a time when your comedy punched upwards. You ridiculed power, wealth and self-importance. Now, to many Australians, it feels as though you’ve crossed the room and taken a comfortable seat among the very people your younger self would’ve once turned into a punchline. That’s why we’re all glad that True News Weekly has produced a song in your honour. It’s called The Downfall of David Hughes. It’s sharp, irreverent and deliberately uncomfortable. In other words, exactly the sort of satire the younger Dave Hughes might’ve appreciated. Think of it as a musical intervention, and perhaps even as a tribute to the fearless satirist you once were. And, Dave, there’s still a way back, if you choose to take that road. Use your wealth and influence to help Australians struggling with housing, poverty and disadvantage. Put some of that success behind people who have none of the advantages money brought you. Rediscover the outsider who once knew what it was like to have very little – except a sense of humour and something to say. Most importantly, get back on stage and do what you once did so brilliantly: make Australians laugh while reminding the powerful that they’re never above ridicule. We would genuinely like to see that Dave Hughes again. Until then, we’ll keep the microphone ready. Signed, The Australian Community Head Office, 123 Regular Rd, Averageville. NSW. 2123. Donate for real news and more biting satire – truenewsweekly.com/donate/

AUSTRALIA’S FORMER TAXMAN RIPS OFF THE ATO: Karma Finally Lodges Its Return Australia’s whistleblower system has become a grotesque theatre of hypocrisy, where those exposing institutional misconduct risk having their lives destroyed while the powerful enjoy layers of protection. The Richard Boyle saga now carries an irony so savage, so utterly absurd, that even the most cynical satirist would struggle to invent it. Report by fellow whistleblower, Adam Greenwood (@NauseamAdz). You really couldn’t make this shit up. Richard Boyle blew the whistle on the Australian Taxation Office after witnessing aggressive and unethical debt-collection practices being inflicted on ordinary Australians and small businesses. Instead of being thanked and lauded for exposing what was happening inside one of the country’s most powerful government agencies, Boyle was raided by the Australian Federal Police, prosecuted and initially buried beneath an extraordinary 66 criminal charges. Donate to True News Weekly – truenewsweekly.com/donate/ The ordeal swallowed years of Boyle’s life. His finances were devastated, his health deteriorated, and the criminal charges hanging over his head at one point carried theoretical maximum penalties totalling an astonishing 161 years behind bars. Presiding over the ATO when that prosecution was launched was Commissioner Chris Jordan, whose official title appeared on Boyle’s charge sheet as the informant. Fast-forward several years and Australian political satire has apparently decided to write itself. ABC News has now revealed that Jordan, the former ATO boss, has himself been accused by a whistleblower of paying “little or no income tax” during his years as a senior figure at accounting giant KPMG. The allegations go considerably further, claiming Jordan promoted tax schemes, received $1.2 million in “illicit and secret” commissions and concealed money in an Isle of Man bank account to avoid Australian tax. Full report at the True News Weekly website – tinyurl.com/TheCorruptFormer… Donate to True News Weekly – truenewsweekly.com/donate/ #RichardBoyle, #ChrisJordan, #ATO, #KPMG, #Whistleblower, #Australia, #TaxOffice, #WhistleblowerProtection, #Hypocrisy, #Accountability, #IsleOfMan, #TaxAvoidance, #AustralianPolitics, #Karma, #Integrity, #Canberra, #AFP, #DoubleStandards, #Taxman, #ProtectWhistleblowers, #ATOWhistleblower, #InvestigateThePowerful, #PublicInterest, #GoodBehaviourBond, #ObsceneIrony

Deputy Editor Adam Greenwood is not only one of True News Weekly’s investigative journalists, he’s also an accomplished songwriter with a fondness for turning some of the world’s ugliest realities into quirky, catchy and sharply satirical political songs. His latest release, Right Before Their Eyes, takes aim at one of the defining contradictions of the modern world: unprecedented wealth at one end of society, and billions of ordinary people struggling to afford the basics at the other. At the heart of the song is a very simple question: How much is enough? Donate to help keep indie journalism alive – truenewsweekly.com/donate/ As corporate profits soar, household bills climb, groceries become increasingly more expensive and wealth becomes concentrated in fewer hands, Adam turns the familiar divide between the 1 per cent and the remaining 99 per cent into a musical swipe at a system he contends has been tilted heavily in favour of those who already have the most. But beneath the humour and catchy chorus is a much darker observation. In a world capable of producing extraordinary wealth, technology and abundance, people are still starving. Families are struggling. The cost of simply existing continues to rise. Meanwhile, those sitting at the very top continue accumulating fortunes beyond anything they could reasonably spend in a lifetime. Right Before Their Eyes asks what happens when greed stops being merely excessive and becomes obscene. And perhaps more importantly, it asks how long the overwhelming majority of humanity will tolerate a system in which ninety-nine per cent increasingly find themselves competing for what remains after the one per cent has taken its share. It’s political satire with a melody, a good dose of black humour with plenty of bite, and a serious message hiding underneath it all. Turn it up. RIGHT BEFORE THEIR EYES Written by Adam Greenwood Produced by Suno.com Executive Producer – True News Weekly Associate Producer – Serkan Öztürk Donate – truenewsweekly.com/donate/ Please share this song as an alternative to donating.

THE HAGUE — Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong was taken into custody at a remote Dutch border checkpoint late Wednesday after what her office insists was an “entirely accidental” crossing into Netherlands territory. Dutch authorities have charged her with war crimes — including aiding and abetting the genocide of women and children — and have made clear she will stand trial at the International Criminal Court. The Australian Government has responded with unrestrained panic. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has personally intervened, describing the arrest as a “grave diplomatic misunderstanding” and demanding Wong’s immediate release on the grounds of diplomatic immunity. Dutch officials have rejected the request in the most unambiguous terms: no amount of protocol, they say, overrides complicity in the slaughter of civilians. Wong had been travelling through neighbouring Belgium on what her department called a “low-profile European engagement". According to Dutch border police, her official vehicle simply kept going after the last Belgian village, ignoring multiple signs, a customs post, and a polite request to stop. When officers ran her diplomatic passport, an outstanding ICC warrant appeared. She was detained without incident. Australian sources later described the episode as “a navigation error” and “an unfortunate GPS glitch". The charges relate to Australia’s sustained political, diplomatic and material support for operations that Dutch prosecutors say have produced mass civilian deaths, including large numbers of innocent women and children. Prosecutors argue that Wong, as the minister responsible for Australia’s foreign policy settings, speeches, votes and quiet facilitation, meets the legal threshold for aiding and abetting. They have indicated they will present a detailed case of knowledge, opportunity and continued enablement. Canberra’s response has been frantic. Officials have invoked every clause of the Vienna Convention they can find. They have offered reciprocal courtesies, future trade concessions and the usual language about “valued partners”. Albanese himself has gone further. In a late-night statement he declared he was prepared to fly to the Netherlands in person “to help facilitate a swift and sensible resolution”. Dutch authorities replied within hours: if the Prime Minister sets foot in their jurisdiction, he too will be arrested on similar charges. A senior Dutch justice official, speaking on the record, put the position plainly: “Diplomatic immunity was never intended as a shield for those who help make the killing of women and children possible. The court in The Hague exists precisely for this kind of case. We will not pretend otherwise.” Australian officials have privately expressed disbelief that a European ally would treat one of their own this way. Publicly they have stuck to the script that Wong has always spoken of peace, two-state solutions and international law. The contrast with the charges has not gone unnoticed in The Hague. Albanese’s threat to travel himself has only hardened the Dutch stance. “We have advised the Australian side that any attempt by the Prime Minister to enter our territory will result in his detention,” a foreign ministry spokesperson said. “The same principles apply. Rank does not confer impunity when the allegations are this serious.” Wong remains in custody pending a formal appearance. Australian diplomats have been granted consular access but have so far been unable to secure her release. The Australian Government continues to insist this is a matter that can be resolved quietly between friends. The Dutch have made it equally clear they consider the matter one for the court, not for shady backroom deals. For an Australian Government that has spent years lecturing others about the rules-based order, the sudden discovery that those rules might actually be applied to one of their own has produced a rare and unedifying spectacle of desperation. The Prime Minister’s offer to fly in and sort it out personally has only underlined how seriously Canberra takes the risk — and how little the Dutch appear to care about the usual diplomatic negotiations. This is a developing story. Biting satire by True News Weekly.

Controversial broadcaster Alan Jones – who's in court over a series of alleged sex assault charges against several men – was confronted by True News Weekly today and asked several hard-hitting questions which left the former 2GB radio host speechless for once.

COMING THIS SPRING TURNING REICH: HOW I TOOK THE WRONG ROAD TO OBLIVION Karl Stefanovic's most candid memoir yet. What happens when a man spends decades in front of the camera, surrounded by fame, influence and an ever-expanding collection of people willing to tell him he's brilliant? According to Karl Stefanovic, absolutely nothing. In TURNING REICH, one of Australia's most recognisable television personalities recounts the remarkable journey that took him from respected journalist to permanent fixture of the celebrity pages, all while somehow convincing himself that everything was going exactly to plan. Written with astonishing confidence and only the occasional collision with reality, Karl reflects on the career decisions, friendships, headlines and public controversies that shaped modern Australian breakfast television, offering readers a rare glimpse into a world where image always comes first, accountability is someone else's department, and every setback is merely another opportunity to blame the critics. From the boardrooms of commercial television to the cocktail parties of Sydney's eastern suburbs, TURNING REICHfollows a road paved with ambition, privilege and spectacular own goals, proving that success isn't measured by how many bridges you build, but by how many you can burn while smiling for the cameras. Brutally honest. Except for the honest bits. Fearlessly self-reflective. Within carefully negotiated limits. And packed with enough accidental comedy to keep readers laughing long after the final page. Already tipped to become the year's most unintentionally hilarious autobiography, TURNING REICH is essential reading for anyone who has ever wondered what happens when celebrity becomes a substitute for self-awareness. One man. One career. Countless wrong turns. Some roads will lead you to greatness. Others will lead you to oblivion. Karl Stefanovic has simply written the travel guide. • Biting Satire by Adam Greenwood (@NauseamAdz)

The Israeli President of the United States giving instructions to Marco Rubio and Pete Hegseth. #BibiTheWarmonger #DonaldTrumpTheCuckold

THE MINER WHO REFUSED TO DISAPPEAR: Simon Turner’s Extraordinary Battle with BHP Suppressed deeds, disputed wage calculations and allegations of legal obstruction have transformed Simon Turner’s case into a national test of corporate accountability. With millions reportedly spent resisting his claim and mainstream scrutiny largely absent, Turner’s fight could reshape how injured workers examine settlements, employment classifications and compensation entitlements across the country. Damning report by Adam Greenwood (@NauseamAdz). Simon Turner went to work at BHP’s Mount Arthur coal mine to earn a living. He left with a devastating spinal injury that changed the course of his life. What followed was not a swift compensation process, a fair reckoning or a humane attempt to secure the future of a badly injured worker. Instead, Turner found himself drawn into an extraordinary legal struggle against one of the largest and wealthiest mining corporations on the planet. Years later, he’s still fighting. Donate Now – truenewsweekly.com/donate/ What began as a workplace injury has grown into one of Australia’s longest-running and most consequential battles between an injured worker and a multinational corporate giant. At the centre of the dispute is Turner’s claim that he was never paid according to the wages, benefits and compensation entitlements that properly applied to his employment. He maintains that the previously reported shortfall of approximately $600,000 represents only part of what remains outstanding. Turner argues that his lawful entitlements should have been calculated using the applicable Black Coal Mining Industry Award wage from 2013 onwards. By 2014, he says, that figure stood at approximately $147,000 a year. That wage rate, according to Turner, should have formed the basis of his weekly workers’ compensation payments, his redemption settlement through to retirement, and any common law settlement arising from the injury. His claim also encompasses superannuation, coal industry long service leave, taxation adjustments and damages. He says these amounts are recoverable from BHP, and he categorically states they are recoverable from the business entity that was judicially determined to have been his true employer in 2017. The figures are significant. But Turner insists the real issue is even more serious than money. He contends that suppressed settlement deeds were produced using incorrect employment and wage assumptions, meaning the agreements could not lawfully extinguish his true entitlements. His position is that the deeds are fraudulent, legally defective and incapable of bringing the matter to an end. These are grave claims, and they deserve to be examined in the open. Instead, Turner says, he's encountered years of resistance, delay and escalating legal warfare. BHP has engaged corporate law firm MinterEllison to defend the proceedings in the Federal Court. Turner maintains that exorbitant amounts of cash have been poured into defeating his case, with the total cost of resisting his claim said to exceed the original amount in dispute by tens of millions of dollars. That imbalance lies at the heart of this extraordinary story. On one side stands a man living with the consequences of a catastrophic workplace injury. On the other stands a global mining corporation with immense financial resources, powerful legal representation and the capacity to continue litigation for as long as it takes. For BHP, another hearing is a line item in a MinterEllison invoice. For Simon Turner, it's his life. Donate Now – truenewsweekly.com/donate/ Every court appearance, every contested document, every delayed resolution and every additional legal hurdle carries a personal cost that cannot be measured solely in dollars. It raises an unavoidable question. Why would one of the world’s richest mining companies spend so much fighting one injured worker? If Turner’s claims are without merit, the company can present its evidence and allow the matter to be determined transparently in a court of law. But if there's fundamental problems with the wages, employment arrangements, compensation calculations or settlement deeds, then the implications could stretch far beyond this single case. A Turner victory could encourage other injured workers to re-examine settlements they once believed were final. It could prompt scrutiny of wage assumptions used in compensation matters, labour hire arrangements, employment classifications and the legal instruments relied upon to close cases permanently. That possibility may explain why this battle matters so much. Turner’s case does not exist in isolation. It unfolds against a broader backdrop of industrial conflict involving BHP, including disputes over labour hire arrangements and Same Job, Same Pay orders affecting thousands of Australian mine workers. Critics argue that a pattern has emerged in which enormous corporate resources are deployed whenever workers challenge arrangements carrying significant financial consequences. Turner goes further. He alleges that the legal process surrounding his case has been corrupted and that justice has been obstructed to prevent a full reckoning of what occurred. BHP and its legal representatives are entitled to reject those claims and defend the proceedings. But the Australian public is equally entitled to ask why this dispute has lasted so long, why so much money has reportedly been spent fighting it, and why the underlying allegations have received so little sustained attention from the mainstream press. A legal battle of this magnitude should not be occurring in darkness. Yet, for much of the dispute, independent journalists have been among the few prepared to examine Turner’s claims and place them before the public. The mainstream media’s relative silence is difficult to ignore. This is, after all, a story containing every element normally considered newsworthy: a severely injured coal miner, disputed wages and compensation, suppressed legal documents, allegations of false employment assumptions, a multinational company, a leading corporate law firm and years of Federal Court litigation. If this was merely an ordinary compensation dispute, it would likely have been resolved long ago. Instead, it's become something much bigger. It's now a story about the price of challenging corporate power. It's about whether an injured worker can obtain justice when the company on the other side possesses almost limitless legal resources. It's about whether courts can remain accessible to ordinary Australians when one party can spend millions of dollars extending a dispute while the other must fight simply to remain standing. It's also about the message sent to every worker watching from the sidelines. If a man can suffer a life-changing injury while helping generate billions of dollars for one of the world’s largest mining companies – only to spend years battling for the compensation and entitlements he says he was lawfully owed – what protection does any worker truly have? Donate Now – truenewsweekly.com/donate/ The accompanying song and video are works of parody and satire. They use humour, anger and creative expression to ask serious questions about corporate conduct, legal accountability and the growing divide between those who can afford prolonged litigation and those who can't. Satire has always served a vital public purpose. It cuts through corporate language, legal complexity and public relations spin. It forces uncomfortable questions into the open. And the central question in Simon Turner’s case could not be clearer: When a worker gives his health and physical capacity to an industry that generates extraordinary wealth, should years of punishing litigation be the answer when he says he’s been denied what he's owed? Watch the video. Examine the publicly available material. Consider the scale of the legal response. Then decide whether this is simply another compensation dispute, or whether Simon Turner’s struggle exposes something far more disturbing about power, accountability and access to justice in Australia. Because after everything that's happened, one fact remains impossible to overlook. Simon Turner’s back was broken by BHP. And he's not willing to disappear. —————————————————— Author’s Note – If you are genuinely concerned about the authoritarianism taking hold across Australian governments, institutions and powerful corporations, independent journalism needs your support. Outlets such as True News Weekly exist to investigate the stories others ignore, challenge abuses of power and give a voice to people who would otherwise be silenced. But independent media cannot survive on courage alone. Whether you contribute $1, $5 or $10, every donation helps fund the fight for truth, transparency and accountability. Small contributions, multiplied across a committed community, allow independent journalists to keep investigating, publishing and confronting those who believe they are beyond scrutiny. If you value fearless journalism and want to help resist the growing concentration of power in Australia, please donate today. Every dollar strengthens independent media and helps keep the truth in public view. Donate Now – truenewsweekly.com/donate/ #Justice, #WorkersRights, #HumanRights, #SocialJustice, #CorporateAccountability, #CorporateGreed, #AccessToJustice, #WorkplaceInjury, #InjuredWorkers, #WorkersCompensation, #FairPay, #LabourRights, #UnionStrong, #SameJobSamePay, #Mining, #CoalMining, #AustralianWorkers, #BHP, #MinterEllison, #SimonTurner, #FederalCourt, #IndependentMedia, #InvestigativeJournalism, #PublicInterest, #StandWithSimon

TREACHERY ON DISPLAY: Murdoch Crime Family Member Flees the Truth A True News Weekly contributor has provided this masthead with some explosive footage: his full-frontal confrontation with a Sky News hack outside a Sydney court. The roving reporter served the Murdoch Crime Family stooge a savage dose of her own medicine, hammering her with hard questions about her rabid Zionist bias and her open cheerleading for the genocide of women and children. The hack couldn’t scramble fast enough. She scuttled off into the court building like a rat diving for cover before you could say, “Rupert’s a corporate criminal.” Caroline Marcus is pro-Israel, pro-genocide, and pro-authoritarianism. She’s no journalist. She doesn’t even scrape the bottom rung as a reporter. She is, and always will be, nothing more than a Murdoch hack who bolts from the cameras the second she’s confronted with her own treachery against the Australian people. #MurdochCrimeFamily #MurdochHack #IsRupertDeadYet

AUSTRALIA’S PRIVATE PROSECUTOR: A Life Shaped by Service, Struggle and the Courage to Stand Up Full report at the True News Weekly website – tinyurl.com/HepburnCouncilDi… David Penman’s life has never followed a straight or predictable path. His childhood was spent moving across Australia as his parents followed their work into some of the country’s most remote communities. His father was a midwife and his mother a nurse, and their professions took the family far beyond the familiar boundaries of suburban life. For a time, they lived in a remote Aboriginal village where they were among only five white people. David spoke the local Aboriginal language before he learnt English. He ran barefoot, rarely wore shoes and grew up surrounded by country, community and people who understood the importance of looking after one another. Those early years gave him a strong sense of belonging, even though his family rarely stayed in one place for long. By Grade 3, he had been sent away to boarding school, and over the course of his primary education he attended 13 different schools. Stability was never something he could take for granted. Then his father died while David was still very young. The loss changed the course of the family’s life. His mother was left to carry the burden alone, and David began doing whatever he could to help. At one stage, he worked three jobs while still trying to continue his education. The family’s financial hardship was severe. For a period, his school waived his fees so he could remain enrolled. There were also times when friends helped provide food. David does not recount those years in search of sympathy. Nor does he speak of them with bitterness. Instead, he sees them as the experiences that shaped his character. They taught him the value of family, honesty, hard work and community. They also taught him never to judge people who were struggling, because he knew from experience how quickly life could become difficult and how much dignity could depend on the kindness of others. Those values stayed with him when he later joined the military. David served as a paratrooper, commando and intelligence officer. Military life reinforced the qualities that had already been forged during his childhood: discipline, loyalty, integrity and the willingness to do what he believed was right, even when it came at a personal cost. His service also empowered his belief that strength brings responsibility. To David, being strong was never simply about physical endurance. It meant standing up for people who could not always protect themselves and speaking out when something was plainly wrong. After leaving the military, he entered the corporate world and worked across banking and manufacturing. By conventional standards, he did reasonably well, but the corporate environment never felt entirely natural to him. David never thought of himself as a man in a suit. He was more comfortable working with his hands, spending time with regular Australians and living close to the land. He preferred practical work and plain speaking to the formality of corporate life. Eventually, David and his wife established a small family business. Their purpose was not simply to make money. They wanted to build a secure future for their two daughters, Bryana and Chloe. That security was especially important for Bryana, who lives with a disability. Everything they created was intended to give their family stability and to leave their daughters with something solid after years of hard work. For David, the business represented far more than an income. It was the foundation of the future he and his wife hoped to provide for their children. When the family settled in Daylesford in the Hepburn Shire, they believed they had finally found somewhere they could put down roots. The region was beautiful and filled with decent, hardworking and generous people. After a childhood of constant movement and an adult life shaped by service and work, David felt he had found a place where his family could build a peaceful life. But that hope gradually gave way to frustration and concern. David says the family discovered a place where personal connections appeared to carry more weight than fairness, and where relationships seemed capable of influencing what people could do with their own land. Their property had been used for accommodation for around 20 years before they arrived. Despite that history, David and his family found themselves confronting one obstacle after another. At first, the difficulties may have appeared to be ordinary problems with planning, permits and local bureaucracy. Over time, however, David became convinced that the issues went much deeper. He came to believe that the problems within Hepburn Shire Council were not isolated mistakes, but signs of an entrenched culture of favouritism, waste and corruption. The cost of challenging that system began consuming the inheritance and financial security that David and his wife had worked so hard to create for their daughters. For David, that was the most painful part of the battle. He had endured hardship from a young age, worked multiple jobs, served his country and built a business so his family would have a more secure future. Now he feared that the very security he had spent a lifetime building was being steadily taken away. Eventually, he reached a decision. He would stop quietly accepting what was happening. He would begin examining the council’s conduct, challenging its decisions and pursuing accountability through every lawful avenue available to him. That decision marked a turning point in his life, but it was also entirely consistent with the man his experiences had made him. The child raised in remote communities understood the value of people standing together. The young man who worked three jobs understood hardship and sacrifice. The soldier understood courage, discipline and responsibility. The father understood that protecting a family sometimes meant confronting institutions with far greater power and resources. David didn’t move to Hepburn looking for a fight. He came hoping to build a stable life, run a family business and provide for his daughters. Instead, he found himself drawn into a battle over fairness, accountability and the proper use of public power. Once he became convinced that something was seriously wrong, he could no longer remain silent. From that point on, David’s struggle was no longer simply about protecting his property or preserving his family’s future. It became a wider fight to expose what he believed was deeply wrong inside Hepburn Shire Council, and to force a powerful public institution to answer to the community it was supposed to serve. Full report at the True News Weekly website – tinyurl.com/HepburnCouncilDi… Subscribe to Real News – truenewsweekly.com/subscribe… Donate to True News Weekly – truenewsweekly.com/donate/ #Corruption #GovernmentCorruption #PoliticalCorruption #Accountability #Transparency #Integrity #Justice #Democracy #PublicInterest #InvestigativeJournalism #IndependentMedia #Whistleblower #PublicMoney #FollowTheMoney #LocalGovernment #CouncilCorruption #CouncilAccountability #Ratepayers #VictorianPolitics #AusPol #HepburnShire #HepburnShireCouncil #DavidPenman #PrivateProsecution #TrueNewsWeekly