Squiz Today – Thursday, 30 November

SQUIZ SAYINGS

“Think of a xylophone on steroids, played with four mallets (two in each hand). Now you’ve got it.”

Squiz’er and Wall Street Journal Editorial Board member Mary Kissel is a woman of many talents. A highly regarded journalist and opinion writer, she’s also a marimba virtuoso (as described above). Fun, informative and pointed – Mary’s Three Minute Squiz has something for everyone. Check it out here.

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NORTH KOREA TAUNTS THE US

THE SQUIZ
North Korea yesterday fired an intercontinental ballistic missile that flew higher and longer than previous launches. The missile was launched northeast of the capital Pyongyang and ended nearly 965km to the east, landing in the Sea of Japan. North Korean officials said they can now deliver a heavy nuclear warhead to the mainland of the United States, including to the capital Washington DC. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said the launch was "impeccable" and a "breakthrough".

WHAT’S THE REACTION BEEN?
The US President Donald Trump told White House reporters; “It is a situation that we will handle. We will take care of it.” US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis was a bit more expansive about the threat it posed. He said the test showed the North Koreans had made technical advances. “The bottom line is, it’s a continued effort to build a threat - a ballistic missile threat - that endangers world peace, regional peace, and certainly, the United States,” Mattis said. South Korea and Japan were not at all happy. Quelle surprise. And PM Malcolm Turnbull says the world needs to ensure sanctions are implemented.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson condemned the attack but said diplomatic engagement with North Korea is still a possibility to resolve the crisis. For North Korea’s part, an official said; "Before we can engage in diplomacy with the Trump administration, we want to send a clear message that the DPRK has a reliable defensive and offensive capability to counter any aggression from the United States." Message received... The UN Security Council will meet today to discuss the latest terrifying development.

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MOVE OR IMPROVE?

PRESENTED BY COMMONWEALTH BANK

It's a big call. Anyone who has been through a renovation knows it's often a big time/money/sanity sucker. There can also be tremendous upside both financially and personally in creating the home you want. But then there's that gorgeous home a few blocks over that looks amazing...

Luckily the Commonwealth Bank has these tips to help you decide if renovating is for you.

If a reno it is, this guide to financing it will get you on your way.

And then you have just have one big question remaining - what shade of white from the 50 million to choose from will you use on your walls?

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SQUIZ THE REST

RUSH ACCUSED OF INAPPROPRIATE BEHAVIOUR
The Daily Telegraph is reporting this morning that Oscar-winning actor Geoffrey Rush is the subject of a complaint relating to months of inappropriate behaviour towards the complainant during the 2015-16 Sydney Theatre Company production of King Lear. Rush strongly denied the accusation and said the STC had not raised the issue with him.

And while we have you, one of the biggest names in American morning TV - Matt Lauer from NBC’s Today show – has been fired following a complaint from an employee.

SAME-SEX MARRIAGE CLEARS THE NEXT HURDLE
Whoa, we’re half way there! The bill to legalise same-sex marriage, known as the Dean Smith Bill, (after the Squiz’ing senator…) passed the Senate yesterday unchanged. The vote was 43 for, 12 against and 17 abstained. The high number of senators didn’t vote because:

1. Their personal belief doesn’t line up with party policy (a number of Labor senators).

2. They have a ‘free vote', but their personal belief doesn't line up with the way the postal vote landed (a number of Coalition senators).

3. Voted ‘no’ in the postal vote but has a “mixed view” on the legislation (Pauline Hanson).

The bill will go to the House of Reps next week. Some conservative Coalition MPs expressed concern about the lack of religious protections in the bill. The Nationals’ Andrew Broad laid blame at PM Turnbull’s feet saying conservatives were angry at his “complete lack of leadership” for sending the issue off to a review that won’t be finalised until next year.

DASTYARI’S CHINA CONNECTION GETS HIM IN TROUBLE AGAIN
The Senate’s best networker Sam Dastyari is in trouble again for his dealings with a Chinese political donor. Fairfax Media yesterday reported that Dastyari warned Huang Xiangmo, who has links to China’s Communist Party, that his phone was probably being tapped by governments, including the US. Huang is the guy who previously paid a legal bill for the senator that saw him dropped from the frontbench 12 months ago. And a recording has turned up of Dastyari contradicting Australian foreign policy on the South China Sea – something he's previously explained away as a misunderstanding. Turnbull went in hard yesterday questioning Dastyari’s loyalty to Australia and he’s now under pressure to quit. Our security agencies have previously expressed concern about China’s funding and influence on our politics.

VICTORIA PASSES ASSISTED DYING LAWS
We covered this in detail last week when it was close. But to keep you in the loop, Victoria yesterday became the first state in Australia to pass voluntary euthanasia laws.The bill now goes to the Governor for royal assent and then work will start on implementing the scheme to kick-off in mid-2019.

WAR CRIMINAL DRINKS DEADLY POISON IN COURT
There were extraordinary scenes in The Hague overnight with Slobodan Praljak, a Bosnian Croat war criminal, drinking poison in court on hearing the verdict that his 20-year jail term was being upheld. The 72yo later died in hospital. Praljak was a commander in the Bosnian Croat defence forces (HVO) and was jailed for crimes against humanity.

EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM RECOGNISED
The Walkleys were on in Brisbane last night – sadly there’s no red carpet pics to show you. Funny what happens with it’s the journos who run the show… Fairfax Media’s Michael Bachelard and Kate Geraghty won the Gold Walkley for “Surviving IS: Stories of Mosul”. And Fairfax’s Adele Ferguson also had a good night picking up awards for investigative and business journalism. The full list is here. No doubt one of the topics for discussion last night would have been the news that Fairfax has ended its joint venture agreement with HuffPost Australia. It’s tough going out there…

BEING MARRIED COULD HELP PREVENT DEMENTIA
There are a lot of studies about whether being married or single makes you happy/sad/more likely to eat chocolate. This study is different. More than 800,000 people were analysed and researchers from University College London found that those who were single or widowed were quite a bit more likely to develop dementia. Interestingly there was no additional risk for divorcees compared with those who were married. It’s thought married people adopt healthier lifestyles and are more socially engaged than those who are single. Unless you have a partner who drives you to stress eat/smoke/drink and hideaway from the world we guess…

SQUIZ THE DAY

ABS Data Releases - Corrective Services, September quarter; Assets and Liabilities of Australian Securitisers, September; Private New Capital Expenditure and Expected Expenditure, September; Managed Funds, September; Building Approvals, October

35th anniversary of the release of Michael Jackson's Thriller album