The Stars From The Universe Are Watching

 April and May 2025 can be emerging as a a transitionary time, when the stars of the Universe are looking at the choices of many groups of Homo Sapiens in their rituals and society behaviours.   Will the course of human civillisation encounter significant changes, or more things will be the same, with just different players forefront on the world stage?

Elections can be just smokescreens to seemingly give the human being on the street a sense of participation.   The powers that truly are can be putting the individuals they control as their continuing agents.

Registered voters head to the booths to mark their ballots in Canada, Singapore and Australia.   

Canada has seen the exit of long time Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, whose government has overseen the age of Covid epidemics, changing attitudes towards relentless immigration,  more acknowledgement of past injustices towards her Indigenous peoples, continuing pressure from the government of her nearest neighbour and rising costs of living.

Singapore has a newly minted Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, urgently handling a sweeping change of the landscape in international  trade, finance and economic exchanges as the fall out from the return to power of a controversial person as the POTUS.  That latter person has recently been most effective in creating widespread uncertainty.

The Australian Labor Government seeking re-election on 3 May has at most been under performing under Anthony Albanese, who has been reluctant to differ in several respects from its Opposition,  continue to toe the line and requirements from the USA and been ineffective and mainly bushfire reactive to the rising costs of housing, food, utilities, lack of commercial competition and social issues.

Although restricted to the Conclave, laden with traditional secrecy and religious ritual,  the selection of the next Pope at the Vatican is essentially a political process.    The successful candidate, who emerges on the balcony after white smoke is seen bellowing,  presides over 1.4 billion Catholics, mainly in Africa, South and Central America, the Phillippines, Timor-Leste and Europe.

Nations outside the USA are scrambling to reorganise supply logistics, access to critical minerals and manufacturing ingredients, payment systems, trading arrangements, over reliance on the USA and other impacts on GDP and economic growth.

Military conflict, suffering by the masses as part of socio-political aggression, the enrichment of the arnaments business and an intense propaganda media channeling remain key features of continuing disputes in the part of the world that transverses Sudan, Yemen, Gaza, the West Bank,  Ukraine and bordering parts of Russia.

Will Europe wake up to being more self reliant, more proactive and united in her affairs and strategy?   It can be a time to diversify alliances, partners and arrangements.   So can the disparate nations of South-east Asia, historically caught between the tradewinds and politics of the so called East and West.   Problems can be opportunity,   challenges can be the time to build a new future.

The sanctions, boycotts and cutoffs faced by the Chinese economy in recent years have made China even more determined and passionate to significantly improve their growing advanced technology,  reduce strategic  risks and become more self sufficient.    This is a nation that does not have enough food security,  takes on the massive macro debts of an over spending USA and now beginning to reduce the utilisation of the USD, long seen as a safe vital currency.

So will change be grabbed by the horns of the proverbial bull?    Will voters choose more of the same?   Can political leaders realise that viable preparations for a very different social, political and economic future may be too late?   Will governments continue to bask in the comfort zone of a landscape that has disappeared and not come back?  Will societies continue to be led by individuals who think less of their own nation and follow the wants of another country?   Will cabinets wait for reactive mindsets, instead of being proactive?

#yongkevthoughts

As Autumn Arrives

 As autumn supposedly has arrived in the southern parts of Australia,  flora is decelarating growth from their summer speeds.  I say "supposedly" as it can be still humid and warm on afternoons in New South Wales.   Sunrises and sunsets have not displayed thd intense colours, hues and streaks that I expect in April in the Antipodes.

As leaves begin to discolour and drop, I drag out the old furniture to the garage.   Another step forward in the process of the twice yearly roadside disposal provided by the local Council.   Daylight savings had ended a few weeks ago - and nights look more full as they arrive earlier. 

I have a motley collection of mainly smallish items which I say I want to part with - but never seem to be able to do.   What is it that we are encouraged to do - start small, do it regularly and soon the job is done?

I can be the type who loves to pull out the weeds one by one, instead of procastinating and eventually do  a bombardment of weed killer spray.
Procastination irritates me, but I go through periods practising it.   At times I find that delaying a chore can pay off, but often it is simpler and more rewarding to do it on a timely basis.

In a burgeoning contemporary world of more self service and self management,  what I find remarkably irritating are constant App updates to new versions,  regular change of passwords and greater recurrence of cutoffs that never happened before the internet of things.

Is there more choice in entertainment for the family and self?    While payable streaming services increase, there are more ads and less inspiring programmes on free to air screens.   Cinema megaplexes are still around, despite the rise of access to personalised viewing as opposed to shared collective viewing.
Our human eyes strain under the weight of reading, writing and viewing on small but portable devices.

Food we may have taken for granted are increasingly processed, prepacked, programmed and interfered with.  Climate change affects our usual growing sources, politics and logistical barriers challenge distribution and consumers are further distanced from the producers.

We can now bank without physically stepping into one.   We can dine at our own accord without ever knowing the kitchen and staff cooking it.   We  generate work output without meeting our team members.   We  purchase goods and services without having to go to a mall.

We are told we can save our personal time to do other things.   Do we use the freed up opportunity to embrace more of Nature, the vibes beyond the electronic, artificial and virtual world significantly enveloping us?

Do I fully realise its autumn, with her gentle embrace of an ever spinning Earth?

#yongkevthoughts

True Change

 All things shall pass, for better, worse, more of the same, or nothing at all.

Change is the constant, constancy is change. 

If each of us did not overly attach ourselves to the passing wind, chatter and temporariness of most things in human affairs or Nature, we would not have wasted our limited time, attention and energy on diversionary things. 

Our inner journey continues.  Focus our innate abilities, nourishment and vibes on more useful and longer term matters.

Reflect and we realise the true nature of true and meaningful change.

#yongkevthoughts

The Churn 2025

 The way stock exchange prices fall or rise are all part of the way shares work.  Sentiment, speculation, fundamentals, demand, uncertainty, competition, chase for higher returns, timeliness, hedging, parking, liquidity and more.

Financial trading, asset values, share churning and investment stability are all vulnerable to quake like proportions of downstream and immediate impact of significant tariff impositions by a dominant player like the USA government. 

Topsy turvy  causes and events are currently shaking human made arrangements that have been in use for so many years.  At least for now, or for some time.

Whether it leads to better or worse times, opportunity or challenge, or a storm that passes by, is up to our mindset, response, reaction and migitative action we choose.

History can repeat or rhyme.  Trump is not original in his actions.   Tariffs and sanctions have been applied in spectacular fashion by the USA and other nations in the past, leading to war, awakening,  upheaval, regrowth, industrial change, the doldrums and philosophical reflection.

To me, it is what we, as individuals,  have already learnt or  do learn further intrinsically from such human made developments, that is more significant.

Human systems in society can be fragile, turbulent, structurally vulnerable or shaking in political winds.   Yet they can be embedded in longer lasting values, infrastructure, internationally agreed and implemented agreements and principles.   The growth of human civilisation demonstrated the tensions between opppsite ends of the spectrum, change management or mismanagement and the destruction of the old to make way for the new.

At times human beings have to take steps backwards in order to go forward.  What used to work can be chucked ruthlessly away by events of Nature, political ego, silo thinking religious or cultural imperatives and more.  What did not work can be taken up again in a tornado of other priorities.  What works can be adopted once more by a new dynasty.

The masses continue to be swept up in the aftermath of decisions, wise or otherwise, made by individuals and their cohorts in power   - whether financial, technological, political or more.  In a population of eight billion, most of the denizens of Earth are like the proverbial ants that some can look upon with disdain  or without care.

In the meantime, the eagle still soars.  The moon continues to exert its gravity on the tides.  Human beings in their masses still lose some of their reality in this contemporary world based more on instant gratification, excessive waste and false diversions.   Human nature is essentially self centred - but the finesse and  cultivation by some societies of community priority over self can help to reverse this selfish characteristic.

News media reacts.  They do not really help us respond or think effectively on a holistic basis.  Their business is to churn, excite, incite and divide.  The presence of movement, or creating differences, is their rationale to make money out of events.

And so is making money out of investment in tangible assets, non tangible instruments of trade and finance, putting a bet on short or long term pricing of tradeable options, cashing on the lack of supply,  sentimentally driving up demand and liquidating at the right time.

Investments, trading, media reporting and  economic growth all need activity.  Why do finance websites, business reporting and 

investment screens obsessively display continuous trends and changes?   Revenue is mostly earned on the acquisition and disposal of the variety of investments, hedged, physical, derivative or intangible.  

Both news and finance thrive on events that spark off sentiment waves.

Nature does not sit still  either.  Our planet does move,  babies do grow,  seasons change.  

In human society, assets run down past their useful life,  man made currencies without the backing of gold vary in value and perception of worth and societies can collapse, as opposed to the unrealistic presumption that growth happens eternally.

Bullies know when their territory is being reduced, when their competitiveness has declined and they cannot practically get back to their days of misplaced glory.  The human pysche is built for change, adaptation and improvement.   Being the top dog a half century ago does not ensure being still king of the hill in 50 years in the future.  Down trodden economies of even 20 years ago, with renewed effort, intelligence and reorganisation can blossom for the future.

They embed themselves with longer lasting vibrancy, strength and meaningful management, direction and effort.  They do not resort to short term aggressive measures -  they build up their capability, markets and trade.

#yongkevthoughts

Blog 18th Anniversary: Changes That Crept Up

 What has changed in the nuances of daily life, surely creeping up gradually and suddenly becoming reality?

I do find the absence of complimentary napkins at food courts. I never had to bring any of mine when I first settled in Sydney. There was always the dutiful handing over of paper napkins with the utensils handed to you.

Nowadays, perhaps in the name of cost reduction or increase of marginal revenue, the food outlet operator gets very miserly about such handouts. Haha, the thought did cross my mind that in a required turnover business, saving costs, like from a missing olive from an aircraft drink, did accumulate to significant higher margins.

Pocket tissues are becoming useful in the ritual of work day lunches out at food courts and takeaway outlets.

Secondly, in the effort to reduce the usage of plastic, we are often now caught without a bag to hold our groceries, especially when we decide, off the cuff, to drop by at the supermarket.

Yet we can see the contradiction when plastic and other non-recyclables are still made available and utilised in every other scenario.

Thirdly, what happened to the previous practice of bringing our own eco-friendly coffee cup to our local barista?

There was a time, not too long ago, when such cups were proudly seen in the office and Saturday morning cafes. 

Number 4, an increasingly regimented traffic order has appeared on footpaths along the beach, when walkers share the way with cyclists and pets.

These paved ways are now marked with a required orderliness to manage the gusto and flow of human movement, especially at sunrise and sunset. 

Fifthly, watching streamed in movies or events on devices does not provide the thrill and joy of shared comaderie like in years past in a cinema hall or gathered around the family tv set.

The price paid for the convenience of anytime viewing is that the consumer is very alone when imbibing the passion, thrill and benefits from a presentation. Live staged events, never to be repeated or made available on various viewing channels, force audiences to share a unique collective togetherness. 

Number six, for a rather simple purpose, manufacturers have provided a rather inflated variety of toasters for our kitchen counter. The design of such devices has become monstrous and over the top with the corresponding prices requested. Top end models are too large, come in fancy colours and may look anything else than a toaster. Yet low end models continue to do the job and last as long.

Not a seventh heaven, the access to an overload of information does create a strong reaction in our individual pysche. Think of news, running figures of market performance and over kill in commentary of events. We need peace away from such constant feed of data and minute changes of analysis, unless we earn our keep or make our financial gains on churn, differences between buy and sell or constant monitoring and analysis.

Finally, we are now more than able to do everything just from one device, even if we are constantly on the move. There is this liberation revolution in lifestyle. We no longer require to have a physical wallet, office drawers and document pouches. Fashion gear or accesories become tools of communication, measurement and identification.

#yongkevthoughts

Renewal Revisited

 Renewal is the key word, no matter what day or date it is.

Renewed energy, renewed love, renewed purpose. 

Reinvigorated faith in what works.  No need to tweak or experiment again. 

Restored belief in the healing that comes after an unexpected rupture.  Renewed health, repairs and dreams.

Rationalisation in a cause, no matter how hidden, for a symptom - and it does also cover positive energy outcomes.

Readiness to conquer an ever changing
world, as we can still rely on consistent practices and attitudes even if we renew.

Reciprocation of give and take is part of the renewal process - and feeds into the practice of consideration, healing and regrowth.

Regrowth is necessary to discard the debris of what life can throw at us, some unimportant and others teaching us valued lessons.

Revocation and rejection are necessary steps when we let go of emotions, priorities and matters that no longer matter.  Allow space for our inner joy and journey ahead.

Realisation is part of renewal, before and after.   Each of us is a different and unique being on an evolving journey towards higher awareness, potential and characteristics.

Satisfactory reputation is the outcome of renewal.  We are put through encounters with different people, sensations and experiences - have we learnt from each?

Requisition of nurturing attributes is definitely more significant than acquisition of material goods and commercial experiences.  As we grow older, renewal means the greater ability to see shallowness and less meamimgful matters, things and diversions.

Relationships strive on renewal.  We meet and get to know new personalities or characters with whom we connect with pleasure.   We let go of acquaintances as it is obvious there is not enough purpose to carry on. We are grateful that we have relationahips with those that always make our day so to speak.

Renewal is what we go through that fuels our personal journeys.  It is a process, a tool, a result, an aspiration and an inspiration.

#yongkevthoughts

Continuing Change

 

Artificial software increasingly replaces human interface.

Real human experiences are sidelined by virtual ones.

The enjoyment of writing is downgraded by clicks and quick phrased audio instructions.

Creativity is reduced in the art and science of photography.

Truth and facts are suppressed by manipulation.

Durability is replaced by instant gratification.

Organic and natural benefits are deemphasised by chemical induced produce and products.

Greed overtakes civility and ethics.

Short term priorities overlooks the multiplier impact on the future.

Volume in turnover rewards business more than loyalty to customers and recognition to staff.

Getting away with exploitation continues.

The need for consumer goods and electronic devices are caught up in commercial churn.

So called denocracy has been hijacked behind doors and in our face.

Repairs of manufactured things are more costly than buying a new one.

The credibility of marketing and advertising fizzles out when we use more of our intelligence to respond to them.

The masses are continuing to be fed an addiction that I do not even realise in my self.

Customer focus is downgraded by emphasis on window dressing performance outcomes and need to have ever more sales.

We must not be distracted by temporal matters, but value what is eternal and more reliable.

Perhaps what is consistent is change, but below the hype of change, is our ability to recognise what continues to not change.

#yongkevthoughts