#165 Craig Kelly

In this episode I sat down with Craig Kelly, no doubt a somewhat controversial guest depending on your political leanings or maybe even your social media algorithm. That said, people often only see the person portrayed to them by the media they consume. In that regard I always try to take people in terms of my interactions with them and I generally think that's a better gauge of a person's character. With the Federal election announced for the 3rd May 2025, it's time for Aussie's to go to the polls again to have their say on the direction that they would like the country to go towards. In full disclosure - I do have a current General Membership in the Libertarian Party however the nature of this episode wasn't to say you should do this or that, more to share Craig's story and to allow him to articulate his perspectives and some of the things he has gone through in recent years. Likewise, some of the information we discuss in this episode deserves citations as we were talking off the cuff so some of the numbers might be slightly off (for e.g. me and the government debt number!) Australian Gross Debt (see pg 6): https://budget.gov.au/content/overview/download/budget-overview.pdf Gross debt at $1,022 bn for 25-26 Fiscal Year Global Greening: https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/goddard/carbon-dioxide-fertilization-greening-earth-study-finds/ Australia contributes just over 1% of global emissions: https://www.csiro.au/en/research/environmental-impacts/climate-change/Climate-change-QA/Sources-of-CO2#:~:text=Australia's%20contribution%20to%20global%20greenhouse,waste%202.9%20per%20cent. Rising construction costs and Insurnace costs: https://tridentinsurance.com.au/protecting-your-commercial-property-the-impact-of-increased-building-costs-on-insurance-coverage/#:~:text=Building%20costs%20have%20been%20on,or%20even%20cover%20necessary%20repairs. https://www.corelogic.com.au/news-research/news/2025/annual-change-in-construction-costs-picks-up-pace#:~:text=Research%20News%20%E2%80%A2%2021%20Jan,shifting%20the%20annual%20trend%20higher. Impact of smaller sized boxes for Stevensen Screens: https://www.waclimate.net/stevenson-sizes.pdf Impact of the Liddel Power station closure: https://www.macfarlanegenerators.com.au/blog/Liddell-power-station-closure-risk AGL's rejection of Alinta offer and closes Liddell: https://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/agl-rejects-alinta-offer-for-liddell-power-station-20180521-p4zghf.html Ivermectin for COVID-19: Addressing Potential Bias and Medical Fraud https://academic.oup.com/ofid/article/9/2/ofab645/6509922?login=false Pharmaceutical companies made billions from the pandemic: https://www.reuters.com/graphics/HEALTH-CORONAVIRUS/REVENUES/znvnbkldqvl/ Hate Crimes Bill: https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id%3A%22legislation%2Fems%2Fr7240_ems_5018e217-732d-4cdc-8c9d-45c46fd58bd1%22 Links: Craig Kelly on X: https://x.com/craigkellyxxx Libertarian Party: https://www.libertarians.org.au/