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By BILL BARROW, Associated Press PLAINS, Ga. (AP) — Newly married and sworn as a Naval officer, Jimmy Carter left his tiny hometown in 1946 hoping to climb the ranks and see the world. Less than a decade later, the death of his father and namesake, a merchant farmer and local politician who went by “Mr. Earl,” prompted the submariner and his wife, Rosalynn, to return to the rural life of Plains, Georgia, they thought they’d escaped. The lieutenant never would be an admiral. Instead, he became commander in chief. Years after his presidency ended in humbling defeat, he would add a Nobel Peace Prize, awarded not for his White House accomplishments but “for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.” The life of James Earl Carter Jr., the 39th and longest-lived U.S. president, ended Sunday at the age of 100 where it began: Plains, the town of 600 that fueled his political rise, welcomed him after his fall and sustained him during 40 years of service that redefined what it means to be a former president. With the stubborn confidence of an engineer and an optimism rooted in his Baptist faith, Carter described his motivations in politics and beyond in the same way: an almost missionary zeal to solve problems and improve lives. Carter was raised amid racism, abject poverty and hard rural living — realities that shaped both his deliberate politics and emphasis on human rights. “He always felt a responsibility to help people,” said Jill Stuckey, a longtime friend of Carter’s in Plains. “And when he couldn’t make change wherever he was, he decided he had to go higher.” Carter’s path, a mix of happenstance and calculation , pitted moral imperatives against political pragmatism; and it defied typical labels of American politics, especially caricatures of one-term presidents as failures. “We shouldn’t judge presidents by how popular they are in their day. That’s a very narrow way of assessing them,” Carter biographer Jonathan Alter told the Associated Press. “We should judge them by how they changed the country and the world for the better. On that score, Jimmy Carter is not in the first rank of American presidents, but he stands up quite well.” Later in life, Carter conceded that many Americans, even those too young to remember his tenure, judged him ineffective for failing to contain inflation or interest rates, end the energy crisis or quickly bring home American hostages in Iran. He gained admirers instead for his work at The Carter Center — advocating globally for public health, human rights and democracy since 1982 — and the decades he and Rosalynn wore hardhats and swung hammers with Habitat for Humanity. Yet the common view that he was better after the Oval Office than in it annoyed Carter, and his allies relished him living long enough to see historians reassess his presidency. “He doesn’t quite fit in today’s terms” of a left-right, red-blue scoreboard, said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who visited the former president multiple times during his own White House bid. At various points in his political career, Carter labeled himself “progressive” or “conservative” — sometimes both at once. His most ambitious health care bill failed — perhaps one of his biggest legislative disappointments — because it didn’t go far enough to suit liberals. Republicans, especially after his 1980 defeat, cast him as a left-wing cartoon. It would be easiest to classify Carter as a centrist, Buttigieg said, “but there’s also something radical about the depth of his commitment to looking after those who are left out of society and out of the economy.” Indeed, Carter’s legacy is stitched with complexities, contradictions and evolutions — personal and political. The self-styled peacemaker was a war-trained Naval Academy graduate who promised Democratic challenger Ted Kennedy that he’d “kick his ass.” But he campaigned with a call to treat everyone with “respect and compassion and with love.” Carter vowed to restore America’s virtue after the shame of Vietnam and Watergate, and his technocratic, good-government approach didn’t suit Republicans who tagged government itself as the problem. It also sometimes put Carter at odds with fellow Democrats. The result still was a notable legislative record, with wins on the environment, education, and mental health care. He dramatically expanded federally protected lands, began deregulating air travel, railroads and trucking, and he put human rights at the center of U.S. foreign policy. As a fiscal hawk, Carter added a relative pittance to the national debt, unlike successors from both parties. Carter nonetheless struggled to make his achievements resonate with the electorate he charmed in 1976. Quoting Bob Dylan and grinning enthusiastically, he had promised voters he would “never tell a lie.” Once in Washington, though, he led like a joyless engineer, insisting his ideas would become reality and he’d be rewarded politically if only he could convince enough people with facts and logic. This served him well at Camp David, where he brokered peace between Israel’s Menachem Begin and Epypt’s Anwar Sadat, an experience that later sparked the idea of The Carter Center in Atlanta. Carter’s tenacity helped the center grow to a global force that monitored elections across five continents, enabled his freelance diplomacy and sent public health experts across the developing world. The center’s wins were personal for Carter, who hoped to outlive the last Guinea worm parasite, and nearly did. As president, though, the approach fell short when he urged consumers beleaguered by energy costs to turn down their thermostats. Or when he tried to be the nation’s cheerleader, beseeching Americans to overcome a collective “crisis of confidence.” Republican Ronald Reagan exploited Carter’s lecturing tone with a belittling quip in their lone 1980 debate. “There you go again,” the former Hollywood actor said in response to a wonky answer from the sitting president. “The Great Communicator” outpaced Carter in all but six states. Carter later suggested he “tried to do too much, too soon” and mused that he was incompatible with Washington culture: media figures, lobbyists and Georgetown social elites who looked down on the Georgians and their inner circle as “country come to town.” Carter carefully navigated divides on race and class on his way to the Oval Office. Born Oct. 1, 1924 , Carter was raised in the mostly Black community of Archery, just outside Plains, by a progressive mother and white supremacist father. Their home had no running water or electricity but the future president still grew up with the relative advantages of a locally prominent, land-owning family in a system of Jim Crow segregation. He wrote of President Franklin Roosevelt’s towering presence and his family’s Democratic Party roots, but his father soured on FDR, and Jimmy Carter never campaigned or governed as a New Deal liberal. He offered himself as a small-town peanut farmer with an understated style, carrying his own luggage, bunking with supporters during his first presidential campaign and always using his nickname. And he began his political career in a whites-only Democratic Party. As private citizens, he and Rosalynn supported integration as early as the 1950s and believed it inevitable. Carter refused to join the White Citizens Council in Plains and spoke out in his Baptist church against denying Black people access to worship services. “This is not my house; this is not your house,” he said in a churchwide meeting, reminding fellow parishioners their sanctuary belonged to God. Yet as the appointed chairman of Sumter County schools he never pushed to desegregate, thinking it impractical after the Supreme Court’s 1954 Brown v. Board decision. And while presidential candidate Carter would hail the 1965 Voting Rights Act, signed by fellow Democrat Lyndon Johnson when Carter was a state senator, there is no record of Carter publicly supporting it at the time. Carter overcame a ballot-stuffing opponent to win his legislative seat, then lost the 1966 governor’s race to an arch-segregationist. He won four years later by avoiding explicit mentions of race and campaigning to the right of his rival, who he mocked as “Cufflinks Carl” — the insult of an ascendant politician who never saw himself as part the establishment. Carter’s rural and small-town coalition in 1970 would match any victorious Republican electoral map in 2024. Once elected, though, Carter shocked his white conservative supporters — and landed on the cover of Time magazine — by declaring that “the time for racial discrimination is over.” Before making the jump to Washington, Carter befriended the family of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., whom he’d never sought out as he eyed the governor’s office. Carter lamented his foot-dragging on school integration as a “mistake.” But he also met, conspicuously, with Alabama’s segregationist Gov. George Wallace to accept his primary rival’s endorsement ahead of the 1976 Democratic convention. “He very shrewdly took advantage of his own Southerness,” said Amber Roessner, a University of Tennessee professor and expert on Carter’s campaigns. A coalition of Black voters and white moderate Democrats ultimately made Carter the last Democratic presidential nominee to sweep the Deep South. Then, just as he did in Georgia, he used his power in office to appoint more non-whites than all his predecessors had, combined. He once acknowledged “the secret shame” of white Americans who didn’t fight segregation. But he also told Alter that doing more would have sacrificed his political viability – and thus everything he accomplished in office and after. King’s daughter, Bernice King, described Carter as wisely “strategic” in winning higher offices to enact change. “He was a leader of conscience,” she said in an interview. Rosalynn Carter, who died on Nov. 19 at the age of 96, was identified by both husband and wife as the “more political” of the pair; she sat in on Cabinet meetings and urged him to postpone certain priorities, like pressing the Senate to relinquish control of the Panama Canal. “Let that go until the second term,” she would sometimes say. The president, recalled her former aide Kathy Cade, retorted that he was “going to do what’s right” even if “it might cut short the time I have.” Rosalynn held firm, Cade said: “She’d remind him you have to win to govern.” Carter also was the first president to appoint multiple women as Cabinet officers. Yet by his own telling, his career sprouted from chauvinism in the Carters’ early marriage: He did not consult Rosalynn when deciding to move back to Plains in 1953 or before launching his state Senate bid a decade later. Many years later, he called it “inconceivable” that he didn’t confer with the woman he described as his “full partner,” at home, in government and at The Carter Center. “We developed a partnership when we were working in the farm supply business, and it continued when Jimmy got involved in politics,” Rosalynn Carter told AP in 2021. So deep was their trust that when Carter remained tethered to the White House in 1980 as 52 Americans were held hostage in Tehran, it was Rosalynn who campaigned on her husband’s behalf. “I just loved it,” she said, despite the bitterness of defeat. Fair or not, the label of a disastrous presidency had leading Democrats keep their distance, at least publicly, for many years, but Carter managed to remain relevant, writing books and weighing in on societal challenges. He lamented widening wealth gaps and the influence of money in politics. He voted for democratic socialist Bernie Sanders over Hillary Clinton in 2016, and later declared that America had devolved from fully functioning democracy to “oligarchy.” Related Articles Yet looking ahead to 2020, with Sanders running again, Carter warned Democrats not to “move to a very liberal program,” lest they help re-elect President Donald Trump. Carter scolded the Republican for his serial lies and threats to democracy, and chided the U.S. establishment for misunderstanding Trump’s populist appeal. He delighted in yearly convocations with Emory University freshmen, often asking them to guess how much he’d raised in his two general election campaigns. “Zero,” he’d gesture with a smile, explaining the public financing system candidates now avoid so they can raise billions. Carter still remained quite practical in partnering with wealthy corporations and foundations to advance Carter Center programs. Carter recognized that economic woes and the Iran crisis doomed his presidency, but offered no apologies for appointing Paul Volcker as the Federal Reserve chairman whose interest rate hikes would not curb inflation until Reagan’s presidency. He was proud of getting all the hostages home without starting a shooting war, even though Tehran would not free them until Reagan’s Inauguration Day. “Carter didn’t look at it” as a failure, Alter emphasized. “He said, ‘They came home safely.’ And that’s what he wanted.” Well into their 90s, the Carters greeted visitors at Plains’ Maranatha Baptist Church, where he taught Sunday School and where he will have his last funeral before being buried on family property alongside Rosalynn . Carter, who made the congregation’s collection plates in his woodworking shop, still garnered headlines there, calling for women’s rights within religious institutions, many of which, he said, “subjugate” women in church and society. Carter was not one to dwell on regrets. “I am at peace with the accomplishments, regret the unrealized goals and utilize my former political position to enhance everything we do,” he wrote around his 90th birthday. The politician who had supposedly hated Washington politics also enjoyed hosting Democratic presidential contenders as public pilgrimages to Plains became advantageous again. Carter sat with Buttigieg for the final time March 1, 2020, hours before the Indiana mayor ended his campaign and endorsed eventual winner Joe Biden. “He asked me how I thought the campaign was going,” Buttigieg said, recalling that Carter flashed his signature grin and nodded along as the young candidate, born a year after Carter left office, “put the best face” on the walloping he endured the day before in South Carolina. Never breaking his smile, the 95-year-old host fired back, “I think you ought to drop out.” “So matter of fact,” Buttigieg said with a laugh. “It was somehow encouraging.” Carter had lived enough, won plenty and lost enough to take the long view. “He talked a lot about coming from nowhere,” Buttigieg said, not just to attain the presidency but to leverage “all of the instruments you have in life” and “make the world more peaceful.” In his farewell address as president, Carter said as much to the country that had embraced and rejected him. “The struggle for human rights overrides all differences of color, nation or language,” he declared. “Those who hunger for freedom, who thirst for human dignity and who suffer for the sake of justice — they are the patriots of this cause.” Carter pledged to remain engaged with and for them as he returned “home to the South where I was born and raised,” home to Plains, where that young lieutenant had indeed become “a fellow citizen of the world.” —- Bill Barrow, based in Atlanta, has covered national politics including multiple presidential campaigns for the AP since 2012.HOKA’s most popular running shoes including Bondi 8, Clifton 9, Arahi 7 and Mach 6 are on sale in an early Black Friday sale. 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Rhett Dryburgh had no choice but to say goodbye to the “love of his life”, Semaphore eatery, Sarah’s Sister’s Sustainable Cafe. The devastated business owner is still coming to terms with the closure of his much-loved vegan venue, which he had operated for four years but had served the local community for almost five decades. “It’s been incredibly tough, we’ve just been hanging on by our fingertips and unfortunately we just haven’t been able to make it through to the new year,” Mr Dryburgh, 25, said. “It’s been very upsetting to close what you have been working on. It’s the love of our life. You don’t get up and work everyday unless you love it.” Mr Dryburgh took over the cafe during the pandemic and battled through some tough times, but said the current cost-of-living crisis, coupled with rising business expenses, left him with no option but to close the doors permanently on December 7. “It was really out of our hands by the end. It was purely a financial decision, unfortunately it was just not viable anymore,” he said. SCROLL DOWN FOR THE LIST OF 2024 CLOSURES Operating expenses, including energy and food costs, rent and insurance premiums, had skyrocketed in the last couple of years, Mr Dryburgh said. He said the cafe’s electricity and gas bill had risen 100 per cent up to $12,000 per annum. “It’s just a ridiculous cost increase and we just couldn’t take it anymore,” Mr Dryburgh said. “We can’t keep passing on the price increases to the customers because we love them and we can’t keep expecting them to foot the bill.” Rhett Dryburgh at his former hospitality venue, Sarah's Sister's Sustainable Cafe in Semaphore. Picture: Rhett Dryburgh A dish from Sarah's Sister's Sustainable Cafe. Picture: Rhett Dryburgh Mr Dryburgh’s story has been mirrored across the state’s hospitality industry in 2024, with a string of venues, from cafes and restaurants to bars and clubs, shutting their doors for good. These include longstanding institutions such as Cardone’s at Jetty Rd , Glenelg, and Martini’s on the Parade , in Norwood, to newer establishments like My Lover Cindi , on Pirie St, burger bar chain Cheffy Chelby’s and Port Adelaide nightclub Confession . Confession owner Shane Hryhorec, who closed his disability-friendly nightclub in April, said people were spending less on a night out than ever before. “We had one night and it was a free event and a third of the people in the room weren’t paying for anything at all,” Mr Hryhorec said. “There was a significant drop on the per head spend – about a 40 per cent reduction across three years. It’s sad because people just have less places to go, less live entertainment venues and less options.” Confession owner Shane Hryhorec. Picture: Supplied Mr Hryhorec said the dire situation facing hospitality business owners would only get worse, before it gets better. “I’m seeing a lot of businesses open and they last three months,” he said. “I hate to not be positive but I do think the next 12 months will be the same, potentially worse.” Publican Simone Douglas was forced to close the doors on her city cafe, The dob on King William , in May. She still operates the Duke of Brunswick Hotel and the Port Admiral Hotel at Port Adelaide. “You never want to admit failure but when you’ve thrown everything at it and you’re still losing money, you just have to call it quits,” Ms Douglas said. “Everyone is just a bit exhausted. We love the industry but it’s been a very tough year and we’ve had to dig in hard, just to stay open.” The gap between large and small venues will only widen in the future, Ms Douglas said. “There’s going to be a much bigger divide between those large-scale footprint operators, and those smaller cafes and bars, as owners look to increase profitability,” she said. “The industry isn’t going anywhere but it’s going to have to evolve and change.” Simone Douglas, owner of the Duke of Brunswick. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Morgan Sette Mr Hryhorec called on the state government to “do more” to support hospitality businesses, including easy-to-apply for grants, similar to those offered during the pandemic. “I think that would go a long way, because once businesses close, they stay closed,” he said. Mr Dryburgh said it’s going to be a “rough summer” for hospitality operators and urged people to support local businesses if they can. “If businesses can make it through to the new year, I have some hope and optimism that we could see some improvement in the second half of 2025,” he said. “And an interest-rate cut from the RBA would be a nice present for everyone.” Australian Hotels Association SA chief executive Anna Moeller said there had been a “perfect storm” of economic crises that had hit the hospitality in the wake of Covid – cost of living, which affected the number of patrons coming through their doors, and cost-of-operating that had seen their bills for facilities, insurance and ingredients skyrocket. “There’s all these fixed costs that they just can’t change,” said Ms Moeller, who also blamed “overwhelming” regulations and “red tape”. “I think it was that perfect storm that has seen the industry have an unnaturally high number of closures.” WHERE ARE THEY NOW: LIFE AFTER HOSPO AHA chief executive Anna Moeller. Picture: Supplied Ms Moeller said skills and labour shortages were further devastating hotels and restaurant owners, who were struggling to fill vital roles, particularly chefs and cooks. “It is incredibly bad,” she said. “There are some places that cannot open their kitchen every day because they cannot get a cook or a chef. There are regional areas that have got FIFO workers that are cooks and chefs – FIFO is no longer just mining, it’s hospitality.” She said caps on migration and overseas students and the perception that hospitality was a “job that you did before you started your career” were also recruitment hurdles. Ms Moeller said the death knell for some restaurants and cafes was the fact that costs deferred during Covid – such as rent and insurance – were now coming due and struggling business owners could not afford them. “It was like this cliff that they were rapidly approaching,” she said. “Once the Covid era ended and people could operate again, all of those debts fell due. We could see the cliff coming and we were saying our second wave of Covid won’t be sickness, it will be the closure of all these businesses that lived through but then once everything becomes due ... it is disastrous.” 11 VENUES WE LOVED AND LOST IN 2024 Cardone’s Jetty Rd, Glenelg Cardone's Seafood and Grill Restaurant at Jetty Road, Glenelg, closed this year. Picture: File After 24 years operating in the same location, owner-operator Nick Cardone was left with no choice but to shut down his restaurant in March , due to the ongoing impact of the pandemic combined with rising business costs. Owner Nick Cardone with comedian Barry Humphries at Cardone's. Picture: File “It really saddens me. This is my life. Day in, day out. I don’t remember having three days off in a row for a very, very long time,” Mr Cardone told The Advertiser at the time. “I get emotional about it. I still can’t believe it’s actually closed. It’s really taken a toll on me, it’s been very emotional and overwhelming to be honest. “As disappointing as it is, it’s a sign of the times.” Enzo’s Ristorante Port Rd, Hindmarsh The Fazzari family closed their restaurant Enzo's on Port Road after 25 years this year. (Back) Natalie, Matt, Anthony and Alex. (Front) Teresa and Enzo Fazzari. Picture: Tom Huntley One of Adelaide’s most iconic Italian restaurants, Enzo’s Ristorante, finally closed its doors in May after 25 years. The building’s lease was up and the venue’s owners, Enzo and Teresa Fazzari, decided it was the right time to hang up the apron. Teresa and Enzo Fazzari owners of Enzo's Ristorante which closed this year. Picture Mark Brake “I’ve got very mixed emotions. Sadness in a way, humbled by the response and proud to have achieved 25 years in this restaurant,” said chef Mr Fazzari, 69. Enzo’s has won multiple awards, including Excellence in Formal Italian Dining in 2017 and 2019 in SA, and was the one of the first Australia restaurants to be awarded the Ospitalita Italiana accreditation by the Italian Government for its authentic Italian dining experience. Martini’s on the Parade The Parade, Norwood Chef and owner Larry Piscioneri closed down his acclaimed Italian restaurant Martini’s on the Parade. Larry Piscioneri at Martini’s on the Parade. Owner and executive chef Larry Piscioneri said the current “uncertain economic climate” left him with little choice but to sell the business after almost two decades . “It’s the right call to make,” he told The Advertiser. Mr Piscioneri, 54, said consumer spending had been well down due to the cost of living crisis, and he estimated trade at Martini had fallen almost 50 per cent in the year leading up to its closure in May. Business costs had also surged, he said. Italian restaurant Martini’s on the Parade. Picture: File “It’s been frustrating to run a business in the last four years. It’s had its highs and lows. The last year has been the hardest,” he said. “I have so many loyal customers ... but people just don’t have the money to spend on dining out, and the cost of everything has gone up. “It’s very hard to turn a profit in this climate.” Fire and Vine Bevington Rd, Glenunga Inaugural head chef Jamie Bennie and owner George Melissourgos at Fire and Vine. Picture: Matt Loxton Succeeding a dining institution like Cork & Cleaver was never going to be easy but this new restaurant barely got off the ground. Owner George Melissourgos closed his steak and seafood eatery in June , nine months after he opened , and just a fortnight after a less-than-flattering SA Weekend review . The review, by respected Adelaide food writer Simon Wilkinson, described lengthy service delays, including an hour wait for entrees. A chicken dish at Fire and Vine in Glenunga. Picture: Matt Loxton Mr Melissourgos told The Advertiser staff recruitment was an “ongoing” issue for the venue. “We are trying to find good, reliable, consistent staff that we can rely on and have on-call if we need them. That’s the biggest thing,” he said at the time. Paddy Barry’s Gilles St, Adelaide Paddy's Barry on Gilles St. Picture: Facebook The pressures of running a small business while raising a young family led to Jimmy Barry closing his popular city coffee spot . Mr Barry, who took over the cafe formerly known as Sibling in 2021, said it wasn’t an easy decision but “ultimately, family comes first”. Paddy's Barry owner James Barry at his former Adelaide cafe. Picture: Facebook “After three incredible years, it brings sadness and relief to say we’re shutting our doors in the coming months. A decision that wasn’t easy to make,” he explained in a post on social media. “Ultimately, family comes first and I want to be the best dad, partner, son, brother and friend I possibly can. With the pressure of small business, I’m finding it hard to be present.” Known for brewing some of Adelaide’s best coffee, the cafe nestled in Adelaide’s south and named after the owner’s grandad was a hit with locals for years. North Adelaide Burger Bar O’Connell St, North Adelaide North Adelaide Burger Bar has closed its doors for good. Picture: File Late night eats in North Adelaide will never be the same. The home of the original AB meal, and a staple of SA’s fast food history for over seven decades, this legendary burger bar shut up shop for good in June . North Adelaide Burger Bar. Picture: File Its owners announced their decision on social media, revealing that “the current financial climate, rising costs of running the business and increased utility expenses” had made it impossible for them to continue trading. The post said the tough decision had been made despite their “best efforts” to keep the burger bar’s storied legacy alive. Cheffy Chelby’s Morphett Vale and Hallett Cove Michelle Lowe at her Cheffy Chelby’s venue in Port Noarlunga. Picture: Tom Huntley Owner-operator Michelle Lowe pulled the pin on her award-winning chain of breakfast burger bars in April, citing rising costs and customers’ reticence to spend for her devastating decision. It came after she was forced to close her flagship Port Noarlunga eatery when the building it was located in was declared derelict and unsafe by the local council in February 2023. Ms Lowe said customers simply weren’t spending as much money as in the past – and the figures no longer added up, with soaring food costs meaning a small coffee should practically cost up to $8. “I’ve taken too many hits. It’s like I’m playing Mortal Kombat and I keep getting killed,” said Ms Lowe, a chef, who launched the business after losing her job at the start of the pandemic. Folklore Cafe Mundy St, Port Adelaide Anika Harvey at Folklore Cafe in Port Adelaide. Picture: Tom Huntley This community favourite overlooking the Port Adelaide River shut its doors permanently in Februar y after almost 10 years of trading. “It’s with a very heavy heart that I have decided to close Folklore Cafe,” owner Anika Havey said in an emotional Facebook post. “It’s been an incredible nine years and I feel very lucky to have been here for this long.” The popular cafe served a range of dishes made from local and sustainable produce. Ms Havey explained how difficult it was to reach the decision after making strong connections in the community. Terroir Auburn Main N Rd, Auburn, Clare Valley Dan Moss and Annika Parish at Terroir Auburn. Picture: File Owners Dan Moss and Annika Parish said the “extremely volatile and uncertain economic future” of the country was a big factor in their decision to close their award-winning restaurant in May . In an emotional social media post, the couple said political leaders had yet to “fully recognise” the serious issues crippling the state’s hospitality industry. Kingfish starter at Terroir Auburn. Picture: Supplied “We are just simply not willing to carry any debt into the rest of the year, and risk our young family’s future on a game that is impossible to win for small business owners in 2024. “We won’t be the only ones making this decision this year. Brilliant and very talented operators will be faced with this choice also, and we hope they have the courage to make the right business decision for their families.” Mr Moss has since joined nearby Skillogalee Estate as their executive head chef . My Lover Cindi Pirie St, Adelaide Owner Rachel Hosking at My Lover Cindi. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe The venue hosted a farewell weekend at the end of May, with its owner-operators Rachel Hosking and Kate Toone saying the “exorbitant costs” of running a nightclub left them with no other choice but to pull the pin . “All good things must come to an end. The simple answer is that maintaining the exorbitant costs of a night-time venue has been near impossible for the whole three years and finally at this point we can no longer continue,” they said in a social media post. It came a few months are they told followers they were facing “extreme” venue challenge s in a “vulnerable” Facebook post urging locals to help them “turn things around” by heading out and buying tickets to events if they could. Ponyboy Murray Bridge The yoghurt shop and cafe founded by members of Murray Bridge’s horse-racing community started with a gallop in 2022. But just weeks before Christmas, they announced they were at the finish line . “We put our heart and soul into Ponyboy but unfortunately we couldn’t make it work,” the Ponyboy team said at the time. “There’s no doubt it’s a challenging period for many in the community and we definitely felt that as a small business, particularly in the last 12 months.” In a post to Facebook, Ponyboy thanked patrons, saying the business had “loved being a part of the Murray Bridge community” and appreciated the support of its “lovely customers”. More Coverage Hospo hell continues as one of SA’s best-known burger bars shuts shop George Yankovich Hospo hell: Brutal conditions force popular venues to continue closing Tara Miko Originally published as The South Australia hospitality closures that rocked the state in 2024 SA News Don't miss out on the headlines from SA News. Followed categories will be added to My News. Join the conversation Add your comment to this story To join the conversation, please log in. Don't have an account? Register Join the conversation, you are commenting as Logout More related stories SA News ‘I can’t believe it’: Homeless no more for Hayden and his dogs It’s been seven years since Hayden Patterson had a home and now with years on his feet in the streets, he can finally lay down safe in a place to call his own. Read more SA News ‘Knock you the f*** out’: Thug bashed female club promoter A drugged up thug has been jailed after he left a female club promoter unconscious in a sickening act of violence on Hindley Street. Read moreThe former US president Jimmy Carter , who has died aged 100, achieved a far more favourable reputation after leaving the White House than he ever secured during his single term of office. Following his electoral defeat in 1980 – when Ronald Reagan beat him by 489 to 49 electoral college votes – his sustained efforts to improve life for the deprived people of the world won him the 2002 Nobel peace prize. Carter left a mixed heritage from his presidential term. He put human rights firmly on the international agenda, persuaded Congress to cede US control of the Panama canal, demonstrated that peace settlements could be achieved in the Middle East, and completed the second strategic arms limitation treaty with the Soviet Union. But he was not cut out for the White House. He became the 39th president because he was not Gerald Ford : he was ousted after one term not only because of his administration’s inept handling of the Iranian hostage crisis but because he was overwhelmed by the job. Carter came into office faced with the continued economic aftermath of the Vietnam war. To meet its burgeoning costs, President Richard Nixon had abandoned the fixed international exchange rate agreed after the second world war and allowed the dollar to float. That immediately imported inflation into the US, exacerbated by the 1973 Yom Kippur war in the Middle East, which provoked Arab oil-exporting nations to quadruple the price of their oil. Carter arrived in Washington with inflation running at 7%. Within 18 months it had climbed to 11.3%. Oil, which had been $20 a barrel, surged to $107. Carter’s response was to ask the US to curb its profligate use of energy. The plea fell on deaf ears. He then nominated Paul Volcker as chairman of the Federal Reserve Board to deal with the problem. Volcker arrived proclaiming that the US “could not inflate itself out of a recession” and embarked on a ferocious campaign to kill it. The interest figures tell the story: in June 1979 America’s prime rate was 11.5%, by November 15.5%, by March 1980 18.5% and by the end of that year it peaked at 21.5%. During his election campaign Carter had devised what he called the misery index, combining unemployment and inflation. It stood at 13.5 when he was elected. He left the White House with it at 19.9. He eventually retrieved his reputation by founding the Carter Center in his home state of Georgia and embarking on a vast range of activities designed to defuse international conflict and to introduce democracy and a decent standard of life across the globe. This took him to countries ranging from Zambia to Peru and from Sudan to Guyana, for such disparate projects as mediating in civil warfare, encouraging sustainable agricultural development, establishing a proper judicial system, or installing a clean water supply. He became a familiar figure at election counts around the globe, part of the international team that sought to ensure that where skulduggery could not be prevented, it was at least well publicised. With the agreement of the Clinton administration, in 1994 Carter took up an invitation to visit Kim Il-Sung in Pyongyang, and out of their talks came the Agreed Framework , by which North Korea undertook to suspend its nuclear weapons programme in return for increased energy aid from the US. Initial progress was not sustained, and by 2003 relations between the two countries were openly hostile again . In 2008 he was criticised in the US and Israel for urging peace talks involving Syria and Hamas. In August 2010 he returned to North Korea to secure the release of a US citizen, Aijalon Gomes; he visited the country again in 2011, and six years later indicated his willingness to do so once more if called on . Carter acknowledged that much of the energy he brought to the Carter Center had stemmed from the unexpected frustration of his presidential career. “I don’t think that if I had had two full terms in the White House, I would have launched so ambitious a new career. I would probably have become a professor and written some books.” Born in Plains, Georgia, Jimmy (James) was the eldest of four children of Lillian (nee Gordy), a nurse, and James Carter, a peanut farmer. He planned a naval career, graduating from the US naval academy in 1946. Then he became involved in the design and development of nuclear power for ships, and later with training seamen to serve in them. This was apparently when he acquired his dogged interest in organisational and functional minutiae. In 1953, however, the death of his father obliged him to resign his commission to take control of the family business. This sparked an interest in politics and, in 1962, he was elected a state senator. At the end of his four-year term, he ran unsuccessfully for the governorship of Georgia. In 1970 he was elected at his second attempt and began to plan his presidential campaign. His ambitions coincided with the Watergate scandal and the enforced resignation of Nixon in August 1974. Ford, a Republican congressman from Michigan, had been hand-picked by the beleaguered incumbent as his successor. The electorate, initially neutral about the constitutional niceties of this procedure, erupted in fury when the newly sworn-in President Ford announced an unconditional pardon for his patron. The stage was thus set for Carter’s bid, on the basis that he did not belong to the Washington establishment and that he espoused the simple moral and religious values that the electorate was then seeking. In the 1976 primaries he easily outpaced his Democratic rivals. But his presidential victory was uncomfortably narrow: he won only 23 of the 50 states and secured less than half the popular vote (excluding Washington DC). His arrival in the White House arose more through the quirks of the electoral college, where he predominated by 297 votes to Ford’s 240. His election showed plainly what became even more starkly evident as his term progressed: that support in the country was marginal and could be eroded by almost any setback. The honeymoon lasted long enough domestically to get the Panama canal treaties ratified in 1978 – no small achievement – and internationally to bring Israel and Egypt to a widely applauded peace settlement in 1979, brokered by Carter. But the very nature of his electoral campaign quickly rebounded on him. He chose to emphasise the shift from previous administrations by appointing a group of inexperienced assistants to senior posts. Within a short space of time, his budget director, Bert Lance , was forced to resign amid allegations of impropriety – charges that sat ill with Carter’s repeated emphasis on probity. His chief of staff, Hamilton Jordan , became notorious for his poor handling of influential figures on Capitol Hill, a vital factor for any administration, but even more critical in the post-Vietnam, post-Watergate climate in Washington. Congress, in its own eyes, had been bulldozed into the expansion of the Vietnam war by Lyndon Johnson , grossly affronted by Nixon’s constant claims of executive privilege and eventually by his illegalities, and circumnavigated by Ford’s accession. It had fettered the White House with the War Powers resolution of 1973 and came within a whisker of impeaching the president. It was singularly unimpressed by the arrival of a man whose experience was as a one-term southern governor. It might have been easier had Carter arrived with a clear political agenda, but he seemed geared to the politics of symbolism rather than substance. In an effort to focus his compatriots’ attention on their profligate use of energy, he addressed the nation wearing a woollen cardigan, which simply drowned the message in derision. His national energy policy was barely recognisable by the time it emerged from Congress. The international community also found itself with problems caused by the amateurism of the White House. Within six months of taking office, Carter requested funds to develop neutron warheads for missiles deployed in Europe, particularly West Germany. There had been no consultations within Nato, and a row erupted in Europe. The Dutch defence minister resigned and Chancellor Helmut Schmidt of West Germany, faced with demonstrations and parliamentary dissent, publicly dissociated himself from the move. The furore continued for months, until Carter suddenly announced that he had abandoned the idea, having exposed serious rifts within the Atlantic alliance to no useful end. In spite of alarming the Kremlin with unsignalled proposals for huge cuts in strategic weapons (later abandoned), his administration did manage to negotiate the Salt II (strategic arms limitation talks) agreement, a complex, phased programme of strategic disarmament. But it aroused deep suspicions in the Senate, which had little liking for the president anyway, and the treaty was consequently never ratified. By now it had become evident to the country that its chief executive was becoming impotent through his insistence on bogging himself down in detail to the extent that he even insisted on drawing up the playing rota for the White House tennis courts. With his popularity waning steeply, particularly after a disastrous television address in which he seemed to saddle the nation with his own uncertainties, Carter was hit by the twin crises that doomed his presidency – the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the fall of the shah of Iran. Long after he left office, it emerged that much of the blame for the Afghan crisis could, in fact, be laid at his door. In February 1979 the US ambassador in Kabul, Adolph Dubs, was kidnapped and died in a botched rescue attempt by the local police. The Soviet Union was alleged to have been behind the kidnapping and, in retaliation, Carter signed a secret directive on 3 July 1979, authorising the CIA to fund and arm Muslim opponents to the Kabul regime, which the Soviet Union supported. This decision was later described by Carter’s national security adviser, Zbigniew Brzezinski , as “giving the Soviet Union its own Vietnam”. Its consequences, including the rise of the Taliban, have clanked unpredictably through the ensuing decades. As US-funded fighting spread rapidly across Afghanistan, the Kabul regime tottered and Moscow decided that the only answer to the destabilisation of its strategically vital southern border was to invade. Carter, already in deep trouble over the fall of the shah, responded to the Soviet invasion by shooting himself in the foot. With domestic political attention focused on the impending 1980 presidential campaign, he announced an embargo on a portion of US grain exports to the Soviet Union, the prime victims of which were America’s midwestern farmers rather than the USSR. He did manage to see off the internal party challenge of Senator Edward Kennedy , but slipped badly in the broader race for re-election. He had been unlucky in inheriting the brewing Iranian crisis, but he handled that no better. The shah was entirely the creature of successive US administrations. It was, therefore, self-evident that the dethroned monarch would turn to his patrons in his final crisis and that, conversely, the new Iranian regime would stoke the anti-Americanism built up by his autocratic reign. The US embassy in Tehran sent repeated warnings of the likely Iranian reaction if the terminally ill shah was allowed into the US, but they were ignored by the White House. Within three weeks of his arrival for medical treatment, the embassy had been seized and 53 of its staff held hostage. A bad situation was made far worse by an ill-conceived and ultimately disastrous attempt to mount a rescue operation. Its chances of success were always slight and were wholly nullified by the combination of equipment failures and excessive interference from above. Had Carter been held in greater confidence by his countrymen, they might have had more sympathy for his dilemma. He had nothing to bargain with, and it became evident that for Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini , the fundamentalist Shia cleric who had overthrown the shah, the crisis had become a personal contest. He released the American hostages only at the moment when Carter was succeeded by Reagan. Carter’s political ambition far outreached his experience or capacity, but his brief sojourn in the Oval office at least gave him the international standing to carry out the humanitarian work for which he will probably be best remembered. With his wife, Rosalynn (nee Smith), whom he married in 1946, he visited more than 140 countries. He wrote 30 books, including A Call to Action (2014), which addressed discrimination and violence against women, and A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety (2015). Having turned 100 last October, he fulfilled his aim of voting in the presidential election. Rosalynn died in November 2023. He is survived by their four children, Amy, Jack, Chip and Jeff, 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. James Earl Carter, politician, born 1 October 1924; died 29 December 2024 Harold Jackson died in 2021

President Mulino on Panama Canal: 'Nothing to Talk About' with Trump

Playoff game at Ohio State has sold 34% more tickets than Notre Dame game on StubHub

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Jones, Mellott help Montana State run over Montana 34-11Chargers rule out RB Gus Edwards (ankle) vs. PatriotsThe Egyptian real estate market in 2024 saw significant shifts driven by investor interest in hospitality, tourism, and experiential spaces, alongside the rising appeal of the North Coast, particularly with the launch of the Ras El Hekma project. This growing demand from both Egyptian and international buyers is expected to continue shaping the market into 2025. Savills projects that in 2025, leasing and property management advisory services will continue to be in high demand as clients seek expert guidance to optimize their portfolios. The North Coast, boosted by high-profile developments like Ras El Hekma, is set to remain a key focus, driving ongoing interest in the region. Retail spaces are also poised for strong growth over the next two years, with an increasing consumer preference for experiential and lifestyle-oriented environments. Developers will prioritize creating dynamic, engaging spaces that cater to evolving consumer behaviors, shifting the focus from transactional retail to immersive, memorable experiences. Savills Egypt is looking ahead to the next year with a focus on overcoming emerging challenges and leveraging its expertise to drive sustainable growth, forge meaningful partnerships, and support Egypt’s evolving real estate landscape. One of Savills’ major 2024 success stories was its transformation of Majarrah, a flagship mixed-use development by Bonyan for Investment and Development. By focusing on tenant repositioning, marketing innovation, and operational improvements, Savills helped increase occupancy from 54% to 92%, boost foot traffic by 35%, and achieve up to 100% sales growth for tenants. The firm also facilitated record sales of EGP 17bn for Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company. Savills’ Building and Project Consultancy team played a crucial role in creating new offices for multinational companies like Bayer, Chevron, Informa, and Organon. Chevron’s Manoji Thomas praised Savills for adhering to budget and schedule. Additionally, Savills achieved a 98.4% occupancy rate and more than 48,000 daily visitors at the new extension of Arkan Plaza, setting a record for commercial projects in West Cairo. Beyond commercial successes, Savills Egypt contributed to national initiatives, including repurposing underutilized land with the World Bank-led consortium and the Sheikh Zayed City Council to support Vision 2030. The firm also provided key advice to the Administrative Capital for Urban Development (ACUD) on large-scale urban projects, collaborating with Dar El Handassa. Catesby Langer-Paget, Head of Savills Egypt, emphasized the firm’s significant role in shaping Egypt’s real estate future in 2024. Langer-Paget said, “Despite the macroeconomic challenges, Savills Egypt continued to deliver value-driven solutions through phased development and cost management. We embraced technology and optimized operations to navigate market complexities.” In 2024, Savills also became a thought leader, hosting the “Savills Retail Connect” event and leading a national workshop with the World Bank, sharing insights from the Sheikh Zayed Pilot Project to guide other municipalities. Looking toward 2025, Savills Egypt plans to focus on emerging sectors like hospitality and logistics, leveraging global expertise and local market insights to drive the evolution of Egypt’s real estate sector. “Savills Egypt has transformed into a partner of progress,” said Langer-Paget, underscoring the firm’s commitment to innovation, value creation, and growth in the years ahead.

Playoff game at Ohio State has sold 34% more tickets than Notre Dame game on StubHubGreetings, fellow nauseated traveler who just wanted to enjoy Indiana Jones and the Great Circle but couldn’t manage to play for longer than an hour at a time. You’ve come to the right place. I, too, couldn’t deal with the strange head bob that our hero does in this first-person game. Through a combination of tweaks to the settings in the options menu, I’ve managed to make the game playable for myself — and probably for you, too. Is it still a bit dizzying sometimes? Yes. Do I still wish the team at MachineGames would remove the head bob entirely? Yes. Please. But until that happens, these are my suggestions for getting through this adventure. First, open the options menu, and go to the section called “Video.” In that section, you can start by implementing my most effective change, which unfortunately will only be available in this menu if you’re playing on PC and not console. This suggestion is to increase the Field of View slider to at least 100 . You can even put it up to 110 if you want; try different levels and see what works best for you. These next options are available on both console and PC. Go down to Motion Blur and set it to “off” (apologies to this particular artistic decision). The last setting in this section that you might consider is called “Picture Framing” — it’s at the top of the list in the screenshot above. I have my entire game in “Cinematic” mode , which means that both gameplay and cutscenes have black bars on the top and bottom of the screen, all the time. It’s supposed to make the game look like a movie. Honestly, I don’t love the look of it (and I think it’s a corny conceit), but it does seem to be helping my nausea levels. We’re still not done. Next, navigate to the “Accessibility” menu. You can adjust the Field of View and Motion Blur here as well, but you’ve already done that, right? More importantly, you’re going to want to set Camera Stabilization to “on,” and Screen Shake to “off.” Lastly, try to sit further away from your screen when you play. It will help with this issue. And while you’re in this menu, you can increase the size of the subtitles to accommodate an increased distance from the screen. If all else fails, and you’re playing on PC, just wait for somebody to make a mod that fixes Indy’s penchant for bobbing his head every time he takes a single step — or a mod that puts the entire game into third-person mode ( it’s definitely possible ). Until then, these band-aids are what we have. Gaming PC Xbox Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

So, King Charles III finally turned up for the Australian leg of his victory lap of the Commonwealth. History editor Dr Glenn Davies declares it's time an Australian head of state was one of us... and also a resident. IT'S BEEN OVER two years since then-Prince Charles stepped into the top job. A royal tour between 18 and 26 October 2024 marked the first time that Australians experienced a royal audience with their king. After over ten years, four governors-general and two monarchs, a sitting Australian Head of State finally appeared Down Under! Our absentee King’s 17,000-kilometre journey from the other side of the world saw Charles and his wife, Queen Camilla , grace us with the presence of a British Monarch on Australian soil for the first time as our Head of State (although the grace was presented only in Sydney and Canberra). King Charles III was greeted in Canberra by the Prime Minister, but not a single state leader — all declined their invitations , citing “other commitments” ranging from election campaigns to cabinet meetings. Paying a King's ransom King Charles-the-whatever is coming to Australia on 18 October until some other date you can no doubt find in your calendar, if you could be bothered. Queensland experienced its second King’s Birthday Public Holiday — even though KCIII’s actual birthday is 19 November. Queenslanders took the day off work; not in recognition of their hard work, but to recognise the British Monarch who will most likely be sleeping through our public holiday. The King’s Birthday Public Holiday doesn’t remind us of anything good about our country. At worst, it tells us Australia’s head of state gets the job by inheritance. Perhaps it would have been better if the British Monarch had turned up for "his" birthday weekend? I suppose, though, that would have been awkward: a public holiday in Queensland, only at this time of year (with WA a week before) and Queensland not even on the visiting schedule. Oops. The lack of actual public activity around King’s Birthday Public Holiday shows just how much the concept of monarchy is out-of-step with contemporary Australia. Since his birth as Prince Charles, KCIII has known he would one day take over the top job. One morning in 2022, Australians simply woke up to hear news from Britain that could affect our country for decades to come. Australians did not choose King Charles III as our Head of State. It is a disgraceful fact that without Constitutional change, the citizens of Australia will never be consulted on our head of state. Etiquette tips for awed commoners when meeting King Chukka Here are some vital deportment behavioural protocols in the face of British flapdoodle. It’s time for an Australian to be our head of state and do the job full-time rather than someone working from home at Windsor Castle — who can’t be bothered Zooming into an Australian office once a week. We are a unique multicultural country and we need someone who understands how to embody us, to be the guardian of our Constitution — to be a unifying symbol at home and someone we are proud to see representing us abroad. Our head of state should be elected on merit, not gifted this position by birthright. They should have the skills and work experience to do the job. It should be one of us. A person responsible and accountable to us and unwaveringly loyal to us — and only us. We have our own identity as Australians. The Royals represent Britain and cannot represent us or really unite us as Australians. So many Australians believe in freedom and equal opportunity — not that some are born to rule over others. We come from all walks of life, from all corners of the globe and this ancient land. Our shared commitment to our common future is what binds us together. Standing against this is the elevation of Charles III. I’ve argued previously here that there is no place for princes and kings in modern Australia. The public repudiation of former PM Tony Abbott’s knights and dames decision showed that Australia has moved on from the old colonial way of thinking. We can have respect and affection for Britain and its celebrity royals but still, question why we do not have our own head of state. The British Royal Family: A cult of obsession Support for an Australian Republic referendum is persistently stifled by the mainstream media's obsession with treating the Royal family as celebrities. The royals are welcome to visit as representatives of Britain, but I look forward to when the British people and their royal family will welcome a visit by the first Australian head of state. In the words of Australian comedian and radio presenter Sammy J : "So to our King, we say g’day and we praise his DNA, his ever-loyal subjects across the sea. We might have golden soil and a bit of wealth for toil, but us Aussies are still girt by monarchy." For us in Australia, royalty only ever visits us from somewhere else, from across the seas. It’s not something that lives with us. Royalty comes and royalty goes, but it is never a true part of us. Thanks Charles, but we’ve got it from here. Toodle pip. You can follow history editor Dr Glenn Davies on Twitter/X @DrGlennDavies . This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Australia License Support independent journalism Subscribe to IA. POLITICS REPUBLIC AUSTRALIA INTERNATIONAL KING CHARLES III Queen Camilla British Monarchy Royal Family #auspol head of state Republic Australian Constitution King’s Birthday Public Holiday Sammy J Share ArticleWhat will the new year bring? Based on this year, we can expect a wild ride. Here are 25 predictions for 2025. 1) President Trump, having run out of relatives to appoint to high office, will leave politics to spend less time with his family. 2) Raygun will continue to be the biggest source of family arguments since the COVID mandates, with the only allowed views being “angel” or “devil”. 3) Prince Andrew, revealed as a close contact of both a convicted paedophile and an alleged Chinese spy, will admit that he’s in the pay of the Australian Republican movement, as it’s the only way to explain the last five years. Reviving past fashion is going to become more difficult in 2025. 4) Reviving the fashion and music of past decades will become more difficult, on account that every period has been used up due to a collective failure to have any new ideas. By February 2025, we’ll be bringing back the “looks and sounds of 2024”. By March, we’ll be bringing back the “looks and sounds of February”. By April 20, we’ll be bringing back the “looks and sounds of April 3.” 5) Gina Rinehart will buy a huge new sheep farm but keep the traditional name: “Western Australia.” 6) Peter Dutton will find himself so addicted to negativity he will find himself unable to accept any view put by the government - angrily dismissing the observations that “the sky is blue”, “water is wet”, and “Australia, by and large, is a pretty good place to live.” Toto is set for a name change! Credit: Alex Ellinghausen 7) Anthony Albanese will rename his dog, worried that the current name of Toto sounds enough like Tonto to create expectations that his owner will be a man of action. 8) The leader of the Greens, Adam Bandt, will install a new phone answering system in his office, inviting people to leave a message “after the morally superior tone”. 9) Prince Harry’s popularity in the UK will reach a new low when he is voted off The Great British Bake Off, despite having never appeared on the show. Get excited for the Big Coke! Credit: iStock / Supplied 10) Peter Dutton, in the tradition of the Big Pineapple and the Big Prawn, will build an enormous Coke can in his electorate of Dickson in order to store the tonnes of nuclear waste, which, he has always argued, will somehow fit into a Coke can. 11) Trump will stage a meeting with North Korea’s Kim Jong-un. When asked, “Why meet with a deranged dictator with his finger on the nuclear button?” Kim will say: “Look, it’s only a meeting”. 12) Victoria will fall further from an AAA credit rating, with its score now reduced to “Aargh”. 13) Artificial intelligence will become sufficiently sophisticated that it finally wakes up to its own flaws, warning users that “the whole thing is a poor substitute for actual human thought”. 14) As the world’s concentration span continues to dip, TikTok videos will become increasingly short. By mid-year, the average video will be just two seconds long; by November, every video will be a .003-second subliminal advertisement for Temu. AI will see itself out. 15) Apple will continue to issue new versions of its products, each one representing an even smaller improvement on the last. This will not stop people queuing through the night to buy them. 16) Elon Musk will become so extreme and so powerful even Donald Trump will cut all ties. 17) Social media sites will continue to proliferate and become increasingly targeted as to age, education and politics until everyone has their own site, to which they – and only they - will be allowed to post, leading to a marvellous feeling since you always agree with what’s been said. 18) Putin will fall from power. (True. You watch.) 19) The self-checkout machines at Colesworth will become self-aware and take action against the profiteering of the supermarkets by giving away everything for free. This, and only this, will force Colesworth to re-employ some staff. 20) Coffee orders will become so long-winded – “a weak, soy macchiato but with hotter than normal soy thanks” – it will become impossible for the typical worker to fulfil any other task during their workday save for the consumption of beverages. 21) As the unemployment rate rises, bosses will ban working from home, leading to massive congestion on Sydney roads, with workers forced to abandon their cars in the nearest car park. The carpark, however, will retain its traditional name: the M5. 22) The last butcher, baker and greengrocer will close their doors, leaving Sydney with 10,563 Thai massage joints, 20,495 nail salons, and about a million gyms, all of them empty. 23) Hollywood will collapse after executives realise they have run out of Marvel comics to remake. 24) Politics, here and around the world, will become ever-more depressing, however... 25) We will survive. Happy New Year – and here’s to a less-bad-than-expected 2025.