I wish to make a short statement before we move to topical questions. Members will have received a letter this morning from the cleric chief executive. The letter highlights a technical problem with the software used to make the random draw for general and portfolio questions which was identified last week. This is a card from a software upgrade implemented in March this year. It means that members with surnames in the lower half of the alphabet may not have been picked up for inclusion in some of the draws during the intervening period. The problem has occurred in up to 12 of the 27 weeks of business since the software was upgraded. As soon as the problem was identified, steps are taken to rectify the situation. A manual work-around was used for the draw this week, and new software is currently being developed and tested, which will be rolled out for next week's draw or as soon as possible afterwards. The new system will be subject to rigorous testing, and it will also be possible to confirm which members' names are included in future draws. The situation is clearly unacceptable, so apologies are made to those members who have been disadvantaged. The system will also be assured that all steps have been taken to avoid the problem occurring in the future. I recognise that members will be disappointed by those events and I deeply regret it. It is important to rebuild members' confidence, so in addition I will be asking business managers if they wish to send a representative to see for themselves the draw for next week's questions. We now move to topical questions, which are unaffected by the random picking. Question 1, Jenny Marra. To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the report by the independent review of primary care out-of-hours services. Cabinet Secretary, Shona Robison, the Scottish Government welcomes the report of the national review of out-of-hours services published on 30 November. I want to thank Professor Ritchie for all his hard work in preparing such a wide-ranging and comprehensive report. Given the complex issues involved, we have asked all key delivery partners, including health and social care partnerships, to set out how they propose to deliver the recommendations locally. We will then use those local plans to inform a detailed national implementation plan that we will publish in the spring of 2016. To ensure that we see action immediately, I announced £1 million to begin testing the new urgent care hub model that is recommended in the report. I thank the cabinet secretary for her response. One of the recommendations involves effective workforce planning and calls for a national primary care workforce plan, something that I and many of my colleagues on the benches have suggested before. Does the cabinet secretary now agree with Sir Louis Ritchie that workforce planning should be taken forward urgently and what is her timescale for this? Workforce planning is fundamental. It always has been. Of course, we accept all the recommendations in the report. Going forward, what I have set out in my initial answer is that the detailed national implementation plan will bring together all of the elements of the report in terms of how those will then be implemented by the Scottish Government, by boards and partners. I said that I would bring that forward in the spring of next year. Meantime, what is important is that we get on with the elements of the report. For example, the testing of the new urgent care hub model is very important and we want to get on with identifying test sites for that. We are going to be doing that immediately. We welcome the funding that has been put in place, £1 million, for the pilot hub testing model. The cabinet secretary will also know that the out-of-hours service across the country is struggling with reports of up to two GPs covering whole regions and real problems in Lanarkshire. The cabinet secretary says that she is going to bring forward to how her Government will implement recommendations in the spring, but what is she going to do now about the pressure on our out-of-hours service in Scotland? I would not have commissioned the out-of-hours report from Sir Lewis Ritchie had I thought there weren't challenges in the out-of-hours services. That is why I commissioned him to do this report. The report is excellent. It sets us on the right path to transform our out-of-hours services. Of course, there are short, medium and longer-term aspects of the report that Sir Lewis lays out, but we will get on with the job of transforming the out-of-hours services. Meantime, of course, out-of-hours services form an integral part of the winter plans, and there are £10.7 million for those winter plans to make sure that there is resilience in all our out-of-hours services. That includes making sure that the out-of-hours services are robust over the winter. Of course, then, the transformation will begin and the report on setting out how that will happen will be brought forward in the spring, as I said earlier. Thank you, Presiding Officer. The cabinet secretary will be aware of the different terms and conditions being offered by different health boards to GPs providing out-of-hours services. She will know that, although some areas are able to provide GPs for their Edoch services, other health boards, such as Ayrshire and Arran, are moving towards providing Edoch services through the welcome services of advanced nurse practitioners. How does the cabinet secretary view this change in provision and what, if anything, is she doing about it? Of course, one of the proposals within the report is for a national GP performance list for Scotland. The member has highlighted an issue that boards are often competing with each other for the same GP. That is why that recommendation, along with many others, is so important in bringing together the out-of-hours services in a more coherent way that stops the position or avoids the position of boards competing with one another. As we work through the recommendations, we will expect boards to look at their own local plans, both in the short term in terms of reflecting the recommendations on their existing plans and then getting on with the job of implementing those recommendations. That will make a big difference out of our services across Scotland, including in the members' locality. The review points out that people in remote and rural locations are more likely to report negatively about out-of-hours care, plus concern among people living in these areas reassent of distance from accessing out-of-hours care. With more than 100,000 patients being treated out with their health board in 2014, what assurances can the cabinet secretary give to those people living in remote and rural areas that they will have the care they need, when they need it and where they need it? First of all, Jim Hume talks about people being treated out with the board area, but what he is referring to are many people who are treated at centres such as the Golden Jubilee Centre, which is a national resource. I am sure that Jim Hume would not think that that was a bad thing for patients across Scotland going to that centre for excellent treatment. On the remote and rural dimension of the report, Sir Lewis spends a good deal of the report looking at the remote and rural challenges. As we move forward with the recommendations, particularly how the new urgent care hub model will work, I am keen to test that both in an urban and in a rural and remote context. In remote and rural areas, without a doubt, there is a reliance on the local assets of the community. First responders have a very important role there, as does the ambulance service, as well as the primary care out-of-hours services. I am keen that we test that new model in a remote and rural context for its application more widely. I agree that this is a worthy report, and I agree with you that we need to make progress on it. The cabinet secretary has mentioned the GP contract in 2017, and again today, the implementation plan in 2016. I think that one of the highlights of the report is that deprived communities are losing out now and could benefit now. I am wondering if implementation of beneficial elements of the report could be rolled out prior to these days in deprived neighbourhoods and communities such as Inverclyde. Cabinet secretary. Duncan MacNeill will be aware that the publication of the report coincided with the publication of some research that was commissioned by the Scottish Government, which highlighted some of the issues that Duncan MacNeill is referring to. He will be aware that, within the existing contract, there is an element of funding for deprivation. The 100 depend practices receive together around £5.4 million, but, as he knows, as I have said before, we need to go further than that. The new contract offers the opportunity to do that. We will have a transition year in 2016 with the new contract, with large elements of the coff being dismantled to remove bureaucracy. If there is anything that we can move on earlier with that or, indeed, early aspects of the recommendations from Sir Lewis, I will certainly look at that. Perhaps some of the modelling and the testing we can have a focus on testing within some of the more deprived communities, how that model can work to best effect. Given the report and the research, does the cabinet secretary think that it would be appropriate for NHS Lanarkshire to go ahead with plans just to provide a centre in the south and not to have a centre at all in the north Lanarkshire area? As I have said before, there is no change to this. What we would expect Lanarkshire to do is to look at the report and apply the report to its services. If the board moves to any permanent change in its out-of-hours provision, because it is an interim service that it has at the moment, then that issue would come to the Scottish Government. However, I would expect Lanarkshire and all the other boards to make sure that their services are in line with the recommendations of the report, as I have said in this place before. To ask the Scottish Government what steps it will take in response to the recent report on Police Scotland by the Interception of Communications Commissioner's Office. On learning of the breaches in the summer, the Scottish Government contacted Police Scotland to seek reassurance that it would co-operate fully with the IOCO investigation and that it would take any necessary actions that might result. That reassurance was given and Police Scotland has been working on a robust action plan since July to ensure that there has been no repeat of these incidents and that it cannot happen again in the future. However, it is clear that Police Scotland's actions in accessing communication data have fallen short of the standard that is expected. I welcomed the announcement last week by the Scottish Police Authority that it would ask HMICS to review the robustness of the procedures around Police Scotland's counter-corruption practices. I can reassure the chamber that that will be an independent thorough and in-depth review. In order to provide assurance to the public and this Parliament, it will focus on operational effectiveness and efficiency, the independence of the internal investigation function, governance and accountability and training and guidance for officers and staff. The review will be submitted to the Scottish Police Authority and the Parliament in the spring. I expect to see any HMICS recommendations for improvements implemented in full. Any breach of acquisition and disclosure of communication data code of practice is unacceptable. A free press is a cornerstone of a healthy democracy and we are committed to protecting the privacy of all law-abiding members of the public, including journalists. In his statement on spying in September in this chamber, the cabinet secretary said in his own words that he had no idea who the police in Scotland are spying on. That is unlike the First Minister. She knew about claims that police had recklessly used illegal surveillance on repeated occasions almost five months ago. It appears that only the public and the Scottish Parliament were kept in the dark. Was the justice minister kept in the dark as well? If he wasn't, how does he explain his previous answer to this Parliament? Will he now take responsibility—a personal responsibility—to ensure that the numerous failures will not occur in the future in his watch? As the member has got a bit confused on these matters, the response that I gave at that time to Neil Findlay related to covert surveillance matters, which are entirely different from this particular issue, relate to historical matters as well, which the member will be aware of. As the member has been a little confused in these issues, but in relation to this specific point about the matter, when this issue became aware, when we became aware of this in July of this year, we asked Police Scotland for assurances that they were complying with the investigation that was undertaken by IOCOL. What is important is that we recognise that IOCOL is the responsible, independent, judicially led body that is responsible for the oversight of this area of policing, not just in Police Scotland but all police forces across the UK and all public bodies who are able to exercise those powers. What the investigation has demonstrated by IOCOL is that that oversight mechanism has identified failings in Police Scotland in making sure that it has been through the proper process for undertaking this type of acquisition of communication data. What it also recognises is that Police Scotland has put in place a robust process to make sure that this type of thing cannot happen again. That has been a thorough process that it has gone through. I recognise that what Police Scotland has done in breaching the code has been unacceptable, but what we have now from IOCOL is assurance that it has a procedure in place that can prevent this from happening again in the future. It will clearly continue to keep the under review as the review, the way in which the procedures are used by Police Scotland and every other police force in the UK. I accept that IOCOL has done their job and done it thoroughly. For years in this Parliament, I have asked the cabinet secretary to ensure that proper governance, accountability and oversight was in place for the new national police force. That has been rebutted by this Government with some energy. Will he now accept that there is not sufficient governance in place and make sure that it occurs? The member seems to be getting himself even more confused than this issue because the governance and oversight of this area of reserve legislation is IOCOL. It was actually put in place by a Labour Government in order to make sure that public bodies who had these powers were being held to account. That is exactly what it is there for. I do not know whether the member is suggesting that we should get rid of IOCOL if that is the case. That would be a matter for the UK Government to get rid of IOCOL altogether and it should be replaced by something else. Of course, there is presently the proposal for a new investigative powers framework, which could include the emerging of the different inspection regimes and oversight regimes that we have in the UK as well. However, the oversight mechanism for that is not something that is peculiar to Police Scotland, which the member would like to give the impression that it is. The oversight mechanism for that is one that applies to all police forces in Scotland and is a robust mechanism that has identified failings and has put measures in place. Given the member's policing experience, he would not be as confused in that issue as he clearly is. I have five members who wish to ask a question of the cabinet secretary. I recognise that time is moving on, but I fully intend to take all of them. However, I would be extremely grateful if you would keep your questions as short as possible. Is it perhaps worth noting that the breach of the code of practice concerned is a code that does not relate to the interception of communications, nor to the acquisition or disclosure of the contents of communications? It is a more technical breach, but it is notwithstanding that and the comments that the cabinet secretary has made. How can the public be reassured that the HMICS review will be both vigorous and independent? As the member correctly pointed out, that is to do with communication data rather than the interception of communications, which has ministerial oversight and requires ministerial authorisation. The Scottish Police Authority has asked HMICS to undertake a review of the practice that is being used by Police Scotland's counter-corruption unit. As I have mentioned, it will be an independent and thorough in-depth review that will look at operational effectiveness and efficiency, the independence of the internal investigation function, governance and accountability and training guidance, which is provided to staff as well, and that will be laid in parmolch, while members will be able to consider and I would fully expect any recommendations to be fully implemented by Police Scotland. Will the Rainier, followed by Margaret Mitchell? What we are still missing from this case is a proper explanation as to who did this and why they did it also. We did a proper explanation to get the transparency that I think members of the public are seeking. Rather than reopening the investigation, they tried to find the source of the leak. I think that we need a proper explanation as to why that was allowed to happen. When does he think that it will come? Part of the process is that, given that the breaches have been identified and that IOCOL has now written to those individuals who have been affected by it to make them informed that they can now take the matter to an investigatory powers tribunal, they will be responsible for looking at the extent of what that breach implied for that individual and whether there is any recourse that should be applied in those instances. The tribunal will now be able to look at the extent of that and to consider how that has impacted on the individuals who have been affected by it. However, the member is right. It is important that the public can have assurance and that we all have assurance on how those procedures have been implemented. IOCOL has accepted the action plan that has been taken by Police Scotland to prevent this from happening again in the future. It will continue to have oversight of that, and the investigative powers tribunal will now be responsible for deciding on the extent of the breach and how it applied to those individuals' circumstances and any compensation or other matters that should be applied as a result of that breach. While I accept that the interception of communication is reserved, does the cabinet secretary share my despondency that the SPA, despite being responsible for the oversight of Police Scotland's full stop, has yet again been caught in the backfoot and reduced admonishing Police Scotland after the fact and then asking HMICS to undertake an insurance review? It is important to understand the process that the investigative powers legislation puts in place, and the oversight function for the use of investigative powers is a matter for IOCOL in that type of issue. It is not a matter for some other third party bodies such as the Scottish Police Authority. It is extremely important that, when an organisation like IOCOL identifies a breach in those procedures, the SPA considers what measures should be taken in order to address any deficiencies. IOCOL has confirmed that robust measures have been put in place to address the failings in Police Scotland in this particular instance. What HMICS will now do at the request of the SPA is to look at the practices and wider issues in the counter-corruption unit. That is exactly the area that is the responsibility of the SPA. By undertaking the insurance review, it will look at the wider issues around it and will not take over the function that IOCOL has in oversight of those, which then reports to the Prime Minister on the issues for all forces across the UK. Public concern here is much wider than communications. The last time I asked the cabinet secretary whether undercover officers were spying on activists, he said in a quote, I have no idea. Given the revelations in the Sunday Herald over the last two weekends, will the cabinet secretary now instruct a full independent inquiry into the role of undercover police in Scotland, or are Scots the only people in the mainland UK who are going to be denied information and justice on what is an extremely important issue? That is a different matter altogether in relation to the matter. I know that the Labour Benches might be a bit confused on that particular issue. However, as I made clear, the issues of covert surveillance are not matters that Scottish Government ministers are involved in. Additionally, the issues that the member has raised relate to matters involving metropolitan police officers and the work that they were undertaking in direction through the metropolitan police officers. As I have said to the member, if he has clear evidence of officers within Police Scotland or any of the legacy forces that he believes were not fulfilling the procedures that were set out for the use of covert surveillance, then I am more than happy to consider those issues. As yet, I have still not received any concrete evidence from the member, serving out clearly where there have been breaches relating to specific officers in Police Scotland or in the legacy forces. John Finnie. The Scottish Police Authority is the disciplinary authority for chief officer ranks in Scotland. I welcome their inquiry. I do not doubt the impartiality of HMCIS. I wonder whether the cabinet secretary can tell us what status that would have in respect of discipline. Also, in relation to Police Scotland, the disciplinary authority for ranks below chief officer is the deputy chief constable. I wonder if he feels that there is any conflict of interest there, if indeed there is a misconduct inquiry under way, if indeed there is a criminal inquiry under way in relation to those matters. I think that the member raises a number of interesting points. That is part of the reason for the HMICS review of the way in which the counter-corruption unit has actually been operating some of their practices about accountability and also about the oversight of their mechanisms as well, which could pick up on some of the points that the member has also highlighted. Having said that, given that this matter will now also go to an investigatory power tribunal, it will consider the extent of the impact that it has had on an individual's concern for those who choose to take it to a tribunal and to those who, I would call any compensation that should be provided to those individuals. Once that process has been completed, I would expect the SPA and Police Scotland to consider where there are any further actions that would then be necessary. However, given that there is due process now in place and we know that one party who has been affected has already indicated that they would wish to take it to an IPT, we need to make sure that that process is being completed and fully investigated before any further decisions could then be taken on disciplinary matters. However, I think that the member has raised a number of important points that I have no doubt that the HMICS will consider in its investigation. Thank you. That ends topical questions. Point 4, Mr Findlay. Under the standing orders, I wonder if the minister would like to... Tell me of Mr Findlay's microphone, please. Under the standing orders, I wonder if the minister would like to correct a record in that, over a week ago, 10 members of the Parliament wrote to the minister, raising specific concerns about the activities of undercover police in Scotland. The minister, perhaps his civil servants have not advised them of that yet, but that has happened. Secondly, any undercover operations in Scotland have to be authorised by senior officers in the forced area in which they operate. I would have thought that the minister would have known that. As the member knows, that is not a point of order for me. What the minister says in Trial and Martyr for him, we are now moving to the next site of business, which is a point of order from John Mason. On 4 November, I wrote to you about the abuse of points of order by Mr Findlay, and you wrote back to me on 18 November. However, it seems to me that if one member continues to abuse the system like this, it just encourages all other members to do the same unless some action is taken against them. Can I say, Mr Mason, that is not a point of order? The next site of business is a debate on motion number 1503, in the name of Maureen Watt, on the health, tobacco, nicotine, et cetera, and Care Scotland Bill. Members who wish to take part in the debate should press the request speak button now.


In this presentation we will take a look at the tools needed in order to complete a statement of cash flows. To complete a statement of cash flows we are typically going to need a comparative balance sheet that's going to include a balance sheet from the prior period whether that be the prior month or the prior year and a balance sheet from the current period. Then we're going to have to have an income statement and then we'll need some additional information. In a book problem it'll typically give us some additional information often having to do with things like whether equipment purchases or equipment sales, whether investments in the company, whether sales of stocks, what were the dividends within the company. In practice of course we would have to just know and recognize those types of areas where we might need more detail and we would get that additional information with the general ledger. Once we have this information our major component we're going to use is going to be the comparative balance sheet. That's where we will start. So the comparative balance sheet is going to be used to make a worksheet such as this. This may seem unusual considering we're talking about a cash flow statement, we're talking about activity, we're talking about things that are happening over time and that usually you would think correlate to the income statement because that's also something that would be happening over time. But what we're going to do is kind of back into the activity that's happening over time by looking at the change, by looking at the difference between two points in time. So what we will typically do is take our balance sheet and put it into just a worksheet. This worksheet is more of a trial balance type, it looks like a post closing trial balance for two years in this case, two periods. We can see that the debits are positive, the credits are negative for this worksheet, this minus credits equals zero. So that means that the debits equal the credits for this year, the debits equal the credits for the second year. And if we take the difference between the two, then the change will have a change that will be equal to zero. So this is going to be the type of worksheet we'll put together from the balance sheet in order to then move forward. Now of course this will give us a lot of the information we're going to use. This is the primary worksheet. These differences don't represent balance sheet accounts as of a point in time. What they really represent is the change, what happened, what's going on over time. And therefore these differences really result in income statement type of activity, the income statement reporting, the change oftentimes with many of these accounts. So this is going to be the primary thing that we will look at. Now when we go to some of these items, however, we're going to say, maybe we don't have enough detail, for example, if we look at the change in retained earnings, most of that's going to be net income is going to be the change from retained earnings. But we could have also had some other things happen. We could have had, for example, dividends that were paid or something like that. So some of these types of accounts, the same is going to be with equipment. So if we see a change in equipment, well that could have been a purchase, but there might have been a loan that was on the equipment or some other things as well. So the change in accumulated depreciation is typically going to be depreciation expense, but there might be some other things like a sale of equipment or a purchase that can throw that off as well. So we're just going to note those things and we're going to look at the income statement to verify some of them. For example, the change in retained earnings should equal, if it's net income, that's on the income statement. And we can determine that. And if it's not net income, then we can look at retained earnings and see what else is included in the GL other than retained earnings to make up this change. If the change in equipment is not just a cash purchase of equipment, something else happened. If there's multiple purchases or if there's a loan, we can go to the GL and look at that activity and then pull out the loan documents because not too much activity should be in the equipment account. We should only purchase a few things and we didn't purchase things every day in the equipment account. And the same for accumulated depreciation. If the change happens to not be what is on the income statement for depreciation expense, as you would think, the change for accumulated depreciation would be, we can then go to the income statement and say, hmm, is it? Is that what depreciation expense is? Is it equal to this change in accumulated depreciation? If it is fine and we'll use that number. If it's not, then we got to go into the GL and say, okay, was there a sale of equipment or something else that would happen that's going to throw off or make us do something different? So that's going to get into the alternative information that we're going to be needing. So tools will need balance sheet for the two time periods, the prior period and the current period for which we can use to create a worksheet such as this income statement to give us some more detail about some of these changes in the numbers more of the story. And then additional information in a book problem. They'll just give us additional information in real life. We would go through some of these changes and say, is this, you know, can I check this out by looking at the GL, looking at some additional information that may be needed to verify a couple numbers that we pretty much get used to verifying as we do a few of these cash flow statements.


I am James Swanick. Welcome to another alcohol free lifestyle podcast. Today we're talking to a 55 year old Australian man who decided to go backpacking. He decided to hit Turkey and Spain and live a life that most of us choose to live in our late teens or early 20s when we go backpacking around the world. And he's doing it now in his 50s and he plans to live till he's at least 120. His name is Dave Kelly. He's an Australian father and an incredible new friend of mine. Well, when I say new, I've actually known him a few years. He and I actually met at Tony Robbins 7R called Unleashed the Power Within, UPW, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, about three years ago. And I invited him to come to an event that I was hosting in Venice Beach a few days later and he came. And then he became a client of mine and then a friend and now we invest together in various businesses. And he's a really inspiring coach now. He's helping other people. So if you are someone who has often dreamed about going traveling or chasing your passions or doing all the things that you really want to do and you're in your, let's say mid-life, maybe you're in your 50s and maybe you've got this belief system that's holding you back. A wonderful opportunity to listen to someone who's been able to shake those belief systems and just truly live life to go and do what he wants to do when he wants to do it and with who and you're actually going to hear him. You didn't quite tear up, but I saw, I saw because I was interviewing him on a Zoom call. I saw him get emotional when he was talking about the relationship that he's had, the improved relationship he has with his daughters as a result of him being alcohol-free because Dave chose to go alcohol-free not long after he and I met. And he's been able to connect to his daughters in a way that he shares, he wasn't able to get that connection from his parents growing up or as much of that connection. So I'll let him tell a story. I don't want to just regurgitate what he's saying, but have a listen, especially about two-thirds of the way through the interview. See if you can pick up when he seemed, at least seemed to me to get quite emotional when he was talking about his daughters. Just a reminder as well, if you haven't got my alcohol-freedom formula, I will send it to you. It is a PDF guide. You can go to alcoholfreelifestyle.com forward slash guide to get that. Just a reminder as well, if you would like to join our Project 90 experience and transform your life over the course of at least 90 days, including getting alcohol out of your life or getting power over your alcohol so you can powerfully choose to do moderation if you want after those 90 days or stay quit forever, but alcohol no longer has power over you. Then you can have an exploratory, no obligation phone call with one of our coaches. You can do that at alcoholfreelifestyle.com forward slash schedule. Or if you're in the US on a mobile phone, you can text the word Project 90 to the number 44222. When you do that, I will text you back a schedule link where you can book that call. All right, let's listen to Dave Kelly, 55-year-old who decided to go backpacking the world, who's now alcohol-free, has a much better relationship with his daughters and his loving life and living the life that he always dreamed of. Here we go, Dave Kelly. How old are you, David? I'm 55. Kids? Hard to believe I know. Three children, adult children, one getting married in October this year and 22 is my youngest and 29 is my oldest. Sounds weird. You look pretty terrific for someone who's 50. You said you're 55? I'm 55. James, we've talked about a Canadian entrepreneur named Dan Sullivan who runs a thing called Strategic Coach. I did the Strategic Coach program back in 2014. I went to London four times and so I rocked into this thing with all these pommies and this Aussie comes in and he says, right, okay, first exercise called Life Extender and what that is where you decide how old you want to live to. I'm thinking, what? So we went through that process and I decided I would live to be 120. That was seven years ago. That doesn't sound as weird now when people talk about that, but I thought, okay, well, if I'm going to live to be 120, I've got to start doing stuff that mean that I live and I'm not talking limping until 120. It's like living productively, loving, powerfully until 120. I've got to do certain things now and so I think that that's why I maybe look a bit younger than my age. Yeah, you do. I mean, for the listener who can't see, Dave, I'd encourage you actually go to my YouTube channel and you can watch the video version of this interview, the YouTube channel's James Swannick, but Dave doesn't look 55. He looks probably, I'd say you probably look mid to late 40s, you know, most mid to late 40s.  Because most 55 year olds don't look like you all have the kind of health that they do and also most 55 year olds don't go kind of backpacking around the world, which is kind of what you've been doing throughout the whole COVID thing, right? Tell us a little bit about that. Yeah, so as you know, we met in Los Angeles and I've been there for two and a half years at that point, up until March of 2020, came, got scared at the crap out of me out of LA when things, you know, went crazy. And I came back to Australia for four months. And while I was there, I thought, I want to drive across America. So I went back to America in July on Independence Day of 2020. And my family is saying he's lost it. The guy, what happened to him? He didn't tell us he hit his head, but something's happened in that little noggin of his. And so I drove across America. I drove from Los Angeles to Boston, to Chicago, Boston, New York, down to Washington. And then I said, right, I'm going to go to Spain for four months and just have fun over there for three months. And I went to Spain, and then I went to Bulgaria, and then I went to Turkey and fell in love with Turkey. And I feel like Turkey fell in love with me. And I was there for nine months. So, and, you know, back to the previous question about looking a bit younger, I think that, you know, there's an expression about you're only as young as the woman you feel.  But it's got some, I find that I was in Turkey, I was hanging out. And for a couple of years now, I've hung out with people 10 to 15 years younger than me. Or sorry, no, 15 to 20 years younger than me. And I found I got great acceptance. And so I'm there being energized and sharing my who I am with younger people and, you know, feeling cool in that context and having fun. And I think that also just my perspective is a younger perspective. My energy is a much more energetic sort of way of being. And that somehow translates to the mush. And, you know, how it looks, I think, you know, in my brain, certainly I'm staring at this goal of being old in numbers, but being vital. And, but, you know, I've got to say the other part of all that is, because I think I mean, I haven't now been sick for about three years, not at all. And I contribute that largely to stopping drinking alcohol. And the other thing I did around about that time was I started taking cold showers. Pretty much every shower I have will finish cold for a minute. And as weird as that sounds, and as kind of benign as that sounds, there's plenty of evidence to suggest that helps. Definitely the alcohol and not drinking alcohol helps because I'm not I'm not topping up a poison in my body regularly. And it really does help a lot to just get up and at them. I love the fact I can get up and at them on a Sunday morning. And I've got no restraints.  There's no sort of start up time. And there's no getting over a hangover time. All that helps as well for living with plenty of energy and vitally. Yeah, amazing. And just for the listener, maybe you could just explain how you've been able to travel abroad the way you have. I mean, you're divorced, right? It's not like you're not married and taking a family with you. You're divorced and you've got adult children.  Is that right? Correct. Yeah. Yeah. So I got divorced five years ago now. And probably are now doing things that normally normal people or normally you would do in your 20s, late 20s, early 30s, perhaps. And I didn't do that because I was having kids. And so fortunately, like I'm 55, but I've got a 28 year old daughter, Linda. And so I had kids young and got on with it. And now I'm getting a chance to do that. And I've got the health and I've got the energy and I've got the money to be able to do that. And I'm very incredibly grateful for that. Incredibly grateful that I didn't miss that. I thought I kind of missed that chance. And it's just so beautiful that I said, no, I want to do this. I want to travel and experience countries and people and just cultures and everything. And I've had the horsepower to do it. What do you do for yourself financially? So over the past 12 months, it's fair to say that I've had a bit of a sabbatical, a self-imposed sabbatical. Before that time in Los Angeles, I was doing a few things. I was a property developer. And when I went to America, I was doing a project for a company. Prior to that in Australia, I ran my own businesses pretty much for 25 years and was consulting and things in the property field. I've been investing for 21 years now. And so I've continued to do that and had some wins in the last couple of years and then actively investing in the stock market and the other financial markets as well. And the other thing I was doing in Los Angeles, which I loved, was public speaking. So I was running around working with a stock market trading company. So stock market trading company. So they would teach you how to trade the stock market. And I was one of their speakers around Los Angeles. And I love that because it got me out, connecting with people, speaking from stage, which I like, and on a topic that I really enjoy and believe in. So I've got a few different hats to wear out there. Yeah. And your alcohol-free experience, how did that come about? Maybe you could just tell us a little bit about what your alcohol use was until your alcohol use was no more. And then maybe just talk about that transition and how that happened. Sure. So I am an Australian and I started drinking alcoholic 14. And I think at 15, me and my cheeky mates would sneak into the public hotel and would hide down the back. And in those days, the public and I mean, you can't put anything over those guys. They deal with everyone in the human race.  And they look and say, oh, yeah, right. There's some 13, 14 year olds over there. But in those days, they didn't worry. It's like, yeah, whatever. And we had one drink of beer and then you've fallen over at the start. But so like an Aussie, there's so much alcohol in our society that we get. We start without ever questioning. It's almost like not a decision. It's just something you do. And then after a while, you never think of having any social settings or where you're not going to drink alcohol. And it's so weird now, because I can now go out. Once I got used to not drinking, and that was fine. But what do I do with my hands? Because, you know, in a social setting, most people, they've got a drink and they, or if they're on the dance floor, they're there sloshing their drink everywhere. And now I go to places and watch bands play.   But partly that's because you don't know what to do with your hands.  I thought, I can stand there with nothing in my head or I can grab a drink of, you know, ice cold water and enjoy it. And, you know, I found now that those social settings do not upset me at all. People often get curious and they kind of think, man, you're not drinking. And so that's more of a drama for them to get over. And I can ham that up now and sort of turn it into something funny so they don't feel like they might be able to sort of try and make me look like I'm a nong or something, you know, a bit behind the times. And I can just turn it into, yeah, you want to joke? Yeah, let's joke at how free I am and how isn't it cool that I don't need to be spending all this money on stuff that I'm going to feel sorry that I spent the money on tomorrow morning. And I'm 55 and I look 45. Yeah. That sort of thing. Yeah. And, you know, I find that I'll give you one funny illustration. There's a, I met some wonderful people in Turkey and one of them is a young guy and he was turning 30. And he was, he's turned about 33. Really great guy. I like him a lot. Tom, you know, yourself, Tom. And Tom, and the habit was there when people would have a party, we'd go on a boat cruise and we were living in Kash, southern Turkey, and we'd go on this like drop dead gorgeous day-long boat cruise, swimming, getting up off the boat, hiking up the hills and everything. And like the most beautiful water, you know, you can imagine. And Tom said, Dave, so Tom's turning 33. I'm 55. We've built a close friendship. And he said, Dave, I really want you to come on my, come to the birthday. He said, but I've got to tell you, we are going to get, can you swear on this podcast? Yeah, go on. Okay. We are going to get shit-faced. Just so you know. And I don't know whether you want to come. I said, Tom, I'd love to come.  And I've got my soda water and a rock on the boat. And anyway, so then it got a bit awkward at the, the boat got moving and everyone's there and the music's gone and we're all dancing and carrying on. And then to kick the day off, it seems that the custom is that you, they have a shot, you know, a shot of a liqueur or alcohol or something. And I could see them all getting, looking a bit kind of awkward and a bit. And Tom said, he said to me, Dave, we're going to have a shot just to get things moving. I hope that's okay. And I'm saying, dude, this is your, this is your birthday, not mine. You do whatever you want. And they said, oh, that's good. I said, would you want to have a shot? And I looked around and everyone's like, you must look at me as though, it's like, Dave, they're watching what's his response going to be. And I looked around and I thought, what a great moment I could choose to or I could not choose to. And I said, Tom, I'm going to have a shot with you. And the relief that poured over their faces was, wow. And it was almost like I chose to just accept them as they were. And there was no judgment, no judgment at all, from my point of view, but just acknowledging that and getting on with it. Anyway, we all had a shot. It made no difference to me. And I didn't drink any more alcohol at all. I did it purely just because I wanted to show them that, hey, I love you guys and I'm with you. And let's just have a ripping day. As it turned out, I probably danced harder and more with a greater amount of energy. And at the end of the day, I got off and I could actually walk down the gang plank, you know, just without almost falling into the water. Whereas the rest of them, they were plastered, completely plastered. And afterwards they say, and then we went to an after party. And I'll tell you what, there until we got, until the cops came around at 2.15 in the morning, I was dancing as hard as anyone. And they say, God, we just can't, we just can't believe your energy and how cool you are and all this stuff. And I'm saying, well, man, I was just loving life. And I'm not sure what your original question was, but there was a couple. It's all right. We're getting, I think we're getting a feel for the way that you have positioned alcohol in your life and the way that you positioned fun and being light and not overthinking things and just being chilled out. So what I took from it is like, you've been mostly alcohol free for how long now? For two years, last March. Okay. Two years last March. Yeah. What's that? Two years and six months, I guess. Two years and six months, yeah.  Other times, other times you've had drinks. I've had a couple of drinks. So I'd like to say that alcohol, for me, my relationship with alcohol up until then, I think this was your original question. I was living in Los Angeles.  And just loving that. And I would have a drink. And sometimes I would have a drink too many. But it wasn't, but then the next day, forget about it. I'm not interested at all. See you next week.  I really was. I was, I was so, it just was very difficult. And I then thought to myself, I thought, if I'm going to stay in Los Angeles, I've got to change where I'm living and I've got to change my job to do something that I enjoy. And I did both of those things. And the first thing I did was I went to the Mindvalley conference. The second thing I did was went to Tony Robbins. And when I met Tony Robbins, I hit this Australian accent, you know, spun around and I hear, see this bloke here talking and it's got this like, there's about three women queued up to talk to him. I thought, wow, he must be famous or something, famous Australian. And anyway, he introduced, we chatted and we swapped numbers. And then so my plan was to change, you know, to move up near Venice or Manhattan Beach up that way. And so I said, James, can I come and have a coffee with you? I sent a message, James, can I have a coffee with you and this week, because I'm wanting to move to Venice and you know, Venice and maybe you can guide me a little bit where to live, etc. And he said, no, no, David, I'm too busy, too busy. He said, come to my event. I'm thinking, Oh, God, who is this bloke? Like, I've met him for five minutes. He's got this queue of women wanting to talk to him. He's, you know, cool, good looking bloke. He's got these funny shaded glasses on. And he says, come to my event, I'll send you a link. And I say, right, so he sends me the link. And I kid you not. This is how this is where I was at my relationship with Elka. I opened the email and upplopped alcohol-free lifestyle. And I thought I looked at it and I thought, Holy cow, I've never even thought of that. I've never even thought of not drinking. That's how, how much drinking was a part of my psyche was that it was almost like there was never even a consideration of not drinking. And so I was a regular drinker. Often, often drinking probably maybe once a week drinking more than I wanted I needed to. And then I pretty much dish it for the next week and come back and I tried to only drink on the weekends, et cetera. And then I went to went to the alcohol-free weekend. And at the end of that, James said, hey, why don't you try, he challenged everyone, challenged them to, so I'm in the midst of right, I've split up with the girlfriend and on New Year's Eve, I go and it sounds dramatic, New Year's Eve split up. Well, it wasn't, it was okay. It wasn't traumatic. And then I moved jobs. I moved, I'm about to move house. I've been to this positive, all these events. And then James says, try not drinking alcohol. He said to the group, I challenge you to not drink alcohol for 30 days and just see how it goes. And so I thought, I wonder if I can go out to these night, you know, to the clubs, out salsa dancing, potato dancing, go and listen to bands without alcohol or whether I need that to have the confidence of chatting with people or dancing or whatever. And I thought, I'm going to use this as an experiment. Yeah, I'm going to decide, yeah, I'll have to give it a shot for 30 days. So I head off after the first week, I went out a couple of times and I thought, that pretty much made no difference. Not, not drinking alcohol pretty much didn't bother me at all. And I thought, that's good. That's, this is good. And so I thought I'll keep it rolling for the month. So the next week, good. The next week had a terrible week and things happened at work. And I was, I remember driving along the, and if anyone's, you know, been to Los Angeles, I was driving along from El Segundo on the beach road where the power station is and the sewage works and things enjoying the view and just loving all that. And all this doom and terrible. And I felt very sad about the split up I'd had. And I thought, you know what I want to do right now is I want to go to this bar that I was aware of. I want to get two scotches and I want to sit down in the corner and just kind of let my mind just forget about it. Forget about all these emotions that came up. Just want to get over it. And then maybe I'll have another one. And just to really forget it and ease out of it. Now, and then, you know, as I was driving, I was thinking, it was like a light came on because for the very first time I realized I'd been using alcohol all my life to avoid emotions.  But I never did. I held it all in like a good Aussie man, you know, because we're tough and we don't show emotion and all that sort of stuff. And I realized I was using alcohol to avoid the emotions. And I thought to myself, I thought, you know, I'm going to, I'm not going to do that anymore. I'm not going to, I need to just deal authentically and truthfully with whatever's happening. And I didn't drink alcohol and I went on and did not drink a drop of alcohol for about 15 months. And then, you know, I might have had a, but so alcohol was no threat to me. It was a choice I'd made to not drinking. And there was so many cool things came out of it. So my relationship now is one where I can actually see a freedom to choose or not choose. Whereas I look at a lot of my mates, they never have been in a position of not drink, not choosing. You know, they will always drink in every situation. And that was me beforehand. Yeah. Yeah. What has your family, what have your daughters said to you about this, let's call it an upgraded version of Dave? Do you feel like this is an upgraded version of you? Like how have your daughters responded to this version? I'm definitely an upgraded version. That's for sure. I had the software and a bit of the hardware upgraded so far. Software is continually getting upgraded. My daughters, I think the point, since moving to America and, you know, in really enjoying my life, I've made a point of telling them all the time.   He didn't know communication. I'll send them silly photos of me doing random stuff. And sometimes they say, listen, stop, stop. We don't need to know about that. Okay. Just stop that bit and tell us the rest. And so we would often have a weekly call, the three daughters and myself, which are fantastic. And I think that my guess is that my daughters would say, well, he wears the same shirts sometimes. And they've been influential in my fashion police to upgrade my wardrobe. But I think they'd say he's living his life. Like they know I'm living my life and I'm having fun because I tell them all the time and I illustrate to them in all the different things. And then subsequently I did a few different transformational programs. Again, that was if I'd not met you, and I'm not here to just say that James is the key to the salvation, like he's the Australian version of Jesus Christ or anything. I don't know about that. No, I'm not. He's not that. But what I did do, because since I met you, I got an upgrade then in terms of what's possible. And one of the things that I think I learned through you in terms of certainly the upgrade of moving to choose how your life wants to be. And if you want to drop alcohol, you've got all the power within you to do that. That was awesome. And major, probably one of the most significant decisions I've made in my life without a doubt. It is one of the, probably two key decisions in my life. You were there at that time and I really thank you for that. And then from that one decision, many other good decisions came. And so then at the appropriate time we were talking about personal development programs. How do I really get into this stuff? And again, James suggested, you suggested to me about the programs in Los Angeles, Elevate Leadership Community. And those ones were where I really did some deep work on myself. And I cried a river of tears in getting through some of the difficulties and stuff that things I had to, you know, endured in my life and things that had happened, things hadn't worked too well. But I know that I'm a much more present person as a father. And I don't have any regrets of what's happened in my life. But I know this, that I was not the present father when my kids were growing up, that I would be now if I was starting on that journey. And I can't remake that. But what I can do is be fully present in every situation I'm in. And I find that I'm able to be present, you know, sometimes really powerfully present. And I think that my daughters would say, he's really living, like he's really living my expression to my daughters, the fact that I tell them in great powerful bunches of words and with love, just how much I appreciate them being in my life and how proud I am of them. That was a definite change because that's not what the way I am.  That wasn't part of my upbringing. But I tell you what, my daughters know that absolutely. So they would say that, and we share it, I just say it feels like my relationship with my daughters is getting better and better and better. Beautiful, powerful. Yeah, it's powerful. Yeah. And what an amazing gift that they get to receive from having such a powerful father. Well, I think, you know, I'm so grateful for that, because I'm so grateful for being the man that I've had the opportunity to make choices and decisions about changing to be and to hold values that I never would have. And I know I know I wouldn't have made these transformations if, unless I'd taken the responsibility or the made the choice to move away from just consuming alcohol willy nilly, because the direction of my life changed at that point. It was the first decision that led to many other great decisions is what I say. And when people ask me about this stuff, that's what I tell them. And I find, James, that it's not just my daughters. I find that I can be, I mean, it's almost like my, I feel that my cup is pretty full, like almost full most of the time, you know, my cup of love, my cup of power, energy, and what I want to contribute to others.  I never felt that stuff before. I really didn't. I went around thinking I was some second class person because of the belief structures that I adopted as a kid. Now I think, no, I'm a buddy, you know, I won't swear too much, but I'm ready to go. And I'm whatever it is that's, whatever it is I choose to do, I believe I've got the, if I haven't got the skill set now, it's not far away or it's through someone I know, and I'm in relationship with, I'm going to work it out. And, you know, I'm the type of guy who will deliver and I'll be there. And thankfully, as I've said, yes to so many of these things, incredible things have happened. Like people say, why did you, why did you go, what was it like traveling in the pandemic? I said, that's fantastic. There's no competition. Everyone else is scared out of their jocks. They were bloody, no worried and they're, you know, worried about catching this virus.   My life is powerfully moving forwards and that's because that is it. This persona is very different and this is how I am. This is how I wake up in the morning. So I feel that my cup is full and it's full and maybe I've got to top it up a little bit and I do various things like that, like meditation, for example, getting centered, getting present, getting in nature, expressing my gratitude for all the cool things that we get to do, no matter where we are and whatever situation. There's always numerous, numerous things we can look and give thanks for and I find that that tops up my, if I'm sitting at 97% when I wake up, I can top it up easily to 100% and then I can give that out to whoever and wherever I am and I love to connect with people. I'm doing it all the time and, but it's always, I always trying to just, I'm wanting to give and contribute. That's what my life's about, freedom and contribution and I find that so many opportunities, I create them or I see them or whatever, but it's about contributing, it's about giving and receiving and I feel my life's working at a pretty high standard and I look at some other characters around the place and I look and think, whoa, isn't this cool? How much further is to go? Look at the way that person's operating, they're operating it with more facility available to them, with more, they're generating, they're manifesting these amazing circumstances and situations because of the way they look at life. So this is further to go and it's just a, it's a wonderful, wonderful journey and feeling like there's no pressure, there's no time pressure, there's no wrong, wrong decisions. I'm just, you know, I'm in a flow most of the time, which is great and I just know, I know without a doubt that these things would not, I would not be in this position saying these things I'm saying without having dropped alcohol because it was such an insidious, disempowering thing that I never decided to do. It's just that I did and it was part of my way of turning up and now I realize it's a choice. For me, it's a choice. I could choose to or not choose to. What am I going to do? Most of the time, by far and away, I choose not to because it doesn't really add anything to my life. I've got all the energy and the love and the confidence and the power I need. I don't need to get that through alcohol. So why do I drink this shit? Because it's going to just end up, I'll feel crooked or I'll feel poisoned or I'll feel whatever, whatever. And I pay, spend a lot of money on this stuff and you think what's, what's the value really? I'm turning up authentically and truly. I don't, what can alcohol add to me? Nothing. I used to think, you know, this is my daughter's wedding is coming up in October and people would say, are you going to drink, are you going to not drink it forever? And I say, I don't know. It's a big question, isn't it? It's not a big question at all. And I used to think to myself, I thought, oh, maybe I would, maybe I'd have a glass of wine where at my daughter's wedding and or maybe when I'm going out with a beautiful woman, I'm having dinner. And then it occurred to me one day, I thought, that is crazy thinking, because it's as though I'm thinking somehow alcohol is going to make my daughter's wedding more special or alcohol is going to make a date with a beautiful woman more special. And I thought, that's a complete lie. That's what the alcohol companies want me to think is that it's going to make it special. It doesn't make it special. Me turning up as the most powerful authentic man I can be on any given day, that's what makes it special. It's not the other stuff. It's just about me being and this whole journey since for the last two and a half years has been about me upgrading who I am as a man who I'm being. And I don't need alcohol to, alcohol is definitely not going to upgrade me. It just doesn't happen that way. Yeah, I should just give you the microphone. You can be the podcast host from now on, David. That was amazing. That was incredible.  Because one of the things that you have created out of this new way of being is you helping men to step into their power and to get clear from the insidious poison that is alcohol and also the insidious self-doubt and restrictions that we all put on ourselves through false beliefs or beliefs that just don't serve us. So tell us the name of your new business and what you actually do for those men.   But it's man, s, c, h, i, t.  M, a, n, s, c, h, i, t. So I've been running a podcast. It's a fledgling business. I've been trying to work out how I get my message and this energy and this power and this love that I have in me. How do I get to a market of men who want to hear that message? Because there's lots of messages out there. There's oodles and oodles. And how do I've got a certain spin and I've got a certain Dave Kelly that I want to impress upon the world. My life's about freedom. It's about contribution.  And so I run a podcast with that and I've started a coaching group. But this is how that started was that when I turned 50, I had a party just for my mates and I was still drinking alcohol then. I was living in Australia. But my trajectory was definitely pointed upwards and I was heading in where I wanted it to go. And a friend of mine bounded over to me, you know, he came to a 50th party. No one brings presents anymore. It's terrible. Anyway, one mate lobs up to me with this book wrapped up and I opened up the book and it's yellow cover and the book, the title was 50. Have we learned to swear on this podcast, Jones? You've already done it about 17 times. So you can might as well just keep going. Okay. So the book is called 50, Fat and Fat. Thank you very much, Chris. That's a lovely gift for my 50th birthday. And I thought that's completely irrelevant to me. The only thing that was right was that I was 50, right? I was 50. I was not fat.  And I thought I proceeded to leave the book at the bar where we were having the party because I thought it's irrelevant. I'm not even going to read it. But then I looked around at my mates who were there and I thought, hang on, I think you should read this book. There was a bunch of my mates there. And I wondered whether they were living as powerfully as they could. And I wondered whether they had vital relationships, including their marriage relationship. And I wondered whether their body was at where it was at. And then a very big drinking culture. And I just, it was a question for me when, whereas me, I talk off and I thought, what I want to do is be able to be a resource and be a connector of others and build a community of men that realise if they are having problems in their relationships with their, in other relationships in their life, like children, business partners, exes, whatever other dramas, if their drugs and alcohol are beating them down, if their body is starting as they get older to tank a bit and they're not feeling as great. Or if they're having problems with their money, those five areas, that I could bring something of my own perception of lifting men up and helping them realise that, hey, if I'm having trouble in any of those five areas, the game's not over. We can correct that. And then we can get on and live powerfully. And that's what the whole project's about, empowering men through a community and using the podcast and other resources I'm going to develop. Where can men reach you, David? Well, probably through the, I guess the best way would be through the Instagram, man shit, M-A-N-S-E-H-O-D-T, manshit.project or this manshit.com. Yeah, reach out. I'm a man. I love connecting with men with a purpose. And I'm wanting to put the next 70 years of my life into the next 70 years of my life, into contribution and getting rewarded for that, because it's an exchange of what I haven't, I've sweated and I've cried rivers of tears to have an understanding that I think is transferable and useful for others. And that's what I want to do, be part of others' lives in that way. If you're listening as well and if you're not on Instagram, you don't choose to be on Instagram and you'd still like to get ahold of David, send me an email at James at alcoholfreelifestyle.com and just put David Kelly in the subject line and just say, hey, I'm trying to reach David and I'll be happy to connect you. Some pretty cool things that have come out of our relationship, David. First and foremost, I consider us to be really good friends. We've built a great friendship over the years. You've been a client of mine as well. You were in my own men's group legacy for a good two years. And we've done some investment. We're investing together now, aren't we? We invest our money into some businesses and you've joined an investment club that I was in, which is really, really cool. And we have mutual friends. We discover that we have mutual friends as well. And yeah, it's kind of amazing to me. I'm honored to see people transform. And I don't say this with any, what's the word I'm looking for, not being pompous or patronizing, that's the word without being patronizing. But it's wonderful for me to see people transform in front of my eyes. And if I play a small part in that, that I'm super happy. And even if I play a no part in that, it's really inspiring to me to see somebody transform. And you are definitely someone who I've seen transform. Plus, you've been so supportive of all the other people that I've introduced you to, or you've come into contact with inside of our group. You even hosted one of our podcast episodes here on the alcohol-free lifestyle, which is incredible. So it's been a real honor to see you grow and to see you transform. And this has been incredibly inspiring for me to listen to your share, your story, as I hope it has been for our listeners as well. So thank you. And I can't wait to see what the next 70 years entails for you. Thanks, James. It's a pleasure. And I've seen the power of your program when I did some coaching in the program and saw people over 12 weeks be scared about what all this means about changing from not drinking. And at the end of the 12 weeks saw incredible, incredible life. The thing that I've said to you, James, the thing that's so significant about when someone moves their life into realizing they've got choices other than just to drink, then they are impacted. Their spouse is impacted. They might have children. They'll have other family members. Then they have all their friends and they have all their work colleagues. And what you've done through this program is in a definite, definite way, you've given people a chance to see another reality that exists. And it is so powerful because I'm evidence of it. I would speak that if you can make that brilliant choice of realizing that you're actually a free man, you don't need to just do what you're told to do or the marketers tell you to do or you've been doing, drinking, hiding in the pub in the corner of the pub since you were 14. You can just live as a free man. When you do that, many people get impacted and it's just wonderful what you're doing in the alcohol-free work. It is life-changing. It is. Thanks, Dave. Appreciate you, mate. And yeah, thank you so much for listening as well to the listener. Like I said, if you'd like to get a hold of Dave or you'd just like to send me an email and let me know what you thought of this episode or others, then you can email me at jamesatalcohol freelifestyle.com and I will talk to you on the next one. Thank you so much for listening to today's episode.  If you look in the show description, there's a link there to get my guide, which is the Alcohol Freedom Formula Guide. And in that guide, I will walk you through the process and system for successfully reducing or quitting alcohol. It's the same system and process that I give to my clients inside of Project 90. And if you would like to get your hands on that guide, you can click the link in the description part of this episode, or you can go to alcoholfreelifestyle.com forward slash guide. Likewise, if you would like to be considered for Project 90 to join our community and get some accountability, some coaching and have fun, achieve some goals over at least 90 days with our help and support, then you're invited to schedule a complimentary coaching call with one of my coaches. You can do that by clicking the link in the show description or going to alcoholfreelifestyle.com forward slash schedule. Now Project 90 is for over 30s only. And it's really for people who are ready to get long-term power over alcohol. You don't have to quit forever, but you will have to quit for at least 90 days with our support. Just a reminder, 95% of my content is free and plastered all over the internet. If you just Google James Swanik and the word alcohol, you'll find that. For those of you who want additional support, if you want coaching, fun, accountability, if you realize that you can't do this on your own or you just plain don't want to, then I invite you to schedule that call and we can talk about if Project 90 is for you. If you would like to take some of my supplements, swanvitality.com is the website. I'll put a link in the show notes as well. I have a liver support product called Loving Liver, which I designed and specially formulated to help remove toxins from your liver after years of alcohol consumption. Again, there's a link in the show description. We've also got a green powder there, which turns into a green juice filled with amazing ingredients to support you and give you energy throughout the day. And there's also a magnesium product, which I take every night to help me prepare for sleep and to sleep through the night. So there's a few options there. Lastly, if this episode or the show in general has helped you or supported you in any way, I would so appreciate it if you would write a review. It really does help the show climb the rankings and expose the show to people who don't yet know about us. So if this show has benefited you in any way and you feel compelled to pay it forward, just writing a short little review, hopefully a nice one will be so appreciated. And I will thank you immensely. Lastly, if you'd like to talk to me about anything at all, feel free to send me an email at James at alcoholfreelastyle.com. I do read and respond to every email. And you can also follow me on Instagram at at James Swannick. Send me a message there. And I look forward to connecting with you soon. Catch you on the next one.


Animal Farm by George Orwell Red by Adam Buxton CHAPTER I Mr. Jones, of the Manor Farm, had locked the henhouses for the night, but was too drunk to remember to shut the pop-holes. With the ring of light from his lantern dancing from side to side, he lurched across the yard, kicked off his boots at the back door, drew himself a last glass of beer from the barrel in the scullery, and made his way up to bed, where Mrs. Jones was already snoring. As soon as the light in the bedroom went out, there was a stirring and a fluttering all through the farm buildings. Word had gone round during the day that old Major, the prize middle-white boar, had had a strange dream on the previous night, and wished to communicate it to the other animals.


Today marks nine years since the death of Michael Brown and Ferguson. The metro area is honoring his life today with two memorial events and our Sydney Stallworth is live in Clayton with today's tribute. Good morning Michelle Renny on August 9th 2014 Michael Brown was shot and killed in the streets of Ferguson following a confrontation with a Ferguson police officer. Now his death sparked outrage in this community and far beyond leading to demonstrations and calls for police reform.  They're honoring a criminal at a memorial and it seems like they're leaving out quite a few details. Do they not know there was a grand jury where all the facts came out and Darren Wilson was found to have been justified and where the claims that Michael Brown had his hands up were debunked? Of course they do but what we're watching is the creation of a big lie and an attempt to revise history. This myth was notably endorsed by CNN in a highly embarrassing and revealing on air moment.  Please do us your comments. Poppy Harlow is up next. Fast forward to the present day and there are still people who choose to disregard the factual evidence and commemorate Michael Brown as a victim perpetuating the hands up don't shoot myth. When I say people I mean Democrats and the media Fox News included. Now organizers for these events in his honor are acknowledging that this painful moment of our past can hopefully usher in a new future for our community. A new community by perpetuating lies and revising history in order to protect the criminals that are destroying the community in the first place. Yup. Also later tonight an organization started by Michael Brown's father Michael Brown senior called chosen for change will hold the second annual black ball fundraiser awards Gala. They're still using a picture of him as a kid. Why not use this video of him pushing around a store owner that he just robbed just before he gets into a fight with a cop and tries to take his gun. Today marks nine years since the fatal shooting of Michael Brown Jr. in Ferguson. Fox News Taylor Harris reports as the community reflects on the changes that have been made in the hope for the future. What on August nine 2014 Michael Brown laid deceased on Canfield Drive in Ferguson for four and a half hours after being fatally shot by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson after robbing a store and then getting into a fight with a police officer where Michael Brown tried to take his gun. But of course none of that is ever even mentioned. This glaring disparity between reality and the actual facts perfectly demonstrates the strategy of Democrats and their state media. They understand that through constant repetition a falsehood can eventually be accepted as the truth especially when countering it becomes tiresome. We all know those of us who try to point these kind of things out get smeared and demonized as right wing conspiracy theorists which leads to many so-called normies in the public to just dismiss us out of hand. This brings us to Democrat Corey Bush. So she says today is the ninth anniversary of Michael Brown's killing. Well for one he wasn't killed he was shot in self-defense by an officer who was defending himself from Michael Brown who was trying to take his gun. But she goes on he would be alive today if the institutions of racism and white supremacy were eradicated. Well I want to say again that there was a grand jury on this and they found no evidence of racial bias at all. He should be alive today. We will never forget. We will continue to fight for justice and accountability. So she's just going on as if there was never a grand jury. Nothing ever changed. The hands up don't shoot myth was never debunked. So one of the great things about Elon Musk getting control of Twitter is that now we have community notes and community notes have been calling out Democrats and the media over and over for things that they would have gotten away with before. The US DOJ concluded based on the available evidence that Officer Darren Wilson acted lawfully and that the evidence and witness statements do not corroborate allegations of any wrongdoing in this case. You know it's just like George Floyd where the media and Democrats made the entire thing about race even though in the trial no allegations of racism were ever even made. So there were some pretty hilarious responses here and I'll show you a few of them. The first one here from Andrew at Don't Walk Run Productions. I'm sure a lot of you watch his videos. He said he would be alive if he hadn't been a criminal or attacked a police officer. Aristophanie says he'd be alive if he didn't try to take a police officer's gun while the cop was very threateningly checks notes sitting in this patrol car minding his own business.  Exactly. And it's more than just sophomoric. It's dangerous because if you remember their rhetoric around this incited riots which led to death and destruction. While this does provide some entertainment, it's also kind of demoralizing because the fact is Corey Bush and others like her will continue to perpetuate this lie to the extent that even Fox News affiliates do it. Nevertheless, folks like me will continue to remind people about what actually occurred. If you would like to support me in that effort, you can find all the links in the description or pinned comment. If you found this information valuable, please consider liking, sharing and subscribing. Feel free to leave a comment to share your thoughts on this blatant attempt to revise history.