Politics

Here we go again on this insane merry-go-round of talk, proposed legislation and dick swinging regarding migration as federal parliament ramps up law-making action before the winter recess.   Now you'd think that we'd consider, in all of this, the history of migration and associated legislation in Oz since federation. But the only things that appear to be gaining oxygen are highly visible attempts at pissing around our borders to mark out the 'turf' and insinuating that there's an enemy just itching to run rampant through the streets of Sydney and beyond in the great land.   Has our own experience of migration over the last century taught us nothing? Is Australia, in 2017, a nation of citizens who can correctly recite the names of our first three prime ministers and spell 'surreal' or, worse still, 'iconic'? Do we honestly think that including, as part of a citizenship test, a 'values' question such as 'Do you agree that ...

Andrew Bolt's attached article from the weekend's Herald Sun highlights one mode of thought regarding an explanation for some of the terrible occurrences around the world, and in Australia, over the last two years. The fact that Sonia Kruger endorsed Bolt's central analysis, on 'brekkie television' this morning, probably has given it an even wider audience.   Whether you accept the arguments or not is, I guess, dependent on where you stood on such issues before the weekend. And that statement is crucial in all of this. None of Bolt's statistics are new and they certainly aren't a surprise. It's what significance you attribute to them that's important and we all know the pros and cons of bean counting.   Andrew Bolt is no dill. He doesn't say we should stop Muslim-background migrants yet he provides the canvas for the artwork to be realised, along with a colouring guide and the necessary paints. Just maybe it's about time w...

The movement to the right continues and yeah, I know, I said I'd leave it.......but hell.   What a fabulous little mob this Q Society is. How could it not be with luminaries like Angry Anderson, Gabrielle Lord, Larry Pickering, Kirralie Smith, Ross Cameron and Debbie Robinson occupying the front seats on this divisive bus? And they have the support of Cory Bernardi and George Christensen........ say no more.   Halal certification, Sharia law and that pesky burqa were all on the table when this group mobilised last weekend at a fundraiser here in Sydney. Ross Cameron even managed to inject some homophobia into an analysis of ancient Rome but exactly what that had to do with those cutlass-waving Muslim mad men is anybody's guess.   Little by little, these nut jobs are gaining credibility as we move further away from the mid-point. What I wonder is just how many people like you and me secretly agree with their arguments and share their prejudices.   ...

I lead a varied and exciting existence here in busy Greystanes. In between hours of severe introspection in front of the bathroom mirror, taking out the bins on garbage night and swinging a golf club unconvincingly, another component of this life lies in writing letters to politicians and education authorities. I do it as part of a role that both Kerry and I have in an association. Don't mind doing it actually as it does help fill in the time.   However, this update is not meant to inform regarding the goings-on in the wild and zany post-work world of yours truly. Rather, it's to do with something that happened this week concerning one of those letters I sent.   Over the last six months, I've dispatched close to one hundred letters/ emails/ messages to politicians (at both federal and state levels) on subjects as diverse as education, aged health care, superannuation, CPI stuff, refugees, Aboriginal affairs, taxation and trade union autonomy..........and the...

Just a bit more follow-up stuff from my Bernardi post last night and then I'll leave it alone.   Whilst the tall guy's pulling out of his stumps is, in itself, really only of interest to political pundits and hacks, his action does present as symptomatic of a significant condition. We're becoming more conservative in the party political sense and we're becoming more conservative in a societal sense. This has been aided and abetted by the decline of the traditional fourth estate, the rise of the social media platforms as de facto news providers and the increasing concentration of media ownership in the hands of a few........... not just here in Oz but world-wide.   As you'd expect, conservatives look over their shoulders and pine for a time when women were women, men were men and farts smelt like farts.......and not bloody soothing aloe! The conservative's world is one of monoculture, blind respect for authority and subservience to ordained rules. ...

Cory Bernardi's 'jumping ship' from the Coalition is worrying; not in terms of the headaches it will give Malcolm Turnbull but, rather, in what it might indicate about the developing political, social and economic firmament in Australia.   To me, those landscapes are fast changing and all the movement seems to be in the direction of the Right.......... and maybe beyond. Bernardi wouldn't be muscling up if he figured that he wouldn't have some support for an exit. And it's that popular 'support' that is troubling. Of course, the resurrection of One Nation nationally, as well as the Brexit and Trump surprises overseas, reinforce this shift to the right and all feature a 'people power' component to their physiques. Please note, I'm not criticising democracy but I am beginning to wonder what it says about us.   For instance, the feds (both the Coalition and Labor) in 2017 are still swinging their dicks (sorry ladies, I'm sur...

I'm not sure about this week's presidential election. Yep, all the indicators point to a Clinton victory and that would be good. But there's something- in anecdotal form- that's really bugging me.   Just over twelve months ago, the princess and I enjoyed a four week holiday in the New World and it was divided into two halves. For the first two weeks, we pitched camp in New York City and Chicago. Basically, we traipsed around the two cities and had a fine time.   The second half of the trip involved us flying to Arizona and joining an organised tour of some of the national parks situated near the west coast of the USA. There were about 40 people on this tour and half of them were yanks from the east coast.   Now all of this occurred in September which coincided with the GOP debate #2. As is always the case on such tours, you become pretty familiar and friendly with the other punters. Both Kerry and I were floored by the views of our fellow yank tourists...