Once again Australian courts have let us down. Nick D’Arcy, who viciously aussalted a fellow swimmer and damaged his face for life has been let off jail. Why? Because he’s a sportsman and in Australia all is forgiven if you are a sportsman. So D’Arcy, who’s no example to young people, is going to be turned into some kind of hero if he wins a race. I suspect it wouldn’t matter if he murdered someone as long as he can swim for Australia. Continue reading
Year: 2009
Earth Hour——Sixty Minutes of Hypocrisy
Tomorrow some people in Australia will switch off their lights to save the environment. Several countries around the world will follow suit and do the one hour stint as well. It will make them feel happy because they are being so good. So what does being good actually mean? Will it save one life? Will it find a cure for our many ills? Will it rescue children being enslaved in Africa?. Will it win the war on poverty? Will it offer one single meal for the starving? Will it achieve anything at all? Continue reading
Therese Rein discovers knee-high boots
We haven’t seen much of our First Lady, Therese Rein a.k.a Mrs Rudd lately and that has obviously been a concerted decision on the part of the media.
She has been away in England most of the time busily expanding her multi-million dollar business which grew and grew with the support of the government outsourcing scheme. She didn’t even make it back to Australia when the terrible bushfires were devastating the country. So much for compassion, Therese…
But she’s in the public eye once again because a free trip to meet the American president and Mrs Obama was not an occasion to miss. So there she was, boarding the plane to the U.S. This time she decided to wear a black sheath. OK so far, but unfortunately she couldn’t resist the tight belt which is a No!No!
On top of that Therese wore a white parachute and her footwear was a pair of black knee-high boots. This accentuated her ample knees and did nothing for the rather summery outfit she was wearing. Her parachute coat had the usual huge lapels our Therese loves.
As for that hair. For Kevin’s sake get a style! It looks cheap and disheveled.
I have often commented on the First Lady’s taste in clothes because she is representing Australia when she bounces on the world stage. Her fashion tastes are extremely shonky and lacking in style. We know that she can afford the best advice but she probably wouldn’t take it. Must be that she’s a person who says “like it or lump it” and so we and the media have decided to lump it.
A bit like her hubby actually, who’s not known for taking advice. In a way, they match one another. He always looks as if he outgrew his suits and mummy won’t fork out for a new one until he has stopped growing. His ties are schoolboyish and crooked and he always looks as if he shops at the local outlet.
How embarrassing that even the media avoid photographing Mrs Rudd as much as they can. When she’s around she’s hard to miss and we feel that cultural cringe that took years to dispel.
Here we go again with Muslim students’ demands
When we came to Australia we were happy to be allowed to live in peace in a democratic country. We did not demand to be given special consideration and we were happy to fit in. If some things seemed different to us then we adapted to them. That’s what you do when you come to live in another country. You don’t expect that country to change things to please you. If you would like something to change then you go about it in a civilised manner. You put forward your reasons and perhaps accept a compromise. But you don’t threaten and you don’t demonstrate and hold protest marches. So whom am writing about? No surprises for guessing that it’s the Muslim students again. Continue reading
Josef Fritzl does not shock me
When the news broke about Josef Fritzl’s mistreatment of his daughter I was initially shocked. What sort of a man could do this to his daughter, I wondered. How come he wasn’t found out sooner? Did his wife know? My questions were unspectacular in their banality. I knew that I could never understand a man like Fritzl, nor did I particularly want to. All I had to understand is that bad things happen in this world. Having accepted this fact, I’m no longer shocked by what happens in it. Disappointed? Of course, I am, but so what else is new? Continue reading
Sussan’s about turn–about time
In July of last year I complained about the lower standard of clothing at Suzanne Grae. Quite frankly, it was much less appealing than it had been in 2001. Somebody must have been listening to me, because this year Naomi Milgrom, who runs “Sussan” and “Suzanne Grae”, has announced that her stores will cater for the more sophisticated woman–(hmm older shopper) rather than the teenagers who obviously weren’t buying its fashion anyway.
I hope that it’s true because I quite enjoyed the mix and match fashions they used to sell. I still wear some of the originals I bought all those years ago and they have served me well.
The mistake that “Sussan” had made was that it thought it could compete for young girls’ business and tried to cater to them. They, however, were more interested in shops such as “Valley Girl” and wouldn’t be seen dead in the same stores that their mothers frequented.
So this is a sensible move on the part of management and I hope that I will be able to find some fashionable gear at their stores.
A tram with a view
Living in Melbourne is hectic. If you want to travel by car you have to be prepared for a slow crawl along the busy roads. When you finally get to your destination, you begin the search for a parking spot and that can be extremely frustrating. The one saving grace that Melbourne has is its trams. The train system is apparently pretty bad but I haven’t used it yet, nor am I eager to do so.
So I stick to trams whenever I can. It’s an opportunity for me to observe humanity in all its glory. Having done so, however, I must confess that I would prefer to travel in my own private tram carriage just like the oil barons in the U.S did when they travelled by train in the old days. Continue reading
Why I could never vote for Peter Costello
I now live in the electorate of Higgins which has Peter Costello as its federal member. In the last election I voted for the Libs but I vote differently from time to time according to the issues. However, I could never vote for Peter Costello and this is why. Continue reading
Congratulations to the Israeli Davis Cup Team
The Israeli team has defeated the Swedish Tennis Team in Malmo, Sweden. I have to confess that I have minimal interest in sport but I am in interested in the politics of sport. While everyone is rightly disgusted that the Sri Lankan cricket team or any cricket team should be targeted by terrorists, there was hardly a murmur of outrage by the outside world when the Israeli tennis team was greeted by demonstrations. So dangerous were these demonstrations that the match organisers had to limit the number of spectators allowed to attend the quarter final. Why is this occurring in Malmo which is Sweden’s third largest city? Continue reading
Greg Sheridan impresses once again.
George Eliot writes that if you want to continue admiring your hero never meet him in person. I have usually followed that principle and in fact, if ever, I went out of my way to meet someone whom I admired I inevitably regretted having done so. For example, in 2001 we went on an accompanied tour of France and Belgium only because the person in charge was a famous former Federal Labor Minister. He is usually full of information and we thought that his insights would enrich our trip. Continue reading
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