Author: liligans

Indian students give admirable service in Australia

liligans So you think you're cultured?, Society

For the last few months I’ve noticed that our supermarkets have been giving excellent service at checkouts and in the aisles.

We have the university students from India to thank for this improvement.

In my opinion, they are much more courteous than our Aussies because they are willing to put themselves out to find a product. Also, they are highly intelligent since this is only their temporary occupation while they study in Australia.

Our supermarkets benefit from their marvellous work ethic. The customers are delighted and I hope that the Indian students receive a good salary because they certainly deserve it.

When they graduate and become doctors and lawyers they will know that they did it the hard way, supporting themselves while they studied. That is a great start to any career and a motivation for studying seriously. Quite frankly, they could teach our young Aussie students some manners!

No surprises in the Iranian election results.

liligans Politics, So you think you're cultured?

I honestly don’t understand how anyone could expect Ahmadinejad to lose the presidential election. He is the darling of the lower classes and there are plenty of poor people in Iran whom he has cultivated.

Does it really make a difference who is president of Iran? The man is a puppet of the ayatollahs and the real power rests with the clerics. They are the ones who rule the country. They are the ones who control the purse strings and nothing will change in Iran until the clerics say goodbye.

If President Obama thought that reaching out to the Iranians was a good idea then he has been taught a lesson. Perhaps. Obama makes pretty speeches. Enough to emblazon on the front of many T-shirts. But when it comes to addressing the Muslim world, nothing he says will change their innate culture. They hate the West. They hate Israel. They hate the U.S. And it doesn’t make a skerrick of difference if Obama points out his name is Hussein. It only makes him look desperate and silly.

When you think about it, the re-election of Ahmadinejad is propitious. At least with him you know where you stand. Nowhere pleasant. It is very important to know who is your enemy and the most dangerous kind is the one who pretends to be your friend and then double crosses you. That was the danger with Mousavi. He was hardly going to be an improvement since he had to obey the clerics anyway.

The latest news from Iran is that Mousavi is under house arrest. That is only a rumour, however. We can’t really know what’s going on in Iran at the moment because the government is interfering with phone lines and broadcasts. Supporters of Mousavi are being beaten up and arrested by police. So much for free elections.

There are now riots in the streets but in the end the government and the clerics will no doubt crush the rebellions since they have the military on their side. What a tragi-comedy!

Quite frankly, I am relieved that things have turned out this way since perhaps President Obama will now learn that Iran is not a country that you can reach out to. Not for a long time anyhow. Not while it is a religious dictatorship.

Catastrophic news about the end of the world!

liligans So you think you're cultured?, totally absurd

My head is about to explode with the trauma of it all. I’ve just heard that the planet Mercury may collide with Earth and I haven’t been able to relax ever since. Now it isn’t definite BUT it’s possible that Mercury will do this terrible thing in about 3 BILLION years. Apparently, it’s the fault of Jupiter, don’t ya know.

What with swine flu, climate change, terrorism, the economic downturn and Gordon Ramsey’s tantrums, I would have thought that we had enough to contend with at the moment. But no, talk about kicking us when we’re down. It’s simply too unbearable to contemplate, so I’m just going to try to ignore the rantings of yet another research scholar who is short of a thesis topic.

Good news! I have investigated this TV story further (on Google) and have learned that the French researchers from Nature magazine say it could happen in the next 5 BILLION years, not 3 Billion. Phew! What a relief. Had me worried there for a while.

Do we need more legislation against racism in Australia?

liligans So you think you're cultured?

Violence against Indian students is big news in Australia because many of them have been attacked by hoodlums lately. Since not enough was done originally to protect the victims, there has been understandable outrage among the Indian community here and in India.

The Australian community is also outraged about these attacks and so some people have suggested that we need more legislation against such attacks. I question the need for more legislation. Continue reading →

Where is Kevin Rudd’s outrage about the bashing of Indians in Australia?

liligans So you think you're cultured?

Our glorious Prime Minister is ever eager to make an announcement of any sort. That’s whenever he’s not traipsing around the world, that is. So why isn’t he talking tough about the violent attacks on Indian students who come to Australia to study?

You wanna know something Mr Rudd, you should not leave it up to Stephen Smith, who is our Foreign Minister, to speak for the government. Mr Smith is the most sterile of speakers and his soporific assurances do not have any impact on us or the Indians.

The bottom line is, (to quote one of Rudd’s favourite expressions) that the Prime Minister should speak forcefully on the subject and condemn these racists attacks. I empathise completely with the protests that are taking place as I write. Furthermore, I congratulate the Indian students who are expressing their anger at these attacks. Good on them!

Where are you Mr Rudd and why are you tongue-tied? Oh that’s right you are in Singapore now. But how does that stop you from making an announcement? It is not enough to talk to the Prime Minister of India. You should condemn the attacks to the people of Australia and to the victims.

P.S.
Well, well, well, Prime Minister Rudd finally condemned the attacks on Indian students. He did it just two hours ago, several hours after I wrote the above piece. I still maintain Rudd took his time to do this and India must not forget this diplomatic gaffe when Rudd makes his play for the post of Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Kabul sounds perfect for a holiday, especially for idiots.

liligans So you think you're cultured?

A couple of people I know have just holidayed in Fiji. Luckily they weren’t caught up in the internal strife in that country, but what if they had? What if, despite the government warnings to avoid destinations where there is unrest and potential danger to Australians, this couple had been detained by the unstable government in Fiji? It’s not as if they weren’t aware of the risk they were taking because when they told me where they were going they sort of shrugged sheepishly and said “Fiji of all places. Oh well…” Continue reading →