Given I no longer take my health for granted, I am on my fourth alcohol free day in a row. Had a boozy retirement do for a colleague on Tuesday, which followed on from a few beers at the pub on Monday night and a really heavy Friday night farewelling someone who is going overseas.
Which, aside from health, had me staring with horror at the credit card balance.
But... seriously, having given up soft drinks, coffee and juice, and having taken up drinking at least 2 litres of water per day, I think it is time I started reducing the alcohol as well. Being pre-diabetic is something which does worry me a little, so it is time I started putting my fondness for so much grain and grape behind me a little.
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Loaded for Bear....
The Eurocrisis seems to have finally dawned and the sharemarket has dropped 9.5% this month in anticipation of a scorcher of day.
If I could predict the future, I would have chosen the Ozlotto numbers for their $70million draw, and not have to worry about money. But I have been reasonably prudent in my preparations for this coming bear market (not that I can really think of what has been happening since the bottom of the last one in March 2009 as a bull market).
I have stopped buying shares, aside from a small flutter on some low cap speculatives. I have consolidated my holdings into defensive stocks - Woolworths (we will all buy more tinned food now), SPDR 200 ETFs (this will give me average market returns - up and down), and Gold ETFs (yes, I am getting that paranoid).
And I have a third of my liquid capital in cash. Well... more than a third after the past week's downward movements.
I am not sure what is going to happen, but my experience is that only one thing can save the global sharemarkets from a major meltdown: me deciding to sell all my share holdings and consolidate in cash. If I do that, then the share market will rebound as it always does, leaving me to miss out on the gains. If I buy in, then the crash will happen almost immediately afterward.
That's not a case of bad luck - it is just that I am always dreadful at reading the signs and working out what will happen next. In March 2009, my cash position was low, so I had very little I could use to buy into the market, and so I missed out on the bounce. This time I am ready, and I am hoping I can bring myself to wait until there is a whole lot more blood on the streets before I buy in. March 2009 told us what the most recent historic lows are - we could surpass them this time.
And I am also hoping for a collapse in the Australian dollar - then my gold ETFs will go up a lot in value....
If I could predict the future, I would have chosen the Ozlotto numbers for their $70million draw, and not have to worry about money. But I have been reasonably prudent in my preparations for this coming bear market (not that I can really think of what has been happening since the bottom of the last one in March 2009 as a bull market).
I have stopped buying shares, aside from a small flutter on some low cap speculatives. I have consolidated my holdings into defensive stocks - Woolworths (we will all buy more tinned food now), SPDR 200 ETFs (this will give me average market returns - up and down), and Gold ETFs (yes, I am getting that paranoid).
And I have a third of my liquid capital in cash. Well... more than a third after the past week's downward movements.
I am not sure what is going to happen, but my experience is that only one thing can save the global sharemarkets from a major meltdown: me deciding to sell all my share holdings and consolidate in cash. If I do that, then the share market will rebound as it always does, leaving me to miss out on the gains. If I buy in, then the crash will happen almost immediately afterward.
That's not a case of bad luck - it is just that I am always dreadful at reading the signs and working out what will happen next. In March 2009, my cash position was low, so I had very little I could use to buy into the market, and so I missed out on the bounce. This time I am ready, and I am hoping I can bring myself to wait until there is a whole lot more blood on the streets before I buy in. March 2009 told us what the most recent historic lows are - we could surpass them this time.
And I am also hoping for a collapse in the Australian dollar - then my gold ETFs will go up a lot in value....
The Kroger Costello Feud
To be honest, the current public slanging and behind the scenes knifing within the Victorian Division of the Liberal Party looks more like the feudings of a bunch of Pashtun tribal chieftains and mad mullahs than the workings of a voluntary organisation.
The big headline piece - the very public slanging match between former long time state party president and powerbroker Michael Kroger and his former best friend Peter Costello, former Federal Treasurer, Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party, and member for Higgins. Mr Costello, whom I have always seen as rather mean and tricky, owed his seat in Parliament to the political machete work of his friend Kroger, who got rid of his opponent in one of a series of messy preselections in 1989.
Mr Kroger has claimed that at a lunch last year, Mr Costello sought his help to get back into federal parliament by pressuring someone younger to give up their seat for him. Mr Costello also slagged off just about everyone else in the party, such as the Kemp brothers, Abbott, Stockdale, and so on. Comes across as quite a bitter man, according to Mr Kroger.
What was the catalyst for this disclosure by Mr Kroger? Commentators are now saying that Mr Kroger is rather unhappy that his ex-wife, who occupies a senate seat as a Liberal, was relegated downward from the number two to the number three spot on the ticket for the next election. This is despite his own intervention to try and stop this.
[I think this is very commendable on the part of Mr Kroger, and makes him look far more sympathetic than most would otherwise see him. After all, and I say this with minimal irony, it is good that someone will preserve such cordial relations with the ex-wife that they will go to this much effort to look after her interests. It does show that he has a heart - contrary to what many others might think or say.]
That Senate Preselection appears to have been a watershed - a parting of the ways between Kroger and many of the people he had previously supported (and placed in their roles). The Kemp brothers owe their seats in parliament to the same round of bloody preselections as Costello - a time when Kroger wielded the machete fearlessly to clear deadwood from the federal party - and yet their people deserted Kroger's cause. So too did all the Costello proteges, people who are about as beholden to Kroger as they are to Costello.
Ingrates, the lot of them.
What it does show, in a less than flattering light, is that the Liberal Party of Australia (Victorian Division) appears to be run, even more than ever, as a collection of family and personality based fiefdoms, which bear much similiarity to the various Pashtun tribes of southern Afghanistan. You have the Kemp Family - which includes their loyal family retainer and current numbers man Senator Scott 'Mr X' Ryan and their powerbase in the IPA, then you have the Kroger Family, and you have Costello's various associates such as Michael 'Mr Charisma' O'Brien, Tony 'Dynamic' Smith, Senator Mitch Fifield and Kelly O'Dwyer. And then you have the Kennett-Bailleau group (which has, despite a former dynastic link to Kroger, Andrew Peacock as its godfather).
Is it any wonder that the membership base of the Victorian Liberal Party is mostly confined to the inner eastern metropolitian upper middle class neighbourhoods which are covered by the safe Liberal Federal seats of Higgins and Kooyong? Or that the party membership still seems to be dwindling despite reforms several years ago to try and bolster the involvement of the rank and file members?
I think, during such infighting as this, Liberal voters and party members will prefer, as would many of the ordinary members of those Pashtun tribes, to leave the warlords to slug it out and instead trek their way to relative safety across the border in Pakistan....
And another thing, which I cannot resist adding. Mr Kroger is a current board member of the Institute of Public Affairs, which is the Kemp family's main powerbase, from which they continue to deliver patronage and influence within the Liberal Party. The abandonment by the Kemps of Mr Kroger's ex-wife at the senate preselection, in order to bolster the support for their loyal family retainer Senator Ryan, may have consequences as it may make Mr Kroger's enthusiasm for the IPA a whole lot less intense.
If there is a moral to the story, it is this: a healthy democracy depends on healthy political parties which have got large broad based memberships who are willing to get involved. Where the leaders of these parties (and in this, the Libs are currently no better than the trade unions which control the ALP) behave like tribal chieftains looking after their own family members and retainers, then the degree of political alienation amongst their supporters and rank and file members will be so high as to reduce the healthiness of those parties. This will cause damage to the overall health of Australian democracy: you act like a warlord, then you get Afghanistan.
The big headline piece - the very public slanging match between former long time state party president and powerbroker Michael Kroger and his former best friend Peter Costello, former Federal Treasurer, Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party, and member for Higgins. Mr Costello, whom I have always seen as rather mean and tricky, owed his seat in Parliament to the political machete work of his friend Kroger, who got rid of his opponent in one of a series of messy preselections in 1989.
Mr Kroger has claimed that at a lunch last year, Mr Costello sought his help to get back into federal parliament by pressuring someone younger to give up their seat for him. Mr Costello also slagged off just about everyone else in the party, such as the Kemp brothers, Abbott, Stockdale, and so on. Comes across as quite a bitter man, according to Mr Kroger.
What was the catalyst for this disclosure by Mr Kroger? Commentators are now saying that Mr Kroger is rather unhappy that his ex-wife, who occupies a senate seat as a Liberal, was relegated downward from the number two to the number three spot on the ticket for the next election. This is despite his own intervention to try and stop this.
[I think this is very commendable on the part of Mr Kroger, and makes him look far more sympathetic than most would otherwise see him. After all, and I say this with minimal irony, it is good that someone will preserve such cordial relations with the ex-wife that they will go to this much effort to look after her interests. It does show that he has a heart - contrary to what many others might think or say.]
That Senate Preselection appears to have been a watershed - a parting of the ways between Kroger and many of the people he had previously supported (and placed in their roles). The Kemp brothers owe their seats in parliament to the same round of bloody preselections as Costello - a time when Kroger wielded the machete fearlessly to clear deadwood from the federal party - and yet their people deserted Kroger's cause. So too did all the Costello proteges, people who are about as beholden to Kroger as they are to Costello.
Ingrates, the lot of them.
What it does show, in a less than flattering light, is that the Liberal Party of Australia (Victorian Division) appears to be run, even more than ever, as a collection of family and personality based fiefdoms, which bear much similiarity to the various Pashtun tribes of southern Afghanistan. You have the Kemp Family - which includes their loyal family retainer and current numbers man Senator Scott 'Mr X' Ryan and their powerbase in the IPA, then you have the Kroger Family, and you have Costello's various associates such as Michael 'Mr Charisma' O'Brien, Tony 'Dynamic' Smith, Senator Mitch Fifield and Kelly O'Dwyer. And then you have the Kennett-Bailleau group (which has, despite a former dynastic link to Kroger, Andrew Peacock as its godfather).
Is it any wonder that the membership base of the Victorian Liberal Party is mostly confined to the inner eastern metropolitian upper middle class neighbourhoods which are covered by the safe Liberal Federal seats of Higgins and Kooyong? Or that the party membership still seems to be dwindling despite reforms several years ago to try and bolster the involvement of the rank and file members?
I think, during such infighting as this, Liberal voters and party members will prefer, as would many of the ordinary members of those Pashtun tribes, to leave the warlords to slug it out and instead trek their way to relative safety across the border in Pakistan....
And another thing, which I cannot resist adding. Mr Kroger is a current board member of the Institute of Public Affairs, which is the Kemp family's main powerbase, from which they continue to deliver patronage and influence within the Liberal Party. The abandonment by the Kemps of Mr Kroger's ex-wife at the senate preselection, in order to bolster the support for their loyal family retainer Senator Ryan, may have consequences as it may make Mr Kroger's enthusiasm for the IPA a whole lot less intense.
If there is a moral to the story, it is this: a healthy democracy depends on healthy political parties which have got large broad based memberships who are willing to get involved. Where the leaders of these parties (and in this, the Libs are currently no better than the trade unions which control the ALP) behave like tribal chieftains looking after their own family members and retainers, then the degree of political alienation amongst their supporters and rank and file members will be so high as to reduce the healthiness of those parties. This will cause damage to the overall health of Australian democracy: you act like a warlord, then you get Afghanistan.
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Bill Shorten clears the decks for leadership challenge
And so it begins....
On Sunday, Bill Shorten and his current wife went public to deny some persistent rumours that have been circulating about his marriage. The rumours were not published by the Herald Sun, but the denials were.
Apparently, for several months, a rather vicious rumour has been circulating.
I heard of this rumour several weeks ago, but have not shared it in this blog as it could all just be vicious lies, and much as I dislike and distrust Mr Shorten, even he does not deserve that.
Suffice to say that the rumour is one which does not paint Mr Shorten in a positive light, and which would damage his chances of successfully leading the Labor Party at some stage.
Mr Shorten is coming from a wobbly base to start off from anyway. He and his current wife appear to have started a relationship when they were still married to other people. I accept that marriages rarely are perfect or last forever, but divorce is not something the Australian voter seems to want to see in their political leaders. At the time he left his first wife, I felt that he seemed to be acting out of love (ie in starting a new relationship) rather than being the cold and calculating machine politician we all know him to be. Indeed, in making what I thought was a choice which would give him personal happiness but damage his chances of realising his long held ambitions to become Prime Minister, he seemed almost human and likeable for a change.
Of course, he would not put aside such ambitions. As I have written previously in this blog, I am firmly of the belief that he supported Julia Gillard to roll Kevin Rudd principally because, as an atheist unmarried childless ex-communist woman, the voting public would consider him at some point in future to be far more acceptable as a divorced man than they would have pre-Gillard. He was shifting the bar lower in terms of what sort of personal lifestyle and behaviour is needed to achieve the top job in Australian politics.
That was pretty calculating.
And with some vicious rumour circulating, his chances of becoming Prime Minister would be damaged. So he has pre-emptively sought to squash this rumour. He has done so now for the simple reason that he must be clearing the decks for a leadership challenge.
As for the source of the rumour? I think that Bill Shorten has far more enemies inside the Labor Party and the trade union movement than he does within the Liberal Party. The viciousness of this rumour can only come from someone who has reason to know and hate him - the way that only a fellow comrade would.
On Sunday, Bill Shorten and his current wife went public to deny some persistent rumours that have been circulating about his marriage. The rumours were not published by the Herald Sun, but the denials were.
Apparently, for several months, a rather vicious rumour has been circulating.
I heard of this rumour several weeks ago, but have not shared it in this blog as it could all just be vicious lies, and much as I dislike and distrust Mr Shorten, even he does not deserve that.
Suffice to say that the rumour is one which does not paint Mr Shorten in a positive light, and which would damage his chances of successfully leading the Labor Party at some stage.
Mr Shorten is coming from a wobbly base to start off from anyway. He and his current wife appear to have started a relationship when they were still married to other people. I accept that marriages rarely are perfect or last forever, but divorce is not something the Australian voter seems to want to see in their political leaders. At the time he left his first wife, I felt that he seemed to be acting out of love (ie in starting a new relationship) rather than being the cold and calculating machine politician we all know him to be. Indeed, in making what I thought was a choice which would give him personal happiness but damage his chances of realising his long held ambitions to become Prime Minister, he seemed almost human and likeable for a change.
Of course, he would not put aside such ambitions. As I have written previously in this blog, I am firmly of the belief that he supported Julia Gillard to roll Kevin Rudd principally because, as an atheist unmarried childless ex-communist woman, the voting public would consider him at some point in future to be far more acceptable as a divorced man than they would have pre-Gillard. He was shifting the bar lower in terms of what sort of personal lifestyle and behaviour is needed to achieve the top job in Australian politics.
That was pretty calculating.
And with some vicious rumour circulating, his chances of becoming Prime Minister would be damaged. So he has pre-emptively sought to squash this rumour. He has done so now for the simple reason that he must be clearing the decks for a leadership challenge.
As for the source of the rumour? I think that Bill Shorten has far more enemies inside the Labor Party and the trade union movement than he does within the Liberal Party. The viciousness of this rumour can only come from someone who has reason to know and hate him - the way that only a fellow comrade would.
Saturday, May 05, 2012
The IPA and its subscribers....
Haven't really laid into the IPA for a while, which is perhaps why I haven't heard from my pal Douglas of the Mangled Thoughts blog in ages and ages. After all, he is the arch-critic of the IPA, whereas I am just an ethusiastic amateur.
Was browsing through the current edition of the IPA Review in the newstand this morning, and it had something about an email newsletter the IPA sends out on a weekly basis - which has 22,000 plus subscribers.
Interesting. Quite a fan base you might say.
Funnily enough, without doing anything myself, I have somehow ended up on that emailing list. I am not sure how long I have been on it, as I have enough to do without reading each spam email I get, but for several months I have been getting a regular email from the IPA's director John Roskam Esq.
I think it is because a friend of mine emailed several people something a while ago which had a conservative political angle to it, and included both me and Mr Roskam in the email. Hence my email address got picked up and resulted in me receiving more of the wit and wisdom of the IPA on a regular basis.
Anyway, I can't say that I mind. All I have to do is either click delete or adjust my spam filter and it is gone.
But... and here is the punch line, it gets a little rich to claim 22,000 plus subscribers to an email newsletter when you pick them up that way. I don't mind getting their stuff, but it would have been too much wear and tear on my wrist to adjust the mouse to actually subscribe actively to their email newsletter myself, to say the least.
Was browsing through the current edition of the IPA Review in the newstand this morning, and it had something about an email newsletter the IPA sends out on a weekly basis - which has 22,000 plus subscribers.
Interesting. Quite a fan base you might say.
Funnily enough, without doing anything myself, I have somehow ended up on that emailing list. I am not sure how long I have been on it, as I have enough to do without reading each spam email I get, but for several months I have been getting a regular email from the IPA's director John Roskam Esq.
I think it is because a friend of mine emailed several people something a while ago which had a conservative political angle to it, and included both me and Mr Roskam in the email. Hence my email address got picked up and resulted in me receiving more of the wit and wisdom of the IPA on a regular basis.
Anyway, I can't say that I mind. All I have to do is either click delete or adjust my spam filter and it is gone.
But... and here is the punch line, it gets a little rich to claim 22,000 plus subscribers to an email newsletter when you pick them up that way. I don't mind getting their stuff, but it would have been too much wear and tear on my wrist to adjust the mouse to actually subscribe actively to their email newsletter myself, to say the least.
The Revamping of Flybuys
Coles has revived its previously moribund flybuys program in what is probably some very clever marketing, making the accumulation of points easier and simpler, whilst raising the number of points needed to claim an award.
Now, for every dollar spent, you earn a point, compared to two points per every $5 spent. That represents a 150% increase in the number of points you can earn.
On the other hand, to get a $20 gift card, you needed to use 2500 points. Now you need 4000 points. That deflates the value of your points by 60%.
You come out a little in front - to get $20 worth of gift card, you need only spend $4000 compared to $6250 under the previous system, so that comes out to about 36% in front.
Still... there used to be lots of bonus points for certain special offers from time to time. There don't seem to be any special offers anymore.
To get extra points, you need to start taking out your insurance with Coles (I think not) and automating your AGL bill payments (no thanks) and getting Telstra prepaid calls (sorry, I'm happy with my Telstra contract as it currently stands).
And of course, there are the flybuys credit cards.
It is all rather clever marketing, and makes up for years of neglecting the flybuys program. But I am now interested to see what others do in response.
One point which does interest me is that the cash value of each point is now 0.5 cents. That is similar to the cash value of each reward point you get through a credit card loyalty program if you choose cash back (which is what I do with my credit cards). Perhaps this is a manifestation of the market now encouraging all loyalty programs to reach some sort of consistent standard value for their points.
Now, for every dollar spent, you earn a point, compared to two points per every $5 spent. That represents a 150% increase in the number of points you can earn.
On the other hand, to get a $20 gift card, you needed to use 2500 points. Now you need 4000 points. That deflates the value of your points by 60%.
You come out a little in front - to get $20 worth of gift card, you need only spend $4000 compared to $6250 under the previous system, so that comes out to about 36% in front.
Still... there used to be lots of bonus points for certain special offers from time to time. There don't seem to be any special offers anymore.
To get extra points, you need to start taking out your insurance with Coles (I think not) and automating your AGL bill payments (no thanks) and getting Telstra prepaid calls (sorry, I'm happy with my Telstra contract as it currently stands).
And of course, there are the flybuys credit cards.
It is all rather clever marketing, and makes up for years of neglecting the flybuys program. But I am now interested to see what others do in response.
One point which does interest me is that the cash value of each point is now 0.5 cents. That is similar to the cash value of each reward point you get through a credit card loyalty program if you choose cash back (which is what I do with my credit cards). Perhaps this is a manifestation of the market now encouraging all loyalty programs to reach some sort of consistent standard value for their points.
Why people still hate Collingwood
Was at the pub last night having a drink with some colleagues and talking about the football.
I said something about how most people don't hate Collingwood anymore - we all have too much fun pitying them contemptously and ridiculing them. I believe people have more hate for Carlton and Hawthorn - clubs which are truly arrogant and hateable for their wealth and success.
One of my companions said something which is irrefutable as a reason to still hate Collingwood:
Eddie Maguire
[Footnote: That this obnoxious and ego driven waste of space is still on TV must truly be why Channel 9 is in decline. Whilst I did not watch or listen to the Bulldogs-Melbourne game a few weeks ago, Maguire was one of the commentators and he was barracking for Melbourne to win. Imagine how ghastly he would be if he were to commentate on a Collingwood game (I just would switch the volume off).]
I said something about how most people don't hate Collingwood anymore - we all have too much fun pitying them contemptously and ridiculing them. I believe people have more hate for Carlton and Hawthorn - clubs which are truly arrogant and hateable for their wealth and success.
One of my companions said something which is irrefutable as a reason to still hate Collingwood:
Eddie Maguire
[Footnote: That this obnoxious and ego driven waste of space is still on TV must truly be why Channel 9 is in decline. Whilst I did not watch or listen to the Bulldogs-Melbourne game a few weeks ago, Maguire was one of the commentators and he was barracking for Melbourne to win. Imagine how ghastly he would be if he were to commentate on a Collingwood game (I just would switch the volume off).]
I was wrong about the Guiding Star closing
Had reason to pass through Brooklyn again last week (not something I do regularly, but my best friend is housesitting in Laverton at the moment) and saw that the Guiding Star Hotel still is open.
That's a relief. It might be a rather divey pub, but it is a pub all the same - one with a long and colourful history which would be irreplaceable if it were closed.
That's a relief. It might be a rather divey pub, but it is a pub all the same - one with a long and colourful history which would be irreplaceable if it were closed.
Western Bulldogs revert to normal form
Yeah, two in a row was too good to be true, even if it was against two of the three teams which are even poorer than the Doggies this year.
Last night, a valiant run against Collingwood, but not good enough to win.
Can't say I am surprised. What I can say is that I regret agreeing to spend the extra $5 to upgrade my kennel club membership to enable me to go to see three matches live this year. Watching my team get beaten week after week is not my idea of fun - and seeing it live is even worse.
Last night, a valiant run against Collingwood, but not good enough to win.
Can't say I am surprised. What I can say is that I regret agreeing to spend the extra $5 to upgrade my kennel club membership to enable me to go to see three matches live this year. Watching my team get beaten week after week is not my idea of fun - and seeing it live is even worse.
Thursday, May 03, 2012
Tony Abbott vs Julia Gillard - Boxing Match or Theatrical Wrestling?
As a child, I used to watch a lot of TV on Channel 9 on Sunday mornings in the 1970s. There used to be Point of View with Mr Bob Santamaria (which explains why I am such a rabid anti-communist), and Epic Theatre (which explains why I am a student of ancient history).
And somewhere in between, there was World Championship Wrestling, with Ted Whitten as commentator, telecast from Festival Hall.
I remember one episode of the wrestling, where two dwarves were taking on two big guys. For a while, given it was all pretty much theatre and not real, the dwarves were winning. But then the big guys got the dwarves and started throwing them around, with lots of fake blood coming out of the mouths of the short people.
Quite funny stuff, although not enough to give me a taste for all that contemporary American wrestling rubbish.
Looking at the Tony Abbott bout with Julia Gillard in the national political arena right now does remind me of theatrical wrestling.
Let me be honest: whilst I like a lot of Abbott's politics, I seriously dislike and distrust the man. Aside from him being a cyclist, I have written at length previously in this blog about why I don't like him.
And at first, the current contest is a bit like a boxing match. Abbott is very skilled (he is a real boxer) at punching below the belt, but making it look like he is punching above the belt, albeit in a merciless and relentless attack.
However, Gillard is unable to even make it look like she is playing within the rules. With such stunts like defending accused brothel customer and Gillard backbencher Craig Thomson for so long, and buying out Liberal turnout Peter Slipper with the speakership, she has done a lot to undermine the idea of playing within the usual conventions of our parliamentary democracy.
Indeed, if this was boxing match, it would be like one where she has called on two dwarves to join in from the ringside to help her in her attack on Tony Abbott.
But, as in the great traditions of theatrical faux wrestling, Tony Abbott has now seized both of the dwarves, Thomson and Slipper, and is using them as clubs to continue to pound Julia Gillard.
Great theatre, no? Not sure that it is great for democracy, but we are talking about ruthless and driven people here, and Tony Abbott has a record of driving very hard to politically destroy his opponents. When Pauline Hanson poached one of his staffers, David Oldfield, Abbott made it his personal mission to destroy One Nation. Now, Gillard has poached one of his backbenchers, Peter Slipper, and I doubt that Abbott, so close to his ultimate ambition, is going to pound Gillard just so much harder than he did to Hanson.
Now, all we need for the theatre to be complete is some dwarf throwing.
And somewhere in between, there was World Championship Wrestling, with Ted Whitten as commentator, telecast from Festival Hall.
I remember one episode of the wrestling, where two dwarves were taking on two big guys. For a while, given it was all pretty much theatre and not real, the dwarves were winning. But then the big guys got the dwarves and started throwing them around, with lots of fake blood coming out of the mouths of the short people.
Quite funny stuff, although not enough to give me a taste for all that contemporary American wrestling rubbish.
Looking at the Tony Abbott bout with Julia Gillard in the national political arena right now does remind me of theatrical wrestling.
Let me be honest: whilst I like a lot of Abbott's politics, I seriously dislike and distrust the man. Aside from him being a cyclist, I have written at length previously in this blog about why I don't like him.
And at first, the current contest is a bit like a boxing match. Abbott is very skilled (he is a real boxer) at punching below the belt, but making it look like he is punching above the belt, albeit in a merciless and relentless attack.
However, Gillard is unable to even make it look like she is playing within the rules. With such stunts like defending accused brothel customer and Gillard backbencher Craig Thomson for so long, and buying out Liberal turnout Peter Slipper with the speakership, she has done a lot to undermine the idea of playing within the usual conventions of our parliamentary democracy.
Indeed, if this was boxing match, it would be like one where she has called on two dwarves to join in from the ringside to help her in her attack on Tony Abbott.
But, as in the great traditions of theatrical faux wrestling, Tony Abbott has now seized both of the dwarves, Thomson and Slipper, and is using them as clubs to continue to pound Julia Gillard.
Great theatre, no? Not sure that it is great for democracy, but we are talking about ruthless and driven people here, and Tony Abbott has a record of driving very hard to politically destroy his opponents. When Pauline Hanson poached one of his staffers, David Oldfield, Abbott made it his personal mission to destroy One Nation. Now, Gillard has poached one of his backbenchers, Peter Slipper, and I doubt that Abbott, so close to his ultimate ambition, is going to pound Gillard just so much harder than he did to Hanson.
Now, all we need for the theatre to be complete is some dwarf throwing.
Less than 19 Months til the Federal Election
Monday was 19 months until 30 November 2013, the day on which the next Federal Election will be held and the current Labor socialist government gets thrown out of office.
Does not look like Gillard will be leading the government at that time. Reading the papers today, it looks like another leadership challenge in June.
I love our democracy. The NSW Labor right wants to give everyone in the Labor caucus the chance to be prime minister, just like they tried to give everyone in the NSW government the chance to be NSW Premier.
All of this panic inside the Labor Party is quite amusing. And even if it continues to be this incompetant for the next 19 months, it will not really undo all the good work of the quarter century where Hawke-Keating-Howard really sorted out Australia's long term economic viability. [Yeah, I try to be fair - Hawke-Keating didn't do a bad job, despite being Labor.]
Does not look like Gillard will be leading the government at that time. Reading the papers today, it looks like another leadership challenge in June.
I love our democracy. The NSW Labor right wants to give everyone in the Labor caucus the chance to be prime minister, just like they tried to give everyone in the NSW government the chance to be NSW Premier.
All of this panic inside the Labor Party is quite amusing. And even if it continues to be this incompetant for the next 19 months, it will not really undo all the good work of the quarter century where Hawke-Keating-Howard really sorted out Australia's long term economic viability. [Yeah, I try to be fair - Hawke-Keating didn't do a bad job, despite being Labor.]
The Peter Slipper sexual harrassment scandal
Well... is it much of a surprise that Peter Slipper has proven to be quite an embarrassment to the Gillard socialist government.
Not only is he a National turned Liberal turncoat with a well known heavy drinking problem and dogged by an apparently highly embarrassing video tape, but he has now been accused of sexual harassment of the homosexual variety by a gay staff member.
As a result, with the Federal Budget session of Parliament about to cause chaos to the nation, Mr Slipper has had to step aside as speaker pending various investigations.
Politicians are pretty thick skinned, but I think the flak around Slipper is pretty serious going, and must be doing much to undermine his enjoyment of the pay and other perks of his valedictory role as an otherwise undistinguished parliamentarian.
What else should he expect however? Political parties have a tendency to serious despise their turncoats - who essentially have betrayed the supporters whose money and hard work and votes have gotten them into Parliament. And turncoats rarely do this out of some sort of moral dilemma - it is all about the perks - not about staying true to some higher principle.
And given even I KNOW what is in that embarrassing video (a friend who works in Parliament House told), it is highly likely that everyone in Parliament House, from Julia Gillard (and, more dangerously for Slipper, Tony Abbott) right down to the lady who changes the paper in the toilets know what is in that video.
And given what is in that video, I am not surprised at the current round of allegations against Slipper.
It is quite possible that the accusations being levelled by some of the Labor Party's apologists, like Mr Landeryou at Vexnews, that Mr Slipper has in some way been set up by some Liberal party figures, are true. I wouldn't rule them out. But obviously, for some sort of gay honey trap set up to have been planned, there needed to be something to justify the effort.
I do however think that junior Liberal head kicker Chris Pyne is innocent of involvement in trying to set up Mr Slipper. I think he just asked for the contact details of that staffer who is now raising the harassment complaints against Slipper for less sinister purposes. That is, he wants to be friends with that chap. Is there anything wrong with that?
Not only is he a National turned Liberal turncoat with a well known heavy drinking problem and dogged by an apparently highly embarrassing video tape, but he has now been accused of sexual harassment of the homosexual variety by a gay staff member.
As a result, with the Federal Budget session of Parliament about to cause chaos to the nation, Mr Slipper has had to step aside as speaker pending various investigations.
Politicians are pretty thick skinned, but I think the flak around Slipper is pretty serious going, and must be doing much to undermine his enjoyment of the pay and other perks of his valedictory role as an otherwise undistinguished parliamentarian.
What else should he expect however? Political parties have a tendency to serious despise their turncoats - who essentially have betrayed the supporters whose money and hard work and votes have gotten them into Parliament. And turncoats rarely do this out of some sort of moral dilemma - it is all about the perks - not about staying true to some higher principle.
And given even I KNOW what is in that embarrassing video (a friend who works in Parliament House told), it is highly likely that everyone in Parliament House, from Julia Gillard (and, more dangerously for Slipper, Tony Abbott) right down to the lady who changes the paper in the toilets know what is in that video.
And given what is in that video, I am not surprised at the current round of allegations against Slipper.
It is quite possible that the accusations being levelled by some of the Labor Party's apologists, like Mr Landeryou at Vexnews, that Mr Slipper has in some way been set up by some Liberal party figures, are true. I wouldn't rule them out. But obviously, for some sort of gay honey trap set up to have been planned, there needed to be something to justify the effort.
I do however think that junior Liberal head kicker Chris Pyne is innocent of involvement in trying to set up Mr Slipper. I think he just asked for the contact details of that staffer who is now raising the harassment complaints against Slipper for less sinister purposes. That is, he wants to be friends with that chap. Is there anything wrong with that?
Lara Bingle's Latest Nude Photo Scandal - Bring Popcorn
Well, the delectable Lara Bingle has done it again - some more nude photos of her have surfaced and are up for sale and she is crying out that she was taken advantage of.
Hmmm... in this case, it is possible that this might have happened. On first impressions, unlike the past two times (ie the properly posed modelling shots and the improper advantage taken of her by then beau Fevola), it seems that someone took the photos of her without her consent or cooperation (getting naked with a moron like Fevola is something which was not exactly about to elicit sympathy).
But, now we learn that one of her great friends and business partners is owner of the agency which is shipping these peeping tom shots and that he has sent the proofs to her manager last week.
This really does cloud the issue a lot. At the very least, it again raises the question about her dubious ability to choose her friends.
And if this all sounds like Schadenfreunde, well, it probably is.
Hmmm... in this case, it is possible that this might have happened. On first impressions, unlike the past two times (ie the properly posed modelling shots and the improper advantage taken of her by then beau Fevola), it seems that someone took the photos of her without her consent or cooperation (getting naked with a moron like Fevola is something which was not exactly about to elicit sympathy).
But, now we learn that one of her great friends and business partners is owner of the agency which is shipping these peeping tom shots and that he has sent the proofs to her manager last week.
This really does cloud the issue a lot. At the very least, it again raises the question about her dubious ability to choose her friends.
And if this all sounds like Schadenfreunde, well, it probably is.
Western Bulldogs finally win some...
Past two weekends have not been too bad for this long suffering Western Bulldogs (ie Footscray) supporter.
First, we beat Melbourne, and then we beat Greater Western Sydney.
These two are three of the teams which are in worse shape than the Doggies this year.
Of course, Gold Coast is still a few weeks away, so the two game winning streak comes to an end tomorrow night against Collingwood.
Tis rather sad to see the current state of the team - that we may only win three games this year, and that two of those are now behind us.
I think that the real contenders for the AFL premiership this year are West Coast, Carlton, Sydney and (if memory serves me correctly) St Kilda. These are the teams who not only are winning games, but winning games by huge margins and boosting their percentages.
Essendon, whilst it has only dropped one game so far, has much weaker percentage, and thus is currently punching far above its weight.
First, we beat Melbourne, and then we beat Greater Western Sydney.
These two are three of the teams which are in worse shape than the Doggies this year.
Of course, Gold Coast is still a few weeks away, so the two game winning streak comes to an end tomorrow night against Collingwood.
Tis rather sad to see the current state of the team - that we may only win three games this year, and that two of those are now behind us.
I think that the real contenders for the AFL premiership this year are West Coast, Carlton, Sydney and (if memory serves me correctly) St Kilda. These are the teams who not only are winning games, but winning games by huge margins and boosting their percentages.
Essendon, whilst it has only dropped one game so far, has much weaker percentage, and thus is currently punching far above its weight.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Stanton and Killeen 2008 Durif
Took yesterday arvo off and went to lunch in Carlton at Jimmy Watson's wine bar with some retired colleagues of mine.
We all had steak and did four bottles of decent red between the five of us.
Two of the bottles were the Stanton and Killeen 2008 Durif.
It was a very mighty fine wine - the stand out for the day - well balanced and very tasty.
But what would you expect? Stanton and Killeen are a Rutherglen winery, all of which are mighty fine, and whilst they are famed for their fortifed wines, their dry reds are pretty damn good, as evidenced by this durif, which tasted a bit like a decent port.
We all had steak and did four bottles of decent red between the five of us.
Two of the bottles were the Stanton and Killeen 2008 Durif.
It was a very mighty fine wine - the stand out for the day - well balanced and very tasty.
But what would you expect? Stanton and Killeen are a Rutherglen winery, all of which are mighty fine, and whilst they are famed for their fortifed wines, their dry reds are pretty damn good, as evidenced by this durif, which tasted a bit like a decent port.
Collingwood implode
The war of words between Eddie Maguire and Mick Malthouse which erupted earlier this week greatly amused me.
A while ago, when Maguire, as Collingwood president, was making all sorts of machinations to replace Malthouse as coach (all before he delivered Collingwood the 2010 flag - so nice going Brainiac), I suggested in this blog that Maguire should go and coach Collingwood.
After all, the man with the huge ego seems to think he can do anything (and I bet I am right about my theory that his real motive for trying to get the AFL Hall of Fame rules changed for Lou Richards is so that they can be bent even further one day to admit a certain Eddie Maguire as an AFL Legend).
Having prised Malthouse out of the coach's box after his grand final defeat, and a mere year after his premiership triumph was pretty dumb. With Sheedy at Essendon, perhaps there was a case for him having lost the plot as it had been a while since things had gone right at Essendon. But when you've got a coach still pushing his team out onto the MCG in the last game for the season, you really can't say that Malthouse was past his use by date.
But Eddie knows best, don't he. A while ago, there were all sorts of jokes on the internet about his obsession with Nathan Buckley, and I thought they were just jokes. But now, when he has done as much as he could to ensure that Buckley coaches Collingwood (hopefully into the ground), I wonder....
Anyway, in any AFL season, if my team can't win (as it has failed to deliver in any year since 1925 except for 1954), my hope is that any team except Carlton, Collingwood, Hawthorn or Adelaide wins.
A while ago, when Maguire, as Collingwood president, was making all sorts of machinations to replace Malthouse as coach (all before he delivered Collingwood the 2010 flag - so nice going Brainiac), I suggested in this blog that Maguire should go and coach Collingwood.
After all, the man with the huge ego seems to think he can do anything (and I bet I am right about my theory that his real motive for trying to get the AFL Hall of Fame rules changed for Lou Richards is so that they can be bent even further one day to admit a certain Eddie Maguire as an AFL Legend).
Having prised Malthouse out of the coach's box after his grand final defeat, and a mere year after his premiership triumph was pretty dumb. With Sheedy at Essendon, perhaps there was a case for him having lost the plot as it had been a while since things had gone right at Essendon. But when you've got a coach still pushing his team out onto the MCG in the last game for the season, you really can't say that Malthouse was past his use by date.
But Eddie knows best, don't he. A while ago, there were all sorts of jokes on the internet about his obsession with Nathan Buckley, and I thought they were just jokes. But now, when he has done as much as he could to ensure that Buckley coaches Collingwood (hopefully into the ground), I wonder....
Anyway, in any AFL season, if my team can't win (as it has failed to deliver in any year since 1925 except for 1954), my hope is that any team except Carlton, Collingwood, Hawthorn or Adelaide wins.
Western Bulldogs make it 3 in a row....
Three losses in a row. This footy season is all but over for long suffering Footscray supporters like me.
Too early to really conclusively tell, but Brendan McCartney as coach seems to be turning into one of those brave experiments which is not going to work out.
It was always going to be a risk, getting someone who has not played at VFL/AFL level, but he seemed extremely plausible.
And I suspect that he is working cheap. A lot of top notch AFL coaches, of the sort who win premierships or who have star power, tend to get paid pretty damn well - such that you won't get too much change out of a million bucks. I wonder how much Coach McCartney is getting - he probably is getting a fraction of what someone like James Hird or Nathan Buckley or the great Sheedy is pulling.
Or Ross Lyon - probably the most highly regarded coach yet to win a premiership.
And Footscray Football Club probably can't afford to pay their football department too much off field. We've never been a particularly well off club - to put it optimistically.
Too early to really conclusively tell, but Brendan McCartney as coach seems to be turning into one of those brave experiments which is not going to work out.
It was always going to be a risk, getting someone who has not played at VFL/AFL level, but he seemed extremely plausible.
And I suspect that he is working cheap. A lot of top notch AFL coaches, of the sort who win premierships or who have star power, tend to get paid pretty damn well - such that you won't get too much change out of a million bucks. I wonder how much Coach McCartney is getting - he probably is getting a fraction of what someone like James Hird or Nathan Buckley or the great Sheedy is pulling.
Or Ross Lyon - probably the most highly regarded coach yet to win a premiership.
And Footscray Football Club probably can't afford to pay their football department too much off field. We've never been a particularly well off club - to put it optimistically.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Farewell to the Guiding Star Hotel
I've only been to the Guiding Star Hotel twice - once when I was about 18 or 19 and at a loose end, and once, about 7 years ago, when I went back in order to get a stubby holder.
It's this pub on Geelong Road in that part of the western suburbs which is no longer Footscray but not quite Altona - I think it is in Brooklyn to be precise, a pretty non-descript and dumpy area of factories and warehouses and a few crappy weatherboard houses.
The Guiding Star is a truck stop, and has had a reputation as a rather rough place. My neighbour, who has worked as a truck driver from time to time prior to his retirement, told me that it used to have a Friday pub strip show (another pub tradition which seems to be dying out).
Well... bad news, it looks like it has closed since I last visited it. One more historic pub bites the dust.
I sometimes feel a bit like Edward Gibbon in this blog, although instead of writing about the decline and fall of the Roman Empire, I am writing about the decline and fall of the Australian pub.
It's this pub on Geelong Road in that part of the western suburbs which is no longer Footscray but not quite Altona - I think it is in Brooklyn to be precise, a pretty non-descript and dumpy area of factories and warehouses and a few crappy weatherboard houses.
The Guiding Star is a truck stop, and has had a reputation as a rather rough place. My neighbour, who has worked as a truck driver from time to time prior to his retirement, told me that it used to have a Friday pub strip show (another pub tradition which seems to be dying out).
Well... bad news, it looks like it has closed since I last visited it. One more historic pub bites the dust.
I sometimes feel a bit like Edward Gibbon in this blog, although instead of writing about the decline and fall of the Roman Empire, I am writing about the decline and fall of the Australian pub.
Which will be the 200th stubby holder for my collection?
OK... I don't seem to have too many regular readers of this blog, and I don't seem to get many comments from any collectors or makers of stubby holders.
So... if any of you are out there reading this, I need some comments from you in response to this posting.
My stubby holder collection is stuck on 199, and I want to crack the 200 mark.
What I would like is for you to write in and tell me which pubs anywhere in Australia you know of which sell stubby holders. If they are not in Melbourne, I will work out an itinerary and go and visit them at some point. If they are in or around Melbourne, I will go asap and see if I can get stubby holders from them. [NB - it does not count as part of my collection unless I actually have a beer there in person.]
It's up to you, dear non-existent reader. Help me increase my collection.
So... if any of you are out there reading this, I need some comments from you in response to this posting.
My stubby holder collection is stuck on 199, and I want to crack the 200 mark.
What I would like is for you to write in and tell me which pubs anywhere in Australia you know of which sell stubby holders. If they are not in Melbourne, I will work out an itinerary and go and visit them at some point. If they are in or around Melbourne, I will go asap and see if I can get stubby holders from them. [NB - it does not count as part of my collection unless I actually have a beer there in person.]
It's up to you, dear non-existent reader. Help me increase my collection.
Cyclist Suicide Bombers
I wrote a few years back that there all sorts of reports all over the world that suicide bombers seem to be fond of using bicycles to deliver their deadly payloads. Some cyclist then made some nasty but amusing comments about my sex life on my blog in response (at least they are reading this occasionally), which gave me a chuckle.
But there is nothing funny either about terrorists or cyclists. Both are evil. When you combine cyclists and terrorists, you have one of the most frightening and terrible creatures on this planet - the cyclist terrorist. [Or terrorist cyclist if you prefer.]
My irrefutable logic presented several years ago that cyclists are more likely to become terrorists than either drivers or pedestrians - and that many of the terrorists who are either drivers or pedestrians when they commit their atrocities are also cyclists.
They haven't been stamped out yet, in the years since I blogged on this subject. And I have been following recent news reports that bicycle suicide bombers have killed scores of people in Afghanistan and Iraq in recent months - to say nothing of what they have done in Palestine, Sri Lanka, and other troubled corners of the world.
So... it just goes to show that all those cyclists who drug cheat to win bike races, like Floyd Landis and Alberto Contador and the rest (when will they catch Lance Armstrong finally?) are terrible people, but they are actually the nice cyclists in comparison to some of the other cyclists out there.
That, my friends, is scary.
But there is nothing funny either about terrorists or cyclists. Both are evil. When you combine cyclists and terrorists, you have one of the most frightening and terrible creatures on this planet - the cyclist terrorist. [Or terrorist cyclist if you prefer.]
My irrefutable logic presented several years ago that cyclists are more likely to become terrorists than either drivers or pedestrians - and that many of the terrorists who are either drivers or pedestrians when they commit their atrocities are also cyclists.
They haven't been stamped out yet, in the years since I blogged on this subject. And I have been following recent news reports that bicycle suicide bombers have killed scores of people in Afghanistan and Iraq in recent months - to say nothing of what they have done in Palestine, Sri Lanka, and other troubled corners of the world.
So... it just goes to show that all those cyclists who drug cheat to win bike races, like Floyd Landis and Alberto Contador and the rest (when will they catch Lance Armstrong finally?) are terrible people, but they are actually the nice cyclists in comparison to some of the other cyclists out there.
That, my friends, is scary.
Masters Chinese Restaurant
The other night, I went out boozing with my best friend. We had a bit to celebrate. After all, he had just been able to get his child support payments to the ex-wife halved on review (he had a temporary spike in overtime based income a year or so ago, which has now passed), and the crippling $400 per pay he was going to have to fork out has been reduced to a much more managable $200 per pay. Now the ex-wife is fuming, as she was planning some more overseas holidays and other wastes of the money (perish the thought that she would actually use it on their son), and observing the ex-wife quietly fuming is an underrated pastime.
So anyway, at some point in the evening, we ended up in Footscray and decided to try Masters Chinese Restaurant, which is in the Footscray Market on the Leeds-Hopkins St corner.
Well... it's not Jim Wong's (my favourite Chinese restaurant in Footscray), but it did have something which Jim Wong don't and which most Chinese restaurants outside the CBD don't seem to have - Peking Duck.
We had something else to eat on top of that, plus a cheap bottle of red (they are licensed), and a jolly good time.
Only nuisance for me is that it doesn't take credit cards, so I had to pay cash - but this week was payday, so I am pretty much cashed up.
So anyway, at some point in the evening, we ended up in Footscray and decided to try Masters Chinese Restaurant, which is in the Footscray Market on the Leeds-Hopkins St corner.
Well... it's not Jim Wong's (my favourite Chinese restaurant in Footscray), but it did have something which Jim Wong don't and which most Chinese restaurants outside the CBD don't seem to have - Peking Duck.
We had something else to eat on top of that, plus a cheap bottle of red (they are licensed), and a jolly good time.
Only nuisance for me is that it doesn't take credit cards, so I had to pay cash - but this week was payday, so I am pretty much cashed up.
Senator Bob Brown abducted by aliens
So good to see that the appalling Senator Bob Brown has finally decided to step down from politics.
Good riddance.
You know, last election night, I was watching that really gloating speech he made about the ways he wanted to pervert Australian democracy (ie introducing proportional representation to the House of Reps - which would give us the sorts of stable governments enjoyed by places such as Italy and much of Western Europe) now that the Greens were gaining so much electoral support, and he really looked very creepy, like the hooded claw or some other cartoonish matinee villian.
But that's high definition TV for you - it showed all the cracks and wrinkles in his face in frightening detail.
Aside from much of the damage he has done recently to the Australian economy and to the welfare of Australian households, Senator Brown has been good for a few bizarre laughs. His recent stuff about how we don't meet aliens because they have been killed off by global warming on their home planets does lead one to suspect that his mind is light years away from us lately, and that perhaps he has been probed by ET....
[Sorry, I couldn't resist making that crack.]
Good riddance.
You know, last election night, I was watching that really gloating speech he made about the ways he wanted to pervert Australian democracy (ie introducing proportional representation to the House of Reps - which would give us the sorts of stable governments enjoyed by places such as Italy and much of Western Europe) now that the Greens were gaining so much electoral support, and he really looked very creepy, like the hooded claw or some other cartoonish matinee villian.
But that's high definition TV for you - it showed all the cracks and wrinkles in his face in frightening detail.
Aside from much of the damage he has done recently to the Australian economy and to the welfare of Australian households, Senator Brown has been good for a few bizarre laughs. His recent stuff about how we don't meet aliens because they have been killed off by global warming on their home planets does lead one to suspect that his mind is light years away from us lately, and that perhaps he has been probed by ET....
[Sorry, I couldn't resist making that crack.]
Thursday, April 12, 2012
More failure by the Western Bulldogs
A cousin of mine decided to get confirmed as an adult, and asked my mother to be the confirmation sponsor.
So... Easter Saturday evening, I trekked out to Altona to attend mass and see the big event of this confirmation.
Was sitting next to my brother in the church, which might not have been a great move as my brother is far more irreligious than I (I at least take communion when I go to mass, which is infrequently). My brother spent the whole two hours idly checking the footy scores on his smart phone and making commentary to me about progress.
Which involves, in the first few minutes of the Adelaide-Bulldogs game, something along the lines of 'the season is over'.
Whilst the game was not quite that bad, compared to round one against the Eagles, it was still pretty disappointing. This definitely does not look like being a good year for the Western Bulldogs.
So... Easter Saturday evening, I trekked out to Altona to attend mass and see the big event of this confirmation.
Was sitting next to my brother in the church, which might not have been a great move as my brother is far more irreligious than I (I at least take communion when I go to mass, which is infrequently). My brother spent the whole two hours idly checking the footy scores on his smart phone and making commentary to me about progress.
Which involves, in the first few minutes of the Adelaide-Bulldogs game, something along the lines of 'the season is over'.
Whilst the game was not quite that bad, compared to round one against the Eagles, it was still pretty disappointing. This definitely does not look like being a good year for the Western Bulldogs.
Cyclist steals from charity
One of the current affairs programs the other night showed a segment on people who steal from charities - ie all the household goods and clothes which people leave outside charity stores and bins outside of hours for the charity to collect and sell so as to help the needy.
What most impressed me was that the thief the tele-journalist confronted was a cyclist, wearing his bike helmet and then filmed riding away with his loot on his bicycle.
How far can cyclists stoop? This cyclist is quite a thief, stealing from charities like that.
I could say some nastier things, but I will leave it to your imagination and to the regular articles in the newspapers which talk about cyclists committing all sorts of acts of anti-social and criminal behaviour.
What most impressed me was that the thief the tele-journalist confronted was a cyclist, wearing his bike helmet and then filmed riding away with his loot on his bicycle.
How far can cyclists stoop? This cyclist is quite a thief, stealing from charities like that.
I could say some nastier things, but I will leave it to your imagination and to the regular articles in the newspapers which talk about cyclists committing all sorts of acts of anti-social and criminal behaviour.
Robert Doyle to run for Lord Mayor of Melbourne again
As readers of this blog (if there actually are such creatures) would know, I have a great deal of dislike for that buffoonish and feathernesting oxygen thief commonly known as Robert Doyle, current Lord Mayor of Melbourne.
He has announced today that he will be running for a second four year term.
I wonder what he will promise next? To abolish all the junkets that he has been taking on behalf of the council, and all of the other waste that has happened on his watch?
Or can he try to attract the Green vote by promising to campaign to get rid of the Grand Prix and to make Melbourne more bicycle friendly?
Truly, when he led the state opposition to an unprecedented slaughter in 2002 (which caused me to open a bottle of the 1995 Grange in celebration), we denizens of Victoria dodged a bullet. He would have been the worst state premier ever - and that is in a crowd which includes people like Joan Kirner and both John Cains.
I almost wish I lived within the city of Melbourne so I could vote for any other candidate than Doyle.
He has announced today that he will be running for a second four year term.
I wonder what he will promise next? To abolish all the junkets that he has been taking on behalf of the council, and all of the other waste that has happened on his watch?
Or can he try to attract the Green vote by promising to campaign to get rid of the Grand Prix and to make Melbourne more bicycle friendly?
Truly, when he led the state opposition to an unprecedented slaughter in 2002 (which caused me to open a bottle of the 1995 Grange in celebration), we denizens of Victoria dodged a bullet. He would have been the worst state premier ever - and that is in a crowd which includes people like Joan Kirner and both John Cains.
I almost wish I lived within the city of Melbourne so I could vote for any other candidate than Doyle.
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