Time to hand in the keys to the post box tomorrow morning and head down to 80 mile beach. A lot of national parks to visit between here and Black Rock in Melbourne. We'll miss the Federal budget, the remaining U.S. primaries and a few AFL games. It's a hard life! Read more »
The raid on the Western Australian Sunday Times has interstate interest: WA police raid on Sunday Times leaves politicians ducking for cover This is my response to Woolly Days aka Derek Barry of Queensland: Read more »
North Carolina & Indiana:Not game changer or game over. Certainly not really Clinton's claimed tie breaker. It's the end game now and Hillary has very few moves left. But it appears she'll battle on.Barack Obama's failure to win Indiana and bury her for good leaves a major question mark over his seemingly inevitable presidential campaign.
It seems that few care about the 1984 style manipulation of information by the Pentagon. The Huffington Post has been on the job though. It even gave them a chance to criticise the New York Times for going soft on their own exposé. Read more »
If there is much truth in this story from The Age, then Jenny Macklin's mid-year review of the NT intervention is going to be extra difficult: NT intervention 'creating unrest' in big townsCould these problems have anything to do with the total lack of planning and consultation when the emergency was declared last year? There needs to a comprehensive strategy to issues such as alcohol abuse, not just piece meal solutions that just shift things around. Read more »
A 10% margin is just what uncommitted Democrats, or committed ones for that matter, did not want. Not quite enough to change the likely Obama nomination, not small enough to finish off Clinton, no end to the primary season. Read more »
The 2020 summit discovers New federalism. Gough Whitlam should be proud of them. The proposals to cut down on duplication and conflicting State laws have been brewing for 35 years. Read more »
This can't be an original idea but here goes. Instead of a dis-incentive scheme for plastic bags we should try an incentive scheme. No charge for the plastic bag but a discount or refund for using your own bags.Haven't seen anyone else use a green bag at the supermarkets in Broome for weeks if not months and we're on the lookout. How about a refund from Coles and Woolworths for the bags we don't use? Let the plastic bag users pay more for their groceries so that we don't have to pay for something we don't want.Might help others to bring those bags from home. Read more »
As part of the continuing Community Cabinet visit to Broome, Fran Logan, WA Minister for Industry and Enterprise, announced the connection of Broome and the remote Indigenous communities of Ardyaloon, Bidyadanga, Djarindjin and Lombadina to high-speed broadband. Read more »
Law and order is an expensive business. When announcing a second magistrate for the Kimberley, the WA premier Alan Carpenter explained that the need for a second magistrate in the region is not just a question of geography and population. Read more »
The previous post explains the context for this video.For the official media statement, please see: Premier announces swimming pool for Fitzroy CrossingWas thinking of tagging it "good news indigenous story" but couldn't face the cynics.
Clinton plays working-class hero after Obama gaffe (ABC News 14 April 2008) is an online edited version of a Reuters story from the Australian Broacasting Corporation (not the American Broadcasting Company).
Clinton has toured a working-class neighborhood to stress her blue-collar background... Read more »
Link TV has an election project called Dear American Voter It's a place to watch and read the views of non-US citizens about American politics. And post your own thoughts. Read more »
John Button, a great Australian and a much loved Labor politician is dead. He was all the things that will be said of him in the coming days and more. Many will remember his genuine humility, sharp mind and dry wit. Can' t remember him losing it or becoming flustered though he's sure to have done both given the sacred cows he regularly prodded out of the way. He was a great believer in the power of ideas and the spoken and written word. He was dedicated to winning people over, not through spin but by gentle persuasion. Read more »
Barack Obama has come through stronger than ever. His victory speech was impressive:
...it's about your hopes, it's about your dreams, it's about your struggles, it's about your aspirations, it's about securing your portion of the American dream. ...we can choose this moment to come together, choose not to be afraid...
It was a combination of JFK's inauguration and George W. Bush's appeal in 2000 to bi-partisanship. Read more »
40 years after the assassinations of Martin Luther King Junior and Robert Kennedy the gun debate in the U.S. has hit rock bottom. After Barack Obama's comments about small town America clinging to guns, Clinton's campaign has sent a mailout to Indiana voters questioning his stance on guns: Where Does Barack Obama really stand on guns? Read more »
World Press Freedom Day on 3 May highlights the importance of freedom of the press, and reminds governments to uphold their citizens’ right to freedom of expression enshrined under Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It’s also a chance for us to reflect on the damage caused to individuals when freedom of the press is denied.
Who said that freedom of the press was owning one? Read more »
The aftermath of the 2020 Summit seemed to distract the Australian mass media and the blogosphere from yet another case of U.S. government manipulation of political coverage. It was the Iraq war again, of course. Read more »
Michigan and Florida will hang over the Democrat 2008 primaries for a long time. An internal party dustup might have cost Hillary Clinton the nomination and almost certainly the presidency as a result. She has been playing catchup with a stacked deck (love those mixed metaphors). The job of the Super Delegates will be tough if it stays close. They are part of the process just like its many other imperfect aspects. Read more »
A recommendation from the Productivity (Education, Skills, Training, Sience and Innovation) group at the 2020 summit, which has received some publicity is:
Business – school connections Read more »
Blue Collar Hillary is a product of SuperNews. Never explain a joke. Enjoy! Read more »
There was an odd coincidence during the latest Democratic debate in Philadelphia. Barack Obama was defending himself regarding his remarks that small townspeople retreat to their passions for religion and guns during tough economic times. Hillary Clinton was trying to explain her slip about being under sniper fire in Bosnia, a conflict rooted in religious passions if ever there was one. Read more »
Community Cabinet in Broome has been a public relations blitz with 20 media events planned for the visit. The local journalists have warmed to the task with an increasing number of questions off the topics of the ministerial announcements. Read more »
The Western Australian State cabinet meets in Broome as part of its regional community consultations. Local public sector workers rally outside about the cost of living. Diesel is $1.76 per litre and rising, and bananas fetch $3.98 per kilo on a good day. Read more »
While I'm travelling down south, some thoughts on ending the Iraq war thanks to a Huffington Post link.A Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq is a mere 20 pages. Enough to fill those empty hours.
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