Should just drop back to the lowest speed with Bigpond ADSL during the school holidays. That's all we seem to get. What you pay for is not what you get.
As for competition, Optus doesn't have landlines in Black Rock, one of Melbourne's inner suburbs these days.
Telstra will give us cable TV but not cable broadband. Free enterprise!
Stephen Conroy, bring it on!
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
School Holidays: Bigpond grinds to halt
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Geraldine Doogue: Angela Merkel "unglamorous"
In her SaturdayExtra program on ABC Radio National, presenter Geraldine Doogue referred to German Chancellor as unglamorous.
The website puts it this way:
According to some analysts, German Chancellor Angela Merkel is not the 'Iron lady' that British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was.It's a cut down version of Doogue's comments from the item. The tone of her opening remark "that most unglamorous woman, as it were", with its negative connotations, left us gobsmacked.
She is not considered beautiful, is not warm, rarely smiles, is not a great communicator, has no charisma, is not glamorous - and it seems that she has yet to deliver a knock out speech.
And yet, maybe she has connected with her people, to the extent that voters think of her as 'the matriarch who takes care of them'.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
SOS: Saint Desperately Seeking AFL Grand Final Ticket
St.Kilda tragic for 6 decades: first final 1961, attended all modern day Grand Finals including Premiership in 1966, reserved spot on terrace at Moorabbin through the dark ages. After 10 years in the Top End find myself without prospects of a ticket this year.
Willing to do anything except the illegal (or pay scalper excessive amount – generous bonus quite acceptable).
To my media friends, web and video coverage, and photo gallery available all week: live blogging from MCG, Friday’s parade, last training session.
Please contact me at kevin.rennie@bigpond.com or 0488288600
Friday, September 18, 2009
Michael Moore: Capitalism turning the bull loose
Huffington Post has a clip from Michael Moore's new film Capitalism: A love Story
Moore was interviewed on the Jay Leno Show this week:
Looks like fun!
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
One-way street for two-way NT bi-lingual programs
For those interested in the future of bi-lingual education in Northern Territory schools, try to catch up with last night's Four Corners program "Going Back to Lajamnau" and Bob Gosford's analysis at Crikey.
Gosford on meetings with members of the Yirrkala commmunity. (You need to be a subscriber or try a free trial to read the full article):
Crikey understands that Barnes (new NT Education CEO Gary Barnes ) read the riot act to both groups, telling them that they had to abandon their continued support and use of the bilingual program and that the continued support by the Yambirra School Council for bilingual education at their school was "unacceptable" to the Department.Bi-lingual education is not the only two-way process. So are building community support for education and valuing the teachers who work in remote schools. There is little evidence that either is happening well at the moment.
Crikey also understands that many of those who had attended the meetings were upset and angry with Barnes and the NT Education staffers accompanying him, with the two issues of real concern being the absolute disregard Barnes showed for Yolngu leadership and ownership of their school program and his apparent total ignorance of and disinterest in bilingual education and Indigenous Education in general.
A forked tongue on bilingual education in the NT
Attracting quality teachers is a high priority of the NT education department at present. Yet senior Darwin bureaucrats are visiting schools and telling teachers with proven track records to shape up or ship out.
For further information about bi-lingual education please see Living Knowledge's 'both ways' education
To have a say Lingo are producing postcards to send to our friendly politicians: DON’T CUT OFF OUR TONGUES!
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Narcissus Courting at Carnarvon Gorge
The Apostlebird is so-called because it appears in groups of twelve. It is a feature of Carnarvon National Park, Queensland, Australia. Another is the cycad, especially the Macrozamia some of which are 2000 years old.
The bold and frisky apostlebird is attracted to its own image in the external mirrors of cars in the camping ground.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Defend Indigenous Homelands
From GetUp!
"Thanks to GetUp members' support a delegation of Indigenous leaders from homelands across East Arnhem Land traveled to Canberra this week to meet with key ministers and present a petition of over 27,000 signatures urging the Government to secure the future of homeland communities."More at GetUp! Close the Gap Blog
Next Monday ABC TV's Four Corners program Going Back to Lajamanu will look at the related issue of bi-lingual education in aboriginal communities.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Rolling back printing allowances rorts
Brakes are to be put on the waste and abuse of public money occurring through Parliamentarian's printing allowances:
A damning report on the federal MPs' printing entitlements scheme found they have been using taxpayers' funds to drum up votes for themselves.I've posted before about our local MHR: Andrew Robb's Wanton Waste and Andrew Robb wasting valuable space
MPs 'rorting allowances' for votes ABC 8 September 2009
My previous MHR Barry Haase, the member for Kalgoorlie, was a serial offender whose electioneering revolved around glossy taxpayer funded self promotions.
You can't please everybody:
LABOR MPs have vented their anger at the Federal Government's move to crack down on politicians' printing allowances, arguing it will fan public perceptions of rorting and make it harder to hold marginal seats.There is still a long way to go to clean up the misuse of public funds for political purposes but at least this is a start.
... In his report, Auditor-General Ian McPhee found widespread problems, with 74 per cent of sampled material ''at risk'' of breaking the rules.
He found that parties had printed bulk runs of partisan leaflets - such as ''Labor can't manage money'' and ''John Howard has lost touch with working families'' - and then had the printers bill the Government under MPs' names.
The allowances were used to pay not only for how-to-vote cards but also for partisan flyers.
Printing overhaul upsets Labor MPs The Age 8 September 2009
Andrew Bartlett has more at:
Major, welcome changes to Parliamentarian’s printing allowances
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
ABC Mediabotch: ignorance is bliss
We have come to expect less and less from the ABC. Reporter Deborah Cornwall gave us a gem last week in an opinion piece for the 7.30 Report. Take this hard hitting expert commentary :
Until today, the biggest obstacle to Della Bosca's leadership ambitions was his bad tempered wife, Labor federal senator Belinda Neal, who was seen as a political liability in the wake of last year’s so-called Iguana-gate scandal. But in the end, it was his mistress who would destroy his career.Belinda is the House of Representatives member for Robertson, not a Senator.
Della Bosca resigns with regret ABC 1 September 2009
Is it too much to expect that political commentators will get the basic facts right? When in doubt google!
Some good news from Halls Creek and Balgo
ABC Radio National's Michael Cathcart interviewed Father Matt Diggs and WA police Senior Sergeant Brad Warburton on Bush Telegraph this morning.
Their take on the impact of alcohol restrictions in Halls Creek and the flow on to Balgo community was very positive. The only negative seems to be the continuing sale of full strength beer at Rabbit Flat 250 kms away in the Northern Territory.
The podcast is available here. The story is close to the start of the file.
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