Webdiary - Founded and Inspired by Margo Kingston

"Buddha talked compassion before that, and throw in a few other luminaries, and we live not alone at times of calling. But JC brought the word into the world, and such is the power of love, it creates myths and magic, real and unreal, daily still. Here we are today, and while today we talk about love, we don't always live it. And as we don't fully live the life of love, we know and understand fear and live it much the same. The two are partners, love and fear, dancing a duet through our minds and hearts. We are at times partner to one and then the other, and spending more time in this dance by that process we'll come to better know both." Robert Bosler

"Alexander Downer has expressed himself perplexed and upset that he has been accused of not doing enough to save the life of Nguyen Tuong Van. Well he did not and the result speaks for itself. Downer was obviously moved by the plight of Van Nguyen when it became obvious, in the last week, that his formal diplomatic endeavours had fallen on deaf ears. That emotion might have been better deployed earlier, more creatively and in a less pro forma fashion." Bruce Haigh

|| Anne Perkins on new Tory leader, David Cameron    || George Monbiot says biodiesel is a problem, not a solution || Charlie Cooks on Bush's political dilemma  || Christopher Hitchens on buying favourable Iraq coverage  || Interview with George Packer re "The Assassins' Gate"  || Report on the pressure on traditional telcos  || Verlyn Klinkenborg on the season for lists || Calamity Jane, the Courtney Love of her day    || Katernine Seelye on making Wikipedia more accurate  || Anita Sethi confesses to being a Take That groupie  || Shane Warne on England's tour of Pakistan ||

"As the riots in France fade, French politicians are agonizing about how to proceed. Forty years ago, after legal segregation of blacks and whites formally ended in America, the United States was confronted by similar problems. America's response shows, however, that integration cannot be viewed as a one-way street. In addition to imposing demands and constraints on minorities to join the mainstream, society must be willing to demand of itself that it make room for all its citizens.' Heleen Mees and Rick van der Ploeg

"The evening with Mr Ritter was hosted by the Victorian Peace Network, with Bill Deller chairing. In Mr Deller's introduction, he told us how  he believed it would be necessary in future to create broad coalitions with people of differing ideological hues in order to achieve similar goals. To prove how pear shaped politics has become, Deller introduced us to Scott Ritter, a man who voted for George W. Bush in the 2000 election and a former marine who worked as a ballistic missile adviser to General Norman Schwarzkopf during the first Gulf war." Chris Saliba