Webdiary - Founded and Inspired by Margo Kingston

Here's the aftermath of that incident ... An obvious subject for a CAPTION COMPETITION
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At a 30th birthday party in Melbourne recently, a Labor man reckoned Howard would implode in week 3 of the campaign. Being superstitious, and respectful of Howard's political skills, I replied that I didn't think so, but that if he did, it would be in week 6. If the polls hadn't given him a shot by then, he'd be staring at the fact that he'd trashed his own legacy. So we had a bet that if he lost it in week 6 or week 3, the loser would shout lunch. I reckon he came close yesterday. Real close.

During discussions about peak oil with the uninitiated I am often asked why there is no political will to tackle the issue proactively. Most seem to be disappointed with replies that don’t include Iraq War conspiracy theories or appalling tales of political and corporate corruption. The reality is less sinister but more insidious – ignorance, stupidity and bumbling bureaucratic ineptitude.

Current estimates are that the value of money being laundered through Australian banks by criminal enterprises approaches $12 billion per year. This amount is equivalent to about 1% of Australia’s GDP - except that it adds nothing to it. In the roughest of terms, it suggests that as many as 1 out of 100 Australian adults may be involved in criminal activity.

"What sort of morals does a government have, who are willing to invade a nation and kill countless people in order to control its resources? More importantly, are you willing to vote for them, even if you think their policies benefit you more than those of some other parties?" Yasir Assam