Category: Uncategorized

THESE days they call it trivial pursuit. Forty years ago this week it was general knowledge and, for me, the pursuit was not trivial. Continue reading “”

QUEENSLAND joined Western Australia and Victoria in a resounding piece of hypocrisy this week by increasing its mining royalties. It also joins Western Australia and Victoria in a resounding under-estimation of the Commonwealth’s taxation power. Continue reading “Qld Govt hypocritical on over mining tax”

WHAT on earth is the Gillard Government doing wasting so many taxpayers’ dollars on dental health for children, education, and support for the disabled. Continue reading “Government waste on teeth and disabled”

WILL the ACT be next? Last Saturday Labor lost in the Northern Territory with a six per cent swing against it. It follows losses in Queensland, NSW, Victoria and Western Australia. Continue reading “Will ACT be next to fall to Libs?”

wHERE’S the Money Coming From has been the classic political riposte against governments with big-spending promises. In the past week or so, several well-placed non-politicians have been giving similar warnings. Continue reading “Higher taxes or stable population”

ANGUS Houston’s basic decency and humanity were obvious every time, as head of the Australian Defence Force, he had to announce the death of another soldier in Afghanistan. His fundamental integrity was apparent when he refused to economise with the truth during the inquiry into the children overboard affair. Continue reading “Military mindset mars refugee plans”

THE controversial elevation of ACT barrister Stuart Pilkinton to the ranks of Senior Counsel invites questioning of the whole process. The public has a strong interest in the regulation of the professions, particularly law and medicine. Continue reading “More open system for SCs needed”

THE slow washing out of the Health Services Union affair reminds us of the pivitol role industrial relations has played in Australia’s politics. (Hooray for the Olympic slump is below.) Continue reading “IR’s ugly head; hooray for Olympic slump”

THERE comes a time – like reaching the big six zero – when you should do something completely different. As a result, I am learning to sail. Not taking a dinghy around Lake Burley Griffin, but rather taking a 14-metre yacht from Brisbane to Port Douglas, north of Cairns – about 1800km — with my brother, Greg, and his son Timothy. Continue reading “Learning after 60 — the big sail”

IN THE holidays between school and university I had a job at a soft-drink factory in Beechworth, Victoria. On Day One I began the task of sorting used empty bottles – crown tops, screw tops, bottles with ceramic labels, bottles with paper labels, large bottles, small bottles, medium bottles and so on. Continue reading “Deposits on containers work”