News
One of the worst things about this job is that it means I have to actually pay attention to the utter dross that usually passes for our political affairs. No more casual cynicism and a quick trip into the comics section. No, now I need to read what Mr Abbott said, and what Ms Gillard said and try to synthesise out of that guff a story that potentially means something. And let me tell you now, having to spend time in the company of these two is like being trapped in a room with your most hated childhood teacher and your most boring extended family member - it seems to suck out all available light. It makes you loathe news.
So, with that hyperbolic opening out of the way, back to
the fallout from last Thursday's protest incident. The Coalition, never missing an opportunity to turn a minor event into a catastrophe of Earth-shaking importance, is huffing and puffing and demanding an inquiry into the affair by the Australian Federal Police. Says Shadow Attorney-General George Brandis, "We are suspicious of a cover-up, we are more than suspicious that the public are not being given the full story." He goes on, "The fact that nothing happened for 24 hours is something we regard as suspicious, and we would like the investigation that the AFP undertakes into who knew what, when did they know it, and what did they do about it, to focus on that, among other issues, within the Prime Minister's office". Well, you might want that, George, but I, as a citizen of this country, would prefer to remove my own teeth than read the results of that investigation, let alone consider how much otherwise useful money would need to be put through a shredder in order to complete it. Labor (and the AFP) is dismissive, as it might be, but given their penchant for being on the receiving end of high-level fuck ups, they still come out of this looking incompetent and evasive. Ju-liar, etc. And so Tony Abbott and his riotous gang of intellectual cul-de-sacs are given yet another free pass to spray faeces all over our national debate. The end.
OR IS IT?
Things are really kicking up in Syria, with
the most intense fighting seen since the beginning of the protests gripping the outskirts of Damascus and reports of indiscriminate shelling and slaughter filtering back through various opposition groups. Meanwhile, the Arab League is still trying to finagle a Resolution calling for President Assad to step down through the UN Security Council. Russia has threatened to veto any such Resolution, while China's position remains uncertain. Russia is trying to defuse its image as a wilful obstructionist by offering to conduct a dialogue between the Government (who have cheerfully agreed) and the rebels (who as yet have not). Notably, Iran, once Syria's staunchest ally, has stopped saying anything about the unpleasantness, which is probably a fair indicator of its current loyalties/priorities.
Speaking of which, Iran is being oddly compliant in the face of heightening rhetoric and sanctions from all over the globe, with the country's foreign minister purportedly offering to
extend a UN nuclear inspection mission to the country for another three days. It's a small gesture, but it's the first sign that the country might be backing away from a precipice the other side of which is unilateral military action from Israel and a Republican Presidential field who think war with Iran would just be a bang up idea (hint: it wouldn't). Of course, the country might just be trying to buy more time to finish up the bomb, much like they've been doing for the past decade, or they might just be trying to create radiotherapy ready isotopes for their cancer patients, like they've been saying for the last decade. Only time and the presence of nuclear weapon will tell.
There's another summit happening in the EU. What this one is about specifically I have no idea, but the potential consequences are the same: global financial catastrophe. The Greece situation, and when/how to give the beleagured nation more money to service its ludicrous debts, remains the dominant topic, but somewhat reassuringly it sounds like the authorities are finally starting to open to the idea that in order to pull themselves out of this rut they may have to
actually stimulate their economies rather than just eviscerating them. Who woulda thunk it?
Features
On the problem of Ritalin/Adderall/dexies, in that
as far as we can tell, they don't actually do any good. Classify under "Psychopharmacology freaks me out".
British provocateur George Monbiot on why we should have a maximum wage. I wonder what Gina Rinehart thinks about this.
Oddities/Curiosities
Want to enjoy your own little slice of blood-soaked German history? Well,
for £90,000 a year you could be the proud tenant of Hitler's Wolf's Lair, the 14 hectare reserve/bunker from which one Adolf Hitler ran the Nazi war effort. While the bunker is no longer habitable, the Polish government is looking for tenants who are willing to capitalise on the tourist potential in the form of memorials, museums and/or dinner theatre restaurants.
Scientists, always at the cutting edge of our understanding of the human body, have deduced
where the most pleasurable place to itch is: the ankle. As someone whose attractiveness to mosquitoes is matched only by their ability to pinpoint the exact areas on my body where the itching will be most intense, I can wholeheartedly agree.
Video
Kermit and Miss Piggy respond to Fox News' accusation that their most recent film contains a 'dangerous liberal agenda'. Zing, Miss Piggy, zing.