Wizards of Ozterity

I was listening the other day to the various austerity measures being proposed across Europe: university fees to be introduced in Ireland, an increase in the retirement age and proposals for new taxes in various countries.  And then it struck me - we've already had all of these in Australia.  We in the lucky country have apparently been living in austerity for years.  That's obviously what the "Aus" part of the name stands for.

Conversation Fragment

Overheard on the way to work this morning:

"So these poles, yeah, they weigh thirty feet a pole".

Cellebrations?

Apparently it's Spreadsheet Day today.  I find this very sad.

No-confidence Trickster

Silvio Berlusconi resigned today.

While many people will remember him for the allegations of corruption, the philandering and the general buffoonery, I think I'll always remember the stat I heard this morning, namely, that during his long reign, he survived 50 no-confidence votes!  50!  And he only decides to resign now?  You almost wonder why.  It's obviously a remarkable level of self-confidence to offset all that no-confidence.  Or perhaps self-delusion.  The man's the very walking definition of hubris!

Glad as most people (not to mention the stock markets) are to see him go, I suspect that Europe will soon seem to be a duller place without him.

A Day To Remember...Incorrectly

Did you know that for the rest of the world when people say "9/11", today is actually the day they think of.

I Wouldn't Bet On It

The leading sports story this morning was the guilty verdict from the trial of the two Pakistani bowlers who had bowled no-balls to-order for betting purposes. 

There has subsequently been much talk of the example that this set and how players would now be more reluctant to risk getting involved in the so-called spot-fixing.  And great for the game this would be if it were so.  What everybody seems to have conveniently forgotten is that it wasn't the ICB's anti-corruption team that exposed this cheating; it was the News Of The World tabloid that set up the sting to expose this racket.  Ironically, that paper was axed as a result the telephone-hacking scandal.  So, just who is going to keep cricket on the straight-and-narrow?  The ICB?

Some Mother's Son

The other morning, just as I was about to leave for work, I found myself listening to a journalist reporting from Green Square, now Martyrs' Square, in Tripoli where people were gathering to celebrate their newly won freedom.

Amongst the many people there, he had found a woman holding up a picture of her son.  As it turned out, her son had died in the fighting, and, what with a fairly insensitive line of questioning from the journalist, she began to break down and cry.  The sound of one person sobbing under the general hubbub was truly saddening.  It was a poignant reminder that even during the greatest of triumphs there will often be those who have had to suffer the most profound of losses.