To the cricket yesterday and today. Australia completed a comfortable and deserved win today. The turning point of the game IMO was the West Indies' failure to gain a significant first innings lead (at least 50) when they had the opportunity, though the margin of Australia's victory was exaggerated by poor umpiring from Billy Bowden and Aleem Dar.
Today Billy Bowden added to his mistakes of the previous days. He called a 5 ball over during the morning session and on one occasion stopped the bowler half way through his run up to upbraid the West Indian fielders for some alleged infringement, which looked and sounded to me like one man clapping before the ball was delivered.
These lapses seem odd for a man who has recently claimed that God is his "third umpire in a way" http://sport.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml?xml=/sport/2005/11/09/scgad09.xml&sSheet=/sport/2005/11/09/ixcrick.html . It would be interesting to know how God communicates his decisions to Billy: on the cricket field they seem to come through very quickly and to favour Australia more than the opposition.
Perhaps there is something to be said for referring more decisions to a third umpire: an earthly one with access to good technology would suffice. Maybe the batting side should be given a certain number of challenges to umpire's decisions: this idea was discussed on the ABC radio commentary during the test. And "elite" umpire training needs to be reviewed.
Perhaps even the third umpire could be the ultimate decision making authority
29 November 2005
27 November 2005
The hills and the valleys of test cricket
It was another very good day of test cricket at Adelaide Oval today, despite some lapses by the Australian middle order batters (note PC usage) and the West Indian fielders.
The first session was a la recherche de temps perdu (ie a throwback to the past): hard grafting with wickets falling regularly. 48 runs from 27 overs, for 4 wickets. Hey, this wasn't in the script but it was good to see the West Indian bowlers lift their game. Bravo was magnificent (as his name suggests) and even Fidel Edwards (will his name preclude him from gaining entry to Orstrailia when the new sedition laws are in force?) bowled at the stumps and earned a wicket.
Unfortunately for those who were hoping that the Windies would adminster the coup de grace after lunch. Fidel couldn't maintain the pressure and Hussey (who before lunch might have done more both to protect Symonds and to move the score along) and McGill took advantage of very slack bowling (what did Fidel E have for lunch to make him bowl so loosely afterwards?)
Ramdin dropped Gilchrist from a sitter (but AG didn't last much longer as Chanderpaul took a good catch). Hinds also dropped McGill from as easy a catch as must have ever been offered in test cricket. When the Windeis batted again Ricky Ponting at second slip caught Devon Smith with a catch that as good aas one could hope to see: Lee delivered at about 150km/hr, Smith edged downwards, Ponting moved forward (how could he in the nanosecond?), caught the ball and retained his balance.
The first session was a la recherche de temps perdu (ie a throwback to the past): hard grafting with wickets falling regularly. 48 runs from 27 overs, for 4 wickets. Hey, this wasn't in the script but it was good to see the West Indian bowlers lift their game. Bravo was magnificent (as his name suggests) and even Fidel Edwards (will his name preclude him from gaining entry to Orstrailia when the new sedition laws are in force?) bowled at the stumps and earned a wicket.
Unfortunately for those who were hoping that the Windies would adminster the coup de grace after lunch. Fidel couldn't maintain the pressure and Hussey (who before lunch might have done more both to protect Symonds and to move the score along) and McGill took advantage of very slack bowling (what did Fidel E have for lunch to make him bowl so loosely afterwards?)
Ramdin dropped Gilchrist from a sitter (but AG didn't last much longer as Chanderpaul took a good catch). Hinds also dropped McGill from as easy a catch as must have ever been offered in test cricket. When the Windeis batted again Ricky Ponting at second slip caught Devon Smith with a catch that as good aas one could hope to see: Lee delivered at about 150km/hr, Smith edged downwards, Ponting moved forward (how could he in the nanosecond?), caught the ball and retained his balance.
26 November 2005
B Lara (cont)
Today Brian Lara scored another 24 runs which was sufficient to make him the top test match run scorer of all time. Congratulations to a master.
The ABC has engaged another master West Indian - Tony Cozier - as part of its radio commentary team. His comments are a combination of incisive analysis of the play and graphic description of the match ambience. IMO only Richie Benaud of current commentators rivals him.
The ABC has engaged another master West Indian - Tony Cozier - as part of its radio commentary team. His comments are a combination of incisive analysis of the play and graphic description of the match ambience. IMO only Richie Benaud of current commentators rivals him.
25 November 2005
Another magnificent innings
Brian Lara finished the first day of the Australia - West Indies Test on 202 not out of a total of 7/352. His innings began with intense concentration and very careful, almost wary, shot selection. In the middle session he moved from 27 (out of 71) to 106 (out of 194) gradually revealing his full hand of strokes, while still maintaining his concentration apart from one or two foregiveable lapses. He sprinted to the 200 mark in an over in which he made Brett Lee (who otherwise bowled well) look like a net bowler, or parkland cricketer.
And this is his second great innings at Adelaide this year: the other his 156 against Pakistan in a one day international in January, which I also saw. Unfortunately I won't be able to be at the Adelaide Oval for the start of tomorrow's play but I feel as I've just consumed a magnificent meal - I'll leave the wine comparisons to the Cricinfo reporter who shares my opinion http://content-aus.cricinfo.com/ausvwi/content/story/227179.html.
And this is his second great innings at Adelaide this year: the other his 156 against Pakistan in a one day international in January, which I also saw. Unfortunately I won't be able to be at the Adelaide Oval for the start of tomorrow's play but I feel as I've just consumed a magnificent meal - I'll leave the wine comparisons to the Cricinfo reporter who shares my opinion http://content-aus.cricinfo.com/ausvwi/content/story/227179.html.
24 November 2005
Letter to the Editor
Today's Advertiser published an open letter from Mr Rumsfeld "Secretary of Defence" (sic) thanking everyone for making his visit to "your beautiful city" such a success. Interestingly it was published in the Letters to the Editor section, and wasn't even the lead one. It did at least precede those written by the regular correspondents such as Paul Scott Wattle Park (today's contribution a characteristically pithy statement " Bring on TramsAdelaide") and Brian Wreford Morphett Vale (requesting express trains from Oaklands to Salisbury, a variation on his usual theme of extending the Noarlunga Line to Aldinga).
I wonder whether Mr R sends an open letter of thanks to the people of each city he visits. I'd like to see what he says to the citizens of Baghdad.
Despite Mr R's description of his meeting with Mr Downer and Senator Hill as "important talks" his visit to Adelaide doesn't rate on the "What the Secretary has been saying" section of the Defense Department website http://www.defenselink.mil/speeches/secdef.html . The only reference there to a town hall is a transcript of a "Town Hall Meeting" at MacDill Airforce Base on 11 October this year http://www.defenselink.mil/speeches/2005/sp20051011-secdef1981.html in which Mr R describes himself as a "broken down ex-cabinet officer".
I wonder whether Mr R sends an open letter of thanks to the people of each city he visits. I'd like to see what he says to the citizens of Baghdad.
Despite Mr R's description of his meeting with Mr Downer and Senator Hill as "important talks" his visit to Adelaide doesn't rate on the "What the Secretary has been saying" section of the Defense Department website http://www.defenselink.mil/speeches/secdef.html . The only reference there to a town hall is a transcript of a "Town Hall Meeting" at MacDill Airforce Base on 11 October this year http://www.defenselink.mil/speeches/2005/sp20051011-secdef1981.html in which Mr R describes himself as a "broken down ex-cabinet officer".
17 November 2005
Donald ducks for cover?
All was quiet on the western North Terrace front at 7.30 tonight when I passed Fort Apache redux, aka the Hyatt. True, the fortifications were still in place and a good number of police in attendance, but there was no sign of any demonstrators.
At 9.45pm when I walked past on my way home it was a different matter. Several fire engines with lights flashing were parked in the vicinity and the police contingent was concentrated at the south eastern corner of the perimeter. It soon became evident why. The constabulary were trying, with limited success, to clear some of the barriers to open a passage for Mr Rumsfeld's entourage which, led by a wedge of police motorcyclists in arrow formation like a well-drilled bikie gang, swept imperiously across King William Street and came to a halt on North Terrace. As the entourage consisted of at least ten vehicles and a dozen motorcycles this took up quite a lot of the street. No doubt this wasn't quite as planned: did Mr R have to duck for cover?
At 9.45pm when I walked past on my way home it was a different matter. Several fire engines with lights flashing were parked in the vicinity and the police contingent was concentrated at the south eastern corner of the perimeter. It soon became evident why. The constabulary were trying, with limited success, to clear some of the barriers to open a passage for Mr Rumsfeld's entourage which, led by a wedge of police motorcyclists in arrow formation like a well-drilled bikie gang, swept imperiously across King William Street and came to a halt on North Terrace. As the entourage consisted of at least ten vehicles and a dozen motorcycles this took up quite a lot of the street. No doubt this wasn't quite as planned: did Mr R have to duck for cover?
Great Sporting Moments
This week I watched a great sporting moment: a triple century scored by Darren "Boof" Lehmann for SA against WA . While the opposition was below strength they were probably stronger than the current Bangladesh and Zimbabwe test teams so the achievement should not be devalued. Unfortunately the media ballyhoo about the Australia - Uruguay soccer match overshadowed the acknowledgement of this achievement. Even the Advertiser gave more prominence to the build up to the soccer.
I watched the match last night and was pleased with the outcome, though not for the first time thought it odd that an important game could be decided by a penalty shoot out.
Perhaps there could be a place in the finals - like a wild card - reserved for teams which have missed out because of penalty shootouts. Another competition would need to be arranged at relatively short notice but surely this wouldn't be too difficult.
By the way, was I the only Australian to be appalled by the rabidly chauvinistic tone of the SBS commentary? Have I been listening to too much cricket or is this now the new standard?
I watched the match last night and was pleased with the outcome, though not for the first time thought it odd that an important game could be decided by a penalty shoot out.
Perhaps there could be a place in the finals - like a wild card - reserved for teams which have missed out because of penalty shootouts. Another competition would need to be arranged at relatively short notice but surely this wouldn't be too difficult.
By the way, was I the only Australian to be appalled by the rabidly chauvinistic tone of the SBS commentary? Have I been listening to too much cricket or is this now the new standard?
More dead heart than centre of the universe?
This week two pillars of the current world order (or a certain version thereof), Mr Murdoch and Mr Rumsfeld, have visited Adelaide. This has prompted some tongue in cheek remarks from commentators for example Christian Kerr in today's Crikey http://www.crikey.com.au/ (subscription may be required) about Adelaide being, at least for the moment, the centre of the universe.
The local media have matched this with stories about the city being locked down (Ch9 News today). I thought that I'd satisfy my curiosity (and check the accuracy of the reports) so went into the city early this afternoon. Everything looked quieter than usual, though there seemed to be more police and security people around. The 6pm Channel 9 news had a different story, with footage of the Hyatt (which I didn't go past) fortified and bag searches taking place.
I'll be heading in that direction soon (to see a movie, not to demonstrate) so will check out the situation again.
Yesterday Mr Rumsfeld was given a column in Mr Murdoch's Australian to expound his opinion about the strength of the Australian - US alliance http://theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,17258445%5E7583,00.html. In this he makes some comments about the military commission process which draw a very long bow: it "is fair, it is time tested and was a process by which several detainees were brought to justice [sic] during and after World War II."
For alternative views see http://www.llrx.com/features/military.htm and http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/1701789.stm. Note the BBC presenting two sides of the question.
The local media have matched this with stories about the city being locked down (Ch9 News today). I thought that I'd satisfy my curiosity (and check the accuracy of the reports) so went into the city early this afternoon. Everything looked quieter than usual, though there seemed to be more police and security people around. The 6pm Channel 9 news had a different story, with footage of the Hyatt (which I didn't go past) fortified and bag searches taking place.
I'll be heading in that direction soon (to see a movie, not to demonstrate) so will check out the situation again.
Yesterday Mr Rumsfeld was given a column in Mr Murdoch's Australian to expound his opinion about the strength of the Australian - US alliance http://theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,17258445%5E7583,00.html. In this he makes some comments about the military commission process which draw a very long bow: it "is fair, it is time tested and was a process by which several detainees were brought to justice [sic] during and after World War II."
For alternative views see http://www.llrx.com/features/military.htm and http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/1701789.stm. Note the BBC presenting two sides of the question.
13 November 2005
Miss Julie
ABC Radio National is my default radio station (except when test cricket is being broadcast) and Life Matters is one of my favourite programs. Last Friday however I was, to put it mildly, annoyed by a blatant combination of product placement and job interview featuring Julie McRossin. http://www.abc.net.au/rn/talks/lm/stories/s1502494.htm
Julie was puffing Forever Yours: Australia's Hidden Love Letters, a compilation of material submitted by Life Matters listeners, which she has co-edited (whatever that means). She was her customary eloquent self and admitted that she was now relying on speaking engagements to keep the wolf from the door. I'd thought that someone of her erudition (for an example see http://www.takver.com/history/womyn.htm) would have no difficulty finding work. On air she implied that she might be open to other offers (she didn't mention returning as presenter of Life Matters but this no doubt came to many regular listeners' minds).
IMO Julie has burnt her Life Matters boat and should not, repeat not, be reinstated. Since she left several presenters have been tried: all have been competent, and some eg Sarah McDonald and Richard Aedy, have been outstanding. The ABC should give Miss Julie a miss.
.
Julie was puffing Forever Yours: Australia's Hidden Love Letters, a compilation of material submitted by Life Matters listeners, which she has co-edited (whatever that means). She was her customary eloquent self and admitted that she was now relying on speaking engagements to keep the wolf from the door. I'd thought that someone of her erudition (for an example see http://www.takver.com/history/womyn.htm) would have no difficulty finding work. On air she implied that she might be open to other offers (she didn't mention returning as presenter of Life Matters but this no doubt came to many regular listeners' minds).
IMO Julie has burnt her Life Matters boat and should not, repeat not, be reinstated. Since she left several presenters have been tried: all have been competent, and some eg Sarah McDonald and Richard Aedy, have been outstanding. The ABC should give Miss Julie a miss.
.
09 November 2005
Water over the bridge? Observations of the Adelaide floods 8 November 2005
Yesterday I was planning to walk in the Adelaide Hills. The heavy rain precluded this but I decided to visit a couple of the places where the media (particularly the ABC, for whom thanks despite a quibble or two about terminology) had reported that floods either threatened or had occurred.
Waterfall Gully Road
In the middle of the day a kind of order, represented by the CFS, SES, Burnside Council and the police, had been restored though no Canute figure had emerged to bid the waters to recede. A lot of damage had been done to both public and private property, which made me wonder
(1) Given the history of flooding on Waterfall Gully Road, what contingency plans had been made, and by whom, to deal with future flooding?
(2) What if any measures were taken, when and by whom, to alert residents to the emerging threat of flooding over the preceding 24 hours?
(3) Who authorises development along Waterfall Gully Road, especially in its flood prone areas?
(4) Are there any proposals for development in these flood prone areas currently
before the development authorities and, if so, what, if any, impact will yesterday's events have on the eventual decision/ recommendation?
Onkaparinga River at Old Noarlunga
Here there was abundant evidence of effective planning and timely response.
The houses at risk had been identified (based on previous flood threats) and protected with a layer of sandbags laid by what appeared to be a functional coalition of the willing including the local council and the CFS (community based volunteers). I was there in the mid- afternoon when the water was rising rapidly, but measures were clearly in place to deal with any threats.
Although Old Noarlunga is low lying and situated on an oxbow bend of the river it has many aged buildings which must have survived previous floods or threats thereof. I wonder why. Did the early white settlers have regard to the vicissitudes of nature and build above the high water line? Did they draw upon the knowledge of the local Aboriginal people to help determine optimal building sites?
Media Coverage
Considering the main news story of the day (terrorism suspects arrested, and the media generously fed with information ), today's Australian had a reasonable report with photos, including one of Waterfall Gully Road (which may have been taken with a very wide angle lens). The Advertiser 's coverage didn't get below the froth as it concentrated on some Christmas decorations which were swept away down the Torrens, though it also warned of the danger of sharks gorging on the dead fish swept out to sea by the Torrential torrent .
One minor black spot was the solecism of the ABC reporter at Noarlunga who described a "swing bridge" across the river when he could only have meant a suspension bridge (I was within eyesight of his ostentatiously decorated ABC vehicle when I heard his live report on the 3pm news).
I can (up to a point) cope with allegations of left-wing bias at the ABC, but when it comes to poor English expression it is harder to defend such lapses, even if they were perpetrated by a person better known (to me at least) as a sporting commentator . Does the ABC have a re-education program for such people?
Where to from here?
Floods are uncommon, but not rare, in and around Adelaide so it's not surprising that some problems have resurfaced. No doubt the state government, local councils and Uncle Tom Cobbley and all will be assuring the media that all is well and that those for whom all is not well will be given $700 to assuage the short term pain (and the donors' consciences). No doubt development processes will continue to permit houses to be built in flood prone areas without any flood mitigation procedures in place.
To be fair, some measures are being put in place.See for example
http://www.bom.gov.au/weather/sa/inside/flood_history/who_involved/who_involved.htm
You may well wonder what contribution so many disparate groups can make
to an understanding of floods in SA, let alone to coming up with moderately effective proposals to respond to the next set of problems.
Waterfall Gully Road
In the middle of the day a kind of order, represented by the CFS, SES, Burnside Council and the police, had been restored though no Canute figure had emerged to bid the waters to recede. A lot of damage had been done to both public and private property, which made me wonder
(1) Given the history of flooding on Waterfall Gully Road, what contingency plans had been made, and by whom, to deal with future flooding?
(2) What if any measures were taken, when and by whom, to alert residents to the emerging threat of flooding over the preceding 24 hours?
(3) Who authorises development along Waterfall Gully Road, especially in its flood prone areas?
(4) Are there any proposals for development in these flood prone areas currently
before the development authorities and, if so, what, if any, impact will yesterday's events have on the eventual decision/ recommendation?
Onkaparinga River at Old Noarlunga
Here there was abundant evidence of effective planning and timely response.
The houses at risk had been identified (based on previous flood threats) and protected with a layer of sandbags laid by what appeared to be a functional coalition of the willing including the local council and the CFS (community based volunteers). I was there in the mid- afternoon when the water was rising rapidly, but measures were clearly in place to deal with any threats.
Although Old Noarlunga is low lying and situated on an oxbow bend of the river it has many aged buildings which must have survived previous floods or threats thereof. I wonder why. Did the early white settlers have regard to the vicissitudes of nature and build above the high water line? Did they draw upon the knowledge of the local Aboriginal people to help determine optimal building sites?
Media Coverage
Considering the main news story of the day (terrorism suspects arrested, and the media generously fed with information ), today's Australian had a reasonable report with photos, including one of Waterfall Gully Road (which may have been taken with a very wide angle lens). The Advertiser 's coverage didn't get below the froth as it concentrated on some Christmas decorations which were swept away down the Torrens, though it also warned of the danger of sharks gorging on the dead fish swept out to sea by the Torrential torrent .
One minor black spot was the solecism of the ABC reporter at Noarlunga who described a "swing bridge" across the river when he could only have meant a suspension bridge (I was within eyesight of his ostentatiously decorated ABC vehicle when I heard his live report on the 3pm news).
I can (up to a point) cope with allegations of left-wing bias at the ABC, but when it comes to poor English expression it is harder to defend such lapses, even if they were perpetrated by a person better known (to me at least) as a sporting commentator . Does the ABC have a re-education program for such people?
Where to from here?
Floods are uncommon, but not rare, in and around Adelaide so it's not surprising that some problems have resurfaced. No doubt the state government, local councils and Uncle Tom Cobbley and all will be assuring the media that all is well and that those for whom all is not well will be given $700 to assuage the short term pain (and the donors' consciences). No doubt development processes will continue to permit houses to be built in flood prone areas without any flood mitigation procedures in place.
To be fair, some measures are being put in place.See for example
http://www.bom.gov.au/weather/sa/inside/flood_history/who_involved/who_involved.htm
You may well wonder what contribution so many disparate groups can make
to an understanding of floods in SA, let alone to coming up with moderately effective proposals to respond to the next set of problems.
02 November 2005
Worth how many words?
The Bill Leak cartoon in today's Australian http://theaustralian.news.com.au/cartoon is IMO a magnificent summary of the current Australian political environment.
As if to demonstrate that written words are capable of matching pictures, Paul Kelly's opinion piece immediately underneath the cartoon http://theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,17109859%255E12250,00.html shows that not only the Leader of the Opposition is hedging his bets:
"Australia's public mood seems more decoupled than ever from the sheer complexity of Iraq. This contest is not a morality play. It is about the balance of power in the region, the balance of power in the war on terrorism and how to minimise the damage from Bush's disastrous 2003 intervention."
It will be interesting to see who responds to each of these items, and how.
As if to demonstrate that written words are capable of matching pictures, Paul Kelly's opinion piece immediately underneath the cartoon http://theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,17109859%255E12250,00.html shows that not only the Leader of the Opposition is hedging his bets:
"Australia's public mood seems more decoupled than ever from the sheer complexity of Iraq. This contest is not a morality play. It is about the balance of power in the region, the balance of power in the war on terrorism and how to minimise the damage from Bush's disastrous 2003 intervention."
It will be interesting to see who responds to each of these items, and how.
31 October 2005
Since when has it been illegal to take photos at Australian airports?
Yesterday I went to farewell my daughter and grandchildren, who were returning to London after an all too brief visit. The new Adelaide airport terminal allows visitors accompanying departing passengers to go beyond the security screening. As I had not divested myself of all the sharp objects in my possession I decided not to go beyond the gate but instead to take a photograph of the family.
As I pointed my camera at the grandchildren one of the officials overseeing the security screening barked at me that photographs weren't permitted. There were no signs stating this, and I was not aware that it was now forbidden in Australia. It is not uncommon overseas, but I'd like to know the nature and extent of the prohibition. Is all photography on airport land forbidden, or just near the departure gates, or what? What about the penalties? Will malefactors be subject to the forthcoming anti-terrorist laws with their attendant threats of detention without trial and isolation from friends and family?
As I pointed my camera at the grandchildren one of the officials overseeing the security screening barked at me that photographs weren't permitted. There were no signs stating this, and I was not aware that it was now forbidden in Australia. It is not uncommon overseas, but I'd like to know the nature and extent of the prohibition. Is all photography on airport land forbidden, or just near the departure gates, or what? What about the penalties? Will malefactors be subject to the forthcoming anti-terrorist laws with their attendant threats of detention without trial and isolation from friends and family?
21 October 2005
Does Mr Murdoch speak the same language?
While I'm not a paid up member of his fan club (or even a shareholder in News Corp), I have to admit to a soft spot for Rupert Murdoch, or at least some of the things he says and does. In today's Australian (p19 "Rupert netted by web's potential") he's quoted as saying "The more we think about it the more the internet fits into our whole modus vivendi" .
While using a foreign phrase (even from a dead language) violates some people's idea of correct English expression it does suggest that the great man has a deeper appreciation of the potential of language than many of his employees, for example the headline writer and whoever thought it necessary to translate the phrase. Perhaps Mr Murdoch could run a few master classes for some of his acolytes?
While using a foreign phrase (even from a dead language) violates some people's idea of correct English expression it does suggest that the great man has a deeper appreciation of the potential of language than many of his employees, for example the headline writer and whoever thought it necessary to translate the phrase. Perhaps Mr Murdoch could run a few master classes for some of his acolytes?
Cruise Ship Australia hits stormy weather: or whose Titanic conceit?
A week after it was published in the Bulletin the storm created by David Williamson's article comparing Australia to a cruise ship (see http://www.bulletin.ninemsn.com.au/bulletin/site/articleIDs/19DB1992F58E0305CA25707D000CDC14 )has, after briefly abating, increased to gale force thanks to some media luminaries who seem to have belatedly found enough wind to fill their sails (and if you think this goes over the top with nautical cliches just read what others have written).
This morning Gerard Henderson gave ABC RN Breakfast listeners his exegesis of the article; and some of the other usual media suspects have weighed in (try a Google search if you want to read them). But please note that their comments are but zephyrs to the gale force of the Australian's coverage, which began with its lead editorial on Wednesday "Titanic Conceit: if artists reject ordinary people, they are the losers". With a headline like this, who needs any further explanation? Probably not the aspirationals.
Thursday produced a (predictable) rejoinder from David Williamson, while today the Letters to the Editor began with an obsequious puff for the Oz from Dr Rachel Birati, who claimed that the editorial was "a meticulous work of art".
What next? If the Oz editorials are now, in the opinion of Dr Birati (a Monash uni academic), works of art, are they now eligible to be included in HSC English syllabi (or syllabuses)? Or will they be included in Dr Birati's course on Literature of Destruction and Redemption to be offered at Monash University in Semester 2 next year?
Through a guided study of appropriate literary texts, students will be able to explore the theme by focussing separately on destruction and redemption and then viewing them both in a unified way. Students will be directed to important critical material and will be guided through a variety of audio-visual aids.
(emphasis added)
Might Williamson's piece meet Dr Birati's criteria as an exemplum of destruction? If so, surely the Oz's editorial and Gerard H & co's responses would qualify as appropriate exempla of redemption.
What happens to the student who challenges the direction and guidance of the course coordinator, whether directly or indirectly (via assessment)? Will the Australian, Gerard Henderson or Uncle Tom Cobbley and all go into print about this threat to academic freedom? Or is this the new PC (aka neo-con toeing the line)? I won't hold my breath waiting for a response.
This morning Gerard Henderson gave ABC RN Breakfast listeners his exegesis of the article; and some of the other usual media suspects have weighed in (try a Google search if you want to read them). But please note that their comments are but zephyrs to the gale force of the Australian's coverage, which began with its lead editorial on Wednesday "Titanic Conceit: if artists reject ordinary people, they are the losers". With a headline like this, who needs any further explanation? Probably not the aspirationals.
Thursday produced a (predictable) rejoinder from David Williamson, while today the Letters to the Editor began with an obsequious puff for the Oz from Dr Rachel Birati, who claimed that the editorial was "a meticulous work of art".
What next? If the Oz editorials are now, in the opinion of Dr Birati (a Monash uni academic), works of art, are they now eligible to be included in HSC English syllabi (or syllabuses)? Or will they be included in Dr Birati's course on Literature of Destruction and Redemption to be offered at Monash University in Semester 2 next year?
Through a guided study of appropriate literary texts, students will be able to explore the theme by focussing separately on destruction and redemption and then viewing them both in a unified way. Students will be directed to important critical material and will be guided through a variety of audio-visual aids.
(emphasis added)
Might Williamson's piece meet Dr Birati's criteria as an exemplum of destruction? If so, surely the Oz's editorial and Gerard H & co's responses would qualify as appropriate exempla of redemption.
What happens to the student who challenges the direction and guidance of the course coordinator, whether directly or indirectly (via assessment)? Will the Australian, Gerard Henderson or Uncle Tom Cobbley and all go into print about this threat to academic freedom? Or is this the new PC (aka neo-con toeing the line)? I won't hold my breath waiting for a response.
19 October 2005
Update on underemployment and welfare reforms
The issue of unemployment and welfare reform and the links between them have been kept on the front - well middle - burner in the media today with more comments from Barnaby Joyce, the Salvation Army and the CFMEU see http://theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,16965175%255E2702,00.html.
The Salvos deserve special praise because their employment services arm is a major beneficiary of government largesse. Will some of the other big players now step forward and support them?
My post yesterday was more concerned about underemployment, though of course this is linked to unemployment. I was nevertheless pleasantly surprised, via a letter in today's Crikey, to see that in WA there exists an Organisation of Un(der)employed People. They don't seem to have a website but in a previous incarnation appear to have called themselves a Union - surely the union movement hasn't forced them to change their title? They, with many others (albeit hardly a representative sample of Australian society) gave evidence to a parliamentary committee in 2003 http://www.aph.gov.au/house/committee/ewrwp/paidwork/appendixd.htm.
Mary Jenkins, the Secretary of the Organisation (formerly known as the Union), gives a graphic example in her letter to Crikey:
A person on Newstart can earn $62 a week without paying extra tax. This will not cover the resent rise in the cost of living. If they earn up to $120 extra they pay 50c in the dollar tax, which means half of what they earn goes to the government. Anything over $120 they pay the Government 70c in the dollar. So these people are working for 30c if they earn more than $120 above the Newstart allowance.
The Salvos deserve special praise because their employment services arm is a major beneficiary of government largesse. Will some of the other big players now step forward and support them?
My post yesterday was more concerned about underemployment, though of course this is linked to unemployment. I was nevertheless pleasantly surprised, via a letter in today's Crikey, to see that in WA there exists an Organisation of Un(der)employed People. They don't seem to have a website but in a previous incarnation appear to have called themselves a Union - surely the union movement hasn't forced them to change their title? They, with many others (albeit hardly a representative sample of Australian society) gave evidence to a parliamentary committee in 2003 http://www.aph.gov.au/house/committee/ewrwp/paidwork/appendixd.htm.
Mary Jenkins, the Secretary of the Organisation (formerly known as the Union), gives a graphic example in her letter to Crikey:
A person on Newstart can earn $62 a week without paying extra tax. This will not cover the resent rise in the cost of living. If they earn up to $120 extra they pay 50c in the dollar tax, which means half of what they earn goes to the government. Anything over $120 they pay the Government 70c in the dollar. So these people are working for 30c if they earn more than $120 above the Newstart allowance.
18 October 2005
Unemployment fruit salad
In today's Crikey lead story (http://www.crikey.com.au: subscription required) Christian Kerr discusses how "unemployment" is defined differently around the world. He compares Australia, where a person who works for an hour a week is deemed to be employed, to Germany, where someone who works less than 15 hours a week and wants to work more is considered to be unemployed. He points out that these differences dilute the force of the claims made by Messrs Howard and Andrews about our high position on the global employment league table.
Sure, it's good to see more people in work, but what about the underemployed: those who don't qualify as unemployed ? For example, mature age people who struggle to survive in home based businesses or rural workers reliant on seasonal work. Where are the programs or funding support to help them?
In the last few years the goverment has funded many worthy programs and fostered the growth of a privatised employment services industry which has seen large for-profit organisations do very nicely thank you. The industry and the government have developed a cosy relationship where even the older, often church and community based, non profit organisations almost invariably choose to take the government's money and run its programs. By doing so they become de facto government agencies for whom self-interest engenders a reluctance to criticise any government policies (and ideologies?).
Is there any organisation which speaks in any more than a whisper on behalf of the underemployed?
Sure, it's good to see more people in work, but what about the underemployed: those who don't qualify as unemployed ? For example, mature age people who struggle to survive in home based businesses or rural workers reliant on seasonal work. Where are the programs or funding support to help them?
In the last few years the goverment has funded many worthy programs and fostered the growth of a privatised employment services industry which has seen large for-profit organisations do very nicely thank you. The industry and the government have developed a cosy relationship where even the older, often church and community based, non profit organisations almost invariably choose to take the government's money and run its programs. By doing so they become de facto government agencies for whom self-interest engenders a reluctance to criticise any government policies (and ideologies?).
Is there any organisation which speaks in any more than a whisper on behalf of the underemployed?
13 October 2005
Who called Bob "Judas"?
This question does not refer to the recently superannuated Premier of NSW's decision to accept a reported half million pieces of gold for doing some consultancy work, so the answer is not "most Australians with a well developed moral sense".
An Adelaide giveaway paper has offered a copy of the Bob Dylan No Direction Home soundtrack CD to the first four people who can identify the irate fan who shouted out "Judas" at a 1966 concert in the UK (when Dylan reverted to electric music). A Google search has narrowed the field down to two: John Cordwell and Keith Butler. See
http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/music/features/article314340.ece ( Cordwell's claim)
http://www.expectingrain.com/dok/who/b/butlerkeith.html. (the case for Butler with a nod in J C's direction).
I've neither the time nor the inclination to peruse the 21,100 or so links Google has thrown up and it's too late to claim a prize, but it would be interesting to know what the correct answer is.
An Adelaide giveaway paper has offered a copy of the Bob Dylan No Direction Home soundtrack CD to the first four people who can identify the irate fan who shouted out "Judas" at a 1966 concert in the UK (when Dylan reverted to electric music). A Google search has narrowed the field down to two: John Cordwell and Keith Butler. See
http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/music/features/article314340.ece ( Cordwell's claim)
http://www.expectingrain.com/dok/who/b/butlerkeith.html. (the case for Butler with a nod in J C's direction).
I've neither the time nor the inclination to peruse the 21,100 or so links Google has thrown up and it's too late to claim a prize, but it would be interesting to know what the correct answer is.
12 October 2005
Lifeboat drill on Cruise Ship Australia
Today's Bulletin features an article by David Williamson in which he uses a recent cruise as a starting point for some trenchant criticisms of modern Australia.
http://bulletin.ninemsn.com.au/bulletin/site/articleIDs/19DB1992F58E0305CA25707D000CDC14
It didn't take him long to see underneath the veneer of shipboard glitz:
it soon became apparent... that all wasn't to be plain sailing. The ship was stacked to the gunwales [sic] with John Howard’s beloved “aspirational Australians”. The dinner conversation made this plain. They aspired to all manner of things: to holidays like this, to new cars, to kitchen refits, to renovations, to private education for their children, and to practically anything made of plastic, wood or steel. The one surefire topic of conversation that connected erstwhile strangers was price comparisons.
Bob Carr wasn't on board (Williamson couldn't identify any Proust readers) so the cultural deficit had to be made up by recollections of a cruise past:
A British cruise line took us from Hong Kong down through Vietnam, Cambodia and on to Singapore. Excellent lecturers from Oxford and other major universities gave talks morning and afternoon about the geography, history, culture and art of the places we were about to visit. It was like a floating university of the very best kind, and we had to arrive early and fight for seats as hordes of ageing but fit and mentally alert English jostled for front spots, many taking copious notes...In contrast to the mindless hedonism of the Australian cruise we were presented with a world of sharp and complex reality. Discussion at dinner was a lively examination of what we’d seen and its implications. The creative heights and the brutal depths of human potential resonated powerfully in our imaginations.
Cultural binge or cultural cringe?
Back on Cruise Ship Australia no one so much as mentioned the plight of the real aspirationals on board, the Indonesian and Filipino crew members who were away from their families on low-wage contracts for up to 10 months, or queried why they had one kind of lifestyle and we had another.
So the British cruise line vessel had an entirely British crew (and faculty)? We're not told.
Next Williamson shifts his focus to the environment. Australians have inherited [?] a very fragile ecosystem; probably after Iceland, the most fragile in the world .
He is pessimistic about the future but, somewhat oddly given his attitude elsewhere, endorses the economic rationalist view that farming should be shut down to buy time.
Then he concludes with a stirring rhetorical flourish
If you believe in a wider set of values than accumulating material affluence, wear it as a badge of honour next time some self-righteous journalist uses the word “elites” pejoratively against you. An obsessive focus on material acquisition, encouraged by governments who worship economic growth and little else, have locked us into a probable long-term disaster scenario for Cruise Ship Australia and for the planet as a whole.
This is all very highminded. It's difficult not to agree with many of his general points, though I'd have like to have seen him make them more subtly, and maybe even suggest how to change Cruise Ship Australia's (and perhaps Cruise Ship Earth's) course.
http://bulletin.ninemsn.com.au/bulletin/site/articleIDs/19DB1992F58E0305CA25707D000CDC14
It didn't take him long to see underneath the veneer of shipboard glitz:
it soon became apparent... that all wasn't to be plain sailing. The ship was stacked to the gunwales [sic] with John Howard’s beloved “aspirational Australians”. The dinner conversation made this plain. They aspired to all manner of things: to holidays like this, to new cars, to kitchen refits, to renovations, to private education for their children, and to practically anything made of plastic, wood or steel. The one surefire topic of conversation that connected erstwhile strangers was price comparisons.
Bob Carr wasn't on board (Williamson couldn't identify any Proust readers) so the cultural deficit had to be made up by recollections of a cruise past:
A British cruise line took us from Hong Kong down through Vietnam, Cambodia and on to Singapore. Excellent lecturers from Oxford and other major universities gave talks morning and afternoon about the geography, history, culture and art of the places we were about to visit. It was like a floating university of the very best kind, and we had to arrive early and fight for seats as hordes of ageing but fit and mentally alert English jostled for front spots, many taking copious notes...In contrast to the mindless hedonism of the Australian cruise we were presented with a world of sharp and complex reality. Discussion at dinner was a lively examination of what we’d seen and its implications. The creative heights and the brutal depths of human potential resonated powerfully in our imaginations.
Cultural binge or cultural cringe?
Back on Cruise Ship Australia no one so much as mentioned the plight of the real aspirationals on board, the Indonesian and Filipino crew members who were away from their families on low-wage contracts for up to 10 months, or queried why they had one kind of lifestyle and we had another.
So the British cruise line vessel had an entirely British crew (and faculty)? We're not told.
Next Williamson shifts his focus to the environment. Australians have inherited [?] a very fragile ecosystem; probably after Iceland, the most fragile in the world .
He is pessimistic about the future but, somewhat oddly given his attitude elsewhere, endorses the economic rationalist view that farming should be shut down to buy time.
Then he concludes with a stirring rhetorical flourish
If you believe in a wider set of values than accumulating material affluence, wear it as a badge of honour next time some self-righteous journalist uses the word “elites” pejoratively against you. An obsessive focus on material acquisition, encouraged by governments who worship economic growth and little else, have locked us into a probable long-term disaster scenario for Cruise Ship Australia and for the planet as a whole.
This is all very highminded. It's difficult not to agree with many of his general points, though I'd have like to have seen him make them more subtly, and maybe even suggest how to change Cruise Ship Australia's (and perhaps Cruise Ship Earth's) course.
08 October 2005
Robert Zimmerman
I've just bought the DVD of No Direction Home, Martin Scorsese's doco about Bob Dylan from his musical beginnings (not long after his birth it seems) until the mid 60s. It's long (though not too long for those acquainted with Scorsese's other docos) yet well worth viewing if you're interested in Robert Dylan Zimmerman or documentary film making or both. The backbone of the film is archival footage, much of which was unfamiliar to me, of performances and events, fleshed out with recently filmed interviews with Bob and other luminaries eg Joan Baez and Allen Ginsberg, some of whom have weathered the passage of time better than others.
It's possible to program the DVD to play the Dylan music from the movie and, by drilling down into the Special Features menu, to play a few songs without commentary voiceover or interruption.
Apart from the music there's a great scene of a concert in the UK in the mid 60s where the national anthem (God Save the Queen) was played, perhaps partly as a crowd control device, to give Bob a chance to escape from those whose who'd taken umbrage at his conversion (in fact reversion) to electric guitars etc . This stratagem did not seem to be very successful but it reminds those like me who lived in the 60s how many things have changed. Another example is the number of male musicians who performed wearing ties.
It's possible to program the DVD to play the Dylan music from the movie and, by drilling down into the Special Features menu, to play a few songs without commentary voiceover or interruption.
Apart from the music there's a great scene of a concert in the UK in the mid 60s where the national anthem (God Save the Queen) was played, perhaps partly as a crowd control device, to give Bob a chance to escape from those whose who'd taken umbrage at his conversion (in fact reversion) to electric guitars etc . This stratagem did not seem to be very successful but it reminds those like me who lived in the 60s how many things have changed. Another example is the number of male musicians who performed wearing ties.
02 October 2005
Why?
Woke this morning to the news of the latest Bali bombings. Apart from reporting the casualities the media, understandably in the circumstances, is asking "who did it?".
Last night, thanks to a friend, I was able to get a ticket to Robert Fisk's Edward Said Memorial Lecture at Adelaide University. Anyone who knows anything about Fisk will be aware of his reputation as a controversial journalist, especially for his support for the Palestinian cause.
I thought the lecture was an eloquently delivered piece of moderate advocacy for the Palestinian cause. Fisk interleafed his talk with footage from a 1993 Discovery Channel program he'd made which showed the dispossession of Palestinian Arabs in stark detail. Not surprisingly, complaints from certain quarters (any guesses which?) resulted in the program being banned from further screenings.
In the lecture Fisk didn't propose any solutions, but when asked during question time he suggested that any settlement had to be based on UN Resolution 242
http://domino.un.org/unispal.nsf/0/59210ce6d04aef61852560c3005da209?OpenDocument. He did acknowledge that the resolution was a starting (or re-starting) not a finishing point but didn't elaborate in any detail.
He also didn't say much about Iraq until question time, when he stressed the importance of always asking why things happened, not just how they did and who was responsible . He quoted statements made around the end of WW1 by politicians such as Lloyd George, the then British PM, which are still chillingly relevant today.
I don't think the lecture has yet been published but it deserves to be. In the meantime to find out more about Robert Fisk and to read some of his other work see http://www.robert-fisk.com/ .
There's plenty of material about Resolution 242 : for a summary see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UN_Security_Council_Resolution_242 .
Last night, thanks to a friend, I was able to get a ticket to Robert Fisk's Edward Said Memorial Lecture at Adelaide University. Anyone who knows anything about Fisk will be aware of his reputation as a controversial journalist, especially for his support for the Palestinian cause.
I thought the lecture was an eloquently delivered piece of moderate advocacy for the Palestinian cause. Fisk interleafed his talk with footage from a 1993 Discovery Channel program he'd made which showed the dispossession of Palestinian Arabs in stark detail. Not surprisingly, complaints from certain quarters (any guesses which?) resulted in the program being banned from further screenings.
In the lecture Fisk didn't propose any solutions, but when asked during question time he suggested that any settlement had to be based on UN Resolution 242
http://domino.un.org/unispal.nsf/0/59210ce6d04aef61852560c3005da209?OpenDocument. He did acknowledge that the resolution was a starting (or re-starting) not a finishing point but didn't elaborate in any detail.
He also didn't say much about Iraq until question time, when he stressed the importance of always asking why things happened, not just how they did and who was responsible . He quoted statements made around the end of WW1 by politicians such as Lloyd George, the then British PM, which are still chillingly relevant today.
I don't think the lecture has yet been published but it deserves to be. In the meantime to find out more about Robert Fisk and to read some of his other work see http://www.robert-fisk.com/ .
There's plenty of material about Resolution 242 : for a summary see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UN_Security_Council_Resolution_242 .
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