Author: jkirkby8712

The other day, after the Federal Budget, I included a few views of different organisations on likely budget outcomes. One group of which I’m a member [the National Seniors Organisation, for over 50s] had their views submitted for members’ advice as well, so I am including them here, as being of a personal interest to me!

Older Australians have emerged unscathed from a budget widely speculated in its lead-up to be defined by tough love measures.  National Seniors chief executive, Michael O’Neill, who attended the Canberra lockup on Tuesday, said older Australians would feel little impact from it.  “For the over 50s, it’s a vanilla budget – nothing terribly exciting or different,” he said.  Amongst the few new initiatives announced by Treasurer Wayne Swan is support for older workers in their search for employment. These include new training opportunities, employer subsidies and a doubling of allowable work hours for disability pensioners of whom, in 2009, almost 60% were aged over 50.   O’Neill welcomed the employment initiatives but warned they were only a start.  “More than anything, real jobs for older Australians will require an attitudinal change from employers, and that can’t be legislated,” he said.  New participation requirements for disability pensions will only apply to people under the age of 35.  A highlight for self funded retirees still recovering from the GFC is the extension of the minimum drawdown concession on allocated pension accounts.  “Missing from this budget are reform measures around long-festering issues such dental and aged care. Seniors expect to see something solid and substantial around these things in the coming year,” he said. 

Meanwhile, highlighting the beginning and ending aspects of Tony Abbott’s response last night, I note from his speech that [beginning] “Mr Speaker, the fundamental test of a budget is how it improves the wellbeing of the Australian people.My three children are still in the education system and Margie, my wife, works in community-based childcare so my family knows something of the financial pressures on nearly every Australian household” [applying the personal touch, perhaps a dig at the PM’s non family status!!], and [the end] “On this subject [the carbon tax proposal], the Prime Minister has compared herself with John Howard and the GST. There is one fundamental difference between them: the former Prime Minister changed his policy and put the new position to an election; the current Prime Minister had an election on one policy and promptly adopted the opposite one.  The Prime Minister should copy John Howard, not just quote him. She and Bob Brown [Greens’ leader] should finalise the carbon tax details including its impact on jobs, industries and Australians’ cost of living and then she should seek the people’s verdict before trying to legislate it. Otherwise, the next election won’t just be a referendum on the carbon tax. It will be a referendum on governments that betray the people. That’s what Australia needs: not a carbon tax but an election. Only an election could make an honest politician of this Prime Minister. Only an election can give Australia a government with authority to make the tough decisions needed to build a stronger country and help Australians get ahead”.  

On this point, which was the major focus of the Abbott speech, I don’t really agree that the Australian people want another election so soon –  sure, the polls might indicate that Labor would lose if an election were held this weekend [there seems general agreement on that], but the Opposition have no power to call an election, particularly without a majority in the Senate, and the Government, despite it’s minority status, has no obligation to foreshorten it’s elected 3 year term [barring disasters of a political nature] –  I feel the electorate would like to see the carbon tax debate conclude, perhaps in favor of the Opposition, but they would prefer to see the present elected politicians sort that out, rather than have another Federal election!!

I shall return, on this day, with no more talk of this week’s Budget, I promise!!! Back at work today [after a ‘reasonable’ sleep], it’s quiet, no major issues on hand, and the weather continues to be cool, wet and somewhat miserable. I arrived to a nice warm office – ‘someone’ left the heater on overnight!!! Glad I don’t have to pay the energy ‘bill’ here, at least!

Watched a movie last night about an Aboriginal man, named Jandamarra, and as the promo suggested, I must embarrassingly admit to not being able to recall being familiar with him! Jandamarra was a 19^th-century Aboriginal station worker who came to lead an armed conflict with white settlers – or as it might be described today, the story of an Indigenous Australian rebel who in 1894 embarked on a 3 year guerrilla war against invading pastoralists, and attracted the whole white population in the hunt for him.

Called ‘Jandamarra’a War’, the movie [or documentary, as we had the voice of Ernie Dingo as narrator throughout it’s duration] was based on the book by Howard Pederson ‘Jandamarra and the Bunuba Resistance’. Now the Bunuba ‘tribe’ I have come across, having regularly played a number of songs recorded by an Indigenous band from that part of northwest Australia [in the Kimberleys]. I found the film of interest, and a grim reminder of the, at times, bitter relationships between the white settlers & farmers, and the local Indigenous tribes. There was retribution on both sides, though the whites generally had the upper hand in terms of retaliation and weaponry[with at times little regard as to who the actual guilty parties were they were hunting down – if you were black and came across the paths of a ‘police’ or station  hunting group, you were likely to suffer for the ‘sins’ of your fellow black man], although Jandamarra and his ‘gang’ evened things up a little bit for a while, when they got hold of the white man’s weapon –  the guns!.

Writing in the ‘Age’ last week, Jim Schembri puts it like this.  “Jandamarra became caught between the culture of his people and the seductive ways of the white settlers, a tension that initially left him dislocated before the rampant injustices being imposed upon the  Bunuba prompted him to wage a war that lasted three years…………………….here are those key moments where his conscience plays havoc with him as his brothers, manacled at the neck, ask why he hold’s the white man’s gun in his hand.  Laced with period photographs and quotes from a fiery newspaper piece demanding the government do something, the film also treads into the highly controversial issue of genocide. [In his book] Pedersen says bluntly ‘There was clearly a war of extermination being fought in the Kimberley’”. As the settlers in those northern regions attempted to protect their livestock and the land they had  presumptuously taken over, so too did the Indigenous population take offence at this intrusion into their traditional land areas and sacred places. As sheep and cattle gradually eroded and destroyed their traditional natural pastures and plant life, revenge was inflicted against these invading creatures,  and then man himself.  All in all, another fascinating, and in many ways, disturbing aspect of Australian history, since the arrival of the white man and the beginning of European settlement in January 1788.

Susan home\, but not – out somewhere tonight with ‘friends’ in the city – in fact I drove her to the train, and was pleased to learn that Jodie would be driving her home from the city, apparently she would already be there.  This house is fast becoming a ‘one man show’ –  and when Susie is here, there are few meals she has here lately. Unexpectedly, since the boyfriend  ‘walked away’ I seem to see less of her than previously! Anyway, plenty of ‘football’ entertainment on the TV – clash between the top two teams – Collingwood and Geelong –  with the latter probably the underdogs, but in a very tight finish, they got up to inflict the first defeat this year on the 2010 premiers.  So now, we have Geelong sitting on top of the ladder  – and their next opponent on Friday night of next week  –  will be Carlton!! I think we might struggle to win that one!!

I spent most  of what is another ‘chilly’ Autumn morning, sitting around in medical facilities  – beginning with a simple and short [I thought] medical consultation over a few matters, but preceded by a wait of over an hour or more before I got in.  I remembered during that time, why over the past 20 years or so, I have generally tried to avoid appointments during weekdays!!! A delay seems inevitable!

Afterwards, the wait at the chemist was more reasonable than usual, followed by a visit to pathology  –  I expected to walk in there to a room crowded with people waiting to have a blood test [my purpose in that visit] but surprisingly, it was all relatively empty!!  That didn’t mean no wait for me  –  I had the usual problem, that the nurse[s] were unable to fine a suitable blood vein from which to draw blood!! That seems to be a regular occurrence for me, and I more or less come to expect it these days  –  I mean, if it took two nurses and a doctor six attempts to get a drip into my arm a few years ago at our major city hospital, what hope have these ‘guys’ got!!  Anyway, by the time all that was over, most of my morning had disappeared – it was a good thing I had pre-planned to make use of one of the multitude of sick days I currently have owing to me, and which in all probability, I will not get to use before I finish work.

In view of the miserable weather conditions outside, I rather enjoyed having this opportunity to be at home for the rest of my day –  apart from catching up on a few tasks, also gave me the opportunity to watch the telecast of Question Time from the House of Representatives. Not always so sure why I bother though.  The attitude that people like the Prime Minister and the Treasurer take towards the answering of questions always disgusts me, in particular, the manner in which they both continually disregard the directions of the Speaker [from their own Party] to ‘keep to the question asked’ in their response, and to refer to other members by their correct parliamentary title.  I get quite annoyed at times with this constant abuse of parliamentary procedures!! But, I’ve been on that bandwagon before  – probably best just to turn off, and my disgust is certainly not going to change anything.  When Labor got back intro office last year, purely on the whim of the group of Independent members whose procrastination delayed the election result for some considerable time, I thought one of the points of agreement had been related to a clean-up of ‘Question Time’ to make it a more effective and relevant part of the parliamentary day  – as far as I can see, the only real change that has been made, is the imposition of a time limit on responses to questions [something that has happened in the Senate for many years]. So the PM and others now have 4 minutes in which they can answer a question put to them, without answering the question!!! Unless of course it’s a ‘Dorothy Dixer’, a question asked by one of their own, that allows the relevant minister to then go into a four minute tirade of supposed achievements!! I notice that those kind of questions seem to make up 50% of  Question Time!!

It’s 3.30pm, as I write this, and outside, the rain is coming down steadily. No doubt, to the north of Sunbury, conditions on the roads will not be good, and I guess I am hoping that Susie is not in one of the vehicles on those roads, although it would be preferable for her to be there now, rather than after dark this evening. With the early wintry conditions we are currently experiencing in this part of Victoria, tonight’s Calder highway is likely to be flood prone, slippery, misty, and generally treacherous.  The only positive aspect about that road is that it is a divided road for the entire distance between Sunbury & Bendigo.  It was a couple of hours later, upon re-reading the text message that Susie sent me late last night, that I realised she would not be returning to Sunbury until tomorrow! So I need not fear her presence on the roads, today anyway!  Well, things change!  At 7pm, she returned home, change of mind, no explanation given

 Meanwhile, Opposition leader, Tony Abbott presented his response to Tuesday’s Budget, in Parliament tonight, and it was greeted by a stony faced Prime Minister and Treasurer on the other side of the despatch table.  In typical  Abbott style, there was much negativity directed towards both the Government and  Tuesday’s budget provisions. One principal point, that I noted was Abbott’s suggestion that the Labor Government of 2011, was so far removed from those  policies and  attitudes that had attracted it towards that strata of society that traditional Labor has so long represented –  families and workers –   has moved so far away from those origins,  that the Liberal Party is these days more representative of the rights of families, etc.  Mr Abbott said his task is not to offer an alternative budget, but to offer the people of Australia a new direction for the future.  He said the rising cost of living is already hurting households and the Government’s budget has only hurt them more. “Families already know what it’s like to tighten their belts,” he said.  “They don’t need Government to do it for them yet the only certainty from this budget is further upward pressure on interest rates because this Government is still borrowing $135 million every single day.”   He will return the budget to a surplus but not with a great big new carbon tax –  in fact much of the latter part of his speech was related to the proposed carbon tax, and a challenge to the Prime Minister to go to an election on the carbon tax proposal  –  on the basis that she won the last election on a promise there would be no carbon tax, then changed her mind, when the new government was elected!

As for my football team, well, after the last four weeks it is appropriate Carlton supporters, not to mention the players, have a weekend off. No game this weekend, will give Carlton people the opportunity to enjoy a stress free weekend after four close games.  It all started with a draw against Essendon, followed by a late come from behind victory against Adelaide after looking comfortable winners earlier in the game. Then the hoodoo breaking, come from behind win over Sydney after the Swans had led by 18 points in the wet, mid-way through the third quarter. To top off the stressful month, it was a nail-biting 3-point win over St Kilda on Monday night. Another come from behind in the final quarter after looking comfortable winners during the third quarter. And after all that, one of my favourite players, Ryan Houlihan is set to make his long awaited return to football this weekend in the Northern Bullants [or Carlton Reserves team] away game against Frankston on Saturday afternoon. Houlihan has not played a game this season after injuring his calf in January and again on his return in late March in a VFL practice match. Houlihan is Carlton’s most experienced player in terms of games played for the Club, having played 195 matches for the Blues since making his debut in round 11, 2000 at Visy Park. We hope to see him back playing with the senior Carlton team within a few weeks, looking forward to that.

Now, recent history is showing that I seldom sleep well on a Saturday night – in fact, lately, any night!!! This weekend probably won’t be any different, and not helped by the fact that the English FA Cup Final is on this Saturday – which for us fans in eastern Australia means a 12 midnight starting time!!! Well, I think I have been watching that particular event since the late 1960s, so I don’t really want to spoil my record –   this year, I see it is Manchester United versus Stoke City, at the Wembley Stadium.  Now that second team is not generally a ‘household’ name over here, not one of the teams that we hear a lot about throughout the English season, and I certainly can’t recall seeing them play in an FA Cup final previously. Anyway, as indicated, regardless of whether I need the sleep or not, I  shall be sitting up here in the early hours of Sunday morning, quietly cheering on Manchester United!!

Well, after less than 3 hours sleep, I was up much earlier [on another freezing morning] than I would have preferred  –  my Friday morning brief visits to the radio station for a local sports report, were now scheduled for Wednesday mornings –  Ron has changed his day, but I had a bit of a wait this morning before he could fit me in, amongst his other regular interviews, etc. I think he is going to want to see me ‘before’ 7am from now on !  Oh well, I do volunteer for these things, so can’t really complain, and if I wish, I have the freedom to cut that little aspect of my radio involvement out.  However, at present [despite the poor sleeping patterns] I’m quite happy  to keep joining Ron for our brief rundown of the local football & other sporting competitions.

I was rather pleased to find a phone message from our Family History Society secretary last night, advising that tonight’s committee meeting had been postponed. We were in for a very cold night after what had been described as Melbourne’s coldest May day for 11 years  –  the maximum temperature didn’t get above 11 degrees Centigrade all day. I actually barely ventured out of the office all day.

The postponed meeting gave me the opportunity to watch tonight’s episode of East West 101 on SBS TV. In response to a question from a friend on Face Book, and the remark that the show must be good if I watch it, I responded as follows  –  ‘it does have a strong element of criminal violence in the show, which I would generally avoid bothering my time watching, but the storylines are usually very relevant and topical, and some of the acting is superb. Usually the storyline revolves around some aspect of racism, different cultures, refugees, etc – this week dealt with the situation of a serial rapist/cum murderer and the problems of many of his victims not been prepared to come forward through shame, etc, or the potential for ‘attack’ on their character by the prosecution. This week the star female cop [actress Susie Porter] is a victim herself of the man she is trying to convict, and she is having trouble practising what she preaches  to other victims, to come forward. I think that line of story will continue next week’

Meanwhile, a columnist from a website called WAAustralia.com wrote the following views about the show which tend to summarise my feelings.

“We’re impressed with the way it examines complexities of Australian life without giving easy answers; we love that it’s a local crime drama that doesn’t make us cringe;  It just hasn’t hit the dizzying heights of popular audience appeal you’d imagine a well-made local crime drama should. It’s disappointing that so many viewers are missing out on such a terrific, satisfying drama series.  Set in Sydney’s western suburbs, East West 101 is centred around Zane Malik, a senior detective of the Major Crime Squad, played by Hany. Malik is a complex character, a practising Muslim who moved from Iraq to Australia as a child. His job is to investigate crimes that span various ethnic groups in the community. While he’s had his challenges in the previous series, in this third and final one he is tested to the limit: a violent bank robbery in last week’s opening episode resulted in a terrible personal tragedy and that’s the driving push of this series.

Smaller crime mysteries also unfurl each episode, resulting in a narrative as tightly wrought as the chignon worn without respite by Inspector Patricia Wright (played beautifully by Susie Porter).  Each episode’s themes are fascinating in the way they tackle those huge world conflicts that happen so far away and which, for many of us, are mere words that flash across the news headlines — Somalia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Israel, Palestine, Iraq, Afghanistan. But East West 101’s skill is in showing us how these events reverberate through our own communities and touch upon our own family life, even when we think they have nothing to do with us. It might all sound very serious and intense but East West 101 is, in effect, an excellent, compelling series, noteworthy for its quality, scope and diversity. This last aspect — diversity — is of more significance than I have room to discuss here but it still astonishes me how refreshing it is to see different ethnicities on our television screens, portrayed in a multidimensional way that isn’t tokenistic”.

Anyway, the series impresses this ‘writer’ and I would not be surprised if in next year’s TV awards here in Australia, this particular episode receives some kind of accolade!

Tuesday night saw this writer have very little sleep, if any before 3am, though not for want of trying – I think 3am was the time one daughter finally went to bed. She had gone up to Bendigo on Monday, came back yesterday for some reason, but didn’t get here until  the evening – any conversations I had were through a closed door L from which I discovered she would not be home tonight – I assumed that meant she was visiting friends, but in fact, I discovered earlier this evening from her mother that she had returned to Bendigo this afternoon!! I seem to be the last to become aware of these things!! Anyway, I had hopes of a better sleep tonight  – I knew where Susie was, and there would be no-one wandering around the house opening/shutting doors until the early hours!! And I think I achieved a better night anyway, although a message came through from Susie just before 11 pm  – I’m guessing she must have had a phone call from her mother suggesting that Dad was concerned about where she was!!! “At Bendigo tonight Dad, I did say last night wouldn’t be home, meant the night. Won’t be home tomorrow night either”.  So my concerns on Tuesday night, that she was only spending a day a week in Bendigo, when we were paying rent for a full week or month were unfounded, and this of course pointed to a problem of poor communication – which is as much my fault as anyones!  Communication, or lack thereof, is so often the cause of many concerns in this world of ours, and my simple life is no exception to that!  Even tonight, I somehow failed to read the complete message, so it would not be until Thursday afternoon before I realised she would not be back in Sunbury until Friday!

Let’s move away from that topic, and go back to where we started this day’s ramblings  – the weather! Following on from my comment, a newspaper reporter overnight would write [paraphrased] that  –  Winter muscled in on Autumn more than two weeks early [today] – with thumping rain and pelting hail in Melbourne and snow in the Dandenong Ranges [to the immediate east of Melbourne]. It was the coldest May day since 2000, with a maximum of only 12.2 degrees, and according to the Weatherzone website, it was the earliest in the year that Melbourne has had a maximum below 13 degrees since 1970 [41 years ago]. Autumn has just gone, and if it satays that way, it’s certainly going to be a long winter!!  Victoria’s alpine resorts had up to 15r centimetres of snow today, a mo nth before the normal start of the ski season.  Of course, apart from the weather, all of today’s newspapers were providing a detailed coverage of the Federal Budget from last night. I have to admit, that despite my broad interest in  those events, and the country’s economic situation, I didn’t really read any of that material in much detail. Other things on the mind.

the end of the first quarter in last night’s game, there was a bit of an all-in brawl between the players of both teams  –  apparently started by our captain, Chris Judd, who was expressing his displeasure at an already injured Carlton player, being roughly bumped by one of the opposition.  A poor display of sportsmanship by that Saints player –  if a player is in a match, he is ‘fair game’ for some fair bumps and tackles, but not to be ‘attacked’ in that manner as he is trying to leave the field with an injury, which is what occurred last night.

‘The Saints midfielder, Montagna, bumped Carlton’s Curnow after he injured his shoulder in a crunching tackle during the first quarter of Carlton’s thrilling three-point win last night. Curnow is expected to miss four weeks with an injured AC joint. Seven players have been fined for taking part in a quarter-time melee that started when Montagna’s teammate Justin Koschitzke again bumped Curnow, after he had returned to the field with his shoulder strapped.  Carlton skipper Chris Judd copped a fine of $3000 for starting and participating in the melee and teammates Heath Scotland, Marc Murphy, Aaron Joseph and Mitch Robinson were all hit with $1200 fines.  Also fined were Saints Jason Gram, Sam Gilbert and David Armitage. Today legendary North Melbourne hard man Glenn Archer labelled Montagna’s bump “weak” and “un-Australian”.  In scenes reminiscent of Nick Riewoldt  injurying a shoulder and then being bumped by Mal Michael and Chris Scott at the Gabba in Round 9 of 2007, Curnow also attracted St Kilda’s attention at the quarter-time siren’. 

A good strong response from the Carlton skipper, but an ‘expensive one’, but it is good to see the twice now ‘best and fairest’ player in the competition, prepared to stand up for his team members.  Meanwhile, last night’s win has moved the Blues into 3^rd place on the AFL ladder. They get a rest this weekend, with a Bye, necessary due to there being 17 teams in the competition this year.

Another radio show tonight – my program of show music from Broadway, stage and screen. The presenter on air before me, turned up for her show for a change, but I was disappointed that the man a good program of Blues music, didn’t put in an appearance again. This aspect of ‘inconsistency’ is my main concern these days in trying to be a part of a committee which is aiming to fill all available spots on the program grid.  Unfortunately, some of our presenters don’t have the same level of dedication that I would like to see.  Until we have a full program grid, and a queue of volunteers wanting to go on air, we have to ‘live’ with those people who are at least filling a spot, when they decide to turn up!! I raised my little ‘gripe of concerns’ about that aspect at last week’s committee meeting – as I have been doing since late 2005!

I missed the delivery of the Federal Budget tonight, being on air at the normal Parliament delivery time of 7.30 pm. Not really concerned because I knew there would be a plethora of summaries, reviews, talkfests, etc, on air for the rest of tonight, and in tomorrow’s papers. So while I have headed this blog with reference to the budget, don’t think I felt in the mood for getting too involved with it’s contents. Instead, once I got home from the radio, had eaten and sorted out a few things, I tried to have an early night, aiming for a better sleep than last night, but that was not destined to happen. However we will below just put a few comments from all sides of the fence without getting into any specifics or economic facts and figures.

Wayne Swan [the Federal Treasurer] had nothing but positives to say in his speech tonight, and that’s the way it began –

• “Mr Speaker, the purpose of this Labor Government, and this Labor Budget, is to put the opportunities that flow from a strong economy within reach of more Australians. To get more people into work, and to train them for more rewarding jobs. So that national prosperity reaches more lives, in more corners, of our patchwork economy. To take full advantage of the seismic shift in global economic power, which positions us as a prime beneficiary of tremendous economic growth in our Asian region. And to succeed in the good times as we did in the bad – by choice, not by chance – by applying the best combination of hard work, responsible budgeting, and well-considered policies to the difficult challenges ahead”.
• But as far as Tony Abbott and the Opposition parties were concerned –  “This Budget confirms how out of touch Julia Gillard and Wayne Swan are with Australian families. It fails the essential test: to ease the cost of living on Australians who face higher prices every day. The government is launching a $2 billion assault on families by freezing the indexation of key family tax payments and income thresholds for three years. Labor simply doesn’t understand the serious cost of living pressures faced by millions of Australian families. At the same time, offshore asylum seeker management has blown out by a record $1.75 billion since last year’s budget. Labor’s incompetent approach to border protection is in disarray. The government’s failure to rein in its wasteful and reckless spending will lead to higher inflation and higher interest rates. Because the Budget does not include the carbon tax, it is not worth the paper it is written on. The absence of the carbon tax is a hole in its heart. It means the government’s claim to deliver a surplus in 2012/13 can’t be taken seriously. It is little wonder experts and industry and community organisations have condemned Labor’s Budget for its failure to ease the cost pressures faced by Australian families and businesses. Without the carbon tax there is a hole at the heart of the budget. Without the carbon tax in the budget the revenue figures, the expenditure figures, the inflation figures and the jobs figures in the budget are all wrong. This is a weak and directionless Budget’.
• The ‘GETUP’ organisation have immediately taken all the credit for one significant part of the Budget, with their comment that ‘Mental health was a huge winner in the Federal Budget — one of the few new spending initiatives in a tough year. That’s testament to the tireless work of mental health advocates and the huge impact GetUp members had over the past year’.
• Community welfare organisation,Anglicare said, “we are concerned that the $2 billion freeze on family payments and dependent spouse rebates come at a time when we are seeing unprecedented rises in the cost of living which will be compounded by projected rises in interest rates… and there was nothing in this evening’s budget speech about how public housing shortages and spiralling private rents will be addressed.” (Media Release 10/5/11).
• Economic commentator Robert Gottliebsen said, “I doubt whether Julia Gillard, Wayne Swan or even the cabinet understand what they did to middle income Australia in the 2011-12 budget. If you combine the budget with other government measures it represents the most vicious attack on Australian middle income earners since the Whitlam-Cairns era in the 1970s.” (Business Spectator 10/5/11).
• Certified Public Accountants  Australia CEO Alex Malley says it is a ‘steady as she goes’ Budget with a touch of caution, predicated by the Australian Government’s imperative of a return to surplus by 2012–13, and is more notable for what is not in it, given what is still to come – including the carbon tax, minerals resource rent tax and the national tax forum in October.  The 2011–12 Federal Budget is characterised by caution and a focus on a return to surplus, and is more notable for what is not in it rather than what it contains, CPA Australia has said.  ‘This Budget is carefully calibrated to enable a return to surplus during the next appropriations period but it does not paint the full picture,’ said CPA Australia CEO Alex Malley.  The real story in this Budget may lie in what’s still to come, as a number of significant issues – including the carbon tax, minerals resource rent tax and the national tax forum in October – are yet to be resolved.  While the Budget takes some tentative steps in the right direction, it is characterised by caution at a time when a bold, long term vision is what is needed.

So there we have a range of views on what the Government has presented to the Australian people tonight  – apart from it’s immediate supporters, there seems to be a general view, that the principal concern is not so much about what is in the budget, but what isn’t contained within it!!  I must admit that my main concern about government policy at present, relates to the continuing saga of our attitude towards refugees, and that, I shall leave to another day!!

Yes, for Bill, another visit to the football tonight, twice in the first 6 rounds, must be the influence of a new lease of life from my team this year. No company this time however, everyone else was busy working or otherwise, so I went straight to the Telstra Dome in the city from the office, early this afternoon.  I think I enjoyed the game, although once again, it was another ‘nail biting’ close match, and at my age, I’m finding these tight finishes a little difficult to cope with. In fact, with a couple of minutes to go, and the opposition getting in front,  I resigned myself to Carlton losing the game. But, in contrast to last year,  the Blues at present seem to be able to come from behind in the close ones  – so far anyway!! The winning goal kicked with a minute or so to go!! St Kilda were of course last year’s Grand Final runner-ups, but their form this year has been rather dismal so far, so Carlton were expected to will this game with relative ease.  Not so!  As the overnight headlines [in the sporting pages would suggest] ‘Carlton clawed it’s way past a desperate St Kilda, which tried everything it could to halt the Blues and kick-start its [own] year’.  Atrocious kicking, and a lot of careless short passes by both boot and hand seem to be the Blues biggest problems at present, and is frustrating and spoiling [in my view] an otherwise good team performance. However they did just enough to finish in front tonight, as the scores below indicate, quarter by quarter.

Carlton Blues:          2.6.18        8.10.58        9.15.69                         FINAL:   11.18.84

St Kilda Saints:        3.4.22        5.8.38           8.9.57                          Final:       12.9.81

After that, I was able to ‘enjoy’ the long drive back to Sunbury – the only drawback from going to the football tonight, was that I missed tonight’s episode of Q & A, the panel for which this week included the man I believe could be a future Prime Minister of Australia  –  Malcolm Turnbull of the Liberal Party!  I wonder how he performed tonight?

News came through over the weekend of the death of former World  boxing champion, Australia’s Lionel Rose, who won the World Bantamweight Title  back in 1968 against Japan’s ‘Fighting Harada’. I remember one of his fights, in October of that year, from memory, against England’s Alan Rudkin  –  we had a party going on at the ‘famous’ Moonee Pond’s bachelor pad that Saturday night – not sure if it was on the TV or a radio broadcast, but it did attract a lot of attention during that party – particularly with a boxing fan guest from England amongst us – that tended to add to the excitement of the occasion, and probably almost led to a ‘local’ version of the fight in the kitchen at one stage!!!  No, I’m sure we were a much more friendly and tolerant crowd to allow that to happen!! Difficult with a ‘loud Pom’ in our midst however!!!

Rose died at his Warragul home on Sunday afternoon. (AAP

 Anyway, Rose,  born into poverty at Jackson’s Track, near Warragul in country Victoria on June 21 1948, started boxing aged 10. By 15 he was the Australian amateur flyweight champion. Four years later he was world champion, and became therefore, the first Aboriginal boxer to win a world title,.  He died aged 62. after being ill for several months. He suffered a stroke in 2007 that had left him partially paralysed and with speech difficulties. 

He finished his professional career after 53 fights with 42 wins, 12 of them by knock-out.  Rose was named as Australian of the year in 1968 after his world title win, the first Aborigine to receive the honour.  He also was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the same year.  Another fellow boxer, Jeff Fenech, paid tribute to his close friend after being told the news. “Lionel was not only a great fighter but a wonderful human being,” Fenech told News Limited.  “He was an absolute legend and I was honoured to know him as a friend.”   Rose also enjoyed some success as a recording artist, having two hits with “I Thank You” and “Remember Me”.  Even the PM got in on the tributes [though doubt she really knew much about him]!!  Prime Minister Julia Gillard  paid tribute to Rose,  describing  him as an inspirational Australian.  “Lionel Rose was an Australian champion in every sense of the word, and an inspiration to all of us,” she said in a statement today.  I do have some vague  recollection that he  got himself into a bit of trouble with the law after his boxing career [not unusual for many of his kind] though I may be thinking of someone else, and anyway, all seems to have been forgotten or forgiven in the tributes been thrown around.  Whatever, back in the late 1960s, I enjoyed watching Lionel Rose box, and I  followed his career with interest.    His death made it a bitter-sweet day for Australian boxing, coming on the day Daniel Geale  became only the fourth Australian boxer to win a world title overseas, joining Rose, Jeff Harding and Jimmy Carruthers in claiming the honour.  Jeff Fenech, from memory, won most of his titles on Australian soil, and I do have some video tapes of some of his fights!

Meanwhile, over in Italy, the annual Giro d’Italia bike race is in progress – the precursor to the Tour de France coming up in July. I think today’s stage was the third  of the race, and it has apparently ended tragically,  with the death of one of the competitors about 25 kilometres from the day’s finish. 
Belgian rider Wouter Weylandt was pronounced dead  following a high-speed crash, his Leopard-Trek team confirmed.  “Today, our teammate and friend Wouter Weylandt passed away after a crash on the third stage of the Giro d’Italia,” said Leopard-Trek Manager Brian Nygaard. 

I believe he won this same stage last year.  I’m a little surprised that serious accidents of this kind don’t occur more often in these big races and  through some of the major climbs they go through, although a death from a crash is relatively rare, thankfully.  But a tragedy of that nature, certainly puts a dampener on any sporting event. This news takes my thoughts to my brother who is so often out on the roads, either training or racing, and he has in recent years, ridden over some of these stages that the professionals cover in countries like Italy and France.

[ps, not happy about the formatting that these blog entries end up as –  I have them formatted ina different way when I post them, but the ‘system’ seems to change things, hence the variation and ‘bold type’ that often shows up, even though was not how the writer originally thought he had produced the document. Editing, as far as format type is concerned doesn’t seem to be operative!@!!  Oh well, we will keep trying, meanwhile, my apologies for the way my contribution sometimes appears!!!

Found an interesting, and disturbing article in yesterday’s ‘Australian’ newspaper. I will simply copy the first couple of paragraphs below –  my feelings/views should be obvious from the simple fact that I’m posting this.

[by Frank Furedi ‘Australian ‘Inquirer’, 7 May  2011].

‘The political bosses of the European Union and their army of technocrats could do worse than listen to the lyrics of the Band Aid tune ‘Do they know it’s Christmas’. Apparently they don’t know December 25 still has significance for the vast majority of the EU’s 502 million people. A year ago the European Commission printed more than three million school diaries for distribution to students. They are lovely diaries which, true to the EU’s multicultural ethos, helpfully notes all the Sikh, Hindu, Muslim and Chinese festivals. The diary also highlights Europe Day which falls on May 9. But the diary is not without its significant gaps. It makes no reference to Christmas, Easter or indeed to any Christian holidays……………..Not surprisingly, not every European has been delighted with the conspicuous absence of Christian festivals from a diary produced for children………………..the Commission apologised for its ‘regrettable’ blunder. However the ombudsman dismissed the demand to recall the diaries, arguing that a one-page correction sent to schools had rectified the error. A storm in a teacup or a symptom of the commission’s indifference to the cultural legacy of Europe?’……………[no suggestion of any kind of militant atheist agenda or deliberate ommission, but]  ‘The authors of the diary were probably so obsessed with the EU’s administratively constructed values of diversity and inclusion that they never once stopped to think what kind of experiences really mattered to the people of Europe……………….It is evident that what influenced the authors of this diary was not the concern of hundreds of millions of people for whom Christmas and Easter constitute important events but the latest administrative diktat of the EC.’  The writer ends with the comment that  ‘A political culture that can be so cavalier with its past is readily disposed to regard the calendar as merely a set of dates to be fiddled with. Disdain for history is the flip side of indifference to a traditional calendar.’

Meanwhile, it is Mother’s Day here in Australia, and from what I’ve seen on Face Book, perhaps in other parts of the world as well.  While I didn’t have any specific ‘Mother’ classics to play on air this morning, I did end the program with 40 minutes of songs and arias from some of our wonderful female singers [Australia and elsewhere] such as the late Joan Sutherland, Yvonne Kenny [We’ll Gather Lilacs], Hayley Westenra [ the traditional Kiwi ‘Pokarekara Ana], Taryn Fiebig [with a delightful brief version of the traditional American ‘Simple Gifts’, Lisa della Casa, Renee Fleming, and the mother/daughter combination of Maggie and Katie Noonan with a rather special version of the Flower Duet from Delibes opera ‘Lakme’.   I noticed later on that the shops were doing a brisk early morning rush of business, especially the flower sellers!!

Speaking of radio, I notice that our station, along with all other community stations are going to be asked to complete a broadcasting census this month. This is apparently a two yearly event, and was previously undertaken as a survey. There is a major difference between the two. While a survey generally works on the basis of a sample of the available ‘population’, your census attempts to collect data from the entire population, This doesn’t always work, for a variety of reasons,  but rather than reflect the community sector on the weightings or average of a sample result, the broadcasting authorities are this time asking all community stations to participate. Now I don’t know if any penalties are going to be imposed on those stations that don’t participate, perhaps not, as I note that for participants, there will be a incentive in the form of a small payment of some nature. I would imagine most organisations would see it as a valuable resource [the findings, that is],  will the census aiming to provide a snapshot and better understanding of the sector, and provide an aid to lobbying and advocacy resource allocation, strategic planning and opportunities for growth and development of the sector from which a flow on affect to the advantage of individuals stations would be expected. The authorities have already indicated a list of nature of questions that will appear in the census so that stations can prepare themselves.  

While on the subject of broadcasting, I also note that the Community Broadcasting Association of Australia [CBAA] is now going to offer member stations a new service in the form of dispute resolution assistance – an initiative offering 3 hours of pro-bono mediation services by an impartial mediator.  The broadcasting sector is made up of many people with different passionate views about a range of issues. The Honorable Justice Michael Kirby noted that ‘To be human is to have an argument every now and  again, but arguments can become corrosive to individuals and organisations. Sometimes you need a bridge and that’s where a mediator can be helpful. The objective of mediation is not to impose a decision on the parties involved in the dispute. Rather it finds within the parties a resolution that they can both live with’.  No guarantee of course that it will always work –  from personal experience, having being dragged somewhat unwillingly in what I regarded as an unnecessary process of that nature, while it could be claimed that a situation was reached where both parties ‘could live with it’, I’ve never been particularly satisfied with the outcome. Perhaps in cases generally, the use of an external mediator may be more likely to provide a better outcome all around.  It’s certainly a useful initiative, and a particular advantage I would think to smaller organisations where it may be extremely difficult to find an impartial mediator in some instances. Certainly, the stated aim of the initiative is to give stations access to professional dispute resolution assistance and potentially heighten stations’ awareness of how disputes arise and how they can be managed. Certainly in external industry and business, an impartial professional external body is often used.

Heritage is more precious,

With every passing day.

Traditions keep us close,

In a very special way.

Travelled over to the ‘family home’  tonight for a casual evening meal with the two Mums of that establishment, only son number two was missing. Probably sleeping, in preparation for another early morning shift at the bakery! Susie apparently not returning to Bendigo until the morning, so she was with us tonight. I took with me a couple of little chocolate selections for the two ladies!  My mother of course is no longer with us, has been 21 years now. I was looking over some comments she wrote for her granddaughter [Raelene] many years ago [in fact, it was Mother’s Day, 1985], and realised how much she felt the fact that her family all became so dispersed around the country. She was very family orientated.  In a little section of her writings titled ‘When our family gets together’, my mother wrote  “I am happy that we all can be together sometimes – not very often now, because all my children have their own homes now and many miles separate us now. But I can always see some of you from time to time, especially at special times like Christmas and sometimes birthdays. We all have phones and can write letters.  I am glad you and Bruce are coming to Ballarat, Christmas 1985. I am also glad we are all able to talk about your Grandfather Kirk”,

I finished reading the Folio Society book ‘Dickens’ London ‘ this afternoon  – a selection of short essays written by Charles Dickens of his observations of various aspects of life in London around 1850.  Some interesting reading here, much of it rather depressing in terms of the poverty and crime, and general desperate state under which much of the population lived.  One description I noted, referred to the essays showcasing London of the time ‘in all it’s seedy, opulent, oppressive, liberating, and tumultuous glory’.  I think my favourite ‘essay’ was the last one in the book, called  ‘Night Walks’ in which the author, unable to sleep through the nights, spends the lonely hours wandering the streets of London, and, as he does with all the other essays, comments on every aspect of life that he comes across. Fascinating stuff – he refers to himself in this section as the ‘houseless one’, and uses other applicable ‘titles’ depending upon the nature or topic of the essay.

<!– –>

This selection of celebrated essays by Charles Dickens conjures up a peerless, eyewitness account of the 19th-century capital, from the rarefied world of Whitehall to working-class conviviality and blighted slums.  With a total of 26 essays, including ‘Greenwich Fair’, ‘Early Coaches’, ‘Private Theatres’, ‘A Parliamentary Sketch’, ‘Gin-Shops’ and ‘Scotland Yard’, this collection, with original illustrations by George Cruikshank, apparently is  one of the most popular titles ever published by The Folio Society in spite of being out of print for over thirty years.

Just in case my readers have never been introduced to Charles Dickens  –  well, he was born Charles John Huffam Dickens (February 7, 1812-June 9, 1870) pen-name “Boz”, was an English novelist. During his lifetime, Dickens was viewed as a popular entertainer of fecund imagination, while later critics championed his mastery of prose, his endless invention of memorable characters and his powerful social sensibilities. The popularity of his novels and short stories during his lifetime and to the present is demonstrated by the fact that none has ever gone out of print. Dickens played a major role in popularising the serialised novel. I suppose some of his most famous ‘characters’ would include the like of David Copperfield [my favourite Dickens’ novel], Oliver Twist, or Mr McCawber, amongst many others, and he would obviously base his characters in his stories on the kind of folk he met in his travels around London, and elsewhere.

Well, so much for Dickens!  Move on to something else now, and no doubt, very different.!

 Cooking a slow roast today  –  Susie suggested she intended to be home, and likely to eat a meal with me, so I am trying to prepare something a bit above ordinary, with the aid of my ‘slow cooker  Crock Pot’ I purchased last year after been introduced to the wonders of such a cooker when I visited my sister in Brisbane last October!

Slipping up a bit this week, have not been here for a few days, so it must be catch up time.  Most of the week’s news  has understandably centred on the Osama Bin Laden killing in Pakistan – accusations, recriminations, praise, jubilation, anger, and so on, the method of operation, whether the attacking forces went in with the intention of executing him [this is denied of course], and so on.  Debate over this will continue for some time – certainly, it has left a bitter taste in my mouth, not so much because the man didn’t deserve some kind of punishment, but at the method in which it seems to have been carried out.

Then again,. Had he gone to trial, I wonder how many years that would have dragged on, and what kind of repercussions would have been created from terrorist circles.  I guess we can still expect some ‘payback’, but President Obama has argued against displaying photos of the murdered Bin Laden  [which have been called for, to provide proof that he is actually dead] on the basis, that to do so would only inflame the passions of his supporters and terrorist elements to an even greater extent than is already happening. I presume also, that the purpose behind the ‘burial’ by US forces of his body at sea has denied him a proper Muslim burial and the potential for some kind of martyrdom of the man. Anyway as anticipated, I’m sure this weekend’s papers are going to be dominated by stories from every possible angle.

My own week has not been a particularly  ‘happy’ one [at least up until Thursday evening] with concerns over Susie’s situation, and her current ‘loss of interest’ attitude in her studies, and in generally communicating with the family, her Dad in particular !  Impression is that she is seriously thinking of giving away those studies, but is not actually saying so!  So that has left me feeling somewhat inadequate, with her home most of the week, and  not really venturing out anywhere. That ‘mood’ hopefully had improved a little by Thursday, and last night I had my first uninterrupted sleep [even if only 6 hours] for quite a while.  Susie went back up to Bendigo during the day, presumably with some commitments of the university needing attention. Meanwhile, youngest daughter Jodie reminded me overnight,  that  ‘You shouldn’t worry so much, you really  don’t need to’. Probably true, but as parents, it is not something so easily put aside, irrespective of the ‘children’s’ age!  Anyway,  Thursday’s happenings allowed me  to go out to tonight’s Radio Committee meeting in a more relaxed frame of mind.

Quite a useful meeting again also – plenty of problems to deal with, as with any organisation, but we currently have a cohesive and  strong working team on this committee [bit of a contrast to the argumentative makeup of a couple of years ago], and it is an environment in which cooperation is much more likely to eventuate. One little interesting sideline –  since early Summer, the outside of the studio has been plagued by a nest of bees just outside the door, which we thought we had got rid of a couple of times. But the little beggars kept returning.  However, the ‘exterminator’ returned this week, and did just that – destroyed the next and ‘exterminated’ the bees. Oddly, myself included, most of the committee felt this was an unfortunate action to take – I guess we had assumed the nest would be moved to another location or given to some local beekeepers!!  A bit like the spider that encroaches into one’s house  –  ‘sorry little spider, but you have overstepped the mark, if I can’t remove you back outside, I’m afraid it’s the end for you’!!!

Wednesday night found your personal essayist in no mood for doing very much himself – watched an episode of my favourite TV police series –  East West 101 on SBS –  then, without really thinking, sat down and started to watch a Spanish movie, called Camino from 2008. If I had of looked at the TV guide and noted that this movie  did not finish until 12.30am, I would not have even switched it on!!  But, once started, it ‘got me in’ and that was the end of another attempt  at an early sleep [which would have failed anyway].

Camino

Camino. An award-winning Spanish drama, directed by Javier Fesser, and  starring Nerea Camacho, Carmen Elias & Mariano Venancio,  Camino is the story of a brilliant 11 year old girl who is facing two significant events in her life at the same time – falling in love, and dying.is a film is based on the real story of Alexia Gonzalez-Barros, a girl who died from spinal cancer at the age of  fourteen in 1985 and is currently in process of  canonization. Apparently, the film had some controversery, as Alexia’s siblings objected to Fesser’s use of Alexia’s full name in his dedication, despite him having undertaken not to directly identify her. He calls her Camino (‘the way’) in the film, referencing ‘the way’ to sainthood she apparently undergoes. As presumably depicted accurately in the film, Caqmino manages to shine bright and overcome the darkness that tries to stifle her desire to live, love and be happy.  The film won six Goya Awards, including best picture, best director, and best original screenplay, and is perhaps best summarised through the following online review.

‘Fesser portrays the Catholic organisation,  Opus Dei, in a negative way, depicting it as an extreme cult destroying families. Fesser suggests that Opus Dei manipulated the tragedy of the young Camino’s painful death for its own ends. Her elder sister is an Opus Dei acolyte, deliberately kept from contacting her family. Suppressing open signs of normal maternal grief, the mother seems almost inhuman in urging her dying daughter to ‘offer up’ her suffering for Jesus. The father struggles to protect his daughter from a concerted effort to canonise her (even before her death) by his wife, elder daughter, and Opus Dei officials. Even the hospital medical staff seem to be complicit in this.  In a subversive irony, Fesser suggests that Camino’s ‘Jesus’, whose name she invokes, is not Christ, but a teenage boy named Jesus (a common name in Spain and other Spanish speaking countries) on whom Camino has a normal schoolgirl crush. This is shown in dream sequences she experiences throughout the film’.

Despite the ‘happy nature’ that this girl  tried to maintain through her difficulties, it was certainly not a happy film to watch, and this week of all, was also a bad choice. However watch it I did, and despite the late finish, was well impressed [if not depressed] by the outcome!

On the political scene, we have this week had the State budget for the next 12 months brought down –  lots of the Liberal’s election promises from last November seem to have found their way into the document, but my work organisation very quickly noted that there was little in the Budget for our area of interest –  public housing, and in fact, funds overall for housing had dropped. Perhaps my retirement at the end of this year, is coming at an opportune time, as there may well not be an ‘organisation’ continuing!!  Anyway, it is the budget time of the year, because I think it is next week that the Federal Budget will be delivered amidst much speculation, and I believe, many deliberate ‘leaks’ about the contents!!  And once again,. I’m afraid that Opposition leader Tony Abbott is on the negative attack ‘before’ the budget has even been presented. I find it difficult to agree with this particular slant of his – I’d much prefer to have him attacking the government by countering with specific policies and proposals for corrective procedures.  So accordingly, his ‘message’ in a speech to the Victorian Employer’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry a couple of days ago was all about giving the government four tests to pass!!!

• Can the government demonstrate a real rather than just a rhetorical commitment to spending discipline;
• Does it have a credible strategy to pay off debt as well as to return to surplus;
• Does it come clean about the costs of it’s policy failures; and,
• Is it capable of being honest about the real costs of its policy initiatives such as the National Broadband Network and the carbon tax?

‘And he went on to say that if Wayne Swan [Treasurer] and Julia Gillard [PM] fail these tests, they will reinforce the view that we are a great country with a lousy government. A failure to be honest about the carbon tax in this Budget will reinforce Julia Gillard’s failure to be honest before the election. An honest government would use the Budget to detail a credible energy strategy and a time-frame to return the Budget to surplus and pay back the debt’    Well, I’m sorry Mr Abbott, but your approach to these matters and your use of the Opposition tactics and in the absence of clearly defined alternatives, are beginning to wear a bit thin in these humble eyes, and I’m becoming convinced [a little different to my views of  12 months ago, that the Coalition cannot win government while you are the leader.  You came close last August, but not close enough, and I think you have now missed your big chance – especially if Kevin Rudd regains the Labor leadership, eventually, which I actually consider he will  – like John Howard’s book,  there is another ‘Lazarus arising’ in the pipeline!!   .

Meanwhile, the ‘GET-UP’ organisation is on another campaign trail I notice, this time to save the depleted forests of Tasmania. It makes quite interesting reading, though of course only presenting the environmentalist’s viewpoint of the situation, and while I don’t always so along with some of the more extreme and outlandish views of the ‘Greenies’, I think there is some merit on this particular issue, although the following jargon is presented in a very emotive manner.. This is a summary of Get-Up’s latest email, which I received on Thursday……………………‘Archaic Tasmanian laws mandate that an area 100 times the size of Melbourne’s CBD must be logged every year. Environmentalists, unions and the logging industry have formed a rare agreement to save most of these ancient forests. But because of the Tasmanian Forestry Act 1920, these trees will be felled anyway — unless the Federal Government can step in and buy out the logging licenses.  Time is running out: this once-in-a-generation deal is about to fall apart. Environmentalists are under pressure to walk away from the deal because trees are still being logged. Industry players are ready to walk away because some are facing uncertainty and bankruptcy. Our forests are the greatest carbon sinks we have. They are the living lungs of our nation and home to hundreds of native species. In order to save them we need to make sure that timber workers get a fair go, the opportunity to develop skills in new areas, and job security — rather than an industry that is collapsing before their eyes. \We know this is affordable. For much less than the Federal Government spends on advertising each year, Tasmania’s iconic forests could be saved for all Australians, now and into the future.
This is a once in a generation opportunity to preserve our irreplaceable forests, wildlife, water catchments and help save our climate……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
The Get Up organisation has had some success with various political agendas, and has a reasonably large support base, but I’m not always so keen on the obvious one-sided nature of their approach in each instance., as in this case for eg, they remind us that archaic Tasmanian laws mandate that an area 100 times the size of Melbourne’s CBD must be logged every year!………………………………………………………………………….

But  to more important matters – sporting issues. The controversy over jumping horse races has raised it’s head in Victoria again, at the Warrnambool annual racing carnival this week. A racehorse died on the first day of the carnival, on Tuesday, while yesterday, in the principal jumps race in Victoria [the Grand National Steeplechase], a starting field of just eight horses saw only two of them finish the race, the rest threw their riders at different stages. Even more serious, one of the riderless horses, decided to jump over one of the external fences of the racecourse – into a crowd of spectators, seriously injuring a number of people including a two year old child! And the reactions from the racing community  – 

• The race was a farce, although jumps diehards described it as “exciting”, “unpredictable”.
• RVL chief executive Rob Hines was horrified by the carnage but defended the race. A freak accident: ” … it was a hell of a spectacle.”
• “He is just a great jumper. It is his forte and he played to his strengths,” Maher said, adding he “didn’t breathe” as the seven minutes of calamity unfolded.
• “Obviously a few made a few mistakes, you don’t see that in the Annual very often,” he said.
• Maher said Al Garhood, now the only horse to win two Brierly Steeplechases and two Annuals, might return at age 12 in 2012.
• Winning jockey Steven Pateman offered a simple explanation for Al Garhood’s incredible win.
• “That’s what this race is all about. There are 33 obstacles and they all have to be jumped,” he said.
• Robbie Lang, whose three horses failed to complete the race, had a similar sentiment.
• “It’s a tough game and you have to stay on your feet,” he said.

It is these ‘few mistakes’ that are costing race horses their lives  – but both sides are determined to prove their views are correct – as reported in the Herald-Sun newspaper   –  ‘Whether jumps racing can stay on its feet is up to the minister (an unabashed jumps fan), and RVL, which seems far more tolerant of it now than a year ago. Supporters will point to the scoreboard after yesterday: no horses dead, no horses injured. Detractors will point to the race – the most iconic and important of all the jumps races in Australia – and say it was ridiculous’.  Or as someone else suggested, a ‘farce’!! I’ve suggested before that it is not a question of whether jumps racing will be banned in Victoria [Victoria and South Australia are the only two states in which the jumps are still permitted]  but when it will happen – the outcome will inevitably happen one year. I wonder how many more horses will die however before that occurs.  It was in 2010 [or perhaps 2009] that three horses died in three days at the Warrnambool carnival!!

As for my football team,  all 22 players from Carlton’s victory over the Sydney Swans last weekend,  have been named in the 25 man squad for the round 7 match against St Kilda  to be played on Monday night, of all times.  Joining them in the squad of 25 are Lachie Henderson, Matthew Watson and Chris Yarran.  Yarran was a late withdrawal, due to hamstring tightness, from last week’s game against Sydney. Matthew Watson made his AFL debut in round two in Brisbane and played the following week in the blockbuster against Collingwood at the MCG. He was rested for the next game and has played the last two in the VFL [the equivalent Reserves competition].  Henderson, who had an interrupted pre-season, has played one AFL match this season. Jordan Russell will play his 100th AFL match in the game on Monday night, becoming the 160th Carlton player to play 100 games for the Club. He is one of just 21 players to play his 100th game and make his debut against the same team, and only the second to do both against St Kilda. The squad will be finalised on Saturday afternoon, for Monday night’s game.

Susie returned from Bendigo early this evening, and not long afterwards went out to have a meal with a girlfriend. Her younger sister Jodie, called around not long afterwards [with James’ dog ‘Murphy’]  to use Susie’s computer [hers is out of action apparently] – I think she thought Susie might have been home. Stayed for a couple of hours – think she was preparing a job application while I tried to keep the dog calm and not too excited [and to keep him separated from the two cats!!].  I didn’t really mind having James’ dog here, although I don’t think he has yet got him properly ‘house trained’ so I am always a little apprehensive about where the dog is at any point in time!  He behaved tonight!!

Well, apart from a couple of  police shootings [of assumed criminals] in Melbourne over the past 18 hours, the reports from America through the afternoon, relating to President Barak Obama’s announcement of the death of Osama Bin Laden, following an attack on one of his strongholds outside Islamabad [in Pakistan] a few days ago, has dominated the media attention.  The ‘celebrations’ in the early hours of the American morning, particularly in New York and Washington, while being easy enough to understand, were also a little disturbing for there to be joy over the death of the world’s most wanted man!! Perhaps the world is better off to be rid of  him, although I think you would have to be a super optimist to think that his departure is going to do much to lessen the threat of terrorism.  Speaking in a televised address to the world, late on Sun day night, American time,  President Obama announced that Bin Laden was killed in a fire fight with US special forces, apparently early Sunday [although I thought I read a report it was a few days ago].  The attack, which had been planned for some months, was carried out on a mansion in Abbottabad, Pakistan, about 65km from the capital city Islamabad, where Bin Laden had been in hiding.  “After a fire fight, they killed Bin Laden and took custody of his body,” the President confirmed. “On nights like this one we can say to those families who have lost loved ones to al-Qaeda terror, justice has been done.”

However, as the following reports suggest, it does seem that those celebrating in the States are not alone.   Commenting today, former Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, believes that the US celebrations over the death of Osama bin Laden are the natural reaction of a country that felt violated by the al-Qaeda leader’s acts of terrorism,. Mr Howard, who was in the US at the time of the September 11 attacks in 2001, said he understood how the American people felt. “They are the natural spontaneous reactions of ordinary people who saw the 11th of September as an even deeper violation of American sovereignty than Pearl Harbour,” he told journalists in Sydney on Monday. “To lose 3000 people in your political capital and your commercial and cultural capital, without provocation, without justification, without reason, without any explanation, without any moral justification, it leaves an impression.  “I understood how the Americans felt, and I’ve always understood the reactions and the impulses of the Americans as a result.”

But Kuranda Seyit of FAIR, which describes itself as “an independent public relations group”, said the images of Americans rejoicing in the streets of Washington and New York were not appropriate. “I’m just totally disgusted about it,” he told AAP. The director of the Forum on Australia’s Islamic Relations (FAIR), has labelled the US celebrations as “disgusting”. “(The celebrations) are just like the so-called reports by American television of Muslims celebrating after September 11. This is just as bad. “We need to show a little bit more respect towards humanity, even if they’re the bad guys. Mr Seyit said the al-Qaeda leader had galvanised the Muslim community in the past. “The way he is viewed now, I would say 50 in terms of pro and 50 in terms of against. “A lot of people see him as a negative representative of the Muslim community. “But then, other people see him as someone who is at least having a go at some of those colonial powers interfering in Muslim affairs”.

A couple of sharply contrasting attitudes, and probably, coming from where they do in each case, to be expected. Generally however, around the world tonight, world leaders are not holding back on their ‘suppressed pleasure’ that Bin Laden has been got rid of. Former US presidents have reacted to the news of Bin Laden’s death, with George W Bush describing the operation as a “momentous achievement” that “marks a victory for America, for people who seek peace around the world, and for all those who lost loved ones on September 11”. Bill Clinton has also congratulated President Obama, the National Security team and US armed forces for “bringing Osama bin Laden to justice after more than a decade of murderous al-Qaida attacks”.  World leaders applauded the news. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated Obama in a written statement, while New Zealand Prime Minister John Key told reporters the World was a safer place without Bin Laden. Meanwhile, the Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has  warned Australians travelling overseas to take extra care. “We are advising Australians in areas likely to be affected by gatherings outside hotels, gatherings and demonstrations, to exercise enhanced vigilance regarding their personal security.”  Ms Gillard said Bin Laden’s death was a small justice to those grieving, but the threat of al-Qaeda was far from over.  “I trust that today’s news comes as some small measure of justice for those who still grieve the loss of their loved ones,” she said.  “Every Australian has been touched and affected by acts of terrorism by al-Qaeda …. consequently, every Australia will be touched by this news today.”

Taking all of that it, and the potential for some reaction in parts of the Muslim world, one has to wonder, perhaps with some degree of concern just what level of ‘payback’ will occur for this payback by the Americans, which they have worked 10 years towards? And no doubt over the next few days, the media saturation of the Royal  Wedding, and the accompanying reports over the past coupler of days, of the deaths of some of Colonel Gaddafi’s family in Libya following a NATO forces strike, we are now going to be similarly saturated with stories of the life and death of Osama Bin Laden, and a reminder, rightfully so, of the horrors he masterminded on behalf of Al-Qaedi against the west, including 911 in the USA, the Bali bombings and other terrorist attacks.

Meanwhile, closer to home, it was a typical day in the life of an accountant for your writer, head down, calculator operating, and annual estimates of income and expenditure for the next 12 months of my employing organisation’s ongoing business, being worked upon!! Even closer to home, I was disappointed that Susie had not returned to the university work in Bendigo, and seemed little interested in talking to her Dad [or anyone in the family at present] about the reasons therefore and/or her plans. She had presumably been home most of the day. It would be untruthful to say that the situation on that score was not worrying me considerably. She has been given a lot of help and advice, but must come to a few decisions of her own, and very soon. Later tonight, after I had retired, she went out for a couple of hours after 11 pm, in fact someone picked her up. Back sometime after 1am., no idea what that was all about, except it meant another disturbed sleep for yours truly!!

Anyway, with those thoughts in mind, I decided I needed another episode of Q & A to watch, and to brighten, hopefully, my own spirits. Tonight’s program was presented from the inland regional city of Albury, which sits on the banks of the Murray River, on the New South Wales side of the Victoria/NSW border, and not surprisingly, tonight’s panel had a regional ‘touch’ about them, in name [or at least title] anyway! Actually, looking at those titles, one might immediately assume that tonight was destined to be a very dry and boring program – I hope, in advance, that I’m proved wrong. Our panellists, under host Tony Jones are Simon Crean [Federal Minister for Regional Australia], Sophie Mirabella [Shadow Opposition Minister for Industry], Tony Windsor [Independent Federal Member for New England, and one of those politicians holding a bit of a balance of power in the House of Representatives at the present time], Eliza Brown [a local wine grower, and Director of the successful ‘Brown Brothers Wines], Nick Klomp [Dean of Science, at Charles Sturt University], and Alana Johnson [Victorian Rural Woman of the Year 2010.  Mmmmmmm, well looking at that line up, I not convinced that my night is likely to be brightened up very much.  I shall remain optimist! In fact, despite the nature of the panel, I’m sure because of the news of the day, that it will be impossible to avoid questions, and discussion/debate on Osama Bin Laden!  Such as this potential question –   ‘According to initial reports concerning the death of Osama Bin Laden, American ground forces entered Pakistan without any permission to conduct the operation that has supposedly been in the works for several months according to President Obama. Does the panel have the view that the ends justify the means and what are the implications for future Pakistan-US Relations?”  That will be interesting –  personally, I think with the Americans, the end always justifies the means [look at the infiltration into neighbouring countries during the Vietnam War], and certainly from various reports, this would not be the first operation, eg, against the Taliban, that has involved  American forces entering Pakistan.  Somehow, irrespective of how right or wrong they were, I can imagine the Americans coming out of it all with ‘clean noses’, don’t they always?  Or another question  –  “Hours ago we saw President Obama announce the death of Osama Bin Laden. Since then we have seen footage of over the top celebration by many young Americans. Panel do you really think this is time for celebration  or rather a time for reverence  and contemplation of the continual job at hand?”   Well, I’ve touched on that above, I wonder how the panel will handle it?

Well, there were just the two questions allowed on the subject, at the beginning of the program, and rightfully so, with the largest Q & A audience, packed into a large auditorium in Albury, they were there to talk about regional and rural issues.  On the Bin Laden situation, I think the most telling comment from one of the panel members was simply ‘it’s disturbing that we celebrate death, in the way we have seen today – it’s a sad comment on us as humanity’!!   Meanwhile, on the regional issues, I think the principal point being made by the audience [and of course denied in various guises by the politicians present] was the question as to why governments continually fail to acknowledge the contributions of regional people, as compared with their attitude to the city populations?  I notice some bright spark on the website commented ‘because that’s where the votes are, in the cities’. But if you listen to the government minister, Simon Crean,  you would think the opposite is happening, and Labor is taking a lot of notice of rural needs this time around, with the proposed National Broadband Network [NBN] implementation been sited as a prime example of that policy. In fact Mr Crean came along to the meeting with a prize in his back pocket – a pre-Budget announcement of the establishment of a $65 million Cancer Clinic in Albury, apparently something that area has been seeking for a long time.  During the program, there were various questions which tended to revolve around the subject of rural disadvantages, compared to capital cities, involving issues such as health services, education, communications, transport etc. Interestingly, on a number of points, the challenge was thrown back to the local communities to make their voices heard more, and push for a higher profile of those issues that matter. Much is being made for eg, of suggestions that the NBN will connect rural communities to the major centres, when perhaps it would be more useful to place emphasise on using the NBN to provide meaningful opportunities for decentralisation, or to establish training facilities in regional areas aimed at encouraging those trainees to use their qualifications in those areas, rather than having to go to the cities to train, and generally staying there for employment.  Of course, the regional must have employment and jobs available to compensate the local training – the lack of such jobs is aiding in the drift to the big centres!

Overall, a good discussion, with as usual, time the restricting factor in allowing most potential questions to be put to the panel. I was a bit disappointed, once again, that the politicians on the panel are given the majority of opportunities to respond and contribute to the program – and I blame the host presenter for that situation arising time and again.

Bill had a couple of sessions on the radio today, about 4.5 hours in total. Probably would have gladly given them both a miss were not that little ‘bug’ called commitment so strong in my psyche –  not a good sleep overnight [seems to be a Saturday night pattern], but more due to a feeling of ‘unwellness’ on this occasion!  However, ‘we’ did get to both programs, early this morning, and later on this afternoon, but generally, didn’t achieve a great deal in between times. The papers of course continued to be concentrating on photos and stories, still, of Friday’s wedding, but I guess we can expect that to continue for a while yet. There was in fact, a beautiful photo in this morning’s Sunday Age.  It showed William and Kate with the six children [4 girls, 2 page boys] who participated in the wedding procedures – no other adults, Kings, Queens, Prime Ministers, etc –  just the children with the bridal couple. I think that might well be my memorable ‘look back’ photo of last Friday’s wedding!

Overseas of course, this date is quite a memorable one, and is referred to in many areas of world society as ‘May Day’.  May Day can refer to various labour celebrations conducted on May 1 that commemorate the fight for the eight hour day. May Day in this regard is called International Workers’ Day or Labour Day, but means different things or occasions in different parts of the world. Some unions might think otherwise, but those kind of significances have no real bearing here in Australia. But my thoughts today are turning to things of a more peaceful and relaxing mode – found a little poem written by Henry Kendall many decades ago, about Bell Birds.  The Bell Bird is a small Australian bird with a very distinctive call. It sounds like tinkling bells. It is very beautiful to hear as you walk through the bush. You don’t hear them in the cities at all. These are just a couple of verses from a longer poem about this little creature, which I’d like to share.

Bell-Birds    by Henry Kendall

By channels of coolness the echoes are calling,
And down the dim gorges I hear the creek falling;
It lives in the mountain, where moss and the sedges
Touch with their beauty the banks and the ledges;
Through brakes of the cedar and sycamore bowers
Struggles the light that is love to the flowers.
And softer than slumber, and sweeter than singing,
The notes of the bell-birds are running and ringing.

The silver-voiced bell-birds, the darlings of day-time,
They sing in September their songs of the May-time.
When shadows wax strong, and the thunder-bolts hurtle,
They hide with their fear in the leaves of the myrtle;
When rain and the sunbeams shine mingled together,
They start up like fairies that follow fair weather,
And straightway the hues of the feathers unfolden
Are the green and the purple, the blue and the golden.