The Real Alan Jones

Nothing left to say, really, except perhaps "true colours".

Perhaps he's watched too much Grahame Kennedy, although at least gra-gra was funny.

(Warning - Mute the sound if you're at work or not using headphones).

Busting Rupert’s Firewall

You can’t help feeling sorry for Rupert.

His hard-wired tendency to accumulate dollars is being threatened by Google, or at least he believes it is.

I don’t buy newspapers. Apart from the fact that very little of what is printed these days is remotely digestible, you have to part with hard-earned over the counter, and the bloody things are full of naff advertisements.

To my way of thinking, anything containing advertisements should be free. This principle holds for free-to-air television after all.

For a while, I was mug enough to buy a couple of subscriptions to The Oz and The Age to read them on my iPad. I must have been dreaming.

It ain’t necessary, dear reader, because you can access everything in The Oz for free on-line. I’ll explain the simple steps –

1. Get on to the Australian Home Page.
2. Find the story you want. They’re all there. Most have the firewall symbol near the top, indicating they are behind the firewall.
3. Highlight the first few words or the first sentence of the story, and paste them into your search engine. I use Google. I haven’t tried other search engines, but it may work for them.
4. Hit the search button. The story will appear in its entirety.

It works every time.

I'll experiment with other firewall protected newspapers and let you know how I get on.

 Subversion rules!

Thanks Heaps

Blot is on holidays, so posting on his twaddle is impossible.

Timmeh, however is not – possibly he worries that any absence would be undetectable, and he might be replaced by a robot.

His fears are well-founded. Given the monotonous and predictable contents of his postings, modifying a software programme of the kind used by Telstra (for example) and using an App such as Dragon would do the trick.

The quality would also improve.

So in Blot’s absence I comment quite regularly on Timmeh’s place.

It reminds me a bit of the morning routine with our senile terrier. She’s a lovely old thing, and sleeps in the laundry in a plastic kennel thingie. At the advanced age of 84 (in dog years) she’s become very set in her ways, and dislikes being chased outside unless the sun is warm, and there’s no wind.

When a sou-easter is blowing, these conditions are frequently absent, so turfing her out is usually accompanied by a great deal of snarling and growling. It's only noise. She's almost toothless.

Prodding Timmeh's posts has a similar result, in a manner of speaking. He has an almost canine attachment to his territory, and defends it fiercely. Lately, he has resorted to deleting all my posts and linking them to some website or other. It reminds me a bit of a Blue Heeler I once owned. Even the metros amongst you would know how male Heelers mark their territory.

Now this could be amusing, except that it’s always the same website. He's obviously got an issue with  perseveration.

 So for your edification, dear reader, I’m posting screen shots of a few of the deleted comments here. You can check them out and discern what is so threatening to Timmeh’s (apparently) delicate ego. Let me know what you see as the problem, and I’ll try to be good.

I promise.

A couple of other interesting things have happened. Hits on my blog have gone up about 25% since he’s been deleting my posts. My on-line book sales (linked to my blog) have also picked up momentum. Read BOAB's review here.

I’m actually making money now – printing and production costs are covered by sales to date.

Maybe Timmeh’s worth a commission. What do you reckon?

Perhaps it would encourage him to take a holiday - only trying to help.................

More ABC bashing. Maybe they lost his resume?

This is a recurring theme - Peacock envy perhaps?

Some people can't abide my tag. Not my problem.

You know the drill - click to embiggen.

It's Chronic

 The current media enquiry has drawn plenty of comment.

Some believe that it is an attempt to muzzle News Limited. I doubt it, as the relationship between government and media is not so simple that it can be described in terms of Right and Left. Bias is always in the eye of the beholder.

Anyone who believes that media bias can be eliminated by regulation has been living under a rock for a long time. Ownership is a problem – that’s what needs to be sorted.

Back in the seventies when I was looking for units to finish an Arts degree, a degree which I completed purely for the hell of it after picking up the Education qualifications needed for my specialisations, I did a couple of Journalism subjects. That experience was sufficient to disabuse me of any notion that truth and accuracy has anything to do with modern Journalism.

We were taught at U of Q that it was the “story” that mattered, although an emphasis on accuracy gained through thorough and careful research was promoted. These days, the media cycle has accelerated to the point where there is simply not enough time for this.

As far as I’m concerned, bias is less of an issue than quality. A clear example of this is the sloppy work revealed by the case against Bolt last year. Read Justice Blomberg’s ruling to gain an insight into the very poor quality of the “journalism” exposed in that case.

These excuses for journalists operate at a range of levels, including provincial newspapers.

The local rag, the Toowoomba Chronicle, is a fine example.

A few years ago, the Chronicle published a front page story about a school Principal of my acquaintance who had to manage an incident when one of his students was accidentally killed in the street in front of the school. This little boy’s dad (driving his work truck) was dropping him off, and the child was run over trying to retrieve his school bag which was on the back of the truck.

The child was killed instantly, but the principal (a colleague of mine) was one of the first on the scene and attempted resuscitation until emergency services arrived.

He had first to deal with the attempted resuscitation, then the inconsolable father, and then manage the critical incident. He did a magnificent job. One of the smart things he did was to phone neighbouring schools and request than any non-teaching staff available be sent to his school to help. As a principal in a nearby school, I was non-teaching, so the deputy, myself and the Guidance Officer all travelled the two kilometres to his school.

We were quickly and efficiently organised, and I found myself looking after a group of year seven kids, one of whom was the older sister of the child killed. This child was removed to a staff room and the teacher I replaced was given the task of looking after this girl and the little boy’s older brother there, until out-of-town family could be organised to help.

It was an extraordinarily difficult day, and this principal’s performance was amazing. At various times, he had to manage police, emergency personnel, grieving parents and staff, and traumatised children, all in the full glare of local and state media who were on to the story from the get-go. Actions of some of the media I personally observed on that day could only be characterised as ghoulish.

This principal continued to provide strong and caring leadership during the immediate aftermath of the tragedy, organised the school community’s participation in the funeral, and assisted in the inquiries that followed.

Slowly, the school community got back to normal. But for this principal, nothing was ever the same again. About six months after the incident he was diagnosed with PTSD. He had cared for everyone except himself.

He went on sick leave, and after many unsuccessful attempts to get back on the rails was forced into involuntary retirement due to his health. He went through his own private hell during the aftermath. I understand some of it, as I tried briefly and unsuccessfully to help.

He was in his forties, married with four kids, so his payout wasn’t sufficient to live on. His lawyers took out a civil action against the father’s compulsory third party insurance in an attempt to provide an income for him and his family. The resources of the bereaved family were not targeted in any way – the insurance company was sued.

The local rag published a front page story under the headline “Ex-principal sues dad who ran over own son”.

This was published with an unflattering picture of the principal. He appeared obviously distressed and unkempt. I’m not sure when or where it was shot, but it has all the hallmarks of a picture taken in ambush.

The fact that the insurance company was being sued, not the father, was hidden in the guts of the story. The whole piece was designed to shock, and therefore to sell, a fine example of gutter journalism.

I wrote both to the reporter who wrote the piece and the editor, but my letter was ignored. In my letters I pointed out that both family and principal had been traumatised by the incident, and the crude publicity would clearly exacerbate their distress. Much later wrote to the press council, but they maintained that no laws had been broken, so it was OK.

Meanwhile this rubbish continues.

The current beat-up is about an alleged snub by the mayor of a local man who lost his wife and son in the 2011 January flood. The formula is the same – pick a target, create public outrage, and sell lots of papers.

The paper is a disgrace. No wonder it’s known locally as the Chronic.

And the Press Council? It’s totally useless.

I Don’t Wish to Know That

One of the things I found diverting during my brief and unspectacular military career was the use of a number of unique and whimsical catch phrases.

The phrase in question was often applied in a context where someone, generally a bright-eyed and bushy-tailed recruit, had responded inappropriately to a suggestion question or comment, from an NCO.

The response was invariably “I don’t wish to know that”.

This same response could well be used in connection with a report in today’s Fox News about aspirin.

Many people (myself included) with a family history of cardiovascular disease are prescribed a daily low-dose aspirin as a precaution.

The study emanating from St. George's, University of London, found that long term use of aspirin can lead to ulcers and bleeding. On the other hand it averted cardiovascular events in one in 120 people over six years.

OK – so aspirin needs to be used with care. I’m not entirely sure that this is actually news, or that it is entirely new information to the GPs prescribing aspirin.

So why is it reported breathlessly by Fox news? It’s not news, not consequential in the sense that the risks are well understood, and not likely to cause mass fatalities.

So – as someone who will continue to take my daily low-dose aspirin with full knowledge of the low level of risks involved – all I can say is I Don’t Wish to Know That.

In any case, whilst neither are great, an ulcer is always preferable to a heart attack.

Minimalist Motoring

Have you ever watched the ubiquitous seniors' electric trolleys scooting around the burbs, and wondered about transport solutions for an increasingly congested urban environment?

The vast majority of Australians live in exactly these situations, yet we persist in buying machines to get us from home to supermarket, friends’ place, sporting venue or restaurant that weigh tonnes, use extravagant amounts of rapidly diminishing resources and take up precious road space.

We are conditioned to believe that unless our daily transport tool can travel at 200 km/hr, has a range of 750 kms, and is capable of shifting the contents of the shed out the back in one hit, it’s not worth having.

I’ll concede that maybe once or twice a year, we may need to undertake the Great Australian Road Trip, but why would you buy any piece of kit based on a need that is the exception rather than the rule?

Hire a 4WD when you need it – in the long run it’s a helluva lot cheaper.

It’s a bit like purchasing an industrial grade refrigerator when your needs are domestic only. Madness – yet when it comes to motor cars, we generally take leave of our senses.

Before you scoff – consider this.

In rapidly developing India, the industrial giant Tata has come up with a solution to India’s everyday transport problems called the Nano.

It will get four people from one side of Kolkatā or Mumbai to another quickly, relatively quietly, and out of the weather for very little fuel. It may not meet our local vehicle safety requirements, but it’s a bloody sight safer than your average pushbike, motor bike or 20 year old clunker.

So if it works in India, why not here?

Based on up-to-date currency conversions, a Tata Nano would retail here for $2820 AUD. That’s less than you’d pay for a battery powered senior’s scooter.

And they’re air-conditioned. Apparently it gets hot in India.

Watch the tester driving along talking to the camera which is outside the vehicle (at about 1.02).

That’s confidence.

Minor Mystery

I'm trying to solve a small mystery in relation to my dad's war service.

Someone out there might be able to help.

In the process of building a time line of events during WW2 involving my father and his units, I came across this document. It's very hard to read, but a number of things are obvious.

It's a stat dec. You'll need to click on the image to read it, and then it's still a bit unclear.

It was sworn at No 3 Personnel Depot RAAF Sandgate on 13th July 1943.

Given that dad disembarked for PNG in July 1943, and returned on 1st December 1944, and that it substantiates an entitlement for War Service Leave, a couple of issues emerge.

How can you compete a stat dec for an event that hasn't yet occurred (returning to Australia)? He obviously completed it prior to embarkation.

Were they all organised to do this? Was there so little faith in military records at the time that it was considered necessary?

Were they able to forecast the period of deployment? Given the situation back then, I wouldn't have thought so.

Any advice is appreciated.