Monthly Archive for October, 2006

Sorry. I had Caps Lock on and couldn’t be bothered with the backspace key.

I haven’t blogged about politics for a while mostly because I’m sick and tired of listening to politicians from all sides talk absolute tripe (and sick of boring other people with my thoughts about it all). Recently I performed my first deliberate defacing of a ballot paper in the Queensland state election in early September. I did that because local and state elctions are useless in my view when you have an arrogant and all powerful federal government that doesn’t give a fuck about people or their predicaments. It’s also disappointing that so many fellow Australians seem to want a federal government that lies, walks on citizens’ rights and generally panders to other governments and large companies.

Personal thought is the greatest casualty of John Howard’s 10 years of rule. If you believe that climate change is occuring you are branded an illogical loon who needs to look at the facts more closely. If you say that we are in a hopeless situation in Iraq and were misled into a war that we should be getting out of – you are branded a coward and a terrorist sympathiser. If you demand a fair and just legal response to people convicted of terror offences – you are a hater of democracy. If you believe it is good for a worker to be represented by a trade union and to be able to bargain for wages collectively – you are an enemy of the economic prospects of Australia.

There is a generalisation made about every type of opinion (by government ministers and pundits) which does not agree with the federal government’s official line. The mere assertion that you are wrong because you disagree is a disgusting development in Australian culture. The talkback mentality has become the norm – my way or the highway. Ther is no longer middle ground, only black and white, right or wrong.

Add to that the laws introduced to parliament and passed by both major parties in the last few years. Sedition laws and laws enabling citizens to be held and questioned without recourse to legal representation. What the fuck is going on in this nation? Why doesn’t anyone notice that everyday rights are being chipped away and the responsibilities of government are being slowly and surely forgotten?

After enduring the slowness of dial-up innanet connections since I owned my first PC (in February 2001) I am set to enter the world of broadband within the next couple of months. Ooo yeah! I’ll be able to read more overseas newspapers, download more music and maybe see what all the fuss is about with this youtube business. I couldn’t be bothered with youtube right now as it takes about 2 hours to download a video of someone recording themselves having a nervous breakdown. Yay!

You see, the good lady and I have bought our own house. I never thought it would happen to be honest. Looking back at a few of my older blog posts reminds me of how far away the opportunity of owning a house was a few years ago. The joint is an old Queenslander style house in Annerley, Brisbane. Annerley is only about 4 or 5kms from the CBD. Even though it’s an old and very original house on the inside, it’s about to get dragged into 2006 kicking and sceaming. Wireless broadband to start with, then maybe a robotic beer fridge that comes to me while I am sweating on the sofa watching the cricket (The Gabba is only a 20 minute walk from my front door too – but I can’t afford to go to the cricket…I’ve just bought a house).