Hard- core?

Apparently not.



My rating is based on the frequency of the words "bomb" and "hell". So why didn't it pick up "motherfucker" and "bitch" and "priapic", I wonder?

R-r-rage

So I didn't win the Invade Rage competition. Darn it, some 17 year old did. Far out, what the hell does a 17-year have to offer in this department? My list was going firmly for a good, clean fun night of guest programming. Here it is.

1. Mediate - Inxs
2. Sex dwarf – Soft cell
3. Pure Morning - Placebo
4. Praise you – Fat boy slim
5. Its oh so quiet - Bjork
6. Safety dance - men without hats
7. Rat Race – Specials
8. Trio – Da da da
9. Connection – Elastica
10. If that’s your boyfriend – Meshell Ndegeocello
11. Big Bottoms – Spinal Tap
12. Smells like teen spirit – Nirvana
13. City of Tiny Lites – Frank Zappa
14. Steriogram – Walkie Talkie Man
15. Thunderbirds are Coming Out – TISM
16. Satisfaction – Benny Benassi
17. Hotel Zorba - White Stripes
18. No Pussy Blues – Grinderman
19. The Ship Song – Nick Cave
20. I was only 19 (Walk in the light green) – The Herd

They're watching

I'd just like to say a cheery "hello!" to whoever has been dropping in from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade internet IP address. I can see you in web-stats, you know.

Just to clarify, when I said earlier that there was a "nice" little quote about the protesters getting harassed by the APEC strike force, I was using sarcasm. I didn't think it was nice at all. I thought it was sad, and more that a little worrying to see how our government is proud of its control over public assembly. I thought it was appalling to read about the forces taking video of the protesters, who were exercising their democratic right to disagree with public policy.

What are you doing over their reading narky blog posts on work time? I thought ASIO kept the dossier, sheesh. And if you're trawling for quotes by your Minister, well really, you should know better.

Sand-level rise

This is normally a bitumen road, a good metre or more above the level of the beach. After 3 days of storms, most of the beach ended up in the carpark however. Today they had earthmoving equipment out there to put it all back.

Oh Downer

I know I only have a very small readership, and I'm very fond of all five of you. So being intelligent and sensitive types, you probably already knew this, but I just wanted to point out that our Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, is a liar. Here's some prime porky pies from a recent article in the SMH.

"To reduce China's emissions by 50-60 per cent and to do that in Australia as well - wherever you do it, at least in most countries - would be absolutely crippling."

To live with the effects of climate change would be far more crippling. Wheat, wool, tourism.. you name it, its affected by more frequent storms, unpredictable rains, and heat-waves. And the rate Australia's going we'll have international sanctions against our mineral exports before too long, for being nasty small minded pricks in international negotiations.

Australia could not match a country like Germany in cutting emissions from 1990 levels because of the shutdown of former East Germany's heavy-polluting industry.

What? I thought Germany also did a lot to meet their targets through wind power and energy efficiency. And they started working on it straight after they signed in 1997. Yes, Downer 10 years ago. 10 years in which Australia signed their intention to join, got an exemption to increase emissions, and then refused to ratify.

Mr Downer said if there was going to be a global agreement on climate change, it had to be multi-faceted. "It would be an enormous mistake to think that you could persuade the whole world to accept a one-size fits all approach."

Yes, it does, and yes it would. The approach is called the Kyoto Protocol. It entered into force on 16 Feb 2005. It is an international agreement written between 1990 and 1997 with staged targets, "flexible mechanisms" (that's a legal name for a methodology devised by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, Downer, it means "multi-faceted") and a thing called "cleaner development mechanisms" - which is how rich countries can reduce emissions in poor countries, and use them to meet their own targets.

Mr Downer said China and other developing nations had a duty to improve living standards.

"You can't just say they should cripple their economies and people should remain endlessly in poverty. You have to find a way where China can gradually reduce its, if you like, CO2 emissions but at the same time its economy can continue to grow.

We have found a way, you obsfucating liar, liar, liar pants on fire. Its the basic premise of Kyoto. That rich countries have had over 200 years of benefit from industrialisation and wealth from fossil fuels. SO WE GO FIRST. Get it? We work out how to do the reductions, then after a 10 year period, the "developing" nations do too. "We" being nations who are responsible for 55% of the world's emissions. At the time, China and India signed up to say "yes, our time's coming, we'll make cuts too when you have had a red hot go." They are just standing by their international agreements by saying they don't want to hurt their economies right now.

BSharp's horrible no-good weekend

First, there was the insane stormy Friday. Tried to sleep through Thursday night with the rooftop door groaning and banging in gale force coastal winds because it has swollen in the rain and doesn't fit in the doorframe. Winds that beached a coal tanker in Newcastle. Battled on into town, thankfully to get a desk at the city office of large government agency that I am working for. Got drenched at lunchtime and one the way home, to meet up with MJS who had been diligently working away in the pad amidst windows rattling, water getting in the gaps and wind howling all day.

Saturday morning faced the Great Computer Crash of 2007. No internet, so server, no client files. nothing. Couldn't even get the keyboard to register key stokes on the monitor. Frantic calls to Mr Biz where it was 3am. Client who needs to submit massive report of which I am the editor, this weekend, still sending chapters, revisions etc. End up spending 3 hours in an internet cafe, doing revisions and edits alongside World of Warcraft and Myspace geeks. Car share booking extended and extended into the raining, pouring night. Decided to fill up car with petrol and return at 7.15 , as there had been no night time booking all afternoon. Walk home in howling wind.

Back home at night with coaching from Amsterdam, manage to get the server re-started and functionality of internet restored. Still no server, or client folders.

Sunday morning. Call from carshare- have to take bus to different car today, because the one booked for today has flat battery (not my fault). Find out GOT FINED FOR LAST NIGHT, as someone was waiting until 7.12pm, and operators couldn't reach Amsterdam number that is registered against our bookings. Meanwhile, chugging away on report, while intrepid sister is out and about in rank and violent weather conditions. Horrible, bad, no good weekend.

Apec schmapec

Couple of things. John Quiggin has kindly posted his latest Financial Review article on his blog, talking about why it is stupid of Howard to try to put forward a Kyoto alternative to climate change at the APEC summit (Today dubbed a "Sydney Declaration", sheesh).

The idea of pursuing an ‘Australian solution’ independent of the rest of the world, is a dangerous fantasy. Unless we ratify Kyoto as soon as possible, and rejoin the international mainstream, we risk finding that the rest of world has reached an agreement without us.

Then, a nice little descriptions of how protesters were met by the "APEC security command" at the Shangri-la last night. They say:

We simply wanted to go there to make our point, but the police didn't want to let that happen - it was very intimidating behaviour," he said.

When we arrived the police presence was already overwhelming - they immediately tried to move us back, so there was no chance to have the protest.

They also shone very bright lights in everyone's eyes, presumably to take video footage.

Round the world

My dear friend, Miss FiFi L'amour, just sent photos from China of her with the little girl they have gone over to adopt. Miss F and DR rockstar first officially put themselves forward to adopt three years ago. She had started on fertility treatment when she and her partner of nearly 10 years decided to ask the department of community services about adopting a baby from overseas. In this state, you apply for approval from our government first and then the overseas government. From early on you have to enter a "country" program - it's not just open to the whole world's children. In China some baby girls are abandoned who are raised in orphanages that have official adoption arrangement with Australia.

It has sounded like an extraordinary process with lots of preparation for the tough times as well as the joy of a new baby. Their little one is 15 months old, and I'm looking forward to meeting her when she gets here! And not just to expand the portfolio of critters who can call me Aunty B, honest. Miss F says, its been a long pregnancy - but at least she could keep drinking through it.

Gratuitous quotes

From Pirates of the Carribean 3

She's a woman scorned, the fury the like of which hell hath no.

Close your eyes and pretend it's all a bad dream. That's how I get by.

"Up is down"? Well, that's just maddeningly unhelpful.