The Concatenate

Let me say from the outset that this album did not pass the all-time-important road trip test. Comments from my passengers while listening to Casino Twighlight Dogs by Youth Group during our three hour drive included: “it’s a bit boring”, “none of the songs have really grabbed me” and, strange but true, “the vocals sometimes sound a bit like the pet shop boys”.

There is a play-by-numbers feel about this album, with production (and, even more sadly, songwriting) that lacks in imagination and inspiration – apart from the first song, Catching and Killing, which is excellent. All the ingredients seem to be there – drums, guitars, bass, vocals – but spunk and verve seem to be missing.

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Bob Brown has oddly welcomed the decision of John Howard to contest the next election.

He thinks we’re living in an “era of nastiness for Australia” and he thinks John Howard is responsible. But he also thinks there’s some votes for the Greens in it.

And apparently that’s what’s important.

[First filed: July 31, 2006 @ 15:21]

AAP, via News, reports that Treasurer Costello has decided he prefers working for John Howard than taking a chance that someone else will make a decent Treasurer.

Costello’s announced that, with the Prime Minister staying on until the next election, he’s willing to continue as Treasurer and Deputy Leader.

He’s now hoping that the Prime Minister will both win the next election, and decide enough is enough around his 70th birthday.

UPDATE 1: Peter Costello has put out a statement detailing his capitulation.

With a major announcement on the Prime Ministership and an atrocity in the Middle East you’d think today is a bad one on which to announce a new policy. Unless of course you’re trying to minimise publicity.

Labor’s Peter Garrett has this day announced a new arts policy discussion paper. In the media release he makes little mention of what his policy would do, only what he sees as problems with the existing arts funding regime:

“· Government interference in the funding process, as well as political board appointments;
· Bureaucratic indifference and its stifling effect on creativity;
· Unsustainable funding arrangements which place increasing pressure on artists and arts organisations; and,
· Failure to respond to the dynamics of the growing digital economy where creativity is central.”

The 22 page policy discussion paper is framed very tentatively.

[First filed: July 31, 2006 @ 09:02]

NewsRadio are reporting that Prime Minister Howard has said he will contest the next election.

AAP, via News, have the story. Nine’s Laurie Oakes has been given the drop by either Costello or Howard and announced it to the nation on the struggling “Today” show.

‘”The prime minister is going to stay on and fight another election,” Oakes told Nine’s Today show. “Mr Howard has written to senior colleagues telling them he’s been taking soundings in the Liberal Party and the community over the last couple of weeks. Those soundings have indicated to him, he says, that the party wants him to stay on.”‘

UPDATE 1: AAP, via News, have the text of the PM’s fax to his Members of Parliament:

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Coles Myer have put out a media release on their plans for the future having sold off the Myer part of their business.

First off the rank they’re changing the name to a simpler “Coles Group Limited”. The Coles stores are, apparently, going to offer “a new, integrated everyday needs business comprising food, liquor, fuel and general
merchandise under one umbrella Coles brand”.

Target and Officeworks are being promised increased investment.

Bloomberg have some analysis.

Ireland Online has the news that Israel has announced a 48 hour ceasefire.

This is while they figure out how the Qana children’s massacre came about. The Israelis reserve the right to strike targets they believe are about to attack them.

This window for civilians to escape could well just be a prelude to even bigger attacks.

The Minister for Education, Julie Bishop, has announced $15 million over six projects to help academics look at each others research.

Once you cut away the buzzwords and the astonishing array of new acronyms it looks like a lot of money to spend on a wiki. (Which I could do up for them for $5k tops, $100k if they wanted the content put in and their people trained to maintain it).

Lebanon

The Australian leads with a massacre of children in the Lebanese town of Qana by the Israelis, which seems to have changed the diplomatic dynamic. The SMH is reporting that the US is starting to call for an an end to the violence. One can only assume that the Israelis have just about finished what’s on their “to do” list. The Australian is also describing the conflict as a proxy war between the US and Iran.

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Guarding the guards

The Age has a blast at the Victorian Office of Police Integrity. Inspector John Noonan is leaving the Special Operations Group (black pajama crowd) to work for Lindsay Fox and in parting expresses the concerns of old hard-bitten police everywhere that corruption watchdogs interfere with “old fashioned” policing. Meanwhile the Herald Sun reports that Victorian police are demanding a 15% pay rise from the Victorian Government.

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Kovco gunplay

The West Australian is carrying claims that the late Private Jake Kovco had been reprimanded twice for fooling around with his pistol.

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AAP, via News, reports that Australians are going to get dragged into the peacekeeping force being sent to Southern Lebanon.

One imagines they’ll stay there until someone’s barracks get blown up.

Our Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, is obviously unenthusiastic:

“But this would have to be a truly credible multi-national force and one that went into southern Lebanon in an environment where there was a proper peace plan being implemented”

The ABC’s Canberra station, 2CN 666, had me in for chat this Sunday morning on the subject of “citizen journalism”. You can have a listen with the controls below (email readers will need to click the story link).

Enjoy!

Some might think that something as important as the future of Australia’s water policy is best not started in rural Queensland.

The ABC has the sad news that those people would be right. A vote on recycling water in Toowoomba has been lost. 60% of residents want to watch their water flow downstream after being treated at their sewage plant.

Malcolm Turnbull has put out a media release saying he respects will of the people of Toowoomba.

Sadly it doesn’t seem likely any Government can let Australia’s second largest inland city run out of water so a more expensive and wasteful solution will probably be paid for, and many more to come.

UPDATE 1: The ABC is reporting that Queensland’s Premier Beattie is trying to defuse the issue by promising a State-wide referendum on the issue out in the political never-never of 2008.

AAP, via Yahoo, has claims from an upcoming book, The Partnership by Greg Sheridan, that Australia’s commanding officer in the last Iraq War, Major General Maurie McNarn (at the time a Brigadier), had the right of veto over US operations.

They also claim he used that veto several times when the targeting of individuals was proposed.

The things the Americans will agree to when they desperately need a fig leaf of internationalism.

The Herald Sun has a story on claims that 200,000 battery farmed eggs a week are sold as “Free Range”.

As long as there’s no independent certification this sort of thing is going to be rampant as more people seek organic food and free range produce without any way to test the bona fides of the manufacturer’s claims.