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The First (probably not the last) Amendent

Okay, perhaps I was a bit harsh in saying that all Americans would suck if Bush got re-elected. Thanks for sobering me up, BJK, but what were you doing reading my blog in the middle of the night? Of course, I meant I could no longer refer to those smelly ones who voted for Bush as the good people of America.

Obviously it was the wrong post in the wrong place at the wrong time. I’m going to bed before somebody else forces me to post a correction.

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Star-spangled banners and whatnot

Today the good people of America go to the polls. If they somehow manage to do the unthinkable and re-elect George W. Bush, I will never again refer to them as the good people of America. In fact, I’ll probably replace the good people with something very derogatory indeed.

Oh, and I can’t believe that John Howard is openly supporting Bush in this election.

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Pardon my French

Je ne sais quoi is what I actually meant to write. :) Hey, that could be the name of my blog! Maybe…

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Going Postal?

I forgot Going Postal, which also has a certain je nais se quoi, though that name might connote rather more violent and angry material than is herein contained. Still, I like it.

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Publication dilemma nearing crisis of major proportions

Here are some names for my blog that I’ve been pondering so far (they’re here so I don’t forget them):

  • The Not Quite Daily
  • The Almost Daily
  • The Commoner

The last two have been taken already. So they won’t do. Nigel suggested Tree Huggin’ Hippie Blog, but I’ve no idea why. Mum usefully floated the name Rubbish Dump. Thanks Mum!

This obviously will not do. Back to the drawing board, although I will ponder The Not Quite Daily a little further.

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Slaves to the economy

Australians are among the world’s hardest workers, according to the latest survey conducted by the International Labour Organisation. Apparently twenty percent of the workforce endure a 50 hour working week. David Gregory from the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry says that this is the price Australians have to pay to remain competitive in the world:

Australia is performing better than most countries from an economic point of view at the moment And look, if that’s the price that we have had to pay to maintain that position, if that price is that we’ve had to perhaps pedal a little bit harder than we once were, then so be it.

Is it just me, or does that smack of a "slaves to the economy" mentality. If … performing better than most countries from an economic point of view … implies that Australians are happier and have a better quality of life than those people in other countries (most notably, many European countries, where the workers apparently work fewer hours per week), then I’d be totally comfortable with Mr Gregory’s statement. But I don’t think Australians are happier – not any more. A survey conducted by the ACTU in 2002 found that Australians want to work fewer hours per week. Last year, Leadership Management Australia surveyed 2000 workers and found that people will work fewer hours if it leads to a better quality of life. So it should be. The economy serves the people, not vice-versa. A strong economy is not an end unto itself. A strong economy only matters in so far as it creates a better life for the people constituting that economy.

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New Australian football league announced!

ABC news online have beaten The World Game in announcing the launch of the A-League: the new Australian football (soccer) competition commencing next year. Brisbane will be represented by the Queensland Lions, formerly known as the Brisbane Lions and Hollandia. They have competed in the NSL before. The Australian Soccer Association (ASA) must have deemed the Lions to be more financially viable than the Brisbane Strikers. It’s going to be confusing having two national teams called the Lions in Brisbane: one an AFL team, and one a soccer team.

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Suggestion

How about The Voice Box: I’m not all ears?

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Blog name change

When I started my blog on October 13, 2002 (the original, static web page version, which I still have archived and will add to my blog database whenever I get the time), I should have realised that every Tom, Dick and Harry would call their blogs Core Dump. Mind you, I think the aforementioned Tom, might have beaten me to it by, oh, around two years. Given this state of affairs, and distinct lack of originality on my behalf, I’ve decided to rename this blog. The grand unveiling of the new name will take place, well, as soon as I come up with something original and witty enough to knock your collective pants off. Or should that be socks? Yes, well, if Rhys had a blog, it would surely have to be called Shoes with zippers (with Achtung Baby!: Out of Gympie coming a close second). But alas, there is no blog. Ben has the aptly named New Now Know How blog. Anna has the appropriately named Snippits: my digital brain. So, I have a little dilemma. My very own publication crisis to resolve…

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All Hallow Even

I’ve added a few more photos here and there. Karen had a Halloween themed party on Sunday, and we had a quiet afternoon tea at my place on Saturday to celebrate Mum’s and Karen’s birthday together. Some of the pictures are disturbing, so be warned.