Samuel's Blog

Twitter Updates for 2012-07-14

• How does @SandyARoberts7 stay sane next to @Rex_Hunt and @SCrawf9 on Saturdays on AFL Live @talkthetolldown? "Oh my hat!" indeed 🙂 #

July 14th, 2012 at 09:00pm

Twitter Updates for 2012-07-12

• Mindless government interference RT @actgovernment: Wood heaters prohibited in Molonglo to keep Canberra's air clear http://t.co/cDsR8Adx #
• Um, unemployment went up today Julia. RT @australian: AUSTRALIA'S economic story remained the envy of the world, Julia Gillard said today #
• Correct! (although "good socialism" is an oxymoron) RT @vexnews: Tony Abbott says carbon tax just bad socialism #auspol http://t.co/Uxhy0j2p #

July 12th, 2012 at 09:00pm

Twitter Updates for 2012-07-11

• It's one of those nights where I check through my messages and realise that I've been really slack about replying. #
• @coffeyn That would make much more sense. An incentive rather than an edict is generally preferable in this type of case. in reply to coffeyn #
• @coffeyn By the way, I'm planning on burning the next pamphlet I receive from Katy Gallagher, and sending her the video… in reply to coffeyn #
• @coffeyn … With any luck she'll try to ban pamphlet burning, and failing that, she'll try to ban me from filming pamphlet burning. in reply to coffeyn #
• It's rare, but always a bit of a thrill to be the first to vote in a poll. Today I cast the first vote in @2CC's poll. http://t.co/pKH8LVj1 #
• @toddstarnes I had wondered the same thing this morning Todd. At first I thought it was an error in the Drudge iPhone app. in reply to toddstarnes #

July 11th, 2012 at 09:00pm

Dealing with serious unprovoked physical attacks

An email to 2GB’s Andrew Moore

Good morning Andrew,

For obvious legal reasons I don’t want to talk specifically about the case of the kid who was king hit and killed in Kings Cross, but in general if people are found guilty of such a gutless and unprovoked offence, then I don’t think they are fit to be in society.

In my view, people who commit such types of crimes without provocation simply can not be rehabilitated and should either be locked away forever, or should be king hit by the relatives of the victim. There are some elements of an eye for an eye which I think are appropriate with people who commit this type of offence.

In some ways I wonder if the British had it right back in the day. Find an uninhabited land mass and send the “worst of the worst” there to fend for themselves.

Have a great day Andrew.

Regards,
Samuel Gordon-Stewart
Canberra

2 comments July 11th, 2012 at 04:17am

Twitter Updates for 2012-07-10

• The four suspects at large in the "Fast & Furious" shooting death of Border Agent Brian Terry: Obama, Holder, Pelosi, Reid. #
• @GordonDeal I loved your reaction to Mike's lamp study story on @WSJThisMorning. It gave me a good laugh…I had much the same reaction. #
• For my dog-living New Jersey friends. July 14 outing RT @marklevinshow: PLEASE JOIN ME FOR WABC’S “BARK-IN-THE-PARK” http://t.co/amFccg7z #
• @myfortdodge $0.14?? That's about how much I earn per month from Google ads on my blog! What was the legal action for? in reply to myfortdodge #
• @ashkeenan How many deers have to be on the loose for a traffic alert in your part of the world? More than Brisbane obviously. in reply to ashkeenan #
• Memo physicists: it's fiction! RT @australian BATMAN would need a parachute to land safely in real life, say physicists http://t.co/fNWNHpHi #
• Surprise! Tim Flannery was wrong! RT @weatherzone_met: Murray-Darling's biggest drink in four months: http://t.co/Pica0upV #weatherzone #
• @larryemdur @kyliegillies You could always endorse the Armenian News on SBS. Better yet, endorse @glennwheeler's endorsements! #
• @leolaporte CNN is among the worst at many things, not just tech news, hence their rapidly declining ratings. TWIT is far superior 🙂 in reply to leolaporte #
• @myfortdodge you can't even buy five cent lollies for $0.14…they were 25c each at my high school ten years ago. in reply to myfortdodge #
• @kyliegillies @larryemdur glad I gave you two a laugh with my Armenian News suggestion 🙂 Have a great day guys. in reply to kyliegillies #
• Kogan "taxes" IE7 users. Microsoft drops Kogan from Bing results. The more you tax something, the less of it you get. http://t.co/RxKrpCIq #
• Oh no. So tasty. So sad. RT @7NewsMelbourne: Chocolate company Darrell Lea has gone into administration after 85 years. More to come. #
• Two great people to watch RT @gretawire: Here is our entire, unedited "On The Record" interview with Sen. Orrin Hatch http://t.co/7cpg9Lib #
• It is ironic that I had to edit @gretawire's tweet about an unedited interview in order to fit my comment in. #
• Banning wood-fire heating is an overreach of government authority in my opinion. The way the ACT govt bans it in specific suburbs is nuts. #
• I should clarify, I don't endorse everything which Sen. Orrin Hatch has done, but on balance I think he is great. #
• Well that's a new one. Spam instructing me to not wear shoes which are too small, and trying to sell me a machine to stretch my shoes. #

July 10th, 2012 at 09:00pm

Twitter Updates for 2012-07-09

• Listening to http://t.co/LBiYH2o8 radio via the TuneIn app on my iPhone so I can delay it by enough to get it in sync with the TV coverage. #
• The crowd laughed at the Wimbledon announcement "unfortunately we are experiencing showers which pop up suddenly and are extremely local". #
• Roger Federer is the 2012 Men's Wimbledon champion, defeating Andy Murray 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4. #
• There's an interesting notice buried in The Australian today about Telstra shutting down the old 2100MHz 3G network on August 31. #
• The Telstra notice… http://t.co/ffrB2q40 #
• If we ever do progress to a post-newspaper world, what will we do about public notices? What will the new central location of them be? #
• @DavidSharaz @markparton With all due respect to Mark, I will do almost anything to avoid hearing Anthony Albanese, especially at this hour. in reply to DavidSharaz #
• @markparton it would surprise me greatly if Anthony knows who I am…but I promise to not avoid your appearances if you ever become an MP 🙂 in reply to markparton #
• @DavidSharaz I appreciate the warning, and can now tune in to @markparton again. in reply to DavidSharaz #
• @mrpford Are you about to unleash a scientologist conspiracy on the @radiolivenz listeners Peter? If they know, do they become targets? in reply to mrpford #
• I saw a cyclist actually dismount and walk their bike across a crossing. I wanted to stand and applaud. #
• @mrpford @radiolivenz good to hear Peter. in reply to mrpford #

July 9th, 2012 at 09:00pm

Twitter Updates for 2012-07-08

• @caseythehost my pleasure. Hope you had fun 🙂 in reply to caseythehost #
• Richmond V Fremantle is a rather enjoyable match. I can't see it, but I'm enjoying Rex & Sandy calling it on AFL Live (@talkthetolldown). #
• Time to move nearly two years worth of audio files off to a portable hard drive. 447GB. No wonder this computer is almost out of disk space. #
• @DarrenLGiles An @actgovernment unmanned drone is tracking your twitter account as we speak. The plastic bags will be destroyed! in reply to DarrenLGiles #
• 448GB of audio. At 128kbps that's about 323 days of nonstop radio recordings! http://t.co/tu7bYQiR #
• @DarrenLGiles be very thankful that Chief Turnip Stanhope never built Dalek "artworks". Those plastic bags would be facing extermination. in reply to DarrenLGiles #
• @coffeyn the only reason it "doesn't show them in a positive light" is that some people are too sensitive about guns. in reply to coffeyn #
• @coffeyn apart from that, it was a private photo. If they had sought to distribute it, I might agree, but private photos of legal things… in reply to coffeyn #
• @coffeyn and also not immoral. The photo just doesn't tick any of the "cause for outrage" boxes for me. Maybe I'm missing something? in reply to coffeyn #
• @DarrenLGiles good idea Darren. Protect the most valuable of the assets. Is this a "divide and conquer" strategy against the ACT Govt? in reply to DarrenLGiles #
• Freo Heave-ho! Full Time: Fremantle 12.6 (78) defeated Richmond 9.12 (66) so that the 2nd worst song in the comp could be sung! #
• The worst song is the West Coast Eagles' song. A long and painful loop of "flying high" and "telling us why", without ever doing the latter. #
• Normally I don't do hashtags, but I can't help myself with this one. #DefineObamaInOneWord Disaster! #
• @coffeyn I maintain that the photo is fine regardless of their previous actions. I mostly accept your point about Facebook though. in reply to coffeyn #
• @coffeyn although people should respect their relationships on Facebook, public figures should be more wary. On that point, I concede. in reply to coffeyn #
• @coffeyn and FYI, I'd agree that the previous indiscretions are relevant if the previous indiscretions had involved weapons. in reply to coffeyn #
• I think I've demonstrated clearly today that 140 characters just isn't enough to contain me. #
• Massive comeback by Essendon in the final quarter. Sydney led by 47 at three quarter time, and hung on (just) to win by 4 points, 86 to 82. #
• @markparton my new HP certainly runs better than my 5-year-old Dell, although all laptops have odd quirks, especially when used for media. in reply to markparton #
• RIP Chris Stanley. My condolences to Chris' family and his colleagues at @foxnewsradio. Another golden voice gone to the radio in the sky. #
• Nine to launch competitor to Seven's Fango. They should call it NineGo! Details at @aus_media's http://t.co/hCDN8Vmu (subscription required) #
• David Axelrod is clearly an idiot. His defence of the poor US private sector job numbers is "it's doing better than the public sector". WTF? #
• Rolf Harris is on the Queen's Birthday honours list. Might be an appropriate time to make him my Musician Of The Week. #
• @coffeyn Agree about 6 White Boomers. I also quite like Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport and Jake The Peg, but I'm using a different song shortly in reply to coffeyn #
• @coffeyn I haven't heard him reciting poetry, but I can imagine that it would be memorable. I grew up listening to Leonard Teale in reply to coffeyn #
• Well, they are almost the same paper anyway. RT @nicchristensen Fairfax mulls "one newsroom" for The SMH and The Age http://t.co/2zb1XsCZ #
• I'm pretty sure that I saw a Canberran of reasonably high profile cut across traffic and mount a median strip to perform an illegal u-turn. #
• The incident happened in Mitchell, but I'm sorry, no names as I don't have proof. #
• @Jez_1985 I'd love to tell you who it was, but I can't prove it, and I don't really feel like receiving a lawsuit from them today. Sorry. in reply to Jez_1985 #
• @Jez_1985 If I see them do it again though, then I'll gladly "name and shame". in reply to Jez_1985 #
• @markparton CCs is always an appropriate food for people in your workplace. Sales should contact the manufacturer and sell them sponsorship. in reply to markparton #
• @DavidLimbaugh WNYM-AM New York (not full show though). KTIE-AM carry the full show. Not sure about Wunderadio, but TuneIn carry them. in reply to DavidLimbaugh #
• @DavidLimbaugh Glad to have helped David 🙂 Keep up the good work. in reply to DavidLimbaugh #
• Carbon Tax? MT @PRIME7CanNews: Power prices for Country Energy customers will soar by ~$427 pa from July. Gas bills also by about $142. #
• Carbon Tax? MT @7NewsSydney: Retail gas prices will also increase by 9% to 15% across NSW… http://t.co/fbpTCOLo” #
• He also correctly says "it's normal" MT @theheraldsun: Mining boom not to blame for multi-speed economy: Glenn Stevens http://t.co/CUQDK39Y #
• And yet, we're getting a mining tax because the government thinks the miners unfairly gain from mining. A tax to fix a non-existent problem. #
• I just had an interesting chat with Brendan Smyth. It's been years since we last spoke, but he remembered me in detail. Always a good sign. #
• Honey on toast. Sometimes the simplest foods are the tastiest 🙂 #
• @morrison954 No surprise at all Jason…I can foresee a document dump to the preferred media outlets weeks before the next election. in reply to morrison954 #
• I urge the same thing. Please keep urging it @barryofarrell RT @theheraldsun: Scrap the carbon tax, O'Farrell urges http://t.co/VUmJWOWo #
• Good news for fans of The Game Plan ( @NRLgameplan), @BulldogRitchie reports it moves to Channel Ten next week. I smell an NRL rights bid. in reply to BulldogRitchie #
• Interesting, but is Fairfax salvageable? “@aus_media: Breaking: Gina Rinehart tipped to be building Fairfax stake – http://t.co/94hXjnc9” #
• No surprise. I barely watch Insiders now that Bolt has his own show. RT @mirandadevine: Bolt Report beats Insiders http://t.co/bZCjZVRD #
• RT @SCrawf9: What other entertainment should the AFL have apart from singers at grand final? #keepsuggestionscoming #lovingfeedback #
• @SCrawf9 I'd like to see an annual goal kicking competition where former premiership players compete for a trophy, and maybe for charity? in reply to SCrawf9 #
• Half time Bulldogs 22 to Dragons 6, which makes me happy, while up in Queensland it's nil all between the Broncos and Cowboys. #
• Cowboys win at home, 12 – 0 over the Broncos, after a scoreless first half. #
• Congratulations @NRL_Bulldogs on your 28-20 victory over the Dragons. Commiserations to my Dragons-supporter friends. #
• Traffic lights flashing amber at the intersection of Monaro Highway, Pialligo Avenue, and Morshead Drive. @ACTPol_Traffic #canberra #
• Congratulations to the @westernbulldogs on the 13.17 (95) to 8.9 (57) victory over Port Adelaide. A good tribute to Charlie Sutton. #
• @SENfooty @talkthetolldown really enjoyed the call of Dogs V Port. Saw Harf in the rooms on TV after the match…he must be about my height. #
• The episode of Are You Being Served (Diamonds Are A Man's Best Friend) on 7two at the moment is the first episode I saw as a child. #
• This Dogs fan is delighted! RT @NRLgameplan & @AdamHawse: Roosters shock. I'm hearing Sam Perrett is joining Canterbury immediately #
• We already have "marriage equality" in Australia. All men have the right to marry women. All women have the right to marry men. Equality! #
• Few things in life make my blood boil more than the arrival of pamphlets touting Katy Gallagher's "achievements" in my post office box. #
• What am I to make of a dream where I was placed in a psych ward and an induced coma for refusing to pay triple the parking fee in a carpark? #
• I will give the NSW RMS (formerly RTA) credit for something. Their system might be overly bureaucratic, but the staff are friendly. #
• Very excited to see @NRLgameplan on its new home of Channel Ten tonight at 8:30. Hopefully this is the start of very big ratings for them. #
• @2GBAndrewMoore Good luck Andrew. I'll be watching…how fortunate that your move to Ten is on a night that I'm not working 🙂 in reply to 2GBAndrewMoore #
• The ABC is celebrating its 80th birthday. An apt birthday present would be privatisation so that it could be truly independent. #
• Only in Dickson could I be eating lunch while a child at the next table stares and chants at me. Hypnotising me to steal my food? #
• Way to go Barry! 🙂 RT “@nswirrigators: "Tell the Feds they can get stuffed". A powerful message to #basinplan rally from @barryofarrell #
• If only @barryofarrell would tell the striking teachers to get stuffed as well. The school changes are for the benefit of the kids, not them #
• Gina Rinehart has attacked Fairfax's support of the Earth Hour nonsense as reducing impartiality. She is right. Now she should fix it. #
• More people have drowned on another illegal boat. Time for Gillard and co. To adopt Howard's Pacific Solution policies before more die. #
• Adopt Pacific Solution @JuliaGillard you need all the support you can get so why not adopt proven method & claim credit for stopping boats? #
• They were too busy delivering to kids out of school. MT @FranksterAV They did get stuffed but pizza hut couldn't deliver today… #
• Late in the day in Dickson http://t.co/XEmgRIJ9 #
• La Roux – Bulletproof. A great piece of music which the great @seanhannity used as bumper music on his radio show today http://t.co/ZtInj1WH #
• @Jez_1985 Federal Labor are desperate to avoid appearing to agree with the opposition on anything, no matter the consequences. in reply to Jez_1985 #
• Hear hear! RT @Jez_1985 A real solution would have been voting for the Coalition's amendments and ACTUALLY ACHIEVING something from today. #
• It seems I'm eternally finding links to The Bill. The singer in La Roux, Elly Jackson, is the daughter of Trudie Goodwin (Sgt. Ackland) #
• Ross Greenwood (@MoneyNewsShow) reports that another boat has been stopped NW of Xmas Island. This is beyond a joke. PACIFIC SOLUTION NOW! #
• @GL3NN0 @MoneyNewsShow A "get in while they still can" approach? The people smugglers are resourceful, I'll give 'em that. in reply to GL3NN0 #
• Sure, it's the private sector! RT @IngrahamAngle @MicheleBachmann: I trust Romney will have a good alternative to ObamaCare if it's repealed #
• Starting to wonder why I'm still awake at 12:43am when I should be up at 5:30am. #
• Looks like I'm going to have to catch up on Laura Ingraham's interview of Michele Bachmann in the morning. The tweeted extracts sound good. #
• @GL3NN0 @MoneyNewsShow I agree that Immigration & DFAT need to do most of the work. First, we need to stem the tide so they have time for it in reply to GL3NN0 #
• @Samuel_SGS @GL3NN0 @MoneyNewsShow at the moment, too many resources are being wasted on the work of smugglers. Real refugees are suffering. in reply to Samuel_SGS #
• @GL3NN0 @MoneyNewsShow Good night Glenn 🙂 in reply to GL3NN0 #
• And it's good night from me. As a shift worker, I feel silly wishing good sleep to people as it's overly presumptuous. I'm overthinking this #
• An ad on @Radio2UE at 6:55 claimed that more trees = less crime. Utter claptrap! Lots of trees, crime in Sydney. Thoughts @morrison954? #
• V/ sad to learn of the bushfire which has swept through Colorado Springs. The place is special to me as a Stargate fan. http://t.co/i0DwWb8d #
• Strike down the individual mandate RT @marklevinshow: Vote now: How will the Supreme Court rule in the Obamacare case? http://t.co/QBFmVAi2 #
• @marklevinshow striking down the individual mandate will effectively kill ObamaCare, although it'd be better if the whole law is killed off. in reply to marklevinshow #
• A good morning read. RT @barryofarrell: Maralyn Parker blows the whistle on teachers union lies & misinformation
  http://t.co/Lhpyn0t8 #
• In case you missed this excellent interview (as I did), Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) interviewing @MicheleBachmann http://t.co/nf4jBTcs #
• @seanhannity I love your radio show dearly, but your callers raise my blood pressure greatly. #lnyhbt #
• Absolutely Dan. There's nothing quite as wonderful is there? RT @DanGinnane God love live radio #
• Sorry, I've been up since early this morning and can't stay up for @NRLgameplan live on Ten. I'll catch up on the Ten website tomorrow 🙂 #
• My thoughts on the Supreme Court Of The United States' (SCOTUS) decision on ObamaCare. At its most basic, the ruling was wrong. Continued… #
• 1. SCOTUS was right that the individual mandate is unconstitutional, but was wrong to declare it to be a tax and therefore constitutional. #
• 1. Continued. This is wrong because SCOTUS does not make laws or decide how to rephrase them so as to be legal. That's the job of Congress. #
• 1. Still continued. Govt officials said individual mandate was not a tax. Therefore it was unconstitutional and that should have been it. #
• 3. Given that SCOTUS is now redefining bits of legislation, @marklevinshow is right. America is now post-constitutional. God help them. #
• 2. Continued. However, this means ObamaCare is a tax increase, which violates one of Obama's promises (and not for the first time). #
• 2. Given that SCOTUS has reclassified mandate as a tax, the ruling on legitimacy of taxes is technically accurate. #
• Terrifying figures RT @Barnaby_Joyce: End the financial year at $233.9 bn gross debt. $42.7 bn of borrowing over past year. $820 mn per week #
• Sorry that those tweets were posted out of order. I was in a 3G data black spot and the phone did its best. Good thing they were numbered! #
• "Coalition (Nauru only)", which currently has 60% of the vote. MT @TodayTonight: Whose refugee policies do you support? http://t.co/tW8i8fnJ #
• @champy Twitter must have known I was planning on writing to you c/o ABC Sydney to see how you are, as it suggested I follow you yesterday. #
• He's been "on the outer" since they moved him off the couch. RT @RobbiejWood BREAKING: Andrew Rochford dumped from Ch 10's Breakfast Program #
• @markparton they're playing well, not treating it as an easy win. I'm listening to @timgossage and Darren Gaspar call it on AFL Live. in reply to markparton #
• Saturday night footy doesn't get any better than this! Peter Donegan, Peter Daicos and Terry Wallace on AFL Live @talkthetolldown. Go Dogs! #
• Utterly disappointing loss @westernbulldogs RT @talkthetolldown: Full time and the Bombers have won by 84 points. 21.14.140 to 8.8.56. #
• I hate to say it, but I fear @thelistmanager is right, this is the worst @westernbulldogs squad in years. One more win though, pretty please #
• RT @AlwaysACowboy: Terry McCrann: carbon tax “direct impact, as a tax, is the broad equivalent of increasing the GST by 20 per cent or so”. #
• Full Terry McRann column online at http://t.co/3RDPe9yK (subscription required). #
• A diplomatic car nearly ran me off the road, then followed me menacingly turn-for-turn for about 15-20km until I flagged down a police car. #
• Tellingly, as soon as I flagged down the cops, the diplomatic car fled in the direction from whence we came. #
• @coffeyn indeed, but at least they didn't stick around to test it. in reply to coffeyn #
• Ahhh winter in Canberra. An hour ago it was 10 degrees; now it's six. 2:40pm and it's time to turn the heater on. We need global warming! #
• In temperatures like Canberra is seeing today, the fridge's job is to prevent food from freezing, and to hide food from the dogs. #
• @trentg85 yep, and I did once go as far as finding someone's address on the electoral roll when other forms of communication failed. in reply to trentg85 #
• I wonder if they're eligible for carbon tax compensation? RT @theheraldsun: Asylum boat carrying 53 people intercepted http://t.co/9ameAtOj #
• According @9NewsOnline Sydney's live captions, "in the wrong hands, rail detonators can be dead leaves". Why not pre-caption packages Nine? #
• @larryemdur what if you were married to @kyliegillies? How long would it take for you to pay off the mortgage then? in reply to larryemdur #
• AFL ladder statistic: all of the teams with airborne mascots are atop the ladder. Magpies, Swans, Eagles, Bombers, Crows and Hawks. #
• AFL ladder tidbit: If you consider Brisbane to be the Lions and the Bears, then 11th and 12th is Tigers and Lions and Bears! #
• Couldn't have said it better myself RT @michael_J9zero: RT @LaborFAIL: @TonyAbbottMHR GO TONY – you are doing an excellent job. #asktony #
• @TripleM_NRL what happened to the stream on the NRL website? I nearly died inside when it went away…then I found your stream 🙂 in reply to TripleM_NRL #
• I won too, but not the one or the million. MT @PRIME7CanNews: A Canberra man is set for life after he won $1.25 million from TattsLotto. #
• @coffeyn True. 1.25 mil would allow me to get rid of existing debts and ease future burdens, but I couldn't live off it for life. in reply to coffeyn #
• I'm tipping interest rates will go down today, to partially compensate for Carbon Tax Fear, and to shift media focus from the tax to banks. #
• Interest rates unchanged. I'm not sure that the economic data supports that decision. They'll be down next month as a matter of urgency. #
• I saw two great men on Air Crash Investigations tonight. The late President Ronald Reagan, and the most honourable Colonel Oliver North. #
• We're a day ahead over here, but I can't wait any longer. To all of my American friends, Happy Independence Day! #
• @VentraIP I knew you'd get complaints about the paywall despite it being out of your control. No complaints from me; I subscribed yonks ago. in reply to VentraIP #
• Why do people complain about paywalls on online news sites, but not about paying for newspapers? Quality journalism costs money to produce. #
• RT @hughriminton Parliament security threatened to seize tapes after @PaulBongiorno asked public their view of pollie payrises. What a joke! #
• @hughriminton @sspencer_63 @hamishnews @paulbongiorno It was ridiculous of Parly Security to even contemplate seizure. Glad they backed down in reply to hughriminton #
• @TheIPA Did you hear that Parliamentary security tried to seize Ten's tapes of voxpop on MP payrise today? Check @hughriminton's tweets… #
• @TheIPA @hughriminton it's a clear attempt to censor freedom of speech, hence why I think you'd be interested. #
• @TheIPA @hughriminton My pleasure 🙂 I'm just glad Ten eventually got to keep the tapes. in reply to TheIPA #
• @daniel_prime7 if you take a map of Melbourne with you and draw smiling suns all over it, that should guarantee good weather. in reply to daniel_prime7 #
• @chrissmithradio Ken Sutcliffe has more than a passing resemblance to you Smithy when he wears his glasses. #
• @Telstra About the changes to Mobile Foxtel, I can't see Fox News Channel listed on the channel list any more. Is it still included? #
• @Telstra Thanks Scott, that's good news. It might be worth clarifying the changes on the website as it's not very clear. in reply to Telstra #
• @Telstra Also the call centre were completely unaware of any changes to Mobile Foxtel…I had to give them the link. But thanks for the info in reply to Telstra #
• What does @prime7 Possum think? RT @7NewsMelbourne: Could birth control redress the city's possum population problem? http://t.co/HehlmSJB #
• I think the world is ending as regular @Radio2UE & @2GB873 overnight caller Cedric said something which made sense AND I agreed with. #
• The coverage on AFL Live @talkthetolldown does sound like naughty little school boys, but that's why it's great! #
• I received some spam today informing me that I am receiving an award "from ICC". So, International Cricket Council or Criminal Court? #
• Masters Home Improvement advertising signs are up at Etihad Stadium. Does this mean one of their stores is open? Or is it just more hype? #
• Serena Williams is the 2012 Women's Wimbledon Champion, defeating Agnieszka Radwanska 6-1, 5-7, 6-2. #
• I can't touch type, (my fingers don't work independently enough) but with a typing speed of ~78 wpm, I don't see how it matters. #

July 8th, 2012 at 09:00pm

Politics courses in schools, and young people voting

An email to 2UE’s John Kerr

Good Morning John,

I can't say that I'm surprised to hear that many near-adult teens who are nearing the completion of years 11 and 12 are not in the least bit interested in Australian politics. I remember when I was in school that politics was a unit of study in year four and then again in year nine or ten.

As I recall, it was one of the more loathed topics for most students and most students weren't particularly interested in the day-to-day goings-ons of parliament at the federal or state level. It would be fair to say that the US Presidential election was something which interested more students than domestic politics, but only during the month or two before the election, and probably only because it is in many ways portrayed by parts if the media as a far-away celebrity event rather than a serious event with many implications and consequences.

I remember in high school that politics formed part of the Social Studies course…I did absolutely nothing in this course other than draw pictures and set up an office at the time out desk, but I took a strong interest in the politics unit and put a lot of effort in to the assignment of producing policies for my own political party and speaking to the class about them. It was supposed to be a five minute speech, but mine went for 45 minutes, much to the surprise and consternation of the teacher who wanted me to stop talking, but didn't cut me off as he seemed to just be glad that I had finally showed an interest in something in his class. Alas, participating eagerly in a two week unit of a semester-long course was not enough to prevent me from failing.

Anyway, as someone who was very interested in news and politics (I brought a radio to school with me so that I could listen to 2CC during recess and lunch), it was very clear to me that most of the rest of the student population was not remotely interested. There was a brief peak in interest when the Iraq war started, but it was brief, and afterwards most students returned to other interests.

Those who were genuinely interested in politics were either interested and informed, or merely indoctrinated by Greens bumper sticker slogans. The latter category, sadly, outnumbered the informed people who understood why they believed what they believed.

In adult life, I have found that more people are interested in politics and at least somewhat informed, but then I also encounter people who could not care less and, come election time, horrify me by being completely unable to name party leaders or which party is currently in government.

For these reasons, I disagree with any move to lower the voting age below 18 as this would result in the majority of the extra votes being based on indoctrination rather than information, and I also support voluntary voting as I think it is wrong that people with no interest or understanding of politics are forced to vote, and have their vote cancel out the vote of someone who actually does care. At least with voluntary voting, you know that the outcome is a result of the votes of people who actually know for whom they wish to vote, and why they wish to do so.

Completely off-topic, please find attached a photo of something rare. My two dogs Nattie and Pebbles voluntarily sharing a bed, albeit for a short period of time.

Have a wonderful morning John, and an equally wonderful week.

Regards,
Samuel Gordon-Stewart
Canberra

July 8th, 2012 at 12:41am