I used to consider myself an atheist. Now, when asked, I say I am agnostic. It is not that I have doubts but I don’t want to be bundled in with the atheist crowd.
In answering such a question, it is too difficult to explain the distinction between atheism and anti-religionism and to be honest, the lines are often blurred.
Is it any wonder?
This Easter we have been witness to baffling brawls over halal chocolate Easter eggs and squabbling over whether or not a footy match should be played on Good Friday. I adopt the laissez-faire approach in these matters but I find it troubling that those who advocate sombre reflection on religious holidays are cast as extremists.
Religion is often mocked by atheists. Mockery is fine in some instances but when people are painted as sub-human for holding supernatural beliefs, items of faith in all organised religions, it is clear there is an attempt to wantonly discriminate against people and limit their movements and their associations.
Full column here.
Mr Turnbull said 457s would be replaced by “a new visa that better targets skills shortage” and will be much more tightly targeted….
what a deadset wanker
Just in time for Adani’s ‘local’ workforce? Liars.
So yes, smoke, “what a deadset wanker”.
Adani are employing locals Bella. Set in stone. Also Dismayed said it won’t be going ahead……..
I’m hoping against hope it doesn’t Razor.
Why don’t the Feds or the Qld government have any sense of shame or sense of propriety?
All just lies to suit their own political purpose.
Adani has a shocking track record financially and environmentally so we’ll be left with stranded assets everywhere & huge holes in the ground that nobody wants to rehabilitate, not to mention this (first) ‘loan’ from Oz taxpayers they’re likely to default on anyway.
How are these ‘jobs’ set in stone Razor?
Did call-all-the-shots Adani give that assurance by a handshake with Anna?
After seeing all the fawning Turnbull did in India you’d think Adani will create 100,000 jobs, end world poverty & save kittens.
To be expected from Malcolm though, he has form on servile behaviour with nations who seek to profit from his spineless grovelling.
Regards, Bella
Forgot to mention how important the groundwater is to the many Queensland farmers who fought GinaR in court for their rights & will continue to fight each & every greedy, destructive mining company that think they can ride roughshod over their livelihoods.
http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/opinion/farmers-forced-into-court-to-save-groundwater-and-environment-while-government-works-with-miners/news-story/f7e656cb8bc6ee0df666860f947d1df7
It’s interesting to me how little you appear to care for the sort of planet we will leave to our children.
Why?
pointless when you can’t police the existing arrangements ….pea…thimble
Gina Stoneheart employed thousand on 457’s for her mines…she loves them!!
[NSFHOW]
If only Bleak was still around. He would’ve been able to explain that Abbott’s “taking the pulse of the nation” while pedalling was actually a circle of pretenders examining each others’ prostates.
Plenty of comments slamming Tony Abbott, but at the risk of being a bore I’ll repeat what I’ve said before: the Liberals were astoundingly stupid – more stupid than I thought them capable – by going down the same track as the ALP, ditching a first-term leader.
In fact, it’s not entirely true to say that they followed Labors lead. Four first-term leaders have been dumped by their own side in the last seven years – Kevin Rudd, Ted Baillieu, Terry Mills and Tony Abbott. Three of them are Liberals. In each and every case the governing party has fallen to back-biting and in-fighting. Two of them (Victoria and the NT) were chucked out after one term and the other two (federal) squeaked back in by the barest of margins. It remains to be seen if the current mob survive a second term but I have strong doubts.
Is Tony Abbott being unhelpful to his government? No doubt. Is he justified in saying what he is? Again, no doubt. It was always going to happen and the Liberals deserve to be held in the utmost contempt for failing to understand that.
Your comments a good read BLSW and agree this Leader thing is a giant mess for both sides. The answer is….. buggered if I know except maybe we need better candidates for the PM’s demanding role. The likes of Howard, Hawke, Keating surely must be out there somewhere?
Honestly, Henry, I don’t think any leader could survive the current ill-discipline and fecklessness on either side. I don’t think even Hawke or Howard would have prevailed if held to the same standards as Rudd and Abbott.
Maybe you could say he started it all in 2009?
Well, not really. The ousting of party leaders in opposition has been a fairly routine and frequent event. It’s only in the last few years that the damage and ructions it inevitably causes have been considered acceptable by governing parties.
But obviously it’s still a lot less acceptable in the electorate.
‘Ouch’ said Jeff Kennett! Hawks join the Owen Four Club. Took the Cats a while to warm to the task but the last 1/4 11 straight blitz was extraordinary. Best performance of the weekend was Suns youngster Tom Lynch. He played a very strong, composed game and his kicking was pinpoint.
Yesterday was bin collection day here in Forestville, I noticed Mr Abbott popped out for a little chat but neglected to hop into the rubbish truck as it was going past……..oops! did I say that.
Jeeez , Tracy , you have become rather cruel , you were always a kind and gentle soul , where has all the love gone ? .
Me, kind and gentle? bugger that Bill.
Fifty five tomorrow and time to start growing old disgracefully.
Happy Birthday Tracy!
My best for a great day.
Bella
Likewise from me, Tracy. Hope you had a ballburster.
Happy birthday Tracy. May I suggest either a steak with a nice rec, Penfolds bin 389 perhaps, or a lovely piece of grilled Nth Qld Barra (not farmed crap) with a glass of Tyrells Vat 1 Semillon.
Happy birthday, Trace!
Have a bubbly birthday, Tracy – and whatever else is poured around!
ps. I’ve ordered you a strip-a-gram in the guise of a life-saver. I hope his lip licking and aaaahing doesn’t give it away (or yours)!
Milton, much as I appreciate your good wishes for a Kudela-esque strip-a-gram type character………..no!
One has had a rip snorter of a day, many thanks for the kind wishes I don’t feel a day over 55……….that will be tomorrow.
I offer this in return whilst I sample a wee dram, gifted to me today http://www.newyorker.com/humor/borowitz-report/jared-kushner-calls-kim-jong-un-totally-unqualified-person-who-got-job-only-through-nepotism
55?
Growing old gracefully?
You have at least 15 and probably more very active years in front of you and you will be armed with the believe that “At my age I do not give a shit what you think – I am being me so rack off.”
Have a Great Birthday and may there be many more.
Happy birthday Tracy. Sorry I’m late responding, you’re probably failing the breath test by now.
Regardless,I’ve still got a few years on you and rest assured, it gets better by the year! I hope you haven’t had to move around the suburb with the road works going on, mind you staying home worked for me when we lived in the Forest.
It’s a bit of a mess isn’t it, my shopping habits have only changed slightly though.
I go the back way through Belrose up to the fruit and veggie place at Terrey Hills because Forestway is more of a car park than it usually is, other than that it’s Forestville and Chatswood.
Forestway/Warringah road closed Saturday night from 8pm so they can install the new walkway. It will be a nightmare when they start digging the cutting.
Happy birthday.
You did Tracy and how “norty”, well we all wish him well as a person but hope he hops on the “political rubbish truck” very soon as he was a complete failure as PM and to even contemplate a comeback is lunacy. Only a handful of fools still support him.
He’s very good at unseating sitting PM’s, HB And that’s what he’s up to again. He needs to find another job.
Steady on, HB.
Not you dear Milton you are a whizz!
Queensland MP Warren Entsch has called on Tony Abbott to quit Parliament, Mr Insider, labelling the former prime minister a “wrecker” who is trashing his own legacy and sacrificing the national interest to wage “jihad” against Malcolm Turnbull. Abbott the most despised PM in my lifetime and the recipient of a record 30 consecutive negative Newspolls has now become the “sniping wrecker” of the Federal Liberal Party. He “came in like a wrecking ball”, and continues to wreck.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxq__3z9zGM
With the kind of threats he’s making, Kimmie would seem to be asking the Don to drop a MOAB on N Korea.
The problem is there aren’t enough MOAB’s and dropping one means a response, probably aimed at South Korea. These are very dangerous days.
That’s right , when they sent a MESSAGE to Syria and Afghanistan , no one was shooting back , any message sent to Mr. Kim won’t work this time. And isn’t strange Pence is in South Korea , McMasters is in Afghanistan and Donald is at Mar-A-Lago playing golf , Bannon must be holding the fort in Washington ? …
Interesting comment that the USA could be blocking missile launches in N Korea. Hope they are good at it!! They gonna need to be.
They can always deliver them in a container B
Sure are JTI. With those two anything could happen – as you point out, S Korea could well be the meat in the sandwich.
You’d think with intell assests, both electronic and human, they would know where the nukes are therefore attacking all simultaneously, whether electronically or via munitions could work. The problem is what if you miss one or two? Sth Korea gets it in the neck. I imagine you would also have to take out the whole senior political and military leadership. What do you do then? A very vexing problem with no easy solutions I think. All I know Boa is I ain’t planning on holidaying in South Korea soon.
I’m worried about whether I’m going to get my new S8 Samsung phone or not. Inconsiderate of them all.
Was reading a review on the S8 this morning. Nice phone but heavy on battery span. Carry a portable charger with you.
Go with Apple TV.
“A dangerously overcooked housing market and rising interest rates are poised to plunge thousands of Australian families into mortgage stress in coming years, top economists have warned.” Have to agree with that warning, Mr Insider, and while its great for we homeowners here in Sydney to see prices going up and up a time must come when the same happens to interest rates and the pain is felt badly by so many. As a dabbler in real estate myself I learnt long ago not to over extend oneself and always remember interest rates do eventually go up!
http://tinyurl.com/lkz4kee
http://tinyurl.com/lkz4kee
just got a note from a mate in the Caymans responding to Ross Campbell’s comment about John Clarke being the best satirist writing in English,
he says,
but not just English
Remember “C’est magnifique! mais c’est ne pas le guerre!” Which , as everyone knows, means “It’s magnificent, but it’s not the railway station!”
Clarke was a class act.
The ABC screened a 30 minute tribute last night, mate and it was terrific. Just the right tone. It involved Stevenson and other partners in crime as well as family and Paul Keating who clearly was a fan, too. I am sure you will be able to pick it up on i-View if you have such a beast in HK and You Tube should have it available soon. Keating made the point we will probably not see the like of John Clarke again, referring to his longevity as a comedian and satirist. That is the remarkable thing. He was able to ply his craft for half a century. Many comedians last no more than a few years before burning out. There was a clip from back in the Fred Dagg days where Clarke as Dagg played a sheep farmer. The price of wool was so low, he and a few rouseabouts were putting wool back on the sheep. After rolling around a sheep and trying to strap a sheepskin on to it, Dagg let out a frustrated cry, “These are the wrong size.” Bloody funny.
Wonderful tribute, Jack. I loved the bit at the end when his daughters described how, if their father came up and spoke to you in a crowded room. you were, to him. the most important person in the room. A genuinely nice, genuine man. We will miss him
The most brilliant thing about the ABC tribute was the haste in which it was put togethercat such short notice.Very strange that a bloke so keen about good health, regular checkups, mens shed advocate could die of a heart attack…SAD CAFE
Thoroughly enjoyed the show, actually been watching a bit of Aunty lately, good on them. Paul Keating was surprisingly good, it reminded me he was one of my favourite characters back in the day, good on him too. Brought back a lot of great memories some of the clips they showed, the man had talent with a capital T. Had to laugh at Bryan Dawe’s comment that as long as he didn’t look into John’s eyes he could keep a straight face. I can quite imagine.
Milton, talking about your aunt’s netball career, my Dad went to school and kicked a soccer ball around the playground with Bobby and Jack Charlton, and for those who don’t know, they were in the 1966 World Cup winning England team and I played Under 8’s for Taringa Rovers so I reckon Football Federation Australia should give me a gig before the next world cup and I’ll advise them how to win it.
How’s that? All in one sentence too. Those Marist Brothers taught good English at least.
Stanley Matthews wore those VERY baggy pants! As a kid I was wondering when the wind was gonna take him up into the clouds!!
https://au.pinterest.com/explore/stanley-matthews/