Public debate
Top 12 Politicians of Film and Television
In light of Governor Rick Perry’s recent decisions to drop out of the republican primaries we were saddened to think of the effect on at least one job. Josh Brolin is unlikely to be called upon to play President Rick Perry anytime soon. And with many current Australian politicians hard to tell apart from their core-flute cardboard cut-outs, we got to thinking here at the Uncommonwealth of Australia. Are there better options on the silver screen? We came up with our dozen favourite politicians of film and television. 12. David (Love Actually)Hugh Grant has fairly soft social policies – but his Pointer Sisters’ tribute dance gets our vote. As far as cinematic...
Read MoreThe Indian Elephant in the Room
Have ever wondered where the phrase “The elephant in the room” came from? The first popular record is actually in the classic Mark Twain short story “The stolen white elephant”. In this story an Indian elephant goes missing in New Jersey while en route to England as a gift for Queen Victoria. A massive search fails to find the elephant which is in plain sight all along – hence the elephant in the room becoming a metaphor for that which is unavoidably obvious, and yet is ignored by all. How apt that it should be an Indian Elephant? For some years now the Australia-Indian relationship has been decidedly parlous. When you consider that...
Read MoreCut and Paste
In honour of the federal member for Dobell, I am cutting and pasting this article in its entirety. Now I just have to wait for my $24 000 overseas study tour to kick off. Fairfax Media says Mr Thomson passed off speeches by overseas officials and outdated Wikipedia articles as his own work. It said a compilation of overseas travel reports tabled in parliament last month also concealed Mr Thomson's failure to submit his report within the 30-day deadline. It was eventually handed in four months late. The Labor MP spent at least $23,899 of his overseas travel entitlement between March 26 and May 8 visiting Britain, Ireland, France, Spain and the US. Fairfax...
Read MoreThe Devil Made me do it (and his name is clubs Australia)
News reports have claimed that problem gamblers are being targeted by organised crime to act as drug mules and to allow drugs to be grown or stored in their home. ABC news investigations found, in a study of the parole records of Vietnamese drug offenders in Sydney’s south-west that almost three-quarters of them blame problem gambling for their crimes. Sounds like a clear cut argument in support of Andrew Wilkie and Nick Xenophon’s private member’s bill restricting poker machines doesn’t it? Is there a missing connection here? Could it be that the NSW Department of Public Prosecutions offers reduced sentences if the plea of mitigation states...
Read MoreWhy an Uncommonwealth (or Donald Horne was a giant douche)
Hi, thanks for reading this, the first post on Uncommonwealth. So why have I decided to write Uncommonwealth – well it is because I think Donald Horne was a douche. Not to hack on one of the pre-eminent thinkers and social critics of Australian public life in the 1960s – but he was well out of order. Don’t know what I am blagging on about? Have you heard of the “Lucky Country”? This is Horne’s most famous quote (and title of his 1964 book- newsflash: not exactly a page turner). You may have heard this expression, only about a billion times if you have ever followed politics in Australia. What most people don’t realise is that...
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