Stop SOPA – help the internet.

Jan 212012
 
 Stop SOPA – help the internet.  Posted by at 12:44 pm Business, Life the Universe and Everything, News Media, Politics, Technology , , , , ,  No Responses »

What is SOPA?

SOPA is what the big media corporations have always wanted; and it is what they have been working towards for more than a decade.  SOPA makes someone else take responsiblity for enforcing copyright owners rights; and forces smaller organisations who do not have the resources to respond to accusations of copyright infringement; into a policing roll where they have no choice but to comply with the directives of the larger media orgainisations.  

It sounds like a hair brained computer geek conspiracy theory doesn’t it.  

But it isn’t …

It’s SOPA and Protect IP - the Stop Online Piracy Act and Protect IP Bills currently before US Parliamentary Congress; and it is due to be passed into legislation and become law very soon. Continue reading »

Greens record gains in Australian 2010 Federal Election

Aug 222010
 
 Greens record gains in Australian 2010 Federal Election  Posted by at 1:30 pm News Media, Politics , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,  No Responses »
Greens Bob Brown Greens record gains in Australian 2010 Federal Election

Vote 1 Greens

Green Wash sees heavy swing away from Labor

The Greens party has recorded political gains across the entire of Australia during the 2010 Federal Election.

In a voter backlash against encumbent Australian Labor Party (ALP) for the dumping of former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd in June 2010, voters turned their votes firstly to The Australian Greens party, then the Liberal National coalition Continue reading »

Hung Parliament in Australian 2010 Federal Election

Aug 222010
 
 Hung Parliament in Australian 2010 Federal Election  Posted by at 12:57 pm News Media, Politics , , , , , , , , , , , , ,  No Responses »
kevin rudd retains seat of griffith in queensland Hung Parliament in Australian 2010 Federal Election

Kevin Rudd retains seat of Griffith in Brisbane

Hung Parliament Turmoil for Australian 2010 Election

The Australian 2010 Federal Election has seen the Australian Labor Party (ALP) haemorrhage support acquired during the 2007 Federal election.

Significant support from Queensland (QLD) and New South Wales (NSW) all but evaporated in response to the dumping of former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd by ALP party power brokers.

The dumping of Kevin Rudd as Prime Minister saw Julia Gillard, Australia’s first female Prime Minister rise to power and immediately call a national federal election.

Ms Gillard said at the time that she wanted to be “elected in her own right” in order to validate the action taken against Kevin Rudd.

However, the ‘back room’ tactics that saw the ousting of Kevin Rudd Continue reading »

Why Should I Vote Green

Aug 202010
 
 Why Should I Vote Green  Posted by at 7:52 pm Gratitude, Health, Life the Universe and Everything, News Media, Politics, Space Cadet Stuff , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,  No Responses »
Greens Bob Brown Why Should I Vote Green

Vote 1 - The Greens

Why Should I Vote Green in 2010?

This is why Peter Hallam is voting Green in the 21st August 2010 Australian Federal Election. You may like to consider this too. If you aren’t in Australia, or for that matter an Australian, do look into the policies you local Greens Party Candidate is promoting, and that of the Local Greens Party in your country. You may be pleasantly surprised. They are a real, stable, viable alternative to traditional conservative political parties.

Taken in its entirety from HERE, but it says it all.

  1. The Greens stand up for what’s right, not just what’s easy. Whether it’s protecting the environment, introducing universal dental care, opposing the war in Iraq or advocating for refugees to be treated humanely, the Greens are driven by values, not polls. Continue reading »

Voting Preferences and Voting Green

Aug 172010
 
 Voting Preferences and Voting Green  Posted by at 8:42 pm Business, News Media, Politics , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,  No Responses »
Greens Bob Brown Voting Preferences and Voting Green

Vote 1 - The Greens

Voting for a Greens Candidate

I read recently on the Australian Greens Party website that the way the Australian Preferences voting system lets you decide in order of priority how to allocate your vote.

One of the things I was interested in was told to me by a Liberal Campaigner outside Woolworth’s Supermarket on the Weekend of the 14th and 15th August when he said that there is no point voting for a minor party because they will not be recognised and that I should vote where my vote get someone actually elected into Parliament (then he handed me a Liberal / National LNP how policy card).

I found this on the Greens party website:

FICTION: A Green vote is a wasted vote.
FACT: Your vote for the Greens is never wasted. A vote for the Greens is a vote for the Greens – for real climate action, for fairness, for sustainability. Continue reading »

Why Kevin Rudd resigned as Prime Minister of Australia

Jun 242010
 
 Why Kevin Rudd resigned as Prime Minister of Australia  Posted by at 4:11 pm News Media, Politics , , , ,  No Responses »
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd holds back tears during his resignation speech 255x300 Why Kevin Rudd resigned as Prime Minister of Australia

Kevin Rudd holds back tears during his resignation speech as Prime Minister.

As much as I am in favour of Julia Gillard as the first female Prime Minister in Australia’s history, and applaud the decision by the Labor Party to elect her as the First Female Prime Minister of Australia, the fall of Kevin Rudd was both underhanded and uncalled for.

The article by Ben Eltham in New Matilda is a pretty concise take on what many people knew to be coming, but which no one actually expected to happen.

Eltham says: A leader [Kevin Rudd] who had once been so popular and powerful finished his reign isolated and bewildered. For months now, support for the Prime Minister has been slipping away: in the polls, among factional power-brokers, and among the MPs and Senators of his party. Continue reading »

Julia Gillard First Female Prime Minister for Australia

Jun 242010
 
 Julia Gillard First Female Prime Minister for Australia  Posted by at 8:36 am News Media, Politics , , , , , ,  2 Responses »
Prime Minister Julia Gillard 300x190 Julia Gillard First Female Prime Minister for Australia

First Australian female Prime Minister - Julia Gillard

Female Prime Minister for Australia

Australia now has its first female Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

Supporters for Prime Minister Rudd acknowledged that Ms Gillard will take over as Prime Minister after a vote by caucus in Canberra this morning [Thursday 24th June].

This morning Ms Gillard’s supporters told Australia’s national broadcaster the ABC there was a push to get Mr Rudd not to contest the vote. Continue reading »

Queens Birthday Public Holiday

Jun 122010
 
 Queens Birthday Public Holiday  Posted by at 10:46 pm Law of Attraction, News Media, Politics , , , ,  No Responses »
Gough Whitlam 262x300 Queens Birthday Public Holiday

21st Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam never got the opportunity to implement many of the policies later Prime Ministers would push Parliament to adopt.

What do we do in Australia if this country should decide to become a Republic? If, not for anything else, the importance of the Public Holiday justifies continued membership of the Commonwealth doesn’t it?

What is wrong with having the Queen of England as our Head of State? The debacle with 1975 Constitutional Crisis and Gough Whitlam wasn’t actually an issue with the Queen. She did was she was required to do by the then Governor General John Kerr and Malcolm Fraser.

If we, as a country, and also as a result of those with a chip on their shoulder (maybe Gough Whitlam included) were to push for a Republic, the country would be poorer for the experience, as well as short of a public holiday.

Keyboard is GO!

Mar 092010
 
 Keyboard is GO!  Posted by at 9:06 pm Computers, Life the Universe and Everything, News Media , , , ,  1 Response »

Well, this is technically my first blog, not my first website but my first blog and I am now getting my head around WordPress.

I spent weeks looking at reviews, reading ‘stuff’ and asking people what were in hindsight fairly silly questions about WordPress because it is all here but it has all resulted in ‘this’ – what you see before you.

For anyone interested in their own blog, I highly recommend WordPress and in particular the theme called Suffusion (this one as of March 2010) written by a guy called Sayontan. He has even set up a support forum and tutorials, and, to put it bluntly, really went above and beyond the call of duty; and to top it off, he released under the Creative Commons Licence (GNU).

There are so many options that it boggles the mind but there some excellent examples of the Suffusion Theme in action, see his bragging rights page which basically lists amazing examples of what can be done with the Suffusion WordPress theme.

You can download it direct from the WordPress Themes page here or from the Ad Themes menu within the Admin panel of an existing WordPress blog.

Have fun.