Exhibit A:
PETER COSTELLO: This is the last question time—
Opposition members interjecting—
PETER COSTELLO: It could well be the last question time before the election...
(source: Hansard, 20.9.07)
Exhibit B:
[Dave] Hughes: "What are you talking about, the election or the grand final?"
USA goalkeeper Hope Solo was dropped from the starting eleven for their FIFA Women's World Cup semi-final against Brazil on Wednesday. Brazil won 4-0. Hope wasn't happy. She obviously thought that if she was playing, Brazil would have scored less goals than USA.
Hope Solo wins this week's Jose Maurinho Award for Sports Egotism:
I've just learned of the passing this morning of one of my real heroes. The voice of Frank Hyde calling the rugby league on Saturday and Sunday afternoons was an integral part of my life for about two decades. His career as a broadcaster stretched back far before that, and even earlier came his playing career with Newtown, North Sydney and Balmain. Everyone loved him, he was such a charming man.
So John Howard will step down as Prime Minister if he is re-elected for a fifth term of office later this year. But did the former suburban solicitor, who is always so finicky about the exact words that he uses, really say that?
This is the relevant quote from the transcript of his interview on the "7.30 Report" last night:
September 16, 1920: It's been called the world's first car bombing, although it was actually a horse-drawn carriage that blew up on Wall Street, New York City, killing 38 people. Anarchist Mario Buda was accused of planting the device, though he slipped the country before the police could question him.
Wikipedia has more.
sydney declaration
1. Mike Atherton's closure of England's innings at the SCG when Graeme Hick was 98 not out.
2. An aspirational emission of greenhouse gases not worth the paper it is written on.
It's over. Martial law is gradually winding down and Mister Iemma is Tearing Down That Wall. GW Bush has found the right exit and left Austria following the conclusion of OPEC.
Friday at 3 in Hyde Park. I won't be there.
UPDATE Friday evening: smh.com.au gets to the bottom of the story.
This really is one of Australia's darkest weeks as an independent nation. Parts of Sydney including the Opera House, Botanic Gardens and Circular Quay have been fenced off for the APEC gabfests. It's been called the biggest security operation in Australia since the 2000 Olympics. But at least with the Olympic Games, it was a celebratory occasion for all to join in. This is just a paranoid exercise in keeping Them (in upper case) away from us (in lower case).
This year is Australia's turn to host the APEC forums. Well and good. But why are the major conferences all being held in the Sydney central business district?
The proliferation of social networking sites is a subject that makes my brain want to explode. Myspace makes me cringe, for two reasons: (i) the encourages some really bad, lazy web layout; and (ii) it's now owned by Rupert Murdoch. Facebook has achieved flavour of the month status, and thanks to peer pressure I've beefed up my presence there.
My Facebook page is here, or if you're already a member you can go straight to my profile here.