Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Tuesday moral equivalence

Yesterday:

About 500 wheat growers have taken a day off from their sowing season to protest against the Federal Parliament’s plans to scrap the single desk wheat marketing system. ...

New South Wales grower Graham Blight likened Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe.

“It’s all right for Mr Rudd to have a go at Mr Mugabe. He wants to have a little look at himself in the mirror,” he said.

Hmmmm…..

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5 Comments:

Blogger Father Park said...

Why, welcome back Jacob. A visit or something more part-time, occasionally permanent like?

Seems M Blight (what a moniker) has been visiting Caz's place. A set of glasses and it's the Zimbabwean Rudbot...

17/6/08 1:10 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

How are ya, Bertie! Thanks for posting the odd piece to keep the thing going, as I've noticed on the occasional fly-by. Your tykes were gorgeous as toddies. (Still bonnie laddie and lassie now, of course.)

Hope to be posting something regularly again sometime soon (may or may not be good news), but have to watch that I pace myself (i.e., 'tennis' injury). We've had dramas with my dear old Mum's health, birthday boy in from interstate, etc. etc., so it's been a busy time all 'round. Had a few weeks off in April, but need another holiday, a real one.

Oh and thanks Kath and Caz, too, for dropping by on occasion.

Hope you and yours all are well.

17/6/08 10:01 PM  
Blogger Caz said...

Hmm, let me see: Mr Mugabe has just tossed out all aid workers, even sent a few tonnes of food, intended for distribution to school children, back to whence it came, recent action guaranteeing that a couple of million people will have no food / medical care / will starve / die / be killed.

Hmm, not really seeing the striking resemblance in Kev Rapture, with or without sideburns.

Our wheat growers might have a point to make about the prices they will get, but they need to get a firm grip on their analogies if they want to be taken seriously.

Good to hear your dodgy joints might be on the improve Jacob.

Hope you Mum is picking up, nothing serious.

All good on my home front, The Princess bride was glorious, the groom beamed with happiness, and the grandson gets more gosh-darned adorably handsome by the day. Another one on the way, just between you and me, very early days yet, so not telling anyone yet, 'kay?

New job (contract), busy, but not thrilled, fairly sedate environment, people aren't invigorating, and some project managers incapable of taking corrective actions, determined to stick with that which is demonstrably wrong, so that's a deep irritation and source of angst for me, after a mere three weeks.

Our winter not too bad so far, hey Jacob? Supposed to be "the coldest in ten years", but hasn't happened yet. Maybe July and August will send me heading for ear muffs, or such.

21/6/08 2:51 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thanks for your updates and kind thoughts, Caz.

Funny you should mention my mother, she had a nasty fall late yesterday which landed her in hospital.

My sister in the Latrobe Valley had phoned us yesterday evening, frantic because she'd been trying to phone Mum all evening, but no answer. Would we please go out there and see to her?

Ten minutes later we arrived to find no sign of the old girl, and the place relatively undisturbed except for a fly-screen out of her front window propped against the front of the settee. Rang the hospital in Dandenong, who confirmed she was indeed in the casualty ward, being treated for possible fractures to her right knee and left ribs.

We jump in the car to drive to the hospital five minutes away. My phone rings - *no number* - so I stab at the Talk button ready to blast the fucking telephone canvassers... but no, it's Mum ringing from casualty.

"Guess where I am," she quizzes.

"Hello darling! Now let me think... You're at the hospital??"

That sort of left her a bit speechless... But anyway at the hospital the x-rays revealed (to the best of their judgement) no fractures to the knee or ribs. Just severe bruising and some soft tissue damage. But they wanted to keep her in overnight for observation, and to have the physio check her out in the morning to ensure she's okay to go home.

So anyway, after seeing her settled in the hospital bed and happily zoned out with pain-killers, we got home just before midnight last night. Then went back this morning until she was discharged around noon and we could take her home. She's okay, just very sore and completely exhausted because "you can't sleep in those places".

We got her relaxed and comfortable (no, not by liberally applying neo-conservative policies) and my sister rocked up soon after to do some more fussin' and TLC. Then she tells me she's arranged to see a friend at the Plaza at 3, and would I please 'entertain' her mid-teens daughter and son so they won't be bored?

Of course, I'd love to 'entertain' my mid-teens niece and nephew so they won't be bored, but I had to go to the hospital at Box Hill to visit a colleague from work who's going through his own crisis with a chronic lung disease. For some, particularly, life's a bitch that wants a darned good flogging.

So I guess so far the weekend has been less serene than we'd hoped, but tonight we're remedying that somewhat with some serene juice: amber for him, red for her, or mix and match.

Oh yes... the fly-screen? Mum keeps the doors locked, so after dragging herself to the phone on her bum to call the ambulance, she couldn't get to the door to let them in, so they had to force entry through the window, which luckily was slightly ajar. (Both of the ambos were female - "how far we've come!".) I have a set of keys, but a fat lot of good I am at work an hour away in the city...

Anyway, good to hear your family news. I've continued to do the odd fly-by your place, so I saw your posts at avatar briefs on the wedding etc. And you're going to be a grandmamma again, congratulations! Promise I won't let the cat out of the bag. ;-) Oh yeah, as it happens I'm to be a great-uncle again next month. The eternal caravan of renewal, eh?

Too bad about your new job, I know how frustrating and demoralising a dodgy work culture can be. Where I'm at I'm fortunate to work with a bunch of really smart and incredibly 'professional' people. Anyway, things'll pick up for you with your next gig, I hope.

Anyway, time for a top-up... Cheers!

21/6/08 9:48 PM  
Blogger Caz said...

Whoa!

You need a few long drinks and good night's sleep Jacob, you've earned it.

Glad to hear you Mum didn't break anything.

The potential of falls are the bain of every elderly person's life, for good reason. I don't think most people appreciate that a broken bone isn't the simple thing for the old as it is for the young. Bruising is a much bigger deal too.

She'll need to take it easy for a while, let the body recover.

----

Smart professional people?!!!

Yeah, rub it in why dontcha!

I can but dream. :-(

22/6/08 8:24 PM  

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