I've decided that to still be a supporter of the egregious Iraq civil war is not dissimilar to being an alcoholic: admitting you have a problem is the first step to recovery. Sure, the pundits and the politicians that supported it have to continue their support, otherwise they'd be drowned under the weight of their lies and mistakes. This doesn't, however, account for the attitudes of some of the ordinary people I know, people that still cling to their faith.
The first Australian soldier died in Iraq recently. It must be terrible for his young family, as it has been for the families of the numerous American soldiers and Iraqi civilians that have died during this monstrous affair. Let's hope that, amidst government obfuscation about the cause of his death and the sending of the wrong body to his family, this country now wakes up.
There should be no other enemy in this day and age but war itself.
The ape kills the ape
Penis and bomb - the lines blur
It never ceases
Sunday, April 30, 2006
Friday, April 28, 2006
The things you learn on the news
In Just a few decades eighty percent of the island chain that is the Maldives will be under water.
This is why I chuckle when I hear other news articles detailing the complaints of "hard working Australians and Americans" paying exorbitant rates at the petrol pump. You think that high petrol prices will be the worst thing to arise out of this world's insane addiction to petroleum?
Try watching your wallet float out the front door of your house - all of a sudden things will fall into perspective.
I've enjoyed driving my boss's car to uni, sure. But when I leave here I'll happily return to my car-less life, content to do my homework during the train ride to school. I'll happily walk to the station each day, listening to tunes and taking in the sights. There are so many benefits to finding alternative ways of getting around - you get exercise, save money and, you know, get a sense of what's going on in the world around you.
This is why I chuckle when I hear other news articles detailing the complaints of "hard working Australians and Americans" paying exorbitant rates at the petrol pump. You think that high petrol prices will be the worst thing to arise out of this world's insane addiction to petroleum?
Try watching your wallet float out the front door of your house - all of a sudden things will fall into perspective.
I've enjoyed driving my boss's car to uni, sure. But when I leave here I'll happily return to my car-less life, content to do my homework during the train ride to school. I'll happily walk to the station each day, listening to tunes and taking in the sights. There are so many benefits to finding alternative ways of getting around - you get exercise, save money and, you know, get a sense of what's going on in the world around you.
Thursday, April 27, 2006
See, this is what scares me..
I noticed a comments thread on a website that I visited. The title: 'Are atheists extremists?' The general argument seemed to be that it is an extreme position not to believe in a god. My perspective is that extremism grows from the behavior modification that you think needs to occur in order to satisfy your beliefs. It seems to me that another defining characteristic of extremism is the need that the range of behaviors that you think need to occur in order to satisfy your beliefs must be enforced upon others. Hence, if you think that the baby Jesus weeps every time a man kisses another man then you're an extremist. If you think that you need to bomb an abortion clinic in order to prevent the baby Jesus from crying then you're an extremist. If you think that adultery should be punished through the lopping off of the offenders head, then, yep, you're an extremist.
However, if you don't subscribe to a set of beliefs I fail to see how you're an extremist. I mean, there are political extremists - hardcore communists, fascists, etc - but I think you can lay responsibility for that extremism at the door of the particular political doctrine, not at an absence of religious belief.
I believe that people should engage in pre-marital sex if they so desire. I believe that people should avoid pre-marital sex is their particular superstition prescribes that it be so. Hell, if you want to sit around with a bunch of other people drinking the poisoned orange juice I say you do it (just make sure that it's all drunk by consenting adults). I'm pretty sure that most of my 'atheist' friends would feel the same way. So, are we extreme?
However, if you don't subscribe to a set of beliefs I fail to see how you're an extremist. I mean, there are political extremists - hardcore communists, fascists, etc - but I think you can lay responsibility for that extremism at the door of the particular political doctrine, not at an absence of religious belief.
I believe that people should engage in pre-marital sex if they so desire. I believe that people should avoid pre-marital sex is their particular superstition prescribes that it be so. Hell, if you want to sit around with a bunch of other people drinking the poisoned orange juice I say you do it (just make sure that it's all drunk by consenting adults). I'm pretty sure that most of my 'atheist' friends would feel the same way. So, are we extreme?
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Assault on the Northern Americas 2007 (back on track)
I've done a little research, whilst jiggling (any excuse to use the word jiggle - it makes me chuckle) my plans a little bit. All things going well this is what is going to happen: During the break between November, which is the end of the school year here, and September, which is the beginning of the school year in Canada, I'm going to work my butt off and save some dollars. The dollars will help me be a little more comfortable during the study year, but given that the university waves the fees (a little something I've found out through my research) and accepts my Australian second year's payment, the burden is certainly lighter. Also, I'm able to claim study assistance from the Aussie government whilst I'm abroad - most excellent news!
My research has also revealed that only one university does the exchange program with my university in the field of arts/humanities. That university is Carleton, "Canada's Capital University", and it's located in Ottawa. A glance at my trusty atlas reveals that Ottawa isn't very far north, so I may not get to see much snow, however it isn't far from the border so a trip to New York would not be out of the question. It's going to take Much planning, Mega dollars, and Massive commitment - which will be referred to from here on in as the Three Ms - but I'm sure I can do it.
Ah, something to look forward to - salting sidewalks... high-fiving bears... towns with funny names… learning to pronounce ‘about’ in Canadaspeak as ‘aboot’... Fun times, fun times.
My research has also revealed that only one university does the exchange program with my university in the field of arts/humanities. That university is Carleton, "Canada's Capital University", and it's located in Ottawa. A glance at my trusty atlas reveals that Ottawa isn't very far north, so I may not get to see much snow, however it isn't far from the border so a trip to New York would not be out of the question. It's going to take Much planning, Mega dollars, and Massive commitment - which will be referred to from here on in as the Three Ms - but I'm sure I can do it.
Ah, something to look forward to - salting sidewalks... high-fiving bears... towns with funny names… learning to pronounce ‘about’ in Canadaspeak as ‘aboot’... Fun times, fun times.
Monday, April 24, 2006
Politics short assignment
Addendum: Unless you have a strange interest in the tensions inherent within Australia's liberal democracy you probably won't enjoy reading this. Damn! Writing it at the last minute after a busy weekend means that I stuffed it up pretty badly as well. Fingers crossed that I pass...
According to Andrew Parkin (p.13), liberal democratic politics entails managing the tension between liberal and democratic values: ‘Structuring many political disputes and arguments…is the much deeper phenomenon of the balance (shifting, sliding, adjusting, recorrecting, but always present) between liberal and democratic instincts, voices and embedded practices’.
Explain what Parkin means by this statement. Give examples to illustrate his claims
Andrew Parkin, in his comment on the tension inherent within Australia’s liberal democracy, is attempting to explain the balancing act that must be performed in order for Australia’s political system to accommodate two political theories that can at times possess conflicting aims. Though not saying that liberalism and democracy are incompatible, Parkin is suggesting that the two political forces often shape the nature in which politics – from policy to debate – is played out in Australia. In order to understand Parkin’s comments it is necessary to understand the theory underpinning liberalism and democracy; it is also necessary to understand the practical application of these theories as they arise in the Australian political landscape.
Historically, liberal theory developed out of the European desire to wrest power away from the old-regime aristocratic ruling elite. The central desire of liberalism, then, is freedom – emancipation from heavy-handed government participation in the private lives of citizens. The success of liberalism’s central aspiration can be assessed via the emergence of these key indicators: it will be a society with inherent rights, laws and privacy; it will incorporate the development of private business interests, private property and economic prosperity derived from private endeavour; and, finally, the protection of minority interests will be observed.
The methods adopted by liberalism’s adherents to achieve their aim must all be seen through the prism of an attempt to limit the government’s roll in the private lives’ of its citizens. The formation of a written constitution, one that, as Parkin puts it, “specified a list of individual rights which governments may not violate no matter how popular such a violation may be,” plays an important part as a liberalising device. A constitution can be used to set limits on government power; it can also be used to establish a division of government institutions with a view to weakening its ability to accumulate and exercise power. A set of laws, and the government’s observance of these laws (even when applicable to the government itself) is another important medium through which liberalism is observed. These liberal beliefs, initially fermented in Europe, have taken root in Australian politics. Armed with this knowledge we can undertake an examination of another political value that dominates the Australian landscape – democracy.
Although a primitive notion of democracy materialized in ancient Greece the theory did not receive wide popularity until about a hundred years ago. Democracy was originally seen as a threat because it was widely believed that the will of the majority could not be trusted. As we shall see, when democracy is introduced into the context of Australian liberalism, it is this perceived threat that causes one of Parkin’s political tensions.
The main principal of democracy is the communal participation of the citizens in the political process of determining the leadership of the nation. This is brought about by the election through a universally franchised adult vote of a government that has the support of the majority. Elections under democracy must be regular, free and fair. The elected government is (theoretically) expected to represent the will of the majority as well as establish public services – health, defence, education, etc. – in order to meet that expectation. It is through such provisions that the government has an opportunity to establish legitimate authority.
It is important at this juncture to make a small digression into the distinction between liberal-democratic theory and liberal-democratic practical politics. Liberal-democratic theory entails the beliefs and values outlined in the earlier discussion of both liberal and democratic values respectively. However, the various principals found within the two ideologies take a different form when put into practice in working politics. Compromises must be struck, and positions moderated. It would be impossible, as we shall see in the case of government welfare, to satisfy the will of the majority in every instance.
And so we reach the stage of addressing Australian liberal democracy in its applied form. The two aforementioned political belief systems are fused together to form Australia’s present liberal democratic reality. A careful reader will already have observed conflicting aspirations within the two sets of values, and it is these conflicts to which Parkin’s original statement directs itself. On one hand we have democracy’s desire for policy prescriptions representing the will of the majority. In direct conflict with that is liberalism’s desire that the rights of the individual should not be impinged upon.
As Parkin asserts, “it would be a mistake to conclude that successful and durable liberal democracies embody a frictionless reconciliation or amalgamation of the democratic and liberal traditions.” Consider another tension – the liberal desire for limited government. A desire for limited government means that government is prevented from interfering too heavily in the private lives and, importantly, the private economy of individuals. However, as a counterpoint to the desire for limited government, democratic principles necessitate the extraction of taxes from private individuals in order to provide services for the public.
But Parkin actually goes further with his comment. What he is saying is not that the two competing principles necessarily cancel each other out. Instead he is saying that competition between the two colours the way that policy is developed, and moulds the way that politicians interact with each other and the general public. By way of example, Parkin sites an instance of liberal-democracy in Australian practice. The Australian welfare debate entails the democratic notion that taxation from “self-reliant individuals” should provide support for those in need; however standard liberal thinking would encourage a suspicion of the government appropriating money from the individual. This is a debate that is never resolved; it simply remains in a state of tension that is manifest in the way that the different political parties put forward policy.
Another practical example of the playing out of this tension is, or will be, environmental policy – at some stage in the future it is foreseeable that government will have to intercede on behalf of the majority into the private affairs of individuals to achieve positive environmental outcomes. This is already occurring, for example when restrictions are placed on private industry curtailing the amount of carbon emissions that a given business can produce. Once again, under the liberal-democratic framework this is a political discussion that will be in a state of continual conversation; ergo it will continually flavour the nature of policy platform and discourse.
Australia’s liberal-democracy is in a constant state of tension between the desires of the collective and the rights of the individual. We have seen through the various examples, both of the ideological principles of liberalism and democracy and the reality of these principles put into political practice, that politicians must balance these ideas when producing policy and campaigning for election. Parkin’s insightful comment shows us that, although conflicting, the concepts of liberalism and democracy maintain a workable balance in Australia’s political system.
According to Andrew Parkin (p.13), liberal democratic politics entails managing the tension between liberal and democratic values: ‘Structuring many political disputes and arguments…is the much deeper phenomenon of the balance (shifting, sliding, adjusting, recorrecting, but always present) between liberal and democratic instincts, voices and embedded practices’.
Explain what Parkin means by this statement. Give examples to illustrate his claims
Andrew Parkin, in his comment on the tension inherent within Australia’s liberal democracy, is attempting to explain the balancing act that must be performed in order for Australia’s political system to accommodate two political theories that can at times possess conflicting aims. Though not saying that liberalism and democracy are incompatible, Parkin is suggesting that the two political forces often shape the nature in which politics – from policy to debate – is played out in Australia. In order to understand Parkin’s comments it is necessary to understand the theory underpinning liberalism and democracy; it is also necessary to understand the practical application of these theories as they arise in the Australian political landscape.
Historically, liberal theory developed out of the European desire to wrest power away from the old-regime aristocratic ruling elite. The central desire of liberalism, then, is freedom – emancipation from heavy-handed government participation in the private lives of citizens. The success of liberalism’s central aspiration can be assessed via the emergence of these key indicators: it will be a society with inherent rights, laws and privacy; it will incorporate the development of private business interests, private property and economic prosperity derived from private endeavour; and, finally, the protection of minority interests will be observed.
The methods adopted by liberalism’s adherents to achieve their aim must all be seen through the prism of an attempt to limit the government’s roll in the private lives’ of its citizens. The formation of a written constitution, one that, as Parkin puts it, “specified a list of individual rights which governments may not violate no matter how popular such a violation may be,” plays an important part as a liberalising device. A constitution can be used to set limits on government power; it can also be used to establish a division of government institutions with a view to weakening its ability to accumulate and exercise power. A set of laws, and the government’s observance of these laws (even when applicable to the government itself) is another important medium through which liberalism is observed. These liberal beliefs, initially fermented in Europe, have taken root in Australian politics. Armed with this knowledge we can undertake an examination of another political value that dominates the Australian landscape – democracy.
Although a primitive notion of democracy materialized in ancient Greece the theory did not receive wide popularity until about a hundred years ago. Democracy was originally seen as a threat because it was widely believed that the will of the majority could not be trusted. As we shall see, when democracy is introduced into the context of Australian liberalism, it is this perceived threat that causes one of Parkin’s political tensions.
The main principal of democracy is the communal participation of the citizens in the political process of determining the leadership of the nation. This is brought about by the election through a universally franchised adult vote of a government that has the support of the majority. Elections under democracy must be regular, free and fair. The elected government is (theoretically) expected to represent the will of the majority as well as establish public services – health, defence, education, etc. – in order to meet that expectation. It is through such provisions that the government has an opportunity to establish legitimate authority.
It is important at this juncture to make a small digression into the distinction between liberal-democratic theory and liberal-democratic practical politics. Liberal-democratic theory entails the beliefs and values outlined in the earlier discussion of both liberal and democratic values respectively. However, the various principals found within the two ideologies take a different form when put into practice in working politics. Compromises must be struck, and positions moderated. It would be impossible, as we shall see in the case of government welfare, to satisfy the will of the majority in every instance.
And so we reach the stage of addressing Australian liberal democracy in its applied form. The two aforementioned political belief systems are fused together to form Australia’s present liberal democratic reality. A careful reader will already have observed conflicting aspirations within the two sets of values, and it is these conflicts to which Parkin’s original statement directs itself. On one hand we have democracy’s desire for policy prescriptions representing the will of the majority. In direct conflict with that is liberalism’s desire that the rights of the individual should not be impinged upon.
As Parkin asserts, “it would be a mistake to conclude that successful and durable liberal democracies embody a frictionless reconciliation or amalgamation of the democratic and liberal traditions.” Consider another tension – the liberal desire for limited government. A desire for limited government means that government is prevented from interfering too heavily in the private lives and, importantly, the private economy of individuals. However, as a counterpoint to the desire for limited government, democratic principles necessitate the extraction of taxes from private individuals in order to provide services for the public.
But Parkin actually goes further with his comment. What he is saying is not that the two competing principles necessarily cancel each other out. Instead he is saying that competition between the two colours the way that policy is developed, and moulds the way that politicians interact with each other and the general public. By way of example, Parkin sites an instance of liberal-democracy in Australian practice. The Australian welfare debate entails the democratic notion that taxation from “self-reliant individuals” should provide support for those in need; however standard liberal thinking would encourage a suspicion of the government appropriating money from the individual. This is a debate that is never resolved; it simply remains in a state of tension that is manifest in the way that the different political parties put forward policy.
Another practical example of the playing out of this tension is, or will be, environmental policy – at some stage in the future it is foreseeable that government will have to intercede on behalf of the majority into the private affairs of individuals to achieve positive environmental outcomes. This is already occurring, for example when restrictions are placed on private industry curtailing the amount of carbon emissions that a given business can produce. Once again, under the liberal-democratic framework this is a political discussion that will be in a state of continual conversation; ergo it will continually flavour the nature of policy platform and discourse.
Australia’s liberal-democracy is in a constant state of tension between the desires of the collective and the rights of the individual. We have seen through the various examples, both of the ideological principles of liberalism and democracy and the reality of these principles put into political practice, that politicians must balance these ideas when producing policy and campaigning for election. Parkin’s insightful comment shows us that, although conflicting, the concepts of liberalism and democracy maintain a workable balance in Australia’s political system.
Some lazy point-form notes
- I'm currently house sitting for my old boss. Having his two cars to look after - with all petrol paid for - is a dream.
- As part of the house sitting I have in my charge two kitties. They are a constant source of entertainment. Perhaps I should own a cat?
- I stuffed up my first vegetarian meal. I made vegetarian lasagna; however, when I looked for a baking tray I found that my boss's tray was too large. What this meant was that I only had too layers of pasta and vegetable, and I ran out of cheesy sauce to place upon the top level of pasta. The meal came out of the oven with a crispy top level rendering it inedible.
- Regardless of my botched cooking attempt I have been eating well. I've just been buying nice vegetarian dinners.
- Some observations about vegetarianism:
- I've lost quite a bit of weight. I was never large, but I've dropped all the chub. I'd guess I've dropped about 5 kilograms. I'm even seeing some abdominal muscles poking through, something I've not seen since my days of competitive swimming.
- I'm feeling extremely healthy. Not being able to eat meat means that you have to eat far more in the way of fruit and vegetables. The whites of my eyes are much whiter; my skin feels much cleaner. These effects are probably heightened by my period of abstinence from alcohol, cigarettes and other indulgences. - I've joined a rather esteemed club; a club occupied by such illustrious company as: Pappa Smurf; all the members of ZZ top; Greek gods Zeus and Poseidon; the philosophers Aristotle and Plato; authors Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Charles Dickens and Ernest Hemmingway; bushranger Ned Kelly and revolutionary Che Guevara; Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses. S Grant and Margaret Thatcher; Obi Wan Kenobi; Merlin; Captain Ahab from Moby Dick; and, finally, old Father Time. I've grown a beard.
- True fact: Don Quixote was depicted as having a beard.
- I've been trying to figure out lately whether my first romantic crush was on Belinda Carlisle, Tiffany, or my grade prep girlfriend Elise Harris.
- Once upon a dark afternoon when being dumped by my soon to be ex-girlfriend, one of the (many) reasons sited was that I was taking the then looming invasion of Iraq too seriously. Ouch!
- The formatting in Blogger sucks the big one.
Saturday, April 22, 2006
Dead in its infancy: Assault on the Northern Americas 2007
A great plan had been afoot. A glorious plan. Unfortunately, very little planning had gone into the plan. A plan with out planning is a non sequitur; moreover, it's likely that such a plan will fail - which has happened in this case.
See, Latrobe University, the university that I'm attending, has a sister university in Canada. A student can complete a year of their studies overseas, which would be a great opportunity for someone getting on in years (in scholastic terms), someone just like me. I would have been able to combine travel and study, getting both things accomplished at the same time.
At the end of the study year I was planning on buying a cheap car that I was then to drive south down into the USA. I was going to spend the end of year break driving around America, maybe visiting New York maybe visiting San Francisco. What I hadn't figured into my plans was Canada's scholastic year starting at a different time to Australia's. So although I'd finish the school year here around November, the school year doesn't start over in Canada until September. This would mean that nearly a year would pass until I could start my second year - time I can't really afford.
Thus, and ever so sadly, 'Assault on the Northern Americas 2007' has been killed in its infancy, a casualty of my poor planning. I guess I could do the whole thing in reverse - travel 'round the USA first, working my way north, ending up in Canada to start the school year in September. But that is a whole new plan and it will require some serious contemplation.
See, Latrobe University, the university that I'm attending, has a sister university in Canada. A student can complete a year of their studies overseas, which would be a great opportunity for someone getting on in years (in scholastic terms), someone just like me. I would have been able to combine travel and study, getting both things accomplished at the same time.
At the end of the study year I was planning on buying a cheap car that I was then to drive south down into the USA. I was going to spend the end of year break driving around America, maybe visiting New York maybe visiting San Francisco. What I hadn't figured into my plans was Canada's scholastic year starting at a different time to Australia's. So although I'd finish the school year here around November, the school year doesn't start over in Canada until September. This would mean that nearly a year would pass until I could start my second year - time I can't really afford.
Thus, and ever so sadly, 'Assault on the Northern Americas 2007' has been killed in its infancy, a casualty of my poor planning. I guess I could do the whole thing in reverse - travel 'round the USA first, working my way north, ending up in Canada to start the school year in September. But that is a whole new plan and it will require some serious contemplation.
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