Piss off, Dave

UPDATE 13 August 2009:

He’s back, right now on 89.7 FM (91.7 in Myrtleford & 106.5 elsewhere in the area). Get him off! 

 

 

 

We're lucky to have a broadcaster like Joseph Thomsen in this area but when Joseph isn't there why do we get boring 'Dad & Dave' Lennon?

And get back to work, Joseph Thomsen!

 

 

Joseph Thomsen is an award-winning broadcaster who has a morning show on Local Radio ABC Goulburn Murray from 8.30 am to 11 am that I thoroughly enjoy. It’s on 89.7 FM in Bright, 91.7 in Myrtleford and 106.5 everywhere else in the north east including Albury-Wodonga & Wangaratta.

 The only problem is, Joseph takes too much time off and, as it seems they have no back-up broadcaster at ABC Wodonga, we are regularly switched through to the ultra boring Dave Lennon from ABC Bendigo. In fact we’ve had to endure ’the dull one’ for the last two days.

AFL round 13 ‘Round-up’

Geelong have won 55 of their past 58 games and I can't remember the last time we beat them ~ but yeah, Geelong are the underdogs!

Who’s the underdog?

The best thing about round 13 is that it’s over and that both St Kilda & Geelong maintained their unbeaten records this year setting up ‘the game of the century’ next week.

I was a bit surprised though, to read that Geelong captain Tom Harley has declared the Cats were “in awe” of St Kilda this year. In what seems a clear attempt to claim the underdog status, Harley even referred to St Kilda as “the competition’s benchmark”. How ridiculous is that and what does it say? I think it might mean they’re worried. 

Anyway, I don’t think St Kilda will be lulled into any mind games. As coach Ross Lyon says: 

“Release the computers”

Even Dicky had to do it Malcy, why won't you?

In the early 70s at the height of the Watergate affair, calls for US President Richard Nixon to “Release the tapes” of his White House conversations with aides dominated the media. Eventually he relented and, as we know, it was quite revealing. Nixon was up to his neck in the cover up, was impeached and resigned.

The parallel with Utegate/Emailgate/Grechgate (take your pick of ‘gates’) is very real, if not as significant in treachery: Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull, who has been interviewed by Australian Federal Police, MUST provide them with access to all Liberal Party computers. Government Minister Lindsay Tanner sums it up perfectly:

‘Bover Boy’ Hall does it again

How do you have a 'brain-snap' when you don't have a brain to snap?

In his 250th. game, Sydney Swans’ Barry Hall has not let us down and has been reported for striking. I watched the incident on Austar and he’s definitely gone for at least 4 weeks. It wasn’t a big hit but it was a punch to the head and intentional. The stupid part is, it wasn’t even necessary – Hall didn’t appear to be provoked and was just giving his Adelaide opponent a ‘parting one’ after tackling him. Then again, the nutso Hall needs no prompting to have yet another brain snap. I don’t know why Sydney coach Paul Roos keeps playing this ‘thug without a cause’ and I hope we’ve just seen the last of him. After he retires I’d give him about 6 months before he winds up on assault charges and goes to jail. He’s the ultimate ‘bover boy’.

No show at snow

Great Snow – No Queues: Falls Creek is now offering great skiing, fantastic prices and no queues. This combined with the huge range of other activities happening on and off the snow makes for the perfect time to come on up! ~ (from Falls Creek’s website)

   

I bet they wish someone would “come on up”. This is the first weekend of the school holidays, the resorts have plenty of snow and the prices are at their lowest, as they always are in June, yet for some reason there is hardly anyone at either Falls Creek or Mt Hotham, as the above snow-cam shots clearly demonstrate.

Stuff Sydney, we want Tassie

The blue, green & red would be good colours for them too. But what about a 'nick-name'?

I wholeheartedly agree with the Federal Parliament report  that “barriers facing the AFL’s bid to establish another team in Sydney appear insurmountable,” and that, instead, the AFL should accept Tasmania’s bid to join the national competition.

The Senate’s rural and regional affairs committee has got it right in my opinion, the Sydney market is “too weak” to sustain a new team. It even  cited, as proof, the Sydney Swans’ decision to send its reserves team to play in the Canberra league because no adequate competition was available.

And the committee also investigated whether it was fair for the AFL to ignore Tasmania’s bid for an AFL licence in favour of western Sydney and the Gold Coast. Senators backed Tasmania: 

Jacko dead

From the Herald Sun:

Michael Jackson has died following a suspected cardiac arrest. Paramedics reportedly performed CPR on the 50-year-old singer while transporting him to hospital in Los Angeles, but reports claim they never managed to get a pulse.

Comment: I guess he stopped, because he had enough.

Libs in a “Shit Storm”

"I have never seen Godwin's but I heard it's about this big".

“(Turnbull is) … trying to sheet this home to Eric (Abetz) when he’s done nothing wrong — his cautious advice was wilfully ignored. And that’s why we’re in this shit storm.” ~ senior Liberal MP, according to the Herald Sun

It doesn’t look good for Malcy. According to the HS, several Liberal MPs and senators are angry (and emphatic) that Malcolm Turnbull was warned against attacking PM Kevin Rudd on the strength of Godwin Grech’s faked email, but he “just didn’t listen”.

So on what date will Turnbull resign or be booted out by his own party as leader?

I’m only giving him a few more days. I’ll say 1 July – the Libs seem to think the start of a new financial year is New Year’s Day!

AFL round 13 ‘expert’ tips

"Thanks a lot, Jack".

It’s (a possible) ‘Upset round’

On paper, this looks like one of the easier rounds to pick but maybe not. Have a good look at the games.

I reckon there is only one absolute certainty to win, and that’s Brisbane over Melbourne.

This could be the round of upsets, although you’ll notice I’ve played it fairly safe.

I mean, I just can’t afford to fall any further behind my co-tipster.

Here are the ‘expert’ tips, Ray in red, Baldrick in blue:

What (sort-of) rhymes with Elliott?

Today's Herald Sun front page.

Would that be … IDIOT?

Today’s Herald Sun confirms what I suggested might happen in the post I wrote on 21/6/09 ‘John Elliott: Big Mouth, small brain’:

John Elliott will be questioned by police and could lose his Carlton membership over claims hush money was paid to alleged rape victims.

The former Blues boss will be quizzed as early as Thursday. Mr Elliott, 67, could face charges of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice if found to be involved in paying off alleged sexual assault victims.

Sometimes you just get things right. I think I’ll give myself a Gold Star.

The death of blogging

Biggest news story of the year Twittered away

It’s official, blogging is dead. Or at least it has reached the end of any useful life as far as providing lively forums for discussion of important issues. And I blame Twitter.

What’s worse?

$500,000 for a year of harassment is not bad work if you can get it.

To be drugged & raped or sexually harassed?

I don’t usually like comparing one Court’s decision with another, as every case is different and stands on its own merits. But when I saw these two different stories on the one ABC Online page, I couldn’t help but ask that question we hear (all too often) from the knee-jerkers calling in to talk-back radio and on some of the more reactionary websites: “Where’s the justice?” 

You might have heard about the first one, ‘Huge payout for sexual harassment victim’  involving a former building consultant for a prominent Adelaide housing company, Malgorzata Poniatowska, who was awarded close to $500,000 in damages for sexual harassment. It’s the highest such award ever made in Australia.

Whose tat’s that?

Talk about 'wearing your heart on your sleeve'! Click on photo to enlarge (the zit).

And what is the worst feature of this picture?:

• The tattoo
• The arm it’s on
• The ‘zit’
• The blue singlet (over another singlet?)
• The (partly obscured) beard or,
• That rug on his chest!

And no, it’s not me, it’s ……………..

AFL round 12 ‘Round-Up’

I am doing this under duress. It was a crap round over two weeks and I can’t remember much about it, except I only picked 4 winners. Baldrick got 7 – stuff him! Highlight: Um, OK … Essendon’s big win over Melbourne (happy with that Rox?). Lowlight: The Essendon v Melbourne game. That’ll do.

Is this a ‘death threat’?

OK, it wasn't nice but that's all.

“Thanks for the poison bitch. Ready to kill you slowly.”

The media is all agog with news that Victorian Community Services Minister Lisa Neville received a death threat at her home at the weekend in protest against the introduction of fluoride to Geelong’s water supply. The so-called ’threat’ consisted of the above words written on a bottle of water placed on her front veranda. I’ve seen the bottle on tonight’s TV news but I can’t find a photo of it anywhere yet on the net. Anyway, I think someone needs to learn english grammar. And that someone is : Ms Neville, the media and anyone else claiming the message unequivocally means the author wants to ‘kill her slowly’.