I love this site. It gives a paragraph of English text, spoken in almost a hundred different accents. Only one from Australia though, which is a shame. Speech accent archive

I was standing in line at the local newsagent today, and found myself checkin’ out what the six people in front of me were purchasing. Pens, paper, magazines, cards? No. Lotto. People from all walks of life giving away their hard earned cash each week, for what? Do your local a favour, and this week mark your numbers into the shape of a big floppy penis, drips and all. Cross them little boxes out, and give the local newsagent an extra thrill, because like every single number you’ve ever chosen, a penis aint gonna win you Lotto, right? And if it did, I figure you’re probably in the wrong game anyway. Lotto is a business built around two premises: make people think they’ll win, but don’t actually let them win. So, as I got to the head of the line, and the guy winked and handed me my weekly Go Lucky Super-Pick, I figured that this nation just doesn’t dream anymore. Why else would so much of our populous bet each week on a dream which will never come true? It is sad to think that on this wonderful planet, and on this fantastic island we call home, we haven’t already got everything we’ve ever wanted, and if we don’t, then we have little else but an eternity of inevitably unfulfilled dreams of having cash in our pockets. Perhaps if we took away the gambling, people would begin to dream again. Governments take notice.

This is great, Brazil embraces diplomatic reciprocity, so that Americans entering Brazil must now be photographed and fingerprinted, just as the reverse is now also the case. Indeed, this American Airlines pilot wasn’t too happy about it, and unknowingly responded the same way as the several hundred thousand non-American citizens who try to enter the U.S. each year.

Here’s another flawed article on lowering speed limits in NSW. Peter Martin argues that data from the U.S. shows that 55 MPH (88 KPH) limits reduce the death toll by 15% from 65 MPH. What he fails to understand is that there is a minimum speed under which drivers need not learn any particular evasive or advanced driving skills, leading to more fatalities when they are faced with more difficult driving conditions. Finding the balance between a safe lower limit, and an upper limit which allows people to actually learn driving skills is the key. At the moment Australia has one of the lowest limits in the world, and our death toll keeps rising. Duh. Limits should be restored to a more balanced level, not the 50 KPH and 40 KPH now being used in some suburban areas. Banning SUVs would also lower the death toll, but if you’re going to have deaths, it’s nice being able to be selective. 🙂

Today’s paradox. All the smart people I know, have excessive work hours. Go figure.

Oh just great. The good old Howard government has decided that we should install a missile defence system around our great island, and it just so happens that G.W. Bush + cronies figure we should probably pay some of the R&D costs for it. Which came first, the local threat, or the cross the Pacific threat? For the first time in this nation’s history, we will be errecting effectively a wall around ourselves, when we should be embracing our Asian brothers and sisters. In this day and age you would have thought that us all getting along peacefully, as well as ending the U.S. interventionist policies which created these threats in the first place, would be higher on the agenda than creating an Australian version of the catch-22 that is the U.S. arms industry. Goodbye Asia, goodbye 21st century united nations of peace.

Poor Niue, a small nation in the Pacific Ocean of around 500 people, and the smallest independent state in the world. Hit by a cyclone, with NZ$50M in damage. Apparently one person was killed, but so much of the infrastructure was destroyed that the cost may force them to give up their independence and return to New Zealand rule. Who else but New Zealand would allow such a small island to become independent, support them financially while doing so, and look after them through the bad times? In this day and age when invasion and virtual annexation is the norm, good on you New Zealand!

If this weren’t so funny, it would be depressing. As predicted over 20 years ago by various writers, journalists and activists, 1984 has begun in earnest. Starting today, if you’re from one of 165 countries on a certain U.S. list (really 166, but for good old American reasons the U.S. doesn’t recognise Taiwan as an actual country), when you enter the U.S., you’ll have your photo and finger prints taken. How long before the remaining 27 countries are included, and how long before they start with their own citizens. The revolution has ended, rest in peace the revolution!

A few weeks ago, I heard a well known Sydney rock muso and an apparently credible 2JJJ DJ, so credible in fact that I’ve forgotten their names, rant on and on ad nauseum about some extremely rare funk album by the Skull Snaps that few people have heard of from 1973, and how it was subsequently sampled by a whole load of recent musos who need to rip off other artists instead of write their own music (my words :-). Anyway, they kept on and on about how rare this album was, then played the classic “It’s a new day.” Well, not only is this extremely rare album available from Amazon, but today I found three copies in the $2 bargain bin at HMV Chatswood. I didn’t buy them. Good on ya Triple J, keep up the cred. Yes this record is important, but it is also extremely easy to find. more on skull snaps…

Speaking of Americanisms, need I say more…

C.U.D.D.L.E – Cousins United to Defeat Discriminating Laws through Education.

Reminds me of A Complicated Song by Weird Al Yankovic.