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Understanding Tony Abbott’s Real Solutions: Poll
“To understand the Real Solutions the Budget Brings, You Need to Think Like a Bastard”
Tony Abbott with his bastard thinking cap on
Is the Federal Government’s Budget firing the first shots in a new deadly class war, in which only the already wealthy and privileged will be able to afford quality healthcare and education, and universities will increasingly be the preserve of their children, ensuring that only these will be able to obtain positions with power, thus creating an Elitist ruling class and an extremely large poverty-stricken underclass?
Have your say in the poll below.
Trish Corry, in her blog Polyfeministix poses the question, and arrives at the solution:
What can help understand the budget? The Bastard Thinking Cap Can!
The Bastard thinking cap blocks out all empathy and rational thought and just makes you think like a conservative, pompous, out of touch with reality, elitist Bastard. If we put our Bastard Thinking Cap on, the problems the budget is trying to solve becomes crystal clear. I will now outline the problem and solutions below with my Bastard Thinking Cap firmly in place.
To understand the Real Solutions the Budget Brings, You Need to Think Like a Bastard
The Art of Circular Quay
Circular Quay today
The Circular Quay precinct, on the south side of Sydney Harbour, about 6 kilometres by car from where I live on the Balmain Peninsula, is my favourite part of Sydney. Situated at the northern end of Sydney’s CBD, bounded by The Royal Botanic Gardens, The Art Gallery of NSW, the Museum of Contemporary Art and sparkling Sydney Harbour, it is dotted with bars, shops and cafes, and features the World Heritage listed Opera House and iconic Harbour Bridge, with the historic Rocks nearby to the West and the Domain to the East. It is spectacularly beautiful and filled with places to explore, colour and movement. Quintessential Sydney living; there is nowhere better to be on a sunny day (most days in Sydney). Naturally, it has long been the subject of local painters and its development has been meticulously recorded in this way.
Top: look what we’ve made – Circular Quay today, the Museum of Contemporary Art to left (out of shot), the Art Gallery of NSW and the Botanic Gardens, both also out of shot. We sardonically call the monstrous modernist development in front of the Opera House “The Toaster”. What kickbacks were paid, and to whom, we wonder? Maybe some detective work is in order. I’m pretty certain it was a State Labor Government in power at the time and they’ve recently experienced a corruption scandal. What puzzles me is, how do they feel when they daily look upon the result of their treachery? Because you know all involved now have…Harbour views. Oh the irony!
Paintings 1 & 2: Arthur Streeton 1864 – 1943, Landscape painter of the Heidelberg School art movement, or Australian Impressionism. Images of Sydney Harbour, circa late 19th C.
3 & 4: Margaret Preston 1875 – 1963, Australian Modernism of the 1920s, “Circular Quay” and “The Bridge” 1932.
5. Grace Cossington Smith, 1892 – 1984, 1930s Modernist influences: “The Bridge in Curve” 1930.
“Those who love much do much and are capable of much, and that which is done with love is done well.” – Van Gogh
Circular Quay, circa 1890s – Arthur Streeton
Panorama of Sydney Harbour circa 1890s – Arthur Streeton
The Bridge, 1932 – Margaret Preston
Circular Quay, 1932 – Margaret Preston
The Bridge in Curve 1930 – Grace Cossington Smith
The Domain, a huge expanse of grass and trees leading to the Botanic Gardens and the Art Gallery of NSW, with views of the CBD.
Royal Botanic Gardens at Harbour’s edge with views tdf.
The historic Rocks area, a little south west of Circular Quay.
Art Gallery of NSW, opposite the Royal Botanic Gardens.
Art Gallery of NSW interior.
The Museum of Contemporary Art, sited alongside the western walkway at Circular Quay.
Sydney Harbour sunset
March In May
Can’t wait! Come on Australia – stand up and march for good government!
Carl Sagan quote on America today
Pink Floyd: “Another Brick in the Wall”
I love the ideas of astrophysicist Carl Sagan, of “The Pale Blue Dot” video. This is an incisively expressed observation on US society in the 21st Century.
Notes on Being 