28 November 08 - 16:39Generation B.S.

A popular topic for opinion columns is to pick a generation, whether it be the baby boomers, gen x or gen y, and then sprout off a whole heap of crap about how everyone in said generation has negative characteristic A, or terrible social flaw B, or whatever. (I'm a Gen X, btw - which is allegedly "the bitter generation"). Sure, it's fun to jokingly bitch about other generations after a few drinks at the pub - but obviously some people take this whole issue far too seriously. The latest column I have read is a classic example of this. The headline "Don't ask Gen Ys for compassion" really sums this ridiculous type of opinion piece up. For every example the media cites of a callous, reckless or lazy Gen Y, I can personally think of half a dozen counter examples of compassionate, hardworking, and overall outstanding Gen Ys who I have the privilege of either been friends with, or have worked with in a professional or voluntary capacity. What about the Gen Ys who I have seen work till midnight finishing up a project, or the Gen Ys who have dedicated huge amounts of their time to volunteer work, whether it be helping local kids at risk, or volunteering in overseas orphanages, or cleaning up the local park, or campaigning for better public transport, or supporting people with disabilities, or running English language classes for refugees? Do they lack compassion?

Obviously there are demographic trends within generations, but it would be nice to see the focus specifically on these trends (along with some quantitative data rather than just glib assertions), as well as analysis of possible causes for these trends. For instance, it is often cited that older people (in the 60+) demographic volunteer more than younger people. Maybe this is because more older people are retired, or are working reduced hours, so they have more time to volunteer, rather than younger generations being selfish. Gen Ys are also more likely to stay at home longer than older generations - but there has also been a massive increase in housing costs (both for rental and purchased properties). Apparently Gen Ys are more likely to change jobs - but unemployment has been below 5% for the last several years, and in many industries (such as IT), it's more common to advance your career by taking a better job in a different company, rather than waiting for eventual promotion while working for the same company for decades. I guess that sort of thing just doesn't make for interesting opinion pieces, though.

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27 November 08 - 13:25Where the bloody hell am I?

Life has been so busy, that I either haven't had the time, or, more importantly, been in the right frame of mind for blogging. There are many things I'd like to blog about - and although events have moved on, I'll probably go ahead and blog about them anyway over the next few weeks. I'm now full-time at a different CSIRO site, instead of still being 1 day a week at Docklands. The new job should become very interesting over the next few months, and I had the opportunity to attend some workshops at eResearch Australia 2008.

I was going to try to write a novel for Nanowrimo, but only got as far as the outline before I came down with a really bad virus.

I have been letterboxing for some friends running for local government elections (Alex Makin in Maroondah and Amanda Leeper in Knox) here in Melbourne, and will be standing on a polling booth this Saturday in Knox where the election is by attendance, rather than postal ballot (go Amanda!). I'm also hoping that Paul Kavanagh gets elected to Moreland Council, and that Gurm Sekhon gets reelected to Yarra Council - and I voted for Matthew Billman, the local Greens candidate in Oakleigh Ward in Monash Council, as I think he has the best policies of the candidates running.

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08 September 08 - 22:21Rowville Rail Petition

pt4me2 has an online petition calling for the State Government to fund the Rowville rail line.

Public transport in suburbs such as Wheelers Hill, Mulgrave and Rowville is a pathetic joke. I used to live in Mulgrave until we moved a couple of years ago, and taking public transport into the CBD took a minimum of 90 minutes, which is ridiculous for a middle suburb less than 30km out from the city centre. It is ludicrous for the State Government to continue to fail to significantly improve public transport services while wasting billions of dollars on tolled roads when they claim to care about cutting the state's carbon emissions. People end up being forced to pay nearly $5 a trip to be stuck in traffic in peak hour because they have no reasonable alternative. Why shouldn't most people in Melbourne, who live in the middle and outer suburbs have access to frequent and reliable train services? It would certainly cost less than more toll roads.

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06 September 08 - 20:46Mayo by-election - great result for the Greens, poor result for the Dems

Well, the first results from the Mayo by-election are in, and it looks like the Libs may have held the seat, but the Greens have gotten an 11% swing.
In recent by-elections where one of the major parties hasn't run, their vote has split across several smaller parties (I benefited from this when I ran for the Dems in the Holt by-election in 1999), however even with a prominent independent, Di Bell receiving over 16%, the Greens have still managed to pick up over a third of the ALP's vote. Even with the donkey vote, that's an impressive result.

Unfortunately for the Dems, our vote is lower than it was in the 2007 election. It's a shame for Andrew Castrique and the people who worked hard on his campaign. The party needs to take some drastic actions in order to try and re-invent itself. Whether this can be done successfully remains to be seen.

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06 September 08 - 12:42Politics - WA elections, Mayo by-election & sexism in the US

There's a state election on today in WA. Currently the ALP is in government in every state and territory, as well as federally. Opinion polls show the result will be close, and the Liberals may break the pattern of the last 10 years and finally win an election. If you're interested at all, the coverage of the WA election at The Poll Bludger is sure to be good.

I'm also interested in the Mayo by-election, because the Australian Democrats are running Andrew Castrique as our candidate. I hope he goes well, as a good solid result should show members that running smaller, focused campaigns can be successful, which should encourage members to consider running for local government.

I have also been vaguely following the US elections. I was disappointed that Senator Hillary Clinton didn't get the Democratic Party's nomination, as she had a strong policy platform, and the skills to fix a lot of critical problems such as health care (The US spends the most on health care in the world, yet has over 40 million people without health insurance and worse healthcare outcomes than many developed countries) and the housing crisis in the US. That said, I hope Barack Obama wins, as the Republicans don't deserve another 4 years after the mess they have made of both domestic and international policy. In particular, US public debt has massively increased during the Bush Administration.

One aspect of the election process that has shocked me, though has been the ridiculous level of sexism in both the media's coverage of Senator Clinton's campaign, and now in the coverage of Governor Sarah Palin's campaign for the Vice Presidency. Obviously I disagree with many of Governor Palin's stances and policies, but the media coverage of her candidacy has been appalling (in particular the focus on her family situation).

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24 August 08 - 18:15The Basics

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I went to see The Basics at the Evelyn a couple of weeks ago.
They were awesome. They played really good retro pop/rock with catchy riffs and a great beat - and you've got to love a band that can cover the Clash and New Kids on the Block at the same show without anyone batting an eyelid. I enjoyed their original tracks so much I jumped onto iTunes when I got home and bought one of their albums which I have listened to over and over again (that's one of the dangers of iTunes - it's easy to impulse buy and completely blow your budget if you're not careful). Entry to the gig was only $8, which was an absolute bargain. The last time I went to the movies (at Chadstone Hoyts), it cost me $16.50, and I had nowhere near as much fun. One of the best things about the inner suburbs of Melbourne is that it's possible to see a live band and have a great night out without being completely broke at the end of it. Obviously, I'd prefer it if there was more places out my way that did really good original music, but I'm planning on making more time (and tackling the transport hassles of getting into the inner suburbs from the middle to outer south eastern suburbs) to go seem more live acts over the next few months.

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24 August 08 - 18:03Purity

Although I feel like it has been all work and no play for me over the last several months, I have actually gone to an arts exhibition, and listen to a live band.
The exhibition was Jennie Rosenbaum's first solo exhibition, Purity.
The works on display were Jennie's series of Impasto Nudes. These high quality works have an amazing texture, and need to be viewed in person to be fully appreciated. I find it amazing how these works convey such beauty and elegance in a few strokes.
Jennie also has an excellent blog, where she discusses art, and her own work.

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11 August 08 - 14:09NT Election

For those of you who are interested, there is some good coverage (and it's regularly updated) of the NT election results at The Poll Bludger. The mainstream media in Australia love to draw conclusions about federal politics from state and territory elections and are reading the swing against the ALP in the Territory as a backlash against the Rudd Government. It would be good to see some actual evidence for that theory, otherwise it just comes across as wishful thinking. It'll be amusing to see what the media coverage will actually be like when the ALP eventually loses an election.

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