Some self-evident truths

There has been so much wailing and gnashing of teeth this week about all manner of societal crises. My take on reality:

Government tinkering with petrol regulation won’t change prices very much
In the long run, petrol prices will go up
Instead of making petrol cheaper, perhaps we should use less petrol
Politicians in the same party are not [...]

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Henny Penny rides again

A bumper week for Dennis. The sky is quite obviously falling for Kevin Rudd.
As always, Dennis’s commentary is extensively and painstakingly thorough in establishing the credibility of his claims by attributing all of the details to reliable sources:
In addition to frustration within the bureaucracy over delays caused by funnelling too many decisions through the PM’s [...]

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Evil Hyacinth

Brutal dictator’s wife spouts propaganda for husband; won’t vacate Kirribilli.
One of the few Howard positions I heartily approved of was his consistent criticism of Mugabe. Hopefully international pressure can ensure that the election is fair and its results are followed.

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Four more years

MoveOn.org has a new ad:

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Sensible analysis

It exists at the GG (Exhibit A; Exhibit B) – it’s just that the political commentators don’t bother reading their colleagues’ work.

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Comparing apples with apples in a different place

This comparison is not very meaningful without data comparing Perth with the eastern capitals before WA’s FuelWatch was introduced. I am happy to be skeptical about the merits of the scheme, but let’s be sensible about how we look at it.
UPDATE: Possum Comitatus has run some analyses that the change in the margin between WA [...]

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Pain at the Pump

I just filled my car with petrol, and I’m not happy. I had to stand there for five minutes while the petrol slowly flowed into the tank. Five minutes! My hand started to get sore from holding the fuel hose. It felt like I might get a cramp if I had to do it any [...]

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John Howard’s Australia

Alive and well on the outskirts of southwestern Sydney.
Camden Council’s decision may well be justified on planning and development grounds. The statements and actions attributed to the Pauline Hanson impersonator and other ‘concerned locals’ are not. And while the council members may be happy to publicly deny that discrimination or fear motivated their decision-making, did [...]

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Laughable

Dennis bloody Shanahan:
Brendan Nelson and Malcolm Turnbull took full advantage of a damaging split in the Labor Government over the issue of the day – petrol prices.
Got irony?
Faced with the most pressure he has experienced in parliament so far, the Prime Minister’s paper-shuffling anxiety index rose to new heights. At one stage, he was shuffling [...]

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What was I thinking?

Why did I want to see a Rudd Government?
No, Mr Bolt. It was not because I wanted Kevin to keep my petrol prices and grocery bills from going up. I realised that most of the factors driving petrol upward and putting pressure on the cost of living are out of the government’s control. And I [...]

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