Disqus - Latest Comments for RantRambler

Re: Australia, Australia, Australia, we love you, amen

RantRambler — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 00:03:40 -0000

I see, all evidence to the contrary Yobbo believes that the British Empire was a benign tumour.

Re: Australia, Australia, Australia, we love you, amen

RantRambler — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 22:08:47 -0000

First of all apologies for the long ramble but TimT asked so I felt obliged to answer...

If you need the details... During the ceremony the politicians spoke of multiculturalism, whilst the ceremony itself was completely anglocentric in the selection of the songs that were played by the band (including some british military marches). My friends also said that the way the councillors stressed the importance of democracy and voting again and again during the ceremony made them feel like they were begging for votes in order to maintain their positions of privilege. Finally, they said that the patriotic and nationalistic fervour in the speeches of the councillors made them sick.

You may disagree with all those things, you may look at them a different way. But, the way my friends see it, and here I include myself, nationalism and patriotism are always divisive, putting "us" against "them", who are always lesser and more "uncivilised". There's nothing wrong with being proud of where you live and your identity, but the way those feelings and emotions are used by those in power are very dangerous.

This is getting too long but let me briefly share with you two other thoughts:

Australia does not have a democracy, it never has and it never will. The fact that there are some political parties, some independent politicians, and regular elections does not mean that what we have here is a democracy. For a system to be properly and truly democratic, you would need to fulfil certain conditions that no democracy in the world actually fulfils. What you have is a very narrow set of options from wealthy people who distort and silence most real issues so citizens cast uniformed votes that perpetuate this very rewarding system for a selected few.

And by the way, Australia Day celebrates the day when the ships arrived to Australia. Mick Dodson is right in expressing that it is painful day for his people because that's when their world was destroyed and the fight for survival started. If you want to celebrate the pride of being australian I don't think you should do it this day because you're celebrating over a big pool of blood.

I'm sure you'll disagree with a lot of the things I say. But hey, we're all entitled to our opinions, and you asked. If you're interested, in more political ramblings that you will probably find strange you can always visit my own blog:

http://themelbournerambler....

Re: Australia, Australia, Australia, we love you, amen

RantRambler — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 20:04:19 -0000

I couldn't have expressed it better. A couple of friends who work in a theatre, had to work yesterday as ushers for citizenship ceremony, and I asked them afterwards: Did it make you feel proud of being australian?

They both replied: It's actually made me feel embarrassed and ashamed.

Re: Unreliable

RantRambler — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 23:15:27 -0000

I guess I'm weird. I've never had a car. I have never even contemplated getting a driving licence. I've lived in a few different places, always making sure I lived near reliable public transport.

Sometimes, every now and then, I need to get a taxi. But considering that I'm not paying a car loan, car maintenance, petrol, insurance, and rego, I'm doing pretty well.

Someday people will realise the stupidity of driving to work in the inner city.

Re: Why won't the warmenistas concede every time it snows?

RantRambler — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 16:36:40 -0000

Well I'm certainly not here to throw punches, but rather to discuss issues, like in a forum.

To: Philip Travers. Yes Al Gore is an elitist illuminati, there's no doubt in my mind about that. However, you will never hear me talking about about the environment, global warming, and etc quoting Al Gore. In my mind he is just an opportunist. He did really bad things for the environment when he was part of the government, and now see how he's recycled himself. I guess something good is coming out of his actions now, but it seems dishonest to me when looking at his past, and how he still lives today.

You mention that there are honest scientists in the "it's getting cooler camp". Of course there are! Some are in the payroll of big corporations, but I'm sure there are many who are not, and they do genuinely have doubts about global warming. But the same thing can be said about the scientist that say that "global warming is a reality and we have caused it". On both sides there are some that are being opportunistic. I don't have time for them, but we should look at the honest ones, and there's still a lot to worry about.

Ultimately, the question is that if you want 100% foolproof evidence before you act on it, there may be no chance to reverse the damage. And that's why we should take action now.

Re: Why won't the warmenistas concede every time it snows?

RantRambler — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 17:15:35 -0000

Well, it's simple isn't it? The sun's dying, so eventually it will get cold. In the meantime... global warming, climate change, call it whatever you want is a pretty serious threat. Usually when there's a threat you act on it, but hey, the illuminati have decided that it not good business so they've tried to discredit the scientists that warned of the danger.

When I was in high school back in the eighties I was allowed to choose a topic (anything I wanted) for an essay and class presentation. I chose "greenhouse effect and global warming". Back in those days, the dangers were already clear. The debate about it was suppressed in the general media. It resurfaced after the millennium glitch, and still those in power have taken no action, and have delayed the debate as much as possible.

By the way, to NOG and other people with similar beliefs. Don't take into account individual years, as the temperature varies in different years, it is a much better practice to make an average of the last ten years. That way there's less room for random fluctuation. If you do the numbers this way the temperature has increased steadily. Yes, including the last ten years.