Courtesy of VTAY's tag...

1-Do you like the look and the contents of your blog?

I went through a period in late 2005 and early 2006 when I was pretty pleased with the contents. And the readership was at its highest level also (perhaps as a result of the topical posting). Of late, I have disappointed myself (and others?) with somewhat lazy posting (i.e. posting YouTube videos). This might, of course, have something to do with the fact that my internet access is limited nowadays.


2-Does your family know about your blog?

No, they do not.

3-Can you tell your friends about your blog? Do you consider it a private thing?

Only four of my friends are aware of this blog's existence. Interestingly enough, all four are school friends. So, in that sense, I suppose I do consider it a private thing - there are a heck of a lot of people who I could have told, but have chosen not to. I guess I like the idea of only fellow bloggers visiting.

4-Do you just read the blogs of those who comment on your blog? Or do you try to discover new blogs?

With the limited internet access of late, I've become just a little bit lazy in this department as well. Lately, I've been visiting commenters' blogs and find I have a lot of catching up to do (Sarah's VTAY being the best example). Traditionally, however, yes - I do keep up to date with the blogs of my dear readers.

I try to discover new blogs when there is an issue out there that greatly interests me, and I suspect that other bloggers will be addressing the issue on their sites. Additionally, I'll try to track people down who have similar interests (by clicking on the profile links).


5-Did your blog positively affect (sic) your mind? Give an example.

Like Sarah, I don't quite understand this question.


6-What does the number of visitors to your blog mean? Do you use a traffic counter?

I do not use a traffic counter.

I would like to think that I have a decent number of people who visit. I understand that the number of comments does not necessarily indicate the level of readership. But, unfortunately, I suspect that there is very little traffic flowing through at the end of the day.



7-Did you imagine how other bloggers look like?

Does this mean, do I daydream about what other bloggers look like? Or does it mean, when I finally saw a photo of them, did they turn out to be what I'd pictured in my mind...?

Well, I know what my regular commenters look like, and always have since they first began visiting. There are a couple of bloggers of whom I know that I am not familar with the appearance of. Alright, this answer's becoming as confusing as the question now...

8-Do you think blogging has any real benefit?

Well, if used correctly, it can be an outlet. And any activity that allows for views and ideas to be thrown around has got to be good.

9-Do you think that the blogosphere is a stand alone community separated from the real world?

No. It's got everything to do with the real world. In most cases.

10-Do some political blogs scare you? Do you avoid them?

A few blogs scare me I suppose. This is normally due to the beliefs being expressed by the blogger. But there aren't very many of these that I encounter. I avoid the inflammatory right-wing blogs. There's enough inflammatory right-wingness on the news every night. But the inflammatory left-wing blogs don't bother me :)

Generally, I think political blogs are a good thing. Most blogs that I visit will, at the very least, touch on politics from time to time.

11-Do you think that criticising your blog is useful?

My own criticism, yes. But I'll never be entirely happy with it.

Criticism from others? I can't say I've received very much (if any at all, to be honest). Those that visit will usually be supportive of the views expressed. John and George don't visit very regularly.

But I will say that constructive criticism is always useful.

12-Have you ever thought about what would happen to your blog in case you died?

Ghoulish... No, I haven't. There is no real need for me to think about that.

13-Which blogger had the greatest impression on you?

Before I started? I didn't really read any. I knew that they existed, and I knew that a few notable people were using them. But it was a friend of mine who started one that gave me the idea of starting my own.

14-Which blogger do you think is the most similar to you?

I really can't give a simple answer to that one. There are some parallels between me and all of my fellow bloggers. Most of the similarities are political, of course. There are different interests I have that I share with different bloggers. Yeah, there's no one specific blogger that I could say is the most similar to me.

15-Name a song you want to listen to.

A song I want to listen to right now? Oh, how about "Ruby Tuesday" by The Rolling Stones...

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Lisa of Desert Pea recently celebrated one year of bloggage. So, it's over to you Lisa!

The Daily Show

George W's Job Description

Scissor Sisters

Damn good song, this one. And an equally enjoyable video.

Kate Bush - Delius

This music video is so exquisitely dream-like. I just wanna jump in and join her there in that forest... Forgive me, I have a thing for eccentric women.

(Note: the audio is a bit echo-ish for some reason. And the video ends slightly prematurely)

The Climate Crisis: Here & Now

An optimist (which I am not) might say that the appalling levels of indifference and ignorance in relation to the climate crisis are slowly, but surely, reducing. Well, I hope the optimists among us are right. But I can say that I am glad that the degree of focus on this extremely frightening problem has begun to rise to some extent.

Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth was very, very scary - but, it was nonetheless an optimists's view on the crisis. Gore believes we have about a decade until the tipping point is reached. (Some scientists, of course, believe the tipping point came and went long ago.) My favourite quote from the film was "Is it possible that we should prepare for other threats besides terrorists?". And, of course, his point was yes. Believe it or not, terrorism doesn't hold the monopoly on international problems. In my opinion, global warming makes terrorism look pretty meagre on the threat scale. And I for one am a hell of a lot more concerned about climate change than I am about who might be sitting on the same plane as me. Oh, and our dear old sunburnt country got a mention in the film too. Yes, we are one of the two advanced nations who have not signed the Kyoto Protocol. I bet John feels special to be part of such an exclusive group.

www.climatecrisis.net

And Canadian environmentalist, David Suzuki, has been in Australia lately and addressed the National Press Club the other day. It was a bloody good address too. He covered various areas concerning the environment, but spoke mainly about climate change and its connection with problems like the drought and water shortage.

Phillip Adams talks about global warming a lot, just as everyone should be. A recent column on the subject concluded, "Get angry. Get going. Protest. Pray to God or write to your MP, though neither activity will be much use. But do something! Join something! At the very least see Al’s movie".

John Howard pissed me off the other day (nothing new, of course). Why? I saw him on the news talking about the money he's pledged to the farmers currently afflicted by severe drought. And, when asked about the bigger picture, said "As to the broader issue of the relationship between drought and climate change, obviously you can't totally separate the two. But I think it's important that we don't overdo the link." I wanted to punch the TV.

Barbra Streisand, with whom I have been patient, finally updated her blog (the link for which is on the right). And she lists some basic things that each of us can do to help combat the problem.

People need to get it. People need to understand exactly what will happen if we continue to neglect our responsibilities as the inhabitants of the only home we have. We also need to accept that we are the source of the problem, but that we are, at the same time, capable of cleaning up the mess we've made so far. Additionally - and I'm drawing from David Suzuki's speech -, our politicians need to end their obsession with short-term goals that serve only to get them re-elected. Basically, our way of thinking needs a major shake-up. And perhaps now you can understand why I'm a pessimist. But, Al Gore did say that too many people jump from 'denial to despair' in one leap without stopping to realise that the opportunity is there and that there still is a chance for us to solve this problem. In other words, there is no need for despair - yet. But there will be if we skip do.

Cut the 'Cut & Run' Crap

As far as I know, the phrase 'cut-and-run' was thrust forward into the public's dialogue by the pro-Iraq-war Republicans in the US. And, like everything else that starts in America, it eventually trickled on down into Australia. It was - and still is - used by John Howard and Alexander Downer and those other low-lives in our federal government with a great deal of enthusiasm when they bag any person who suggests that perhaps the best thing for us to do is withdraw from that catastrophic mess.

I have always thought that 'cut-and-run' was, like everything else that comes out of George W.'s mouth, extremely simplistic and stupid. It seems that anyone in favour of withdrawal - in order to stop the killing of soldiers and to perhaps calm the widespread and completely understandable anti-American feeling in Iraq - is branded as a 'cut-and-runner'. We hear it all the time from George, from Tony, from John... 'We're not gonna cut-and-run like they would'.

Now, it seems that some of those opposed to our presence in Iraq have begun using the term as a way to describe their policy of withdrawal! And journalists, when describing the two main alternative policies, point to the approach of 'staying the course' and, on the other hand, the approach of 'cutting and running'. You know what? I think they've been watching too much GWB.

Simplicity and vagueness are the latest trends apparently.

Why do we look at a problem as complex and delicate as Iraq through such black-and-white eyes?

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The death toll of American soldiers in Iraq will very soon pass 3000. Yes... Let us reflect... In response to a terrorist attack that kills 3000 Americans, the American President proceeds to kill another 3000 Americans... The Bush Doctrine indeed.

Our John makes some darn good friends, doesn't he?

Sat In Your Lap

Bill Clinton rips into Fox News

This is brilliant. You may have heard about it in the news. Bill Clinton's obviously had enough of Fox News, and he let them know. Republicans have been lately accusing Clinton of not doing enough to kill/capture Osame bin Laden. He is asked about this here, and turns it into an opportunity to tell it how it is. This is great. Note: the audio loses its balance with the image from time to time...