Atomic Dynamyte

OpenPolitik Blog

2009-02-11T19:54:00.002+11:00

Oh yeah, thought you may be interested that most of my blogging time is devoted to these two blogs:

http://blog.openpolitik.com.au
My blog on all things open source and transparent in politics, economics and business.

http://blog.publicisdigital.com.au
Our team work blog focusing on digital and interactive media, creative and marketing.

Take the ticket, enjoy the ride

2009-01-12T22:26:00.004+11:00

I took these last week at Coffs Harbour Jetty, the full set can be viewed on my Flickr page: http://flickr.com/photos/samgranleese/

Differing perceptions: Dr Livingston meets H.M. Stanley

2008-12-14T11:02:00.011+11:00

It is said that in all the world no two men could have differed so much from one another as Dr David Livingstone and Sir Henry Morton Stanley. Livingstone was a British national hero: revered scientist, missionary, explorer and anti-slavery campaigner. Stanley a self-promoting soldier-turned-journalist for the New York Herald. The Herald had granted Stanley the assignment of finding Livingstone, who was known to be in Africa but not seen for over five years. Stanley had lobbied for the job for several years presuming it would bring him fame and fortune.

Upon their famous meeting, some eight months after H.M. Stanley began searching for him, Dr Livingstone wrote:

..When my spirits were at their lowest ebb the good Samaritan was close at hand, for one morning Susi came running at the top of his speed and gasped out, 'An Englishman! I see him!' and off he darted to meet him. The American flag at the head of the caravan told of the nationality of the stranger. Bales of goods, baths of tin, huge kettles, cooking-pots, tents, etc., made me think, 'This must be a luxurious traveller, and not one at his wits' end like me.'

Stanley's famous description of the meeting is much more colourful:

Selim said to me, 'I see the Doctor, sir. Oh, what an old man! He has got a white beard!' And I - what would I not have given for a bit of friendly wilderness, where, unseen, I might vent my joy in some mad freak, such idiotically biting my hand, turning a somersault, or slashing at trees, in order to allay those exciting feelings that were well-nigh uncontrollable. My heart beats fast, but I must not let my face betray my emotions, lest it shall detract from the dignity of a white man appearing under such extraordinary circumstances.

So I did that which I thought was most dignified. I pushed back the crowds, and passing from the rear, walked down a living avenue of people, until I came in front of the semicircle of Arabs, before which stood 'the white man with the grey beard'. As I advanced slowly towards him I noticed he was pale, looked wearied, had grey whiskers and mustache, wore a bluish cap with a faded gold band around it, had a red-sleeved waistcoat, and a pair of grey tweed trousers. I would have run to him, only I was a coward in the presence of such a mob - would have embraced him, but that I did not known how he would receive me. So I did what moral cowardice and false pride suggested was the best thing - walked deliberately up to him, took off my hat, and said. 'Dr Livingstone, I presume?' 'Yes,' he said, with a kind smile, lifting his cap slightly.

I replaced my hat on my head, and he replaced his cap, and we both grasped hands, and then I said aloud: 'I thank God, Doctor, I have been permitted to see you.'

He answered, 'I feel thankful that I am here to welcome you.'

Image via Smithsonion. Quotes sourced from The White Nile by Alan Moorehead

The Innocents Abroad: in Damascus

2008-12-12T09:04:00.007+11:00

From Mark Twain's The Innocents Abroad:

But of all the ridiculous sights I ever have seen, our party of eight is the most so-- they do cut such an outlandish figure. They travel single file; they all wear the endless white rag of Constantinople wrapped round and round their hats and dangling down their backs; they all wear thick green spectacles, with side-glasses to them; they all hold white umbrellas, lined with green, over their heads; without exception their stirrups are too short--they are the very worst gang of horsemen on earth, their animals to a horse trot fearfully hard--and when they get strung out one after the other; glaring straight ahead and breathless; bouncing high and out of turn, all along the line; knees well up and stiff, elbows flapping like a rooster's that is going to crow, and the long file of umbrellas popping convulsively up and down--when one sees this outrageous picture exposed to the light of day, he is amazed that the gods don't get out their thunderbolts and destroy them off the face of the earth! I do--I wonder at it. I wouldn't let any such caravan go through a country of mine.

And when the sun drops below the horizon and the boys close their umbrellas and put them under their arms, it is only a variation of the picture, not a modification of its absurdity.

But may be you can not see the wild extravagance of my panorama. You could if you were here. Here, you feel all the time just as if you were living about the year 1200 before Christ--or back to the patriarchs--or forward to the New Era. The scenery of the Bible is about you--the customs of the patriarchs are around you--the same people, in the same flowing robes, and in sandals, cross your path--the same long trains of stately camels go and come--the same impressive religious solemnity and silence rest upon the desert and the mountains that were upon them in the remote ages of antiquity, and behold, intruding upon a scene like this, comes this fantastic mob of green-spectacled Yanks, with their flapping elbows and bobbing umbrellas! It is Daniel in the lion's den with a green cotton umbrella under his arm, all over again.

Postcard via Flickr user trialsanderrors

All I want for Christmas, is you.. and a carton of cigarettes

2008-12-08T09:44:00.005+11:00

I want to have time off work.
I want to eat a hot Christmas lunch in forty degree heat.
I want to pass out after eating, like a python, devoting all energy digestion.
I want to read all those books I've purchased this year, inspired by the blurb on the back, the history and impact of its release, the state-of-mind I was in when I found it dusty on the shelf.
I want to spend days on the beach so that the salt water can permeate my skin and make me feel safe and preserved.
I'm going to write naive New Year resolutions, make bold claims like 'I will climb Mount Kilimanjaro', and keep the dream of conquering the unconquerable alive.

One year ago in Cairo

2008-10-02T23:22:00.006+10:00

I took this photo exactly a year ago from my rooftop in Cairo, as evening prayers were beginning during the month of Ramadan. Looking at it tonight made me realise how important it is to have time away, and that it has been 366 days since I had been in a foreign land experiencing something completely new to me.

I wonder to what land I will be drawn to next? Argentina beckons. Taiwan was a thought for a few months this year. Maybe I'll just stow away on a container ship and get off when bilgepump breaks.

I think I would like to do this. Really (just not in a container, but as part of the crew). I would like to float all the way from Botany Bay back to Blighty. Dodge pirates in the Straits of Malacca and make it to Hong Kong for high tea, before continuing to Bombay to stock up on spices, and so on and so forth through the Suez and eventually past the white cliffs of Dover.

My bro is famous on the interwebs

2008-10-02T00:35:00.003+10:00

This is quite late in coming, being over a month old now. The final score was locked even 5.6.36 each - yet the Blues ended up kicking away the tired Xaviarians in extra time. Well done captain-coach brother!

http://www.uniblues.com/home/contacts/1-coaches/19-tom-granleese.html

Pic via Woowoowoo

Kevv-E (Kevin Rudd meets Wall-E)

2008-09-29T14:59:00.003+10:00

This one has just started doing the rounds today. Kevin Rudd meets Wall-E. I hope there is more to come.

Bookstores

2008-09-23T09:55:00.002+10:00

Berkhout and I were discussing mature things to do later in life on the weekend in Melbourne--the popular topic being our future bookstore that would mix living arrangements with eclectic food, books and an open fireplace.

I remembered Monocle Magazine is quite fond of discovering interesting bookstores around the world, so I have embedded a couple of their finds in this post: firstly Bildschöne Bücher in Berlin (above) and the classic old men's bookstore Esquire in Beirut (below).

Betric Bush Dance 2008

2008-06-13T08:41:00.000+10:00

Of all the famous droving that is known across the land

There's little told of this small tale which, present, comes to hand.

The sons and daughters, young and old, from all four corners come

To join the fray of Queens weekend, they call, 'The Wilna Run'.

Deep in the night, they drove from south Melbourne city

Anne, the eldest, brought Phil her husband to be

Accompanied by her brother, his Hayley, and little Duckie done

With one purpose in mind: To join The Wilna Run.

Yes, this weekend we went out to the Betric Bush Dance, held about 20 minutes west of Temora in the South-West NSW countryside. I brought two new inductees to the dance, Rob and Renee from Sydney, and by all accounts they survived.

The dance was a raging success.. Bush Poetry was abundant, food spectatular and the night sky so clear you felt you could see every single star in the entire Milky Way.

Also.. I have my heart set on Little Duckie who came up for the dance with my sister. We first met there last year, and now the initial strong connection would appear confirmed. Gulp.

CTS

2008-06-06T14:22:00.002+10:00

On Wednesday night, I had my second bout of paresthesia in my right hand and wrist which looks like the early onset of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. It f**king hurt.

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) or median neuropathy at the wrist is a medical condition in which the median nerve is compressed at the wrist, leading to pain, paresthesias, and muscle weakness in the forearm and hand. A form of compressive neuropathy, CTS is more common in women than it is in men and has a peak incidence around age 42, though it can occur at any age. The lifetime risk for CTS is around 10% of the adult population.

Most cases of CTS are idiopathic (without known cause). Repetitive activities are often blamed for the development of CTS along with several other possible causes. However, the correlation is often unclear.

It is a multi-faceted problem and can therefore be challenging to treat. Still, there are a multitude of possible treatments: treating any possible underlying disease or condition, immobilizing braces, physiotherapy, chiropractic, massage therapy, medication, prioritizing hand activities, ergonomics. Ultimately, carpal tunnel release surgery may be required in which outcomes are generally good.

The condition was first noted in medical literature in the early 20th century.

(Intelligence from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carpal_tunnel_syndrome)

New South Welshman in Melbourne

2008-05-19T13:57:00.005+10:00

I spent the last 4.5 days in Melbourne and loved it. Got to catch up with friends, family and see some great exhibitions and museums; food was delicious as usual.

Game On - an exhibition on the history of video games at ACMI (Australian Centre for the Moving Image) - at Federation Square was really fascinating, and a whole lot of fun. I spent an hour alone playing the arcade game adaption of the movie Tron amongst other hilarities.

Little Duckie trespassing on the old Carlton & United Breweries site.

Giant Sky Wheel -->

The rest of the photos are here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/samgranleese/sets/72157605134253665/

In The Shadow Of The Moon

2008-05-07T22:57:00.002+10:00

In one word: amazing. You don't have to be a space geek to enjoy the best documentary I have seen since Bowling For Columbine.

In The Shadow Of The Moon is a documentary about the Apollo space program in the 1960s and early seventies as told by the astronauts who participated in the missions. Artistic, nostalgic and profound.

It is on at the Chauvel in Paddington for a limited time. Go see it.

2008-04-29T22:21:00.005+10:00

You made a tremendous entrance; took me by surprise.

Oscar said she would be beautiful and foolish; beautiful, that I might love her; and foolish, that she might love me.

With golden laugh, soft brown eyes: a gift to the world.

Image by Küyen

Mistaken 2020 Vision

2008-04-28T23:31:00.010+10:00

Underwhelmingly, but not surprisingly, there were no truly visionary outcomes from Krudd's 2020 gabfest last weekend. The main outcomes being: further tax reform, a relook at Federalism and the Republic. Two long overdue fixes for problems that have been around for decades and a pointless ideological return to 1999s bid to symbolically sever ties with Britain. And whilst it is arguable there has not been the right time to tackle state-federal relations or tax reform, these are not the brightest ideas that one might hope would come from our nation's brightest and most influential.

Some key topics would have made the weekend worthwhile:

Digital Data and Privacy
* In 2020, there will be huge privacy concerns (there should already be concerns now) on data that is shared and who has rights to it.
* One of the richest commodities of the 21st century is going to be personal data. There are huge problems with this (privacy, civil liberty) and huge opportunities (health, commerce, education).
* A debate and discussion should have been held on what the future holds, and how the nation needs to invest to both stimulate associated industries and protect the rights of civilians.
* It is worth noting that no members of the Australian Information Industry Association, the Internet Industry Association or the Australian Computer Society were been invited. Had they been, a more down-to-earth and non-lecturing discussion on information technology could have been held about the constraints on small enterprises in raising venture capital, the brain drain to North American and Asia and the watering down (or loss) of Australian content and culture to the vanilla internet (no thanks to IPTV or digital television).

The Social Fabric
* Australian society is quickly moving away from its base of the nuclear family. Two parents, three kids and two cats in the yard.
* Young kids growing up still need a close-knit community around to ground them, demonstrate adulthood and get/keep them on the right track as they grow up.
* Krudds recently announced child-care initiative does not achieve any of this, as most parents who put their kids through private kiddie care will tell you. Watching Toy Story on DVD is not parenting.
* There needs to be a long term strategy on how to change/inspire the behaviour of communities to begin acting like communities again: showing initiative in ways to modernise and share family responsibilities and not treat kids like a goldfish that needs feeding three times a day.

Infrastructure
* Big efforts were seemingly made to address critical capacity constraints of our current ports, rail networks, roadways and communications (broadband, anyone?) but what about infrastructure in the year 2020?
* Do you think that there might be different requirements then? There will be a huge increase in air-traffic. Where is the discussion about airports and open skies agreements?
* With pressures from Kyoto, measures will be in place to stop people driving around capital cities, but is the public transport system ready for a stampede of new passengers? These aren't things that can be fixed in reaction, which is why we have 12 years to create a working solution.

Skills Shortage
* Oh yeah, about that..
* It is quite likely that the Australian economy is going to duck the recession we don't necessarily need to have and continue to grow, meaning a steady growth in skilled labour will be required to feed the engine, as well as quell wage inflation
* Did I mention new industries or growth areas in 2020 that might need a higher percentage of skilled workers..? We're talking agriculture for one. Information technology for two. Health care for an aging population would be third. Resources sector perhaps? Education for all of the above?
* Is there a vision to immigration policy in terms of dealing with skills in the year 2020? It would not appear so.

Rudd has missed a golden opportunity here. Instead of using consensus to tackle politically challenging reforms, he has created a whole heap of non-visionary obstacles which he needs to overcome, in addition to his election promises. All the while as the twelve month post-election honeymoon clock keeps ticking.

As a lasting thought, consider Turnbull's response to Rudd's 2020 outcome for a Republic. The shadow treasurer and Libs leader in waiting, led the 1999 Republic campaign, and is considerate enough to openly state that it is not the right time to revisit the referendum (the logical time being when there is next a change on the throne). In two weeks time we see the budget, Turbull's response, and the beginning of the Liberal clawback. Kevin will be too busy dodging darts to bother with politically sensitive topics.

Woe, and such visions could have so easily been achieved.

This Magnificent Strangler Fig

2008-04-23T22:06:00.002+10:00

Don't Kill Me With Kindness! Please stay on the track

Trees like this magnificent Strangler Fig need your help. Soil compaction from foot trafic kills seedlings, stops seedlings from germinating, and stresses existing trees.

Stressful trees can become more susceptible to pest and disease attack. Fungal pathogens present in the reserve, like Phellinus Noxious (brown Root Rot), can eventually kill off many giant trees like this one.

Please stay on the track throughout the reserve.

Reasons To Love Technology #21: Lichtfaktor

2008-04-21T11:33:00.004+10:00

Cologne (Köln) based Lichtfaktor - one of the few modern artistic collectives worth looking at in the whole wide world - have put a selection of their "light-writing" videos up on Flickr. Yes, Flickr has been running video now for several weeks and it is beautiful. There are no stodgy watermarks, YouTube style, and it is wide screen. Plus, the content of videos posted in Flickr are generally well produced, shot and interesting.

More about Licktfaktor: http://www.wired.com/culture/art/news/2007/11/lichtfaktor
More video on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/groups/video/

An Ode to Account Service

2008-04-17T11:54:00.005+10:00

Oh, dear Account Manager.

Thou has a redundant existence.

Not creative, nor production.

You are simply another email. One more hour in my calendar to be recouped on the morrow.

Oh, how I loathe thee and thy contemptible pointlessness.

Gerecht Über Es (Just Over It)

2008-03-09T16:15:00.002+11:00

I've had a gut-full. I'm over it.

Over what you say? I'm over the improper use of the German word über in everyday sentences.

The word über directly translates into 'over' and sounds similar to the German word ober which translates to 'higher' or 'superior'. It has also recently become commonplace as a synonym for 'super' in English. However it still needs to be used as a prefix or adverb. Examples include: übercool or überbar; the latter being a bar in Sydney that is above the Lowenbraü kellar.

A couple days ago a salesperson called me and used the word three times in a thirty second sales spiel. Each time he used it as a verb, as in: "This website is not as über as that website". I can't tell you how fricking annoying this is becoming, as this stooge is one of many illiterate fools bandying this bland kraut-word around like a literal fire-sword.

I don't speak any languages other than English. The same goes for most white Australians these days. Sadly, the best we manage is to copy words we think sound cool or have some interesting pop culture reference and make them our own. When we do this we should at least have the decency to get it right.

Five Fully Clothed Bullsh-t Words

2008-03-05T14:22:00.004+11:00

Yo, do marketing terms and lifeless words make you gag?

Check this absolute pearler from serial weasel word offenders Naked Communications in a recent piece for ad rag B&T.

The Five Offensive Words:
1. "Propagation Planning"
2. "Seeding"
3. "Brand Advocates"
4. "Value Exchange"
5. "Social Currency"

The job title of this author, of the aforementioned piece, is a 'Propagation Planner'. I wonder if she will be forced to explore other areas of propogation if she fails transmit these vague non sequiturs through the marketing world..

- This article originally appeared in B&T 5 March 2008.

Football Diplomacy: A-League Style

2008-02-25T12:23:00.004+11:00

Frank Lowy's Football Diplomacy has a long way to go on the domestic front. After last nights A-League grand final (and local derby) between the Central Coast Mariners and Newcastle Jets a train-ride north turned ugly between some fans of the game.

Poisoning The Sanctuary

2008-02-24T23:21:00.004+11:00

Yesterday I took some family members to one of my santuaries. Their presence poisoned it. I had been going there for a while. Four years maybe. Though I don't go there every week, I go often. And though sometimes I am away from it for long periods of time, it is exactly the same when I finally return.

I had family members in town for the weekend. Whilst I was to be their guest for lunch, I quickly ended up being the tour guide. Leading them on an uncertain path - to 'somewhere you would normally go Sam' - I ended up in Glebe. Someone grumbled that they were hungry. I had to take them to where they could eat.

I led them inside the sanctuary. Three of our party were lost in it's branches and were not returned for near an hour. The rows of shelves filled with a carefully manacured selection of pre-loved books breathed my invaders in, and out.

Out in Sappho's courtyard, my family chatted loudly about the furniture they were sitting on, about the menu, about the "niceness" of it all. They tried to join two small tables together. They got up and sat down, and repeated ad nauseum. They cackled like chickens, they were loud.

I wanted to sleep, to have my coffee and jump inside a crossword.

When they had been fed by the simple offering from Sappho's, they became restless and wanted to leave. They'd had their fill and were ready to move on.

Australia: Why Apologise?

2008-02-12T19:41:00.000+11:00

The town I grew up in, Temora, is not located on any major rivers (the metre wide Narraburra creek flows but once every ten years). Therefore, predominantly by geography, the town had few links with the indigenous Wiradjuri peoples who are concentrated the riverside towns of Wagga Wagga, Narrandera, Griffith, Condobolin, Forbes and Parkes. At high school for several years, we had only one Aboriginal girl in our year who was lovely, quite charasmatic and successful at sport. Needless to say she was one of the most popular kids in the school.

As such, until I moved to Sydney, my contact with indigenous Aussies was almost nil. When I think about (what the media has dubbed) 'The Stolen Generation' it is a very foreign concept to me. Consider this: I grew up in a white farming community thirty years after the last homes for Aboriginals had been closed. Aside from my own readings we studied in school for an entire year the history of Australian Aborigines - but learning about colonial history in the nineties has a serious disconnect with reality and it is hard to understand an idea that feels so foreign.

There was a large Girls Home, as it was called, near where I grew up. This was something rarely discussed or talked about. Many people simply did not realise that it used to exist until the late sixties.

According to Australian Museum Online:

Cootamundra Girls Home, established in 1911, was the first of the homes for Aboriginal children set up by the Aborigines Protection Board. The main aim of the Board was to 'rescue' Aboriginal children from their families and assimilate them into the white community. Girls were the main target of the Board, especially so-called 'half-caste' or 'mixed blood' girls. The girls were trained as domestic servants and sent out to work for middle class white families.

At Cootamundra, Aboriginal girls were instructed to 'think white, look white, act white'. This was part of the process to make the girls suitable wives for white men, in the hope that through interracial marriages, Aboriginal blood would be 'bred out'. They were taught to look down on their own people and to fear Aboriginal men.

Girls in the home were not allowed to communicate with their families. They were often told that their parents were dead and even given forged death certificates. As a result, many of the girls in the home lost their families forever.

Cootamundra Home was closed in 1968, the year before the Aboriginal Welfare Board (previously the Aborigines Protection Board) was abolished.

Tomorrow at 8.55am - Prime Minister Kevin Rudd will apologise to the Aboriginal peoples of Australia for past mistreatments on behalf of the public and government via a national televised address. Why?

Many good reasons: the vast majority of Australians feel it is the right thing to do - as noted by the recent federal election results and the many past public showings of support.

There are few Australians left alive who were directly responsible for the various Government and Church backed programs that actually removed Aboriginal children from their families, and forcibly made them wards of the state between 1869 and 1969. There are also critics who dispute the historical data tabled in the original Bringing Them Home report such as Keith Windshuttle's The Fabrication Of Aboriginal History which points out flaws in the official records that have been presented to our generation. Both sides of the argument need to be listened to, and have valid points.

Regardless of this, a lot of sh-t went down. At the time many people may have had the best interests of the children at heart when they acted or passed legislation.. others may not have.

This should not stop one generation feeling that they need to take the first formal step of reconciliation. The point is: to begin moving in direction we need elected leader to collectively recognise the errors of the past, honour the Aboriginal peoples, and say sorry. Whether for each of us if that means from our hearts, or from our minds, or via a colective peer pressure, is less important as it is necessary and essential.

I am truly, and honestly, sorry for what went down where I grew up. I had no part in it, but I am sorry it happened, and feel sorry for the people who suffered.

When Albert Namtjira, one of our most revered national artists of the twentieth century, visited the Cootamundra Girls Home in 1956. He was moved by the girls’ plight and loneliness. Upon returning home to the Northern Territory he painted one of his famous water colour paintings entitled “Arreyonga Paddock, James Range” for the girls. The visit was memorable in that it was the first time many of them had seen an Aboriginal man in their young lives since being taken from their families.

The painting (below) was officially received and presented to the girls in June 1957 and was hung in the main dormitory. The painting is the only tangible residual item from their childhood that they can reach out and touch.

Question: Scientology Friends

2008-02-11T19:11:00.000+11:00

A random scientologist wants to be my friend on Facebook. His name is Dr Neal Springer, from Los Angeles, California.

What do you think? Should I be his 'friend' and give him a fair go?

Found: Wrestling In Frankston

2008-02-02T13:28:00.000+11:00

No comment necessary.