Evolution

There is a New Order about to be impressed upon Australia.
It would seem the voters made it quite clear, they had had absolutely enough of the old order. Perhaps the icing on the cake is the fact that the past "Leader" has been voted out of his own electorate.

I have personal likes & dislikes. I tend to be very cynical about politicians in general. It seems to me, a lot of them start out with lofty ideals, & high morals. As they evolve, the edges become blurred, the shape changes, and often, the morals, & ideals are tailored to fit the circumstances, once office is gained.

I well remember Bob Hawke's triumphant ride to victory. We were newly arrived in this country, to live. We knew a little of the politics, but not a lot. We knew that Malcolm Fraser was voted out, on a tide of hatred, much like the one which has voted John Howard off.

My private opinion of Bob Hawke was how vain a man he was. I never changed that opinion, but I did not necessarily dislike the man, for his politics, or even his vanity. I did not like his private persona regarding his wife & family, but take much of the media hype with grains of salt. Not knowing the people personally, how could I judge.

My favourite for sheer wit & charm, & intellect- to me anyway,- was Paul Keating. He gave me many laughs. He tended to arrogance, or that was how he was percieved, & I was a lone voice among my family & friends, who actually admired the man. Again, who knew about his private life.

In the days before I had given up the TV, I watched & listened to Kevin Rudd. He used to feature on a morning news programme & would debate various newsworthy items with his counterpart, Joe Hockey. I came to really like & admire Kevin Rudd. I also liked Joe Hockey, though I have noticed he seems to have changed in ways I am not quite so keen about.

He has a young family, Joe. I always feel very sorry for the families of politicians. The insults & the hurtful comments that get thrown about. In New Zealand, the daughter of a Politician worked for us, at the Inner City Hotel. She had 3 brothers, & all the family suffered for their father's involvement in politics. It was in the era of Muldoon's government. The wife was expected to go & live in Wellington, which she hated. The youngest son never forgave his mother for abandoning him, & sending him to boarding school. The wife hated the public eye. She told us she had married a farmer, & all she wanted was to be a farmer's wife. Not some wife posing for silly photos, & trying to fill her days on 'good works' she was ordered to take up. She was expected to give up her own life completely, on the oders of Muldoon. It was not generally Government policy, but it was Muldoon's policy. I won't say more, but it certainly destroyed that family.

I still like & admire Kevin Rudd. I wish him well. I congratulate him.
It will be an interesting journey to watch his evolution. I am sure there will be an evolution, as it is inevitable. It comes with the territory. Some politicians seem to manage to evolve in ways that are good. They appear to grow, & improve like a good wine.

Good Luck Kevin.
A New Order.

What lies over the Horizon?

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We are told there is another week of rain to come. It has cleared to steamy blue with clouds thus far.

The impending rush for Christmas just fills me with dread, & I have been trying to avoid all thoughts of it.

We had an outing to a Leagues Club yesterday, for a change of pace. I am not really interested in poker machines. They just gobble up perfectly good fabric money!

But Gom likes a flutter now & then. I like to watch the other players. I slyly watch their 'techniques'.

The lighting was dim, & groups of a few machines are placed about, to decieve. So it doesn't appear that really, the Pokies are what it is ALL about.

Since the new non smoking in pubs & clubs came into force, there are lounges outside the edges of the Clubs. These are for the smokers to drift off out into, & feed their addiction. There are no Pokies out there, & though they are sheltered, one side is open to fit the law. Addicts can be seen sliding in &out of the doors to the Zones. Some have painted glass, so the smokers can not be observed, but some have slatted windows & the smokers can be freely viewed enjoying their 'poison'.

I watched a man playing a large machine, with Chinese symbols. Not sure what it was all about, but I was fascinated with the man's rituals. When the machine had a payout, he would rush away from the machine, as if his prescence would stop the amount of payment. Once it had stopped playing it's idiot music, he would advance back, & hit it slyly up from the side, then sneakily press the play button. As if it wasn't really him, that had done it. I watched him again & again. He had a series of rituals he indulged in. He varied them according to some pattern known only to him, & he really did entertain me.

He had about 6 differing methods of striking the play buttons. These involved different fingers, hands, positions of his body, & differing time intervals. He actually seemed to have quite a few collects from the machine, but I think he was gradually feeding the money back into the machine at the same time. I suspect, had we not been close, he may have had incantations he would use aloud, also, judging by the way his mouth was working.

There are various lounge chairs scattered about, with tables & people can just sit, if they choose. I cannot understand why these people must use their mobile phones, for interminable, loud converstaions. They whine on & on, & it all seems trivial & pointless. Why waste money? Why not visit the person? Why not stay home & phone them, if a visit is out of the question.

Then, they put the person on the other end, onto some loud speaker feature! A disembodied squawking can be heard, not quite distinct enough to catch every word, but about every 4 out of 6, & you are left with this feeling of rage, as your aural space is being invaded, against your wishes. Aurally Raped!

We have all heard the urban myth, about the mother who is so exasperated by her tantrumming (Is that a word??) toddler, that she just gives in, & gets down on the floor right beside the little darling, & screams, bangs her heels up & down & refuses to get up.

Well, that is how I feel when I see people on mobile phones, bellowing inane crap into my space. I want to rip the phone out of their hands & bellow at them. I want to shout down the phone to their hapless caller, or callee, & tell them how bloody boring their lives must be!!


But anyone observing me, would not know these thoughts are boiling away behind the benign smile. The polite glance. I just hope the day doesn't come when I develop Alzheimers, & I do just as I feel.

Jeff Buckley, Hallelujah