Saturday 18th of May 2024

Gus Leonisky's blog

diplomatic insults...

diplomacy...

The doors to a previously hidden world of diplomatic intrigue and insults were dramatically thrown open last night as the whistle-blowing website Wikileaks published its vast tranche of secret American diplomatic communiqués. The release of hundreds of thousands of secret messages from staff at US embassies revealed how Washington has struggled to confront the geopolitical realities of a post-9/11 world.

It also exposed the often less than diplomatic language used by State Department insiders to describe some of the planet's most powerful leaders.

faces cartoons are made of....

faces

From Annabel Crabb/the drum...

Let's get something straight; politicians of both sexes get ribbed about their looks.

Most of them are martyrs to the cartoonists, who never waste the opportunity provided by a pointy nose or big ears, whatever the gender of the affected person.

our North Korean allies...

palinkorea
Sarah Palin: 'We've got to stand with our North Korean allies'

A slip of the tongue by Sarah Palin mixing up North and South Korea is a reminder of the credibility hurdles she faces

Interviewer: How would you handle a situation like the one that just developed in North Korea?

a win for transparency...

xenophonfielding

The Government's lynchpin election promise of a National Broadband Network (NBN) has inched closer to fruition today, after a deal was struck with independent Senator Nick Xenophon.

Senator Xenophon had been refusing to back NBN legislation which would enable the separation of Telstra's wholesale and retail arms.

He wanted the NBN business case released before promising his vote in the Upper House on the bill to separate Telstra.

The Government has now confirmed it has agreed to release a summary of the business plan ahead of a vote in the Senate.

stunning personal pronouncement

condom&pope
After Condom Remarks, Vatican Confirms Shift
By RACHEL DONADIO and LAURIE GOODSTEIN

VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI clearly acknowledged on Tuesday that the need to prevent diseases like AIDS could outweigh the church’s long opposition to the use of condoms.

freudian slip...

freudian slip...

Wayne Swan: Well, I can't speculate about Senator Xenophon. There's an important debate going on. The debate at the moment, Fran, is actually about structural separation. Which is absolutely fundamental to microeconomic reform in this country, in getting not only super fast broadband, but a much more efficient and prosperous economy into the future. I know Senator Xenophon shares that objective.

mad max...

 

mad max

his budgies doing the dirty work...

tony opposes

THE Families Minister, Jenny Macklin, has accused the opposition of trying to wreck a historic social change for women - paid parental leave - at the 11th hour, by seeking changes in the last week of Parliament, just six weeks out from its start date.

A private member's bill from the opposition's spokesman on small business, Bruce Billson, will seek to have Centrelink permanently administer payment of the government benefit, not employers.

Ms Macklin said 2000 women due to give birth in January had already applied for the scheme, and 500 employers had signed up, so a smooth start was vital.

malcolm talks through his hat...

malcolmtalkshats

Mr Turnbull hit back in advance yesterday, saying his critical approach to the network ''shows how uninfluenced I am by my personal holdings''.

Also yesterday, the Greens revealed they had secured a deal from the government to stop the automatic privatisation of the network five years after its completion.

Under the original plan, the network, once rolled out in eight years, was to have been privatised after five years.

http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/turnbull-holds-10m-network-conflict-20101121-182mp.html

winning the booby prize...

booby prize

Leaders of Nato's 28 states have backed a strategy to transfer leadership for the fight against the Taliban to Afghan forces by the end of 2014.

Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai was in Lisbon, where he signed a long-term security partnership with Nato.

Nato's secretary general said the Taliban would not be allowed simply to wait for foreign forces to leave, saying Nato would remain committed.

Nato would stay "as long as it takes", Anders Fogh Rasmussen said.

However, news agencies quoted US officials at the summit as saying that Washington had not yet taken a decision on ending combat by the end of 2014.

choice bon mots from joyce....

joycebroadband

What does one of the inventors of the internet have to say about the Australian national broadband network?

He likens it to another great piece of government infrastructure: "The government provides a uniform, ubiquitous, future-proofed infrastructure on which the private sector competes on services. This is very similar to the investment in the interstate highway system that the US made 50 years ago, which helped transform the US into an economic powerhouse."

attaboy...

the battleline

Early last week, Glenn Beck devoted an episode of his show to revealing some “scary” “secrets” about George Soros that included revelations such as, the name Soros? Not the one Jorge was born with, which was “George Schwartz.” And the bombs didn’t stop there.

Beck also informed his audience that Soros started the Quantum fund “to attack currencies across the world,” that “he’s waged a war against capitalism,” and that his next target? “Is us. America.” Points were made and dots were connected. Last night Jon Stewart soaked it all in and you know what? He thinks Beck "might be right".

the new maginot line...

missile shield

A missile defence system covering all Nato countries has been agreed at the alliance's summit in Lisbon, US President Barack Obama has said.

The shield would cover all Nato members in Europe and North America.

Nato is also backing the swift ratification of the Start treaty between the US and Russia, cutting nuclear weapon stockpiles.

The summit will discuss Afghanistan on Saturday, with plans to end combat operations by 2014.

Nato will ask Russia to co-operate on missile defence and join the system.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-11711042

grazie...

grazie...

Italy's prime minister is under attack for authorising what amounts to plastic surgery on two Roman marble statues.

The statues, which depict the naked gods Venus and Mars, are on show in Silvio Berlusconi's Rome residence.

Mr Berlusconi ordered a replacement for the missing penis on the statue of the ancient god of war, and a missing hand for Venus.

Art experts say it is tasteless and aesthetically wrong to replace the missing body parts.

on her bike....

kristina

(picture by Gus Lichtenstein)

A biking accident has left the New South Wales Premier Kristina Keneally with a bruised knee.

Ms Keneally was riding to work this morning, when the handlebar separated from her bike as she entered the underground carpark of her Governor Macquarie Tower office.

An ambulance was called but was not needed.

Her office is describing it as a minor incident and says the Premier is continuing with her normal duties.

Last month Sydney mayor Clover Moore tumbled from her bike and broke an ankle on Ride to Work day.

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