Economists are relieved the Federal Government is abandoning its push for a surplus, labelling it a sensible, pragmatic and realistic decision.

For months, they have been concerned the Government's penny-pinching to keep the surplus dream alive had the potential to slow growth and jobs.

The Federal Court has ruled that a meeting of Nine's creditors can go ahead, paving the way for a deal to save the company from receivership to be accepted.

The Australian print media have been criticised for inaccurately reporting the carbon pricing mechanism (CPM), and in some instances for actively campaigning against the Gillard government.

Janet was miffed not to be invited to appear on the insiders after having declined the offer some ten years ago... But suddenly she has been asked to go on the program which she claims is a hot bed of lefties (especially those Andrew Bolt and Piers Ackerman)... But she is sharpening her tongue on barbed razor wire for this new gig... I can't wait not to see the show...

If you work in IT, you know that setting a clock even one hour out will cause your network to fall over, as the tolerances for Windows Server is five minutes difference in time. Even if you set a different timezone, Windows Server will not accept login credentials from a client computer if the time is more than five minutes out.

Christian Democrat MP Reverend Fred Nile confirmed the meeting with Mr Packer and said he would back the project - with strict terms.

"We need a firm guarantee there will be no poker machines, not one, now or in the future," Mr Nile said.

"We also want legislation protecting staff from passive smoking. Mr Packer has guaranteed he will do this but we want it to be part of the legislation."

Senior Coalition figures are standing by former Howard government minister Mal Brough despite calls for him to be disendorsed because of links to a failed sexual harassment case against Peter Slipper.

The Sydneysiders on the North Shore are depressed... Business is slack, shops are deserted and going broke, street malls are empty, the summer weather so far has been crap... On top of this, most of the North Shore is the electorate of Tony Abbott. This by itself would be depressing... and more depressing still — for many of the North Shore Siders Tony is Jesus of Nazareth, walking on water and coming to save Australia from its Labor sins...

The sharply divided US Congress has been able to agree on one thing at least - that the word "lunatic" should be banned.