Charting the campaign donations of clubs and pubs that depend on poker-machine profits suggests a formula for gaming politics.

From the Washington Post

Robert Reich is an economist who likes to help people stand up to the big guys.

He has some ideas on why things have been looking rough for the middle class.

In a way we're lucky. In another way, we're unlucky...

Every time Tonicchio tries to salvage the furniture he gets in deeper into crap... :

He went on to explain why he did not believe marriage equality was inevitable, likening the push to the failed bid for Australia to become a republic.

"There were many a few years ago who kept telling us a republic is inevitable," he said.

Voters are being prepared for Tony Abbott to emulate West Australian Premier Colin Barnett and backflip on numerous election promises, according to high-profile WA Labor candidate Alannah MacTiernan.

from david marr ….

"That was a disgrace. One of these men is going to be our prime minister on 8 September and neither had a fresh policy, a new idea or a new line to offer.

image from Der Spiegel...

At the specialty chemicals giant Evonik, managers are required to store their mobile phones in cookie tins during meetings, the idea being that the tins will serve as Faraday cages that prevent anyone from listening in on the conversations.

Ferdinand Piëch, the chairman of Volkswagen's supervisory board, has conference rooms regularly swept for bugs, and the company even has its own airline, Volkswagen Air Services. The planes are registered in the Cayman Islands, but not in order to avoid paying taxes. Instead, the point is to make the aircraft less recognizable as VW planes so that passenger lists are not readily accessible.