Google appears to be deliberately downgrading Atrios' well read left-wing blog 'Eschaton'.

I googled both 'atrios' and 'eschaton' and neither resulted in this blog being on the first page of the results. 'Atrios' did result in lots of links to 'Atrios is gay' posts that have been recently emanating from the right-wing reality-denial nuts and full of lies told by shameless lying liars.

It cannot be a general downgrade-all-content-on-blogs thing, as those 'atrios is gay' posts are all on blogs, and searching for 'cummerbund' still turns up this blog, second on the list. If you look at the cummerbund's referrers list, amongst the spam links, there are plenty of google searches hitting individual pages in this site (Devendra Banhart is a favorite).

So google's up to some bullshit or the rightists are google bombing deliberately.

Aside: I can't go outside much today, way too sunburnt from yesterday's escapade at Noosa. Oh yeah, and quite rightly Helen Clarke stopped a horrific concert by Farnsey at Gallipoli on ANZAC day. No respect from Glen Wheatley, Farnham's manager, and no respect is due him for such a cynical attempt to link his business client to that of such an important and solemn national occassion.

So, what's the plan actually for?

The plan positions the council as Australia's arts catalyst to be much better informed and more flexible in responding to creative opportunities as they arise. Operational flexibility is critical.

Geez, Louise, that's a load of old codswallop (SMH, subscription required).

Holidaying in Mooloolaba at the moment. Saturday we've got a wedding to attend. But today we went up to Noosa Heads. I've been to Noosa plenty of times before but today was just magic - not just the weather. We saw manta-rays swimming in the water at the national park. They were like frolicking in the surf off the rocks. One big one and three little ones, like a mother and her babies, perhaps. No point in getting photos of it - when we clambered down the rocks to get close enough, some snorklers came up and the rays got scared off. I've heard that divers find that they are actually curious creatures and come right up to you underwater. After watching their antics in the surf today I'd believe that.

We also saw quite a number of brush turkeys - and a couple of brush turkey chicks too scratching in the dirt atop of daddy's big mound (the male hatches the eggs by burying them in a big mound of mulch). In the sand dunes right on the end of Hastings Street (Noosa's main drag)!!! Didn't catch any of the big goannas that beg scraps off the picnickers in the park though.

Sydney prices everywhere - especially real estate. Two million dollar penthouse units and stuff. And some people who poison native trees that block their view - such ugly people don't deserve such beautiful surroundings.

The Australian Rugby Union is run by a bunch of old school ties with no talent and they know it - this article in the Sydney Morning Herald sheds some light; Blazer brigade in need of reform. So, a bunch of old gents control the sport like a feifdom and fight over who get to be the next chairman, but stuff the most successful regions of the game (i.e. the ACT)! It is incredible stuff.

Some might remember the kerfuffle about player payments and endorsements and the like during the run up to last Rugby World Cup (which BTW was founded 1987 unlike the league world cup founded in the 1950s)? The nasty old-school-tie and blazer-brigade run administration doesn't care about the players. People were writing of this like it was news! That's including crikey!, but I think that material was mostly written by Stephen Mayne who, being a Victorian AFL bloke, can be excused not knowing the history involved. So here we are, 110 years after the Northern Union was formed in the George Hotel, Huddersfield over the issue of "broken time", and the Rugby Union is mistreating its players over pay and conditions. Who would have thought?!

Outside Centre (a crikey! writer) recently also wrote about the way that the Australian Rugby Union always seeks to promote it's own moribund code via reference to other football codes - usually Rugby League (the true Rugby, despite Murdoch ownership).

Personally I think that Rugby League should reclaim the simple title "Rugby". I use it whenever I can - if people want an explanation as to why I think Easts or whoever are a "rugby" side then I simply reply - "proper rugby mate, professional rugby, not that amateur stuff."

Oh, and BTW for soccer types, the myth about how Rugby was invented is just a propaganda exercise by the Union people to stop League from claiming that Rugby is in fact an ancient game and no one group can control it, Association Football (soccer) was in fact invented out of the ancient game of Rugby.

But Rugby Union died in 1907 when Dally Messenger signed up for Easts. and I can't believe they think that watching it's reanimated corpse kick penalty goals and slowly amble down to line outs is some sort of sporting contest. Tossers.

Dresden, it seems, is some sort of neo-Nazi posterchild cause celebre, at this the 50th anniversary of its fire-bombing by British and American air forces. What I don't understand is the attitude takens by the media that I have seen today. Dresden is of course a tragedy, and I will admit that possibly Bomber Harris is some sort of war criminal. Of course such a situation was regrettable, but the British and Americans did not start the war, did not prosecute it in the same way the Allies did fight, even if the Allies did things that, to modern minds, now seem regrettable. how does Bomber Harris compare to Goering, Himmler, Hitler, Heydrich, Goebbels, Tojo and the Emperor Hirohito and the rest of the Showa militarists?

Let's not forget our perspective; 20,000,000 Russians; 6,000,000 Jews; 10,000,000 Chinese died in that conflict, yes and 5,000,000 Germans, 2,000,000 Japanese; 500,000 British & Commonwealth, 300,000 Americans; 650,000 French; 5,000,000 Poles; 1,500,000 Yugoslavs. A vast carnage of human potential and actuality, never to return.

But this is not merely some quibble of numbers. Let us here remember that Germany attacked the rest of Europe, and Japan attacked the Asia-Pacific nations, and both countries caused all those under their occupation to suffer from brutal militaristic rule - enforced by brutalised people themselves trained to be sadists. The German state, aided and abetted by the majority of its citizens, enacted a horrific genocide upon many of its conquered peoples and even to its own people. The Japanese raped and pillaged China and SE Asia, they were not liberating it from Western colonial rule; only imposing their own brand of brutalising colonial rule.

I mourn the dead of all wars - but I do not regret the actions of our fathers and grandfathers in the course of prosecuting a war against a barbarity that far exceeded simple naked aggression. My father fought in the jungles for my life and liberty, and for that I am eternally grateful to his generation.

Lest We Forget

‘As you lie there,’ said O’Brien, ‘you have often wondered—you have even asked me—why the Ministry of Love should expend so much time and trouble on you. And when you were free you were puzzled by what was essentially the same question.’

Read more...

Completely unprovoked email exchange, this Stephen jones isn't the one who used to do the severed head's video, but another obviously socially inept fuckwit:

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In-Reply-To:  from "Scot Mcphee" at Feb 11, 2005 06:36:54 AM
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fuck off.

> 
> that's not very civil of you
> 
> 
> On Thu, 10 Feb 2005 08:21:45 -0800, Stephen Jones  wrote:
> > Its been disabled.  Go outside and do something with your life.
> > Jack off or fuck off.

This is the original mix of Alien Jungle Planet. It appears on disc 2 of the Clan Analogue compilation Cognition/Three CA025, and the limited edition EP V-Type Nerve Agent. Mixes of this track are also on the album G-Type Nerve Agent and on the ABC 'Sound Quality' compilation "Approved for export". The original mix still is one of the best songs I've written, and the mix is very cranky - a sickly Victorian-era carnival ride interpreted wrongly and left to die on an Alien Jungle Planet.

Ladies and Gentlemen,
Welcome to the Alien Jungle Planet.
We apologize for the inconvienience.
Please wait to be seated,
for the Alien Jungle Planet.

This is your Captain speaking.
Do not panic.
Please hold for an operator.
Do Not Cross The Line,
in the Alien Jungle Planet.

Your call is important to us.
I'm sorry Madame,
Please forgive me.
Call Now Our Operators Are Waiting,
at the Alien Jungle Planet.

TO DOWNLOAD: As usual, click the "attachment" link on this entry if you are viewing the HTML web page - or use a podcasting client RSS feed of the blog to get automated downloads of any new music placed on this website. See www.ipodder.org for more info about podcasting and podcasting clients.