From the category archives:

Politics & Environment

Opinion Polls Cant Be Trusted: Theyre Too Easy To Manipulate

Politicians and political journalists become obsessed with tiny fluctuations in week to week or even daily opinion polls prior to and during an election. Some of them will misinterpret the poll results, often by mistake but sometimes with an intent to mislead. The buzz around each pre-election poll is often empty and irrational. A standard [...]

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Olympics and World Cup Big Events Waste of Tax Payers Money

The FIFA World Cup is over and fans from around the world are analysing the results but will there be lasting benefits for the host nation South Africa which spent approximately $US4 billion on the event? Similar questions apply to the quadrennial summer and winter Olympic Games as well. Big events like the FIFA World [...]

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Ford Fiesta Econetic Diesel Car (Test Drive Results and Review)

I’ve been test driving the new Ford Fiesta Econetic Diesel car for the last few weeks to see if it lives upto it’s claim to save you money because it’s “Australia’s most fuel-efficient car” and whether it is a “green” car in terms of having less impact on the environment than a standard 4 cylinder [...]

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Save On Car Running Costs – Diesel, LPG, Hybrid or Downsize?

GUEST ARTICLE: This is a very confusing time for car buyers.With all of the talk of ‘peak oil‘, carbon pollution reduction schemes and climate change you may be concerned that petrol will just disappear from the pumps – or worse, become so expensive that you can’t afford to even run your car. Whilst it’s highly [...]

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Varta USB Solar Charger for Batteries, Phones and Gadgets (Review)

GUEST ARTICLE: There are gadgets which you see in stores and think “how cool is that” and they go straight on the to buy list. Granted my to buy list is quite long but I have managed to get my hands on one of these bits of technology … a Solar Battery Charger, specifically the [...]

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Better Place Electric Cars Face Rocky Road of Obstacles

We need to find an environmentally friendly replacement for the internal combustion engine used to power the world’s cars that’s sustainable in the long term before peak oil sends fuel prices rocketing and to help combat climate change. photo credit: Conseil général des Yvelines Governments and individuals cannot do it alone, which is why it’s [...]

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Too Much Stuff: Consumption Is Not A Way of Life

Compared to most people I don’t buy or own much stuff but I still have too much stuff so I am slowly giving away, selling or throwing away all my excess stuff (clothes, gadgets, shoes, books etc etc etc) “too much stuff” photo credit: joemad I really don’t need all this stuff, I don’t even [...]

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Catchup With Weeks Political Events with Insiders (ABC TV)

Every Sunday morning at 9am I turn the TV on and eat breakfast while catching up with the weeks political events by watching Insiders on ABC1 TV “The Panel get going at around the 9.30am mark” photo credit: Michael Bowers Since mid-2001 Insiders has provided a forum for “Insiders” in the Australian media to discuss [...]

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Mike Horn Pangaea Young Explorers Conservation Program

On July 1st 2009 I was lucky enough to sail on Sydney Harbour with one of the great modern adventurers Mike Horn who was visiting Sydney in his yacht Pangaea to promote his “Pangaea Young Explorers Project” which gives conservation training scholarships to children and young adults aged 13-20 years. Mike’s feats as an explorer [...]

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Fiona Katauskas Wins 2009 New Matilda Prize For Political Cartooning

On 25th June 2009 Annabel Crabb announced that Fiona Katauskas had won the 1st prize of $6000 in the 2009 newmatilda.com competition for political cartooning. Judges including Annabel Crabb, Peter Broelman and Bill Leak. 2nd place and $1000 went to Andrew Weldon and Luke Watson won the 3rd prize of $500. You can watch a [...]

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Australian Innovators Race to Research Renewable Energy Sources

GUEST ARTICLE: The electricity industry is the biggest emitter of greenhouse gases in Australia, contributing more than all vehicle emissions. This industry is however important to the Australian economy generating $13.1 billion in revenue annually and 49,000 jobs. This is mainly due to the coal and gas industry but the times are a changing! Social [...]

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Take Action Against Chinese Internet Censorship

Internet censorship in China takes place in many different ways. Major search companies like Yahoo!, Microsoft, Google, Baidu and Alibaba comply with repressive Chinese Government regulations and block search terms and results, and at the same time, they gather information about search terms in their server logs. Every time you use a search engine, the [...]

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Bottled Water or Bottled Environmental Damage?

GUEST ARTICLE: While clean safe drinking water is vital for human health, Australians are becoming increasingly thirsty for bottled water products writes Jeff Angel (Director of the Total Environment Centre). A recent report by the Earth Policy Institute said global consumption of bottled water rose 57% from 1999 to 2004 to 154 billion litres, with [...]

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Making War The American Way: One Contract At A Time

GUEST ARTICLE – PROFILES OF POWER: Commercial Warfare The proliferation of private military companies in Iraq marks a dangerous turn towards outsourcing warfare, reports our chief military correspondent, Dogbert embedded deep in Sydney… Black Hawk Helicopters Carrying Troops in Iraq credit: Department of Defense Private military companies are profit seeking non state actors that specialise [...]

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Reasons to Build a Strawbale House

GUEST ARTICLE BY MARK BURGUNDER: Most people we talk to about our new strawbale home for the first time look at us as if we’re dumb or simple at first and then invariable ask us: credit: ercwttmn Why straw bales? Won’t the straw rot? What about mice and other pests living in the straw? Won’t [...]

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