Category Archives: Australia

We don’t deserve nice things.

Posted on March 26, 2023 by JC

There is a fairly well-known meme with the phrase “This is why we can’t have nice things.” which I have seen around frequently enough though I wasn’t previously familiar with its origins. It is usually posted with a picture of … Continue reading →

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A Most Interesting Man

Posted on February 19, 2023 by JC

Simon Leys: Navigator between Worlds by Philippe Paquet (translated by Julie Rose), La Trobe University Press, September 18th, 2017 The name of Simon Leys has appeared a couple of times on this blog. The first quoting portions of his fascinating … Continue reading →

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Sober Eyes

Posted on October 16, 2022 by JC

This is similar to a topic I covered back in late 2020 about perceptions of reality but related to a different subject. That is alcohol which I freely admit I have had struggles with. In fact, I pledged to abstain … Continue reading →

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A Review of The Penguin Book of Australian Short Stories

Posted on September 16, 2022 by JC

The Penguin Book of Australian Short Stories edited by Harry Heseltine, Penguin Books, August 30th, 1976 Earlier this year I wrote a review of Modern Japanese Short Stories which was a collection by a selection of Japanese authors from the … Continue reading →

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Celebrating the Wicked

Posted on July 6, 2022 by JC

Ned Kelly: A Lawless Life by Doug Morrissey Connor Court Publishing, January 15th, 2015 One of the proofs of our fallen world is the way wicked people are so often celebrated. Whether reframed as misunderstood or acclaimed while ignorantly (and … Continue reading →

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The Obvious Investor

Posted on May 20, 2022 by JC

The Barefoot Investor by Scott Pape, John Wiley & Sons, December 1st, 2020 (first published in 2016) Despite sharing my misgivings about the type of books you find in airports before, I have been given (gifted this time), another book … Continue reading →

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Backing the Blue

Posted on September 26, 2021 by JC

I won’t pretend I’ve never had trouble with the police and some lingering resentment as a result of that. In my first few years of driving I ended up with a number of small fines and a loss of license. … Continue reading →

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The Last Seemingly Legitimate Election

Posted on August 31, 2021 by JC

The last few years have highlighted just how little control most Westerners have over their governments. There are plenty of examples in the past though, most notably with immigration where governments either ignore popular opinion or pay lip service to … Continue reading →

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Australia Belongs to Us

Posted on January 26, 2021 by JC

The above video was produced by the Australia Day Council which appears to be a government funded organisation. The Federal Government in Australia has apparently been led by “conservatives” since 2013 and yet the above video was produced with them … Continue reading →

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Pauline Hanson was right

Posted on December 28, 2020 by JC

Back in 1996, I was in middle school and as is to be expected, not well-informed where politics and society were concerned. John Howard was the Prime Minister and he would remain so until 2007. Regardless of your politics, he … Continue reading →

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