From Elizabeth Farrelly

It may be, as one correspondent wrote last week, that advertising works on the "80/80 principle", the assumption that 80 per cent of Australians have an IQ average of 80. Now I'm fine with stupidity in advertising. Indeed, I expect nothing less - isn't that why God gave us the mute button? But what makes the 80/80 thought especially gripping - as in, by the throat - is how much it explains that branch of advertising we call politics.

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It had been a term of endearment which had cemented links with her Greek heritage and first adorned her cars more than five years ago following a loving gift from her husband.

But the nickname Kiki, given to lawyer Kristen Perry before she could even walk, has now put her in hot water with the Roads and Traffic Authority because her number plate also translates into a term for female genitals in the Filipino language of Tagalog.

''I rang my father last night and said: 'Do you know you have been calling me vagina all my life?','' she said.

From the Drum / ABC

By Scott Stephens

There is no surer way of bringing the simmering debate about the role of religion in Australia to a full boil than by invoking the money and tax concessions given by government to fund certain religious activities.

But under the current arrangement, because of the top-down provision of government funds, the mediation of state-level providers (such as Scripture Union), the lack of adequately (by which I mean theologically and pastorally) trained chaplains, and the concern to avoid the appearance of publicly-funded "proselytising," the relationship between the chaplain and the school is marred from the outset.

artwork on a wall in newtown...

The case about global warming scheduled to be argued on Tuesday before the Supreme Court is a blockbuster. Eight states — from California to New York, plus New York City — sued six corporations responsible for one-fourth of the American electric power industry’s emissions of carbon dioxide.

Gus toon from ages ago...

The minutes of a series of meetings between ministers and senior oil executives are at odds with the public denials of self-interest from oil companies and Western governments at the time.

The documents were not offered as evidence in the ongoing Chilcot Inquiry into the UK's involvement in the Iraq war. In March 2003, just before Britain went to war, Shell denounced reports that it had held talks with Downing Street about Iraqi oil as "highly inaccurate". BP denied that it had any "strategic interest" in Iraq, while Tony Blair described "the oil conspiracy theory" as "the most absurd".

The fact that Facebook won't allow the word "suicide" to be used in an event title shows how much the subject has remained taboo in this new electronic information age. While understandable that nobody wants to see folks invite others to their deaths, it certainly doesn't help those who are trying to stop more suicides from happening.

Oil and gas companies injected hundreds of millions of gallons of hazardous or carcinogenic chemicals into wells in more than 13 states from 2005 to 2009, according to an investigation by Congressional Democrats.

Corporations are roaring. Wall Street is rolling in cash. C.E.O. bonuses are going gangbusters. It’s a really good time to be rich!

If you’re poor, not so much. The pall of the recession is suffocating. The unemployment rate is still unbearably high. The Census Bureau reported in September that the poverty rate for 2009 was 14.3 percent, higher than it has been since 1994, and the number of uninsured reached a record high. And the Department of Agriculture has reported record “prevalence of food insecurity.”

Can we ban the term ''un-Australian''? At the very least, I'd like to see hefty legislative controls. For example: an ''un-Australian'' licence in which people would pre-commit to how many times they intend using the phrase ''un-Australian'' in any one political argument.

As with gambling, pre-commitment is so important. We all know how common sense can depart after a few drinks. There you are, out with friends, planning to have a quiet discussion about climate change or Wayne Swan's hair and within a couple of hours you find yourselves repeatedly screaming ''that's un-Australian'' at each other while being circled by security guards.

This is why we need swift legislative action.

After a two-year bipartisan probe, a Senate panel has concluded that Goldman Sachs Group Inc. profited from the financial crisis by betting billions against the subprime mortgage market, then deceived investors and Congress about the firm's conduct.

Some of the findings in the report by the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations will be referred to the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission for possible criminal or civil action, said Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), the panel's chairman.

from Crikey .....

Is today's press coverage relating to Andrew Wilkie's behaviour as a senior Duntroon cadet in 1983, on balance, in the public interest?

Wilkie himself, in a thoughtful and forthright performance at his press conference today to respond to the claims, dismissed a direct link between this matter and the club industry's expensive, if barely literate, campaign against him. Beyond that, it is a fine judgment to make.

from Crikey .....

Sydney's sparkling elite gather to hear Julia kick the bludgers

Margot Saville writes:

Some dinosaurs did their hunting at night, new research suggests.

Studies of the eyes of existing birds and reptiles with different daily activity patterns were compared with similar parts in dinosaur fossils.

The results suggests that small, meat-eating dinosaurs were nocturnal; large, plant-eating dinosaurs tended to forage both during the day and at night.

The Science study also challenges the notion that mammals' nocturnal nature evolved to avoid day-active dinosaurs.