Are Aussie soaps too white?

The cast of Home & Away at the Logies...

The answer seems to be yes as TV producers of shows like Home & Away and Neighbours are accused of applying a 'white Australia policy' to casting. According to a report at the weekend:

University of Queensland Aboriginal studies lecturer Sam Watson said the dramas were operating an "exclusive white family club" that didn't reflect Australia's true demographic.
"The producers and directors of these shows are very sadly harking back to the White Australia policy of the '40s and '50s," he said. "Instead of embracing the rich diversities of our country, they are shunning it." 

Is it a day to celebrate or comemorate?

These are the three men who were executed on the weekend, the Bali bombers responsible for the deaths of 202 people in October 2002.
I am a very opinionated person. But occasionally, I struggle to find my opinion among a jumble of mixed feelings. If you ask me if I believe in the death penalty, I will tell you it depends.
For certain murders and for anyone that harms a child, I'd be happy to pull the lever or the trigger myself.
Do I believe these men should have been executed?
In many ways, I don't feel like I have the right to a strong opinion. I didn't lose a loved one in Bali. It seems some of those who did feel that the execution gave them some peace. I heard some relatives refer to it as 'closure'. While others say it brings no relief. Nothing will bring back those who have died so senselessly.

It's still 75 days until President Obama is sworn in and takes the reins from The Twit.

Another difference between the US system and ours.....Barack Obama is now called President-Elect and has 3 months to make the transition and take over from the worst president in history.

You've probably seen them both but after the jump, I've posted Obama's acceptance speech and McCain's concession speech - which was poignant, humble and rather inspiring. Can't say the same for his campaign but he was nothing if not gracious in defeat. Dammit, I'm going to miss this election....

BREAKING: Exit polls are looking good for Obama. And they'd better. Because the free world really REALLY needs a leader who can dance like this. Go you good thing......

Fingers and toes crossed, people. Fingers and toes crossed.

This is Matt. Matt loves porn.

      

"Nineteen year old Matt remembers first looking at pornographic magazines and videos when he was in his early teens. These days Matt always has it on him and can access it whenever he pleases via his mobile phone or computer. He reckons there is no real point in paying for porn anymore because it's all over the internet and it's free. Although admitting he did go through a time of near addiction to porn Matt says 'I don't think there's anything wrong with a healthy sex interest - I'm not running home everyday watching it 24/7. I think you can be a very normal person living a normal life and still have a healthy interest in porn.'"

This is from The Hack Half Hour program. If you have access to the ABC2 channel, make sure you check out The Hack Half Hour on Monday nights at 8:30pm. It's the TV version of the current affairs show Hack on Triple J. You can also watch the episodes online here.

A couple of weeks ago they did an episode on porn and boy did I learn a thing or two. First of all, someone really has to update "Where Did I Come From ". Sex has become far more tricky than just special cuddles. Now when we explain sex to our children, we'll have to warn them about not being photographed nude or in a sexual act by someone on their phone.

Bonjour Sarah, it's French President Sarkozy.......

A few days ago, Sarah Palin was duped by a Candadian radio due The Masked Avengers (they have a radio show in Montreal) into believing she was talking to French President Nicholas Sarkozy.......this is what happened....get ready to CRINGE.....

2 days to go....

Saturday Night Live has been enjoying the highest ratings in 14 years since Tina Fey started doing Sarah Palin. This weekend, we got to see John McCain - the real one - show he has a sense of, ahem, humour.

A change of pace from Frockwatch that might just give you whiplash.

The woman in this picture is 24 year old Hadijatou Mani. She was sold into slavery at the age of 12 in the West African country of Niger where she lived. She was beaten, raped and even imprisoned for bigamy after she married a man other than her “master”.

Astonishingly her story is a common one in Niger where slavery is still - astonishingly - rife. But now it has a happy ending because in an historic ruling that will resonate across West Africa, Hadijatou won a landmark case this week against the Niger Government for failing to protect her, according to a report in The Times.

“I am very happy with this decision,” Ms Mani, 24, told reporters outside an international court in neighbouring Nigeria. “Nobody deserves to be enslaved. We are all equal and deserve to be treated the same.”

America had a big bowl of crazy for breakfast.

Sometimes it seems that way. Like in the clip below. Look at the lady dressed up as Sarah Palin standing behind McCain. She winks and waves to the audience to acknowledge their applause while he says nice things about his running mate! Crackers!

Should there be positive discrimination to get more women in executive positions?

[Gail Kelly, CEO of Westpac and one of only five female CEOs among Australia's 200 biggest companies]

That's the question being asked after the depressing results of a survey by the federal Government's Equal Opportunity for Women In The Workplace agency which shows women are going backwards fast when it comes to reaching the top level of big companies. It's sobering stuff for those of us who naively thought inequality and sex discrimination was an old fashioned and out-dated concept.

According to the survey:

• The number of women on boards and executive management positions has gone back to pre-2004 levels.
• The number of women in the executive ranks of the stock exchange's top 200 companies has fallen to 10.7 per cent from 12 per cent in 2006.
• The number of companies with no women executive managers has jumped from 39.5 per cent in 2006 to 45.5 per cent.
• Only 55 per cent of the top 200 listed companies have at least one woman in an executive position, well below the 59 per cent in South Africa, 66 per cent in Canada and 82.5 per cent in the US.
• Only four Australian listed companies -- or 2 per cent of those surveyed -- have female chief executives.

I was listening to some of the coverage of this issue on ABC radio yesterday and I was a bit torn. Part of me thinks it's outrageous. Part of me thinks it's understandable because women don't WANT these positions but I think in that respect I'm perhaps talking for myself. I'm sure many women DO want to rise up to that level. And I'm sure many women would adore to be earning those kinds of big bucks.