farmdoc's blog post number 607

Today’s ‘List Friday’. And today’s a week before Christmas – which is yet one more excuse for people to give each other gifts. Though not a Christian, I can more or less understand why Christmas’s a gift-giving occasion. But I’ve never known why Christmas gifts need to be tangible (rather than kisses, hugs or even handshakes, say). And even conceding tangibility, why they must be purchased rather than home-made. But conventional practice is tangible and bought gifts, so who am I to argue. So this week’s list concerns tangible bought items. Last 9 October I wrote of this Reader’s Digest’s list of ‘Australia Most Trusted People’. In the same (i.e. July 2009) RD issue was this related list – of ‘Australia’s Most Trusted Brands’. Of 158 well-known brands, Cadbury, Panadol and Band-Aid were the top three, followed by Sony, Colgate, Dairy Farmers, Nokia, Johnson & Johnson, Streets, Peters and Bunnings. What do these brands have in common? They’re all well known, respected, and free from scandal and negative press. Cadbury’s the overall winner for the sixth year in a row. I must say I’m partial to a square or two of Cadbury chocolate. And not just at Christmas, either. Finally I may be wrong, but of the 11 brands named, I see only two Australian-owned ones i.e. Dairy Farmers and Bunnings. Ho hum.

farmdoc's blog post number 537

Sorry, folks. But I’ve been slack. Lax. Because it’s been exactly two months since I wrote a post about a list [1]. So here goes: If people have ability, strength, integrity and surety, then we have confidence in them. We can rely on them. We trust them. Reader’s Digest, in its July 2009 issue, published its fifth annual list of ‘Australia’s Most Trusted People’. The preamble says ‘When times are tough, people everywhere look for security and certainty, and Australians are no different. In our fifth annual Most Trusted poll the results are striking: when it comes to trustworthy people, it’s the “rocks of society” – the humble, honest and truly helpful – who we consistently turn to’. The methodology? A representative sample of 750 Australian adults was asked to rate – on a scale of one to ten – 100 well-known people. I don’t like this method because it’s not zero-based, i.e. the list of 100 was selected by who-knows-who before the surveying began. Here is the list. Numero uno’s burns specialist Dr Fiona Wood (pictured). The highest politician’s the prime minister – at lowly number 65. Ho hum. And the list contains some shockers including Bindi Irwin, Alan Jones, Kyle Sandilands, Shane Warne, Marcus Einfeld, Ben Cousins and David Hicks. ‘Rocks of society’? How bizarre. But the wisdom of crowds is rarely wrong. And I already know I’m a sheep man in cattle country. Starting today I’m making each Friday a list day on Farmdoc’s Blog. So until next Friday…