This week's compendium

Here’s this week’s compendium. This week…

1. Iran was beaten (by East Timor) [1a] for a seat on the powerful new UN body nicknamed UN Women [1b]. Saudi Arabia (!) got a seat.

2. the Age reported that the Grand Prix’s in jeopardy due to an A$800,000 dispute [2a]. It’s a media beat-up [2b]. A vain effort to revive the dead event. Why not pay up and shut up, GP Corporation. You’re expert at spending taxpayers’ dollars.

3. Cymbalta (duloxetine) was cleared by the US FDA for treatment of chronic musculoskeletal pain [3]. Its pain relief mechanism’s unknown, but.

4. the UN published its annual flagship report on comprehensive human development (i.e. quality of life) for each country [4a, 4b]. Australia came 2nd, US 4th, Canada 8th, Israel 15th, UK 26th. And Iran 70th – ho hum.

5. Levi’s announces a new method of making jeans, which uses much less water [5]. It’ll save 16M litres of water each year. Good on you, Levi’s.

6. San Franciso voted in a law requiring that foods meet certain nutritional standards, before they can be sold with toys [6]. Good on you, SanFran.

7. gizmodo told us the world’s running out of chocolate [7]. Oh no. Dear me. Ho hum.

8. our neighbour and sharefarmer Sharon, featured on the ABC Radio National’s ‘Bush Telegraph’ [8]. Nice interview, SJ.

Finally, I wish you, dear Farmdoc’s Blog readers, a wonderful week.

This week's compendium

Here’s this week’s compendium. This week…

1. tennis player Lleyton Hewitt and his wife charged fans A$2 for the wondrous privilege of finding out the name of their newborn child [1a]. Is there no limit to the greed and bad taste of so-called celebrities. Anyway it’s Ava [1b]. Big whoopee.

2. the Corruption Perceptions Index 2010 was announced [2a]. Canada’s 6th best, Australia 8th, UK 20th, USA 22nd. [2b]. Israel’s 30th and Iran 146th. Ho hum.

3. consumer magazine Choice announced its 2010 Shonky Awards – for the shonkiest products and services [3a, 3b]. Ho hum again.

4. Mohammed (spelt various ways) was the most popular name for newborn boys in England and Wales in 2009 [4]. This ended Jack’s 14 years as number one.

5. austerity measures were announced for the 2011 Australian F1 Grand Prix [5]. The best one of all would be to cancel the bloody thing.

6. low-dose aspirin was confirmed to help prevent bowel cancer [6a]. Lifestyle choices are effective too [6b].

7. and heavy smoking was shown to double the risk of various types of dementia [7]. Is there no limit to the downsides of smoking.

8. Sweetheart Vivienne participated in the Melbourne Jewish Book Festival [8a, 8b]. Apparently she aced it. I wish I was there.

Finally, I wish you, dear Farmdoc’s Blog readers, a wonderful week.

In your dreams, Kennett

Northern Exposure [1]. It’s a 1990s US TV series. Its focus was Joel Fleischman, a young New York doctor (pictured, note the stethoscope) and his problems adjusting to Alaskan life. The romantic interest, Maggie O’Connell, spurned Fleischman’s advances with the classic retort: ‘In your dreams, Fleischman’. As I commented last Thursday [2] Jeffrey Kennett, ex Victorian Premier and frequent object of Farmdoc’s contempt, made some comments early last week which I think demonstrated memory impairment and lack of insight. Late last week, in a radio interview, Kennett said he was shot at twice during negotiations to bring the grand prix to Melbourne [3, 4]. Jeff Mawkes, the senior policeman responsible for protecting Kennett during his entire period as Premier, said he knew nothing about shooting incidents [5]. The current Premier and Police Minister were similarly sceptical. Here’s the thing: if you play fast and loose with the truth, a good memory’s imperative. The negotiations in which Melbourne stole the grand prix from Adelaide a year before Adelaide’s contract ended in 1997, occurred in private and secret. Thus the first the public knew the event would occur in Melbourne, to wit Albert Park, from 1996 was in late 1993 when Kennett announced the done deal. Thus his claim the two shootings occurred during negotiations to bring the grand prix to Melbourne, is disingenuous. And likely a lie intended to cover for Kennett’s silly and wrong comments earlier last week [6]. To paraphrase Mr Mawkes: ‘In your dreams, Kennett’.

I’d bet my bottom dollar on it.

Bet your bottom dollar. The Phrase Finder says it’s an American phrase dating from 1856 [1]. It means ‘ a sure thing’. I’ve heard it and used it. But until now I’ve never thought about the link between bottom dollar and sure thing. The Free Dictionary says your bottom dollar’s your last bit of money which you’d only risk on a sure bet [2]. English for Students says poker players stack their betting chips and take the top ones when betting, but when they bet all their chips on a good hand, they pick up or push the stack from the bottom chip – literally betting their bottom dollar [3]. Last Thursday the Australian Grand Prix Corporation’s latest annual report was tabled in the Victorian Parliament. It reveals a A$49.2M loss in 2010 [4]. This is a massive 22.7% up from the previous record loss – of A$40.1M in 2009 and 2008. (Prior losses were A$34.6M in 2007, A$15.6M in 2006, A$13.6M in 2005, A$12.6M in 2004, A$10.5M in 2003.) Of course the 2010 loss was blamed on the GFC. But the GFC was much worse in 2008/9. And why the Age’s teaser (in the photograph) mentions the government, escapes me. Well actually the government’s relevant. Because it’s the government, and only the government, that’s propping up this economically and environmentally catastrophic event. Oh, and by the way, do I reckon this year’s true loss is much more the sanitised A$49.2M? I’d bet my bottom dollar on it.

This week's compendium

Here’s this week’s compendium. This week…

1. Nutrition Diva reminded us chocolate’s good for us due to the flavanol content as well as the cacao percentage [1]. And cocoa beans from different countries have vastly different flavanol content.

2. Drew Ward, CEO of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, resigned. He said he’d achieved his objective of taking the event from a car race to a major entertainment event. And he denied being pushed out [2]. He didn’t because it isn’t. And he was.

3. a treehugger item showed off beautiful and cosy slippers made from recycled sweaters and leather jackets [3]. What about it, Foxs Lane?

4. 1,500 West Australians including Federal and State parliamentarians, stood up to support Israel [4a, 4b]. Good on them – every single one of them.

5. gizmodo convincingly and colourfully demonstrated that iPhone users have more sex [5]. Sweetheart Vivienne is an iPhone user. Ho hum.

6. the Annals of Internal Medicine published research showing high blood lipid levels in early adulthood are associated with increased coronary calcium 20 years later [6]. It’s never too soon to start healthy behaviours.

7. an Archives of Neurology study showed high accuracy diagnosing Alzheimer disease – based on protein patterns in the cerebrospinal fluid [7]. I don’t know if early diagnosis is worthwhile if there’s no effective treatment?

8. the WHO decreed that the H1N1 flu pandemic’s officially over [8]. And what a beat-up it was, too.

Finally, I wish you, dear Farmdoc’s Blog readers, a wonderful week.

Not on the same page(r)

I levelled yesterday’s rant – sorry, post – at Australia’s Federal Government. Today I take aim at the Victorian State Government. Black Saturday – the most apocalyptic bushfire day in Australia’s history – was on 7 February 2009, i.e. 473 days ago [1]. The inevitable resultant Royal Commission began on 20 April 2009, i.e. 401 days ago [2]. And still, reportedly, Victoria’s Country Fire Authority brigades remain not just under-resourced, but lacking basic equipment including functioning pagers [3a, 3b]. What use is a well-trained firefighter who’s not fighting fires because of pager issues? The Minister responsible (N.B. not necessarily the responsible minister) is Emergency Services Minister Bob Cameron. Said Education Minister Bronwyn Pike [4] (pictured) – to her and her government’s shame – the issues are being ‘worked through’. Not good enough, Minister. The public at large, especially people in fire-prone areas, don’t want endless inquiries and insouciant and peremptory ministerial pettifogging. Rather, they want action. Appropriate and immediate action. Each year the government coughs up over A$50M to underwrite the loss the facile and crass Australian F1 Grand Prix racks up. How far would A$50M go to upgrade CFA equipment? Far further than a F1 race, I reckon. And that’s but one year of government F1 profligacy.

P.S. I’m blessed to be a volunteer firefighter in the Tasmanian Fire Service whose brigades are all well, but not extravagantly, resourced to do our job.

This week's compendium

Here’s this week’s compendium. This week…

1. talking about the Australian F1 Grand Prix, this article says it’s ‘surrounded by…the ocean’ [1]. It’s a lake, stupid. Stick to selling Cheap Used Cars.

2. Concord Massachusetts, where Walden Pond is, became the first US town/city to ban bottled water sales [2a]. Last September Bundanoon in NSW became the first town in the world to do it [2b].

3. the newly crowned Miss America – 24-year-old Arab American Rima Fakih, a Lebanese immigrant – was shown to have strong family links to Hezbollah [3a, 3b]. A Hezbollah official commented ‘The criteria through which we evaluate women are different from those of the west [3c]’. Yessir.

4. in the NSW parliament, a private member’s bill to ban the burqa on grounds of security and women’s rights, was voted down [4a]. That’s not stopping France, though [4b].

5. the Get-Fit Guy told us what to eat before, during and after exercise [5]. It’s practical and thus useful advice.

6. aiming for everyone to borrow or lend everything [6a], along came thingloop.com [6b]. It extends the concept of sharedearth.com which I wrote about last week [6c].

7. darling Emily alerted me to this wonderful blog site mapping feral fruit trees in Melbourne [7]. She said the site made her think of me. Why so, I wonder.

8. Sweetheart Vivienne spent the week at Varuna, the Writers’ House, in the Blue Mountains [8a]. I hope she did justice to the god Varuna [8b].

Finally, I wish you, dear Farmdoc’s Blog readers, a wonderful week.

The Hon (?) Jeff Kennett

Today I write of aggression, provocation, arrogance, disgust, hypocrisy, dishonesty, contempt, immorality and despisal:

Twenty months ago I wrote of Jeff Kennett – the Honourable Jeff Kennett though I know of nothing honourable about him – and how he aggressively, provocatively, arrogantly and disgustingly orchestrated the subjugation of Albert Park, one of inner Melbourne’s oldest and most loved and used public parks, into a car racing track [1]. He shrugged off all criticism. Indeed he verbally attacked and threatened anti-GP protesters. Me included.

From 11-16 April in Melbourne, there’s an international conference titled Healthy Parks Healthy People [2]. And, stone the crows, guess who’s the opening Keynote Speaker? Why the self-same Hon Jeff Kennett, Chairman of beyondblue: the national depression initiative [3]. Kennett said: ‘…parks and open spaces are no longer simply about recreation – they are about enhancing the mental health and wellbeing of the community. Parks play a vital role in providing space for exercise and physical activity, which is important for the management and prevention of depression and anxiety. They are also a hub of community activity – facilitating social connectedness and inclusion’ [4].

Wowee. What a hypocrite Kennett is. His dishonesty, contemptuousness and immorality are breathtaking. Like Tracee Hutchison [5] ‘I despise the man and everything he represents’. He disgusts me. He’s an insightless buffoon. I don’t wish him well.

Greg Baum - you're My Man.

Have you ever watched paint dry? Or grass grow? If so, you’ve done something infinitely more interesting and edifying than viewing F1 motor racing. There’s little that’s more brain numbing than observing noisy wheeled billboards driven repetitiously in a circle. So unsurprisingly the main story of the Australian F1 Grand Prix eight days ago wasn’t the race. Rather it was an F1 driver – Mr Hamilton, a Briton – doing a burnout [1] in a sponsor’s Mercedes, on a public street. The police impounded the car but neither charged nor fined Hamilton. Another F1 driver – Mr Webber, an Australian – leapt to Hamilton’s defence by calling Victoria a ‘Nanny State’ because it has too many rules and regulations, adding he’s ashamed whenever he returns here. Also leaping to Hamilton’s defence was Australian Grand Prix Corporation chairman Mr Walker who dismissed Hamilton’s burnout as youthful exuberance. To me, that the police didn’t treat Hamilton as they would’ve you or me had we done what he did, is another deplorable abrogation of the Rule of Law [2]. The whole saga’s beautifully summed up in a piece [3] in last Saturday’s Age by Greg Baum (pictured) [4, 5]. Hard-hitting, incisive, acerbic journalism laced with irony’s always a delight to read. It’s infinitely more interesting and edifying than watching paint dry or grass grow – let alone F1 car racing. Very well done, Mr Baum. I hereby add you to my list of favourite journalists [6, 7, 8].

The virgin, the genius and the robot

It’s coincidental, but synchronous, that yesterday’s Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix occurred in the same 24-hour period as EH10. Environmentally the GP and EH10 are diametrically opposed. Yet governments compete to host a car race that’s ruinous to their credibility on global warming and climate change. Maybe their focus groups show that punters don’t, or can’t, connect the dots. It’s all stupid. Talking of stupid, though F1 holds itself out to be at the automotive technology’s cutting edge, three days ago the geniuses in Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Racing team discovered their cars’ fuel tanks were 13 litres too small for the cars to complete the race without refuelling. Ho hum.
Talking of geniuses, as I wrote here I’ve long been captivated by robots; and I’ve admired the people who make them. Tonight’s the first Seder – the ceremonial dinner that starts the Jewish festival of Passover. An important element in the ceremony is Ma Nishtana, i.e. the asking of four key questions. Traditionally the youngest person present asks these questions. Tonight I’m not hosting or attending a Seder. I’ll be alone, and so the youngest person here. I won’t say, or sing, Ma Nishtana; but I’ll play this YouTube clip – courtesy of the geniuses in the Research and Development Institute for Intelligent Robotic Systems, Computer Science Department, The College of Management Academic Studies. COMAS is Israel’s leading academic college. This clip shows why. Happy Passover to you.

farmdoc's blog post number 699

Here’s this week’s compendium. This week…

1. Greenpeace Australia published a helpful analysis of the sustainability of various canned tuna brands [1]. Unless buyers take note, in a few years there’ll be no tuna for anyone to eat.

2. Nutrition Diva wrote that healthy people can eat up to two whole eggs a day without any negative effect on their cholesterol levels or heart disease risk [2]. It’s amazing how the previous medical advice – to the contrary – could have been so wrong.

3. the BMJ reported that sexual activity, quality of sexual life, and interest in sex were positively associated with health in middle age and later life [3]. It’s a chicken-and-egg situation. Do healthier people have more and better sex, or does sex make people healthier?

4. JournalWATCH reported that long-term mortality among live kidney donors was similar to that in healthy controls [4] There was a increase in post-operative mortality among the donors. But it was tiny.

5. Sweetheart Vivienne alerted me to a NYT article concluding PSA (i.e. prostate specific antigen) testing’s useless to detect prostate cancer [5]. Hmmm. Interesting. I’ll ponder it for a while, I think.

6. using six criteria, Greenopia rated BP the greenest oil company [6]. Not many of the companies listed operate in Australia. Anyway BP’s the best of them. Shell was fourth.

7. the Herald-Sun reported that Australian F1 Grand Prix organisers lied by saying the 2009 event’s twilight timing produced a massive increase in TV watchers [7]. Question: How do you know when a GP organiser lies? Answer: When he speaks.

8. indeed today, is darling Emily's birthday [8]. I love her more today than I did on her previous birthday. Much more.

Finally, I wish you, dear Farmdoc’s Blog readers, a wonderful week.

farmdoc's blog post number 681

Last Sunday night Sweetheart Vivienne and I watched, the 2-part Australian Story titled ‘Something in the Water’. Originally screened on ABC TV last month, it can be streamed from here [1, 2]. It’s about water pollution in north east Tasmania [3]. I found it riveting – partly due to the focus and persistence of Drs Bleaney and Scammell. But much more so due to the nay saying – no, antipathy – by politicians and bureaucrats who have clearly lost sight of the fact that their only raison d'être is to serve the Tasmanian public interest. I should’ve known better. I learnt the lesson years ago that politicians and bureaucrats march to a different drum. From 1996 when the first F1 Grand Prix [F1GP] was held in a subjugated Albert Park, it’s been obvious to the proverbial drover’s dog that the event in that location’s a triple-bottom-line disaster. And it always would be. Years ago Save Albert Park advocated a purpose-built state-of-the-art permanent venue. Our proposal fell on deaf political, bureaucratic and media ears. In fact it was met with scorn. Until now [4]. Why the change? I don’t know; but 2010’s an election year. Of course now even a permanent venue’s anachronistic – because in this peak oil era, motor sport’s immoral and antisocial. In any event (pun intended) judging by this Herald-Sun item [5], you can’t rely on Premier Brumby or F1GP boss Walker (pictured) to make wise decisions in the public interest. I don’t.

farmdoc's blog post number 678

Here’s this week’s compendium. This week…

1. Torah Bright won Australia’s first gold medal at the Vancouver Winter Olympics [1]. Funny that – I thought Torah Bright was an evangelical Jewish sect.

2. talking of Olympic medals, the Vancouver Winter Olympics is the first Olympics whose medals contain recycled materials, i.e. gold, silver and copper from recycled e-waste [2]. Well done, Canada.

3. a mere month before the event, Qantas was announced as the naming rights sponsor for the 2010 Australian F1 Grand Prix [3]. Where the bloody hell have you been until now, Qantas?

4. I read that cat food has been successfully used to control cane toads – by attracting carnivorous meat ants that eat and kill baby toads [4]. Will the ants follow the toads – which themselves were originally introduced as a biological control – and become a major environmental scourge?

5. I came across this fascinating article about how love improves health [5]. I’ve been in love with Sweetheart Vivienne for over 45 years; and I’m healthy for my age. QED.

6. this paper describes methods of muscle cramp prevention [6]. It says quinine’s effective but unsafe; and vitamin B may be the best bet. It doesn’t mention corks in the bed.

7. I read this report of the promising early results of using paracetamol to help prevent heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis and some cancers [7]. It may be the next wonder drug, but the article cautions that paracetamol is now Australia’s commonest cause of liver failure, having passed hepatitis and alcohol.

8. Darling Indigo, on her blog, offered ‘Indi’s random giveaway’. Coco the wombat [8a, 8b] hopes she'll win.

Finally, I wish you, dear Farmdoc’s Blog readers, a wonderful week.

farmdoc's blog post number 675

The State of Victoria has fixed 4-year electoral terms. Thus, unless the 2010 Federal election’s held on Saturday 27 November, this’ll be the date of the next Victorian election. That’s about eight months after the Sunday 28 March date of the 2010 Australian F1 Grand Prix – which is a mere 32 days from today. Last Saturday Peter Logan, media officer of Save Albert Park, kindly copied me in on his letter to State and Federal politicians. I’ve edited his letter thus:

The Grand Prix problems for Victoria are getting worse. With the costs out of control and the loss of the naming rights sponsor, we’ll be hearing more about this problem in this election year. Since it came to Victoria in 1996, the event has clocked up an operating loss each year, to a total of A$204.36M. The GP Corporation’s annual reports show, damningly, that the taxpayer costs far exceed the reported operating losses. Save Albert Park claims total taxpayer support of the 2009 F1 Grand Prix alone was A$86.6M.

What an economic disaster the Australian F1 GP is. Environmental and social too. And the cruellest irony is that the politicians continue to obliviously shrug off rational criticism and obliviously hype the event up. It’d be Grand if the voters got rid of these Prix come 27 November. But I’m too old and wise to think they will, The Wisdom of Crowds notwithstanding. Ho hum.

farmdoc's blog post number 664

Here’s this week’s compendium. This week…

1. with the 2010 Australian F1 Grand Prix only 43 days away, the GP Corporation announced that the rock group Simple Minds will play concerts at this year’s event [1]. I rest my case.

2. with the race only 43 days away and sans naming rights sponsor, a hero of mine, Kevin Summers, offered A$3,000 for the naming rights – to plug a play he’s directing. He’s not heard back yet. [2] Surely three grand’s better than nothing. Shame on you, GP Corp. But go, Kev!

3. Nutrition Diva explained how to know that the fish fillets you buy are fresh and healthy, and how to thaw frozen fish without it turning to mush [3]. Sounds sensible to me.

4. UK peer Baroness Tonge said Israel should set up an inquiry to disprove allegations that its medical teams in Haiti harvested organs of earthquake victims for use in transplants [4a, 4b]. The anti-Israel Baroness beggars belief. But the Elder Of Ziyon has the perfect solution [4c].

5. I read two articles about anti-Israel bias infecting medical journals [5a, 5b]. Wouldn't it be a great idea if medical journals wrote about medicine.

6. a research study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine showed that Australian GPs rarely follow guidelines when managing new episodes of low back pain [6a, 6b]. Ho hum.

7. it was reported that three Australian mining companies, i.e. Newmont Mining (ranked third), Rio Tinto (fourth) and BHP Billiton (tenth), were in the top-ten most controversial companies in the world last year [7]. Ho hum again.

8. the Events section of Sweetheart Vivienne’s website’s been filling up [8]. And there’s more in the pipeline. When will I ever see her?

Finally, I wish you, dear Farmdoc’s Blog readers, a wonderful week.

farmdoc's blog post number 622

Here’s this week’s compendium. This week…

1. the F1 blogosphere was awash (can a blogosphere be awash?) with posts about the Australian Grand Prix being without a naming rights sponsor 2½ months before this year’s event [1]. All indicators point to the event being moribund – if not dead. But the government continues its life support. Why?

2. in last Sunday’s Sunday Age, its production editor, a Mr Coulter, wrote an article advocating buses to replace Melbourne’s trams [2]. As you didn’t mention the buses’ fuel, your view is not worth the paper it’s written on, sir.

3. this Age piece confirmed the benefit of businesses having easy-to-remember phone numbers [3]. They’re useful for individuals too. Mine ends in 1230.

4. Nutrition Diva wrote that frozen vegetables lose little nutritional value during freezing; and in the off-season they may be more nutritious than fresh vegies from far away [4]. What about the packaging?

5. this ABC News item tells of 1,300 people – labelling them ‘peace activists’ – who are in Egypt hoping to cross into Gaza to protest against Israel’ economic blockade of Gaza [5]. What – no mention of Gilad Shalit? How very convenient of these bleeding heart do-gooders to overlook the Hamas’s barbarian treatment of him, let alone its stated aim of eliminating a UN member state. A pox on all 1,300 of them.

6. treehugger.com put up an item about San Francisco offering free water to the public [6]. It’s happening, PJ. Not yet at the global tipping point, but every step’s one step towards it. Roll on, GlobalTap.

7. also in treehugger was a story of a group of girls in northern England who’ve started a campaign to make bicycling stylish for girls – who are under represented among cyclists [7]. This is one for you, Meg. Roll on, BikeBeauty.

8. yesterday my fellow Mole Creek resident Pete the Maremma [8] turned seven years old. Happy birthday, Petey Boy. Mate.

Finally, I wish you, dear Farmdoc’s Blog readers, a wonderful week – and year.

farmdoc's blog post number 618

Worms. There are two types of them: good worms (e.g. earthworms. Isn’t the Daylesford Organics one in the photograph a beauty) and bad ones (e.g. computer worms, tapeworms, ringworms). You’ve probably heard of the aphorism ‘even a worm will turn’. It comes from this line in Shakespeare’s Henry VI: ‘The smallest worm will turn being trodden on’. Whilst that line and the aphorism refer to turning from good to bad, meek to angry, there’s no rational reason why a worm can’t turn the other way. Enter stage right the Institute of Public Affairs. The IPA calls itself ‘an independent, non-profit public policy think tank, dedicated to preserving and strengthening the foundations of economic and political freedom’. I call it right wing. In 1992 when that right winger Jeff Kennett became Victorian premier, his legislative program was implemented so fast it must’ve been pre-planned. And I’ll bet the IPA, for all its self-proclaimed independence, was a prime mover. Including poaching the F1 Grand Prix from Adelaide in 1993, as the jewel in the crown of Kennett’s major events strategy. I’ve known from day one that this strategy’s a dud. But it’s taken the IPA 16 years to hear the penny drop. This article in last Sunday’s SMH is evidence it has. Reverting to the original metaphor, the IPA worm has turned. Surely now, finally, the days of the Grand Prix in Albert Park are numbered. Surely.

farmdoc's blog post number 608

Here’s this week’s compendium. This week…
1. Federal environment Minister Peter Garrett used emergency powers to heritage list the Tarkine Wilderness in north-west Tasmania because it’s a place of outstanding natural and cultural heritage value [1]. The moronic Tasmanian government still wants to build a A$23M tourist road through it.
2. it was announced that biodegradable plastic bags will be used at the 2010 Australian F1 Grand Prix and will help make it a ‘Green Event’ [2]. What’s that hot, brown, steamy stuff that comes out of the back end of bulls?
3. the Medical Journal of Australia [MJA] reported that some people are more violent and exhibit `werewolf' tendencies during a full moon [3]. The next full moon’s on New Year's Eve, so it won’t be a true test.
4. the MJA also published research showing that the faster you tear off a Band-Aid, the less it hurts. Also women reported less pain so doing than men. [4] Doesn’t bother me because my wife and daughters have made me an honorary woman.
5. in yet more medical news, a Queensland study reveals that using sunscreen is cost effective in preventing cancer [5]. Yep.
6. the Australia Institute reported that in 2009, Australia’s big four banks made a combined profit of A$35.1B. In other words, for every dollar spent in Australia, three cents went into bank profits. [6] Yet the banks have the temerity to raise interest rates on their loans by almost double the recent Reserve Bank’s 0.25% rise. Bastards.
7. Grammar Girl reminds us that the ‘X’ in ‘Xmas’ has a religious origin, and is not merely replacing Christ with an X [7]. Ho hum.
8. happy 42nd wedding anniversary today to my Sweetheart Vivienne (and me). Also to Gavin and Orly on your 7th.
Finally, I wish you, dear Farmdoc’s Blog readers, a wonderful week.

farmdoc's blog post number 605

Wikipedia calls The Monthly an Australian national magazine of politics, society and the arts, which is published monthly [1]. I’m unsure when I started subscribing to it, but it wasn’t long after it was founded in 2005. Over the years I’ve found most of its articles interesting. And some, including Richard Flanagan’s ‘Out of Control: the Tragedy of Tasmania’s Forests’ [2] outstanding. I’ve generally agreed with The Monthly's line on politics, social issues and the environment. And judging by its advertising, I’m the sort of person it aims itself at. But all this is now in the past tense. Not because The Monthly’s gone out of business, but two days ago I cancelled my subscription. Why? Due to the pictured advertisement (click on it to enlarge it) which appears on page 7 of the current issue (and, ironically, two pages after a full-page ad for Toyota’s Prius). Whilst I’m a more tolerant and mellow fellow than I’ve been in the past, there’s still a fair bit I can’t hack. And subscribing to a magazine that publishes an ad for an event which is economically, environmentally, socially and democratically irresponsible, is most definitely beyond the pale. So as actions engender consequences: The Monthly advertised the F1 Grand Prix, therefore I cancelled my subscription. I’ve emailed them telling them why I cancelled my subscription. Will it make any difference to them? I doubt it. But I feel good about what I did. And anyway, I can only do what one person can do [3].

farmdoc's blog post number 580

Due to a lightning strike yesterday morning, I have no internet connection. The Bigpond technician’s coming next Tuesday. I hope he’ll fix it then. So for the next few days, Farmdoc’s Blog posts will be irregular. Sorry.
Here’s this week’s compendium – without links. This week…
1. former Victorian Premier Jeffrey Gibb Kennett who hijacked the F1 Grand Prix to Melbourne, said WA Premier Colin Barnett should forget about importing big events and focus on promoting ‘organic’ events such as garden shows. I’m sure Kennett hasn’t had an epiphany. Rather they’ll be some undisclosed benefit to him for saying what he said.
2. I learnt that cast-iron cookware can react with liquid and/or acidic foods like tomato sauce, to leach small amounts of iron into the food. Thus, cooking in cast iron can increase your iron intake. This is especially good for vegetarians – whose diets tend to be low in iron.
3. Greg Combet, the Minister Assisting the Minister for Climate Change, spoke in inspirational terms about one of the big problems facing Australia: ‘We should not ignore the demanding nature of this project, which will require every bit of scientific, technological and industrial capacity that Australia can muster’. Unfortunately he wasn’t speaking of global warming and climate change, but of Australia’s need to spend tens of billions of dollars over the next two decades building 12 new submarines. Ho hum.
4. I came across a ‘new’ word that I can only call an abomination: ‘webinar’, meaning a seminar that’s sent out simultaneously by teleconference and webcast. Ho hum again.
5. talking of new words still, I read that the New Oxford American Dictionary says the word of 2009 is ‘unfriend’- which is a verb meaning ‘to remove someone as a 'friend' on a social networking site such as Facebook’. Ho hum yet again.
6. I read that acidic liquids such as lemon juice and carbonated drinks can wear away your tooth enamel. To prevent this, you should drink them with a straw, or follow the drink by chewing sugarless gum. Or if you want to brush your teeth straight after the drink, swish your mouth out with water first. Makes sense to me.
7. indeed last Friday, I took delivery of another wombat, courtesy of Angela and Anna who brought her up from near Hobart. Her name’s Precious. So far, she’s settling in well. All wombats are precious.
8. I was overjoyed to kiss and hug darling Indigo on her ninth birthday. I can’t express in words how wonderful that felt to me.
Finally, I wish you, dear Farmdoc’s Blog readers, a wonderful week. (And for myself? A restored internet connection, of course.)