Ink:Handle with care

Catoon by Alen Lauzan Falcon, Santiago, Chile












I've been wanting to talk about the Satanic cartoons controversy but I have to admit I'm scared.
So is most of the free press.
It wasn't Big Bro that brought them down but Big Mo'(PBAH).
I want to support our Princess Mary.
She gave up nice quiet Tasmania for the number one holiday destination for suicide bombers.
I've been to Denmark and it's a cool place.
They have a free state called Kristiana where anything goes.
It's insane to think a whole country should be targeted because of what a few people scribbled on a piece of paper.
Heres a debate on whether an Islamic state is compatable with democracy. I think the neo cons might have read this.But then why did they think they could spread democracy though the Middle East?
Heres what the Malaysian PM thinks.
Heres another point of view
Heres a moderate Arab voice.
The cartoons arent actually funny,you can find them at Wikipedia and it was deliberately provocative to publish them.
The strange thing is these cartoons appeared in October in Cairo but nobody got upset then.
Theres a lot we in the west don't understand about Islam.
Certainly the whole thing has made being a cartoonist a more interesting profession.
Does God bless free speech?
Maybe we should keep Him/Her out of the arguement!
I'm off to play with my Lego set .....after I finish eating my falafel roll.

Dessicated like Bourke and Wills

Went bushwalking with brother J and Frankie who's over here from Ireland.
Went from Waterfall to ulaloo falls,5 kms of easy if hot walking.
We stop at the falls which have stopped due to lack of water.
Have a bite to eat and carry on.
The sun comes out from behind the clouds.
We follow the track which suddenly dissapears.
Where has it gone ?
We start to augue .
It's stupidly brainfryingly hot.
My companions don't have proper hats.
J wants to backtrack.
We bush bash around looking for the track,paranoid we'll step on a snake.
A mild panic is setting in.
We follow the ridge back to the falls.
Dive into the water.
Rest and discuss if we should try again .
We head off down the same track which dissapears again.
We bush bash down into the gully for 3 hours.
Looking for footprints or a sign of humans.
We soak in small pools totally cooked.
This is how Burke and Wills felt, two Australian explorers who died in the desert.
Eventually we find our way to Karloo Pool which is beautiful and cool.
We walk out in the twilight,burnt and sweating, desperately thirsty.
We had a map and a compass and still we got lost.
I havent been lost for a while, it is a scarey feeling.
Panic comes from the Greek God Pan who waited to confuse people in the forest.
Thank you Mr Pan. Thank you Mr Sol.
A most exhausting but hard core day.

The wests secret weapon- football

People are starting to wake up to the prospect that we may be heading down the slippery slope towards another coalition of the killing,this time all steam ahead to sunny Persia.
Sanctions may actually hurt the west more than the sanctioned.
Coz the loss of the fourth biggest producer of oil could send the price of the stuff skyrocketing.
I can actually see why Iran might want the big stick seeing as the country next door got invaded.
Anyway it seems we have a secret weapon-football or soccer as it is called here in Australia.
Read these Iranian blogs
As well as coming across as.... well normal people worried about their shonky leaders, a lot of them are worried about being excluded from the world cup because of restarting the nuclear research.
Football is bigger than anything it seems and rightly so.
It's an international language.
The language of the boot.
This time lets forget the killing an destruction and just have a bit of kick around of a the ball eh?

What hit me?

Thanks for the great night out.
Thanks for the bottle of red.
Thanks for making sure I stayed sober and an outstanding example to you all.
Enjoyed the toasts and the food and especially singing White wedding.
You gotta love Billy Idol.
Hope you all made it home OK.
Hope you find peace and happiness.
Or at least a good hangover cure.
I'm not drinking for a while.
I'm not very good at it.
That's not a very Australian thing to admit.
Went to Hustville and saw the lion dance or the dragon dance I'm not sure which.
Those guys are amazing, jumping from pole to pole dressed in an animal suit.
Very young too
Should take this op to wish a properous and faithful year of the dog to everyone.
I hope it is a good dog and doesn't chew anyones slippers or dig holes in the garden or anything else naughty dogs do.

The end of the affair

Citizens
Some of you may have noticed beneath my fastidious nature, military planning skills, attention to formalities and personal hygiene is the glimmer of a soft centre.
I may seem hard and unapproachable but deep deep down I am a quite sensitive fellow.Really.
So most times as I near the end of a relationship I start to reflect and ponder and get a little misty eyed.
I have met some lovely young people,shared some stories, had a laugh, showed them some tricks of the trade and sent them off into the world to who knows where.
Hopefully I have a positive effect.
Hopefully I am on the side of good.
Hopefully I might make a small difference to some one.
Maybe opened their eyes to some things.
Probably not for all, or even most but a few.
I know I had teachers like that who helped a little, made me entertain some possibilities, sheparded me towards........
Anyway I now have to put my service medals back on my chest and get into some serious marking.
How do you mark a blog?
Frequency is important.
Depth also.
Information?
Links, you need them.
Readability?
How about grammar and spelling?
Or creative use of the English language?
How about an original voice?
That's a lot to ask I know but there have been glimmers, little peeks of what might be.
Do you agree that the blog is king? Or at least something important?
It's certainly a great way to teach and get insights into peoples minds/lives.
I hope you got through the work load without stomach ulcers and that you get the marks you need to do what you want to do, be what what you want to be .
Occasionally pop into this blog, drop me a line, tell me you new book/film/expose/podcast is coming out and make me smile.
Untill then back to the marking.

Give me Liberty or give me shopping

Well we survived the silly season and it wasn't so bad.
Almost got caught in the bushfires on the hottest day of the year (although it's very early to make that claim).
Only a couple of weeks left to complete this pocasting /blogging module.
Heard of John Pilger? Heres an interesting read from the man who continues to be a thorn in the side of Governments and the media.Love him or loath him? He is a dedicated and persistant journo who exists on the margin.He talks of the Death of freedom.
Thought you might as well have a link to another interesting writer,George Monbiot.Here he talks aboutthe struggle against ourselves which may put you off shopping for a nano second, then again maybe not....
Still want more?
Probably not coz your all busy doing amazing podcasts but
Persons interested in democracy should check this out.
The American founding fathers should be an inspiration to us all.
Thom Hartman has a scary rasp on our rights as humans. If you are human.
Will Thomas Jefferson or Benjamin Franklin please reincarnate?
Before the next election?
Stuck on an investment decision?
Try investment blogs.
And if your still stuck for a blog to examine try the worlds bestblogs.In their opinion anyway.
And now for the fluffy animal story........
Whoops sorry got things mixed up...Here is the fluffy animal story
See you in class citizens!

Did I ever like Xmas?

Hope you are all looking forward to a relaxed time with family or friends or your pets or whatever.
I lost the vibe for christmas some time ago, about the same time I realised Sea Monkeys were just tiny prawny things.
Of course it is a confused festival down under.
Christmas or Yule or whatever just doesn't make sense in the horrible heat.
Yes I am Captain Bah Humbug.
Fake snow,Christmas lights, fake pine trees, overeating, overdrinking,boring racist relatives, shopping centres on sterioids, it drives me insane.
This year I bought a crate of champagne and that is it.
Everyone gets one even the kids.
It's quality stuff dont worry.
Santa of course is evil as any one who has seen "silent night deadly night" will know. I'm not recommending you do.
Anyway enjoy your time off.
Heres a stupid game to get Santa off his faceand on the floor
Heres a sickly sweet one for ya
too.
And be nice to people and your credit card.
And don't eat the fake snow.

Living in a Westside story

Well....
Looks like we aren't in for a summer of love this silly season.
We Sydneyites are in for our own version of Westside story.
We even have the Sharks.
Unfortunately I fear it won't stop until someone is push off this mortal coil.
Racism and hatred are very hard to get back in the bottle once they have been let out., and boy are they out.
But it is nearly all young men I believe having the same turf war they have always had.
Unfortunatly there are some other salts in the wound.
Osama,Tampa,gang rape,Bali,Alan Jones and The patriotic youth league and lets not forget the media who have endlessly publicised the whole thing.
And they will sell more papers over this dull time for news.
Which makes me wonder is there reallyless news over Xmas or is it just that Journos are all on holiday?
On a lighter note did you see Podcast was voted word of the
year?
I was slightly ahead of my time? or am I now passe.
Maye I should change my nom de plume to Peter Podjackas this seems to be the next little thing!
Untill we pod again.
Peter

Who let the Blog Monster out?

I have tried to maintain some discretion between my work at various institutions and my other lifes.
Which i admit is counter to the spirit of blogging I know.
I talked my brother who is a international cult rock star (at least to my Mum) into starting his own blog and although he was dubious has now declared it to be a wonderful thing.
He is posting every day, long poetic, silly, touching entries that I really enjoy reading.
And so do his fans.
And they have all started blogging too.
I wont be advertising his site though coz I don't want my secret identity to be revealed.:-)
By Google I reckon at least 100 people have been infected through me.
Should I get vacinated?
My little doco may be on in Federation Sq in Melbourne which is a little exciting.
Must show it to the class with popcorn an jaffas.
Blog ye well.

Why rainy days are best

Yesterday just teemed down and I remembered how great that is for getting stuff done.
I worked all day at my friend Micheals studio, trying to finish off some tracks for the Karmic Hit christmas give away. Did some good work with no crashes or stuff ups but am feeling a little tired today.
This is why Melbourne is a much more inducive to artistic endevour.
Final week for my Music business students. They have to hand in assignments and practical work for marking.Will be sad to see them go as always.
Hopefully my afternoon podcasters had a successful time out in the field with no mishaps.(It's my butt on the line).
Here is a little article on a sound designer for computer games.
Students with more than one blog might want to check out super glue
This will get you thinking. Seems 90% of students in NSW selective schools are from a non english background. Mostly from China and Korea. Are Asian students are just more motivated? Less distracted and focused on the game? If your parents are working non stop to put you through school you have do your best.
And make your mark.

My son stole my bandwidth

Yes that's my lame excuse for not posting this week.
I have a 7 year old son who hogs the computer. He trades neopets, which is suposed to be like the stock market. I guess theres a slim chance he might be learning how to make a fortune but I'm not sure. I watched the bandwidth dissapear until it ground to a crawl.
So I had to cough up to get extra. The joys of parenting.
Have you seen Kiss Kiss Bang Bang yet?
It is hilarious in a way that you might think I shouldn't be laughing at this but....
Also saw The Corpse Bride which is macabre and heartwarming at the same time.
There are two interesting movies about to be released.Heres a review. Oil and suicide bombers theres a link there somewhere.
Heres a great blog about blogging.
Apparently there is now a trade show for podcasters.
Also the rules for gathering an audience. Which we should all take note of....
A good podcast should have
• Truth rather than dishonesty
• Goodness rather than evil
• Beauty
• Unity
• Aliveness
• Uniqueness
• Perfection
• Simplicity
• Richness
• Effortlessness
• Playfulness
• Meaningfulness
• Passion
Is that aiming too high?
We create our own reality. Ask any quantum physicist.

Whoops No World!

I read a lot of interesting news stories that are really quite grim.
I guess I am a little like the guy watching the aftermath of a car accident, I just can't help myself.
On the other hand grim stories are easy to find.
Heres an example.
Seems like the Amazon is drying up which is a real worry seeing as it's the largest source of fresh water in the world.
I find the idea of manatees and fresh water dolphins drying out on a river bank deeply disturbing.
Pass me another world waiter this ones dry.
If you thought blogging was for only for panty waists, geeks and girly men, then check this out.
Seems the riots/revolution in France is being provoked by bloggers.
Yes bloggers are the new pamphleteers.
In China there is a sexual Blogalution going on apparently.
Young and not so young ladies command huge audiences telling all about their loorve lifes.
I don't think thats an angle I can take regretably.

We have an Audio Kit or two

Yes tomorrow we will gather up news stories from the dirty streets of harbour town.
Our fearless cub reporters will be out in force. No story is too big or too scarey.
We will break open pandora's box, stir up the hornet's nest and empty the can of worms onto the table to be sliced and diced with Audacity.Karen Silkwood would be proud of us as we leave no stone unturned in our search for truth and justice and a free counter meal.

Bandicoots lurk in my backyard

The other day I discovered termites in the laundry. I thought I better call the landlord before the house fell over.
He turned up with the pest control man, a big friendly
Samoan .
My landlord is a little bit.........gone. At least something has left him and he can ask you the same question 3 or 4 times.
He was freaking out about the termites and I said "You know there are bandicoots living in this backyard (which is quite rare).
He looked horrorfied."Oh no we'll have to get rid of them too." He looked fearfully around the backyard like they might pounce on him. I don't know if he had bandicoots confused with another animal like saltwater crocodiles.
I try to convince him bandicoots were cute and furry and almost extinct but he would have none of it, he could sense their evil presence. They seem harmless and shy to me but maybe I should be more careful in future.

Mice sing in ultrasonic sqeaks

This is quite amazing,seems male mice compose complex songs to sing to potential mates.
You can't HEAR them except if they are pitched down.
That's because they sing in ultrasound.
This is no april fools Joke.
There is another world beyond our senses.
Or maybe many worlds.
We just can't quite reach it.

Bring your flipping Headphones

Hope you all remember to bring some headphones.
They have promised me that our equipment will arrive soon but who knows, nevertheless we will be getting stuck into Audacity this class.
I've had a traumatic week so I must give apologies for my tardy entries.
Saw a great film last night"Crash" all about race relations in America.
A very clever film. No one is what they seem. Your assumptions are challenged all the time.
Just when you thought Hollywood was a rotten carcass along comes something fresh and tasty.
This is more of a concern. Looks like Australia might not roll over so quickly.
What were they were thinking......
Trying to put through some very very important legislation on Melbourne cup day. Were they hoping we'd all be too drunk to notice........

Here is a interesting thing

Here is a link to a great story on the battle for control of the internet.

The real meaning of the word Idiot.

Now correct me if I'm wrong but the original meaning of the word idiot ( which comes from Ancient Greece) is one who is only interested in private life ie one who plays no part in Democracy. The Greeks were big on democracy, at least for men.
Unfortunately women had to wait another 2500 years or so.
Just thought that was interesting.
Also interesting is the fact Idiot box is slang for TV.

There are interesting winds blowing in Washington at the moment.
Seems there may have been a conspiracy to silence a diplomat who was investigating forged documents used to justify the war in Iraq.
You can read about it HERE
Also some interesting reactions to Australia's anti-terror laws.
Humour is used in this one.
Who are we fighting this week Oceania?
Thats a reference to your favourite book Winston.
I was going to quote a section but decided it would scare my meagre audience.

The week end went quickly as it always does.
I made a feeble attempt to clear some privett from the future rainforest opposite my house.
I didn't get any ticks which totally love me so that was good.
Met my new niece (see below). She had the most bewitching eyes.Seemed to like me.
Of course new borns can't really see much so she might change her mind when her eyesight improves.
May the farce be with you.

Teaching and meetings and meetings about teaching

Teachers have to go to a lot of meetings and they have to learn a lot of acronyms too.
They also have to deal with a lot of curriculum commisioned by managment and written by people who seem ill qualified.
You get music courses written by plumbers and other strange mismatching.
Don't worry Winston this course is being written by moi.
And I am a hopeless plumber although I made plum jam once.
I dont think it set.
I must link to this early Blog for a good description of what a blog is.
One of my film students asked me to be in his film, being a homeless person.
I had to decline, not that there is anything wrong with the part but I can't spare the time.
Secretly of course I am a closet actor so I should jump at the part but my agent said I should wait for a better offer.
Strangley I scored the part of a doctor just minutes later which I said I'd think about.
It was almost a delicate situation which I handled with utmost indiscetion.
I wish I was better at telling lies.
So off to more meetings tommorrow, better practise some fibbing skills.

Big Brother is not a TV show

Well check this out.
Want to check your email?
Seems like Winston isn't a flatmate in a silly TV show.
Seems he might have been Italian.
Get a identity less yahoo mailbox now before it's too late.
All over the world Government are cracking down a supposed threat.
I'm feeling deja vu.
Perhaps those disinclined to check out 1984 the movie could have a look at
This

Lastly a great speech from the editor of Harpers Magazine
Ignorance is strength,comrade.