Binnsy's Hovel

Just a very short post to let you all in on the unfortunate tidings that I am still breathing. Though barely. How god damn hot is it? Seriously! Even now! It’s 9:28pm and I’m sweating. I have no idea what the world is coming to.

I may not be posting very much in the next few days for a number of reasons, which I will outline below:

• I have a Religion assignment due in a few weeks.
• I have a piano examination this Thursday.
• I have a Maths test this Thursday (calculus is shit).
• I have to write up a proposal for my English Extension II story, due next week.
• I want to spend the least amount of time possible in this God-forsaken computer room, given that at the moment my CPU temperature is in excess of 34ºC. My personal hypothesis is that ‘room temperature’ is around 36-37ºC.

In other news the only thing I did that remotely resembled a link with current affairs was look at the front page of the newspaper, flip over the back page and figure out that the 9-letter word was ‘ANIMATION’. I then proceeded to return the newspaper to its prior state and go back to sleep.

Which at the moment sounds really good. So I’ll be off to bed now (My room is air-conditioned. This is a good thing.).

Fare thee well, soldiers of the Wilderland (NB: When I am hot, I get delirious.).

Until next time…

UPDATE: Check out the “Patriotic Youth League” link in the sidebar. This makes me a little cautious about supporting the Eureka flag. Pfft. Stuff these weirdos. At least I know what I stand for.

Go the Aussies. Top effort, that. A bloody hot weekend, though. I was amused to see someone in the crowd at the Adelaide Oval holding up a sign that said ‘Please Rain’. I think most Sydney-siders agreed with that sentiment.

I had a discussion with some random family member this morning about John Howard and the ongoing debacle regarding his reluctance to sign the ASEAN agreement. After hearing the related news item on the radio, I said that I didn’t agree with the fact that Johnny seems oh-so-eager to run off and sign something with Dubya, but sees our Asian neighbours as less worthy of such attention. Said family member rebutted by saying that Johnny’s reluctance is well-founded because of the increasing terrorist threat, radical religious factions, illegal immigration and illicit drug imports. This is fair enough, but I reckon that if we don’t sign the ASEAN agreement, these issues will only increase in magnitude. Take terrorism. Admittedly if we’re part of the ASEAN network, we’re a target. But newsflash, we’re a target anyway. Sydney just upgraded their water police system by a sum of about $27 million. That should be a fair indicator that our government is concerned about terrorism regardless of whether a piece of paper is signed in Laos in the next week or so. If the agreement isn’t signed, radical fundamentalists will see us as an easy target because we won’t have their country’s police and military rushing to our aid. Illegal immigration may even decrease if the agreement is signed by Johnny. Why? Because if you’re an illegal immigrant from an ASEAN nation, you wouldn’t want to run off to another ASEAN nation, because of the tight political and judicial network that binds all the members. As for illicit drug imports, the same fear applies as much to drug smugglers as to people smugglers. I think the benefits of the ASEAN treaty far outweigh the risks. Asia is our neighbour. We should work with them as much as, if not more than, we do with the US. I’d even go so far as to suggest to our government that we lessen our involvement with the US (not military, but more sociopolitical) and work on a new treaty involving our direct neighbours. A new treaty involving Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia and the rest of South-East Asia. Just a suggestion, Johnny.

I look forward with great anticipation to Friday’s celebrations for the 150th Anniversary of the Eureka Stockade. The values set forth on that day are strikingly relevant to today’s struggling society. The rebels stood for mateship and a fair go, things which still seem out of reach for some people. I myself will fly the Eureka flag and long for a time when links are severed with the UK. Australia no longer needs to live in Britain’s shadow. Cut us loose and we will flourish.

Until next time…

As much as I hate to admit it, the year is drawing to a close. I wince as I write that it is only four weeks until Christmas. At a time like this it’s only fair that one reflects on how the year has made one feel, and whether anything could’ve been done to make it better.

On a personal note, I am happy that I got elected into the Year 12 2005 Student Council at Bede Polding College. Apart from Maths, all my subjects are going extraordinarily well. I topped the year in English and Ancient History, and hope to maintain these rankings. I ranked eigth in Physics, which I think is extraordinary, and I want to stay in the top 10. I am sitting my Grade 1 piano exams next week, which I am fully prepared for. I strengthened some friendships, made some new ones, reflected on ones long gone. I now have a greater interest in current affairs, and through this have developed a direction that I want to take in life. I’ve decided that I want to be a journalist. This is a massive leap for me, considering that over the past 6 or 7 years, when everyone else has had a dream or a choice of vocation, I’ve had nothing to go on. This has never been an issue; I knew that something would happen, and now it has. Through Extension II English, I also now have a motivation to rediscover my heritage, my ancestry and my family’s origins.

In the wide world, life goes on, and the world continues to be screwed up. The conflict in Iraq continues, even though I could’ve sworn that twelve months ago, Dubya got up on an aircraft carrier in an ocean somewhere and said that Iraq had been liberated. Yet now we have the battle of Fallujah… the war ain’t over yet. The lineup of the 21st Century Triple Alliance, Bush, Blair and Howard (or Butch W. Cassidy and the Sundance Kids) remains unchanged, with George ‘Pre-emptive Strike’ Bush and ‘Honest John’ Howard signing up for another 4-year contract. Australia saw the emergence of Whitlam’s Labour protege for the Election, his defeat and his subsequent disappearance. The exposer of the government’s dishonesty, Andrew Wilkie, ran for Federal Parliament. The lead singer of Midnight Oil was also put up for Election, and strike me dead, the bald bastard got in (he also collapsed today on a beach somewhere, I read earlier).

The Aussies are giving everyone a fair beating. The Athens Olympics saw ‘Fully Sick’ Thorpey and the injury-battling Grant Hackett sieze countless Gold medals. Jana Pittman overcame a knee injury to run in the hurdles. Our lady rowers were plunged into scandal after one of their team, Sally Robbins, in true Aussie style, said, ‘Stuff it, I’m havin’ a nap.’ The Port Adelaide Power broke the Lions’ three-year winning streak. After a massive sex scandal, the Canterbury Bulldogs pulled off a stunning redemptive win against the Sydney City Roosters. In an impressive start to the Test series at home, Australia defeated the Kiwis at the Gabba last weekend, and looks set to travel to Melbourne with another win under their belt (at the time of posting, Australia are 4/448, and Langer just went out for 215).

So all in all it’s been a massive year, and it’s not quite over yet. But at this time I’d like to introduce a new tradition here at Binnsy’s Hovel. Welcome to the inaugural Binnsy’s Hovel People of the Year Awards 2004! After much deliberation (about an hour or so), I’ve come up with three people who I believe have stood out this year in terms of what I’ve seen and heard. So without further ado…

In third place:

For outstanding excellence in the field of Looking Like a Muppet:

US Senator and Presidential Candidate John Kerry
For bearing an uncanny resemblance to Muppet game show host Guy Smiley

In second place:

For outstanding excellence in the field of Sport:

Australian Fast Bowler Glenn McGrath
For attaining a personal batting record of 61 runs, over six times his average, at the first Test against New Zealand in Brisbane last weekend

And in first place:

For outstanding stupidity in the field of Politics:

Health Minister Tony Abbott
For being the most dishonest, backpedalling wanker in Australian politics
And a bonus prize of “Nothing” for having the most unused, cheesiest smile in Australian politics

Congratulations to all the winners. Thus ends the BHPOYAs for this year!

On that note, I’ll leave you all to your Saturdays, hot as they are. Go Aussie Go!

Until next time…

I’m sorry. I picked up the paper this morning and the first article I read was regarding the Ukrainian election. Please excuse me, but my dodgy wit has taken control of my brain:

It appears that out of Yanukovich and Yushchenko, Yanukovich is the Viktor!

Haha! In a country of nearly 48 million people, the two people they found to lead the government and the opposition are both called Viktor. Surely they could have found a Yefgheni or a Georgi with radical socialist views. I just think it’s highly amusing is all.

I also read the small article regarding Glenn McGrath’s 61 innings. He had a custom bat made after he made 61 in the first Test against New Zealand in Brisbane. Keep in mind that McGrath’s average was somewhere around six. McGrath and Jason Gillespie combined to smash a brilliant tail-order partnership of 115. Absolute deadset legends. I salute you.

Until next time…

Alas, the woes of being ‘the other guy’. Admittedly there were three candidates for School Captain so there were two ‘other guys’, and I was one of them. Now I know how John Kerry felt. No, I wasn’t disappointed at all. I’m in the Student Council and like I said, that’s one less thing I have to worry about next year. Congrats to the Captains, I know you’ll be ten times better at it than I would have, and here’s to a really good SRC in 2005!

In other news, I have a piano lesson tonight, and next Thursday I’m sitting my first grade piano exam! I’m pumped, I really am. I’ve been working my butt off for the past year and a half and now I might actually be rewarded for it! No, playing piano with a little more proficiency is reward enough, but I’m looking forward to actually seeing my name on that certificate!

We had a presentation day at school today, and I came first in English (exam and overall) and Ancient History! Well done to me. Let me blow my own trumpet for a bit, come on. It’s my blog. I also got my report, which was really good apart from Maths. Damn Maths to hell. Nah, I’ve got an awesome teacher and I’ve got a friend who’s willing to help me with Maths if I help him with English – sounds like a fair deal to me. Plus summer’s coming on fast, and he has a pool, so after studying I can swim. Bonus.

It’s good to see there’s no change in the lineup for the Second Test in Adelaide starting tomorrow. I’m waiting to see if Gillespie and McGrath can pull off another spectacular tail order partnership like they did in Brisbane. Bring on the Kiwis!

Until next time…

FREDDIE MERCURY

Today was a day of sombre reflection. It was on this day thirteen years ago that the awesome Freddie Mercury lost his battle with AIDS. It is a time when I reflect on my bizarre tastes in music, and the downfall of modern entertainment. What kind of world do we live in where musical acts are churned out of and highly dependent on a giant corporate machine? The world depicted in the Ben Elton musical We Will Rock You is not very far from the truth at the moment. What would Freddie think were he here today? He lived a rocker’s life, sure, but he loved what he did. For Freddie I’m sure it wasn’t just about the money. It heartens me that so many roots artists are coming out of the woodwork. The messages put across by those such as the John Butler Trio, Missy Higgins and The Waifs are a reflection of the way the musical world is headed. On this I despair, and long for Freddie to appear to us all in some divine manifestation – the return of the True Entertainer that for so long I have prophecised about. Come back, Freddie, and return to us the love of music which you treasured.

In other news, Microsoft Tech Support, I love you. You saved one of my PCs from certain doom. Whoever guided me through getting rid of the damn activation screen is an absolute legend.

Scandal has rocked the 2005 School Captain Election at Bede Polding College! My self-appointed Campaign Co-ordinator has had a longrunning feud with one of the other candidates. His new position has somehow convinced him that he has the power to put down said candidate. Hence I have had to apologise to the candidate in question and several of his friends, and reiterate that my friend’s opinions are not my own, and that they shouldn’t reflect on me. He reassured me that he knew that I was a friendly rival, and not a blacklisted mortal enemy. Crisis over. The votes of our year have now been cast, and will be counted overnight. The Captains (one male, one female) will be announced tomorrow. Here’s hoping. If I’m not elected, though, I won’t be at all disappointed. The other candidates are all ten times better leaders than me. I’m in the Student Council anyway, and it would be one less thing I’d have to worry about in my HSC year. But cheers to all the people who voted for me, and here’s to what may come.

I am in the middle of a Time magazine article chronicling the events of the recent Federal Government Election. It amuses me as I read to see all the bickering and leveling of accusations that goes on. If you’ve read some of my earlier posts, you’ll know that I respect the politicians of old, those with charisma and a sense of enigma, like JFK and Robert Menzies. Reading articles like this one only helps me justify my opinions that politics today has descended into a maelstrom of allegation and crucifixion. Bring back the days of old, the people of power and dignity – the people that were there because they were patriots, the leaders who were there for the people, not just the position.

Until next time…

I got up pretty early again this morning, this time to do an English essay that just so happened to be due in Period 1. Reminding myself never to leave it that long again. It was odd because in my semi-delusional state of mind I was quite profound and philosophical, which always helps in English. I have to do a presentation tomorrow for Ancient History, with reference to the source I mentioned yesterday. So I must type that up tonight.

I saw on the SMH website that Tony Windsor is standing by his allegations against the deputy PM. I haven’t commented much on Windsorgate, and I probably should. I actually have met Mr Windsor on several occasions, both in Tamworth and in Canberra. I know him to be a genuine, honest man, and a bit of a larrikin. But I believe Tony Windsor would never allege such things under parliamentary privilege if he didn’t know them to be 100% true. Unfortunately for him, he is but a single MP, firing allegations at the Deputy PM. There’s a slight David and Goliath factor. And knowing about politics as I do, John Anderson would have many reserve political soldiers just waiting to take a shot at Mr Windsor. Tony Windsor is an honest politician, and his kind are hard to find today. But he is toying with dishonest people, and he may have made the biggest mistake of his career.

I loaned out a New Scientist magazine from the school library yesterday, and have been having a glance through it. I think it’s time I had a stab at one of the big issues, and just put forward my beliefs and opinions. The universe is generally accepted to have been caused by the Big Bang. I accept this theory fully and without question, mainly because it is the most logical explanation. However, in addition to being a supporter of the Big Bang theory, I am also a devout Anglican. The dilemma of many people, most of whom are scientists, is that they have to balance what they have been taught in Sunday school with what their mathematical, logical and commonsensical brains tell them is the truth. I have struggled with this dilemma, and seem to have come to a conclusion, somewhat of an acceptance and some moderated closure on the issue. I believe the Big Bang happened. At the start of time, a tremendous explosion caused the universe to come into existence. The outermost clouds of that explosion are still moving outwards, and will continue to do so indefinitely. I also believe that the Christian explanation of the beginning of time (i.e. Genesis) is a means of tying a spiritual element to the foundations of the universe. Religion by its very nature is questioning. The big question is ‘Why are we here?’ and with that goes ‘How did we get here?’ The people ask the questions, the Church responds and voila, the Bible. This is just my opinion.

Meantime, I have to go off and have dinner, and then type up my Ancient History speech. Woop di doo. Will let you know how that goes tomorrow.

Until next time…

And we’re back up and running…

I rose early this morning (about 5:40am) and set about transferring all my old blogs from the Blog-City page to this site. Then I got all the links and transferred them over. Then I signed up for a stats counter. Then I put up a redirect post at the old site, after deleting all the old blogs, links and pictures from that one. Two and a half hours and five cups of coffee later, this new blog is up and running. Suffice to say it is now 6:15pm and I am absolutely stuffed.

Today was a good day. It began with me running around madly doing Student Councillor stuff, then first period I had to be interviewed as a candidate for School Captain next year. The interview went really well. In addition to all my usual rants and raves, I’m using this blog as my School Captain 2005 Campaign noticeboard. Hence the banner. Come on, don’t look at me like that. You’re only in Year 12 once. Besides, I’m the outsider in this contest. The other two candidates would be far better than me in the role, but hey, at least I’m in there having a go. Besides, the ends always justifies the means, and I like my means.

I had a chat today to my old Year 7 science teacher. Admittedly it was a quick ten minute one, but it was good to catch up, seeing as the only communication between us in the past four years has been a ‘Hi, how are you?’ as we pass each other in the playground.

In other ‘my world’ news, I’ve been doing a long and involved Religion assignment on Taoism. I swear, my English side gets the better of me when formulating questions to answer (this was an open assignment – we have to design our own question, then answer it in a 3000 word report). My question was something along the lines of: “How well do modern manifestions of Taoism reflect the original tenets laid down by the founders? Answer from a philosophical perspective with references to two modern sources.” Yeh, good on me. That’ll be hard.

Meantime I have two days to finish off an Ancient History speech on some random ivory carving from Sparta. If anyone knows anything about the Temple of Artemis Orthia or Spartan ivory carvings from around the 6th Century BCE, chuck us a comment. It would be much appreciated.

As for the rest of the world, I don’t really know much. I got the paper today but haven’t really had a chance to read it. I also took two Time mags, a Bulletin and a New Scientist out on loan from the library at school, which I’ll have a flick through tonight.

My mother and I were walking around Big W this afternoon, which was quite nice, until the music came on. Bloody Christmas carols. This shits me so bad, if you haven’t already noticed. In my family, the 1st of December is the day when everything happens. The tree goes up, the lights go on, we start eating dinner to Bing and Frank, it’s all good. But I’ve been putting up with Christmas decorations, ‘Xmas Super Sales’ and Big W Christmas carols since late October. While walking to the bowling alley on Friday afternoon, I stood out the front of a house and abused it for five minutes because it had decorations and lights all over the lawn and the front of the house. I don’t know if anyone was actually home, but hey, I needed a scapegoat, and that house was begging for abuse. Like I said, by the time December 25 actually arrives, I’ll be sick of Christmas. Bah humbug.

Until next time…

Blog-City has maintenance every three weeks or so, which isn’t good when I want to post an entry. So after much thought I’ve decided to move over to Blogspot. Blog-City’s due to be back up about 4am tomorrow my time, so I’ll be up at 5am moving everything around, then hopefully by about 7-8am, this blog will have all my old blogs from Blog-City in the archives, as well as my first new post.



This is all very temporary at the moment while I get everything set up. Please excuse any randomness that may result from my bizarre way of transferring old blogs to this one, links and changing the template, etc.



TO DO:

• Transfer old blogs (from renewed blog activity, ie. late Oct 04) to new blog, and archive properly
• Transfer all links
• Delete all old blogs from Blog-City page, then put up redirect message
• Insert counter, start from last Blog-City hit count
• Once all is done, start blogging in new account

In today’s Herald the second editorial was regarding the killing of the prisoner in Fallujah. The editor says that the pending investigation ’should be completed quickly and its findings published…. there must now be concerns that other war crimes have occurred’. What is a crime in war? Murder? Theft? Stealing a loaf of bread? War is a dirty business, and these things happen all the time. Surely the Yanks didn’t think it was going to be peaches and cream in Fallujah. Besides, the prisoner the soldier shot was firing from a religious building, which is designated a place of sanctuary, not a place of cover. Hence, all clauses protecting the insurgent in the Geneva Convention and other associated documents, are null and void. The editor of the SMH also said that ‘there is little difference in the actions of the two sides in Iraq’. No shit, Sherlock. In war, both sides kill. Both sides are trying to win, and will do anything to that end. In war, there are no ‘good guys’ or ‘bad guys’. Heroes are only heroes to their allies. War is a messy, biased, superficial, heavily-broadcast, propaganda-laden, anti-democratic way of resolving a conflict. War is a way out for a leader who doesn’t want to engage in peaceful negotiation. A leader like George W Bush.

Good to see the Aussies doing well against the Kiwis, even though they seemed to come back a bit towards the end of the day. For those who missed the news, Australia are 4/197 chasing New Zealand’s 353. Damien Martyn will resume his place at the crease on Day 3 with 59, Michael Clarke on 31 (full scorecard). I was sitting at the bowling alley this afternoon watching the cricket on the TVs there, and it just felt really good. I think now more than ever I feel the link I have with the game, and it just gives me the warm, fuzzy, nostalgic feeling I knew it would one day.

Forgive the short entry, but it’s Friday night, and Friday night is family fun night, no homework night, and pizza night at the Binns household. So surely you’ll forgive me for leaving early. Besides, it’s probably a relief for you lot considering the magnum opi that I’ve been writing lately.

Until next time…