Now the following is said to be the oldest British joke and it supposedly dates back to the 10th Century.

Q: What hangs at a man's thigh and wants to poke the hole that it's often poked before?

A: A key

Now how funny is that?

This is something that I stumbled across when I opened Yahoo and I am a sucker for lists! You can find Dr. Berman's blurb and mugshot here. The particular article that I stumbled across was provocatively titled "3 Signs That Your Man Is Cheating".

This is the Journalists Without Borders take on what is happening in China in not only this Olympic Year but every single solitary day!

I think I have found an excuse for why it took me more than five years to get my better half pregnant! A research study out of the Harvard School of Public Health at Harvard University is suggesting that the eating and drinking of products that contain a lot of soy or isoflavones has a negative impact on fertility in men. To all out there that do not understand what this means, then in lay person's terms more soy equals less sperm!

The factoid is back...

Keeping to the theme of the earlier post on gay lube oil, I now offer up another more multipurpose lubricant. The picture needs no explanation but for those of you that need one; simply, sometimes big things need a little bit of help in getting into tight situations.

One of my blogging colleagues, GJ, has decided that a good way of increasing traffic is to write something on gay clubs. He notes that his traffic seems to increase significantly after a gay clubs post, particularly in the number of hits he gets from Malaysian IPs. Keeping this in mind, I have decided that I should check out whether the "gay" theme does anything for my statistics and ranking, both of which have been plummeting into the never-ending abyss over the last couple of weeks.

The humble tattoo is no longer the world of just bikers, criminals, or other so-called undesirable elements of the community. I would not describe bikers as being undesirable elements of the community, if you were wondering. Tattoos have been going mainstream for some time and it seems that they have hit the mainstream vein as employers of all kinds are becoming more accepting of the idea of employees permanently inking their skin.

It has long been rumored that marijuana or dope smokers were a mellow breed of individual. Simply, a few joints or cones would be the best recipe for taking the edge off, mellowing out, and just relaxing and enjoying life.

Did you know that if someone collected all of the water in swimming pools in the US that all that water would be enough to cover San Francisco?

Now you do!

You burn more calories sleeping than you do watching TV. I guess if you throw in a little exercise before getting to sleep then you would probably burn even more calories still!

So, I guess if you fall asleep while watching TV you get the best of both worlds.

Did you know that a ball of glass will bounce higher than a ball of rubber?

Not the post you thought it might be, was it?

Courting controversy is one way of making sure your name stays on the front pages of newspapers and magazines, on talk radio, and a topic of conversation in the homes and offices of the world. It seems that Miley Cyrus knows this and is unashamedly exploiting this fact.

Latest reports have Miley being really excited by the prospect of being cast in the lead role of Undiscovered Gyrl. The movie is to be based on the book of the same name by Allison Burnett. The story is one of a 15-year-old girl who spins out of control into a life of partying and promiscuity. The film would undoubtedly call for nude scenes and apparently the wholesome good ol' American girl is keen to be doing whatever it takes to make it real.

Full nudity is sure to be way more controversial that the topless albeit sheet covering debut on Vanity Fair magazine. This is going to challenge the parents of all her pre-pubescent and pubescent fans to the max.

Aside from the parents of her fans having a few problems about the message this might send, I wonder about how one classifies this film if Miley Cyrus does get the part and does the nude scenes. Wouldn't the film be like child pornography even if good ol' country boy and father Billy Ray Cyrus approves? My feeling would be that if the nude scenes are critical to the film or story that an adult who looks like a 15-year-old will be cast.

Interesting stuff this pursuit by Miley Cyrus to be more adult like than her 15 years requires.

It is about time that this man was caught and the world has the chance to see this man tried for his (alleged) crimes. Radovan Karadzic has thwarted efforts at capture for such a long time. He has for all intents and purposes been on the run in plain sight for the last 13 years. Early reports are suggesting that he has been living in the open and not in hiding. In fact these reports are indicating that apart from growing some facial hair and looking noticeable older, he was working in a clinic as some kind of alternative health guru in Belgrade.

Dear Readers...if you were wondering whether I had passed on to the next world or not because of a couple of days without posting, then there is no need to wonder any longer!

I am in Singapore and have either been too busy or too lazy to turn on the laptop and log in to write.

I am here for work, and work only, and my days have been full and at the end of them I am pretty shagged and choose to sleep instead of blog. I am also here to do the dreaded visa run. I haven't done one for 5 years and I now know why I was glad for that. I am sure the Embassy will be very efficient and hopefully way more efficient than the Jakarta based agent that is supposed to be organizing all of the things I need to have done and be doing. So far they have not been relieving me of stress associated with this.

I have been asking them questions like how long does it take once I submit my passport and forms at the Embassy? A day but apparently this is not the case according to the Indonesian Embassy website in Singapore which says 2 working days. Is there a fee? No, but once again the website suggests differently. Do I need a passport photo? No, but you guessed it, the website suggests differently on this too. My mistake was not to check the website sooner and to believe the agent.

Other than that the order and cleanliness of Singapore is a nice reprieve from the chaos that is Jakarta. The only real downer is that my better and pregnant half could not come along for the ride. After 7.5 years of dating and almost 6 years of marriage I miss the company and perhaps even more so now, I suppose this is what pending fatherhood for the first time does to a man!

Life goes on and it is now time to do some work.

Captain Marwoto Komar the pilot of the ill-fated Garuda flight that crashed in Yogyakarta on 7 March 2007 is to be tried for his alleged negligence in the deaths of 21 people and the injuries of many more.

The trial is to be held in the Sleman District Court (near Yogyakarta) in Central Java. The trial is scheduled to begin on Thursday. There is to be a panel of judges to hear the case.

The final report by Indonesia's air safety investigators stated that Komar was so "fixated" with landing that he ignored 15 alarms and the pleas of his co-pilot. Nevertheless, Komar's arrest was greeted with protests and claims that the data from the black boxes and other flight recording equipment was inadmissible in a court of law pursuant to prevailing laws, regulations, and practices.

This means that the police would have had to obtain evidence that did not rely on the black boxes or the flight recorder information. Obviously the Office of the Public Prosecutor believes that the police have done a sufficient job in this regard to warrant proceeding to trial.

The gray wolves of the Northern Rockies have been on the endangered list for a while. However, this protection was lifted recently for areas in Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho in March. A ten-year effort to restore gray wolf numbers the numbers of gray wolves have reached an estimated 2000.

This is not a new case but it seems that Thailand, although accepting that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and their determination that the Preah Vihear temple complex was within the sovereign territory of Cambodia, still believes that approximately 4.6sq. km around the temple complex is the sovereign territory of Thailand.

It has long been thought that James Kisina, Corby's half-brother, was the carrier of the drugs that Schapelle Corby was convicted of attempting to smuggle into Indonesia. This theory has been given more page time in Australian newspapers since Malcolm McCauley has claimed that he was the supplier of the drugs to Michael Corby Sr.

"Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one."

The tragedy that is Zimbabwe sees the official inflation rate stated at 2.2 million percent. This is the rate used by the Zimbabwean Central Bank. The unofficial rates suggest that at some point over the previous 12 months the inflation rate has been as high as 70 million percent. External analysts to the Central Bank estimate inflation to be running at about 12.5 million percent.

I learned today that a crocodile cannot move its tongue.

Samir Qantar (pictured) was Lebanon's longest serving prisoner incarcerated in Israel. Qantar was the biggest beneficiary of a prisoner swap and the exchange of remains that has been recently completed. Samir Qantar was a young 17-year-old when he was sentenced to five life terms for committing triple murder. One of Qantar's victims was a 4-year-old child.

Thanks for the picture in this post go to Rima.

The latest appeal for the Bali Bombers; Amrozi, Imam Samudra, and Mukhlas, have been rejected. This means that these three gentlemen are one step closer to meeting their maker and finding out whether there really is 72 virgins waiting for them and handsome little waiters to serve all their needs.

This was something that I posted on previously and posed the question as to whether the photo should be considered to be child pornography. Not many comments, which is more indicative of my limited readership than the importance of the issue, however it would seem that the Classification Board in Australia has made this decision for us.

After Art Monthly Australia chose the picture for its cover as a protest on the recent seizing of images from an exhibition of Bill Henson's work in Sydney, the magazine was reported for a possible violation of the law. The Classification Board was asked for an opinion and it has now given one.

That opinion is to classify the picture with an M rating. This translates to "suitable for publication, though discretion is advised for viewers under the age of 15."

The photo in question of Olympia Nelson was taken by her mother, Pollixeni Papapetrou. Olympia's father Robert Nelson had this to say after the Classification Board came back with its decision, "I think she's feeling very happy because her argument has always been there's nothing wrong with the picture" and "the idea that it's pornographic is absurd."

It is worth noting that the Classification Board decision was not unanimous as several members arguing that the magazine should have been given a Refused Classification rating. The magazine did have additional graphic sexual images inside. A Refused Classification translates to the magazine being prohibited for sale.

At the time the politicians from all parties sensing blood in the water began circling like sharks around a defenceless surfer. The majority were jumping up and down describing the image as pornography, the sexualization of a child, the theft of Olympia's childhood, and that Art Monthly Australia should have all its public funding removed. Now that the Classification Board has issued an M rating I wonder how these same politicians feel about the Classification Board. Are we going to see a full-scale spill at the Board?

Life goes on!

Another little factoid for the file.

Jimi Hendrix, in my mind, was the greatest guitar player of all time. It is my mind so I can think like this. I am sure others have a widely divergent view on this. To each their own.

I have been contemplating writing something on this for some time and have hesitated because the issue deserves more than just passing comment. I have not done the research on the statistics of the prevalence of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, although I am sure others may have numbers, names, locations, and the like. Yet, perhaps if there was more open and frank discussion on issues such as these then progress towards a workable resolution might be quicker in coming.

Hezbollah really needs to spend some money and recruit some good public relations people, as they simple have absolutely no idea on how to handle a significant event! In an earlier post I alluded to the cruelty of playing up the possibility that the two Israeli soldiers, Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, that Hezbollah was required to hand over under the deal, were alive. The reality, as most people expected, was finally confirmed today.

The allegations are clear but the charges are not, at least according to Anwar's lawyer. Sankara Nair, Anwar's lawyer witnessed the arrest , and has stated that the police did not indicate what Anwar (pictured) was being charged with. Anwar was arrested as he arrived at home and was immediately taken to Kuala Lumpur police headquarters.

Paul Francis Callahan fled Australia in 2003 headed for Bali after allegations surfaced that he had committed sex offences in Canberra.

Australian authorities learned of Callahan's whereabouts and placed a request with Indonesian Police to arrest him. The Indonesian Police granted the request and Callahan was arrested last Saturday in Kuta.

Callahan is currently in custody and awaiting an extradition hearing at the Denpasar District Court. By all accounts the hearing should be a mere formality.

Callahan on arrival in Bali has opened a surf gear business, married a local woman, and has a child with her. Strangely, this part of the tale sounds all too ordinary and is perhaps a case of evil living among us and we do not even know it!

This was the first network kids show in the USA.

Australian High Court Judge Michael Kirby has spoken about the growing pressure on States to criminalize the transmission of HIV. Justice Kirby while addressing a criminal law conference in Dublin was speaking about the rising rates of HIV infection in Australia and the pressure to see those that transmit the virus punished.

The Truth and Friendship Commission has spoken, actually produced a report, that states in unequivocal terms that Indonesia played a significant role in the violence that ensued in Timor Leste after the Direct Ballot of 1999. In fact the report says that Indonesia is responsible for the committing of gross human rights abuses including murder and torture.

I wonder what it is like to have spent 56 years in prison? I wonder this from the outside and have no intention of ever wanting to find out from the inside. I wonder what it is like to have spent more than half of your 80 years of life behind bars?

Just a very brief update.

I wonder if there is an agenda at play here or is it really as The New Yorker Magazine claims just a bit of satire? Looking at the picture for yourselves it is clear that both Obama and his wife are depicted as terrorists and if you look closely you can see the US flag burning in the fireplace and a happy snappy of Osama bin Laden hangs on the wall. The Obama campaign has labeled the cover offensive. And, I am not surprised.

Kentucky Fried Chicken or as it is better known KFC came into the sites of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals or as they are better known PETA. It seems that PETA has a problem with the way KFC treats their chickens. in factories and slaughterhouses. The thing about PETA protests is that the generally bring out the crowds for a bit of a perv as they normally involve some degree of nudity. PETA's protests against fur are legendary for the bare-breasted women. Now it seems that chickens are getting the bare-breasted treatment as well.

Thanks to katadia, I have been tagged to write about the age that I wish to go back to, thanks I think! I quite enjoy reading her blog posts and I guess she enjoys reading mine hence the desire to see what I might post now that I have been tagged.

The rules are:
Title: Age That I Wish To Go Back To
Requirement: Write about the one age that you wish to go back to and why?
Tag Mode: 5 bloggers
1st - You list 5 bloggers you want to tag and link their blogs
2nd - Let the blogger you want to tag know they been tagged by comment in their blog.

Now, I am happy to write the entry on the age. But, I am rule breaker and I am not going to tag five others. It sounds too much like multi-level marketing to me and an attempt to attract attention to my blog and the blogs of others...sorry people for being such a spoil sport (besides everyone I might have been inclined to tag has been tagged).

I really would like to write about an age that I would like to go forward to. My better half is pregnant and is due in November. Thanks to the wonders of modern medical technology we can already see the youngster (affectionately known as "The Kid") in 2 or 3 dimensions. The hospital offers 4D, I always thought the 4th D was time in space, so I am trying to work out why I might want to pay to see The Kid in 4D. However, I think what the doc was trying to explain related to spissitude (look it up if you really want to know).

Seeing, this will be the first born in my family, I am really looking forward at the moment as opposed to backwards. By the way, The Kid is a boy!

But, seeing you all want to learn something of my past, then the age I would want to get back to is probably years 8, 9, and 10 in high school (so 13, 14, and 15 years of age). Why? They were fun times, care free times, the best of times. I had started playing rugby and I was good. I was immediately selected in representative teams and got lots of free stuff like footy jumpers, socks, shorts, trousers, ties, and all sorts of other stuff.

The memories that stick out in my mind though relate not to competitive rugby but slush rugby. Slush rugby could only be played during the rain or immediately after the rain -- simply no rain meant no slush! The best of these slush rugby memories occurred on a school camp, I think it was Year 9, out near Goulburn somewhere. It was winter, so it was cold! Cold enough as a matter of fact to freeze the balls of a brass monkey. Even better was that it was pissing down with rain! And the best part was that the showers were all cold water!

In the middle of the campground was this big open space that looked like a mudpit after all the rain. In other words the perfect venue.

Not to be deterred, we stripped down into our slush rugby gear which consisted of shorts and a jersey, divided up into sides, and went at it hell for leather for the next our or so! There were some dislocated fingers, a couple of bloody noses, a lost tooth or two, and a few concussions, although I am not sure anyone is counting. I have a photo which I will scan and add later.

I cannot recall who won and it doesn't really matter.

In reality I cannot choose one age that I would really like to go back to. My childhood was excellent, I have the greatest parents that I can imagine having, my teenage years were some of the best I can recall, my early adulthood was a series of superb experiences, and right at this moment in time I am fairly content. The only thing that I miss from childhood is the absence of responsibility. I would enjoy not being responsible for so many people's livelihoods (this does not include my own family as that responsibility is one I enjoy)...

But such is life.

I hope those that read understand a little more about me and feel that you know me a little better.

BTW...high school was Hurlstone Agricultural High School (HAHS) in Glenfield (NSW)!

As I am prone to do in the wee hours of the morning I have been surfing the Internet and amusing myself with the myriad of sites that are there to be seen. I came across the cartoon that I have posted here. My first reaction was to smile.

I would love to still be alive and blogging at 108! Although I have gotta say that blogging will probably be technology of the past. Innovation and the need to develop new technologies will mean that blogging will undoubtedly become obsolete, and probably sooner rather than later. Nevertheless, whatever takes its place I want to be doing it at 108. Hopefully, I will still be able to see and hear then.

There are probably very few Indonesian men or women who have not heard of the incredible abilities of Mak Erot (photo by Achmad Fauzie). Mak Erot was reportedly somewhere between the ages of 101 and 130. No one is quite sure, her children and grandchildren included, but it does not really matter any more as the legend has passed. Fortunately though she has apparently passed on her incredible skills to her children and grandchildren.

There is a lot of talk at the moment in Indonesia in the lead up to the next election of "golput". Golput is the abbreviation of "golongan putih" or the white group. In this context it is a group that will exercise their democratic right not to vote and therefore remain white or unstained by the process.

The idea of not voting, at least for me, undervalues the point of the democratic process. In the Indonesian context it is disrespectful to the many people who fought and died for the right to live free in a functioning democracy. Even if you vote and the people you vote for do not win, at least you have stood up, you have been counted, and you have expressed your will. Not voting for me ensures that the status quo remains and that the system never changes. I see little honour in being able to sit back and say, "it's not my fault because I did not vote for that person as a matter of fact I did not vote at all!"

With 34 political parties running in the 2009 election (at the present time, this may change -- different post for later) there surely must be one person that you could vote for who is most likely to be your voice in parliament. They might not win but, once again, at least you expressed your principles through your vote.

This piece is not a lecture or sermon to the masses, but rather personal musings on why I vote and the reasons that I see voting to be important. It is also a chance for me to express some exasperation at why people do not vote. It has always amused me that the Gettysburg Address talks about "government of the people, by the people, and for the people" yet Americans en masse tend not to turn out to vote. It is bizarre to me that Presidents can be elected to the most powerful position in the US with the support of less than 50% of those who are of voting age. I guess you get what you vote for or more importantly what you don't vote for.

Hence my basic problem with the idea of golput. If you are not going to engage in the democratic process of elections then why complain when you end up with the status quo. I think that if you want to complain then you need to have taken the time to get to a polling station and express your hopes and desires for the future of your country. Golput strikes me as a back seat driver without a license telling the driver how to drive.

Truth be told this post was just going to be the following quote, but as usual I have gotten carried away in my little moment. Nevertheless, this is something that is worth reflecting on:

"Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost."

-- John Quincy Adams

The latest series of allegations to be doing the rounds suggests that perhaps a further investigation is warranted. Mercedes Corby and the extended Corby family seem to be demanding a further investigation, simply as a means of clearing her family's name, once and for all.

The man that says he knows not only the truth but that he is the man who sold the drugs to Michael Corby Sr. believes that now this revelation is off his chest he will sleep with a clear conscience.

Malcolm McCauley had been hinting for some time that he was going to make a revelation about the Schapelle Corby case, but was waiting for the right time to make this "big" revelation. It is worth pointing out that Malcolm McCauley is a convicted drug felon. This does not make what he has said any less reliable but nor should it be seen as making what he has to say any more credible.

The "wall" is a barrier whose basic premise is to protect Israel from suicide bombers and terrorism. The wall is 723 kilometres long and is a breach of Israel's international law obligations. At least 87% of the wall is built inside the green line (the agreed border between Israel and Palestine) this means that the wall is built on Palestinian territory and the International Court of Justice (ICJ) handed down an Advisory Opinion that clearly stated that Israel was in breach of international law.

I am writing this post because my mother SMS-ed me earlier today saying that she entered a competition where she had to write in 25 words or less, "Why she wanted to go to Beijing to watch the Olympics?", bugger me if the old bird didn't win!

So, now her and the old fella are off to Beijing to watch the Olympics. Lucky buggers!

The other reason is that this story brings back memories of home. I used to be the Manager of a Domino's Pizza joint. It helped pay my way through law school. Every day that I went to work I had to drive past this Chinese restaurant, not particularly interesting in and of itself. However, this particular Chinese restaurant was in the same building as the local vet! Hence the connection to this story.

The Beijing Tourism Board officials have apparently been doing the rounds of local restaurants that are officially designated dining spots during the games and instructing them that dog meat is to come off the menu. Any one thinking of going to Beijing, then the word to learn is "xiangrou" or "fragrant meat". Aside from the designated eating places, tourism officials are also asking non-designated fine dining establishments to also take xiangrou of the menu.

Xiangrou supposedly provides health benefits. Most people I have talked to said that it increased their body temperature and made them sweat. The classic question must be what does dog meat taste like. I must add that I have no desire to find out either. I have eaten snake and crocodile meat and a range of other game meats of which I won't bore you with. The "what does it taste like" question is always interesting. Stock answer, chicken!

For me the issue has always been getting over the idea of eating a pet. I have always owned dogs. Never owned a rabbit so have no problems dining on rabbit stew.

However, if you want to see the darker side of the dog meat trade in China, I provide this link (viewer discretion advised -- it is a very ugly and cruel trade). I have looked at the link, it is disturbing. I now can see why there are many people passionate about animal rights!

I am not posting any pictures to this post.

I am not a huge fan of sharks but have never found it necessary to prove my courage by going and searching one out for a close encounter of the toothy kind! However, it seems that once you hit on one story then more on the same theme pop up all over the place.

Here is a tid-bit of information for you loyal readers...

This is a shark story with photographic evidence and an interesting twist.

Celebrity divorces are no different from any other divorce on the sadness stakes the only difference is the size of the numbers being bandied about for settlement. There are a couple of divorces in the pipeline that might see some big numbers being thrown around such as Alex Rodriguez of New York Yankees fame. A-Rod as he is affectionately know just inked a 10-year USD 275 million deal which is unlikely to be protected by any pre-nuptial agreement.

A recent study by the CSIRO in Australia, Fuel For Thought, suggests that fuel (petrol) could reach AUD 8 per litre within ten years. This is expected to add about AUD 220 per week to the expenses of anyone running a medium sized car by 2018. This rapid rise is premised on an ever-decreasing supply in a time of ever-increasing demand. Simple economics really.

Australia made a request under the provisions of the extradition treaty that it has with Indonesia that sought Indonesia's help in arresting Hadi Ali Asgar El Ahmadi. El Ahmadi is an Iraqi citizen and he is alleged to have trafficked some 900 people from the Middle East and Asia to Australia in the period from 1999 through to 2001. Most of these people are thought to have made their way through Indonesia.

Indonesia police arrested El Ahmadi at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport on 29 June. The arrest is only now coming to light.

The Office of the Commonwealth Attorney General is playing its cards close to its chest and refusing to make any comments other than they are considering an extradition request. It would seem to be a lot more than that seeing they have already gone to the trouble of making the arrest request. Nevertheless, the Australian government has 45 days from the date of arrest to make a formal extradition request.

With a bit of luck Indonesia's assistance will continue and El Ahmadi will be extradited to Australia to face an Australian court for the alleged crimes he has committed.

Indonesia might be an emerging democracy but for what was once on of the tiger economies of Southeast Asia there are significant structural problems that over the last 10 years are yet to be resolved. Electricity, specifically the generation of electricity is a growing problem in Indonesia with rolling blackouts expected to run through to at least October 2009.

It so happens there is an election next year and it would make sense for the government to get a better handle on this. As is regularly the way in Indonesia the government was behind the ball on this and the tender process was long and drawn out. Nevertheless, there are several electricity generation projects working towards completion and a 10,000 MW generator is scheduled to come on line sometime after October 2009.

With the rising cost of oil and much of Indonesia's electricity being based on generation by the exploitation of oil. So, any shortages in oil supply means that there is to be a shortfall in electricity and then a subsequent shortage in electricity availability. This has led to rolling blackouts. The State Electricity Company (PLN) is begging for understanding but why should the people be so forgiving? Unannounced blackouts have led to the damaging of electronic goods among others. Unannounced blackouts also mean that cold storage facilities have suffered losses in food that is no longer edible as it has gone bad. Rolling blackouts effect and affect everyone.

On a personal level, I have been the victim of the unannounced rolling blackouts over the last month or so. However, in order to try and avert some of the unannounced aspect of this PLN has posted on its website the locations of the next blackout.

The government has flagged its intentions of restricting office and manufacturing hours in an effort to reduce consumption.

This begs the question, how does this effect the future of investment in Indonesia, particularly considering the government has made investment one of its policy pillars?

The reality is that putting into place a regulatory framework is only half the battle. If the government cannot guarantee supply then no matter how much a local or foreign investor dumps into a project if those investors cannot progress to production or if they have to operate on restricted capacity because there is no electricity to power their operations.

The government needs to start considering and making moves towards alternative energy. The cold hard truth is that an ever-increasing population is going to place ever-increasing demands on energy and particularly electricity. If the government continues to remain a step behind then Indonesia is going to become increasingly uncompetitive in the global market.

The government really does need to get a handle on this going forward.

I guess new technology calls for the creation of new words to explain new phenomenon. I always thought that I was fairly clued in and up-to-date on things. Today I learned that there was such a thing as sexting. The phenomenon is generally about people who utilize all the technological capabilities of their gadgets. In this case their mobile phones.

Indonesia will be heading to the polls in 2009 and most candidates will want to be affirming their Islamic credentials and it would seem that a sure-fire way to do that would be to line up anything considered to be anti-Islam or outside of mainstream Islamic thought. It would seem that Ahmadiyya would be a good target for this credential affirming exercise.

The annoying t-shirts that are likely to get their next airing once WYD gets underway were part of a fashion demonstration in front of the NSW Parliament building earlier today. Some of the slogans that front the t-shirts include "Pope Go Homo" and "The Pope Is Wrong - Put a Condom On".

There are certain to be protests in spite of the new powers that police have been given. Every single WYD has been subject to protest and the slogans above highlight who is likely to be coming out to protest.

Let the fun and games begin!

Nothing like a shark story to scare the masses. A report out of New South Wales says that a seven-metre great white shark was netted and released into a Tuggerah Lake on the Central Coast of NSW. The shark was netted by a commercial fisherman and it is this fisherman that reported the release.

Being the world's largest Muslim nation means that one is often left wondering at some of the stuff that gets on TV, particularly late at night. Even though the late evening hours and the wee hours of the morning are hardly times that the kiddies will be watching the idiot box, there are idiots out there like me who instead of getting their beauty sleep prefer to waste time watching silly TV shows. Some of these shows are overtly sexually provocative and then some are more covert. Nevertheless, it would appear that the content would still breach the broadcasting standards that are applicable in this fine land.

"Gabriel's Revelation" is a 1 metre long tablet with ink writing that has been dated to the period just before Jesus was immaculately born into this world. The tablet is said to challenge the uniqueness of the Christian story of the resurrection and is also said to suggest that Jesus and his followers may have misappropriated an earlier version of the resurrection story to fulfill their own ends.

This prisoner swap might not be one for the ages but it is an interesting step for both Israel and Hezbollah to be taking at this point in time. The UN-brokered deal calls for Israel to release prisoners, chief among them, Sami Kuntar, in exchange for two captured Israeli soldiers, Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, who have been presumed killed after their capture in 2006.

Shrek, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt were all having lunch together.

Shrek said, 'I have always thought that I'm the strongest man in the world, but how can I be sure?'

Angelina Jolie agreed. 'I'm told I'm the most gorgeous of them all, but sometimes I wonder.'

Brad Pitt said, 'I'm pretty sure I'm the sexiest man alive but I've never had it confirmed.'

They all decided that the best way to find out if their beliefs were true was to ask the famed talking 'mirror, mirror on the wall' to confirm for them whether Shrek was the strongest, Angelina Jolie was the most gorgeous, and Brad Pitt was the sexiest.

They agreed to meet again the next day for lunch to discuss their findings.

The next day Shrek walked up with a smile. "Well, it's true. The mirror told me that I am the strongest man in the world."

Angelina Jolie lifted her gorgeous face with a smile, "I know I am the most gorgeous."

But, Brad Pitt lifted up his sad and dejected face and said, "who the hell is Rob Baiton?!?!?!"

The girl whose picture sparked the latest outbursts in the sexualization of children / child porn debate has come out in her own defence. The girl, Olympia Nelson, at the time the picture was taken was a mere six years old. She is now a much more commanding 11 years old. At 11 years old I am still not convinced that she knows or understands the implications of the photo or the debate that surrounds them.

Something that came into the inbox and well worth a read for men, you might learn something. And it is worth a read for women because they will get a little giggle out of the truth of these statements.

1. Fine: This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.

2. Five Minutes: If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the game before helping around the house.

3. Nothing: This is the calm before the storm. This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usually end in fine.

4. Go Ahead: This is a dare, not permission. Don't Do It!

5. Loud Sigh: This is actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing. (Refer back to #3 for the meaning of nothing.)

6. That's Okay: This is one of the most dangerous statements a woman can make to a man. That's okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

7. Thanks: A woman is thanking you, do not question, or faint. Just say you're welcome.

8. Whatever: Is a women's way of saying F@!K YOU!

9. Don't worry about it, I'll do it: Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking 'What's wrong?' For the woman's response refer to #3. Then you RUN!

There is a lot of talk about online or cyber-activism but what does that really mean. I should have written about this particular site earlier. Wikileaks is an online activist site plus plus. It is more like a forum for online dissidents. These dissidents are anonymous but are responsible for putting into the public sphere confidential and secret documents.

The Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC) has declined to terminate the bargaining period between RailCorp and the Rail, Tram, and Bus Union (RTBU). This means that the planned industrial action is still on. However, this dispute is not over as the President of the AIRC has ordered the parties to return on Thursday for a full hearing.

Despite the government's insistence that it has a 4% offer on the table it is worth noting that the offer is 2.5% and a further 1.5% is offered provided that a further 400 jobs are shed from the sector. This appears to be a sticking point as the RTBU seems to want a 5% flat and no job cutting measures. The classic debate wage increases based on productivity increases.

I guess we will see what happens on Thursday.

Postscript:

It seems we might not have to wait until Thursday as it seems the RTBU leadership has reached a tentative agreement with the Deputy Premier and Minister for Transport, John Watkins. The agreement still needs to be approved by the union membership but if the leadership accepts the deal then they are likely to be pushing for the rank and file members to accept it.

If the rank and file accept the deal then the strike is averted.

Postscript II:

It seems that Kevin Rudd before making the big dash to the G-8 meeting in Japan has decided to weigh in on the RTBU planned strike action (seemingly already averted see above postscript). The PM's take on the planned industrial action was that any strike would be disrespecting the Holy Father!

Hold on a minute. I thought we lived in a land where there was separation between Church and State. I also did not realize that we had to show special reverence to a fella who had no qualms about telling Protestants that their Churches were not really Churches in the sense of the practicing of faith. Maybe respect is a two-way street.

In any event, is the NSW government completely blameless in this whole affair? It is easy to blame the unions but the reality is that there are two sides in this negotiation and as such both are to blame for drawing this thing out for as long as they have!

No matter what, it is possible to respect people, including the Pope, and still feel that you have a legitimate right to strike. Now, if that strike action causes a great deal of inconvenience then perhaps that is the point, particularly if you want people to understand what your cause is and the reasons behind the action...

Just my thoughts.

The government is taking the threat of strike action seriously. So it should considering the traffic problems that it would create. However, the government's plan is to go to the Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC) with a view to resolving the stagnant negotiations or getting an order that would prohibit any strike action during the Pope's visit.

The World Youth Day was always going to be a challenge in terms of transportation as it was going to require the closure of roads and the implementing of special declared areas (look at the legislation which is posted elsewhere on this blog). However, with the Rail, Tram, and Bus Union's decision to hold strike action on 17 July 2008, this challenge has just gone from perhaps being manageable to being a nightmare.

Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) has founded a Chapter of NU in the US. The intent is to foster understanding between Islam and the West. This is interesting for me in that the idea of fostering an understanding between Islam and the west presupposes that the problem is one of countries against a religion. I wonder why NU has not been founded to foster an inter-faith dialogue instead. An understanding of Islam by those who are non-Muslim?

If these things were not really happening it would be one hell of an imagination that the person who wrote this story has. The Corby saga is becoming increasingly complex in the public sphere. It was probably always complex in the private sphere of the Corby world. But it is as much a case of hangers on and bit part extended family members looking for their 15 minutes of fame. In that way it is like a car crash that people just have to slow down and take a peak at before moving on.

Berlin's Madame Tussauds Wax Museum displays wax likenesses of some of Germany's most famous and infamous citizens past and present. The most infamous of these being none other than Adolf Hitler. Critics of the display say that any representation of Hitler is offensive and that he should not be honoured or remembered in any way.

It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.

-- Aristotle

Mercedes Corby has denied the allegations that were aired on the ABC were lies and that she and her family can prove this. The Queensland Police have apparently issued a statement that they have no evidence linking Michael Corby Sr to the drug trafficking trade.

My advice to you is get married: if you find a good wife you'll be happy; if not, you'll become a philosopher.

-- Socrates

Things seem to go from bad to worse for Schapelle Corby as her father has just been named by a Queensland police informant as somebody who has in the past smuggled drugs, specifically marijuana, into Bali. The claim is that the smuggling took place just before Schapelle was busted entering Bali via Denpasar.

It has long been suspected that Michael Corby Sr, Schapelle's father, was involved in the attempt to smuggle the drugs into Bali that Schapelle was caught with. This became even more evident when Tony Lewis, a long-time friend of Michael Corby and the Corby family was arrested and a search of his property uncovered a 5kg vacuum-packed bag of marijuana eerily similar to the one that ultimately came out of the infamous boogie board bag. At the time of Lewis's arrest the police also found thousands of dollars in cash, US dollars to be exact.

This is sure to heighten the suspicion that perhaps Michael Corby was behind the effort to smuggle the drugs to Bali. Michael Corby died earlier this year of cancer so it is impossible to put these allegations to the man personally.

Nevertheless, it would then make sense that perhaps Schapelle is not innocent as many believed her to be when she was first arrested. A recent poll shows that maybe public sentiment is shifting as the majority of NSW residents surveyed tend to feel that she is guilty. Further revelations like this one is only likely to see the number of people thinking that Corby is guilty increase.

The allegations keep on coming with another Corby family member suggesting that Michael Corby Sr had a 30-year career as a drug provider and seller with respect to marijuana. It is a long way from being the local dealer of dope in Mackay to becoming an international smuggler of the wacky weed but not beyond the realm of possibility.

These latest revelations only add to the dilemma in terms of knowing what the real truth is. The reality is that this is nothing more than circumstantial evidence but a preponderance of circumstantial evidence might convince some that perhaps Schapelle Corby is not as innocent as she maintains.

Life goes on!

I have had a really long day. I finally reached home in the early hours of the morn and had a few hours sleep. The addict that I am means that I am up before 9.00 and already making a blog entry. That for some might be sad!

This is a personal musing and as such should be read for what it is.

I am certain that I am done in Indonesia. I have been trying to convince myself that I want to stay by avoiding doing the things that I need to do. For example, filling in the forms to complete the better half's visa application. However, I have done that now. That is fill in the necessary forms.

The cold hard reality and the simple truth is that I want to raise "the Kid" in Australia and I want the wife to have that opportunity to live and grow in Australia, and I want to explore the opportunities that I have in the land of my birth.

My current bosses are ummming and ahhhing about what they think I am worth and what they think they might offer me as remuneration. This tells me a few things, but chief among them is that they do not really value my contribution to the company and if they cannot work out what they think I am worth then perhaps I am not worth that much after all.

More than anything I think that I need a change.

Woody Guthrie is one of my favourite folk singers. I found Woody Guthrie through Bob Dylan. I recently listened to a Bob Dylan cover of this song. The song has an interesting history. Guthrie wrote it in 1940, recorded it in 1944, and published it in 1951. The melody is lifted from an earlier Carter Family recording of a Baptist Hymn.

Good luck happens to thrifty shoppers more often than one might think. Yet, it is always a good story when it does. Considering today is the Fourth of July and the US is celebrating its independence from those pesky British Colonizers it is interesting to find a story that seems to combine all of the essential elements.

It appears the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR) has taken offence that the Indonesian Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has been arresting serving members of the DPR. The total is five at last count and seems destined to increase. Perhaps the should rename the DPR to the House of Rupiah.

The trial of 11 alleged terrorists in the Supreme Court of Victoria is hearing closing arguments for the defendants. After more than five months worth of evidence the closing arguments are making for interesting listening and reading. The first of the closing arguments is in defence of the alleged head of the group, Abdul Nacer Benbrika. Benbrika also goes by the aliases Abu Bakr and Sheikh.

I have always wondered about the common sense of prohibiting good Samaritans from giving money to street children and other beggars that populate the traffic bottlenecks that surround Jakarta and other big cities in Indonesia. Nevertheless, common sensical or not Makassar has decided that the street children and beggars are a problem that stems from the generosity of passers-by who fork over any spare change that they might have.

The 10 Islamic terrorists arrested recently in Sumatra had intended to bomb the Kafe Bedudel in Bukittinggi. They had even gone as far as to plant the devices at the cafe. Fortunately, the were overcome with a conscience and aborted the plan when it became obvious that there would be more Indonesian victims and more Muslim victims than there would be foreigners or westerners.

Schapelle Corby has suffered a relapse and her depression and hallucinations are back with a vengeance. It would seem that a relapse also means she has become a danger to herself and others again as well. What was supposed to be a relaxing day out for the convicted drug smuggler has turned into a nightmare.

It does not take a rocket scientist to understand that the problems of the Middle East are complex.

Jihad is an all encompassing struggle and you probably need a personalized number plate for your car to make sure that you get there in the end.

There have not been any terrorist bombings in Indonesia for some time. Hopefully, it will stay like this for some time into the future. It seems the Indonesian police are on a bit of a roll and in particular the anti-terrorist unit, Detachment 88, who have arrested a further 10 suspected Jemaah Islamiyya followers and wanna be terrorists. The Spiritual Head of Jemaah Islamiyya is Abu Bakar Ba'asyir (Bashir) (make whatever interpretation you will of the cartoon / caricature).

Ganja Queen is the title of a film that will (or has) screen on HBO. The film purports to go behind the scenes and look at the trial that gripped a nation. I do not know whether it gripped Australia quite like the Lindy Chamberlain trial but it certainly made for riveting viewing considering that a young girls life was on the line. The final sentence of 20 years will ensure that Corby (photo courtesy of Reuters) spends the prime years of her life in prison. If she ends up doing the full 20 years then she will be nearing 50 when she gets out.

It would seem that not all Catholics are thrilled about the new annoyance laws put into place to "guarantee" that pilgrims are not annoyed or inconvenienced during the World Youth Day festivities.

For those of you wanting to protect the family jewels then it seems a recent study out of the United Kingdom might provide the answer. Researchers from the Institute of Food Research in Norwich have confirmed that broccoli (photo courtesy of Jennifer Soo) has some benefits in protecting men from developing prostate cancer and may even slow down tumour growth in those that have developed them. Now this is not a series of results from lab rats but from human guinea pigs who were fed either broccoli or peas over the course of a year.

The recent arrest of the fifth currently serving politician, Bulyan Royan, for alleged corruption this year proves two points; the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) are getting better at their job and that politicians are still living in the New Order mentality that has them thinking they are immune from arrest and prosecution.

I must have lead a charmed existence as a youngster because as I sit here typing this I cannot recall one time when I thought that I had had enough and it was time to end it all. That is not to say that I was not aware of suicide. One of my team mates on my U-17 rugby team committed suicide. The strange thing was that no one saw it coming! Everyone in the post match wash up seemed to think all was well. Even his mum thought things were good.

The question of what is a fitting tribute to Heath Ledger has split the art's community of Perth. The Western Australian Premier, Alan Carpenter, has indicated that the State intends to re-name the Northbridge Center after the recently deceased actor and current star of the latest installment in the Batman franchise, The Dark Knight.

Now if the reports that have been coming in over the last couple of days are true then maybe I was right. Maybe Schapelle Corby and her family need to give some serious consideration to not taking advantage of any prisoner transfer deal that might be struck between the governments of Indonesia and Australia.

Ground water and the exploitation of this water is coming under greater government scrutiny both on a national level and a local level. It is fair to say that both have been slow of the mark and many of you might be thinking what else is new in this part of the world and this part of the country. It seems to be standard practice to mess around until the last minute and then think about addressing the problem.