Thursday 1 - Saturday 10 May, 2014 (diary)

Virtually overnight the dry season has arrived here in Darwin. All the clouds are gone, the air is dry, humidity low and the mornings are suddenly pleasantly cool. An opportunity to wear my Kathmandu bright yellow, nylon, super-light wind jacket for the first time. I is great.

Yes, the Battlelines are certainly drawn for the Abbott Government in Australian politics right now, with the Federal Budget speech coming up next week promising financial pain for everyone.

It now has become abundantly clear (through articles, interviews, newly published books and independent auditing commissions) that the previous Labour Government has been incompetent, wasteful, self-serving and a total disaster for the governing of this so wonderful country.
They have stuffed up every single project they implemented and locked in huge financial commitments for decades to come with no way the country can pay for it.
In hindsight the past Government will in my view be seen as the worst Government in Australia's history.
So the question is : are we heading towards a similar fate as those hapless countries of Southern Europe ?

Australia is at a critical moment in its history : do we have the maturity as a country to face up to reality and act for the future good, or are we going to ignore the facts and continue on a path of "business as usual" and face much greater pain down the track. Several responsible political commentators (predominantly from The Australian newspaper) have made the point, but much of the media, with the socialist biassed ABC TV (Australia's national TV network) in front, are in stupid denial and are playing politics.

The validity of our present democratic political system is now also increasingly being questioned. Especially in countries like the USA, UK and Australia, which are dominated by two political parties (conservatives and socialists) the problem is manifest.
Those with some interest in politics and the direction our country is heading are staunch supporters of the one party or the other. But a large proportion of the population has no interest in politics at all and lives in the coo coo world of Real TV and Social media.
However it is this ignorant group of swinging voters who really control who will govern the country and stay in power. As a result both parties pander to this group for their political survival, usual with mediocre outcome for the country as a result. This is especially a problem in Australia where voting is compulsory, so that every ignorant or disinterested Joh Bloh and his mate get his say.

Sunday 11 - Tuesday 20 May, 2014 (diary)

All the hard work and preparation have come to fruition, our Sandbar social bridge event was a great succes. Forty players participated on a wonderful Sunday afternoon.
The main event was preceded by a dinner at Stokes Hill Wharf on Friday, and two Bridge lessons on the Crowhurst 2♣ Convention at the Trailer Boat Club. You can view all photos here.
The NT News also published a nice piece in the paper.

The day after the event I collected my brand new VW Polo TDI (diesel), a great small car with very low fuel consumption but plenty of grunt. Photos later.

Wednesday 21 - Saturday 31 May, 2014 (diary)

Here it is then, my brand new VW Polo CDI (diesel). I have had my Mercedes Vito van now for 12 full years. Although my initial intention was to keep driving it for a few more years.
But driving 5-6 times a week into Darwin (due to my new bridge club commitments) has increased my fuel bill to $130.- per week. With the Polo that cost will be almost halved, a saving of $3000 a year. Continuing to drive my Vito would therefore be a false economy.

Rather then trading the Vito in I have given the car to my daughter Babette as it still has quite a few useful years in it.

When the responsible austerity Federal Budget was revealed earlier this month, one of Australia's leading political commentators made the point that the Australian public's reaction to this budget would reveal our "Maturity as a Nation".
Well we sure now know the answer to that one : squealing and screaming from all sides with the Labour party and Greens (who created the mess in the first place) right in front.

We have a saying in Dutch : "Empty barrels resonate the loudest!"
This surely is the case here, as unfortunately it is in other Western Democracies around the world (notably the US, UK and in Europe). The trivial social media online and an ever decreasing attention span of much of the Western world's population is largely to blame. As some astute commentators have observed : the world is dumbing down at the rate of knots.