Defence PR. At the last count, Defence had
about double the number of PR staff than active military personnel able to be
deployed at any time. Frontline protection or something like that. Not that
they’re ever particularly good at returning phone calls. Or anything much. Yesterday’s
Sydney Morning Herald ran a slagging email (read down) from the Army’s top PR officer Lieutenant-Colonel Grant King in
response to political scientist Ross Fitzgerald’s op-ed in Monday’s Australian arguing the ADF needs
to become more transparent and accountable. “I think we should
adopt the same response that appeared a couple of pars earlier in his yarn and
tell this poonce, the ‘feel free to f— off approach to public relations’ is
our preferred approach when dealing with him.” Fitzgerald concluded his piece
by stating “The deeper mismanagement of the ADF must not go unchecked.” What
would King’s response to this proposition be?

More Epping brawling. Is the Liberal
preselection for the NSW state seat of Epping going to break all records for
bitchiness? Doing the rounds – a seven year old Hansard extract where nudist,
pot-smoking independent MP talks about hopeful Damien Tudehope: “The Australian
Family Alliance came close to having candidates elected to Parliament at the
last election. Reverend the Hon FJ Nile will know about that conservative
organisation. Damien Tudehope, Marc Florio, Colleen Keppie and Denis Patterson
are the party leaders.”

Why the market must be due for a
correction. “Hedgestock?”
“Hedgestock?” “A Festival of Networking for the Hedge Fund Industry?” Roll on a
significant correction.