We like Mike. The Mike Rann cheer squad grows bigger and bigger as the ALP presidential ballot continues. Premiers Beattie, Bracks and Iemma are on board, as are former state Labor leaders Bob Carr and Geoff Gallop. And just in case any true believers are feeling wobbly about Rann and uranium, his official campaign website now includes friendly quotes from David Suzuki, as well as last week’s Al Gore gush.

In the navy… Good to see the ADF dropping some old prejudices as Dr Brendan strives to swell our ranks of men in uniform. A Defence Forces Recruitment vehicle was parked this morning outside a well known inner-city Melbourne gay bathhouse.

One person Green/FFP coalition? The Green’s new lead candidate for an SA Senate slot at the next election, Sarah Hanson-Young is also a born again, we’re told.

More than just Volvos. Some would-be prime ministers should be taking a look at the election outcome in Sweden. The economy has been doing OK, but voters were bored with infighting. They wanted some fresh choices, some fresh faces and fresh polices. Kevin Rudd and Lindsay Tanner should sit down and examine the results together – as should ambitious Libs with more imagination than Dollar Sweetie.

What strikes fear into Defence. Everyone in Defence knows the new Bungendore headquarters project is a pork-barrel gift to the voters of the marginal of Eden-Monaro. But that doesn’t mean they’ve come to terms with the project. Already, it looks as if the project will be yet another expensive Defence white elephant. But what really strikes terror into the hearts of defence personnel is the thought that the childcare centre will be run by ABC Learning.