Sophocles referred to the phenomenon in Antigone, Shakespeare in Henry IV and Anthony and Cleopatra - the age-old tendency to inflict retribution on the bearer of bad tidings. And, boy, is the messenger copping it right now over the opinion poll that shows two thirds of Fijians solidly behind the supposedly hated dictator, Frank … [Read more...] about #46 SHOOTING THE MESSENGER
#45 ALL AT SEA (AGAIN)
Prime Minister Julia Gillard has got a flaming cheek blaming Opposition leader Tony Abbott for the shemozzle that has become Australia's official policy on asylum seekers. Sure, Abbott's refusal to countenance the government's grubby deal to send new boat arrivals to Malaysia has a political dimension. But it is also principled - the notion that … [Read more...] about #45 ALL AT SEA (AGAIN)
#44 FIJI’S POPULAR DICTATOR
Regional policy makers are reeling at the implications of a remarkable opinion poll that shows overwhelming public support in Fiji for Frank Bainimarama - widely regarded as a Pacific pariah for his 2006 coup and continuing refusal to bow to demands for an early election. The poll - commissioned by the independent Australian think … [Read more...] about #44 FIJI’S POPULAR DICTATOR
#43 DEATH IN THE FAMILY
Grubsheet is in mourning - along with much of the Australian media and wider community - after the death of ABC journalist Paul Lockyer and two of his colleagues in a fiery helicopter crash in the South Australian outback. It's become a cliche to say that someone died doing what he loved. But that is the absolute truth in this instance and the sole … [Read more...] about #43 DEATH IN THE FAMILY
#42 DARK AGE OF ENTITLEMENT
Britain's middle class has been traumatised by the sudden eruption of violence and looting by a generation reared on the notion of entitlement. Not for them a "chicken in every pot and a car in every garage" - the epitome of western attainment identified back in the late 1920s by American president Herbert Hoover. In the nihilism of modern … [Read more...] about #42 DARK AGE OF ENTITLEMENT
#41 VALE THE WHITE MOUSE
In nearly four decades in the media, Grubsheet has encountered hundreds of interview subjects yet few made such a lasting impression as Nancy Wake - the French Resistance heroine who has died in London at the age of 98. No superlative does justice to the unstoppable force of nature that was Nancy, even in her twilight years. To anyone who met her, … [Read more...] about #41 VALE THE WHITE MOUSE