Tuesday, March 30, 2004

Go the mighty Eels!!

Two in a row. WhooooHoooo!!!!!!!
It still wasn't pretty but I'll take them any way I can get 'em.
Well done boys, keep improving.

Sunday, March 21, 2004

Well, maybe one!!

The MIGHTY Parramatta Eels won a hard fought victory over the Broncos today. It was a better performance than last week but was still a mistake-athon.
Guys, a little advice if I may.
* Stop dropping the ball.
* Stop missing tackles.
* Stop giving away silly penalties.
Please!!!!!!!!!!

I still luv youse all. Well done.

No posts this week

Hi folks.
There will be no rants this week as I am taking the family for a well earned holiday. See ya when we get back next week.
Luv & kisses, Gibbo.

Friday, March 12, 2004

I have no hair!

I had the wonderful experience of having my head shaved today as part of the Worlds Greatest Shave. One of my work colleagues organised a fantastic turn out with a great deal of money being raised. The highlight was when we managed to raise $1000 so one of our academics would shave off his 15 year old beard. A very gracious act indeed.
I will do my best to get some pictures up here asap.

Friday, March 05, 2004

I've always suspected this.

From the folks at Bizarre Science we get...

"The meaning of 100%
A strictly mathematical viewpoint.


.... it goes like this:

What Makes 100% ?
What does it mean to give MORE than 100% ?
Ever wonder about those people who say they are giving more than 100% ?
We have all been to those meetings where someone wants you to give over 100%.
How about achieving 103% ?
What makes up 100% in life?

Well, here's a little mathematical formula that might help you answer these
questions:
If: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
is represented as:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

Then: H-A-R-D-W-O-R-K is
8+1+18+4+23+15+18+11 = 98%

and K-N-O-W-L-E-D-G-E is
11+14+15+23+12+5+4+7+5 = 96%

But, A-T-T-I-T-U-D-E is
1+20+20+9+20+21+4+5 = 100%

And,
B-U-L-L-S-H-I-T is
2+21+12+12+19+8+9+20 = 103%

AND, look how far ass-kissing will take you.
A-S-S-K-I-S-S-I-N-G is
1+19+19+11+9+19+19+9+14+7 = 118%

So, one can then conclude with mathematical certainty that

...while Hard work and Knowledge will get you close, ....and Attitude will get you there, ....Bullshit and Ass-kissing will put you over the top."

The REAL reason behind the Redfern Riots

I got this the other day from my mate Big Al, the King of Vanuatu.
"TJ was going to be SOUTHS great leap forward and the Block reacted more to the previous days loss to St George. And a rumour that Skull and Craig Young were on the attack. The real victim was the Bike with out brakes that had over the years carried surviving trialists down Surrey Hills and on to Rugby League History with unfortunately - Manly."
This explains a lot Al. Thanks.

Thursday, March 04, 2004

Macarthur Health Services part 4456956

Ken Parish over at Troppo Armadillo has a great piece on this ongoing saga.
You can find it here.
Tell 'em Gibbo sent you.

Dr Mike Approaches Uppercut Status

After my rant the other day regarding Dr Mike Freelanders' comments in this weeks "Gastric Reporter", I was soundly taken to task by my wife. She said I was being unfair to a really nice man who was probably being misquoted by evil newspaper people. There was simply no way that this wonderful man would really seek to further politicise this issue by re-directing his anger to the state opposition. After a "robust" discussion I was willing to admit that I had probably over reacted. We have had cause to use Dr Mikes services a few times over the years and have found him to be an absolute angel. A genuine caring man, no question. I toddled off to dinner feeling somewhat chastened by my apparent hot-headedness. When we returned, this weeks Macarthur Chronical was in the driveway. It had various articles regarding the Macarthur "health crisis" which I will comment on shortly but in the letters to the editor I found this (reproduced in full).
"Don't forget Libs' record
I am writing to you because I am concerned about the editorial which fails to understand what problems the politicisation of our health system has caused.
I am really proud of our pediatric unit, the resources we have accrued over the years and the care given. Nevertheless we have been subjected to ill-informed and inappropriate criticism and have not been able to respond.
There have been dramatic improvements in services accross-theboard over the last few years in Macarthur health, even before this recent publicity.
Of course informed criticism is welcome, but much of the criticism has been ill-informed, personal and destructive.
The comments of the so-called whistleblowers have been accepted at face value without any objectivity. John Brogden has peoples distress for political gain. You should remember that the Liberal Partys' record in providing services to south western Sydney, including health services, transport services and Department of Community Services, is less than exemplary.
Mike Freelander
Pediatrician, Camden and Campbelltown
."


AAAARRRRGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now that I've had a quick vomit, let me address your letter Dr Mike.
The thing that really shits me about all of this is your absolute silence on any of these very important issues up until now when your only criticism is of the opposition for calling for an enquiry. Thats the kicker isn't it Mike. Someone has dared to question YOUR judgement regarding the death of a young baby and now you've got the shits and its' all John Brogdens fault.

A quick timeline.
Bob Carr runs our areas' health system into the ground over successive years and you say nothing.
Bob Carr opens a birthing unit that by your own admission is not needed, funded properly or resourced properly. Nothing more than a pre-election stunt and you say nothing.
Two bogus whistleblowers spew their acidic crap on the world and you say nothing, for months!
John Brogden calls for an inquiry and off we go. John's a bastard and its all his fault.
Give me a break.
As I said in my earlier rant, this whole issue could have been stopped in its' tracks months ago if you or your colleagues had simply spoken up when it all began.
Dr Mike, if you want to be a doctor then be a doctor. If you want to be a politician then have the balls to put your name forward for election. Until then, keep your political opinions to yourself. You have no idea the damage that you are causing yourself and your good colleagues by doing exactly what you accuse John Brodgen of. Politicising this issue.
Finally we have an opposition that may hold the Carr government to account for its' mismanagement and all you can do is bitch.
Shutup mate! You are not helping.

Wednesday, March 03, 2004

Todays' Bible Study

Todays verse comes from legendary commedian George Carlin.

"Here is my problem with the ten commandments- why exactly are there 10?
You simply do not need ten. The list of ten commandments was artificially and deliberately inflated to get it up to ten. Here's what happened:

About 5,000 years ago a bunch of religious and political hustlers got together to try to figure out how to control people and keep them in line. They knew people were basically stupid and would believe anything they were told, so they announced that God had given them some commandments, up on a mountain, when no one was around.
Well let me ask you this- when they were making this shit up, why did they pick 10? Why not 9 or 11? I'll tell you why- because 10 sound official. Ten sounds important! Ten is the basis for the decimal system, it's a decade, it's a psychologically satisfying number (the top ten, the ten most wanted, the ten best dressed). So having ten commandments was really a marketing decision! It is clearly a bullshit list. It's a political document artificially inflated to sell better. I will now show you how you can reduce the number of commandments and come up with a list that's a little more workable and logical."


It is a bit long to reproduce in full here but the end result is this.

"1. Thou shalt always be honest and faithful to the provider of thy nookie.
2. Thou shalt try real hard not to kill anyone, unless of course they pray to a different invisible man than you.

Two is all you need; Moses could have carried them down the hill in his fuckin' pocket. I wouldn't mind those folks in Alabama posting them on the courthouse wall, as long as they provided one additional commandment:
Thou shalt keep thy religion to thyself."


Go here for the full story.

Tuesday, March 02, 2004

The District Reporter is Crap Part 3

Your punctuation is really, really bad. I have a mate who is an Editor of local newspapers and he would kick your butt till your nose bled if he was running things there. Sort it out.

The District Reporter is Crap Part 2

This story disappointed me almost to the point of tears. The main story in this weeks District Reporter carries this headline. "Hospital staff used as political football."
It starts out with this. "Macarthur doctors and nurses have called upon both the NSW Government and Opposition to stop politicising the health care services at its two hospitals." Quite reasonable so far.
It then degenerates into a tirade against John Brogden for his alleged politicisation of the issue. "Whilst neither of the major parties have been supportive, Brogden and the Liberal Party's attitude has been disgraceful" Dr Michael Freelander, Head of Paediatrics at Camden Hospital said. "They have made no effort to contact anyone and learn the facts. They simply accept everything that is said by the whistleblowers at face value without questioning things. The Hospital has had no chance to defend itself." BULLSHIT!
John Brogden was definitely wrong in accepting the whistleblowers statements as fact as we all were. We the public have, due to media bias, only been given one side of the story. You and your colleagues have been absolutely silent in providing us with the truth. You have known the truth from the beginning that this was the work of disgruntled bludgers who were simply after a payout. We were all shocked to learn that Nola Fraser had never really raised her concerns in the proper forums and had chosen, for political and personal gain, to raise them in the media. You are doing the same thing. This has been going on for months mate, months! The first we hear from you is to say that this has gotten political. Derrrr! Whilever we have a socialised medical system run by goverments. ie political parties, it can never be anything but political. The cynic in me is starting to think that you and your colleagues have been silent for political gain. Maybe all this pressure on the ALP government might have got you some extra (much needed) funding or whatever. Now that the whistle has been blown on the real culprits and your chance for gain has gone, you choose to put the boot in to John Brogden for not knowing all the facts. We don't know all the facts because until now you have been silent. This is as political as it gets and it makes me sick.
I have been a long time supporter of our areas' health services. My experiences with it have always been very positive. Up until now Dr Mike, I have thought that you and your hard working colleagues have been one step up from sainthood and I would like to continue that thought, really.
I hope that you get to read this post and find it in your heart to reply to it. I hope that you tell me that the newspaper has taken you out of context and that this is a beat up or something similar. Should you choose to send me a reply, I will happily reproduce it here in full with no editing at all. If I am wrong, you will be the first to receive my personal and public apology. No problem. I don't want to pick a fight with anyone over this matter because as you have stated, politicising the issue generally helps noone. At this point though, I feel your comments have done the very thing that you condemn John Brogden for.
I sincerely hope I am wrong.

The District Reporter is Crap Part 1.

From the front page of this weeks District Reporter comes this weeks dose of spin doctoring. a wonderful good news story entitled "For the good of the party - ALP drops its councillors"
" The Australian Labor Party has stopped a mayor and six of its Labor councillors from seeking another term in office by selecting a field of new candidates for the Liverpool local government elections on March 27"
Can you believe this shit? The ALP council of George Paciullo has been one of the most corrupt and incompetent councils in Australias history. The Oasis project is only one of their many achievments. They finally and reluctantly get around to chucking a couple of them out and the District Reporter manages to turn it into a front page, good news story for the ALP. Couple this with the other front page story about how the Macarthur Health Services problems are now all John Brogdens fault (which I will go into next), and we have some of the most biased reporting that I have seen for quite a while.
This crap really makes me sick. I understand that Australias media is very biased to the left but come on folks, this is getting silly.
Dig this... "The partys decision to announce a fresh team of candidates makes eminent sense." Mr Paciullo said. "It has acted wisely and in the best interests of not only itself but Liverpool too."
PUUUUUUKE!!!!!!!!!! Pass the sawdust please.
How you have stayed out of jail simply defies logic.
Meanwhile, The District reporter will take its' rightful place in my home. In the cats' tray.

Monday, March 01, 2004

Todays Bible Study.

From my sister:
Mark,
I think the site needs a more spiritual aspect to it to really attract attention. I recommend a daily Bible verse to counter any bullshit that Alan Jones may have sprouted that morning.
The establishment of a cult linked to website could also be a good money spinner.
cheers
Debbie

Anyway... I don't know about daily but here goes todays.

The Mens Prayer.
Our Beer
which art in bottles
hallowed be thy sport
thy will be drunk
I will be drunk
at home as is in the pub
give us each day our daily stubbies
and forgive us our spillage
as we forgive those who spillest against us
and lead us not into the practice of wine tasting
and deliver us from tequila
for mine is the bitter
the chicks and the footy
for ever and ever
Barmen.
Alan Jones, you are an idiot.
Morris Iemma, you are an idiot.
Nola Fraser, you are an idiot.
Sheree Martin, you are an idiot.
Uppercuts to all of you.


The shit fight over our local hospitals continues...
I caught the tail end of the report on yesterdays' Sunday program which revealed some of the truth of the matter. Here goes the basic version:
1. "Whistleblower" Nurse 1 turns out to be an incompetent whinger who is running a beauty salon on the side when she's not rooting one of the bosses. After having seven months sick leave for depression (running the salon all the while though) and two compo claims rejected, she is asked to explain herself. Her answer, go to Alan Jones with a bunch of bullshit claims about patient neglect.
2. "Whistleblower" Nurse 2 turns out to be an incompetent whinger who is keen to bully her fellow staff members and can't tell the difference between a vagina and a urethra. I'd offer to show you but you would have to steam clean it first! Maybe even the old Detol & wire brush. She is also classed as a natural enemy of the All You Can Eat Restaurant. She gets knocked back for a couple of jobs (they thought she was going to eat the patients) and her answer... go to Alan Jones with a bunch of bullshit claims about patient neglect.
3. Alan Jones. There is not much I can say about this goose that hasn't been said before. He does less research than a year 8 student. He broadcast these idiots' claims as statements of fact without checking anything, instantly turning them into "Hero Whistleblowers".
4. Morris Iemma. I think "Iemma" is Latin for f**kwit. This guy does not have a single clue as to what really happens, only what Alan Jones tells him. Less than a week after "Al the donut puncher" says the boss of the hospital should be sacked, it happens. Shit!

I know that people die in hospitals and sometimes it can be avoided but sometimes (most times) they work bloody miracles. I have had three family members in these hospitals recently and the service has been better than first class. We even had one come home that probably shouldn't have. Due to the tireless efforts of the Doctors & Nurses who don't whinge. You know, the ones that don't have beauty salons to run on the side.

This folks is a classic example of Trial by Media. A subject I will cover further in future rants but the essence of my thoughts are this. I would rather my kids told me they wanted to be lap dancers than journalists.
Journalist is Latin for "Serial Liar" You give me the shits!