Everyone's A Top Bloke After Death

During the Channel 9 bushfire appeal earlier this year, it was reported that Richard Pratt donated $250,000 to the victims. My reaction was, "Do you think he can spare it?"

Mr Pratt, Australia's 4th richest man, died on Tuesday as a result of prostate cancer. Despite that he was facing charges of lying over allegations he was involved in price fixing - to which he admitted and for which his company was fined $36 million - Pratt is being eulogised as a hero, with many commentators pointing out that the charges were dropped the day before Pratt passed away. That is true, but only because the CDPP acknowledged his death was imminent. The Commonwealth Prosecutor Mark Dean believes the charges would have succeeded had they gone to trial.

But according to large sections of the media, Richard Pratt died innocent; he was vindicated of all charges and should only be remembered as a great man. He did do much good, but the "price fixing scandal" was an appalling abuse of corporate power which sent many small businesses broke, and the victims will now never recieve justice.

As the guys from the Chaser pointed out, everyone's a top bloke after death.

~~~~~

Your humble blogger is suffering from flu this very moment. My mother asked me if I've been in contact with anyone who could have swine flu, and I replied "I'm in the Sydney CBD most days, mingling with people from all over the world, so who can say?"

When you consider the actual number of cases, I'm left shaking my head at the mass panic. It's the flu, people. All the actual swine flu sufferers I've seen interviewed on TV seem bemused by the whole thing. Still, it's a nice change from hearing about "illegals" (actually you right-wing nuts, it's not illegal to seek asylum in a foreign country) and the GFC.

2 comments

Building A Better Nico

Yesterday morning - Sunday - someone started vacuuming their car right outside my bedroom window, therefore waking me. I checked the clock. 9am. No, hang on, daylight saving was over; it was 8am. It was a late night Saturday. This called for immediate action. I stuck my head out the window and said..."Can you do that somewhere else, please?"

What is happening to me? A few months ago such behaviour would have unleashed a stream of such profanity that they keyboard would now melt if I tried to type it. But I'm the highly suggestible type, and am now under the influence of a better half so saintly, paediatric-nurse like that I am vaguely ashamed of a lot of my behaviour. I have quite a temper, that is clear, and far too little regard for my fellow humans.

So these days I'm trying to be a better person. I no longer stomp on the feet of people who won't get up to let me past on the train. (I do still hit them with my bag a little, though).

Leave a Comment

There They Go Again

I ended up donating more money to the RSPCA Bushfire appeal than to the human ones. Yes, it was an appalling tragedy, but after hearing about the fifth plaint from the Victorian bushfire victims that "We don't need any inner-city greenies telling us how to run things" I thought, well it doesn't seem to stop you taking the inner-city greenies' money. You can do without mine.

It's still got me beat why these people hate us so. Along with smokers, we're the only group remaining in society it is perfectly fine to say anything about.

Sure, many of the bushfire victims were no doubt lovely people who didn't discriminate by postcode and realised everyone drinks lattés. But to the whingers, I'll say - apparently you do need some advice. Even the most cossetted of apartment dwellers knows that when there's big fires coming, you get the hell out.

Leave a Comment

In Theory...

There's nothing wrong with people with Asperger's syndrome; they could in fact even be consdiered as superior. Aspies could be said to be the first humans to evolve beyond the pack mentality.

This is the stuff I come up with when I have too much time on my hands. (Why I have too much time on my hands but haven't been posting is something I'll get to this week). Anyway, I've both lived with and dated men with Asperger's syndrome (not at the same time - they weren't the same person). My ex actually suggested at the time we were dating I may have the condition myself, but I strenuously denied this, and didn't know much of the condition until recently when I got to reading about it.

It's fascinating stuff. Myself, I've been wondering if perhaps Aspies have evolved beyond meaningless social interaction in order to persue higher goals.

In the early days of human evolution, humans had to live as part of a pack/tribe/group to survive. A "yay, team!" mentality was required from all, or early people would be cast out on their own, unable to hunt, reproduce, or defend themselves.

But in today's society, this is no longer necessary. Sure, social skills are nice and can make life easier, for example when job hunting. But we can survive on our own. Maybe in Aspies, the part of the brain which gives a shit that your colleague is about to become a grandparent again is shut off, in order to achieve something more long lasting than small talk at a party you were only dragged to by your much more social partner.

4 comments