The “must have” items this Christmas: zilch, nada and zipRetailers face a big problem this Christmas season: apart from the generally uncertain economy, there is no big “must have” item to sell this year. Where is 2009’s XBox or Tickle Me Elmo?
December, 2009
Voices from the Pacific in Copenhagen
Anna Rose shares the words of 11 young people from the Pacific currently attenting the climate summit in Copenhagen. For them, climate change is already having a real effect on their everyday lives, and the future is looking increasingly bleak.
The 10 most complained about ads of 2009
From Advanced Medical Institute’s “Men do it LONGER” billboards to Coke Zero’s pole dancers, mUmBRELLA lists the ads that got the most Australian knickers in a twist this year.
Kohler: Simplifying the super system
As part of the restructuring of Australia’s superannuation system, the big funds will be divided into two key groups essentially ‘care’ and ‘don’t care’, writes Alan Kohler. Most people don’t care or don’t choose their super fund.
Where’s my flying car? Technology we never got
Cities under the sea, food pills, self-driving cars and man-made oceans: this was supposed to be the future! A look at the failed predictions of the 20th Century.
Crunch time in Copenhagen
After a week of very little being achieved in Copenhagen, it’s time for leaders to get down to some serious negotiating on setting emissions targets and squabbling over who’s going to pay for it all. Grist looks at how it will all play out.
Pissed and stoned at work? There are more important things to worry about…
Is drug and alcohol testing at work really something that employers should be concerned about? Many other issues — life threatening hazards like chemicals and machinery — have a more significant impact on the workplace.
Time‘s 2009 Person of the Year: the nominees
Time has revealed the 2009 nominees for its coveted title of Person of the Year. This year’s list ranged from the obvious — Obama, Bernanke — to some more left-field suggestions like the Somali Pirates and Iran Protesters.
Pay pollies peanuts and you’ll get (even more) monkeys
Why the anger when Aussie politicians’ salaries — measly compared to the private sector — are given a slight raise? Pollies also have to deal with public and media scrutiny, so let’s pay them what they’re worth.
NSW heading for a smashing
Today’s Newspoll brings particularly dismal poll results for NSW Labor, even by their usual lowly standards, while only 24% of voters think Christine Kenneally will make a better Premier than Rees. Possum Comitatus graphs the carnage.
WSJ vs. NYT
The Wall Street Journal is a little pissed about a recent New York Times piece claiming the Journal has shifted rightward under Rupert Murdoch’s ownership. It’s snarky press releases at 20 paces.
2009: it was no 1776 or 1989
Copenhagen, Obama, Jacko, Twitter, Iran — yep, 2009 was a Big Year, but how does it rank against some of history’s most important years? Will the last 12 months go down as a pivotal period or just another 365 days?
The real reason Google is going mobile
By launching its own mobile phone, and selling direct to consumers, Google is trying to turn the entire mobile market on its head. It’s a potential win for consumers, but the telecommunications industry won’t take it lying down.
Taylor: No ‘cooking the books’ in this land of fire and brimstone
Although there are claims that Australia has been pulling a dodgy on reporting an increase in industrial pollution, this simply isn’t true, writes Lenore Taylor. We’ve complied with all the rules in the Kyoto Protocol, we just aren’t counting bushfires and droughts.
Neopolitan pizza: now officially protected by the EU
The EU is now enforcing strict guidelines on the creation of Neapolitan pizzas around the world: ONLY San Marzano tomatoes, buffalo-milk mozzarella, an eighth-of-an-inch-thick crust, hand-stretched dough and a wood-fired oven will suffice.
MPs Pimp Their Ride: Gas guzzling, go gas guzzling
Our MPs may love the climate change talk, but when it comes to cars there is very little green action, with the majority of MPs driving fuel guzzling, rev head six or eight cylinder cars. And they are HUGE Ford Territory fans…
Pretty, articulate and a lost cause: Keneally repeats the Stott Despoja experiment
One look at new NSW Premier Kristina Keneally and ‘same horse, different jockey’ comes to mind: no policy changes, just a more friendly media face. No matter who leads it, the NSW ALP is heading for annihilation, says Andrew Clennell.
How Bush’s birth control policies fueled Africa’s baby boom
Experts say Dubbya’s policy of refusing African AIDS-prevention funding to groups promoting family planning services and counseling programs has seen birth-rates swell on the already over-populated continent.
leaked Iran has its finger on the nuclear trigger
Secret documents obtained by the Times reveal Iran is working on a “a neutron initiator” — the final key component of a nuclear bomb that triggers an explosion.
Iran’s secret nuclear plans: the full document
Read the full translation of the leaked Iranian government document detailing its plans to build a nuclear trigger.
Abbott makes a mediocre debut in the polls
Essential Research has released the first public poll on Tony Abbott as Liberal leader, the Mad Monk scoring a 34% approval and 36% disapproval rating — the worst debut by any federal Opposition leader ever, reports Possum Comitatus.
NSW Newspoll: ALP takes another hiding
The latest NSW Newspoll has Labor’s primary vote down 4 points to 26%, the Coalition up 2 to 44% and the Greens vaulting 5 to an unprecedented 17%, reports William Bowe.
How Rupert ruined the WSJ
On the second anniversary of Rupert Murdoch’s purchase of the Wall Street Journal, current and former writers say his conservative politics have tainted the paper’s editorial objectivity and quality.
Essential Research: 58-42
The latest Essential Research survey has Labor’s lead at 58-42 for the third successive week, and finds virtually no one in Australia believes anything will be achieved at Copenhagen, reports William Bowe.
