As of Sunday afternoon, it seems a deal between Penny Wong and Ian Macfarlane, or at least the Government’s best-and-final offer, is within sight, with the Government spelling out a timetable to put the deal to Cabinet and Caucus on Monday. Bernard Keane writes at The Stump.
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Where do immigrants most want to live?
Despite making a big show of being unfriendly to “illegal” immigrants, both Australia and the US are among the most desirable new homes for immigrants.
The hacked emails causing climate sceptic chaos
Hundreds of private emails and documents from climate scientists have been unleashed into the wilds of the internet, and climate sceptics are calling their contents “the greatest scandal in modern science“. Ruth Brown investigates.
SARS, shoe bombs and teen sex: the 10 stupidest scare campaigns of the decade
Remember how we were all going to die of bird flu? And the world was going to end with the year 2000? Newsweek looks at the most overblown fears of the noughties.
Could giant snails end starvation in Africa?
It may sound gross, but the giant snail is more nutritious than beef, rich in protein, iron, calcium, zinc, and essential vitamins, and is widely available in Africa. Could giant snail pies be the starving continent’s saviour?
Pel-Air implicates itself deeper and deeper over ditching
It seems that every time the senior management of Pel-Air open their mouths in public they take on more water, says Ben Sandilands.
Ghetto gourmet: Cookin’ With Coolio
’90s rapper Coolio is releasing a cookbook, Cookin’ with Coolio, featuring such recipes as “Chicken Lettuce Blunts” and “Drunk-Ass Chicken” in a style of cooking he calls “Ghetto Fusion”. Check out the book’s Top 10 quotes: “Everything I cook tastes better than yo’ momma’s nipples.”
The 50 best inventions of 2009
Time names the 50 coolest things created over the past year, including vertical farming, the robo-penguin and tweeting by thinking. It has also listed the year’s five worst inventions.
Bill O’Reilly and Sean Hannity’s cat fight over Sarah Palin
Fox News pundits Bill O’Reilly and Sean Hannity both scored interviews with Sarah Palin. Hannity’s will air first, but O’Reilly scooped him by putting a teaser of his interview on his own YouTube channel, reportedly causing Hannity to throw a “hissy fit”. Meow!
Different Castro, same Cuba
A new report by Human Rights Watch says Cuba’s government is as repressive under Raúl Castro as it was under his brother Fidel, with dissidents beaten, publicly humiliated and fired from their jobs.
No luck for the Irish as French cheats prosper
Ireland’s football team was cruelly denied a place at next year’s World Cup in South Africa due to a blatant piece of cheating from the French this morning, declares Neil Walker.
Bahnisch: Liberals fight over their own soul
The CPRS battles within the Liberal party have nothing to do with good public policy or climate change, says Mark Bahnisch — it’s a contest over the spoils of opposition and the ideological direction of the party itself.
Giuliani for 2012?
Former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani is preparing to run for the US Senate and, if successful, may have a tilt at the White House in 2012, according to Republican Party inside sources.
Will Ferrell: Hollywood’s most overpaid star
Forbes has compiled a list of the 10 most overpaid actors in Hollywood. Coming in at number one is Will Ferrell, whose recent film, Land of the Lost, earned only $65 million on an estimated budget of $100 million.
leaked 
UK plans to create Internet Piracy General with power to appoint militias, create laws
A UK government source claims a new Bill will give the Secretary of State unprecedented powers to pass laws on online piracy without debate and confer investigative and enforcement powers to record labels and movie studios, giving them access to personal information and files.
Banking competition: the great Australian oxymoron
Australia’s Big Four banks are at the core of our entire economy, says Evan Jones, and the idea that they’re “in competition” with each other is a farce. Together, these institutions wield enormous power.
Crabb: Kate “the Trellis” Ellis vs. Hulk Hogan
Yesterday, Sports Minister Kate Ellis arm-wrestled with pro-wrestler Hulk Hogan. No really; it was for charity. And the undercard bout between Nick ”the Refrigerator” Minchin and Malcolm “the Merchant Banker” Turnbull was just as vicious, reports Annabel Crabb.
Ackland: Lessons from 25 years of the Sex Discrimination Act
Last month marked 25 years since the passage of the Sex Discrimination Act, says Richard Ackland, and contrary to fears at the time, the courts have not been clogged, power has not shifted from government, and Bibles have not been burnt. Someone tell the fearmongers of today.
Oprah quits
Talkshow queen Oprah Winfrey has announced she will kill off The Oprah Winfrey Show in 2011, after a 25-year run on-air. Rumour is that she’ll start a new show on her own cable network.
Facebook now worth $9.5 billion
Facebook’s private shares are now for about $21 each — a 42% increase since July — valuing the company’s common shares at $9.5 billion. Will the company go public soon?
Which print pubs have the richest readers?
Silicon Valley Insider charts newspapers and magazines with the wealthiest readerships. Wall Street Journal readers are the most cashed-up, while The Atlantic, The Economist and Architectural Digest readers also break the 100k mark.
Telstra’s Tivo: TBox set to launch
Telstra has confirmed it will launch its “TBox” set-top box and digital video recorder next month, allowing users to download movies, TV shows and sport onto their televisions. Will it be embraced like the iQ, or largely ignored like Tivo?
Asking some big questions on school league tables
Is it good for Australian society if schools compete for students on the basis of academic performance and standardised exams? asks James Farrell. Will parents actually be more informed, or just more obsessed with test scores?
A quarter of Americans think Obama stole the election
26% of Americans believe Barack Obama “stole” the 2008 Presidential election, via voter fraud from community organiser ACORN — by comparison, only 18% of Americans thought Bush stole the 2000 election.
