IDEA: IS EDUCATION THE ANSWER?

Yes, but it depends on the question.

If the aim is to boost income and productivity, well, the situation isn't as clear as you might think.

How do we know?

Try this study . . .

IDEA - DYSFUNCTION

A simple idea: the failure of our rhetoric to match our reality.

Journalists spend ages attempting to craft their stories to make them 'accurate'.

But what happens when you know that what you're meant to report on - be it the assurances contained in the government's 'Asia White Paper', or the solemn protestations of a politician pretending to assure us of 'x' or 'y' - is rubbish . . .

COMPETITION FOR FUNDS

The biggest question faced by the military is always money. 

The initial challenge is getting enough from the government, then fighting for a greater proportion of that pie. 

This analytical piece appeared in a Canberra Times Defence Supplement . . . 

MAXINE & JULIA

Maxine McKew's a great journalist - but that doesn't mean that everything she's written is objective.

Particularly when it comes to politics.

That's hardly surprising. One of the things that makes for great journalism is passion, and McKew's passionate about politics. This is (sort of) a review of her book, Rudd's chance to return to the Lodge (virtually negligible) and Gillard's prior knowledge of the coup (I believe she did know prior to the morning she announced her challenge) . . .

WRITING A STORY

I've written a few comments to help my students as they struggle with writing a news story . . .

SHE JUST DOESN'T GET IT . . .

Julia Gillard just doesn't understand. Why we are alive? To make money? To be a multi-factorial input for the production process? Or for some other reason.

Amidst all the verbiage launching the Asia White Paper today she listed the reasons we need to engage with the region.

Money, economy, security - all of the usual suspects were front and centre, just as you'd expect. Yet how utterly devoid of imagination!

The reason to be engaged with Asia is because it's interesting, exciting, challenging, fun and wonderful and to interact with foreign cultures . . .

FEAR & LOATHING IN THE BEEB

When you see old pictures of Jimmy Saville and hear his catch-cry - "Ow's about that then!" - armed with the knowledge that he preyed on young girls, it's difficult to restrain utter disgust at the way the BBC protected their pin-up pedophile for so long. 

But it can be difficult for a columnist to evoke feelings amongst readers. It's not enough to simply assert Saville/the BBC was/is disgusting - you need to create those emotions amongst the audience. 

I reckon this op-ed piece from Allison Pearson (London Daily Telegraph) is a great example of the style . .  .