Too much choice – welcoming a First World Problem back to the First World

Right now, we have the coronavirus pandemic wreaking the most havoc seen in the First World since 1945. Pandemics are not exactly First World Problems. They are what we expect to find in poor countries, ie the Third World (which reminds me, I heard a rumour that Ebola is making a comeback at the moment). …

The most predictable headline of the year

I’ve never been an Age reader. My father always used to bring the Herald (an evening newspaper) home each night after work, and from the age of nine onward, I got into the habit of buying what was then called the Sun News-Pictorial (a morning newspaper) on the way to school. In 1990, they were …

McDonalds Drive Thru is the new normal

I went for a walk last night around sunset, to get some exercise. Being cooped up in the house all day got a bit dull, particularly as I did not trigger my Amazon Prime trial til this morning (binge watched The Boys most of today). I walked til the McDonalds in Military Road, which had …

In praise of Sword and Sandal….

I have been fascinated by Ancient History since my childhood. As a result, I spent four years as an adult trying to learn Latin at the Centre for Adult Education (even as a fluent Italian speaker, Latin is extremely hard to learn!). I have three feet worth of shelf space dedicated to books on Ancient …

The Pandemic – be cautious but without fear

As far as the First World goes, this Pandemic is the first major challenge it has faced since the end of the Second World War 75 years ago. It would have been different, if the Cold War had turned Hot, and Thermonuclear, as I feared in my teenage years, before the Berlin Wall suddenly collapsed …

Wikipedia’s Fake News – part 2

According to the new.com.au coronavirus tally open on my smart phone right now, there are 5,599 coronavirus cases in Australia, 311,544 in the USA, 126,168 in Spain, 124,632 in Italy, 96,092 in Germany, 90,848 in France, and 82,558 in China. A few days ago, the number in China, according to that website, was 82301, and …

Bread and Circuses OR… The $7 Trillion Question

I was watching a video presentation last night by a very pessimistic investment advisory service to which I subscribe. They don’t exactly say to buy Gold, Guns, Toilet Paper, Tinned Food, and Banjos (well, they are pretty keen on Gold at least), but they did point out a few numbers which are a little more …

Skin in the game – putting a toe back in

The share market’s ups and downs fascinate me, and have ever since I got my first minuscule parcel of Mayne Nickless shares almost 24 years ago. Staying out of the market bugs me a lot – it is like not having any red wine in the house, a state of affairs which is quite askew. …