Business natterings, SysAdmin Natterings, Trees and Unitarian Jihad, Nuclear Power, Dead People

A fruitful couple of weeks. The ISP I'm working for has increased my hours, which makes the sudden financial change in the last post more palatable. Six month review of "going alone" as a contracter indicates that business-wise all is fine. Income is slightly higher than expected and expenses much lower. Dark clouds on the horizon are clients who still owe money (dammit, my entire life is cursed by people who don't pay on time!) and the need for at least one more income stream to ensure that I come within expectations on the annual budget. So I'm doing some serious investigation into multimedia and games.

Latest issue of the SAGE-AU journal came out just after my last post with one article, a book review, and an interview by myself and a decent article by Alexander Zangerl of Bond University on teaching sysadmin skills. The review and article had been previously published in Red Friday and the interview was on a data recovery firm, which has done some pretty extraordinary work. On a related note, SAGE-AU has set up a piece of work by Brad Marshall on sysadmin resources. Very useful!

Last Sunday week at the Unitarians was Fred Neuman who, with an enormous list of qualifications, gave a very sensible and balanced approach to forest management that was firmly grounded in scientific considerations. He didn't really address the problem of reconciling science with commercial interests and that remains a weak point (and one, which due to politics, commerce will probably win). On a related note, everyone's been linking the Unitarian Jihad and of course the Unitarian Jihad name. Most appropriately, my Unitarian
Jihad Name is: Sister/Brother Katana of Patience. Get yours.

Brendon Nelson reckons Australia should go nuclear. Saw this one coming a mile off. After all, Australia does hold 1/3 of the world's uranium reserves, so big business can see big profits. There's a certain irony that in the same fortnight New Scientist reports that nuclear waste could provide a terror target. Meanwhile, greylock has alerted me to Indonesia's plan for twelve nuclear reactors.

Pope John Paul II and Andrea Dworkin died since my last update. On the Pope, whilst a person who constantly advocated peace, which is commendable, he also centralised the Church with reactionary doctrine which will be his damaging legacy. I often wonder how liberal Catholics cope in such an environment. As for Dworkin, well, she gathered useful empirical data and ruined it with atrocious theory - something which feminist critics of feminism often point out I've noted.

Key social events of the fortnight included dinner with greg who has regrettably had to leave the fair shores of Australia after a brief visit and going to the Atherton Gardens public housing estate community fair with Brendan, Kerrie and friends, consuming lots of Timorese coffee and taking the opportunity to rejoin radio station3CR.

Erick Locke just resigned as State Secretary of the ALP (Victorian branch), on a matter of principle no less. I wish John Howard was a man of principle, after interest rates going up (a sort-of promise), after sending more troops to Iraq (a promise broken) and now Medicare subsidies cut (a promise broken), he is clearly a man with zero integrity. The cute animal story of the week is the discovery of dinosaur eggs in virto. Nike admits to abuses (guess all that protest action at Swanston and Bourke was
justified) and the BBC reckons there will be a cure for cancer in five years.

Melbourne weather is notorious, but this is just plain silly.

Brain breaker goes to evil_genius for referring me to Gay Black Jewish Klansman.