First of the mentioned improvements

1. I’ve launched the new version of my photography site. It’s more focused on interesting photos, rather than my best photos, and I’m currently working on my portfolio which will be a completely separate site. So, have a look, and check out the about page for more info on that site.

2. Hope you like it.

More Good News!

1. Just got word today, my training will happen in Tokyo starting on March 27th. Wooo!

A puff of change?

1. An interesting development in the case of Clarence Hill, an American who had his execution stayed by the Supreme Court less than an hour before he was due to die. Witnesses say he had already been strapped to the table, and IV tubes inserted. Hill’s lawyers challenged the execution, citing a medical study that one of the chemicals used in the lethal injection caused “burning in the veins and massive muscle cramping before cardiac arrest” and invoking the Eighth Amendment which bars cruel and unusual punishment. Perhaps this could be the start for a push to stop capital punishment? Though, with Sam Alito’s appointment to the bench looking firmer by the day it’s possible that it may all fall apart. Nonetheless it’s a short step in the right direction.

The World According to Howard

1. In the defense of his decision to downgrade the Nationals, Howard told reporters:

“Politics, as you all know, is remorselessly governed by the laws of arithmetic”

2. Perhaps this is the reason why in nine years the PM hasn’t shown so much leadership as show his talent as a political weasel and using fear to control the voting populace. First it’s Tampa, then it’s interest rates, and now it’s terrorism. Howard maintains his grip on this country not by good policies, but by scaring those who have the most to lose — families, people with mortgages and old-school White Australians who don’t understand that the arrival of ethnic communities doesn’t take away from their lifestyle or culture, but rather has the possibility of enriching it. The first evidence of his decade of dividing the nation showed on late last year with the Cronulla riots. Howard can’t be totally to blame for the riots: community anger had been brewing for years, and the lack of action by the Police in the area to deal with the anti-social behaviour that riled the locals had a more direct impact of the first riot; but the reprisals that followed were a result of the years that Howard regulated minorities and ethnic communities (particularly middle eastern communities) to secondary status. Is it any wonder that, in the face of the ugly white-led violence, they fought back?

(more…)

Cancelled: The West Wing

I suppose it was going to happen, but it’s sad to hear that NBC has axed The West Wing, with the show’s finale showing on May 14th (my birthday!) I wasn’t sure how they would get around John Spencer’s death, and there was talk of cancelling mid-season, but I’m glad they have the chance to wrap it all up neatly. That’s more than what Channel 9 did for the show here.

Housekeeping, Update and the State of the Blog

1. It’s hard to believe this blog has been running since July 2003, and looking more or less the same since March 2005. Previous iterations of this site usually last no more than six months, staggering from one fancy layout to another before being ignored, rinse and repeat. But I’m pretty happy with this layout and structure, and though I’ll be making some changes throughout the year, I’m pretty much free to concentrate on content.

(more…)

Whilst on photography…

1. …here’s what some BBC readers had to say in reply to a story about Kodak stopping production of 35mm film cameras. Those clever brits and their advice. Ray Owen tells us “not to be negative about this”, Mark Taylor makes the accusation that “it was framed”, but my favorite, from Andy (no surname): “35mm has fallen to bits”.

Scanner Photography

1. Via Slashdot, the site of a guy who turns flatbed scanners into digital large format cameras, capable (says he) of 100 megapixels. It’s not the pixel count that’s floored me, but the images it produces; I love that surrealist feel to the image, and it’s so…analogue. I’m busting to build one of these myself, if I wasn’t going to be in Japan in 69 days!

Countdown Update

1. Hiroshima: 71 days, new Mac: 28 until shipping, number of work days to go: 36.

King Bo Chinese Restauraunt

1. I have to admit, we only went here because we thought the name was funny and we saw a sign saying Yum Cha every day. So, we took a punt and went inside. We were seated upstairs because the ground floor was full, so we missed a lot of the atmosphere (upstairs was almost empty). The food was reasonable, everything tasting as they should, but special mention goes to the pork buns and marinated chicken feet, both were especially good. Wasn’t particularly pricey, in fact it was reasonably cheap at just under $20 a head for an awful lot of food, but be warned, some of the wait staff will put on the hard sell so be prepared to say no a few times.

King Bo, 218 Russell St, Melbourne, Vic 3000. Tel: (03) 9639 3388.