My mum has a much loved album called 'the Voyage of the Beagle' by a band named Galapagos Duck, which lead to several interesting conversations about Darwin when I was very small.
Incidentally, I'll be spending two weeks in the Galapagos (and another two weeks in mainland Ecuador) next January, which I am rather excited about.
If anyone has any suggestions for reading material/documentaries and the like for before I leave, it would be much appreciated.
I'm planning on reading Darwin's original work, but anything on evolution/ecuador/blue footed boobies etc is what I'm looking for.
re # 37 Meg Thornton.
When I've worked for the NSW Electoral Commission, I've had to sign a similar form declaring that I'm not a member of a political party, and that I wouldn't be publically advocating for any candidates, under my own name.
On election day, we're not allowed to talk to the public about the candidates, we can only talk to them about how to vote.
I think the main reason our system wouldn't work in the US [apart from the Republicans refusing to contemplate this kind of change] is that for people to be ok with a system of compulsory voting you have to have:
a) preferential voting, so people have a better chance of finding a candidate they like, without throwing their vote away
b) neutral and well organised elections- held on saturday;short wait times; no bullshit about purging people from the electoral role etc
incidentally, the tactic of challenging people whose houses have been foreclosed wouldn't work here- if you change adress in Australia, you're meant to notify the electoral commission, but if you forget, or it happens too close to an election to be updated, then you simply vote in your old district, even though you don't live there anymore.
Strictly speaking, it goes against the idea of voting for candidates who represent the area where you live, but practically, it all evens out, and no-one gets their knickers ina twist.
I spent last Saturday helping folks vote in my local council elections (in Sydney, Australia).
The nice thing is, voting is 'compulsory' here (I can hear the Libertarians hissing, but practically, it works pretty well). If you don't vote, you get a letter from the [independent][state or federal] Electoral Commission, asking why. Any excuse will do really (sick, out of town, forgot etc), especially for local elections where there isn't absentee voting. If for some unlikely reason, your answer isn't satisfactory (you've been forgetting for 5 yrs in a row perhaps), there is a potential $50 fine, but it's not enforced much.
But the idea that voting is mandatory, even if not enforced, means that we get about 95% turnout for state and federal elections [a bit lower for local ones]. So the polling officials know pretty much how many people to cater for, and we don't get Shenanigans from hacks trying to disenfranchise the other side's voters.
Also, we have preferential voting, so those not inclined to either major party can put a small party 1st, without throwing their vote away. Then they just choose whichever major party they dislike least, and place that one above the other.
Or you can do a traditional donkey vote, and write in nothing at all; or write in something creative. Sorting votes from Saturday's election, one person charmingly wrote "f*** your mum" on their mayoral ballot, and "your dad sucks b***s" on their council ballot. "Fix the roads" also got a couple of mentions (as did the ousted Prime Minister John Howard).
Some polling stations you can get a bit of a queue, and one of the nearby wards had a wait of up to an hour, but at the majority of polling stations people will wait for 5-10 mins, if at all.
Both the preferential system and the low waiting times are probably necessary conditions for the public to accept compulsory voting, so it acts as a good incentive for the politicians to ensure elections are run smoothly. The Liberals (Australian Republican Party) do mutter about scrapping compulsory voting from time to time, but it never really goes anywhere. The public seems to accept it as a necessary annoyance.
Also, no electronic machines, just paper and pencils, and flexible rules whereby if the voting intention is clear, that vote will be counted.
#43 Mary Kay references the study I immediately thought of when I read this thread.
More comments on it here by a scienceblogger:
Linked text
and the same author, explaining why he thinks it isn't just limited to conservatives (the conclusion the authors' drew):
Linked text
@ 14 Brooks Moses:
She wrote Paris Out of Hand? That book is on my much shorter "I must read this book before I die" list.
I read about it about a year or two ago, and it absolutely captivated me- it's exactly the kind of book I love. But I've been busy and poor and never got round to purchasing it.
However, I did recently come in to a small windfall, which I decided would be spent on books and music, so I think I shall have to order four or five of her books from my local bookstore.
Looking at her other books on Amazon, 'The Disheveled Dictionary' reminded me of both Ambrose Bierce's 'Demon's [or Devil's] Dictionary' (for the title), and Peter Bowler's 'The Superior Person's Book of Words, which is hilarious and beautifully illustrated (as are his other books).
Mary Francis @ 11:
That book was quite popular in Australia too, and it's on my vast 'books I should try and read at some point' list.
@6, 8.
Thanks. Kayjayoh's suggestion looks the most promising. Any book that is about grammar and also has as a key phrase 'ogling stevedores', is enough for me.
I'll order one very soon.
@ 7. Ha.
My copy of Maggie Maher's book 'Money Driven Medicine' arrived recently, and once my exams are over, I'm looking forward to reading it.
Can any one recommend any other books on this issue?
Health care is one of the things that makes me very glad to be Australian (thanks Gough).
p.s. I'm also looking for an interesting book/website to help with my grammar, if such a beast exists. For me, good grammar is like Justice Potter's take on obscenity- I (generally) know it when I see it, but I don't know what all the different bits are called.
You're awl master craftsmen (and women) with these puns. It is plane that Walnuts is going to be dismembered come November.
There is a dog who lives near us who has been de-barked. But that has always seemed like a pretty cruel option to me. It hasn't stopped the dog from attempting to bark- it goes through all the motions, but all that comes out is a soft, pitiful yelp.
Wow. That surprised me. I kept waiting for the punch line- just kidding, kids.
Although I'm more disappointed to hear Bowie's comments; at least he has reneged on those.
Thanks Sam (37), Randolph (60) and Rozasharn (77), I'll give those a go.
I read Galbraith's The Affluent Society in high school and really enjoyed it, and always meant to read more by him. He does have a great style.
Does anybody have any suggestions for more in-depth reading on this issue [books/blogs/journal articles etc]? About the reason why the 'free market' is a myth, and why we continue to have government regulation in capitalist economies [even when it isn't particularly useful regulation, such as the shadow banking industry appears to have today].
Is there an established economic tradition that is a counter-point to the constant 'free the market' whining of Zombie Friedman and the Neo-Classical economists?
Further to Jonathan @ 29, The Chaser (you may remember them from
APEC- they were the ones who got through the security barricade with a
fake Canadian motorcade) had some great political satire, including
songs.
Two of my favourites, Stairway to Kevin and Howard's Way
Incidentally, you can download all the episodes of the Chaser from the ABC website.
The last sentence of his post is a beautiful thing.
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