civil society, politics

Australia’s nanny state grows apace…

The NSW Independent Pricing & Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) released a report yesterday recommending that clocks and pop up messages warning gamblers that they have been playing too long on poker machines should become compulsory.  The report also considers measures such as pre-committment such as setting a time or dollar limit prior to commencing gambling at a poker machine.  The acting chairman of the tribunal said the … Continue reading Australia’s nanny state grows apace…

Kate Carruthers
civil society, politics

Left Behind – by La Haye & Jenkins – Martial Christianity

The Left Behind series by Tim La Haye & Jerry Jenkins is a phenomenon that has just recently been noticed by some in the mainstream press.  It is a 12 book series commencing with Left Behind (ISBN: 0842329129) and culminating with Glorious Appearing: The End of Days (ISBN: 0842332375).  But the series has been about since the mid-1990s and has spread throughout the evangelical and biblically based church communities … Continue reading Left Behind – by La Haye & Jenkins – Martial Christianity

Kate Carruthers
civil society

Cultural Gap Between US & Australia

It is not always apparent to the casual observer how significant the cultural differences between Australia and the United States really are. One particular difference that really strikes me is the respect for authority. Americans seem to have a high level of respect for authority & for the apparatus of the state. In Australia respect for authority is not so high. Instead there is an … Continue reading Cultural Gap Between US & Australia

Kate Carruthers
management & leadership

Business Evolutionist: The Origins of Unengaged Employees

The Origins of Unengaged Employees has quite an interesting take on employee engagement, but I’m not sure that I agree completely. Engagement is all about feeling like you are a part of something bigger and more meaningful than yourself alone. When I’ve been engaged at work it has all been as a result of non-tangible things like leadership, vision and teamwork. But often this has happened … Continue reading Business Evolutionist: The Origins of Unengaged Employees

Kate Carruthers
gender & sexism, women

More on Women, housework & the 21st century

My post the other day on this topic revealed my complete ignorance of house & home magazines (this deficiency in my reading was kindly pointed out in a recent comment). I have rushed to the store to get hold of a bunch of womens’ magazines and have been reading them with a critical eye for ‘housework mania‘ inducing words and imagery. Well I must confess … Continue reading More on Women, housework & the 21st century

Kate Carruthers
gender & sexism, women

Women, housework & the 21st century

It is astonishing that many women in the west still seem to be obsessed with housework and cleaning in spite of the advances women have made in the past 100 years. A recent series of visits to various online women’s groups (that are ostensibly about something else) showed a focus, in an almost unhealthy way, upon housework. Many of the women in these groups express … Continue reading Women, housework & the 21st century

Kate Carruthers
gender & sexism, women

The great maternity leave debate

I do not have children, nor do I plan to reproduce – so I suppose you could say I have no skin in this particular game. But I’ve been thinking about the debates around maternity leave and the low birthrate that have occurred recently in Australia. The key problem does not actually seem to be paid maternity leave for a number of weeks after the … Continue reading The great maternity leave debate

Kate Carruthers
ideas

Tracking the end of the world – the Doomsday Guide

This site is a real gem, at the Doomsday Guide you track doomsday in its many and varied forms. This site provides an “online link resource to the full spectrum of End of the World Scenarios” inlcuding Armageddon, the Apocalypse, End of Days, Doomsday. There are even categories to look under: Environmental Technology Extraterrestrial Religious Prophecy (western & eastern) Prophecy Global Conflict I’ve always had a … Continue reading Tracking the end of the world – the Doomsday Guide

Kate Carruthers