One Billion Rising: stop violence against women

On Thursday 14th February the world will stand, dance and rise together to support an important global social change. One Billion Rising is a global campaign to stamp out violence against women. One in six women will suffer violence in some form during their lifetime. That’s at least one billion people on the planet directly…

Local Government not for the ‘Ladies’?

Local government elections are on in Victoria and the battles are on for the coveted seats at the respective council tables. There are the usual complement of candidates: strong incumbents with a support base, a few dedicated new faces who genuinely want the opportunity to represent their wards, and the ever-present gaggle of those who…

What’s so subversive about girls education?

In Pakistan this week a 14-year-old girl was shot by the Taliban in a process reminiscent of a targeted ‘hit’. The school bus she was on was stopped, she was called for by name and then shot in the head. She is fortunate to have survived the gunshot. (For more see this ABC News site or search…

Thinking Time, Ted

I’m in a bit of a philosophizing mood as I realize that I’ve managed to cram a week and a half’s work into five days, I’ll be continuing to work for several hours over the weekend and there’s no let-up likely next week. Those of you in the teaching profession will know exactly what I…

Will you stand?

Local council elections are around the corner and the bun fight has begun. Across Melbourne the local papers and news channels are spruiking current serving councillors and photo opp’s are to be found on every street corner and in every school yard. How is it that the same faces keep appearing to serve the community…

Play the ball, not the (wo)man

Recent ongoing vituperative comments about women in power, and most particularly, Julia Gillard have made me wonder:  just how ‘equal’ is Australian society? I keep hearing comments from people and reading commentary in the media that suggest we have a long way to go yet to achieve a true gender balance in our culture. What…

Where to start?

So many topics, so little time. I’ll be writing about inequalities in our modern society. I think we’re wealthy, but not rich. We are tolerant, but not generous. We are full of justification, but not open to challenging our own fixed ideas. We think highly of ourselves, but are often uncritical about our actions and…