New Years Day 2009

Andreas whipped up a gorgeous tune to my posting. This includes the full lyric, although the pronunciation is a little wide and not all the chorus are performed.
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Make hay now as storm clouds gather
Piers Akerman
ENJOY New Year’s Day 2009 because this may be as good as it gets.
Australia, largely protected from the worst of the global financial crisis by the welcome surplus build-up during the years of the Howard-Costello team’s sound economic management, is going to be increasingly exposed to the chill winds of the international downturn.
Unemployment, which the current Rudd-Swan management has ensured will rise because of their ill-considered response to the fraudulent claims of the former global warming evangelists who have now switched their allegiance to the broader and even less believable church of anthropogenic-induced climate change, is going to hit levels not seen since the last clutch of false Labor messiahs was in office.
The situation is already so dire that unemployment agencies with government contracts, similar to those which underwrote the Rudd family fortune, have indicated that they will not be able to survive on a fee-for-placement approach to business.
That was fine when the economy was expanding under the former prime minister but is unsustainable as the jobs evaporate under the current incumbent.
The Salvation Army, Mission Australia and other agencies have been forced to retrench staff from their dwindling operations.
They don’t lack clients but they do lack jobs to place them in.
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HAPPY CRITICAL NEW YEAR
Tim Blair
Australian Conservation Foundation president Professor Ian Lowe:
The Earth’s natural systems don’t understand how many Australians there are, only our total impact. As global citizens, we should curb the growth in our numbers …
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BILL UNTHRILLED
Tim Blair
Christopher Hitchens teases Bill Maher and his stupid audience:

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At least 60 dead in Bangkok NYE blaze, Australian injured
A fire at a Bangkok nightclub has killed 60 people who were celebrating the New Year. DFAT has now confirmed no Australians are among the dead, however one has been treated for minor injuries.
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Australia pledges $5m extra aid for Gaza
Australia has pledged an extra $5 million of aid for the people of the Gaza Strip, with the federal govt saying it is deeply saddened by the loss of life there. - what about the Israelis who have undergone years of rocket attacks from Hamas .. any aid for them? - ed.
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Climate change questioned after cool 2008
THE official figures are not yet in, but 2008 is widely tipped to be the coolest year of the century.
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2008 a wasted opportunity for broadband: Minchin
2008 promised to be the year of fast broadband but instead it will be remembered as a year of "wasted opportunity" says Nick Minchin.
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