Age: “Labor frontbencher Carmen Lawrence today resigned from Labor’s shadow cabinet in protest at the party’s new immigration policy.”
…
“Dr Lawrence said it was time for Labor to have some ideals and to stop playing politics on Prime Minister John Howard’s turf.
She said Labor’s immigration policy was an improvement on what she described as the moral panic of the policy they took to last year’s election after the MV Tampa, but the new policy did not go far enough.”
Carmen, don’t go!

Age: Coles Myer to fight sweatshops
“Hundreds of thousands of textile and clothing outworkers came a step closer to protection from exploitation yesterday when giant retailer Coles Myer signed a national code of practice on behalf of Myer Grace Bros, Target and Kmart.”

Microsoft Anonymous: The 12 Steps

BBC: “A North East writer has been given a grant of

Gareth’s Tips on Sucks-Less Writing

Cool links

Well, quelle surprise! Expatica: “the Dutch population are the thriftiest population in Europe over the Christmas period, with Europeans on average paying EUR 48 for a present, while the Dutch will pay EUR 23. Germans pay EUR 76 for a present.”

BBC: Life ‘began on the ocean floor’

I learnt two things last night. One, suspenders are ace. Two, ‘muff nudges’: apparently this is when a woman bumps her muff against you, usually in the context of a flirtation. I can’t work out if the English have a name for it because it’s something that only English women do, or if everyone does it but no other culture has named it.