Our right to know what we don't ...

Okay, so i'm a bit of a conspiracy theory nut. I hate the term conspiracy theory, though; I much prefer the term 'alternate point of view'. Just because I don't believe what the media tells us, doesn't mean it's a conspiracy. It just means I don't take everything at face value. I'm a skeptic, and I enjoy playing the devil's advocate. This is part of my motivation to become a journalist. I feel that people have a right to the truth, whether they like how it tastes or not, and journalists have an obligation to be honest, and not just pander to popular opinion.

So i'd like to put a few things out there, because I have this motto - one i've taught my children from an early age. Question everything.

U.F.O.'s - If what witnesses have seen (I mean reliable witnesses such as highly ranked military officers and official government agents) are man-made, as the governments and their documentation would have us believe, then whatever powers these 'craft' would be highly beneficial to humanity, considering the speed these craft achieve, and the rate we're burning up fossil fuels. If they're not man-made, humanity should be made aware of this. Apparently the C.I.A. stopped making official inquiries into U.F.O. sightings after they closed Project Bluebook in the 70's. This is not the case, according to several foreign government sources. Why would the C.I.A. lie about this?

9/11 - Ahh, us 'alternative viewpoint' nuts love this one. But i'll just ask the one question ... Apparently a plane crashed into the Pentagon the same day. All footage from surrounding security cameras in nearby buildings that had a clear view of the crash were confiscated by the C.I.A. and still have not been released. If it was a plane crash - as the C.I.A. and every other government source claims - why wouldn't they release that footage? (Not to mention the fact that the debris left behind was NOT consistent with a plane crash)

Education - So, the state of public schools is pretty poor. But the government gets what the government wants. So, logic would dictate that the government WANTS a poorly educated populace. This makes complete sense, when you consider that educated people form opinions, gather in groups, and question authority.

I could go on and on, and form thousands of arguments for and against. But I won't.

Take a look at the film Zeitgeist. If you look at my video bar (to the left), you'll see a link to YouTube where you can find this film, broken into 3 parts, although i'd recommend you locate the film in its entirety (I wouldn't recommend you get BitTorrent and download the film for free - that would be bad). It covers the Christianity myth, 9/11, and Central Banking. I assure you, it will make you question everything you've ever thought you knew.

Question everything.

The Great Injustice

(Dedicated to Haley Nightingale)

Women in today's workforce are quite capable of performing the same tasks as men, yet there is still a large amount of discrimination and inequality in the workplace, both in Australia and overseas. A pay equity gap still remains, despite advances in women's rights. Today, women earn 84.7 cents in the male dollar when the average weekly earnings of full-time ordinary time workers are compared. When part-timers and casuals are included, this gap widens to 65.3 cents in the male dollar.

This is not only unfair, it is unjust.

What the hell is going on here? I get so frustrated when I hear these statistics (the above statistic is from a speech made by Pru Goward, Federal Sex Discrimination Commissioner). I discussed this with a teacher of mine - a proud, modern feminist. I just couldn't get my head around the fact that many women are still not getting paid as much as men, and nobody seems to be doing anything about it. Where are the rallies? Where are the protests? And the response I got from my teacher was, "Most women don't even realise it."

Wake up, ladies!

Talk to your male colleagues, girls. Make discreet inquiries. Find out whether your co-workers are earning more than you for doing the exact same job.

Get mad!!

I've always believed that this country stood for (amongst other things) fairness and equality, a fair go, etc. etc. Apparently i've been mistaken. As it turns out, Australia (like the rest of the world) is a well-oiled machine being run by a patriarchy ('patriarchy' meaning male-dominated) that resists women rising to positions of power, both in the political and social sphere.

In 2010, we have our first female acting-Prime Minister, and possibly our first female Prime Minister come late August.

Cleopatra was leading a nation 2000 years ago!

So why do women still earn less than men? Well, the following reasons have been given:

• More women than men work part-time and therefore earn only a proportion of full-time earnings
• More men than women work overtime because they work in areas where overtime is an option and women generally have more responsibilities at home
• Some occupations and areas that are dominated by women have been traditionally undervalued and tend to be lower paid
• Junior worker positions, which attract a lower level of pay, are filled by a higher proportion of women than men.

We have learnt these habits of gender construction throughout mankind's (and womankind's) evolution, yet this construction seemingly oppresses women throughout many cultures.

In 1969, the ACTU (Australian Council of Trade Unions) mounted a test case to get rid of the 25% difference that existed betweeen pay rates for women and those for men. The court ruled that as of 1st of October women would get at least 85% of the male wage; their pay would then go up in steps until 1st of January 1972 when they would be rewarded with equal pay - 100% of the male wage.

What's taking so long?

This is ridiculous. Women are being discriminated against in their sexuality, in their value in the workplace and in their right to dress as they please (i.e. Muslim women and their head-coverings).

Pull your head out, Australia!!

Red Hair vs. Red Budgie-smugglers?

Could this possibly be the most boring pre-election phase since ... ever? Gillard and Abbott aren't slinging thinly veiled insults at each other, their campaign ads are only slightly more boring than watching hair grow, and no protestors are throwing eggs!

Call this an election?!!!

What really sh*ts me though, is the constant reference to Julia's choice to not have children, choosing instead to dedicate herself to her career. I have two children myself, and I say ... "Good choice!" Stay thin and hot, Julia. You'll have more time to work on your personality.

And the hairy life-saver dude? Well, Abbott ... he's just a hairy Gollum, isn't he? I'm expecting one of his upcoming ad campaigns to go something like, "We'll stop the boats, preciouss." I'm assuming that, in order to stop the boats, he'll just hook those massive ears up to a radar tower.

Okay, so i've slandered 'em both a bit, and haven't mentioned The Greens, The Nationals, The Australian Sex Party, The Marijuana Party (do they still exist?), and the plethora of other political parties out there. That's probably because they're not worth mentioning. As per usual. When are these other parties actually going to offer something worthwhile? I'd give my vote to The Greens, but then my vote just ends up sliding to Labor or Liberal anyway, so what's the point? The Australian Sex Party? Austen Tayshus as representative? C'mooonnn! Only one thing to say to that ... ED2PS9FA2UUX ! (stupid Technorati.com claim codes)

I honestly think that Abbott has his work cut out for him, though. Without having to do anything, Gillard has the 'First Female Prime Minister' medal shining in her favour. Don't get me wrong, I think it's long overdue, but i'm a little worried that she'll get elected purely on that fact alone, regardless of her policies. When it comes down to it, I don't care if you're male, female or Lady Gaga - if your policies make sense, and you can get the job done, you have my vote.

So, who's gonna take the lodge? The hot back-stabbing redhead, or the hairy Gollum in the budgie-smugglers? Can't wait to find out!

Think i'll go watch my hair grow.

G'day World!

G'day and welcome to my first tentative steps in the world of blogging!

First, let me introduce myself. I am The Buzz.

From me you will recieve The Buzzwerd.

If you're lucky, you might even get a buzz.

So, what's The Buzzwerd? Well, quite simply, i'll be covering events - both from Australia and overseas - as well as giving my own special brand of insight into current affairs, the world of performance art and ... well ... anything else I care to get opinionated about.


I'm currently a student, returning to high school as an adult to get my Year 12 SACE certificate, and will be attending Uni next year to study Journalism. So, I figure I have to start somewhere, and blogging seemed to be the logical starting place.


Yeah, yeah, everyone's blogging, I know. And with sites such as blogger.com and mo'time.com providing tools that allow the mass amateurisation of social comment, blogging has almost become more of an online diary than social and political commentary. I, however, will not be discussing 'who i'm crushing on' or 'what shape my poo was this morning'. My posts may vary in importance from earth-shaking to completely banal and inane, but nowhere else will you get The Buzz on what's happening in Adelaide, across Australia and around the globe. So shut up, sit down, and listen!


Stay tuned, more to come ...