Dear Hassie and runner,

Thank you both for sharing.

I read a great deal on various subject from
many sources and when responding to discussions
on this forum - I select articles from subject
specialists on the various issues involved.

I don't deliberately choose the ABC or The Guardian,
et cetera. I choose the articles first on their subject
matter. (no matter where it comes from).

Although many do have paywalls - like The Australian,
Herald Sun, and other NewsCorp media. That limits my
choices.

My selection is based on facts and specialist expertise.
Not on any political agenda.

Therefore I am always surprised when being accused of
pushing some kind of agenda.

Of course I don't agree with everything presented by the
ABC or The Guardian. But neither can I disagree with
them all. Or call them all biased. To me that's not
rational.

As for academics?

I know how hard it is to study anything. How long it takes
and how expensive it is to survive. It takes a lot of
blood, sweat, tears, and money. The academics that it
has been my privilege to know and be associated with
were truly inspiring people who worked very hard for
very little monetary gain. They were dedicated people.
Educators - from whom I've learned a great deal.
People that won my respect and admiration. People I
still stand in awe of today.

Dear Paul,

Life of Brian.

Loved it!

Dear Indy,

Thanks for sharing. And I agree - some great suggestions,
ideas, and thoughts have come out of the forum. It
would be great if some of our politicians, or at least
their staff - were to read them.

BTW: Did you know that the name "Graham" is derived from
Grantham, Lincolnshire, England. This place name is
though to be derived from the Old English elements -
grand (possibly meaning "gravel") and "ham" - meaning
"hamlet" the English word given to small settlements
of smaller size villages.

I've been posting on OLO since 2001 when it was a Yahoo user group. To play, you joined the group and then emailed posts which yahoo then distributed to all members of the group. It sounds clunky now but at the time was pretty exciting.

My main aim in being in groups like this is to test my views and to find other views that I might miss in my reading.

"I read the paper every day and the Bible every day; that way I know what both sides are up to."Zig Ziglar

Groups like this (I'm in a few) allow me to see other views and to be exposed to other data. Often I'll see things said here that I know can't be right, but which I need to research to confirm. And that research adds to my understanding. For example, one poster once claimed that Sydney was 50% Asian. Yeah bonkers. But I realised I didn't actually know what the percentages were and had to research it.

One of the beauties of OLO both in its present and past configurations was that it allows you to go back over the years to see if and how your views have changed or to test the accuracy of your predictions or positions. I find that extremely valuable.

OLO is of course very lightly managed which allows for robust discussion. For good or ill I think that's a plus and quite unusual these days.

Its often observed that the cohort is quite aged. Part of the reason for that is the very robustness of the discussion which is alienating and uncomfortable for earlier generations. Of course the format is also, these days, unusual, requiring more than 280 characters and the development of at least rudimentary trains of thought which is not something the current education system develops.

I've said before that Graham should be proud of the site. Hopefully it can continue for a long time yet - at least until I've convinced everyone to agree with me on everything.

Foxy,

I cannot come to terms with the people on OLO who are constantly rubbishing academics and the value of higher learning and the constant quest for knowledge that these represent. It takes a lot of effort, time and dedication to achieve that status.

The ones who rubbish these high achievers are the ones who have nothing themselves in this area. I find a lot of wealthy people fit this category and they resent the highly educated class because they themselves would like to be on that level but they realise that there are somethings their money just won't buy.

The thing one notices most about OLO is that it does give the class of underachievers in the area of knowledge and research an opportunity to tell others how little they know (and we all know who they are on OLO.)

Foxy,,

PS It's only the losers who tell others that they went to the university of life.

'I cannot come to terms with the people on OLO who are constantly rubbishing academics and the value of higher learning and the constant quest for knowledge that these represent. It takes a lot of effort, time and dedication to achieve that status.'

Yeah Mr Opinion probably the best pollie this century in my opinion was Rhodes scholar Abbott. Now wait for the dirt poured on him.

the best pollie this century in my opinion was Rhodes scholar Abbott.
runner,
If only he hadn't changed once he got into the PM's seat. That's when he lost focus. I say this as I was a huge supporter of him when he was in opposition & did & said all the right things.
Offering Phil a Knighthood & annoying Indonesia about the Bali 9 was what turned me off as it was a clear sign of being out of touch.