Loose cannons

Unusual

"That is an unusual display of candour and openness by the United States." — US secretary of state Warren Christopher, describing the US admission that one of its helicopters had crossed into North Korea before being shot down.

Tolerant

"My track record is one of tolerance. I might have been foolish but I'm not racist." — Not yet again Liberal leader John Howard, whose electorate has an increasing number of Chinese Australians, on his 1988 proposals to restrict Asian immigration.

Meeting needs

"Customers were contributing to the development of an improved product, designed to best meet their needs." — Westpac chair John Uhrig on the bank's "market research" in which 9000 Newcastle customers were "upgraded" to accounts that charged them $5 per month if their balance fell below $1500.

Silver linings

"There are some positives: the demand for building will increase, and the housing, construction and steel industries will benefit." — Nobuya Nemoto, an economist with the Nomura Research Institute, on the Kobe earthquake.

Endangered species — 1

"Males are biologically driven to go out and hunt giraffes." — Newt Gingrich, new Republican speaker of the US House of Representatives.

Endangered species — 2

"The Labor Party retains its socialist objective, safe and secure in the knowledge that no one in the party takes it seriously and that anyone who branded Paul Keating a socialist would be dismissed as a lunatic." — Former Labor minister Graham Richardson, favourably contrasting the ALP with the British Labour Party, which still has a left wing.

From GLW issue 172