Loose cannons

Progress, sort of

"Australian Greens Senator Bob Brown says parliament has achieved a 40 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions since 1989 ...' — From a press release from Brown's office. (Hot air is not a greenhouse gas.)

Universal by now

"It's difficult to say that crime will ever go down. I think crime, historically, has always crept up in one form or another." — Peter Ryan, NSW police commissioner, displaying a sense of history.

Isn't that the idea?

"The Australian Defence Force Academy ... has been described by two of its own academics as an expensive flop that turns inquisitive young men and women into the military equivalent of 'juvenile street gangs'." — Sydney Morning Herald, October 24.

So much they vote against it

"I think people in Australia want tax reform." — Former Liberal leader John Hewson, urging Howard to push for a GST.

Keep asking

"I keep asking myself, am I there for myself or do I still have something to contribute. If it's for selfish reasons, well, it's time to move on." — Victorian Premier Jeff Kennett, wondering whether the public will ever be able to get along without him.

From GLW issue 295