Barack Obama answers his critics

“This election has never been about me. It’s been about you.  It is time to own their failures, its time for a change in America, that is why I am running for America.”

I made sure that tonight everything will be put on hold in my home, dishes will just have to wait until later – my daughter will get her bath and will be tucked in earlier than usual. I was going to get myself ready with my notepad, my husband’s laptop and zapped between, CNN, MSNBC and TVONE with anticipation of the culmination of the Democratic National Convention with the speech of the presumptive nominee Barack Obama.

Leading to this historical moment not only for the DNC but for all Americans – was a series of speeches, endorsements from Senator Edward Kennedy, Michelle Obama, Senator Hillary Clinton, and President Clinton. Read more

The gap between rich and poor can make you sick

The toxic combination of poor social policies, unfair economic arrangements and bad politics means that a majority of people in the world do not enjoy good health, according to a new report being released today.

The International Commission on the Social Determinants of Health has basically found that being poor can make you sick, no matter where you live.

“According to the Commission’s findings, social injustice is killing people on a grand scale. In cities in rich countries (such as Glasgow) life expectancy according to area can differ by as much as 28 years depending on where you live,” explained Professor Fran Baum, an Australian Commissioner who is also the Head of the Department of Public Health at Flinders University in Adelaide. Read more

States can do better in attracting decent jobs

State and territory governments need to have greater accountability when it comes to offering investment incentives to employers, says experts at Melbourne Law School’s Centre for Employment and Labour Relations Law.

Dr John Howe says that while it is common practice for Australia’s State and Territory governments to offer investment incentives as a means of influencing the investment location decisions of private corporations, there is little, if any, consideration within the investment divisions of the relevant state departments as to the quality of the jobs created.

“Governments should really be measuring such investment by the quality of the output, such as wage levels, security of tenure and corporate recipients’ commitment to progressive and cooperative employment relations,” Dr Howe said. Read more

First Regional University for Women in Asia

The Asian University for Women (AUW) is being established as a leading institution of higher learning for women from across Asia. Located in Chittagong, Bangladesh and master-planned by the renowned architect Moshe Safdie on a 100+ acre campus site donated by the Government of Bangladesh, the University aims to be the first of its kind: a regional institution of the highest quality.

The AUW is the first dedicated solely to women’s education and leadership development in the region. International in outlook but rooted in the contexts and aspirations of people across Asia, the AUW will offer an educational paradigm that combines liberal arts education with graduate professional training. Read more

Women in Advertising – Bec Brideson

In a continent where women buy or influence 80% of consumer purchases but female Creative Directors make up just 6% of the industry, Bec Brideson (pictured) has successfully led two of Australia’s advertising agency hot shops in that role. Now at the age of 37, Bec runs her own advertising agency, VENUS Advertising.

Bec spent her first 12 years as an advertising creative working on Fashion, FMCG and “planes, trains and automobiles.” Literally.

She has worked on car launches for Holden, Mercedes, and Kia. She worked on the launch of a passenger train where she convinced Harry Connick Jnr to star in the campaign. Launched airline campaigns for both Emirates and Qantas. A career highlight was working with the team on the launch of Richard Branson’s Virgin Blue airline brand in Australia, and for the following 3 years. Read more

The Herb of the Month is Ginger

Ginger’s sweet warm taste has been appreciated for centuries. The benefits of ginger were referred to extensively by Confucius and it is among the oldest spices known to Europeans.

With its sharp yet subtle flavour, ginger is popular in a huge variety of stir-fry and curry dishes and is also used in marinades and chutneys. It adds zest to fish and seafood, poultry, meat, vegetable and noodle dishes as well as desserts such as sweets, cakes and biscuits. Read more

Get Optimum Fuel Efficiency out of your car

There is a standard list of things every driver should do in an effort to improve fuel efficiency. Saving on petrol is not just in the type of car you own, but in how you drive it and how you maintain it.

For starters, your driving habits need to change to save on petrol. Think about your driving habits in terms of slowing down, accelerating more slowly, and avoiding extremely high speeds. Most vehicles are aerodynamically designed to be fuel efficient at about 90 kph. As you drive faster than 90 kph, your vehicle has to overcome a lot of drag (or wind resistance). By keeping your speed nearer to 90 kph you reduce wind resistance and improve fuel efficiency. Read more

Gardening Australia Expo

The Gardening Australia Expo will be held at Sydney Showground, Sydney Olympic Park, over three days from Friday August 29 – Sunday August 31, 2008.

This gardening expo brings ABC TV’s popular Gardening Australia to life as its presenters appear on stage to provide advice and answer questions. Other horticultural and landscape industry experts will also be on hand to help create a dynamic, informative and inspirational event for all gardeners, from beginners to seasoned enthusiasts.

There will be thousands of products to see and buy and non-stop practical gardening demonstrations and talks from several stages. Read more

Young girls growing up too fast

In a world where Britney, Paris and Lindsay are fashionable role models and marketing campaigns promote revealing clothing and make-up for pre-teens, Australian parents are worried that their daughters are aspiring to grow old before their time.

According to a recent Newspoll survey¹, parents reveal that they think young girls today lack values, watch too much television and are ill prepared for the real world, with an incredible 86% of parents of 6 – 12 year old girls claiming that they were growing up too fast.

And where do these influences come from? 81% of parents believe their daughters spend too much time watching television, with 66% saying they felt they were also negatively influenced by images in the media. Unfortunately, nearly half of the parents surveyed said that their daughters spend little time reading books. Read more

Equal Pay Day

The Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency (EOWA) has named August 27 Equal Pay Day and is calling on employers to conduct a pay audit in their workplace.

With women earning just 84 cents in the male dollar, women effectively have to work longer to earn the same money as a man. To match the average wage a man earns in 12 months or the financial year working full time ordinary hours, a woman has to work an extra 54 days, or a total of 14 months to earn the same. August 27, 2008 marks the day when women’s average salary catches up to what men have banked by June 30 2008. Read more

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