The Joyless Division

 If I were on a twenty-plus hour flight, I know I would be comfortably dressed. I would probably exit the aircraft in trackie daks and a t-shirt. Our prime minister did this the other day. I have no issue with that. Nor do I have issue with the t-shirt he wore, one emblazoned with the name of a post-punk band whose style could be described as some kind of new wave gothic rock. A band who were led by a singer with a predilection for lyrics as deep as his his baritone voice, and one who would occasionally take epileptic seizures on stage. Maybe his condition influenced his bizarre dance moves. Or maybe not; my younger son has epilepsy and is a fantastic dancer. Sadly, this singer was also a very tortured young man who took his life at just twenty-three. RIP, Ian Curtis. 

But I digress.

This band, if you've been under a rock, was named Joy Division (later known as New Order). And yes, that is the band t-shirt worn by Prime Minister Albanese. You are doubtlessly aware, thanks to the shrieking and chest-beating and pearl-clutching by a bunch of malcontents (many of whom seem to be employed by the Murdoch media), that he is wearing a t-shirt with reference to the book House of the Dolls, which describes the practice of Nazis using Jewish women as sex slaves as 'joy division.'

The loudest of the bleaters appears to be opposition leader Sussan Ley, who adopted a second 's' into her given name for whatever reason, and is bliSSfully unaware that she has unwittingly incorporated the initials of Hitler's paramilitary Schultzstaffel into her name. Some would say she is a complete aSS. She is that and so much more. On the off-chance you're reading this, Sussan: what's it like to be a total fucking git?

And Sky News (news? bahbahahahahahahahahahahahaha!) journalist (journalist? Again, I say: bahbahahahahahahahahahahahaha) Sharri Markson has made reference to it being Day 3 of 't-shirt gate' (yeah, you read that right), with Albo yet to apologise. 

Um, apologise for what? Wearing a BAND T-SHIRT? Do you clowns truly think he is espousing antisemitic and sexual abuse? Seriously, what ails people?

That resounding TWAAAANNNNNNNNGGGGGG we will soon hear is the breaking point in the tension of the twine on the long bow being drawn by clowns like SuSSan.

Albo wore a t-shirt supporting a band with a conflagratory name. That is all. Nothing to see here, folks. Gee, anyone would think he did something lousy like fuck off to Hawaii while the country was burning (hey, SuSSan, wasn't that your party's former leader?).

Back at the keyboard

 The last time I posted, I mentioned I was finalising my Bachelor of Education. Well, I have not long completed an internship. It was a ten-weeker, too. For the main part, I enjoyed it and learned a lot. The worst part was the mismanagement of the Commonwealth government's scholarship funds (students undertaking internships in teaching, nursing, midwifery, and social work are eligible in this scheme). I qualified and was advised I would receive my funds within the first two weeks of the internship. I didn't see a single penny until I was six weeks into my placement. Whoever is in charge of this scheme couldn't organise a game of marbles or a root in a brothel. 

Because I was so engrossed in my placement, I have not been writing. Planning to change all that soon. But what a crazy few months it's been. I've competed in Mastermind Australia, where I advanced to the Grand Final, and scored equal second. I'm in Series 7, Episodes 49, 50, 83, and 85. I spent so much time studying and have now forgotten just about everything about Mata Hari (my semifinal specialty subject). 

Things have not changed much in the hiatus I have had. People still behave like a pack of gossipy old biddies, hair tightly rolled into spiky hair curlers, yapping over the back fence. Every time I looked at my newsfeed, it was clogged with images of that couple who were sprung on the camera at the Coldplay concert. Everyone had a problem because the couple were engaged in an extramarital affair. This might be an unpopular opinion, but who cares (oh, yeah: everyone on the Internet)? For all the sniping and snarking and calls for a big scarlet "A" to be pinned to the clothing of all involved, did anyone stop to think about the fallout on the couple's families? And another thing: they're consenting adults. Why they want to go to a Coldplay concert is beyond me, but hey, different strokes for different folks.

People are similarly dissecting the marriage breakdown of Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban. According to some cockamamie theories, Nicole got too exhausted faking orgasms in one of her movies and this put a strain on the marriage because it would hard for Keith to watch this and everyone knows this and he's back on the gear and blahblahblah. First of all, Nicole is an actress and this is part of her job. Second of all, nobody knows what's happened except for the parties involved, and the parties are really Not. That. Interesting. They are just ...not. To speak - or write - frankly: they're as boring as shit.

Ages ago, I wrote my annoyance about a trans woman who claimed to have experienced discrimination because she was denied a Brazilian wax. This person has male genitalia and targeted a beautician from a culture that is not comfortable handling male genitalia. Also, there is a skill in waxing a scrotum, and if handled improperly, can cause damage. Not every beautician is trained in this area, so it's advisable to consult a specialist if you want a bald ball-bag. ANYWAY, this person is at it again. I'm not going to state her name because she clearly wants attention. She is complaining she is being discriminated against because she was denied an examination by a gynaecologist. Is it possible that the gyno has not studied care of transwomen, assuming this person is post-operative? Or there is the other possibility: this person has male genitalia, and the gynaecologist is not going to risk prosecution after sticking a speculum into a person's urethral meatus? 

You figure it out.