An Overcrowded Nation

Here's something for us to think about too as a nation ...

 

Half of Australians want end to immigration: poll

by AFP 2 days ago

SYDNEY — Some 50 percent of Australians want an end to the nation's immigration programme because they believe the country has too many people, a poll showed on Tuesday.

The survey of 2,000 people, conducted for the tabloid Sydney Daily Telegraph newspaper, found 51 percent thought "our population is too high (and) we should stop immigration".

Australia has some 23 million people, compared to 19.6 million a decade ago.

Canberra set its immigration programme for the year to June at 185,000 places, with another 13,750 slots available to refugees on humanitarian grounds.

But in the poll only 32 percent of respondents felt Australia should welcome more immigrants and almost two thirds, some 65 percent, said "migrants should adopt the Australian way of life".

The responses revealed a marked swing away from the more tolerant attitudes of previous surveys conducted in 2005, 2001 and 1995, the newspaper said.

Immigration expert Bob Birrell said fears over job security in the shaky global economy and local pressures on infrastructure were behind the shift in opinion.

The poll came as two asylum-seeker boats carrying some 82 passengers were intercepted off northern Australia on Monday -- taking the number of boats to arrive to four in as many days.

A total of 42 boats carrying 3,261 asylum seekers have arrived so far this year, causing Australia's refugee detention budget to spiral to more than Aus$1 billion (US$1 billion).

Though they come in relatively small numbers by global standards, the issue of asylum-seekers is a political flashpoint in Australia, dominating national elections in 2010, when a record 6,555 boatpeople arrived from Asia.

Immigration Minister Chris Bowen said the rush this year was "unsurprising" given the failure of a planned refugee swap deal with Malaysia in 2011 intended to deter people smuggling, after the High Court of Australia struck it down.

The government was forced to abandon offshore processing of asylum-seekers and release many detainees to live in the community after the conservative opposition blocked attempts to get around the ruling.

Bowen said it was essential to find more effective deterrents to stop people making the perilous maritime journey, usually from Indonesia.

"You are going to continue to see people arriving by boat which means you're going to continue to see deaths at sea," he said.

Copyright © 2012 AFP. All rights reserved

Fame and Reputation

When someone says our reputation precedes us, we know that person has heard about us and what we have done or achieved prior to meeting us.

In a sense, it means we have earned ourselves a certain amount of fame—good or bad. If we are known for being charitable, we are doing fine, unless all our works are done in pretense, just for hype. If we, on the other hand, have a reputation for doing the exact opposite of what is right, then we are in a sad state, often accompanied by dishonor. Beyond these two opposites is a third outcome of fame which is seemingly undesirable, yet absolutely necessary. This is the earned reputation for doing the right thing and suffering for doing it.>

Are we reputed for doing the right things or wrong? Are our good works publicity stunts to gain popularity and praise from men or are we genuinely interested in helping the needy? Is fame and face more important to us than doing the right thing? Where do we stand if we know we are to suffer disrepute or be disadvantaged doing what is right?

Mildly Amusing © Aaron Joseph

Controversial Magazine Cover

'Time' breast-feeding cover uncovers a parenting taboo?
By Natalie DiBlasio, USA TODAY - Thu, May 10, 2012

A Time magazine cover story that shows a mother breast-feeding her 3-year-old son is drawing criticism for breaking social taboos.

Jamie Lynne Grumet, the 26-year-old Los Angeles mother pictured breast-feeding on the cover of Time magazine, spoke on NBC's Today program this morning.

"We knew exactly what we were going to get into," Grumet says. "I do understand why Time chose this picture because … it did create such a media craze to get the dialogue talking." Grumet says breast-feeding advocates are upset about the cover because the image does not "show the nurturing side to attachment parenting."

"This isn't the way we breast-feed at home," she said. "It's more of a nurturing, cradling situation."

Grumet says she plans to breast-feed until Aram self-weans, but she hopes the fourth year will be the final year. Grumet was breast-fed by her own mother until she was six.

"It's a big commitment and its not right for everybody," she says. "You need to do what is best for your baby and for your own family."

Original post:

The story has drawn many critics on social media, and from noted celebrities such as actress Alyssa Milano. The controversy stems from the graphic nature of the photo, and from concern from some that the child in the picture is too old to be breast-feeding.

Milano tweeted that she feels the cover "is exploitive and extreme."

"You missed the mark," the actress wrote. "You're supposed to be making it easier for breastfeeding moms."

The picture on the Time cover shows a 3-year-old boy standing on a chair to nurse on his mother's exposed breast.

Parenting expert Joani Geltman says she isn't surprised that people are upset about the cover.

"People have an issue with nursing in public anyway, even with an infant. Here they add a 3-year-old child when most children are weaned between 6 months and a year," Geltman says. "People are up in arms simply because it depicts such an intimate act between a mother and child."

The cover story is about "attachment parenting" a trend that, Time reports, has been on the rise over the past two decades.

Attachment parenting includes extended breast-feeding, co-sleeping and "baby wearing," in which infants are physically attached to their parents by slings.

"To me, the whole point of a magazine cover is to get your attention," Time's managing editor, Rick Stengel, said in an interview with Forbes. "From the moment that we started talking about this story as a cover possibility, it was like I couldn't get out of the meetings. There was so much opinion and passion about it and discussion. What that told me is, boy, this is a story that people care a lot about."

Stengel said he hopes stores don't cover the magazine or refuse to carry it altogether. "I would hope they wouldn't cover it up in any way," Stengel says. "It's certainly a possibility."

Unusual News: Super Cool Bra

Japan iced bra aims to keep everywhere cool
AFP - Thu, May 10, 2012
 

TOKYO — A bra with built-in ice packs, a wind chime and a sprig of mint that was unveiled in Japan on Wednesday is promising to keep women cool this summer.

In a nearly-naked publicity stunt, underwear firm Triumph Japan had models parading around showing off its "Super Cool Bra", featuring what appears to be a pair of small fish tanks encompassing the breasts.
These cups are filled with a gel that remains soft and supple even when frozen, giving the wearer "a cool sensation against her skin", the company said in a statement.

A traditional Japanese wind chime -- and a mint leaf -- dangle between the cups giving an impression of cooling "by way of its refreshing fragrance and sound".

The company, which has a long tradition of novelty launches that are never made available for public sale, said it conceived of the bra in response to a need to save energy during the hot summer.
With no working nuclear reactors amid heightened public mistrust over atomic power in post-Fukushima Japan, the country has once again begun its "Cool Biz" campaign, urging people to dress down for work and avoid the need to crank up the aircon.