The open letter from a number of politicians, journalists and lawyers to the Australian government (most notably to PM Gillard) raises some interesting questions about state’s obligations towards their citizens.  Before diving into that question, however, I want to question whether the open letter was written in a persuasive way from a political communications perspective.

Sorry!  Been having some problems with my theme (which WordPress is about to terminate!)  They’ve replaced it with a new theme that supposedly looks similar, but isn’t similar at all.  So, I’ve been re-arranging some things and trying out a new layout.  Prepare for a new look!

Meanwhile, I’ve also been preparing a post about Wikileaks and Sarkozy… more to come!

Big slam for the Dems last night, but here’s what’s really got me thinking:  Hillary will absolutely be Obama’s VP candidate in 2012.  I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to see it.

Why?  Well, firstly…

Wonderful piece on the importance of the gender gap for Democrats today on Politico (see half way down the page).  Also, Politico seems to have the most accurate perspective on the early bellwhethers which may indicate how many seats the Republicans are posed to gain.

Other random observations… (especially in the importance of state legislature races)

In a continuation of bomb scares in the West, a new ‘parcel bomb’ plot directed at President Sarkozy has just been foiled.  Intercepted in Greece, the bomb is not so far believed to have been created by Al Qaeda, but perhaps by leftist, anti-government Greek groups (though this seems unlikely given the international nature of the addressees).

–NOTE– Someone emailed me to ask my take on the strikes, here’s my post about it.

Fear not, it wasn’t prune flavoured ice cream…but close.  ‘Prugna’ gelato from the Cremeria Vienna in Montpellier has perhaps become my new favourite flavour.  Creamy and refreshing.

With the US election coming up tomorrow, two different types of coverage have captured my attention.

One is the enormous focus throughout this election cycle on the extreme GOP fringe that constitutes the Tea Party (if we can indeed refer to it as a single entity). Whilst I applaud coverage of all political parties, and especially scrutiny of funding and economic motives, it seems that much of this hype has missed one of the key points.   Namely, whilst there has been much coverage of the all-white, middle-class male demographic no one has stopped to ask about women.

Le Monde this week

Poster outside the Lycee Clemenceau : 'Say, Daddy, what's retirement? Say, Daddy, what's an education programme? Say, Daddy, why were there not 50 students in a class before?'

Students relax with a protest sign at the Place de la Comedie in Montpellier

Might I start this post with a note of dismay– due to la greve I was unable to obtain a copy of Le Monde today.  How to participate if you cannot read about it?!  Now on to the main event…

While bins may have been burning in other areas of the country today, there was a distinct lack of student motivation in Montpellier this morning.  Not only was the morning bus devoid of its usual lycéen crowd, but only about twenty students stood outside the school this morning.