In which the pond kicks the Major into a late afternoon slot, starts with JC, and follows with Killer Katerist rants about Kovid ...

 

Mea culpa, mea culpa maxima. Over the course of the weekend, the pond missed these fine reptile offerings ...

 

On the other hand, given that the pond has offered dozens of lectures about the dangers of renewables, has garrulous Gemma got anything knew to say?

And who cares about Dame Slap's mutterings about sexual meat? So long as she stands up for the likes of Rusty, all will be well. And once having noted that the craven Craven, having made an almighty mess of his blathering about the Voice, still has the cheek to make a public appearance, is there anything else to be added?

While on the mea culpa, the pond must extend this to the reptiles because they missed the story featured in both Granny and L'Age, and it seems that the Nine mob still have a graphics department, though they share the results between the Sydney and Melbourne rags, even if it's only access to a free keywords generator ...

 

The Nine rags also made a little note that will please everyone who's dropped a shekel into the chairman's coffers at some point ...

And so to today's offerings, and it might seem that the pond has made another bad call, what with the valiant Caterist and the noble Killer tilting at Covid in a hive mind chorus ...

Dammit, the pond is going with JC, because he's sticking it to the bloody Catholics ... and there's a cheap snap of the ACU adding to Melbourne's splendid architecture as a way to start off the show ...

What a cruel snap. Why back in the day, when X was a tweet, it was all green and glowing ...

Oh dear, just two likes?

Meanwhile, some meanies might suggest that JC is fallible. Some might suggest JC has a poor memory ... some might remember Dan 'the man' Tehan back in 2020. 

Some might remember this Paul Karp story in the Graudian on 19th June 2020 ...

At the time the pond remembers thinking there was no way that the pond would have bothered with an arts degree thanks to Dan 'the man's" pricing strategy ... but what a boon it is not to have a memory ...

At that point the reptiles ran a snap which can safely be downsized ...

That note by JC, "three years later", reminded the pond that it was some three years ago, or to be more precise, back on 19th June 2020 that SBS ran a story by Matt Connellan and Nick Baker, Shock and dismay over 'short-sighted' policy that will double the cost of arts degrees.

The federal government's decision to more than double the cost of studying humanities at university has outraged many. 

Education Minister Dan Tehan on Friday announced a major shake-up of university fees that he said would steer young Australians into degrees that better lead to jobs.

While the cost of "job-relevant" degrees will drop, a three-year humanities degree is set to more than double, from about $20,000 to $43,500.

"I was pretty dismayed and shocked when I heard this news," Australian Academy of Humanities president Joy Damousi told SBS News.

"It came very unexpectedly, there was no consultation with the sector at all about this course of action and why it should be taken."

“[The decision] seems very short-sighted ... It's really disappointing that there is seemingly no recognition that the humanities make a massive contribution to training our future workforce in providing a broader knowledge and a skill set that is fundamental to the progress of our society," she said.

Ms Damousi called the humanities "the engine room of creativity and innovation".

"Many of our leaders, many of our prime ministers, have had arts degrees," she said.

It's a point a number of Australians have been highlighting on social media throughout Friday.

Law Council of Australia president Pauline Wright was also disappointed by the announcement.

"An increase of 113 per cent in fees for an arts degree – often studied in conjunction with law – diminishes the breadth of critical thinking within the student cohort," she said.

"That will flow through to our society, with less people with the valuable analytical skills acquired in arts and arts-law degrees being available to benefit the myriad industries and professions they go on to work in."

She said the value of humanities "cannot and should not be underestimated".

"The humanities teach us about how we live together and interact, whether historically, in the present day or into the future. The humanities enquire about the fundamental questions of what it is to be human."

Short-sighted? Of course not, it's those bloody tykes and their wayward ways ...

Really? Did an alleged emeritus JC scribble that immortal line about Ford?

It’s a tough time for Ford Motor. In addition to undertaking the same electrified and digital transformation as almost every other automaker, it’s having to address quality and reliability issues at the same time—two major undertakings, but the first one cannot happen without the second.

After all, Ford had to post a $2.2 billion loss for 2022 and a good chunk of that can be attributed to $4.17 billion on warranty claims that year alone. (Yes, that’s a lot.) Basically every new Ford vehicle launch in recent years has seen quality issues, costly recalls and upset customers. That’s not what you want when you’re try to roll out a ton of new products, chase Tesla on the EV front and convince buyers and investors alike that you have what it takes to survive long-term. (here)

Fill in the line about Ford CEO Jim Farley hauling in close on US$21 million in 2022 at your leisure ...

And now with the most excellent comedy out of the way, a troubling decision. The pond has decided to hold over the Major to a late afternoon slot, because there's simply no way that the pond can avoid mentioning both the Caterist and the Killer, and by the time that's done the pond will be way over length.

Step forth, Major Mitchell slayer ... quarry waters whisperer Caterist seize your place in the reptile sun ...

It's easy to see why the pond went with the Caterist. That baleful stock snap at the head of the piece, routinely featured by the reptiles in nearly any reptile column about anything, has been mentioned a zillion times by the pond, and yet it keeps on popping up like a poisonous toadstool, as if the reptiles were keen to provide endless evidence that there's no graphics department left at the lizard Oz ...

As for the Caterist content, it's what you'd expect from an expert flood waters in quarries whisperer ...

As usual, the reptiles slipped in snaps of a couple of pollies who didn't actually have the run of the feds in the Covid years ...

 

With those noted for the record, some might wonder about the marvel of a man expert in the movement of flood waters in quarries, but not much else, rabbiting on about the intelligentsia, but that's the wonder of a man with a wretched sociology degree from a provincial university carrying a chip on his shoulder ... the pond can see in mind's eye the Caterist getting a C+ for a paper, and with a glint in eye, determining that there would be payback at some time, no matter how long it took ...

At the same time, be fair, it takes incredible cheek to talk about axiomatic mistakes when you've managed to make a huge defamation payout mistake in relation to your one speciality trick - apart from enduring expertise in climate science denial - which happens to be determining the movement of flood waters in quarries, but that's the joy of being a Caterist ...

The pond is pleased to have survived the Covid years, though it still lurks and caution is advised. The pond isn't so sure about the unhealthy effects of long term exposure to Caterism ... 

The pond has this peculiar notion that death tends to water down consideration of other worldly matters ... you know, "Because I could not stop for death, He kindly stopped for me: The carriage held but just ourselves and immortality."

Well immortality for some Emily, but the pond will have forgotten what the Caterist scribbled by noon this day ...

Ivermectin, get you ivermectin from the Menzies Research Centre, bargain knock down prices for unused stock, get it while its cheap, and your horse will also enjoy the treat ...

And so to Killer and here the challenge is to see if he starts carrying on about masks ... what with his deep Freudian fear of the damn things ...

Nope, not a word about masks in the opening gobbet. Surely Killer will get on to the matter in the next one, because masks have been elevated beyond their natural role by superheroes seeking a disguise ... as if you couldn't spot Batman at Bruce Wayne's stately Wayne Manor ...

Yes, yes, but what about masks? Sorry, the time is right to associate fascist fuzz with Albo ...

Now back to Killer, and he's running out of gobbets for a rant about masks ...

Still no mention of the fascist thought police making people wear masks? The pond was by now seriously worried, it sounded like Killer had buried deep in his psyche the wounds and the scarring from the sight of all those masks in years gone by ... and even more alarming, you can still see them around the malls today, as if Covid hasn't actually gone away, but still lurks, ready to take out the unwary ...

Remarkable. No, up the language to amazing and astonishing. 

A Killer rant about Kovid, and not a single mention of being made to wear masks ...

Mark this day well, it might never come again, and do remember to stock up on Ivermectin and all the best RFK Jr conspiracy theories, featured in a Faux Noise or Sky News after dark channel near you ...

And now time for an immortal Rowe, celebrating the onion muncher's quest for relevance ...

You have to admire the ability to capture the essence of the man ...