From The Misdirected Emails File

Once again, a somewhat baffling not-quite-spam message arrives in my inbox, intended for one of the other Matts. I can’t help thinking that the author of this message could have phrased that last line a little better… To: [A Different Matt] Greetings All Thank you Matt and Jennifer for your insights. I appreciate the distinction ..having a critical spirit or critical thinking. Many times when I take a hard line I question it after the…

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My Favourite Transaction

Some time ago my bank here in Australia added a somewhat baffling new feature to all their cash machines. Now, every time I go to take money out, the machine asks me if I’d like to save this particular amount of money as my “favourite transaction” (which then gets saved on the initial screen so you can select it quickly next time). I’m sorry, what now? I’m supposed to have a favourite transaction? Well I…

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Lies, Damned Lies, and Exchange Rates

According to today’s The Age: RISING living costs and a surging Australian dollar mean it is now more expensive to live in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Perth than in London, Vienna, Rome or New York. A startling claim, I’m sure you’ll agree, but something doesn’t quite ring true for me about this. Why should a “surging Australian dollar” make it more expensive to live in an Australian city? A surging Australian dollar might make it…

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Having The Most Successful Show On Australian TV Must Be Such A Pain

Funny. Only the other day I was reading an interview in the weekend paper with the host of Channel Ten’s long running weekend morning music video show, Video Hits, which mentioned how profitable it is for the network: At Ten, Video Hits is seen almost as part of the furniture, having been on-air in various guises for 25 years. “It’s one of the most profitable shows on the network”, she says. [The Age Life And…

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