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Brendan Nelson's Values

Our Education Minister Brendan Nelson wants to see some "essentially Australian" values introduced into our schools – "understanding, tolerance, inclusion and responsibility, care, compassion, reaching out to others, doing your best, pursuing and protecting the common good, treating all people fairly, enterprise, respectfulness, fidelity, comradeship and endurance." And if people don't want to "accept and embrace" those values, he says, "they ought to clear off."

What to make of this.... Cameron thinks that Nelson is "way out of line"

"That isn't what this country is about. That isn't what democracy is about. The minute that you have one group of people forcing their values or beliefs on another group of people, you don't have a democracy any more - you have a form of fascism."

I don't completely disagree.

But I do reckon that people living here should "accept" our values in the sense of obeying by the laws that embody them – we demand that of all Australians.  Now that doesn't mean that they have to agree with them. Any Australian is entitled to object to any of our values, our laws or our institutions, and they even have the right to try to change them, provided they do so within the confines of the law.

However, forcing our "values"on people, whether they are immigrants or not, would be a futile exercise at best, and potentially dangerous and divisive at worst.  Particularly when Nelson's and his values smell more like something out of the 1950's than contemporary Australia.  But I don't find anything wrong or offensive in asking immigrants to gain a wider understanding of Australian Culture and history.

Putting that argument aside, it's interesting that value debate has entered the Australian political arena.  We are used to it happening in the United States, where their whole political system and decision making is centered around sphere of values, but it never really happens like that in Australia.  Mark Latham tried to focus on values during last years Federal Election (remember the "Ladder of Opportunity") but was steamrolled John Howard's economic agenda.

I wonder what our values would have been if Latham had been elected?

Would you fly NASA?

If you were given the chance to jump aboard a Space Shuttle and hurtle off into Space, would you?

If NASA was responsible for preparing and maintaining the Shuttle, I'd be saying "thanks, but no thanks..." 

NASA officials always remind us that space travel is inherently dangerous. They clearly are right, but it seems that the danger is due to the crap build quality and maintenance standards of the machines they spend billions putting together.  Not to mention that they buy some parts on eBay.

Just imagine if passenger aircraft blew up (twice in 113 missions) or had components falling off them as often as space shuttles have.  There would be hundreds of crashes every day.  Maybe that's not really a relevant or sensible comparison, but you get my point.

And after two and a half years and US$1billion dollars spent on safety since the Challenger crashed, killing all seven crew on board, how could NASA have got it so wrong and sent the aging old Discovery (it is 21) with the same problems? 

And now they expect their astronauts to venture out and do some "running repairs" and remove a piece of foam using such precision tools like a pair of scissors, a hacksaw fashioned out of a blade and a little duct tape.  Just the tools you need when you are working on the fragile thermal underbelly of an orbiting shuttle.

Hopefully, once the small piece of foam has been removed from its side , the shuttle should be able to land without incident.  And when it does, NASA should just give up, and ground its Death Trap Space Shuttles for good.

Anyway, why do we go to Space?  What good things, useful things, have ever come from these missions?  Can someone tell me one major scientific breakthrough that has resulted from a manned mission.  And that Space Station?  What does that do?  All it is is a fancy labratory with great view out of the window.

The bottom line is that going into Space is not all that useful. We can accomplish more science by sending unmanned probes.

Gillette's Close Shave With The Truth

I was reading a great conversation over at The Social Customer Manifesto (thanks Johnnie) about whether it is reasonable for marketers to "lie" to customers.  The conversation is centered around the content of Seth Godin's new book All Marketer's Are Liars, and in particular this:

"Tell a story that is memorable and remarkable and worth listening to. Seduce your customers, because that’s exactly what they want you to do. That requires ruthless selectivity and creative storytelling—in other words, lying."

Health and beauty product manufacturers are amongst the most prolific "tellers of tales" that are, if nothing else, "remarkable."  In their continual race to be better than the rest, they advertise relentlessly and are forever updating their products and telling us new stories that con us into believing that we can be better, younger or fresher looking.  They will make our skin softer and our hair shinier.  They tell us they have "the stuff" that contains "ingredient X" that will make us more relaxed, more alert, more energetic as well as increasing our sexual potency.

Whatever.

But in playing this game of manipulation, global shaving giant Gillette has come unstuck.
 

The Boston based company launched its M3Power razor early last year.  They told us that it was "a revolutionary powered wet shaving system for men," that delivered the world's best shave.  The trick was in the breakthrough razor technology that delivered gentle pulses that stimulated hair upwards and away from the skin.  I remember when it was launched in Australia, excited Gillette marketers hooked up with Sir Richard Bran son to have the Mach3Power livery adoring one of his Virgin Blue Jets..

But this week, a US federal judge rule that Gillette's claims about its new razor were "unsubstantiated and inaccurate," its advertising "greatly exaggerated" and "literally false".

(I thought all advertising was "greatly exaggerated" and "literally false")

As a result of this ruling, Gillette was ordered to change packaging and advertising for the product and remove in-store displays featuring the false claims.

It will be interesting to see if Gillette in Australia- which is a separate entity- follows.

So whilst All Marketers might Be Liars, it is good to see some of them getting caught.  It will be interesting to see what kind of precedent this decision sets. 

My bet is that marketers, advertisers and companies will thumb their noses at the decision, and  that the practice of deceiving customers about the performance of products will continue unabated.

"Hello, it's Russell Crowe, here..."

Poor Rusty Crowe.  He's been coping it a bit after engaging in a bit of a fracas with a hotel staff member on Tuesday.

I mean what's a bloke expected to do in the wee hours of the morning in a hotel a long way from home when the concierge is giving him the sort of attitude a celebrity shouldn't have to take? If you're a gladiator and you're holding a telephone, the solution is obvious.... you turf it at their head....

And whilst the UK Sun gave the tale the full tabloid treatment, complete with hilarious graphic recreations you can see here, the front of today's Daily Telegraph had a completely different angle thanks to reporter Matt Frilingos:

"Stretched on the couch watching TV, on the verge of drifting off to sleep, the last thing I expected late on Tuesday night was a call from Russell Crowe," is how Frilingos starts this backgrounder today.

That phone call, which proves that some hotel phones do work,  led to this front-page story in today's Tele, (and you've gotta love the headline!):

HOW MY BRAIN SNAPPED

EXCLUSIVE by MATT FRILINGOS

Shattered actor Russell Crowe has bared his soul to The Daily Telegraph, saying the violent incident that could see him jailed was entirely his fault.

In an exclusive interview, Crowe spoke of his shame over the altercation, but insisted he was "not aiming at" concierge Nestor Estrada when he threw a telephone in the lobby of an exclusive New York hotel. He conceded that the incident may not only see him locked away in a New York jail, but could prevent him from ever working in the US again.

He blamed his state of mind on "the combination of jet lag, loneliness and adrenalin," having just returned to the US after a flying visit to London for the Kostya Tsyzu fight, without wife Danielle. "I'm at the bottom of a well. I can't communicate how dark my life is right now," Crowe said. "I'm in a lot of trouble. I'll do my best to solve the situation in an honourable way. I'm very sorry for my actions."

You can check the full story here.  And some very funny letters in today's Australian

The Three Amigos: Howard, Bush & Blair

Tony Blair limped home to a third consecutive election victory this week.  So after what was a torrid campaign, we might ask did he lie, did he mislead, and did he take Britain to war in Iraq under false pretenses and without legal sanction?

And who cares?  Does it matter?  Even if he did, it didn't stop him or his Government being re-elected.  Sure his political reputation might have suffered a little, but he's no different  from John Howard and George W, the other two amigos's who took their countries to war in Iraq.  The other two leaders who were criticised over their involvement in Iraq.  The other two leaders who were re-elected by their people all the same.

So what's the message here? 

It seems that if you are managing healthy economy that allows most people to prosper, buggar all else matters.  Politically, you can do what you like.  All three men seem to know through gut feel, prosperity beats principle every day of the week in a modern democracy.

See No Evil, Hear No Evil

In case you needed more proof as to how dumb big companies are, and just how "valued" your feedback is, Chris (The Social Customer Manifesto) reports the following:

"Forbes did a profile on ten customer-initiated corporate hate sites. Every corporation mentioned was contacted for the article. The responses from a few of the corporations, from the article:

Walmart:  "We have seen some corporate complaint sites. We don't spend a lot of time on them."

Microsoft:  "No comment."

Verizon: "What's really pathetic is not Verizon but this sort of lame Web site. In this day and age, anyone with a gripe can put up a Web site and make outrageous claims as the authors of this one did."

American Express:  Did not return repeated phone calls.

I can just hear the spinmeisters now:  "Shhh...no...no...just ignore them.  They'll go away...

One word folks: Cluetrain

Leadfoot Lightfoot: WANTED in the US

According to Crikey ,it seems that Australia's gun-toting wild frontiersman of the West, Ross Lightfoot, is conquering new frontiers: our international man of intrigue is being adopted as the latest right-wing poster boy by conservative American bloggers.

It all started with a lurid front page splashes last week featuring an absurd photo of Australian Senator Ross Lightfoot posing in Iraq with a couple of Kurdish soldiers and brandishing an AK-47 assult rifle.  Lightfoot had foolishly gloated to a newpaper reporter that he used the tax-payer funded trip to make a secret exchange of $25000 (which he smuggled in by stashing in is his coat lining) from Australian company Woodside Petroleum.  The cash was to be used to build a Kurdish Hospital.  Ever the international diplomat....

Not surprisingly, as soon as details of his "boys own adventure" was out, Senator Lightfoot quickly u-turned.  He denied the claims made agaisnt him and said he knew nothing of the cash exchange...

Lightfoot is known as a bit of weirdo, and has long been a source of embarresment for conservatives here in Australia, and most of us simply wish that this crazy cowboy would just go away.  Far away.  Maybe he would find some fans amongst the straw-chewin', Fox News-watchin', bourbon sippin', God fearin' right-wing fanatics in the deep South USA?

Blogger Clayton Cramer wants seems to be throwing out the welcome mat, asking: "Why Don't We Have Senators Like This?" Now that's high praise for the man whose cash-carrying, gun-wielding – ahem - “diplomacy” brought him headlines from Turkey to Townsville last week.

"Australian Senator Ross Lightfoot is in a bit of trouble for running around Iraq with an AK-47 and smuggling cash to the Kurds," Cramer reports. "Lightfoot represents Western Australia, which is the Australian equivalent of Texas, but it's still nice to see that the cowboy spirit is alive and well even in boring places like Canberra."

You can also find these comments on a blog by someone called WC Varones -- who describes himself as "a radical libertarian vegetarian" -- "Can you picture Ted Kennedy running around Iraq with an AK-47?" asks the radical vegetable. "OK, maybe sitting at a bar in the Green Zone with an AK-47? Nah, still doesn't work." Check it all out here.

Joe Trippi's Latest Trick

Regular readers of my blog will know what side of the political fence I sit. 

But I am a big admirer of Joe Trippi- the man behind the failed, but nonetheless very innovative Howard Dean for President campaign.  Trippi is straight out of the Cluetrain mould; a visionary who understands that the Internet and all it's small places (loosely joined, of course) is where future campaigns will be fought and elections won or lost.

Whilst his candidate- Howard Dean- failed (by a long way) in his bid to secure the Democrat Presidential nomination last year, the "Blog for America" campaign was far from a failure.  Dean and Trippi ran America's first presidential campaign organised primarily through the Web, attracting hundreds of thousands of supporters to their grassroots movement, and amassed more than $15million in campaign monies.   

Sure, the White House remained elusive, but the campaign did manage to turn an obscure ex-governor into a real presidential contender. It was anything but politics as usual.  It was great stuff.

And now Trippi has outlined his next trick:

"At the Politics Online Conference at George Washington University,   Joe announced he is planning to release a website that will ask grassroots donors for their email address and a pledge of $100 for the 2008 Democratic presidential campaign. Here is the catch. Those pledges are only going to go to the first Democratic candidate who promises they will NOT take contributions of more than $100."

WOW!  This is true campaign finance reform, funded and controlled by the voters.

But more than just handing over your dollars, Joe wants his pledgers to help.  He wants them to come up with some criteria -- some guidelines as to what thresholds they think a candidate should accomplish for them to feel comfortable that their pledges would be going to a legitimate contender and to make sure that it is not tampered with and the true intent is upheld.

This is really great stuff, and as much as I hate to say it, I can't imagine any Conservative Party coming up with such an exciting idea.

So, if you thought Howard Deans Internet and blogging campaign was the future, stay tuned!

Tom Peters on Dell & Innovation

It's not often that I disagree with Tom; but I disagree with this:

Dell rules.
Great "business system."
I applaud.
Pathetic innovators!
Consider it a waste!
Newsweek/02.21.2005: "Dell finds it hilarious that HP and Sony fund researchers to come up with new ideas."
TP to MD: You'll not be around 20 years from now! R&D and Re-imaginings count over the long haul.
Come to think of it, nothing new in PCs (save Apple!!!!) in years & years. I don't buy that the PC world is "mature."

I was thinking about this, and whilst he might be be innovative in the classical, text book sence, his distribution methods are innovative, are they not?   Dell distribute and manufacture better than the others. They price tighter than ever thought possible. They let the big  guys design the newest, bestest, brightest.  Then, and only then, do they determine the fastest, most efficient, most inexpensive way to deliver these opportunities to the customer.   Thier processes are innovative, so much so that they have managed to leverage huge competitive advantage from them.

And as for not being around for long, here's what Michael Dell has to say on that:
"Stay tuned. There's a lot we can and will do.  A better business model will beat a better technology, "The days of engineering-led technology companies are coming to an end."

I am inclined to agree.  As products such as computers, televisons, and other consumer electronics become increasingly commoditised and cheaper (CHINA!), people like Dell will only see their potential market grow.

Sydney: Australia's Krispy Kreme Export Hub

Sydney seems to have become the Australian Export hub for Krispy Kreme Doughnuts.

I was in Sydney this week, and I noticed that two of the seven Sydney stores are at the airport!  And given that they don't have any stores anywhere else in Australia, that means that two of the seven stores, or about 28% of Australian Krispy Kreme Stores are at Sydney Airport....one right at the Virgin Blue departures gate.  Now that's clever.

Why?

Well, for interstate travellers like me, there is an aura of mystique about Krispy Kreme, their stores and their doughnuts.   Most of us have heard of Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, but have probably never visited a store, let alone wrapped our mouth around one of their famous super-sweet glazed doughnuts.  Thus travellers are drawn, out of curiosity if nothing else, to the store at the airport to watch the doughnuts being made, to taste some samples, and to buy a box (or two) to take home with us (if the straw poll on my flight is anything to go by, about one in three passenegers will do just that).  The guys at KK put them all in a box, and then into a carry bag that you can take onto the plane with you. It's great fun, and you can't wait to get home to tell others about it.  It's all about the experience.  Of course when back home, we'll either gorge on the doughnuts ourselves or share them with others; relating the experience (which given the scarcity of locations is both unique and exclusive), furthering the buzz and continuing the mystique that exists around Krispy Kreme.  Peter Davidson noted recently:

"The key is for Krispy Kreme to understand that they are selling more than just doughnuts. They need to understand that they are selling experiences. The excitement in the eyes of a child when told they're going to go get Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. The experience of presenting a box of KK Doughnuts to someone who loves them. The experience of a warm sweet doughnut on the tongue. Savoring the last bight of the last one in the box. These are the moments they are selling. Not just another box of doughnuts on the shelf."

Far from the dilution of the branch that appears to be happening in the US (where you can buy them in Supermarkets), in Australia, the folks at Krispy Kreme seem to understand what Peter suggests, and deliver an "experience" to many Australians, via two key locations at our busiest airport.