Smoko: accidents, removing graffitti, Simon Crean's appeal and SARS

"No, he scrubs the yards, then we hang him by the short and curlies, then we deport him!" replied Angel Eyes.

Tuco countered with "No, first we (censored for anatomical improbability), then he scrubs the yards, then ..."

At least Simon Crean's Labor pains provide one thing we can all agree on. Why is this man so unpopular? Matty Franklin summed it up in The Courier-Mail, giving us the "truth behind Crean's poor image". Angel Eyes reckons that that Crean will go down as one of the great Opposition Leaders in history, along with "Downer, whatsisface, and the guy Keating beat."

Blondie also thinks Crean's irrelevant: "If I had three eggs in my hand, and Hawkey, Keating and Crean were walking down the street, I would still throw all the eggs at Keating!" Oh, to be so hated after all these years. Even so, the guys are divided between the BBBs (Bring Back Beazley) and the ABCs (Anyone But Crean). Not that it really matters. Tuco says it's like "watching vultures scrapping over a dead carcass".

Speaking of dead carcasses, the boys are genuinely concerned for the PM's welfare. They do not want him to visit Beijing while the SARS virus is about. The main worry seems to be not Howard's health, but the premature rise of Peter Costello to the throne. Costello is so stereotyped as Treasurer that he is seen as another Keating in the making. What an agonising wait for Howard's announcement! At least he'll be able to afford the new Medicare regime. BTW, did you notice the photo and accompanying article on Medicare in Tuesday's The Australian, where three workers contemplate the proposed changes? It certainly upset them here.

Blondie summed our feelings up: "What upsets me most is that the bank teller and the brickies labourer are on 50 grand a year, 15 more than the skilled tradesman (a mechanic) gets. Where's the justice in that?"

I've got to duck off and earn some dollars while I still have a few lives left. I'll meet you all for a beer after work!