By Ruth Limkin Last night I sat with a group of business people and we strategised about how to help the poor, and expand programs which are feeding the disadvantaged. It was a great meeting, and I was encouraged at the generosity of people who want to make a tangible difference. The meeting was a part of what I’ve been doing to try to raise … Continue reading Why ‘Occupy’ is making the 99% poorer
By Ruth Limkin Sometimes it seems there’s so many issues in the world, with so little time to learn about them. We know that there’s more than meets the eye, and that relying on mainstream media soundbites and headlines rarely makes for a well informed view. For many of us, the arrival of ‘boat people’ – better referred to as asylum seekers – is one … Continue reading The biggest problem with boat people
By Ruth Limkin Published in the Courier Mail 23 September 2011 Food: It’s a big topic at the moment. The report of policy being developed by the Opposition, which could lead to a creation of a network of dams, and increased agricultural production in the north of Australia, is heartening news for Australia’s food security future. At the same time, there’s political turmoil about whether … Continue reading Assess needs and resources to avoid making a meal of food crisis
By Ruth Limkin I love Christmas, but it feels like Christmas is upon us, even though it’s still just over three months away. Shops are selling decorations, friends are auditioning for Christmas shows and articles about ‘financial strategies’ for Christmas are being written warning people against creating financial stress by making Christmas all it ‘should be’. Falling into the trap of comparing our Christmas experience with that … Continue reading The looming spectre of Christmas stress and what to do about it
By Ruth Limkin Yesterday was RU OK? day. It’s a brilliant, catchy way of reminding people to talk about depression, suicide, and getting help. We don’t really talk a lot about suicide, but we should, because it’s happening with a frightening regularity. The thing most likely to kill an Australian under 40 is themselves. That’s a devastating statistic. It takes my breath away sometimes when I … Continue reading R U (still) OK?
By Ruth Limkin It would be funny if it weren’t so, well, illegal. For very good reasons, commercial surrogacy is banned in Australia. It’s against the law for you to pay someone here or overseas to conceive and carry a child that you will then take and call your own. So when a family law specialist, Professor Jenny Millbank, heard about two sets of parents who … Continue reading It’s okay – just break the law
By Ruth Limkin Published in the Courier Mail 1 July 2011 A piece in the Courier Mail recently reported that, “HIGH school teachers say they lack the resources to properly teach sex education, which could lead to more cases of teen pregnancy and more teenagers contracting sexually transmitted diseases.” [emphasis mine] The spread of sexually transmitted disease is a significant issue within our society. Earlier … Continue reading What we’re really teaching about sex
By Ruth Limkin We should make today count. We should use our resources and our freedom to help someone today… to speak for freedom… to wipe a tear… to give to those less fortunate… to share a smile. If you’re a woman, you should do this even more so when you reflect on where you live, and when you remember that if you lived in … Continue reading Why we should make today count
By Ruth Limkin I retweeted. My friends retweeted. People around the world retweeted, and in the process, we helped Alice Pyne get closer to achieving something on her bucket list. Some background, as reported by the Courier Mail, is that “Alice Pyne, 15, from Ulverston, Cumbria, posted a list of things she would like to do before she died – which included swimming with sharks … Continue reading Learning to look
By Ruth Limkin It feels like there has been a lot of angst in Australian recently. As a result, it also feels like twitter, a brilliant vehicle when used well, has also carried a whole lot of claims, counter-claims, insults and intimidation. So, in the interests of everyone lightening up for a little while, and remembering what it’s like to smile, here’s some really great … Continue reading RT pls: Finally, something we can all agree on
