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My grand philosophical conclusion at the end of the day is that humanity does not divide into the rich and the poor, the privileged and the unprivileged, the clever and the stupid, the lucky and the unlucky or even into the happy and the unhappy. It divides into the nasty and the nice. Nasty people are humourless, bitter, self-pitying, resentful and mean. They are also, of course, invariably miserable. Saints may worry about them and even try to turn their sour natures, but those who do not aspire to saintliness are best advised to avoid them whenever possible, and give their aggression a good run for its money whenever it becomes unavoidable.
Auberon Waugh, Will This Do?

How CityRail became Labor's multibillion-dollar fiasco
Daniel Pearson took four hours and 40 minutes to get from his work at Chatswood to his home at Cronulla. He spent 45 minutes stuck in a train 500 metres from Chatswood station and another 30 minutes outside Artamon station. Feeling like a sheep on the Cormo Express, he quit the train at St Leonards and paid $15 for a taxi to the city, where he waited another 40 minutes at Martin Place.
· Mapping farting Tangara

Ever the hard-nosed administrator, he can crack the whip at recalcitrant singers and settle with the unions and placate his board and terrorize his underlings and prevent the centrifugal force of a thousand egos from spinning the Met out of control. His pleasure in his position is always evident and endearing. But can he plan repertory and oversee casting and productions with the requisite, insightful sophistication and taste? X is a tough guy, even (say many) a bully. So logic might dictate a smoother, tonier, more soft-spoken manager, more in line with patrician Met tradition. And maybe one with greater sophistication about the musical and dramatic side of opera.
[ Irony of Railing Opera]