corporate internet takeover and insane claims

It seems as though google may take over youtube and this happens just the weekend after I spent a couple of hours customizing my google page to include all the newest wonders of the world. I can now go to my google homepage, track all changes to all the blogs that interest me, view my online calendar (never used) and read the news all at once (on my way to searching something). With youtube swallowed up by google it seems like it might be getting close to the point where I might be able to do almost everything I would ever want to do on the go through my new google portal. I'm starting to not like the feel of that. It's exactly why all that microsoft crap turned me off with msn. I really, really, really hope google doesn't go downhill because I've enjoyed every minute of its existence so far. Then again, google will always remain as the greatest search engine around and I can always return to the classic, basic search box format.

I don't know if you've seen this but it's ridiculous! According to whatever the source is, 50% of the users of myspace are 35 years or older!!! What a shock that was for me.

The insane claims in the title of this post have nothing to do with the above. They actually have to do with the latest string of events in the debates regarding a national curriculum here in Australia. If you've been living under a rock, then here's the fast food version what you need to follow with links to more reliable sources than my two-minute, "I really have to get back to marking" version:

First a Labor MP says kids need to stay in school until the end of Year 12

Then a whole bunch of people slam the idea

There are talks of a national curriculum which will save money and give the federal government more power

Our federal minister claims that state education systems are being hijacked by ideologues

Our federal minister for education was planned to accuse the state education systems of following Chairman Mao in that speech but then reduced it to only attacks on "serious ideology"

and the arguments go on... I'm sure you can look up recent developments just as well as I can.
What on earth is going on here? I think we need to talk about this.

On a lighter note though, it's an interesting example to follow through with how online newspapers are actually turning into online communities. TheAge uses blogs quite a bit (as do most newspapers) and even though the majority of teachers don't even know what a blog is, the majority of online newspaper viewership clearly do.