Tory Shepherd
Tory Shepherd studied anthropology, then travelled, then studied some more, then travelled, then ended up with a cadetship at The Advertiser in 2006. She covered police rounds, politics, general news and health, while working at The Punch on the side. Now Tory is working full time at The Punch. She can be seen and heard on ABC local radio and Radio National, PM Live on Sky, and in other nooks and crannies. She is passionate about words, wine, chilli, soccer, and people (even the ones who hate her or keep praying for her soul). Follow her on Twitter - @ToryShepherd
Articles by Tory Shepherd
Interest rate barney barely even rates as interesting
Stop all the cheering, cut off the champagne. Prevent the pollies from barking and silence the drums. The piddling interest…... Read more
Don’t blame the beautiful game for riot shame
If badminton was the World Game there would probably be just as many riots as there are now with soccer.…... Read more
The Rinehart whine came straight from the heart
You can’t blame Hope Rinehart for trying to get her Mum to pay for a cook, a housekeeper and a…... Read more
These parents think their son shouldn’t have been born
How would you feel if you found out that your mere existence is such a burden on your parents they…... Read more
Home births are prone to many complications
Once upon a time, home births were the only option, and mothers and babies frequently died. Things have changed dramatically…... Read more
Blame no one – and everyone – for the Oz Day debacle
As murky details continue to emerge about the Australia Day ‘riot’, so do the murky conspiracy theories. In reaction to…... Read more
Singing the praises of the unsung heroes
The world is ruled by extroverts. The loudest voices, unsurprisingly, are often the only ones we hear. The Australia Day…... Read more
Beware the pro-lifers doing hard Labor on abortion
Labor for Life may sound like a North Korean punishment but it is, in fact, a fringe group that apparently…... Read more
We need a strong constitution to tackle racism
It will be a shameful day for Australia if it does not change its Constitution to both prohibit racial discrimination…... Read more
ICB: Is Mark Wahlberg really Hangin’ Tough?
Welcome to this week’s I Call Bullshit column. In a world full of bunkum, it’s often hard to narrow the…... Read more
Should we name and shame online racists?
The interwebs are a cesspit of bigotry, bullying and racism, hate and snuff porn, and all things dark and evil,…... Read more
All’s not fair in war
In the film Balibo, five journalists paint an Australian flag and the word ‘Australia’ on the wall of their ‘safe’…... Read more
Women and children first, or every man for himself?
When a boat goes down, should women and children be able to jump to the front of the lifeboat queue?…... Read more
ICB: Magic detox diets - just intoxicating marketing?
Welcome to this week’s I Call Bullshit, a regular column where we pick apart mischievous misrepresentations, balderdash, and outright bunkum.…... Read more
Using deodorant and other great Aussie traditions
A Coalition suggestion that migrants need deodorant classes is an outrageous, racist furphy. It’s an absolute myth that Poms are…... Read more
I am angry white man, hear me roar
There’s a movement that sees males - generally straight, middle-aged, white males - as the new oppressed. No, seriously. Men’s…... Read more
Who you gonna call when cosmetic surgery goes wrong?
In the 1940s Japanese prostitutes injected themselves with non-medical grade silicone or paraffin, or inserted sponges into their chests because…... Read more
If only you could bend space-time to hide your shame…
The God Particle is so 2011. This year’s sexy science story is a hole in time. Yes, it’s a sci-fi…... Read more
The end is not nigh
‘Tis the season for many predictions. Here’s mine: The world will not end. Earth will not be ripped apart by…... Read more
Creating death in a test tube
It’s the stuff of an edge-of-your-seat thriller: Scientists develop a fatal flu virus, one that could decimate humanity. What happens…... Read more
ICB: The Great Feminist Conspiracy and MRE
Welcome to this week’s I Call Bullshit, a regular column where we look at shysters and shenanigans, bad science and…... Read more
Naked protesting: Is it world’s breast practice?
In Europe, a Ukrainian feminist movement protests against prostitution and for women’s rights by getting their tits out, donning long…... Read more
Do they know it’s Sockandjockmas Time at all?
Many of us these days prefer to take our Christmas without the Christ or the Mas(s). It’s convenient to keep…... Read more
How Plimer’s climate change book might just work
Climate change sceptics shouldn’t have to resort to juvenile ‘Gotcha’ tactics to get attention. But Professor Ian Plimer just did.…... Read more
Beware the dark forces occupying the Occupiers
The Occupy protests are fighting for freedom, truth, justice, equality, and the right to wear tents as casual attire. In…... Read more
ICB: Are there 600 million virtual war criminals?
Welcome to this week’s I Call Bullshit, a column that looks at all kinds of myths and mistruths, at falsehoods,…... Read more
I love goldfish, but I couldn’t eat a live one
Puns abounded after a PR stunt involving goldfish went totally belly up this week. Advantage SA sent 55 live goldfish…... Read more
Biggest moments of 2011 #17 No laksa for you!
What happened In a kooky swapsie deal, Australia and Malaysia entered into a “cooperative transfer agreement” on asylum seekers, only…... Read more
Time to inject some rational thought into anti-vaxxers
The Government has hoisted up a large and slightly unwieldy carrot to boost immunisation rates. Families could miss out on…... Read more
So the Bali boy will be outta the joint by Christmas…
The Indonesian courts have, to an extent, belied their reputation for handing down extreme sentences. They have sentenced the 14-year-old…... Read more
Sack bloody Kyle Sandilands. Lance the boil.
Why is Kyle Sandilands’s toxic sludge allowed to leak out of radio speakers at breakfast? He’s a cretin, a hate-filled…... Read more
Stop the planes!
There’s nothing like a leaky boat full of traumatised asylum seekers to spark fear and loathing in Australia. Why is…... Read more
Not everyone has the Obamarama spirit
If you thought young Australians were only ecstatic while listening to LMFAO at Stereosonic while chugging overpriced bottled water, think…... Read more
Why beautiful people should be made to suffer
Today’s message to young women is: All girls are beautiful. But some are more beautiful than others. Oh, and frankly…... Read more
Berlusconi could show Julia Gillard a thing or two
The party’s over and the place is a mess. A sober Mario Monti will be putting the house back into…... Read more
ICB: Are Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s pants really on fire?
We’re entering a new phase of the carbon pricing ‘debate’ this week, because it’s now too late for anyone to…... Read more
If you’re reading this, Earth has not yet been destroyed
Look! Up in the sky! Is it a bird? Is it a plane? Is it the coming carbon tax calamity?…... Read more
Guilty verdict in Jackson case not black and white
So the crowd cheers, euphoric, as the ‘guilty’ judgement of Dr Conrad Murray is read out. Michael Jackson’s fans will…... Read more
Culture and religion are no excuse for child brides
Cradle snatcher. Toy boy. Cougar. Child bride. Teen bride. Paedophile. How old is too old, how young too young? We…... Read more
Qantas and Joyce will weather this specific storm
What price forgiveness? Will a free plane ride make you take Qantas back into your heart? Will you once again…... Read more
A Pivster’s Guide to Radical Feminism and Man Hate
Listen up, all you fun-fem po-mo abuse-loving heteronormative PIVster types. The radical feminists are here to set you straight on…... Read more
Parties were politicking while people were still trapped
Before the body count was even finalised politicians used the latest asylum seeker tragedy to regurgitate their entrenched positions on…... Read more
I’m sorry, but society doesn’t owe you a child
There is no ‘right’ to have a child. This seems a callous thing to say, but wrapping any conversation about…... Read more
Crazy Bob Katter and his moronic gunfreak mates
Federal MP Bob Katter is a throw-back nutjob bunker-mentality troglodyte. Well, we’ve known that for a while. But this just…... Read more
Festival of Obvious Ideas #12: Abolish the apostrophe
Its time to abolish the apostrophe. This poor little punctuation mark has been abused, neglected, contorted into unnatural positions. It…... Read more
What kind of person ignores a dying two-year-old girl?
It’s hard to pick the most disturbing moment. Is it when the van hits two-year-old Yueyue, pauses, then drives off?…... Read more
Festival of Obvious Ideas #3: Slash Parliamentary terms
Welcome to the second day of the Punch Festival of Obvious Ideas, our salute to stuff that should be said.…... Read more
Why it should be OK to tell a friend to take their meds
An email pinged into the inbox, asking if I could write a short blog for a new website – Mindshare…... Read more
ICB: An abominable snowjob… and Yeti may exist
Welcome to this week’s I Call Bullshit, a regular column on spin, pseudoscience and shenanigans. It’s a hairy one this…... Read more
Yet another whack at those dastardly quacks
If I’m going to subsidise your homeopathic treatment, I want you to subsidise my red wine. At least there is…... Read more
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@DarrenFerrari @andrewcatsaras And so he should be. He might be the chap humming in the background to the end of the recording.
Recent posts
The latest and greatest
New speaker’s slack clobber, old speaker clobbers slackers
Peter Slipper, draped in black in a manner most young voters will not see outside Hogwarts, has dramatically…
Snappy 60th birthday to our most fun newspaper
Life is far from dull in the Northern Territory. Or if it is, we’ll never know. And that’s…
There’s no evidence sex-for-cab-fares is a trend
Fifteen years ago when one of your girlfriends had a few too many Illusion shots standard practice was…
Nosebleed Section
choice ringside rantings
From: City vs country: What would you change your life for?
Dieter Moeckel says:
We made the tree change from Darwin to Wonbah more than 15 years ago. After fencing, a road, and couple of dams our money was gone. Super is enough to live comfortably. We have geese growing old and stringy the only one that made it to the pot committed Kamakazi by flying into a tree; the chooks are… [read more]From: I’d rather have a piece of toast than listen to crap lyrics
Erick says:
Led Zeppelin are responsible for my all-time favourite mixed metaphor: "There you sit, sit and stare, like a book on a shelf rusting." (Misty Mountain Hop) I laugh every time I hear it. Hmmm, I believe I've decided what to play on the way to work today. [read more]Gentle jabs to the ribs
No wuckin forries. These nuckin futs are tuckin fops
Well, puck me with a fitchfork. The F-word is apparently an acceptable part of Australian speech. That’s… Read more
