http://www.thepunch.com.au/author-bios/carrie-miller/ Carrie is a freelance writer who has written on topics as varied as the ethics of collecting Indigenous art to the etiquette of begging. She’s currently a weekly columnist for The Spectator Australia, a regular contributor to Australian Art Collector magazine, and writes Other People, a satirical column for http://www.theartlife.com.au. When she’s not working, Carrie enjoys reading about getting fit and maintaining the second most popular unofficial Baz Luhrmann fan website. Her inspirational quote: “Right. That’s it. I’ve had enough. Get out of the bloody car.” – Carrie’s father. en Copyright 2012 The Punch penberthyd@newsltd.com.au penberthyd@newsltd.com.au Fri, 10 Feb 2012 02:00:13 +0000 Fri, 10 Feb 2012 02:00:13 +0000 Politics, opinion, world news, sports news, latest news, views, Barack Obama, Kevin Rudd, Julia Gillard, Nathan Rees, Malcolm Turnbull, Peter Garrett, Barnaby Joyce, Australian, federal politics, opinion polls, election, The Punch, thepunch, punch ExpressionEngine 1.6.7 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss 15 http://www.thepunch.com.au/images/punch-logo-rss.png http://www.thepunch.com.au/ 144 70 Politics, political opinion, world news, sports news and the latest news and views updated live, daily on The Punch - Australia's best conversation. Search The Punch keywords http://www.thepunch.com.au/search/ http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/bad-family-summer-holidays-prep-you-for-the-real-world/ Every January, my sisters and I would be forced into a stinking hot car that, according to Mum, Dad had forgotten to service, and we’d argue our way to a camping ground. There we would argue some more and shower in a communal block where everyone wore thongs, so as to avoid that classic ‘70s foot disease, tinea. As Dad’s “short cuts” meant that the trip had taken us around the same amount of time as flying to Russia, we would have had precisely one day to “relax”. Or as an adult might put it: “Shut up, you’re on holidays and you’ll bloody well enjoy yourself.” On the way home we’d be treated to a night at a motel called something enticingly foreign like La Stupenda. If the health inspectors hadn’t been tipped off, we would race each other to dive into the filthy swimming pool which bore no resemblance to the aquatic wonderland featured on La Stupenda’s brochure (“Come and enjoy our range of superior European-style facilities with a Hawaiian feel.”) feedback@thepunch.com.au (Carrie Miller) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/bad-family-summer-holidays-prep-you-for-the-real-world/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/bad-family-summer-holidays-prep-you-for-the-real-world/#item7465 Tue, 03 Jan 2012 19:00:30 +0000 Carrie Miller | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/gavin-king-victim-blamer-and-woman-shamer/ I’ve always admired a man who knows his limitations. So when I read an extract from an old opinion column by former Queensland journo turned LNP candidate Gavin King, I had him pegged as my sort of bloke: “Correct me if I’m wrong, but surely it is obvious that we should perform household chores we are best at, in the interests of efficiency and synergy. In other words, the missus irons my shirt because she is able to do it quickly and easily. In exchange, I make breakfast because pouring milk on to cereal is a task simple enough for me to achieve by 7.30am.” Good on Gavin for realising that tipping a bit of cow juice on the family’s Weetbix is the extent of his talents on the domestic front. Unfortunately, recognising his strengths isn’t always his strong suit once he sets foot outside the door in his crisply ironed shirts. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Carrie Miller) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/gavin-king-victim-blamer-and-woman-shamer/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/gavin-king-victim-blamer-and-woman-shamer/#item6896 Wed, 12 Oct 2011 18:45:38 +0000 Carrie Miller | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/slacktivists-isnt-real-activism/ A good mate of mine is a humble bloke who goes about doing good works without fanfare. He once worked in the Aboriginal studies department of a top Australian university. While he’s someone who rarely has a bad word to say about anyone, he had some choice ones about his (all white) former colleagues when we recently had a chat about the hypocrisy of eco-yuppies. He reckons the people he worked with were some of the most pompous, self-satisfied bunch of wankers he’d ever come across. It was as if working in an area that was perceived to be ideologically correct gave them a free pass to behave however they wanted. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Carrie Miller) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/slacktivists-isnt-real-activism/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/slacktivists-isnt-real-activism/#item6495 Mon, 15 Aug 2011 18:55:26 +0000 Carrie Miller | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/more-hysteria-over-the-sexualisation-of-children/ I’m glad that the rejection of a photograph donated to a charity auction for the Sydney Children’s Hospital raises the spectre of morality in our society. Because it’s the perfect instance of why we need to take a serious look at ourselves and the values we want to promote. Del Katherine Barton, one of Australia’s leading contemporary artists and someone well known both for her love of family and her charitable work for childrens’ causes, submitted a photograph of her shirtless six year-old son to be auctioned for the hospital’s benefit. The board of the hospital has rejected the work on the basis that it doesn’t comply with their “strict rules on images of children”.  feedback@thepunch.com.au (Carrie Miller) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/more-hysteria-over-the-sexualisation-of-children/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/more-hysteria-over-the-sexualisation-of-children/#item4829 Wed, 05 Jan 2011 19:00:27 +0000 Carrie Miller | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/an-honest-guide-to-being-a-better-person/ We’re approaching the day where after a month of rampant, random consumerism, and with the humility that only a major hangover brings, people make their New Year’s resolutions. Bad idea. All you end up with is nicotine withdrawal for a few days, a gym membership you have to pay $5000 to get out of, and a fridge full of rotting “superfoods”. So what I propose for this year is a more modest approach to becoming a better person: rather than worrying about reaching for a whole lot of unattainable virtues, let’s all just try not being such arseholes. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Carrie Miller) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/an-honest-guide-to-being-a-better-person/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/an-honest-guide-to-being-a-better-person/#item4785 Wed, 29 Dec 2010 19:00:38 +0000 Carrie Miller | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/hold-back-to-the-future-its-a-myth-that-life-used-to-be-sweeter/ Have you noticed that these days it’s not just people who sell ‘handmade’ soap at markets complaining that our culture has become too high-tech, too overloaded with meaningless information, too much about instant gratification? Particularly at Christmas when everyone complains about empty consumerism it seems we’ve all bought into the notion that life was so much simpler and people so much nicer before the advent of the mass media. No road rage, no mass shootings in high schools, families sitting politely around the dinner table discussing literature. I reckon it’s time we test this belief empirically, by comparing the past and the present on a few issues. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Carrie Miller) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/hold-back-to-the-future-its-a-myth-that-life-used-to-be-sweeter/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/hold-back-to-the-future-its-a-myth-that-life-used-to-be-sweeter/#item4709 Tue, 21 Dec 2010 18:50:42 +0000 Carrie Miller | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-perils-of-modern-dating-1-ugly-people/ For those of you – ok, us – who aren’t likely to be asked to pose for the cover of Sports Illustrated or GQ any time soon, here’s a piece of news that might be of interest. A dating agency for unattractive people has been established in Britain which claims to be a website for the “aesthetically challenged”, has already had some success at matching those who have been hit one too many times with the ugly stick. Tom Clifford, who says he has a face “that makes children cry” has found true love with a 31 year old shop assistant who still lives with her parents and they’re planning a wedding in the near future. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Carrie Miller) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-perils-of-modern-dating-1-ugly-people/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-perils-of-modern-dating-1-ugly-people/#item4376 Tue, 02 Nov 2010 18:50:20 +0000 Carrie Miller | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/welcome-to-the-culture-wars-science/ Watching the way every bloke and his dog is weighing into the climate change debate these days has got me wondering: are we now living in a world where expert knowledge is meaningless? I recently changed my by-line on this publication after prodding from some colleagues. I was previously called an ‘arts, popular culture and ethics writer’ - now I’m an ‘arts writer and social commentator’. What a joke. ‘Social commentator’ is a meaningless job description for which there are no obvious qualifications – certainly I don’t remember sitting the exams. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Carrie Miller) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/welcome-to-the-culture-wars-science/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/welcome-to-the-culture-wars-science/#item4229 Tue, 12 Oct 2010 18:45:21 +0000 Carrie Miller | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/women-really-do-react-to-politics-differently-to-men/ They had the decency to give them a turn, but after thousands of years of patriarchy working so well they should have known better. They brought home the bacon; we cooked it. They fought off the lions and tigers so we could raise our offspring in safety. But a little while ago, following years of nagging by those insufferable suffragettes, they caved – men finally gave women the vote. After watching the gendered worm on Nine’s coverage of the debate however, I have to say: what the hell were men thinking? It looks like giving the ladies a few democratic rights was a mistake on par with offering an honest answer to the question, “Does my bum look big in this?” feedback@thepunch.com.au (Carrie Miller) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/women-really-do-react-to-politics-differently-to-men/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/women-really-do-react-to-politics-differently-to-men/#item3631 Sun, 25 Jul 2010 18:55:44 +0000 Carrie Miller | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-pm-shouldnt-back-gay-or-any-marriage/ I know many of you would assume after my glowing endorsement of Ms Gillard and the opportunity she represents to shape a more inclusive socio-political culture that I’d be the first to denounce her opposition to gay marriage. Well, you’d be wrong. In fact, I don’t consider the ‘right’ to marry part of any socially progressive agenda and so I say Julia is correct on this issue, but for the wrong reasons. I guess I’ve always had a romantic, almost Wildean view of homosexuals as somehow more evolved than the rest of us. We all know deep down that stereotypes are true. So you know I’m right when I say that most gays are inherently more civilized and cultured, and are generally superior citizens than the rest of us. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Carrie Miller) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-pm-shouldnt-back-gay-or-any-marriage/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-pm-shouldnt-back-gay-or-any-marriage/#item3472 Sun, 04 Jul 2010 18:35:54 +0000 Carrie Miller | Author bios | The Punch