http://www.thepunch.com.au/author-bios/lainie-anderson/ In between being a mum to young twin boys, a freelance writer and running her own business, Lainie Anderson somehow finds the time to write a provocative weekly column in Adelaide’s Sunday Mail. She’s a former state political reporter for Melbourne’s Herald Sun and also spent a couple of years at The Times in London. Her favourite question is: “Did you know I’ve run three marathons?” en Copyright 2012 The Punch penberthyd@newsltd.com.au penberthyd@newsltd.com.au Sat, 26 May 2012 20:00:49 +0000 Sat, 26 May 2012 20:00:49 +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/the-nature-of-love-and-unnatural-chastity/ That wonderful institution called marriage has been in the media a lot this week – and for two very different reasons. In the US, President Barack Obama has faced down deeply conservative voters to reverse his opposition to gay marriage. Interestingly, he cited his Christian values as the primary reason for reversing his thinking. “In the end, the values that I care most deeply about ... is how we treat other people,” he said. Hallelujah to that, and we can only hope our own Prime Minister Julia Gillard – usually so eager to warm to Mr Obama but on this occasion very quick to shrug him off – reverses her own thinking on the issue sometime soon. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Lainie Anderson) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-nature-of-love-and-unnatural-chastity/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-nature-of-love-and-unnatural-chastity/#item8480 Sat, 12 May 2012 19:57:44 +0000 Lainie Anderson | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/australias-unspeakable-indigenous-tragedy/ Niina marni. That’s “hello” in the Kaurna language of the Adelaide Plains. And isn’t it a travesty that none of us learnt it in school. Of the 250 Aboriginal languages spoken across Australia before white settlement, only 15 (or six per cent) are still spoken fluently across all age ranges. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Lainie Anderson) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/australias-unspeakable-indigenous-tragedy/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/australias-unspeakable-indigenous-tragedy/#item8414 Sat, 05 May 2012 19:45:27 +0000 Lainie Anderson | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/so-this-parenting-thing-anyone-mastered-it-yet/ A few weeks back we got the note home from school that every parent fears: “Please come in for a chat about your child’s behaviour in class.” Jack is a gorgeous eight-year-old: kind, funny, affectionate and busy. He asks great questions like “Do ladies wake up pregnant, or do they get pregnant in the morning?” (Our answer for that one was “Both”.) Problem is, he’s not really a natural scholar (takes after his Dad). And instead of doing his work this year, he’s been busily making a name for himself as the class clown. It was one of those all-too-frequent moments when you realise parenting should also be known as “muddling-through-with-absolutely-no-idea-what-you’re-doing”. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Lainie Anderson) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/so-this-parenting-thing-anyone-mastered-it-yet/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/so-this-parenting-thing-anyone-mastered-it-yet/#item8182 Sat, 07 Apr 2012 19:50:07 +0000 Lainie Anderson | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/theres-no-such-thing-as-the-bogeyman-just-a-scapegoat/ Remember when you were a kid and the bogeyman kept you awake at night? No matter how many times mum said he didn’t exist, you’d still expect him to come out of the wardrobe and eat you up. Australia has a bogeyman. His face changes every few decades: once he was Russian, then he was Asian. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Lainie Anderson) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/theres-no-such-thing-as-the-bogeyman-just-a-scapegoat/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/theres-no-such-thing-as-the-bogeyman-just-a-scapegoat/#item8142 Sat, 31 Mar 2012 20:50:37 +0000 Lainie Anderson | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/theres-nothing-common-about-state-funerals/ Jason Akermanis – former footballer and king of indelicate comments – caused an unseemly furore in the AFL world this week. He questioned the appropriateness of a state funeral for the universally adored Jim Stynes, who died after a long battle with cancer on Tuesday. It won’t surprise you to hear that Akermanis copped it from all quarters, with former Melbourne captain Brad Green summing it up best on Twitter: “Aker, you are a tosser!!! Show respect.” It might surprise you to hear, though, that I get where Akermanis is coming from. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Lainie Anderson) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/theres-nothing-common-about-state-funerals/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/theres-nothing-common-about-state-funerals/#item8083 Sat, 24 Mar 2012 19:55:50 +0000 Lainie Anderson | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/mounting-a-defence-of-our-armed-forces/ When Rod Stewart rocked Adelaide last month, he dedicated Rhythm of My Heart to the servicemen and women of Australia and Britain. I remember it distinctly for two reasons: 1) in Australia, we might ‘well up’ once a year as veterans march on ANZAC Day, but we most definitely don’t fawn over serving troops; and 2) someone shouted “THANKYOU” in a way that implied “FINALLY, some bloody recognition”. I’ve been musing on the incident this week in the wake of those inane comments uttered on Channel Ten’s morning chat show The Circle. In the unlikely event you missed the subsequent outpouring of wrath, hosts Yumi Stynes and George Negus ‘joked’ about the intelligence and sexual prowess of Australia’s newest Victoria Cross recipient, Corporal Ben Roberts-Smith. Tacky at best, disgusting at worst, and the social networks went into meltdown. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Lainie Anderson) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/mounting-a-defence-of-our-armed-forces/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/mounting-a-defence-of-our-armed-forces/#item7915 Sat, 03 Mar 2012 19:55:52 +0000 Lainie Anderson | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/knives-are-out-and-i-wish-theyd-chop-chop/ I really wanted to write about My Kitchen Rules this week, but it turns out there’s even more distasteful backstabbing, strategy and deluded egomania to be had in federal politics. After 18 months of reassurances that our Foreign Minister is a happy little vegemite in a united ALP team, it now seems clear that Prime Minister Julia Gillard has been battling two formidable adversaries: TAbbs and KRudd. I’ve got to admit, for months I thought the Labor leadership tussle was little more than Canberra commentators feeding off a limp carcass. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Lainie Anderson) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/knives-are-out-and-i-wish-theyd-chop-chop/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/knives-are-out-and-i-wish-theyd-chop-chop/#item7859 Sat, 25 Feb 2012 19:50:15 +0000 Lainie Anderson | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/ideas-from-the-university-of-the-bleeding-obvious/ As politicians reconvened in Canberra this week, Liberal MP Malcolm Turnbull was asked how he’d managed to shed 14kg over the summer hiatus. “I’ll tell you what I’ve learnt,” he responded. “This may seem like a penetrating glimpse of the obvious – but it is an insight that most of us ignore because it is too painful: the way to lose weight is to eat less.” Let’s hear that again. “The way to lose weight is to eat less.” feedback@thepunch.com.au (Lainie Anderson) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/ideas-from-the-university-of-the-bleeding-obvious/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/ideas-from-the-university-of-the-bleeding-obvious/#item7738 Sat, 11 Feb 2012 19:55:13 +0000 Lainie Anderson | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/pokies-farce-is-gillards-biggest-stumble-yet/ I was sorry to see Julia Gillard fall on Australia Day – it’s strangely unsettling to see an adult stumble, and never more so than when it’s a person of power. To my mind, though, a far more significant fall happened earlier in the week. I understand the pragmatism behind Ms Gillard’s decision to dump her pokies reform deal with Independent MP Andrew Wilkie. She didn’t have the numbers in parliament to get mandatory pre-commitment legislation passed. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Lainie Anderson) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/pokies-farce-is-gillards-biggest-stumble-yet/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/pokies-farce-is-gillards-biggest-stumble-yet/#item7628 Sat, 28 Jan 2012 19:55:06 +0000 Lainie Anderson | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-tennis-is-awesome-but-i-dont-love-all/ In between promos for Revenge, My Kitchen Rules and Please Marry My Boy, tennis star Marcos Baghdatis had a wee meltdown at the Australian Open on Wednesday and smashed his way through four shiny blue tennis racquets. Given he scored a pay cheque of $20,000 just for winning round one, the $770 fine meted out to Baghdatis must have made those poor racquets feel positively worthless. I love the Aussie Open. Like interminable school holidays (“Muuum!” “Muuum!” “Muuum!”) it’s synonymous with summer. But if tempers can fray on the court, imagine how the rest of us feel at home. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Lainie Anderson) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-tennis-is-awesome-but-i-dont-love-all/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-tennis-is-awesome-but-i-dont-love-all/#item7577 Sat, 21 Jan 2012 20:00:57 +0000 Lainie Anderson | Author bios | The Punch