Tuesday 21 October 2008

Australian leader of the opposition is a dog blogger

Since I started Penny's blog I've found lots of interesting people who like to write about life with a dog. It was a surprise, though, to see a story about a prominent Australian dog blogger on page one of mx - a daily paper designed to be read on the evening train commute by people who've lost half their wits during a long, tiring day at work.

Malcolm Turnbull, the Leader of the Opposition, was accused of updating Twitter posts about his dog blog during Question Time in Parliament.

Of course I took a look around the Net to find his dog blog. Call me easily influenced, if you like, but this is one of the few times I've warmed to a politician. I really liked the posts I read.

I particularly liked the one about Embarkation Park. Jojo the dog (aka Malcolm Turnbull, or whoever writes it - can't quite get rid of the cynical attitude to politicians, unfortunately) quotes one of my heroes in the fight to protect the millennia-long bond between dogs and humans - Clover Moore, whom I've written about previously when she proposed a bill to ban the sale of dogs in pet shops. On Turnbull's blog she is quoted as saying
"regular off-leash exercise helped dogs socialise and release pent-up energy, reducing nuisance behaviour such as uncontrolled barking."
Recently there has been an endless, fraught debate about the use of some of the local Darebin Parklands for off-leash exercise of dogs. Seeing the vital role of off-leash exercise mentioned on the blog of the Leader of the Opposition gives me heart that this issue has some powerful supporters.

6 comments:

Noah the Airedale said...

Well now isn't that interesting lol. I don't blame him for updating his blog during question time. Sensible man!

parlance said...

Well... his media guy says he didn't press 'send' during question time! It's good to know our leaders are on the job in these difficult times.

Johann The Dog said...

Updating his Twitter...I know why, because it's sooooo addicting! He probably couln't help himself. BOL!

We Twitter too. Interesting stuff!

Gussie said...

Good grief! And to think I was once worried my colleagues would find out I have a dog blog. Me = Ms Nobody from Libraryland.

parlance said...

Johann, I'm staying well away from Twitter - I addicted enough to the Net as it is.

parlance said...

Gussie, thanks for letting me know you have a dog blog. I visited it and I'll be back regularly. I'm jealous that you had the opportunity to go to a seminar with Turid Rugaas - the benefits of living in Europe and not at the end of the earth,I guess. (The end of the earth being Australia.)