Author Archives: dtmuscio

The Damp Duck in Flood

Furious Fiction 6 March 2022: David Muscio Context: Prepared for submission to Australian Writers’ Centre Autumn 2022 Furious Fiction competition. Challenge criteria include creation within 55 hours of a short story of < 500 words that must (i) include a character that commits a crime, (ii) include some kind of door being opened and (iii)Continue reading “The Damp Duck in Flood”

Hitchcock’s Silhouette

The following article was entered in New Philosopher’s writing award XXX111: Identity for subscribers and was shortlisted (10 selected) The introduction to episodes of the series “Alfred Hitchcock Presents” featured a corpulent Alfred moving lethargically into his hologram image until congruence was achieved. Only when this persona, a fleshed-out silhouette, commanded center stage would HitchcockContinue reading “Hitchcock’s Silhouette”

No, we don’t need a military Brian

Defence strategy and capability is insurance against potential actions of an uncertain enemy. The Australian psyche wallowed in a siege mentality; apparently many have lusted after us. Newspapers heralded “The Russians Are Coming”. They have been quite tardy. Brian Martin challenges us (‘Submarine Sideshow: Does Australia even need a military?’, Pearls & Irritations, November 21,Continue reading “No, we don’t need a military Brian”

Sow’s Ear Not Silk Purse Made From Scotty’s Pork

As Bernard Keane points out (Crikey, November, 2021 ‘Morrison’s high-tax, big spend, do lots (for mates) government’) the Morrison government is in fact doing lots, its crony capitalism spending and taxing at record rates. You just can’t help yourself ScoMo. Your shallow brain has come up with the slogan “Can Do Capitalism; not Don’t DoContinue reading “Sow’s Ear Not Silk Purse Made From Scotty’s Pork”

Not Us France: Open Letter from Australians to President Macron

We are not offended. We take no umbrage. We feel no outrage. We accept that your ‘liar’ accusation was directed at Morrison personally, for which he ought to accept personal responsibility. Sco-Mo has copious form for failing to tell the truth, to misrepresent, to twaddle, swerve and spin. He conceptualizes any and every issue asContinue reading “Not Us France: Open Letter from Australians to President Macron”

A Claytons Leader

Scott-the-Announcer has been called a liar by French President Emmanuel Macron. A master of dissembling, Scotty doesn’t understand non-lying. As Nancy Sinatra sang, “you bin lying when you should a bin truthin”. A leader without agenda, Sco-Mo promised little and delivered less. This is the age of rear-view mirror administration from a Claytons leader, aContinue reading “A Claytons Leader”

Scotty’s Road to Damascus? — Counting Down

He may not see the light, but no doubt he’ll feel the heat at COP26 in Glasgow next month. Incoherent yabbering about plans and pathways, vague thoughts on targets. “Technology not taxes”, or is it “Technology not targets”? Hard to pin him down on a revised concrete emissions reduction target, much less a date. Australia’s […]Continue reading “Scotty’s Road to Damascus? — Counting Down”

On Reading Pip Williams’ “The Dictionary of Lost Words” (Affirm Press, 2020)

My imagination holds a place for somewhere evocative of the Scriptorium. My Uncle Bob, an orchardist on the Hawkesbury River, maintained a garden shed full of books with a covering of fairy dust, or so it seemed in my boyhood. I approached it as a magic place. Pip Williams’ book evinced this same infusion: wordsContinue reading “On Reading Pip Williams’ “The Dictionary of Lost Words” (Affirm Press, 2020)”

Inputs to Selfhood

What constitutes today’s iteration of the well-informed individual? No aspiration to be a polymath genius, just an intelligent and worldly aware thinker. Do we expose ourselves to an adequate variety of information sources? This self-examination is a personal quest for the making and maintenance of a reasonable mind. This quest should be conducted without prejudice,Continue reading “Inputs to Selfhood”