Grimes @ The Corner Hotel,Melbourne (05/12/2012)

So Claire Boucher is a star. The 24-year-old’s emergence as the genre-taunting Grimes has confirmed a few things that I was beginning to suspect, but namely this: Charisma counts for a hell of a lot. Boucher has released an ever-more assured string of releases in seemingly no time at all, but I’d hazard to say that the main reason that we’re all crammed into the low-slung surrounds of the Corner’s bandroom on a Wednesday night is because, quite simply, she is compelling.

Supported by [aa.artist:Geoffrey O’Connor], Boucher was playing the first of two sold-out shows at the Corner prior to her Meredith appearance over the weekend. Boucher, rocking a super-endearing teen-with-a-crush lisp, announced that, “Melbourne is officially the farthest I’ve ever been from Canada”, and her excitement was palpable.

Hype being hype, Boucher had attracted a pretty eclectic crowd. There were kindred spirits: Hardcore fans, cosplay types, queer kids and crusties; there were envious musicians and sceney types, trying to figure out whether to hate or to take notes; and there was the more workaday set, looking for a beer and a chat while some freaky shit went down onstage. All got what they came for.

But firstly, a word on Geoffrey O’Connor.

O’Connor, as always, was suave, absurd and a bewildering sight for the uninitiated. As always, every song sounded like a hit from a parallel universe, with his new material sliding in seamlessly alongside tracks from last year’s excellent Vanity Is Forever. Borderline piss-take? Yes. A seriously limited singing voice? Yes. Best pop songsmith in Australia right now? Arguably, yes. The second-coming of the Fariss brothers? Steady on now…

The move from bedroom producer to international headliner has been rapid for Boucher: She would have been forgiven for palming off some responsibility for her multi-layered compositions to a backing band, but here she stubbornly takes on much of the keyboards, vocals, and sample triggers herself. What’s more, rather than settling for the not-unimpressive task of bringing her studio compositions to life, Boucher takes great pleasure in stretching, extending, distending and deconstructing her songs, even dancing gleefully throughout. It leads to a decent number of glitches (the expletive-laden, and yet somehow endearing, monitor-related meltdown in final song ‘Be A Body’ was the most conspicuous example), but it also ensures that the set rises above the karaoke-ish vibe that often afflicts programming-heavy acts when performing live. Helping out in this regard were a pair of bodacious dancers, looking like hallucinations from Game Of Thrones, who stepped out of the heavy blue mist to throw shapes while Boucher operates her console.

‘Oblivion’, given an airing early in the set, was given a startling new dubstep outro; great polyphonic choirs of Grimeses connected one song to the next; and piercing bleeps, squawks and drones periodically shot through the room at unexpected intervals. The newly renovated songs remind you that for all her K-Pop influences and the crossover potential of Visions, Grimes’ instincts still tend towards “witch-house”, or “grave-rave”, or whatever term we’re currently using to describe dark, gauzy electronica with dance beats that aren’t really for dancing. This was fine, as the pop moments forced their way through anyway. Boucher’s solo take on ‘Phone Sex’ (a collaboration with Blood Diamonds) was one such moment, a strangely effective, straight-faced appropriation of seminal ’90s band The Vengaboys.

This was perhaps the most striking thing about Boucher’s performance – its sincerity. She flagged that she had no intention of doing “the thing where I go offstage, then you all clap, then I come back onstage”, and requested the audience’s approval to ignore said ritual (there was approval). When the beat finally kicked in during ‘Genesis’, Boucher danced like a kid at a slumber party, feeding off the audience’s excitement.

Her eclectic, up-to-the-minute influences and so-unpretentious-it’s-pretentious tastes have led to back-handed labels such as “post-interne”’, and a general suspicion that Grimes is a little too good to be true. Not so. Boucher came across as a fan, as in love with the music that she was channelling as her audience was with her (excluding the talkative bros that the dotted the periphery of the room). Boucher’s enthusiasm – and her charisma – were infectious.

Source  http://www.fasterlouder.com.au/reviews/events/34381/Grimes-The-Corner-Hotel-Melbourne-05122012

$100bn in LNG investments ‘hang in the balance’: Chevron

The man at the helm of Rio Tinto’s China operations, Ian Bauert, has warned that Australia risks underachieving during the Asian century due to high costs and falling productivity.

As Chevron said more than $100 billion in LNG investments in Australia “hang in the balance”, Mr Bauert said Australia had become the miner’s most expensive place to do business after being the cheapest five years ago.

He said Australia had to correct serious shortcomings to realise the aspirations set out in the Asian Century white paper. 

The problems included competitiveness, productivity, infrastructure investments and attracting foreign capital.

“Unless the focus of future debate is on addressing such issues, my feeling is we are likely to fall behind and seriously underachieve our potential in the Asian century,” Mr Bauert told the University of Western Australia’s In The Zone conference in Perth.

A series of resource companies have cited costs as reason for pulling back from projects.

Chevron is expected to next week release updated costs for its Gorgon development. The budget for the nation’s biggest ever resource project reportedly may have blown out by $20 billion to more than $60 billion.

Chevron Australian managing director Roy Krzywosinski said the LNG industry’s confidence in making major capital investments was being hit by the current fiscal environment.

“Most industry and political observers suspect further tax imposts on the industry,” Mr Krzywosinski told the conference. 

“This should worry anyone who is interested in Australia securing long-term investment.”

He said the carbon tax had “imposed another cost not borne by overseas competitors”.

Australia was at a “cross roads” and government and resource companies needed to work together to find ways to improve long term competitiveness.

Woodside and NAB chairman Michael Chaney told the conference that Australia would only get an acceptable level of economic growth through improving productivity.

He said Australia had been able to grow in the past decade because of high terms of trade, high levels of investment and strong population and workforce growth. This however was masking the impact of declining productivity.

He said further tax reform was also needed. 

Source  http://www.afr.com/p/markets/market_wrap/bn_in_lng_investments_hang_in_the_ipUpQxM68T8i4jStHbR3uO

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/business/coles-mulls-1-limit-on-pokies-20121126-2a38m.html#ixzz2DKJBu2ga

The owner of Coles supermarkets, Wesfarmers, is considering $1 bet limits on the poker machines it owns as the company explores options to distance itself from the pubs and gambling business.
Getup confirmed that it dropped Wesfarmers from the anti-poker machine campaign it launched earlier this year against Australia’s supermarket giants after speaking with management and being encouraged by its commitment to address problem gambling issues.
‘‘We were extremely pleased at the good faith they have shown over the past six months but we’re looking for more concrete answers at this stage,’’ said Getup organiser Erin McCallum who sent a letter last week requesting an update on the company’s progress.
It is understood that Wesfarmers has engaged corporate consultants, the Boston Consulting Group, to look at the economic impact of introducing reforms, like $1 betting limits, on its poker machines which are believed to number around 1300.

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Wesfarmers spokesman Alan Carpenter said the company was not making any comment on what might be happening with its pubs business.
Getup has indicated that if it is not happy with Wesfarmers progress it may still target Coles as part of its anti pokies campaign this Christmas.
It is understood that Wesfarmers is exploring alternatives to owning and operating its 92 pubs, and associated poker machines, as it does not see as a natural fit with its business.
Betting limits are one of the options under consideration and not necessarily the most likely one to be adopted as implementation would be expensive and would only drive gamblers to nearby pubs and clubs if it was the only operator to implement them.
This argument was raised by Woolworths in opposition to Getup’s resolution to introduce $1 limits on its poker machines along with other curbs.
Neither supermarket operator can afford to sell off its pubs if it compromises the liquor business which has become a lucrative enterprise for both companies.
Wesfarmers and Woolworths are required to own pubs and hotels in Queensland as this is a prerequisite to operating bottle shops in the state, like Woolworths’ successful Dan Murphy’s brand.
The vast majority of Wesfarmers pubs are in Queensland.
Woolworths has said that, in practice, pub ownership is required to underpin its liquor business in other states as well. The majority of the hotels owned by Woolworths’ pub  joint venture, ALH, are outside of Queensland.
The Getup campaign lead to an extraordinary meeting for Woolworths shareholders last week to consider a resolution to introduce curbs on its poker machines.
The resolution was soundly defeated by Woolworths investors with 95 per cent voting against the resolution that was vigorously defended by the supermarket operator, which is also Australia’s largest operator of poker machines.
In his final meeting as Woolworths chairman, James Strong, said the resolution was a ‘‘radical proposal’’ that was being ‘‘put forward for one company and not for everybody else in any other form of gambling within Australia. I think we’ve made that point and it remains valid no matter what the arguments are around accountability,’’ he told investors.


Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/business/coles-mulls-1-limit-on-pokies-20121126-2a38m.html#ixzz2DKJBu2ga

The owner of Coles supermarkets, Wesfarmers, is considering $1 bet limits on the poker machines it owns as the company explores options to distance itself from the pubs and gambling business.
Getup confirmed that it dropped Wesfarmers from the anti-poker machine campaign it launched earlier this year against Australia’s supermarket giants after speaking with management and being encouraged by its commitment to address problem gambling issues.
‘‘We were extremely pleased at the good faith they have shown over the past six months but we’re looking for more concrete answers at this stage,’’ said Getup organiser Erin McCallum who sent a letter last week requesting an update on the company’s progress.
It is understood that Wesfarmers has engaged corporate consultants, the Boston Consulting Group, to look at the economic impact of introducing reforms, like $1 betting limits, on its poker machines which are believed to number around 1300.

Advertisement

Wesfarmers spokesman Alan Carpenter said the company was not making any comment on what might be happening with its pubs business.
Getup has indicated that if it is not happy with Wesfarmers progress it may still target Coles as part of its anti pokies campaign this Christmas.
It is understood that Wesfarmers is exploring alternatives to owning and operating its 92 pubs, and associated poker machines, as it does not see as a natural fit with its business.
Betting limits are one of the options under consideration and not necessarily the most likely one to be adopted as implementation would be expensive and would only drive gamblers to nearby pubs and clubs if it was the only operator to implement them.
This argument was raised by Woolworths in opposition to Getup’s resolution to introduce $1 limits on its poker machines along with other curbs.
Neither supermarket operator can afford to sell off its pubs if it compromises the liquor business which has become a lucrative enterprise for both companies.
Wesfarmers and Woolworths are required to own pubs and hotels in Queensland as this is a prerequisite to operating bottle shops in the state, like Woolworths’ successful Dan Murphy’s brand.
The vast majority of Wesfarmers pubs are in Queensland.
Woolworths has said that, in practice, pub ownership is required to underpin its liquor business in other states as well. The majority of the hotels owned by Woolworths’ pub  joint venture, ALH, are outside of Queensland.
The Getup campaign lead to an extraordinary meeting for Woolworths shareholders last week to consider a resolution to introduce curbs on its poker machines.
The resolution was soundly defeated by Woolworths investors with 95 per cent voting against the resolution that was vigorously defended by the supermarket operator, which is also Australia’s largest operator of poker machines.
In his final meeting as Woolworths chairman, James Strong, said the resolution was a ‘‘radical proposal’’ that was being ‘‘put forward for one company and not for everybody else in any other form of gambling within Australia. I think we’ve made that point and it remains valid no matter what the arguments are around accountability,’’ he told investors.


Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/business/coles-mulls-1-limit-on-pokies-20121126-2a38m.html#ixzz2DKJBu2ga

An interview with surfing's 14-year-old phenom, Jack Robinson

Kelly Slater says, "He charges. He rips. He has a bowl cut. And his dad doesn't let him hang out with other kids unattended. For his age, Jack's pretty freaky at barrel riding and airs."

Not a bad claim by the Champ for the youngster with a Greenough hairdo and seemingly limitless potential. Jack Robinson grew up on the slabs of Western Australia, looking up to Yadin, Taj and hard-charging Dino Adrian, meaning his ocean-sense appears to come about as naturally as John John Florence's did at 14.

"I surfed with Jack in WA and the kid's the real deal," Grant 'Twiggy' Baker notes. "What stood out most for me was his composure in the lineup and that he was fully in control and getting the best waves."

OK, so it's clear: the kid can surf. But how well?

"He is a very freakish natural talent, especially in the tube, but his air game is also phenomenal," Jack's WA idol, Taj Burrow admits. "He's incredible...I think he'd have to be the best in the world for his age."

After hearing such credible testimony, and witnessing firsthand his uncanny knack for the tube last winter on the North Shore, Surfline decided to wrangle the little Aussie up to our office while Robinson was in town for the U.S. Open and sit him down to dig for more. Here's what he had to say...


Where did you grow up? In Margaret River, West Australia...it's a little town. I've been surfing there for ages. I've seen tons of good waves. But they've all been exposed...everyone knows about them now. It's pretty remote down there.
Yeah, it's like three hours from Perth. That's the biggest city. But it's pretty small still. Do you like that about Margaret's? Yeah, it's good. You don't have to look at so many humans everywhere. 

How did you start surfing? I actually learned to surf in Perth when I was really young on my foamie at this little wave behind this small island. So I surfed that for a while and then went on to bigger and bigger waves. I upgraded myself. How old were you on your foamie? About three-and-a-half or four. Yeah, my dad was pushing me in...it was good. So did you go straight to The Box? No way! You'd drown out there. That wave is sketchy. I upgraded to the Rivermouth. I live on the river about four blocks up so I paddle down sometimes. It's a pretty good little wave. What was it like to progress from the Rivermouth to The Box? I started surfing North Point before that. The Ledge, though -- right in the inside at North Point. And then I surfed Gas Bay a little bit. I didn't really like Gas as much when I was younger. I used to surf the beaches more, not the reef. And then I progressed to The Box. I was maybe twelve, I think. It wasn't that big, though. But it's so much easier when it's bigger because you get the roll in. When it's small you can get hurt out there. It goes right on the inside and just clamps. A guy ripped his face off out there not too long ago. Have you had any gnarly wipeouts out there? I've gotten smashed a few times. You do hit the reef. But you don't want to go diving there and see what's down there. Some big sharks live down there, too. Big Brucey, eh? So were you scared the first time you surfed there? It was small, but I was like, "I hope it doesn't get too solid; this place is pretty heavy." The first time I surfed it heavy and everyone was out there like Dino Adrian and all of them. I'd go but I didn't charge too hard. I'd go over the falls and eat it. They'd tell me to go on the wrong ones.
Who are some of the West Oz guys you grew up looking up to? We'd go up to Yallingup a bit when I was younger. I used to surf up there and see Taj surfing Rabbit's. And I surfed with Yadin a lot when I was younger. But he doesn't live there anymore. He's an American now. Who are your favorite surfers?
I don't know...everyone. There's too many to name. Well, Andy had the best style for a while there. And John John is blowing everyone's minds now. Who gets you most psyched when you see them surf? Everyone in the videos. Like Trilogy, Lost Atlas and all that. I do get psyched to surf watching movies, but I get psyched by myself too. I get all worked up...just get frothed up by myself. Where have you traveled around the world to go surfing?

Indo a bit...a few boat trips to the Mentawais. Hawaii, France, Spain. And where else? Reunion Island -- I went there last year. And then California. Oh...Bali. The east coast of Australia. The Goldie. That's about it. Tahiti and Fiji are to come, I reckon. That'd be good. What do you do when you're not surfing?
I go fishing all the time. I got a jetski now so I'll probably go fishing even more. But it'd be scary because there'd probably be so many big fish coming up and bumping it. There are some big ones out there...big Whites. What else do we do? I play ping-pong. Go exploring...have a look around. Where we live, it's good to have a look around because we live in a national park. You're not doing a whole lot of contests right now, but will you eventually have competitive goals? Yeah. I'm just developing my surfing right now. So I'm just getting better and having fun. I'm gonna do more contests coming up. But right now I'm just focusing on my surfing. Focusing on getting better. Who cuts your hair? Oh, my dad always does that. He's good at it. I give him a few little tips and stuff, like how to do the front. Everyone says it's a bowl cut. It's not a bowl cut. It's a half-bowl cut. Have you heard of George Greenough? Yeah. He catches sharks. He used to live in Byron Bay. Isn't he embedded down there, in the pavement, in the Hall of Fame? Yeah. Is that where you got your inspiration? Or you just don't want your hair in your face when you surf? Yeah, I cut it for that reason as well. There are a few reasons. Everyone likes it so I'll just keep it like that. Might as well. Kind of like Dane Gudauskas too. Yeah, the Gudauskas' vibe. Did you see Tanner's haircut in Margaret's? That was a good Gudauskas vibe we had going there. I was part of their clan...their little brother. Onshore or offshore? 

Umm...texture. Textured water. Half onshore, half glassy, half offshore. Onshore and offshore are both good at waves like North Point because you can do airs and get barreled. When it's onshore, there are the biggest air sections ever. Where do you think surfing will progress five years from now? Guys will probably be surfing Code Red swells in contests...like Teahupoo last year. But, yeah, they'll probably be doing crazy turns and different grabs and airs. Speaking of Code Red, do you think they should have run the Fiji comp that big day? They probably could have. But I don't think anyone wanted to go out there. That was gnarly. It would have been good to see the contest in that. 

You're fourteen? When do you turn fifteen? The 27th of December. What's it like competing against guys that are five, six years older than you? It's way better for your surfing.

Who is your biggest competition? I don't know. It's yet to come.
Anything else people should know about Jack Robinson? I don't know. I think I said me life, didn't I? 

Source  http://www.surfline.com/surf-news/an-interview-with-surfing%27s-14-year-old-phenom,-jack-robinson-1_77234

Tips for avoiding West Nile Virus

The Alabama Department of Public Health has confirmed four positive cases of Eastern Equine Encephalitis  in horses located in Dallas County. There have been additional reports of cases in horses in Elmore and Montgomery counties; however, laboratory confirmation has not been performed.

In Baldwin and Mobile counties, four sentinel chickens have tested positive for West Nile virus. The three sentinel chickens that tested positive for WNV in Baldwin County were located in Gulf Shores, Magnolia Springs and Perdido Beach. One sentinel chicken was positive for WNV in the BelleFontaine area of South Mobile County.

Public Health receives positive case reports from the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries, and the agencies work together to identify areas of arboviral disease with in the state.

According to Dr. Dee W. Jones, State Public Health Veterinarian, the significance of positive horses and chickens means the virus is present in the mosquito population. He warns that the same mosquitoes that infect animals pose a risk to humans. The confirmation of viral activity is very common in the summer and fall months. Positive case counts in the state vary from year to year based on mosquito populations. The virus can only be spread through the bite of a mosquito and not from and animal.

“With many people enjoying outdoor activities, it is important that residents take every effort to reduce their exposure to mosquitoes,” said Jones. “Keep your mosquito repellent with you at all times when you are working or participating in recreational activities outdoors.”

Mosquitoes transmit EEE, WNV and other mosquito-born viruses after they feed on birds. The same mosquitoes can then infect mammals, particularly humans and horses, which can become seriously ill from the infection.

Transmission to humans and horses can be decreased by persons taking steps to avoid mosquitoes and by the use of WNV and EEE vaccine in horses. According to Jones, although there is no vaccine available for humans, vaccination for horses is very important in preventing infection in these animals.

Since mosquitoes are commonly found throughout much of Alabama, health officials offer practical strategies for the mosquito season:

Clothing and aromatics

•Wear loose-fitting, light-colored clothes to help prevent mosquitoes from reaching the skin and to retain less heat, making yourself less “attractive” to mosquitoes. Mosquitoes are more attracted to dark colors.

•When possible, wear long sleeves and long pants.

•Avoid perfumes, colognes, fragrant hair sprays lotions and soaps, which attract mosquitoes.

Repellants

•Follow the label instructions when applying repellents. Permethrin repellents are only for clothes –not for application in the skin.

•When using repellents, avoid contact with the eyes, lips and nasal membranes. Use concentrations of less than 10 percent when applying DEET-contatining products on children.

•Apply DEET repellent on arms, legs and other exposed areas but never under clothing.

•After returning indoors, wash treated skin with soap and water.

•Citronella candles and repellents containing citronella can help, but their range is limited. Herbals such as cedar, geranium, pennyroyal, lavender, cinnamon and garlic are not very effective.

Around the home

•Mosquito activity peaks at dusk and again at dawn; restrict outdoor activity during these hours.

•Keep windows and door screens in good condition. Replace porch lights with yellow light bulbs that will attract fewer insects.

•Mosquitoes breed in standing water; empty all water from old tires, cans, jars, buckets, drums, plastic wading pools, toys and other containers.

•Clean clogged gutters.

•Remove the rim from potted plants and replace water in plant/flower vases weekly.

•Replenish pet watering dishes and rinse bird baths twice weekly.

•Fill tree holes and depressions left by fallen trees with dirt or sand.

•Stock ornamental ponds with mosquito fish (ones that eat mosquitoes in their larval and pupae stages) or use larvacidal “doughnuts” which gradually kill mosquitoes.

It is important to do a careful inspeaction around the house to be sure nothing hilds water for longer than three days.

Source  http://www.clantonadvertiser.com/2012/08/02/steps-for-avoiding-west-nile-virus/

Rifts split Syria’s opposition at Cairo meeting

Syrian opposition groups struggled to form a united leadership Tuesday at a meeting in Cairo that exposed the vast disagreements that have prevented them from effectively leading the uprising against President Bashar Assad.

The conference ended late Tuesday with an agreement on two documents, both of them vague. One provides a general outline to guide the opposition through a transitional period, while the other lays out the fundamental principles envisioned for a post-Assad Syria.

The delegates agreed in general terms on support for the Free Syrian Army, the dissolution of the ruling Baath Party and the exclusion of Assad or other senior regime figures from a place in the transition.

But they failed to reach an agreement on forming a unified body to represent the opposition.

Arguments were rife among the roughly 250 conference participants over key questions, including whether to ask for foreign military intervention to halt the violence and what role religion would play in a post-Assad Syria.

In other developments Tuesday, Assad told a Turkish newspaper that he regretted that Syria shot down a Turkish warplane last month, and a U.S.-based human rights group said the Damascus regime was running a network of torture centers across the country, citing victims’ accounts of beatings, sexual assaults and electric shocks.

Opposition group members interviewed at the Cairo conference by The Associated Press brought into sharp relief their vast disagreements on issues not addressed in the draft charter, suggesting it papered over the divisions that have prevented them from presenting a united front to the international community.

"It’s very dangerous at this point," said Abdel-Aziz al-Khayyar, who spent 14 years in Syrian prisons and is now part of the Syrian National Coordination Body. "If we fail to unify as the opposition, it is the greatest gift to the regime."

Source  http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/world/54425823-68/assad-government-opposition-syrian.html.csp

Tunisia's Leader: Activist, Exile And Now President

Tunisia's president is a former doctor and human-rights activist who was jailed under the previous regime. In an interview with NPR Morning Edition host Steve Inskeep, he says expectations are high and jobs are scarce following last year's Arab Spring revolution.

NPR Morning Edition host Steve Inskeep is taking a Revolutionary Road Trip across North Africa to see how the countries that staged revolutions last year are remaking themselves as they write new social rules, rebuild their economies and establish new political systems. Steve and his team are traveling some 2,000 miles from Tunisia's ancient city of Carthage, across the deserts of Libya and on to Egypt's megacity of Cairo. In Tunisia, he sat down with the country's new president, Moncef Marzouki.

Decades ago, the founder of modern Tunisia built a palace for himself. Habib Bourguiba managed to peacefully win his country's independence from France in 1956, and then proceeded to monopolize political power for three decades, a fact represented by his palace.

The palace is a complex of buildings on a spectacular site, facing the Mediterranean Sea and beside the ruins of ancient Carthage. Visitors arrive through iron gates into a courtyard vast enough to bring London's Buckingham Palace to mind.

From there they enter through a hall decorated with grand columns, and wait for the president in a special room with green stuffed furniture and a Romanesque mosaic on the wall.

At some point, Bourguiba had his portrait painted. Unlike so many leaders who have had themselves portrayed as solemnly gazing up and into the distance as if seeing the future, Bourguiba is smiling brilliantly. And he's also gazing up and into the distance as if seeing the future.

In 1987, one of Bourguiba's aides deposed him in a bloodless coup. Zine El Abidine Ben Ali took charge of the palace, and the portrait of the smiling Bourguiba disappeared.

Then, in early 2011, Ben Ali was ousted by protesters and took up exile in Saudi Arabia. The new occupants of the palace discovered the old portrait of Bourguiba and hung it up in the entrance hall. The smiling face greeted us as we walked in to interview Moncef Marzouki, the new president.

Marzouki seemed out of place when he arrived to sit in his predecessor's spectacularly overstuffed chair.

Rather than being a strongman, he's a soft-spoken doctor and human-rights activist who was jailed for several months by Ben Ali back in 1994. And the palace no longer seems to fit the job description of its current occupation.

The president of Tunisia no longer calls every shot. Marzouki was chosen by the elected members of a new constitutional assembly. And his current term, which began last December, is only supposed to last a year while the assembly writes a new constitution.

Yet he calls it a "dangerous year" because expectations are running high and jobs are scarce following the revolution. When we visited, Marzouki was wrestling with the assembly.

Preventing A New Dictatorship

We asked him how he was adjusting to his new job, whose parameters are still being defined.

"When you have been under dictatorship for over five decades your main problem is to prevent a new dictatorship," he said. "So now we are discussing about how to share power between the prime minister and the president so that no one can become dictator."

One example of this balancing act concerns the former prime minister of neighboring Libya, who fled to Tunisia as Moammar Gadhafi's regime was crumbling.

Tunisia's justice minister said the former Libyan official would be returned home for trial. But Marzouki said he would block the extradition.

"They came to me and said, 'Mr. President, it's the national interest of Tunisia to return this man back to Libya.' And my response is that Tunisia has interests, but also has honor," Marzouki said. "You want to make sure he gets a fair trial when he goes back to Libya — if he goes at all."

The Tunisian president said his position was informed by his earlier work.

"Before being president of Tunisia, I was a human-rights activist and I will never return a man that I'm quite sure that he could be subjected to torture, or the death penalty, and so forth, so I'm not going to return him," Marzouki said.

We asked if there would have ever been such a discussion under in Tunisia under Ben Ali.

"Of course not, and you know it," he said.

A Troubled Economy

We also asked the president about the economy, which has been struggling since the revolution and suffers from an unemployment rate of about 18 percent.

"It's our main problem. It's a huge challenge. And we do know that if we cannot succeed in tackling this issue — giving jobs to people — then we can have a revolution within the revolution," he said. "This is why we're working hard to attract investment. Because it's really a matter of death or life for democracy in Tunisia."

As a Mediterranean nation, Tunisia has been outward-looking and open to other countries, including those in Europe, whose tourists have long flocked to Tunisia's sunny beaches. But the revolution has hurt tourism and other industries, and the president called on the West to assist Tunisia and its troubled economy.

"We badly need the help of our friends in Europe, in the United States, because Tunisia is now a kind of lab — the whole Arab world is watching," he said. "This year, which is the most dangerous year because it's the year after the revolution, and the level of expectation is very, very high. And people are waiting for everything — for a miracle."

The new government, he said, faced great pressure to deliver.

"People are really expecting a rapid and massive solution to the problems," he said. "But what we are trying to do is to tell them that now for the first time they are free. For the first time they have no corrupt government. For the first time they have men and women working hard to resolve their problem and they don't have any other solution, [any] other choice, than to wait for the result of this policy." 

Source  http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/npr/154430397/tunisia-s-leader-activist-exile-and-now-president