Things do
still take a time to filter through to Western
Australia and recently Peter Costello’s
Bulletin Top 100 Most Influential Australians address has
arrived. Upon
reading it I was immediately struck by the fact that the Treasurer is clearly
better at economics than geography.

The
Treasurer told his audience that “the second person who might be on
this list in 2100 is the person who can solve our water problem”. He went
on to inform the gathering that “we are the driest continent on
earth”.

Australia is
not the driest continent on earth. That dubious distinction is held by
Antarctica, which is both the driest and windiest of the seven
continents.