‘Said Hanrahan’ is a phrase from a bush ballad, usually uttered to identify a prophet of doom, gloom and utter despair. The ballad is called ‘Said Hanrahan’ and was written by a bush priest, Patrick Hartigan (1878-1952) under the pen name of John O’Brien. It tells the story of a bunch of cockies who gather after church to squat on their heels, chew on a bit of bark, and talk about farming conditions. Hanrahan is the gloom merchant of the bunch. ‘We’ll all be rooned,’ said Hanrahan, / ‘Before the year is out.’ Either from too little rain, or too much, or rain at the wrong time, or the river being too high, or too low, or the summer being too hot, or not hot enough. Whatever happens Hanrahan is certain will bring about drought, flood, bushfire, bankruptcy or the collapse of commodity prices (or, quite possibly, all of the above). And who are the ‘Hanrahans’ of today? The climate alarmists! If it’s wet – that’s climate change. If it’s dry – that’s climate change. It’s it hot – that’s climate change. If it’s cold – that’s climate change. Nothing that happens ever proves them wrong. Every blessed thing is caused by climate change! And it’s all a disaster – ‘We’ll all be rooned!’ This is a reminder to pay no attention whatsoever to climate alarmists.

 Speccie reader Lindsay asks why ‘Fido’ is (or, perhaps, once was) commonly used as a dog’s name. (I always love being asked questions I’ve never been asked before – well done, Lindsay!) ‘Fido’ probably comes from the Latin word for ‘trust’. Our dogs trust us implicitly, and equally farmers will tell you that working dogs are utterly trustworthy. So, I am assuming a Latin scholar in generations past thought that adapting the Latin word for trust into a dog’s name would be nifty. The Latin word (as I’m sure you remember) is fiducia.