The latest uproar about Telstra is that a young boy died of an asthma attack - 10 days after his parents had asked for their telephone service to be fixed. They lived in a semi rural district and could not call out when he was struck by the fatal attack.

A tragic tale - and maybe unfair to blame Telstra (perceptions are distorted by grief) - but it serves as an example of how willing the media and public are to sink the slipper into big corportations around here.

stales