This blog is open to any who wish to comment on Australian society, the state of the environment or political shenanigans at Federal, State and Local Government level.
Coorabell
Hall is hosting a special Indigenous cultural event on Saturday,
November 23 at Coorabell Hall from 2pm.
Hall
secretary, Adele Smout, says that Many Rivers – Bundjalung Culture
and History – Understanding and Remembrance will feature Bundjalung
author and historian, Dr Shauna Bostock.
‘[She
is] winner of the 2024 NSW Premier’s Community and Regional History
prize, with her book Reaching Through Time. Historical photos that
form part of the event will be on display from 2pm, and Wahlubal
Elder, Uncle Lewis Walker, will conduct a Welcome and Smoking
ceremony at 5pm.
‘This
will be followed by truth-telling for understanding and remembrance
of First Nations people in the region.’
Entry
is by donation.
Coorabell
is just north-west of Bangalow and west of Byron Bay, in the middle of
Bundjalung Country which stretches further than the eye can see in
that part of north-east New South Wales.
The
address for Coorabell Hall is 565 Coolamon Scenic Drive,
Coorabell, Byron Bay NSW 2479.
Travelling north turnoff onto Hinterland Way (B62old Pacific Highway) and watch for the turnoff into Coolamon
Scenic Drive. Pass Friday Hut Rd turnoff and the hall is 1km further
on the left hand side.
How
Reuters Institute
for the Study of Journalism
annual Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2024seesAustralia, based in large part on a YouGov survey using an online questionnaire at the
end of January beginning of February 2024.
Click on these four images to enlarge
AUSTRALIA
Population
26m
Internet
penetration 90%
The
past year has been marked by persistent inflation, a rising cost of
living, and severe flooding in many parts of Australia. Late in 2023,
following a divisive campaign laden with misinformation, Australians
voted against an amendment to the constitution to establish an
Australian Indigenous Voice to Parliament.
It
is a critical time when audiences are in need of quality news yet the
news ecosystem continues to shrink. Australianow has 29 local government
areas with no
local news publishers, TV, or radioservicing the local
community. Print media have been hit hard due to the decline
in advertising revenue and rising print costs. Government departments
are cutting back print advertising and instead rolling out campaigns
on social
media. In 2023, the Victorian government announced they would cease
all metropolitan print newspaper advertising. For regional news
outlets the
reduction in government advertising spend is worrying and they are
lobbying for a more consistent policy. Currently the local, state,
and federal governments spend about 1% of their advertising budget
on regional news.
Streaming
services continue to grow, and their weekly reach (58%) has surpassed
that of free-to-air TV (54%). However, the cost-of-living crisis has
been forcing audiences
to cut back on their digital subscriptions. One in three subscribers
say they have reduced their subscriptions. The
major streaming services such as Netflix,
Amazon Prime, Paramount+,and Binge have reduced their
spendingon
local content by 11% (A$46m). The government has promised to
introduce a
quota system for streaming services in 2024. The media industry is
advocating for a 20% local content quota while streaming platforms
are lobbying for 2%.
In
March 2024, Facebook’s parent company, Meta, shocked the sector by
declaring they were pulling back from news, closing their Australian
news partnerships team, and not entering new commercial deals with
news organisations.
Their current deals with major companies are reported to be worth
A$70m annually. This follows the Australian government’s
introduction of the News Media Bargaining Code in 2021. Under the
Code, Google and Meta are together paying news publishers roughly
A$200m a year on voluntary content agreements.
This has helped sustain the news industry, but most agreements expire
this year. There are now calls to ‘designate’ Meta under the
Code, which would
force the company to negotiate with publishers or face fines of 10%
of its annual Australian revenue. Google
andMeta’s
combined advertising revenue in Australia
was A$8.3bn in 2023. This ismore than half of all
digital ad revenues(A$14.2bn).
In
late 2023, Communications Minister In late 2023, Communications
Minister Michelle Rowland announced A$10.5m in funding through the
News Media Assistance Program to promote a diverse and sustainable
media sector. The Australian Communications and Media Authority has
received the funding to implement the Media Diversity Measurement
Framework, which was developed
through a public consultation.
Public
broadcaster ABC continued its transition into a digital-first media
organisation in 2023, announcing a series of proposals to further
shift investment into
digital services. The ABC Five-YearPlan (2023-2028) forecasts
that by 2028most
of its audience engagement willcome through its digital
services. Newly appointed Chair, Kim Williams, said his
priorities included securing better funding for the ABC and upholding
its Charter responsibilities, including the requirement
for impartiality.
Misinformation
was abundant during the divisive Voice referendum campaignwhere
Australians voted to reject a proposal to set up a formal body for
Indigenous people to give advice on laws. There were widespread
claims that the plan might lead to tax increases or that the
Australian Electoral Commission would tamper with votes, revealing a
deep distrust with the government.
The
‘no’ campaign’s main strategy was to instil fear and doubt,
suggesting that the proposal didn’t carry enough details. Seven
in ten Australians subsequently expressed
concern about the lies andmisinformation on social
media duringthe
campaign.
The
media landscape is undergoing a significant shift as AI increasingly
permeates newsrooms, prompting traditional
outlets to reconsider their approach to the technology as the
industry grapples with how to use it
effectively and safely. News CorpAustralia is producing 3,000
articles aweek
using artificial intelligence. The riseof AI use has led to
widespread publicconcern.
According to a report frommedia monitoring
organisation Streem,117over
half (57%) believe AI creates moreproblems than it solves.
These concerns indicate a need for policy frameworks that
balance the benefits of AI with the public interest.
Sora
Park
News
and Media Research Centre, University
of
Canberra[my yellow highlighting throughout this post]
Dr
Sora Park is Professor of Communication and Professorial Research
Fellow at the News & Media Research Centre, Faculty of Arts &
Design, University of Canberra. She is internationally recognised as
an expert in digital media users and media policy, with a special
focus on news consumers and digital inclusion.
Full
Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2024 at
The
Parliamentary Joint Committee on the National Anti-Corruption
Commission was appointed by resolutions of the House of
Representatives on 8 February 2023 and of the Senate on 9 February
2023.
considering
the appointments of the proposed Commissioners, Deputy Commissioners
and Inspectors nominated by the Minister;
overseeing
the Commissioner, the operation of the National Anti-Corruption
Commission and the Inspector to ensure they are accountable to
Parliament; and
reviewing the budget and finances of the National
Anti-Corruption Commission. To support its oversight role, the
committee's functions include reviewing, examining and inquiring into
the performance of the functions of the Commissioner and Inspector.
Membership
of this joint committee comprises 12 members of the Australian
Parliament:
CHAIR
Senator
Karen Grogan, Australian
Labor Party, SA, appointed
2021
DEPUTY
CHAIR
Dr
Helen Haines MP,
Independent, Indi VIC, first
elected 2019
COMMITTEE
MEMBERS
Senator
Slade Brockman, Liberal
Party of Australia, WA,
appointed 2017 Mr
Josh Burns MP, Australian
Labor Party, Macnamara VIC,
first elected 2022
Senator
Varun Ghosh, Australian
Labor Party, WA, appointed
2024
Mr
Jerome Laxale MP,
Australian Labor Party, Bennelong NSW,
first elected 2022
Senator
the Hon James McGrath,
Liberal
National Party of Queensland, QLD,
first elected 2013
Mr
Llew O'Brien MP,
Liberal
National Party of Queensland, Wide Bay QLD,
first elected 2016
Senator
David Shoebridge,
Australian
Greens, NSW,
first elected 2022
Senator
Glenn Sterle,
Australian
Labor Party, WA,
first elected 2004
Mr
Keith Wolahan MP,
Liberal
Party of Australia, Menzies VIC,
first elected 2022
Mr
Tony Zappia MP,
Australian
Labor Party, Makin SA,
first elected 2007.
The
Parliamentary
Joint Committee on the National Anti-Corruption Commission
will hold its first
public hearing
on Friday 22 November 2024 from 12:30pm to 2pm.
The
joint committee is required to examine each annual report on the
National Anti-Corruption Commission of which there are currently two:
One
under the signature of the NACC Commissioner at
Queensland
born, former school teacher, football coach, sports administrator, political speech writer,
author, commentator, media 'personality' and, current member of the Liberal Party of Australia, Australian Media Hall of
Fame inductee, Order of Australia recipient and climate change sceptic, made the news yesterday.
Child
Abuse Squad detectives have charged a man following an investigation
into alleged indecent assault and sexual touching offences spanning
two decades.
In
March 2024, State Crime Command’s Child Abuse Squad established
Strike Force Bonnefin to investigate a number of alleged indecent
assaults and sexual touching incidents between 2001 and 2019.
Following
extensive inquiries, about 7.45am today (Monday 18 November 2024),
strike force detectives executed a search warrant at a unit in
Circular Quay where they arrested an 83-year-old man.
The
man was taken to Day Street Police Station, where he was charged with
a total of 24 offences against eight victims, including 11 counts of
aggravated indecent assault- victim under authority of offender, nine
counts of assault with act of indecency, two counts of sexually touch
another person without consent and two counts of common assault.
He
was granted conditional bail, to appear before Downing Centre Local
Court on Wednesday 18 December 2024.
Right
now the Clarence River flow at Newbold Crossing is registering in the
>80% stream flow percentile, the Shannon Creek side dam is at 99%
capacity and soil moisture is for the most part within acceptable
limits across the Clarence Valley which is classified 100% non-drought.
However,
the Australian Summer officially begins on 1 December 2024 and air temperatures and water evaporation rates are bound to rise.
So
how is the New South Wales Combined Drought Indicator (CDI) Map
likely to look come December?
Where
we are going?
NSW
Dept. of Primary Industries and Regional Development, Climate
Branch, Drought
Forecasting, 17 November 2022:
NOTE:The DPIRD drought forecast for NSW presents the ‘Most
Likely’ Combined Drought Indicator (CDI) category for the forecast
period. The Most Likely CDI category is determined by identifying the
'mode' of the CDI. The mode is the category that appears most
frequently across all possible forecast outcomes in the ensemble run.
It is the most common prediction for drought conditions in the
forecast period based on the model's simulations.
Where have we been along the Clarence Valley drought history continuum, 20 November 2019 to 9 October 2024?
Click on graphs to enlarge
Fine Flower & environs
Heifer
Station & environs
Grafton & environs
Maclean & environs
Yamba
*All maps & graphs were created on 17.11.24 using interactive tools created by NSW Dept. of Primary Industries and Regional Development, Climate Branch
The
NSW Combined Drought Indicator (CDI) includes four indicators for
rainfall, soil moisture, plant growth and drought direction which,
used together, can indicate the five phases of drought.
Rainfall
Index (RI)
The
RI is the percentile rank of rainfall aggregated over 12 months. The
ranking is made using a 30 year (1980-2010) baseline which captures
recent big shifts in climate variability, and factors in climate
change. This provides an index between 0 and 100 where values
approaching 0 are close to driest, and those approaching 100 close to
the wettest, for any given region. Percentile-based indices like the
RI have a uniform distribution regardless of their climatic setting,
which is an attractive feature in NSW given the presence of
rangeland, temperate and sub-tropical climates which have skewed,
normal and log-normal rainfall distributions.
Soil
Water Index (SWI)
The
SI is calculated using the same procedure as the RI, but uses a soil
moisture field derived from the DPI AgriModTM soil water balance.
Plant available soil water from layer one (0-10cm) and layer two
(11-45 cm), the assumed maximum rooting zone, are aggregated and used
to calculate the SWI. Similar to the RI, the SWI is an index between
0 and 100. In most districts of NSW a value of 0 means there is no
plant available water held in the profile. The SWI is a hydrological
index, but its configuration means that it is more useful as an
indicator of conditions for dryland than irrigated agriculture.
Plant
Growth Index (PGI)
The
PGI is calculated using the same general procedure as the RI, using
the output from DPI’s crop and pasture models. Crop stress and
pasture growth data are taken from DPI AgriModTM, and the percentile
rank calculated for each day. If the predominant land use in a given
area is cropping, the PGI uses the crop-derived data, otherwise it
uses the pasture growth indicator. The PGI is an agronomic drought
index which is not only sensitive to moisture but also temperature
variation and seasonal events such as frost. It is important to note
that the PGI tracks the influence of climate on production potential
across broad areas only. This provides a regional indicator of
conditions. In the paddock, management decisions like fertiliser
application and timing, sowing times and stocking rates drive
outcomes on the ground, and in-field conditions can be above or below
the regional indicator reported by EDIS.
BACKGROUND
The
main water supply (other than the village systems of Wooli and Minnie
Water) in the Clarence Valley is sourced from the Nymboida River,
flowing through a section of the wider Clarence River
catchment area.
At
this time of year the Clarence Valley urban water supply is drawing
around 14.26ML/per day from the river weir.
The
Nymboida River also gravity feeds water to Shannon Creek Dam when
required and, if the Nymboida river flow is too low (less than 225
Megalitres a day) or turbid post-flood, the Clarence Valley's principal urban
areas receive water sourced from the off-stream storage at Shannon
Creek.
Overall,
Shannon Creek Dam is used to supply the Clarence Valley’s water
about 5% of the time. Right now this dam is at 99% capacity.
This
scenario is complicated by the fact that historically the Clarence
Valley also supplies water out of the catchment to Coffs Harbour City
local government area and this draw on catchment water is constant and
always exceeding an optimal sustainability level for average daily drawn down.
Financial
Crime Squad detectives have released CCTV as they appeal for
information following the ram raid and arson of two tobacconists at
Tweed and Ballina.....
There was also a fire at the Ocean Shores [Byron Shire] tobacconist at about 12.45am on Tuesday, 6 August though police have not claimed any link between the Ballina and Tweed ram raids and fire and the one at Ocean Shores.
Police have set their sights on the booming illegal tobacco trade after recent attacks on tobacconists prompted fears violent turf wars are spilling into NSW.....
There
have been more than 1000 offences recorded in Goondiwindi [Qld] in the past
year alone.
Its
location on the edge of NSW makes it a tough one for police to track
down perpetrators.
Taskforce
Guardian – which has seen NSW and Queensland police join forces –
stepped in to tackle the spike in robberies and break-ins in a
three-day cross-border crackdown.
"I
will say to these offenders, if you target these locations we will
identify you and we will use our intelligence skills and we will use
our counterparts in Queensland to arrest you," NSW Police's
Andrew Holland told 9News.
9News
was invited to see inside the task force, which involved Queensland
and NSW police officers teaming up to hunt down the alleged
criminals.....
Financial
Crime Squad detectives have released CCTV as they appeal for
information following the ram raid and arson of two tobacconists in
Northern NSW.
About
4.30am on Sunday 22 September 2024, police were called to a
tobacconist on Minjungbal Drive, Tweed Heads South, following reports
of a crash.
Officers
attached to Tweed/Byron Police District arrived to find a Toyota
Corolla sedan, believed to have been stolen from Queensland, driven
into a tobacconist, before two unknown males entered the business
destroying several displays and stealing large amounts of cigarettes.
A
crime scene was established, and police commenced an investigation
into the incident.
A
month later, about 2.40am on Tuesday 22 October, police were called
to the same tobacconist, following reports a car had driven into a
neighbouring business.
Police
arrived to find a MG SUV had driven into the store – as bollards
had been placed in front of the tobacconist – before two unknown
men poured fuel inside the business and fled without setting it
alight.
A
crime scene was established, and police commenced an investigation
into the incident.
About
3.30am the next day (Wednesday 23 October 2024), emergency services
were called to River Street in Ballina, following reports of a
building fire.
On
arrival, officers attached to Richmond Police District located a
silver Mercedes sedan inside the shopfront of a tobacconist, well
alight.
Police
were told the sedan drove into the business before the vehicle caught
fire, with the occupants of the vehicle leaving the scene prior to
police arrival.
Fire
and Rescue NSW attended and extinguished the blaze; however, the
building was extensively damaged.
Surrounding
units were evacuated and two other vehicles were damaged by the
blaze.
No
injuries have been reported as a result of the incident.
A
crime scene has been established and an investigation into the
incident has commenced.
Following
initial investigations linking all three incidents, detectives
attached to State Crime Command’s Financial Crime Squad’s Arson
Unit commenced Strike Force Albany to investigate the incidents.
As
part of investigations, strike force detectives have released CCTV of
the two ram raids at the Tweed Heads South tobacconist.
Detectives
are also hoping to speak to the driver and passengers of a dark
coloured sedan seen leaving the scene of the second ram raid.
Anyone
with information about any of the incidents are urged to contact
police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Anyone
with information that may assist investigators is urged to contact
Crime Stoppers: 1800 333 000 or https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au.
Information is treated in strict confidence. The public is reminded
not to report information via NSW Police social media pages.
According
to NSW
Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) over the last
financial year ending June 2024 the incidence rate per 100,000 population
of robbery using a weapon other than a firearm in the Tweed and
Ballina local government areas was 10.2 and 4.3 respectively. Compared to a state incidence rate of 9.3.
While
the incidence rate of arson generally was 43.9 in Tweed, 44.8 in Ballina
and 43.8 in Byron shires. Compared to a state incidence rate of 56.1.
"As
an online discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison
involving Nazis or Hitler approaches 1."
GODWIN'S
SECOND LAW
"Drawing
Bayesian inferences after extensive sampling, I’ve determined that
it’s 99-percent certain that anyone who uses “woke” as
pejorative will turn out to be a fuckhead. Please don’t blame me
for pointing this out–it’s just science."
Michael
Wayne Godwinis
an American attorney and author. He was the first staff counsel of
the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and he created the Internet adage
Godwin's law and the notion of an Internet meme.
This
year it seems that political discourse has really dived into the
sewer in Australia and elsewhere around the world with those two
observations by Mike Goodwin that became Internet adages receiving a mention as the hate is noticed and discussed.
Under
Godwin's
First Law
a Hitler analogy may now be considered applicable to Donald J. Trump in
any considered argument, rather than being
just a hyperbolic
comparison........
There's
a semisatirical theorem, known as Godwin's Law, which posits that if
any online discourse goes on long enough, it inevitably leads to a
Hitler or Nazi comparison. No professional pundit wants to be guilty
of tripping this law.
After
all, equating a political figure with fascists sounds absurd. It's
just so over the top. It also might not win over any additional
allies; people roll their eyes and tune out when they hear
commentators or historians warn, yet again, about another big bad
Great Dictator.
Problem
is, Donald Trump seems intent on making the Hitler comparison
happen....
Even
Godwin Law's namesake, Mike Godwin, wrote in a Post op-ed last year
that he agrees the Hitler analogy is not just apt but necessary. He
cited Trump's authoritarian instincts for consolidating state power
in a single leader; dehumanizing political enemies as "vermin";
and claiming that immigrants were "poisoning the blood of our
country," an infamous Hitler talking point.
"Those
of us who hope to preserve our democratic institutions need to
underscore the resemblance before we enter the twilight of American
democracy," Godwin wrote in December.
And
in fact, neither Godwin nor I is anywhere close to being the first to
compare Trump with 20th-century fascists. Both of us were beaten out
by Vance himself, who in 2016 referred to Trump as "America's
Hitler."
What's
arguably worse than Trump's frank authoritarianism is his embrace of
dehumanizing tropes that seem to echo Hitler's rhetoric deliberately.
For many weeks now, Trump has been road-testing his use of the word
"vermin" to describe those who oppose him and to
characterize undocumented immigrants as "poisoning the blood of
our country." Even for an amateur historian like me, the
parallels to Hitler's rhetoric seem inescapable....
The
steady increase in Hitler comparisons during the Trump era is not a
sign that my law has been repealed. Quite the opposite. Godwin's Law
is more like a law of thermodynamics than an act of Congress — so,
not really repealable. And Trump's express, self-conscious commitment
to a franker form of hate-driven rhetoric probably counts as a
special instance of the law: The longer a constitutional republic
endures — with strong legal and constitutional limits on
governmental power — the probability of a Hitler-like political
actor pushing to diminish or erase those limits approaches 100
percent.
While
Godwin's Second Law, which posits that using the word "woke"
as a pejorative is an indication of fuckheadedness, is being tested on social media.....
United
Australia Party Senator for Victoria Ralph Babet, elected at
the May 2022 Australian federal general election.
North Coast Voices no longer allows the Facebook Button sited at the end of each blog post to activate when it is clicked on by a reader.
This button has been deactivated because it has become clear that Facebook Inc. is not now and has never been a corporation genuinely committed to principles of digital privacy and security of Internet users' personal information and other associated data.
Unfortunately, because Blogger installs this button as part of a set, Gmail, Blog This!, Twitter, Pin Interest and Google + have also been deactivated and, we apologise to readers who may use these features.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 19
Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.
[Adopted and proclaimed by United Nations General Assembly resolution 217 A (III) of 10 December 1948]
Hi! My name is Boy. I'm a male bi-coloured tabby cat. Ever since I discovered that Malcolm Turnbull's dogs were allowed to blog, I have been pestering Clarencegirl to allow me a small space on North Coast Voices.
A false flag musing: I have noticed one particular voice on Facebook which is Pollyanna-positive on the subject of the Port of Yamba becoming a designated cruise ship destination. What this gentleman doesn’t disclose is that, as a principal of Middle Star Pty Ltd, he could be thought to have a potential pecuniary interest due to the fact that this corporation (which has had an office in Grafton since 2012) provides consultancy services and tourismbusiness development services.
A religion & local government musing: On 11 October 2017 Clarence Valley Council has the Church of Jesus Christ Development Fund Inc in Sutherland Local Court No. 6 for a small claims hearing. It would appear that there may be a little issue in rendering unto Caesar. On 19 September 2017 an ordained minister of a religion (which was named by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in relation to 40 instances of historical child sexual abuse on the NSW North Coast) read the Opening Prayer at Council’s ordinary monthly meeting. Earlier in the year an ordained minister (from a church network alleged to have supported an overseas orphanage closed because of child abuse claims in 2013) read the Opening Prayer and an ordained minister (belonging to yet another church network accused of ignoring child sexual abuse in the US and racism in South Africa) read the Opening Prayer at yet another ordinary monthly meeting. Nice one councillors - you are covering yourselves with glory!
An investigative musing: Newcastle Herald, 12 August 2017: The state’s corruption watchdog has been asked to investigate the finances of the Awabakal Aboriginal Local Land Council, less than 12 months after the troubled organisation was placed into administration by the state government. The Newcastle Herald understands accounting firm PKF Lawler made the decision to refer the land council to the Independent Commission Against Corruption after discovering a number of irregularities during an audit of its financial statements.The results of the audit were recently presented to a meeting of Awabakal members. Administrator Terry Lawler did not respond when contacted by the Herald and a PKF Lawler spokesperson said it was unable to comment on the matter. Given the intricate web of company relationships that existed with at least one former board member it is not outside the realms of possibility that, if ICAC accepts this referral, then United Land Councils Limited (registered New Zealand) and United First Peoples Syndications Pty Ltd(registered Australia) might be interviewed. North Coast Voices readers will remember that on 15 August 2015 representatives of these two companied gave evidence before NSW Legislative Council General Purpose Standing Committee No. 6 INQUIRY INTO CROWN LAND. This evidence included advocating for a Yamba mega port.
A Nationals musing: Word around the traps is that NSW Nats MP for Clarence Chris Gulaptis has been talking up the notion of cruise ships visiting the Clarence River estuary. Fair dinkum! That man can be guaranteed to run with any bad idea put to him. I'm sure one or more cruise ships moored in the main navigation channel on a regular basis for one, two or three days is something other regular river users will really welcome. *pause for appreciation of irony* The draft of the smallest of the smaller cruise vessels is 3 metres and it would only stay safely afloat in that channel. Even the Yamba-Iluka ferry has been known to get momentarily stuck in silt/sand from time to time in Yamba Bay and even a very small cruise ship wouldn't be able to safely enter and exit Iluka Bay. You can bet your bottom dollar operators of cruise lines would soon be calling for dredging at the approach to the river mouth - and you know how well that goes down with the local residents.
A local councils musing: Which Northern Rivers council is on a low-key NSW Office of Local Government watch list courtesy of feet dragging by a past general manager?
A serial pest musing: I'm sure the Clarence Valley was thrilled to find that a well-known fantasist is active once again in the wee small hours of the morning treading a well-worn path of accusations involving police, local business owners and others.
An investigative musing: Which NSW North Coast council is batting to have the longest running code of conduct complaint investigation on record?
A which bank? musing: Despite a net profit last year of $9,227 million the Commonwealth Bank still insists on paying below Centrelink deeming rates interest on money held in Pensioner Security Accounts. One local wag says he’s waiting for the first bill from the bank charging him for the privilege of keeping his pension dollars at that bank.
A Daily Examiner musing: Just when you thought this newspaper could sink no lower under News Corp management, it continues to give column space to Andrew Bolt.
A thought to ponder musing: In case of bushfire or flood - do you have an emergency evacuation plan for the family pet?
An adoption musing: Every week on the NSW North Coast a number of cats and dogs find themselves without a home. If you want to do your bit and give one bundle of joy a new family, contact Happy Paws on 0419 404 766 or your local council pound.
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