Sunday 21 July 2019
Guess who Clarrie spotted in Yamba?
Paparazzi, eat your hearts out!
Clarrie spotted this bloke, in company, having lunch at a cafe in Yamba on Friday.
Credit for image: abc.net.au
Saturday 20 July 2019
Quote of the Week
“High
rents are a major contributor to household insecurity, personal
stress and the risk of people, including children, slipping into real
poverty and even homelessness. The North Coast rental market
disadvantages many people because the competition for decent and
affordable housing greatly outstrips supply. The reasons for this
crisis are varied, including a general lack of rental stock, many
houses in coastal towns becoming holiday rentals and the need to
accommodate workers on the road projects, which results in inflated
rents that stay that way after the workers move on.” [St
Vincent de Paul regional executive officer Michael Timbrell quoted
in The Daily Examiner,
18 July 2019]
Labels:
cost of living,
housing,
rent
Cartoons of the Week
Labels:
racism,
right wing politics,
right wing rat bags
Friday 19 July 2019
In the Kalang River forests of New South Wales......
According to the NSW Office of Environment & Heritage the Milky Silkpod is found only within NSW, with scattered populations in the north coast region between Kendall and Woolgoolga.
This plant is currently listed as Vulnerable in NSW and has a Commonwealth conservation status of Endangered. Little is known of its reproductive biology.
However, this means little to the Forestry Corporation of NSW, its board of directors and workers or the Berejiklian Coalition Government.
The Belligen Shire Courier, 16 July 2019:
OEH-Milky Silkpod profile. Photo Shane Ruming |
A volunteer survey team that trekked
through the Upper Kalang forests on the weekend found dozens of
endangered plants damaged by Forestry Corporation's logging
preparations.
The
Milky Silkpod (Parsonia dorrigoensis) is listed as 'vulnerable' in
NSW and is a nationally endangered plant.
As
the name suggests, the forests of the Mid North Coast are a
stronghold for it, with most records found between Kendall and
Woolgoolga.
In
1999 it was estimated that there were less than 2000 individual
plants and the main threat to the survival of this species is low
numbers.
Official
government advice on how to manage the plant says that "searches
for the species should be conducted prior to any logging operations"
and known habitat should be "protect[ed] from clearing, high
levels of disturbance and development".
"Yet
once again Forestry Corporation has shown its disregard for the the
environment," survey team member Jonas Bellchambers said.
"Of
the 110 confirmed new records identified on the weekend, 39 specimens
were found that had already been damaged and are unlikely to recover.
"With
more logging and roading imminent it is highly likely to wipe out a
good part of this population.
"Like
for most species, it's a death of 1000 cuts, and before we know it
another plant has blinked out and has gone from our planet
completely. We are in the midst of a major extinction event. Here we
have a clear example of why. Because government and industry just
don't care....
Exodus of senior NDIS officials over the last fifteen months
When
well-paid
senior management
– some
in the top percentile of Australia’s income earners –
begins to abandon ship it’s time to consider if the
Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison
Government
has finally sunk the National
Disability Insurance Scheme.
The
Australian,
5 July 2019:
...The
NDIA has confirmed deputy chief executive Michael Francis has
resigned and will leave in September to take a role “closer to
home”.
A
spokeswoman also confirmed chief risk officer Anthony Vella has
recently departed, along with Antonia Albanese, who was head of
markets, provider and market relations.
Ms
Albanese and Mr Vella both directly reported to the chief executive.
The
Australian has also been told the general manager of critical
services issue response, Stephanie Gunn, has quit.
Mr
Shorten told The Australian Mr Robert was “either oblivious or
delusional” for telling parliament the scheme was being run well.
“It
is alarming that this group of senior executives lack such confidence
in the way the NDIA is being run that they are choosing to leave,”
he said. “This scheme is so important for the vulnerable but is
being chaotically
implemented.
“Yet
the minister in parliament has told the nation it’s all going
swimmingly. He must be either oblivious or delusional.”
The
NDIA spokeswoman said: “The NDIA is grateful to our departing
senior executives, who have made significant contributions to the
NDIS.
“The
NDIA has a strong and experienced leadership team, focused
on continuing to guide the agency to deliver improved outcomes for
NDIS participants. Interim arrangements with - experienced personnel
have been put in place.”
The
confirmation of executive departures came after Mr Shorten tweeted he
was “hearing” that four senior staff resigned
in the past seven days.
Former
chief executive Robert De Luca suddenly
resigned
in May and is yet to be replaced. Former communications head Vicki
Rundle is acting chief executive.
Mr
Robert — a key numbers man for the Prime Minister in last August’s
leadership contest — yesterday used question time to declare the
NDIS was available to “all Australians on the continent”….. [my
yellow highlighting]
Elwyn is spittin’ chips
Took a call from my mate Elwyn and he was, to put it super mildly, seething, red-hot furious.
Elwyn, who is a something of a quiz champion, leaves others at the Table of Knowledge at our local watering hole for dead. He watches any and all quiz shows on TV.
Elwyn credits his interest in quizzes to his mother who participated, with some success, on the radio program The Quiz Kids hosted by John Dease.
And why is Elwyn so stroppy? NBN TV has been showing repeats of Millionaire Hot Seat.
Elwyn does have a good sense of humour. He was in stitches when he told me a contestant on Hot Seat this week said they hoped to go to France in June-July for FIFA’s Women’s World Cup of Football in France.
Elwyn took no comfort when I told him ABC TV did an “NBN” on Wednesday night and repeated last week's Shaun Micallef's Mad as Hell.
Footnote: The contestant didn’t win and go to France for the WWC of Football despite having a second “attempt”.
Thursday 18 July 2019
Local conspiracy theorist is at it again
Age has not dimmed Fred 'The Red Herring' Perring......
The
Daily Examiner, Letter to the Editor, 16 July 2019, p.15:
Plotters
signed Australia up to new world order
EX-PM
Turnbull and his acolyte Julie Bishop were in cahoots with many
others to bring down Tony Abbott long before Turnbull finally wielded
the knife.
Both
Turnbull and Bishop were part of the far left of the Liberal party.
Both were disciples of the principles of the United Nations, which
encompassed a Sustainable Development Agenda 2030.
During
a speech Bishop made at the United Nations she actually signed
Australia on to become part of the new world order global government.
The
Australian people were never consulted.
The
Paris Agreement is a case in point – a United Nations piggy bank
into which subservient, signed-up countries must tip a billion or so
each and every year, ostensibly to help poorer countries.
It
is the UN that is getting fatter, although for how long is the
question – more and more European countries are wanting out.
In
relation to the UN and its hold over various bodies controlling areas
of the environment under heritage orders, the NSW Government proposes
to raise the wall on Warragamba Dam to increase water storage and to
alleviate flooding on the lower reaches.
This
vital work cannot go ahead without the authority of the United
Nations puppet on World Heritage, which recently held a meeting in
Azerbaijan to discuss the proposal.
A
report is out soon with UN members to come to Australia to view the
effects on the Blue Mountains heritage area.
No
thanks to Bishop and Turnbull.
Bob
“World Government” Brown would be oh so pleased.
Fred
Perring,
Halfway
Creek
Labels:
environment,
United Nations,
water
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