Unfortunately this is how the club building looks during severe storm weather.
How long will the present 78 year-old building be able to stand this increasingly frequent pounding?
Press Advisory
May 19,
Wichita, KS - The American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM) today released its position paper on Genetically Modified foods stating that "GM foods pose a serious health risk" and calling for a moratorium on GM foods. Citing several animal studies, the AAEM concludes "there is more than a casual association between GM foods and adverse health effects" and that "GM foods pose a serious health risk in the areas of toxicology, allergy and immune function, reproductive health, and metabolic, physiologic and genetic health."
The AAEM calls for:
"Multiple animal studies have shown that GM foods cause damage to various organ systems in the body. With this mounting evidence, it is imperative to have a moratorium on GM foods for the safety of our patients' and the public's health," said Dr. Amy Dean, PR chair and Board Member of AAEM.
"Physicians are probably seeing the effects in their patients, but need to know how to ask the right questions," said Dr. Jennifer Armstrong, President of AAEM. "The most common foods in North America which are consumed that are GMO are corn, soy, canola, and cottonseed oil."
The AAEM's position paper on Genetically Modified foods can be found at http:aaemonline.org/gmopost.html.
AAEM is an international association of physicians and other professionals dedicated to addressing the clinical aspects of environmental health. More information is available at www.aaemonline.org.
-more-
About AAEM The American Academy of Environmental Medicine was founded in 1965, and is an international association of physicians and other professionals interested in the clinical aspects of humans and their environment. The Academy is interested in expanding the knowledge of interactions between human individuals and their environment, as these may be demonstrated to be reflected in their total health. The AAEM provides research and education in the recognition, treatment and prevention of illnesses induced by exposures to biological and chemical agents encountered in air, food and water. ###
Photo of the Clarence River at Grafton from The Daily Examiner 
Photograph of the Lismore district from The Northern Star
The festival is on the top of most discerning Australian music fan's wish-lists of must-go Festivals, which combined with the event's relatively small capacity compared to many of the summer festivals, results in feverish activity on the day tickets go on sale. This year's festival will be the eighth Splendour In the Grass. The two-day event accommodates 17,500 people and has sold out in advance in each year of its existence, often within hours of going on sale – all tickets to last year's festival were snapped up in just 5 hours, while the preceding three years' events sold out in a little over a day.
Many who attend choose to immerse themselves in the full 'Splendour experience' by taking advantage of the on-site camping adjacent to the festival site. Campers set up their tents right outside the festival gates and quickly establish their own Splendour village for the weekend.
For all things splendid and ticket info go here. Camping and event tickets have sold out.
ABC North Coast Radio today:
Thousands of residents in northern New South Wales have been asked to evacuate, as the Clarence and Wilson Rivers threaten to flood surrounding towns.
At least 9,000 Grafton residents have been told to leave, with the town predicted to flood tonight.
However, there are differing reports about the number of residents being asked to evacuate, with the SES putting the figure at about 20,000.
Residents in villages north of Grafton around the Lower Clarence River have also been told to evacuate.
Earlier, more than 5,000 people left the city of Lismore over concerns the Wilsons River would peak.
SES spokesman Dave Mackey says the Clarence River in Grafton could reach 7.8 metres about midnight.
"Given the fact that we've had so much rainfall and it doesn't seem to be letting up too much, that prediction of 7.8 is very close to [the] levee overtopping," he said.
"At this stage we do not believe it is worth waiting until dark to make a call for an evacuation.
"This height water is below the levee but the following areas will be inundated: the town of Grafton and low-lying areas of South Grafton, except for Bent Street Hill and the high ground to the Armidale Road.
"Residents and business owners in Grafton and the lower parts of South Grafton are to activate their personal and business flood plans and evacuate as soon as possible."
Mr Mackey says an evacuation coordination centre has been established at the Coffs Harbour Showground.
He says residents who are able to drive themselves out should head south on the Pacific Highway.
Mr Mackey says residents in Grafton can expect the worst if the towns get flooded.
"Power supplies will need to be shut down. Telephone services will fail, which means people will not be able to call for help," he said.
"Sewerage facilities will fail with raw sewage possibly entering houses. Roads will become flooded and vehicle movement will be restricted."
Ulmarra and Brushgrove residents have also been ordered to evacuate.
The Pacific Highway is cut by water at Maclean and the only road inland from Yamba is cut by water.
The Wilsons River is beginning to recede, but Lismore residents cannot access their homes and businesses yet.
The Tweed, Byron Bay, Ballina, Lismore, Kyogle and the Clarence Valley local government areas have all been declared disaster areas by the NSW Government.
A South Grafton abattoir owner has repeatedly made headlines for allegedly refusing to pay sacked staff their entitlements. Now he is coming under more fire from workers who claim he has banned them from taking toilet breaks.
SOUTH Grafton abattoir owner Stuart Ramsey has repeatedly made headlines for allegedly refusing to pay sacked staff their entitlements.
Now he is coming under more fire from workers who claim he has banned them from taking toilet breaks.
Two workers contacted The Daily Examiner with concerns Mr Ramsey was penalising staff for leaving their work stations to visit the toilet.
The workers did not want their names published, but said Mr Ramsey told staff they could not leave their stations unless they were on lunch or smoko.
The workers said this ban included staff leaving their stations to visit the toilet. If true, this would mean abattoir staff were expected to work for almost three hours at a time without having to go to the toilet.
One of the workers said Mr Ramsey was punishing those who took toilet breaks by issuing them formal letters of warning and forfeiting their Over Award payment.
The payment is given when workers process above their quota. It can add more than $100 to their weekly pay.
Many staff received this payment regularly and had come to rely on it to meet living costs, the worker said.
Stuart Ramsey - owner of Ramsey Meats Processing - did not return The Examiner's calls yesterday. Mr Ramsey's business is being investigated by the Workplace Ombudsman after sacked staff were not paid their entitlements.
Radar Image loop here.
It has been obvious for some time that the Mainstream Media is not only worried about revenue and profit margins, it is also worried about online competition from some of the larger blogs which carry a degree of credibility when it comes to political and social commentary as well as sometimes displaying an investigative element in presentation of news items.
The rise in the pension age is interesting, but that does not even begin until 2017 and takes full effect in 2023 when Mr Rudd will be 67 and will have safely attained his pension age prior to the measure catching him! [Helen Coonan at the CPA Budget Breakfast on 13 May 2009]
I wonder who will tell the seriously silly Ms. Coonan that, leaving aside the staggered introduction of the new retirement age (which sees the age go up in six monthly increments), Kevin Rudd will only be 66 years of age in 2023, having been born in September 1957.
