It's QANDA season on the ABC

I have to confess that last night I switched off the ABC's new show Q and A after the first few minutes of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's flat delivery when answering the first audience question.

I've promised myself that I will try to make it through next week's program when, hopefully, my tolerance for political whaffle is higher.

 

However, the QANDA webpage did deliver evidence of a few interesting questions for Mr. Rudd. 

 

Author	ConcernedScientist
Date/Time	22 May 2008 2:04:19pm
Subject	>Re: What would you ask Kevin Rudd?

Mr Rudd...

When it comes to Global Warming, it would appear to me that your government's first budget is 'rearranging the deck chairs whilst the Titanic is sinking'.

Ok - some passengers might deny the ship is sinking (the water used to be 4 metres below their cabin's port-hole, and now its gone up to 6 metres - so from their perspective the ship is rising!), but the scientific consensus is the HMAS Earth is sinking and we have to do something about it NOW!

So why are you making it MORE difficult for Australians to 'use our existing life-boats' like installing solar cells on their roofs ?

Why are you investing large sums of money in trying to develop a new super 'lifeboat' (so-called clean coal - which might not even float), when there are existing technologies available TODAY (like solar thermal, wind, geothermal, photovoltaic, etc )?

Why are you not putting in the same effort to fight Global Warming as you are to fighting inflation?

You said recently "Hi, my name is Kevin, and I'm here to help" - Didn't you really mean "... and I'm here to help the Coal Industry" ?

There's a moggy in there

With all the back arching, hissing, scratching and spraying that's gone on around Canberra these last few weeks, I'm beginning to think that Bill Hall's catty look at politicians may be close to the truth of the matter.

In short, a cat can look half its size when attacking and twice its size when bluffing. Hence a cat looks four times as large on defense as on offense.

The same is true of politicians. The more trouble they are in, the louder they yowl and the larger and more terrifying they try to appear.

FEVHA Visual Arts Festival, Bangalow & Byron Bay, May 28 - June 1 2008

This year's FEHVA festival will be held from Saturday until June 1 at the Bangalow A&I Hall, with special events also staged at local venues in Byron Bay and Bangalow.

The festival was developed five years ago as a two-day event with the aim of raising money for The Buttery, a drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre in Bangalow.---

Australia's top visual arts practitioners will be guest speakers at the festival weekend, including Pete O'Doherty and Reg Mombassa who will talk about their experiences as brothers, artists and musicians.

Well-known international musician and patron of The Buttery, David Helfgott, will perform at the opening of the FEHVA art exhibition next Monday.

The flag event, according to Ms Tipping, is the art auction and banquet which will be held on Thursday, May 29.

Tickets are $100 per person and include champagne on arrival, canapés, gourmet dinner platters, wine and dessert.

Ms Tipping said the reason for a visual arts festival was because the Northern Rivers was thriving with talented artists.

Go to FEVHA wesite here for information on art prizes, workshops, lectures etc.

Art work shown above "And the brightness begins" by Emma Walker
http://www.timolsengallery.com/

Rudders - will you stop being a purient old wowser and leave that young woman in peace

"Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has confirmed the Defence Department is investigating whether Australian celebrity Tania Zaetta had sex with Australian special forces soldiers while on a recent tour of Afghanistan. "

Even after the experience of the Howard years, sometimes it's hard to believe that any man who leads a national government can be so mindboggling stupid.

With the young woman in question saying that the allegations are untrue and even the nasty, barrack's rumour not charging that anything occurred under duress, it is hard to see why the Prime Minister didn't pour cold water on the Dept. of Defence investigation into the entertainment tour of Afghanistan.

The whole thing has the feel of a fair dinkum furphy.

Rudders, I'm not going to remember this week as one where you made a statement about the "obscenity" of homelessness in Australia.
I'm going to remember this week as the one in which you allowed a bunch of old soldiers to invade the privacy of a young woman.

Getting your knees dusty next Sunday won't change anything - you've done a fool, fool, thing.

And then the story changed......

"The Defence Department has issued an unreserved apology to celebrity Tania Zaetta, after she was named in a leaked Defence note detailing inappropriate conduct.
The Federal Government has announced an inquiry into the leaked briefing note about allegations Ms Zaetta had sex with soldiers during her recent entertainment tour to Afghanistan.
Defence has tonight issued a statement saying the document containing Ms Zaetta's name was a draft and it was withdrawn minutes after it was written because of privacy concerns."

How many pork pies in a day does that make?

US Mormans swallow Howard's line, hook and sinker

The Salt Lake Tribune reports on John Howard's chase of the almighty dollar last Tuesday.

 

This time his paid speaking trail led him to the Zions Bank International Trade and Business Conference at the Downtown Marriott in Salt Lake City, where he continued to tell America just what it wanted to hear.

 

A former Australian prime minister and a senior Bush administration trade official on Tuesday pressed their cases for open-trade policies at a time of sudden global food shortages and criticism that free trade has led to job losses in the United States.
    "I think the world cries aloud in 2008 for a reaffirmation of the view that protection is something of the past," said John Howard, who led Australia for over a decade until he was turned out of office by voters in November.
    "Because if the world goes back into protection we will aggravate some of the difficulties that are now being faced and I think that will present very significant challenges and very significant difficulties for all of us," Howard said.....

Howard spoke repeatedly about his faith in global trade as a vehicle for lifting undeveloped countries from poverty. He said the rapid rise of food prices during the last year is causing enormous social and political consequences in poor countries worldwide that call into question the basis for subsidies and tariffs.
    "This is really a time for scaling down rather than scaling up or maintaining agricultural subsidies," Howard said.
    "If you have a relatively heavy demand for a commodity, it doesn't make sense to maintain subsidies that were designed to protect producers at a time when people didn't want to buy their product," he said.
    Howard called for developed countries to engage China and not fear its rising economic clout. With a population of 1.3 billion, it is helping to lead a profound adjustment of buying power from North America and Europe that by 2030 will have produced a middle class in Asia that numbers in the hundreds of millions.
    "The center of gravity of the world's middle class is shifting from the Atlantic to Asia. This is, in a way, one of the most significant developments since the industrial revolution," Howard said.

 

It is beginning to look as though Howard will be able to mine gullible Americans for pin money for some time to come if this Utah Pulse blurb is any indication.

 

John Winston Howard, who served as Prime Minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, will be the keynote speaker at the half-day conference, which will run from 8:15 a.m. to 1:30 p.m...

In his first visit to the United States since his term in office ended last November, John Howard will discuss his uniquely global approach to leading the most prominent Western stronghold in the Asian-Pacific Rim. He will candidly share his vision for the international economic future, with special focus on the roles that China, India and the Pacific Rim will play.

As Australia's second-longest serving prime minister, Howard pursued broad pro-market economic policies. During his period in office Australia experienced economic growth averaging 3.6 percent per year. What's more, in the face of criticism from many, Howard initiated unprecedented efforts to broker a free-trade agreement with China, paving the way for China's willingness to participate in a free market. Because of his work in developing ties with China, the country is now Australia's largest export market.

 

Although it must be added that he was only considered to be a crowd drawer if the keynote address ticket cost was kept under $40 per person.

We know about Australia's GDP and GNP, but what about its GPI?

The Institute for Economics and Peace has released its Global Peace Index [GPI] 2008.
The other ANZAC, New Zealand, ranks 4th (1.350) on the international index of 140 countries.
Australia ranks 27th (1.652).
America ranks 97th on this list.
Something for the Rudd Government to aspire to here, after a decade of our nation playing deputy-sheriff to the US - catching up to New Zealand.

Full index list here.
Breakdown of how Australia's GPI was calculated here.

The Institute for Economics and Peace is dedicated to developing the inter-relationships between business, peace and economics. Through its global reach, it aims to empower the private sector, academic community, civil society, international institutions and governments with the knowledge to proactively use peace to achieve their desired goals.
It appears to be the brainchild of Australian businessman Steve Killelea and the Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies [UNSW].

Malcolm thinks a cigar is always just a cigar

Shadow Treasurer and all-round pukka Malcolm Turnbull's reply during question time at the National Press Club on Wednesday, 21 May 2008.

"I'm not going to engage in self-analysis."

Sort of says it all about Malcolm doesn't it?

Transcript of Address to the National Press Club here.

And wants his tax review to look at the Goods and Services Tax

"The Review will involve all aspects of the tax system that are amenable to reform in the national interest.
This will involve an examination of taxation:
At the Commonwealth level, including but not limited to: income tax, company tax, dividend imputation, the goods and services tax, international tax, excises and customs duties, fringe benefits tax, revenue from any emissions trading scheme, capital gains tax, superannuation taxes, and resource rent tax; and
At the State and Local level, including but not limited to: transactions taxes, payroll taxes, property taxes, and gambling taxes.
In conducting the Review, Professor Ergas will consult widely, including through the release of public discussion papers and a tax reform conference. The Review will be completed by the end of 2008."

I take some comfort from the fact that Turnbull and Ergas (both believing the 'great unwashed' adhere to the politics of envy) are reviewing the tax system while the Coalition is in opposition. Otherwise the Prof might just lumber us all with a higher rate of GST in his almost one-size-fits-all view of our society.

Snapshots from Obama's campaign album

The Obama for America
team is so proud of their
man's ability to pull a
75,000 strong crowd in
Portland, Oregon last
Sunday, that they are e-mailing out these photos from the family album.

Mark your calendar for the Lismore Lantern Parade, Saturday 21 June 2008

Lismore Kids Arts Festival - 10.00 am
Playing in the Streets, street theatre - 11.30am
Market deLight - 2.00pm
Ceremonial Gates open - 4.00 pm, entry Gold Coins Donation
Winter Warmers, Charity hot food stalls - 4.30pm
Parade - 5.30 pm
Fiery Finale - 6.45 pm
Great Street Party - 8.00pm arts, crafts, workshop, regional cuisine, spectacular parade, lanterns, parade bands, street theatre, carnival dancers outdoor theatre,illuminated puppets, fire art and pyrotechnics......
and much, much more.
Festival website here.

Portraits of an exploding man

Cartoons of Malcolm Turnbull found at:
http://www.nma.gov.au/
http://www.nicholsoncartoons.com.au/
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/
http://blogotariat.com/

And Rudd wonders why the peasants are revolting

There has been just a hint of exaperation in Kevin Rudd's tone, as he answers media questions regarding peasants pensioners and this year's federal budget.
Perhaps he might be a little more understanding of pensioner concerns about cost-of-living increases after reading that Woolworths has higher markups on groceries in Australia because it is established, holds large market share and is a price leader.
The sheer arrogance of Woolies attitude is enough to set even much younger teeth on edge.
In regional areas like the NSW North Coast where lack of competition is marked, this admission of price gouging rankles retirees, old age and disability pensioners.

"Supermarket giant Woolworths has admitted customers pay more for groceries in its Australian stores than in its New Zealand shops.
Woolworths chief executive Michael Luscombe told a national inquiry into grocery prices that competition in Australia and New Zealand is the same, but admitted its mark-ups are higher here than across the Tasman.
Mr Luscombe told the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) inquiry the margins are lower in New Zealand because Woolworths is not the price leader there.
"We may have to sometimes reduce prices further in New Zealand to make money," Mr Luscombe said.
"The business that we purchased in New Zealand is not in the same position (as here)... significant investments still need to be made in New Zealand.
"The issue in New Zealand is we have a very strong competitor who has been very stable for a long time."
Mr Luscombe said Woolworths had built its business up in Australia over 80 years, while its Kiwi arm was much younger.
Woolworths owns three major supermarket chains in New Zealand - Woolworths, Foodtown and Countdown. Its main competitor is New Zealand-owned Foodstuffs.
Mr Luscombe said internal polling showed Woolworths holds 30.77 per cent of the grocery market share in Australia.
The ACCC estimates Woolworths and Coles hold about 80 per cent of the market."

No money left for a lottery ticket or the pokies?

A Roy Morgan Research media release yesterday shows a marked decline in gambling when comparing 2002 and 2008.
With increasing petrol and food prices eating further into the family budget, it seems there may be less money in Australian pockets for traditional forms of entertainment.

The percentage of Australians gambling in the last three months has declined from 73% in year ended December 2002 to 66% in year ended March 2008, according to the latest Roy Morgan Research Single Source data. Most forms of gambling have declined, including lottery tickets (down from 64% to 58%), poker machines (32% to 27%), betting (18 % to 16%) and Keno (11% to 9%). Casino games have remained stable at 4%.....

Frequency of gambling on poker machines has also declined, with less poker machine gamblers playing more than 13 times in the last three months (down from 10% in year ended December 2002 to 9% in year ended March 2008), and more playing one to three times in the last three months (up from 55% to 57%) or four to thirteen times (up from 34% to 35%).....

“Gambling participation and frequency has declined across all age, income and lifestage groups, indicating a broad cultural and lifestyle change within Australia. People spend more leisure time on the Internet and personal computers and less time on traditional leisure activities such as gambling.
"The only good news for hotels, clubs and casinos is that more Australians are dining at licensed premises, and that gambling is only one of many reasons for visiting a venue.”

New Matilda slices and dices MalcolmTurnbull

Mark Bahnisch at his finest in PollieGraph (New Matilda) yesterday.

The Libs don’t seem to have any capacity for a disciplined approach to opposition. Despite the claims from Nick Minchin and others that Nelson would bring a “consultative” style to the leadership - in contrast to Howard’s - it appears clear that in the absence of the prize of government they’re incapable of turning their fire on Labor as opposed to scattering it among themselves. Just as some of the shine had rubbed off Swan’s budget, they’ve handed the government two devastating lines of attack - the disunity angle and the fact that they themselves know that their centrepiece budget reply “measure” is a piece of populist garbage and that they were concerned it would tear up their mythical but much cherished “economic management” brand.
Nelson sacking Turnbull would be an absolute disaster for them, for reasons that ought to be obvious. On the other hand, Nelson keeping Turnbull would be an absolute disaster for them, for reasons that ought to be obvious.
A lot of this can be traced back to their continuing failure to adapt to opposition. They need to make the government the story, not contend - in undignified and risible ways - with each other for their 15 minutes of fame in the public eye. Turnbull’s under-reported attempt at a censure on the budget after Question Time last week is a more revelatory moment than has been written up - it shows his own lack of discipline and overweening egotism in trying to shove himself into the spotlight on a day that should have been Nelson’s. Even from the point of view of a leadership contender, it’s a thousand types of dumb.

* Alternative portrait of Malcolm Turnbull (above) found at ABC News.

ALP rank and file sock it to Iemma and Costa in Crikey

Excerpt from article on the privatisation of NSW electricity in Crikey yesterday.

NSW ALP ignoring an ever-angrier rank and file
By Ben Aveling, Secretary of the Alexandria Branch of the ALP:

But now, Morris Iemma and Michael Costa have announced that they make the decisions, no correspondence to be entered into.
The Alexandria branch is a small branch, a couple of private sector employees, some public sector employees, a few small business owners. None of our regulars is a "staffer" and, like most similar branches, we are not factionally aligned. We don’t expect to dictate policy, but we do have a right to stand up and be counted.
We first tried to do this through our local State Electoral Council. Our motion against electricity privatisation passed, as did stronger motions from other branches. But in violation of two rules, the meeting had been postponed, moving it past the cutoff date for conference submissions and none of the motions reached conference. Nor was this the only attempt to manipulate the decision of conference.
In frustration, we turned to the rulebook and found that we could ask the Administrative Committee to consider the behaviour of Iemma and Costa, which we did. John Della Bosca’s response was that it is “unacceptable” for rank and file members to expect senior ministers to be bound by party rules.
Iemma has gone further: if any MP obeys the rules and supports a policy in defiance of "cabinet solidarity", Iemma will seek to have that MP thrown out of the party. Michael Egan has made his own contribution to doublespeak: Labor governments should not listen to outside forces like the Labor annual conference; as if Iemma and his supporters could have been elected without the word Labor after their names on the ballot papers.
Make no mistake, the rank and file are angry. There is a small group of people, with no grassroots support, who are trying to hijack the Party and the state. Our collective opinion was heard loud and clear at State Conference and will not be silenced by bully boy tactics from a Premier and Treasurer who seem happy to split the Party for a policy rightly regarded with deep suspicion by the electorate. We have always negotiated and compromised. Now we are being told to walk away completely. We will not.

Current Lib leadership not worth a bent zac

I wonder when the Liberal Party of Australia is going to realise that its political salvation does not lie in a choice between Brendan Nelson and Malcolm Turnbull as federal leader.
The party's entire federal front bench is so tainted by the Howard years, that public opinion polls are not likely to firm into double digits for any length of time with any of the usual suspects captaining the ship.
Every time one of these shadow ministers front a camera it is hard not to recall that they all turned a blind eye while refugees drowned at sea, drove people into madness in detention centres, allowed mates to fund a dictator with brown paper bags full of money, sent our kids to war based on WMD lies and generally rorted the political system.
Time for new blood fellas - or your particular craft just might sink without a trace.
Right now, as teh Opposition, you are p*ss weak.

Every breath you take, I'll be watching you

Tucked neatly into Joe Ludwig and Jenny Macklin's joint media release, on the welfare debit card to be introduced this year for Centrelink clients under income management and all baby bonus recipients, is this little admission.

Using the EFTPOS network will make more data available for better-targeted compliance checks aimed at detecting breaches.

What this sentence means is that every purchase made with one of these cards will be recorded against the name of the card holder and the data stored by the Federal Government.
Because it is nigh impossible to monitor for breaches without doing so.

It seems that the Rudd Government in its wisdom has decided that everytime the holder of a welfare debit card decides to purchase Kleenex tissues over Coles own brand, Arnott's biscuits over Dick Smith's cookies, Panadol over Nurofen, dried peas over fresh peas, or if a card holder buys over-the-counter haemorrhoid relief cream, it needs to know all the details.

As these debit cards will bar the purchase of alcohol, tobacco, pornography and not allow cash withdrawals, collection of additional information is insensitive, intrusive and needless.

Given that there is every indication that the Rudd Government intends to eventually roll out the welfare debit card nationally to include all government pension, benefit, allowance, concession recipients; every Australian citizen should be concerned with the implications of this data collection drive.

When one adds to this the recent Rudd Government announcement that it intends to access the full details of bank accounts held by people receiving cash transfers through Centrelink, whenever it deems this necessary; every citizen should be alarmed at where this attitude is taking our society.

NSW North Coast whale migration season underway

The magnificent humpback whales have begun their northerly migration along the east Australian coast.
It is estimated that more than 10,000 whales will soon be cruising past our doorsteps, and Australian Seabird Rescue (ASR) general manager Rochelle Ferris says that the organisation founded by her late father, Lance, is well-prepared in the event of a stranding.
“In the event of a whale stranding, ASR works closely and co-operatively with the National Parks and Wildlife Service and other non-government organisations by providing assistance and resources at the scene.
“The ASR Cetacean Stranding Team is a highly trained group of volunteers who are available to respond promptly to a stranding event anywhere between the Clarence River and the Tweed.”
ASR maintains a wide variety of response equipment including boats, tents, generators, lighting and wetsuits to support a co-ordinated rescue effort.

Please remember if you are boating, swimming or diving in sight of a whale:
NSW Parks and Wildlife introduced amended regulations in 2006 that govern whale watching from the sea to meet strict national standards. They introduced a caution zone limiting boats to 300m from a pregnant or calving whale and 100m from an adult or juvenile.
Boats are also banned from approaching whales head on or from the rear. But if a boat is stationary or drifting, a whale can obviously approach and stay with it as long as it likes.for more info on Whale and Dolphin regulations visit NSW Parks and Wildlife.

Photograph and articles from The Far North Coaster online magazine.

Someone's having a lend of Stephen Conroy

Now I know that pollies can be quite dense outside their area of expertise (ie., how to get elected) but someone must be actively having a lend of the Federal Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy for him to have endorsed including "promotion of" technology addiction in the terms of reference for a recently formed cyber-safety consultative working group.
Nobody could be that dumb surely.
Even I know that this so-called addiction is one of the many supposed problematic behaviours which suddenly pop up overnight like mushrooms and get exposure in the media whenever major pharmaceutical companies are hunting to expand their markets.
Stephen won't find it or any variant listed in the DSM or recognised by the principal specialist medical associations, even if his departmental website links try to imply that this addiction exists as a mental disorder.
The next time a shrink makes a joke about the psychopathology of childhood, I bet this gullible minister will bite.
M'oath, he'd probably even buy a roo's tailfeather if you offered it to him!

If the Minister is interested, the website which reputedly gave the drug companies their 'bright' idea is here.

Kevin Rudd needs to lift his game

A question for Prime Minister Kevin Rudd:

Why is an extremist cult, whose activities break up families, given a wide berth by the Australian Government?

Prior to the November 2007 election Mr Rudd described the Exclusive Brethren as an "extremist cult" whose activities "break up families" and called for investigations by police, the Australian Taxation Office, the Australian Electoral Commission and Austrac, the anti-money-laundering agency into the Brethren's activities.

So, Mr Rudd, what's changed? Why are there no inquiries?

Today The Age reports PM Kevin Rudd has rejected the pleas of former members of the Exclusive Brethren for a broad-ranging inquiry into the sect, saying such an investigation would "unreasonably interfere" with their right "to practise their faith freely and openly.

Former members of the Brethren seized on the comments and, in February, wrote to Mr Rudd asking for an inquiry, particularly into its "disproportionately high taxpayer funding of Brethren schools, dishonest political campaigning, their charitable status in relation to rate and tax exemptions, and their well-known intimidatory tactics during traumatic Family Court cases".

The letter was written by former Brethren member Peter Flinn and signed by 33 others. Attached were 13 stories outlining the misery inflicted by practices of the sect, including the doctrine of separation, which keeps lapsed members from contacting their families.

Mr Rudd's chief-of-staff David Epstein wrote in reply last week that the Prime Minister "does not resile from the views he expressed last year," and that he "remains concerned about the reported imposition of doctrines that weaken family bonds" and "prevent children accessing online learning tools".

Mr Epstein also added that religious observance "should not be regarded as a shield behind which breaches of the law can be hidden", and urged anyone with details of criminal behaviour within the Brethren to tell police.

However, he wrote, on religious freedom grounds, the Prime Minister would not be instituting an inquiry.

Mr Rudd's stance suggests the Government also will vote against a motion by Greens Senator Bob Brown calling for an inquiry into the sect, its tax concessions, public funding, and practices that may harm children or families.

Senator Brown tabled notice of the new motion, his third proposed inquiry into the Brethren, in the Senate on Thursday.

Senator Brown described Mr Rudd's position as "appalling", saying his priority "should be the welfare of children and families, and the taxpayers' money that is going to this organisation".

But Mr Flinn told The Sunday Age the Exclusive Brethren could take no comfort from Mr Rudd's response: "Whilst Mr Rudd did not give a specific commitment to an inquiry, he acknowledged the 'moving personal accounts'."

Mr Flinn also pointed out that Mr Rudd reiterated his Government's commitment to "enhancing transparency in the Australian electoral system, with reforms recently announced relating to the disclosure and sources of donations".

"We have no desire to interfere with the fundamental right of any religious group to freely and openly practise its beliefs. We just want to highlight other equally fundamental human rights, such as access to family who remain Brethren members, a right callously denied by the Brethren," Mr Flinn said.

The Exclusive Brethren is a wealthy Christian-based group that practises a radical doctrine of separation from the world. Its leaders became very close to former Prime Minister John Howard over many years of lobbying and political activism, and, in 2004, they poured $370,000 into his re-election campaign.

Under Mr Howard, Brethren schools enjoyed similar funding to schools for disabled and Aboriginal students, even though, by their own admission, Exclusive Brethren members are in the top echelon of income earners. Mr Rudd has continued the funding arrangements, worth $50 million over the next four years.

Do you belong to the Australian Labor Party or are you in Morris Iemma's party?

Do you belong to the Australian Labor Party or are you in Morris Iemma's party? is a question every New South Wales Labor MP should be asking themselves right now.

This week Morris Iemma breached NSW ALP policy by introducing enabling legislation to allow for the privatisation fire sale of the state's power industry.

At the same time the Iemma Government has made a submission to a Rudd Government inquiry trying to convince its federal counterpart that the teeth should be drawn on any greenhouse gas abatement schemes for the power industry.

With enabling legislation before the NSW Parliament, Morris Iemma has headed off for China and begun to talk down the value of those publicly-owned assets he intends to sell.

As some of the corporate wheelers and dealers (who would potentially be involved in either setting up this fire sale or purchasing the state's electricity assets after privatisation legislation is passed) are also found on lists of political donors to the Iemma Government, the whole setup is beginning to sound remarkably convenient for banks, big business and the multinationals.

It certainly is convenient for Labor political bully extraordinaire Michael Costa.

The Prime Minister and his ministers for water and the environment should be very careful of the motives of this state government, which appears to have both forgotten the very real concerns of its electorate and the need to genuinely tackle climate change.

Penny Wong and Peter Garrett in particular need to remember that old adage about laying down with dogs and getting up with fleas.

Obama reckons he is only 17 delegates away from wiping Clinton out

According to yesterday's Obama for America e-mail.

Barack Obama is just 17 elected delegates away from a majority -- and you can help get him there.
At the start of this race, there were 3253 elected delegates at stake in primaries and caucuses across the country. After winning 32 of 49 contests, Barack is within reach of an absolute majority.
We believe that the winner of the majority of elected, pledged delegates should and will be the Democratic nominee.
Important primaries are coming up this Tuesday in Oregon and Kentucky. With your help, Barack could win enough delegates to reach this crucial milestone on his way to securing the nomination.
We need to do absolutely everything we can to help put Barack over the top.
Right now, thousands of people in these states are thinking seriously about what they're looking for from our next president -- and one voice could sway their decision.
I'm asking you to be that voice.
Use our simple online calling tool to call potential supporters in Oregon and Kentucky and make sure they vote for Barack:
http://my.barackobama.com/callnow
We've come a long way together in this campaign, and Tuesday could be the day we reach a majority of elected delegates.
Passing this milestone will be an unmistakable signal to the media, the superdelegates, and everyone watching this election all across the country -- the people have spoken, and America is ready for change.
Use our online calling tool to build our support in this final push -- even if you've never done anything like this before. Here's how it works:
When you log in, you'll get a list of 25 names that only you will receive. (If you don't have a My.BarackObama account, creating one is fast and easy.)
Click on a name, make a call, and you'll be led through a simple script, question by question.
If you want, you can even print your numbers and the script and enter your results back into the system later.
Get started making a difference now:
http://my.barackobama.com/callnow
For more than a year, we've relied on everyday supporters like you, reaching out person-to-person to build our movement.
We're close to the nomination -- please keep working to help Barack cross the finish line.
Thank you,
Jon
Jon Carson
Voter Contact
Director
Obama for America

Snap, crackle and 'alcopop'

Spooner cartoon in The Age yesterday.

"All the same, from a political and an economic viewpoint, what Nelson had to say stank. His about-face on the increase in the tax on premixed alcoholic drinks could well turn out to be the decision that cruelled his leadership once and for all.
Here's the fundamental truth of it: you can't say on April 27 that you support a tax increase on alcopops and then declare in a nationally televised prime-time parliamentary speech 18 days later that you're utterly opposed to it and will block it in the Senate, and retain your political credibility.
This is what the Opposition Leader said only a little over two weeks ago, after Labor announced its decision to lift the tax on alcopops by 70%. "While we're not normally supporters of tax increases, increasing the tax on these alcopops, these mixers, that young people are in many cases abusing, if that is going to reduce the abuse of these alcoholic mixers then it's something that we certainly are prepared to support."
How can you go from accepting something as a reasonable preventive health measure to seeing it as a blatant tax grab? When you're desperate, you have no genuine new ideas, your political mortality is so strong you can taste it, and you're still not fully accepting that you've lost power, you'll do it."

Are Costa and Meagher trying to stiff sick and needy in the Clarence Valley?

The Clarence Valley has been waiting for the promised upgrade to Grafton Base Hospital for over a decade now.
The NSW Government had told us on more than one occasion that the money was there and that work was starting soon - then returned to ignoring the health needs of Valley residents.

It took Labor's Janelle Saffin and the 2007 federal election to see another health funding pledge of $18 million.
But the NSW Minister for Health, who has had a departmental master plan before her ever since she took over this portfolio, is yet to supply the Commonwealth with a timetable and schedule of works.

Many in the Valley are beginning to wonder if the Iemma Government is trying to obtain the offered funding without it being tied specifically to a Grafton Hospital upgrade, so that it can plug the gap elsewhere.
Or if it is procrastinating in the hope it will not have to come up with its upgrade funding share for another decade.
Are we to be diddled again?

Journalist and Deputy-Editor of The Daily Examiner, David Bancroft, ran this frontpage comment on Thursday.

WE asked NSW Health Minister Reba Meagher a simple question yesterday: when will work start on the upgrade of the promised operating theatres and emergency department at Grafton Base Hospital?
Her answer was waffle.
She told us that that the Federal Government's announced funding was welcome. Obviously.
She told us that planning had already started. That started more than a decade ago.
She told us that Grafton Base Hospital played an important role in delivering health services. Again, obviuously.
And she told us admissions to the emergency department had increased. Exactly.
What she did not tell us was when work would start and if the State Government would provide additional money needed for the projects to proceed.
We need answers, Ms. Meagher, not platitiudes, and we need them now.

Portraits of a drowning man

Cartoon comments found at:
http://www.nma.gov.au/
http://www.leahy.com.au/
http://www.inkcinct.com.au
http://www.nicholsoncartoons.com.au/

No wonder John Howard and George Dubbya got along so well

Rumours have never completely died down that former Prime Minister, John Winston Howard's grandfather and father were probably members of a 1930s Australian fascist group which supported Hitler in the early days of his rise to power.

In 2004 The Guardian reported on how US President George W. Bush's grandfather helped Hitler's rise to power.
"George Bush's grandfather, the late US senator Prescott Bush, was a director and shareholder of companies that profited from their involvement with the financial backers of Nazi Germany.
The Guardian has obtained confirmation from newly discovered files in the US National Archives that a firm of which Prescott Bush was a director was involved with the financial architects of Nazism.
His business dealings, which continued until his company's assets were seized in 1942 under the Trading with the Enemy Act, has led more than 60 years later to a civil action for damages being brought in Germany against the Bush family by two former slave labourers at Auschwitz and to a hum of pre-election controversy.
The evidence has also prompted one former US Nazi war crimes prosecutor to argue that the late senator's action should have been grounds for prosecution for giving aid and comfort to the enemy."

All of which goes some way to explaining the image above (which has been doing the email rounds for years) and why Bush was so eager to create another ethnic bogeyman teh Muslim.

Pity Bush didn't recall the talk about his family when he whaled into Barak Obama this week for his supposed willingness to talk with Islamic nations.
Of course this is another thing he has in common with John Winnie - this skewed view of Obama which Howard also displayed last year.

I wonder what sort of WWII memorabilia Howard and Bush would be swapping if they were so inclined?

Japan's whalers accused of taking whale meat to sell on the black market

According to Asahi Shimbun yesterday.

Greenpeace Japan said Thursday it will seek a criminal investigation against 12 crew members of a research whaling ship over allegations they embezzled a ton of meat from whales caught in the Antarctic Ocean.
The group says the crew members aboard the research vessel Nisshin Maru sent cardboard boxes believed to have contained whale meat to their homes.
At a news conference Thursday in Tokyo, Greenpeace Japan members displayed whale meat they said had been intercepted on route to the home of a crew member. The box contained 23.5 kilograms of coveted whale meat used in bacon.
The estimated value of the meat is between 110,000 yen and 350,000 yen ($1,048 and $3,334), according to Greenpeace Japan. ----
Greenpeace Japan noted that if the 47 boxes sent from the Nisshin Maru contained whale meat, the total would have exceeded 1 ton.

Greenpeace stated yesterday.

Our activists delivered the evidence, including the whale meat, to the Public Prosecutor's office in Tokyo, calling on it to make a full public enquiry into how deep the corruption runs with the whaling programme. We're also calling for an end to the USD$4.7 million taxpayer subsidies for the programme, and for the license of the company operating the whale hunt, Kyodo Senpaku, to be withdrawn.

Photo: Greenpeace Japan whale campaign coordinator Junichi Sato weighs 23.5 kilograms of whale meat stolen by crewmembers of the Nisshin Maru whaling ship. The contents of the box were listed as "cardboard."

Budget Reply '08: I'm big, I'm bad, I'm Brendan Nelson

It was obvious that the Budget Reply by the Leader of the Opposition, Brendan Nelson, was going to be something else when, before proceedings formally began, the cameras sprang the Coalition acknowledging a rent-a-crowd in had positioned in the public gallery.

Nelson's speech was different to the Federal Treasurer's 13 April budget speech on many levels.

The first was that, unlike Wayne Swan's speech, Nelson's monologue was heard out in polite silence by those on the other side.
The Coalition heckling during Swan's speech was a pitiful and petty effort and, it was a relief that Labor MPs were capable of more restraint last night.

The second difference was an amusing phenomenon.
The Coalition frontbench seated behind Nelson were a constant visual distraction as their heads bobbed in agreement like so many car rear-window animal ornaments.
Indeed Julie Bishop appeared almost frenetic at times.
The Labor frontbench behind Swan on Tuesday night were thankfully only occasionally afflicted with this peculiar tic.

However, it was the third difference which had the real impact.
The sheer hypocrisy which saturated Brendan Nelson's speech was almost beyond belief (Wayne Swan may have had a rather boring delivery but at least he sounded believable).

Suddenly Nelson was against policy, procedure and practices which were unchanged from the days of the former Howard Government in which he was first an ordinary MP and then a minister.

The Howard Government never locked in old age pension and carer bonus payments beyond one budget year, but suddenly the Rudd Government was mean and tricky to do the same.

He also decided that taxing 'alcopops' as spirits was unfair and would be resisted, although initially agreeing with the increased taxation proposal and way back in 1996 getting to his feet in the House of Representatives to complain that this type of alcoholic drink was too cheap.

Nelson repeatedly accused the Rudd Government of delivering a high taxing budget and then went on to say that he would oppose the removal of one tax - the Medicare levy for workers earning less than $150,000.

After years of Coalition neglect Nelson also decided to find that education and universities were important and chivvied the Rudd Government for its education policies which actually appear to reverse some of that neglect.

He was scathing about the current government's planned inquiries and reviews. Yet in a 2005 Sydney Morning Herald interview he cheerfully admitted; In the four years since he took over the $23 billion Education, Science and Training portfolio he's unleashed an unremitting stream of inquiries, reviews, reforms and initiatives, and says he has no intention of slowing down.

Brendan Nelson sketchily outlined his 'grand' economic plans for the future (which sounded very like old Howard policy) and his 5 cent solution to rising global petrol prices. Knowing full well that he will never survive as leader long enough to influence Coalition policy in the months leading up to the next federal election.

My favourite line in all this posturing occurred when Nelson accused Labor of the Coalition's biggest sin under the prime ministership of John Howard; punishing those it does not like.

Somewhere in the middle of his spin and unsupported accusations, the Leader of the Opposition decided to continue Howard's culture wars by denigrating university lecturers as social engineers and, somewhere towards the end of his delivery, resolved that Australia should become reconciled with our indigenous history (something that his national apology speech demonstrated that he was incapable of doing himself).

The Leader of the Opposition tried at times to whip himself into sincerity but failed. He declared himself angry with all the emotion of a limp lettuce leaf.

At one point Nelson stated;The government has perpetrated a fraud on the Australian public.
From my perspective this is exactly what Nelson himself was attempting last night.

Brendan Nelson's budget reply here.

Little Brennie Nelson indulges in pots and kettles

Did anyone else notice that during last night's budget reply the politician who was fond of sporting a large, flashy diamond earring had a dig at the Prime Minister's "expensive suits"?
Talk about foolish!

Federal Budget 2008-09: Janelle Saffin delivers for Page

While those on a full disability support pension are reeling from Wayne Swan's slap in the face (which saw them excluded from any cost-of-living mitigation bonus), those who have spent years on the public dental service waiting list are in flat despair and many others on the NSW North Coast are wondering about the Rudd Government's commitment to tackle climate change in light of the poor funding spread contained in this year's budget papers.

However, what cannot be gainsayed is the commitment of the Labor MP for Page, Janelle Saffin.
Ms. Saffin made sure that all funding promises (scattered like confetti across the Northern Rivers during the 2007 federal election campaign) were remembered.

The Northern Rivers Echo yesterday.

Southern Cross University has received a one-off grant of $5.2 million as part of the Australian Government’s $500 commitment to universities announced in the federal budget.
SCU vice-chancellor Professor Paul Clark said the grant came at a time when the university needed to expand facilities at its Lismore campus. He said the funding would provide support for high quality education, student amenities such as childcare, and boost SCU’s research capacity.
Other grants announced in Tuesday night’s budget include $7 million over two years to fast track radiotherapy services at Lismore Base Hospital. This is on top of $8 million already committed to the project.
There’s also $250,000 in recurrent funding for the Lismore-based Northern Rivers Business Enterprise Centre, $200,000 for the proposed Lismore Homeless Shelter, and $140,000 to upgrade the Browns Creek pumping station and flood levee as part of the Lismore Flood Management Plan.
The grants comes on top of $2.22 million in family support programs announced for Lismore in April.
In other areas $13.6 million has been allocated to begin work on the $90 million Alstonville bypass, while $100 million will be brought forward in 2008/09 for the Pacific Highway bypass at Ballina.
Casino will receive $3 million for development of the town’s community centre, and a further $2 million for the revitalisation of the town centre.

In The Daily Examiner on the same day.

The district's biggest win comes with an $18-million injection into upgrading the Grafton Base Hospital over the next 12 months.
The funding will be used to build a new accident and emergency department as well as establishing three new operating theatres.
This funding will no longer be tied to a hospital board being established at Grafton Base Hospital.
Grafton will also get its GP super clinic as part of a $275.2 million fund which will establish 31 clinics of its type throughout Australia.........
"We have also kept our promise of a $2 million grant for the Yamba Indoor Centre even though the local council has downgraded this project from $7.8 million to $4 million."
The good news for South Grafton residents is Skinner Street will receive a $1-million revitalisation package.
The fourth big pre-election promise was money for an upgrade of the Grafton saleyards and once again the Government has delivered with a $125,000 grant.

Rudd and his ministers may disappoint, but so far Janelle Saffin is showing she is good value.

There will be blood on the Liberal Party brand if....

There will blood all over the Liberal Party brand if it goes ahead with the rumoured threat to use Coalition Senate numbers to block any legislation needed to create a means test for the $5,000 'baby bonus'.

Liberal MPs will find the lower income half of their electorates at the front door ready to rip their bl**dy arms off, for wanting to give this increased bonus to the wealthy.
The wealthier half of their electorates will be waiting by the car with a noosed rope ready to string them high, because not means testing this increased bonus will result in the expectant parents among them falling within the Rudd Government net of managed cash transfers.

After all it's introducing periodic 'baby bonus' payments over 13 weeks to avoid paying out the $5,000 upfront, and even the rich couldn't be trusted not to splurge any lump sum on a new plasma TV or trip to the snow (the excuse for removing the lump sum from less wealthy parents).
And you can bet your last bob that these staged payments will require that a lot more information be supplied to Centrelink.

Either way Labor wins. It either gets to make the Libs look stupid or beat-up on the poor without much opposition.

There is also likely to be further blood splattered across the party brand when Liberal MPs realise that neither Nelson or Turnbull are going to come out of the budget debate looking credible - constantly repeating the phrase "high taxing budget" is not going to cut it in an electorate with tax cuts in its pocket and when the bulk of Labor's election promises are being met.

Graphic found at The Age.

A very personal kneejerk reaction to the Rudd-Swan 2008-09 Federal Budget

Belonging to a recognised category of poor that contains less than half a million souls and has little political clout, it has been so long since a Federal Budget gave me anything that I now treat budget night as a matter for hilarity.
Wayne Swan's first budget did not disappoint in that regard.
I am again one of those that government expects to make and scrape, in the face of rising costs and reduced options.

Swan's lullaby for the majority can be found here.
Turnbull's shrill trill can be read here.

When political image and actions clash

Images from Crikey

Kevin Rudd has worked hard to portray himself as one of the people. However, there are disturbing signs emerging that the Prime Minister is a bit of a bully boy.

Why else would he be condoning such incredibly intrusive security checks on Labor staffers.

There are 334 ministerial staffers - men and women - working for the Rudd Government. That is, 30 ministers and 12 parliamentary secretaries share 334 personal staff. These 42 politicians, from the Prime Minister down, each employ another four staff in his or her electorate office. In all, 502 ministerial and electorate staff. All are paid from the public purse. However, no matter how senior or junior their position, most of these staffers must first "obtain and maintain" a "Top Secret" security clearance.
And to be cleared by security can - and does - involve staffers having to answer hugely intrusive questions about the most intimate details of their private lives concerning their family background, their assets, their partners' assets, their bank accounts, mortgages, discretionary spending, overseas travel, drinking habits, drug use and, most odiously, his or her sexual preference and the names of their sexual partners, past and present.
Know, at the outset, that MPs are not subject to security clearance. Neither ministers nor backbenchers have to undergo such a process, no matter how lecherous, libertine, homosexual, drugged, debauched or alcoholic he or she might be. Only staffers of members of the government executive of the day. Politicians are immune.

Counting the pennies: Federal Budget night 13th May 2008

Well, the media is locked up with Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan's 2008-09 budget documents and the rest of us wait for the 7.30pm kick-off tonight.

The NSW North Coast which was promised a bag full of goodies by Rudd & Co. during the election campaign is holding its breath.

In the Page electorate alone a cool $26 million plus in promises need to be confirmed by the Treasurer before the end of his speech.

 

The Treasurer's speech and the budget transcript will be here from 7.30pm onwards.

The Sydney Morning Herald will have live coverage and analysis here from 7.30pm onwards.

Debit card reeks of Big Brother

So ran the banner above yesterday's editorial penned by David Bancroft in Grafton's The Daily Examiner (Clarence Valley locals will remember David as a former staffer for then NSW Labor Minister for Local Government, Harry Woods).

SOME disturbing signs of social engineering are starting to appear from the new Rudd Government.
It is widely expected the Government will announce in tomorrow night's Budget a scheme to issue parents of neglected or abused children with special debit cards so money can't be wasted on gambling, drugs or alcohol.
On face value it sounds like a great idea.....
But serious questions remain about the scheme.
Firstly, who decides.....
What is to protect decent parents from unfair allegations?
Even if these questions are sorted out, many others remain.
The identity of abused or neglected children should not become public knowledge, but in small communities such as those we have here, retailers will soon know 'abusive' or 'neglectful' parents as they present their debit cards and, consequently, the identity of their children will be known.
What happens if not all retailers participate in the scheme?
What happens in a place like Lawrence or Copmanhurst if the general store does not accept a debit card? How will those parents be able to buy anything.
There is also talk the scheme be extended to old age and disabled pensioners, which expands the potential problems.
All these issues may have been addressed, but there has been so little public discussion and consultation that it is difficult to tell.

Searching for water in hyperspace

water drought climate change global warming

History of Google Australian internet searches July 2007 - April 2008.

Liberal Party determined to devour itself

If it wasn't enough that Brendan Nelson was declared leader of the federal parliamentary Liberal Party with a bloody knife visibly sticking out from between his shoulder blades which appeared to encourage the party to indulge in a fresh round of divisive state leadership games, now we have in-fighting at the Victorian state body level which has blood running in the gutters.
First it was discovered that the blog Ted Baillieu Must Go was administered by party members.
At least two staff sackings came out of that and it's rumoured that the party went directly to Google to have this blog snuffed.
Now a state campaign manager has been outed (in what looks suspiciously like internal payback) and forced to resign over an anti-Semitic email sent during the 2007 federal election.
Victorian Lib leader, 'Red' Ted Baillieu, is hitting out at all and sundry by pledging a 'purge', with Melbourne's The Age happy to oblige with publication of any details.
Red Ted's public hissy fit shows just how thin the Baillieu blood runs in the current generation.
Word is out that prominent names at state and federal levels will get an airing before the Victorian Libs stop devouring themselves.

Like just about everyone else I managed to get a look at the ditched blog and the Baillieu montage above comes from that site.

Meanwhile in New South Wales the cracks widen...

Yesterday Crikey reported:
Debnam has resigned from the Opposition’s front bench, paving the way for current Liberal leader Barry O’Farrell to announce a shadow cabinet reshuffle this morning (11.30am).
In an unexpected dummy-spit which has annoyed many of his colleagues, Debnam has sent a private email explaining his action:
I have been opposed to Michael Costa’s electricity privatisation and despite lacking the numbers in Parliament to stop it, I’ve argued for the Coalition to take a strong stand against the privatisation and in favour of clean renewable energy. However, in my view, the conditional acceptance announced late last week by the Coalition effectively surrenders to Costa’s privatisation. Given my strong views, it is untenable for me to continue as the Shadow Minister for Energy and remain on the frontbench simply biting my tongue.
Debnam has given an undertaking to stay in parliament and contest the next election in 2011 as the MP for Vaucluse – so there will be no embarrassing by-election.

Electricity privatisation: NSW Speaker opposes it

The Member for Northern Tablelands and Speaker in the NSW Legislative Assembly, Richard Torbay, has put his cards about the privatisation of electricity on the table.

The Armidale Express reports Torbay said, "I am still opposed to the electricity privatisation and have not heard any arguments to convince me otherwise.

“Short term it will inevitably lead to loss of jobs and poorer services in country areas. But in long term the policy of selling off public assets may be seen as short sighted.

“The debate we should be having is the lack of government investment in public infrastructure over a long period and whether the people would be better served through reversing this position.”

Torbay said the power privatisation debate debased political standards in NSW and both the government and opposition had misled the people.

Although Torbay gave both the Government and Opposition serves for the position they have taken on the power issue, he made a stinging attack on National Party MPs.

According to Torbay, the Nationals had publicly opposed the sell off and told their constituents they were against it, but caved in at the last minute and fell in line with their Coalition partners.

“It’s like dairy deregulation and firearms legislation. The Nationals say one thing in the electorate and then go back to Parliament and vote against it,” he said.

With all its duck shoving, manoeuvring, number crunching and backflipping it has been an exercise in sheer hypocrisy and the worst I’ve seen since entering Parliament,” he said.

“The vital component missing in this debate has been the interests of the people.

“They have been misinformed and misled from start to finish.

“Although it looks as if we have a done deal on the privatisation, very few people in regional NSW have any idea of how it would impact on them or whether it is a sound long term decision. That is the debate we should have had.”

Mr Torbay said the Labor government went to the 2007 election with a commitment not to privatise the state’s public electricity assets and despite internal divisions now seemed set to push it through.

After sitting on the fence throughout the debate, the Liberals and Nationals had given their support this week based on conditions that were simply a face saving device to mask growing political division within the parties.

The Bush Wedding - doin' it big, Texan style

In marrying 30-year old Henry Hager, Jenna Bush, the daughter of US President George Bush, didn't do things in half measures.

Today's Sydney Morning Herald reports (courtesy of The Washington Post) the happy couple had 30 attendants included Jenna's twin sister, Barbara, who as bridesmaid wore a long "moonstone blue" silk gown; 14 other young women in short chiffon dresses, by the designer Lela Rose; Mr Hager's older brother, Jack, who was best man; and 14 ushers.

Did you get that?

Yep, you read it right. The happy couple had thirty, t-h-i-r-t-y, 30, 3-0, attendants!

How would you feel if you were one of Henry or Jenna's buddies/pals and you didn't get a place in their First XXX.

P _ ssed off, one would imagine.

The world's oceans are becoming fish poor

On the NSW North Coast we can all be proud of the fact that local commercial fishing fleets have begun to take onboard the idea of sustainability and the need to better manage how they harvest wild fish stocks.

Even if one day of keeping an eye on recreational fishers is likely to make the blood run cold with apprehension for future river estuary fish numbers.

 

Nationally, overfishing by both groups remains an issue.

Nineteen of the twenty-eight fish categories that are managed by the Commonwealth are still overfished and two more are close to being overfished.

 

With fish meat being an established part of the global diet, human population numbers and known fish numbers are showing a disturbing scenario.

 

In The Observer on Sunday.

 

Is anyone not aware that wild fish are in deep trouble? That three-quarters of commercially caught species are over-exploited or exploited to their maximum? Do they not know that industrial fishing is so inefficient that a third of the catch, some 32 million tonnes a year, is thrown away? For every ocean prawn you eat, fish weighing 10-20 times as much have been thrown overboard. These figures all come from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), which also claims that, of all the world's natural resources, fish are being depleted the fastest. With even the most abundant commercial species, we eat smaller and smaller fish every year - we eat the babies before they can breed.

Callum Roberts, professor of marine conservation at York University, predicts that by 2050 we will only be able to meet the fish protein needs of half the world population: all that will be left for the unlucky half may be, as he puts it, 'jellyfish and slime'. Ninety years of industrial-scale exploitation of fish has, he and most scientists agree, led to 'ecological meltdown'. Whole biological food chains have been destroyed.

 

Australian Bureau of Rural Sciences Fisheries Status Report 2006 here.

Australian Marine Conservation Society Sustainable Seafood Guide here.