Million dollar Yamba

"CASHED-UP investors are driving a coastal property boom the likes of which has not been seen before, but traditional hotspots are missing out, as buyers demand value as well as a view.---------

In Yamba, four hours' drive south of Brisbane and eight hours north of Sydney, agent Mike Macqueen said good blocks of land were still available for under $1million, but beachfront land would cost more.

"The big difference now is we're getting a lot of investors from the Gold Coast coming into the area," said Mr Macqueen.

"There's nothing much left in Byron Bay and the area around there, so they're coming that bit further down."

The Australian yesterday:
 http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23015416-5010800,00.html

 

I don't think it would take this article in The Australian to make longtime Yamba residents aware of the fact that out-of-town developers are eating up available land and leaving little for ordinary people wanting a family home.

Yamba is all but surrounded on all four sides by ocean, river and lake. With available vacant land fast disappearing, this white shoe brigade from north of the border are pushing hard to overdevelop 

their speculative lots. 

Clarence Valley shire councillors seem to be doing the bare minimum to protect this small coastal town.

  

Not racism - just a genuine concern for whales which inhabit Australian waters

Yesterday the news was full of reports that an anti-Australian, pro-whaling video sourced out of Japan was on the Internet.

The video by SasukeZ7 erroneously implies that Australia is being racist in its anti-whaling stance.

It had been viewed over 100,000 times when I clicked on.

Pity that all ethical debating rules went out the window when this visual tirade was created.

If the author had taken time to think he/she would realise that Australia opposes any country whaling in the Antarctic, not just the Japanese fleet.

Link to video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8lvep0-Ii0

 

In SasukeZ7's YouTube profile is a bald statement that Australia's Professor Tim Flannery supports Japanese whaling.

Bet that will impress Tim, as he had expressly stated his relief that Japan has abandoned plans to kill endangered Humpback whales.

In addition, his general support for Minke whaling was qualified and he drew attention to problems with how these mammals are being killed.

Not too sure that he was impressed by the fact that the Japanese fleet intends to also hunt 50 endangered Fin whales.

The Daily Telegraph article in December 2007:

http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,22987914-5001021,00.html

 

As a piece of crude propaganda SasukeZ7's video did nothing to change my views, but it did manage to irritate. I suspect that many others would feel the same.

Australia coming of age

The Northern Territory's deputy leader Marion Scrymgour stepped in as Chief Minister yesterday, and will stay in the role while Paul Henderson is on holiday.
However briefly, this makes the deputy leader the first indigenous person to head an Australian government. You little bewdy, Marion!
Photo from abc.net.au

More NSW North Coast flood pictures

Photographs of NSW North Coast flooding in January 2008 from ABC News and The Age.

Rudd meets with US Congressional Leaders delegation

"PRIME Minister Kevin Rudd has taken a break from his summer holidays to meet two of the United States' most powerful parliamentary leaders today.

Mr Rudd met the 13-member US Congressional Leaders delegation at his Sydney residence, Kirribilli House, this evening.
There was expected to be a host of issues on the agenda during their meeting, including the US-Australian alliance and security issues such as Iraq and Afghanistan."

News.com.au yesterday:

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23014031-29277,00.html

 

This should have made for an interesting exchange of ideas.

Congressman Steny Hoyer of Maryland, the leading Democrat in the delegation, appears to believe the only errors made in going to war in Afghanistan and Iraq were that not enough troops were sent and that combat forces deserve a pay rise.

While Congressman Roy Blunt of Southwest Missouri, the senior Republican in the group, seems to think everything is going just fine in Iraq, supports a continued US presence in Afghanistan and knows that all is peachy keen at Guantanamo Bay .

Now that the Prime Minister has met with some of his new best friends, will we see a further softening of Federal Labor's stance on Australian military involvement in Iraq?

Hey Hughie, tone it down a little!

On the NSW North Coast this morning the seas are high and dirty brown, beaches are eroded, with some towns and farm land awash with flood water.

Counting on my fingers, this has to be at least the third natural disaster declaration in the last twelve months on the Northern Rivers.

Severe storms, large hail, even a mini cyclone. Now bl**dy floods - we just can't win a trick.

Ballina Shire Council has a great arts idea

One of the things often missing from the NSW North Coast living experience is public art.

Most of us have to be content with the odd small, outdoor mural on local government property and little else.

So it was nice to read that Ballina is doing something positive.

 

"Creative pieces of public art are popping up around the Ballina Shire, giving tourists something to gawk at and the locals something to talk about.

The art works are in line with a Ballina council policy aimed at increasing the number of public art works in the Shire.

New commercial, retail and tourist developments worth more than $1 million must include public art to the value of at least $15,000."

The Northern Star article:

http://www.northernstar.com.au/localnews/storydisplay.cfm?storyid=3759843&thesection=localnews&thesubsection=&thesecondsubsection=