Finally, 15 & 17 August 2010 climate change becomes a focus of NSW North Coast debate in federal election

Climate Change Australia is part of the Climate Action Australia Network and:

is a community climate action group, with branches in Grafton (Clarence Valley), Port Macquarie (Hastings Valley) and Taree (Manning Valley) in north eastern New South Wales. The aims of Climate Change Australia are to: raise awareness about climate change issues and impacts encourage everyone to conserve energy and water promote the increased use of renewable energy encourage all levels of government to take urgent action on climate change. Next Tuesday CCA will host a candidates forum on climate change attended by all six candidates in the Page electorate. Candidates will put their position on climate change and answer questions from the community. Place: Roche's Family Hotel, Grafton Date: 17 August 2010 Time: 5.30pm to 6.30pm Information: clarenceclimate@yahoo.com.au The CCA Manning branch will also be holding a candidates forum in the Lyne electorate on Sunday 15 August 2010: CWA Hall (Quay North Building, 17-19 Horton Street) near the fig tree at The Town Green, beginning 10.30am. Contact stevelockhart@bigpond.com Ph: 02 6583 6393 The Northern Rivers Echo reports that on 17 August 2010, Grafton and South Grafton business people have been invited to meet the candidates of Page and Cowper. However, debate is stifled at this venue: With the support of Clarence Valley Council Mayor Richie Williamson, the Grafton Chamber will host an evening with the candidates following the council meeting on Tuesday. Due to council meeting procedure, questions cannot be raised from the public gallery. However, straight after the meeting, the Grafton Chamber of Commerce and Industry invites business people and the public gallery to join us and the candidates for light refreshments and an opportunity to raise questions with the candidates. Attendees are urged to be seated in the public gallery of the Grafton Council Chambers, 2 Prince Street, Grafton by 6.30pm.

The putative Australian deputy sheriff in any Abbott-led federal government?

Reading recent utterances of a certain Prince of the Church (and remembering his close cooperation with Abbott during the 2007 campaign) one cannot help but wonder if George Pell sees a possible Coalition victory on 21 August this year as less of a win for neo-conservative politics and more of a victory for the Catholic faith.

A victory which would allow him to figuratively perch on Tony Abbott's left shoulder and encourage that flawed politician's worst character traits.

Pell is obviously afraid that any increase in votes for The Greens would weaken Abbott's chances of becoming Australia's Über Right Wing Catholic prime minister and, the cardinal let fly with these sentiments last Sunday:

The Green ethic, as Bob Brown has written about it with Peter Singer, is that humans are simply another smarter animal, so that humans and animals are on the same or similar levels depending on their level of consciousness. This is to replace the Judaeo-Christian [sic] beliefs at the heart of Australia's values with the law of the jungle. It can be seen in the Greens' enthusiasm for abortion and euthanasia, which is bad news for the weak and the vulnerable, especially at the beginning and the end of life, and thoroughly anti-Christian.
and
One wing of the Greens are like water melons, green outside and red inside. A number were Stalinists, supporting Soviet oppression. A few years ago they even tried unsuccessfully to use the privileges committee of the N.S.W. Legislative Council to silence religious voices in public debate.
and again
"sweet-camouflaged poison".

In this he was supported on the NSW North Coast by the Catholic Bishop of Lismore Diocese who told the faithful that in voting they should consider candidates in this light:

"What sort of beliefs do they espouse? What sort of values do they hold, especially in regard to marriage and the family, in regard to the dignity and sanctity of human life? Is this candidate pro-life? Does he or she reflect the thinking and conduct of a person to whom I am happy, in conscience before God, to confide my vote?....we cannot ignore the enormous moral and social consequence of condoning the deliberate destruction of unborn human life."

While the bishop's counterpart in Perth had already questioned the advisability of voting for a atheist Labor prime minister in the person of Julia Gillard:

"Many Christians are concerned that someone who does not believe in God may not endorse the Christian traditions of respect for human life, for the sanctity of marriage and the independence of churches, church schools and church social welfare agencies."

The media release hurriedly sent out by the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference on 9 August, which began "Catholic Bishops do not tell people who to vote for", did not allay all fears that Pell and Co were not so subtly trying to direct votes in their congregations towards the only party headed by a committed pro-lifer.

It seems that Australian religious just can't resist meddling in the secular and, in case you were wondering, any lack of democracy after August 2010 is probably your fault - you, you, you nasty blogospherers!

Pell photograph credit: The Sydney Morning Herald

Studies in tones

From the very creative Sue H. Sue's work is for sale on Flickr.


Broom's Head Starry Night I (Armidale)

2010 Election Campaign Day 30 - A little help from your friends

Suffering from spin and pork pie overload? Try a little help from your friends at AFDB:

The 'republicofeveryone' shows Australia what a first class political ad looks like

republicofeveryone August 11, 2010
Our ad for the Greens which aired on Gruen Nation on August 11.

Get it right, it's a mountain!

In the aftermath of four international tourists missing for more than 15 hours in bushland in Mount Warning National Park on the NSW far north coast earlier this week, Tweed Daily News (13/8/10) reports "(a) Murwillumbah SES officer **** [name deleted] has called on Tweed accommodation providers to provide more information to guests about climbing the hill."

Hang on a minute, is it a hill or is it a mountain? Warning Hill or Mt Warning?

According to the Geographical Names Board of NSW, hills have altitudes of less than 300 metres.

The geographical feature, which has dual names of Mt Warning and Wollumbin (*1), has an elevation of 1,156 metres.

*1 From the Bandjalung-Yugambeh dialect chain word `Wollumbin' meaning the patriach of mountains. J A Gresty. The Numinbah Valley. p67 1947. (Source: GNB of NSW)

Warren Truss - Nationals Leader and now rural firefighter

I don't for one minute imagine that Nationals Leader Warren Truss thought that part of his job description during this federal election campaign included a sugar bag and a bucket of sand to put out Opposition Leader Tony Abbott's rural and regional spot fires before the wind fanned them into electoral blazes.

However it is rumoured that is how he is spending at least part of his time.

Unfortunately he was a little slow off the mark when it came to Abbott's intention to fully implement the former Howard Government's Murray-Darling Basin water plan, which in 2006-07 appeared to include possibly damming and diverting the Clarence River on the NSW North Coast.

It seems Warren was reduced to running behind the flames as they sped across the Northern Rivers by word of mouth, beamed out over the airwaves and lobbed on front lawns in print form. Apparently more than a few locals are literally incandescent with rage over the thought that they may have to again fight to 'Keep the Clarence Mighty' and he doesn't want anymore media attention on the subject ahead of polling day.

Fireman found at www.canario.co.uk