WDCS International asks: Will you take a few seconds to be part of conservation history?

The time to act is now!

Global plea on behalf of Australia's diverse marine life sent out 9 November 2010

Largest Conservation Decision In Australian History Hangs In The Balance. HELP MAKE HISTORY - PLEASE ACT NOW! Dear Friend Within weeks the Australian government will make a key decision in creating the largest network of marine protected areas in the world, but it hangs in the balance. We need to you to help persuade them to make the right decision. At stake is critical habitat for more than 50% of the world’s species of whales and dolphins and Australians are calling out for international help in making sure this decision goes the right way. Click here to send an email to The Hon Tony Burke MP, Minister for the Environment. Your email could make all the difference. Australia has one of the largest marine territories in the world. A huge variety of fish, sharks, whales and seals live in the continent’s spectacular submerged mountain ranges, deep sea canyons and reefs. These waters provide refuge for the magnificent blue, humpback, and southern right whales, as well as bottlenose, spotted and striped dolphins, to name a few. However, right now they are unprotected, and with oil and fishing industries undermining moves to increase protection, the international community needs to take what action it can. The Government will make its first major decision for the western region within weeks, and the decision will set the standard of protection that will then be applied to the rest of Australia’s waters for the next 10 to 20 years. This protection can't come soon enough. Be part of a historic decision! Please send an email today. - it will only take you a few seconds and could make a world of difference for whales and dolphins. Thank you Chris Butler-Stroud WDCS Chief Executive The spectacular biodiversity of Australia's waters. (c) Andrew Halsall, courtesy SOML Hundreds of dolphins are killed in nets in Australia's waters every year. (c) Greenpeace AP HELP US MAKE HISTORY! Send an e-mail now to the Australian Minister for the Environment.

A thought bubble I can believe in....

RaboDirect general manager Greg McAweeney told an audience from the finance sector in Sydney last week that companies such as Google and PayPal are more responsive and trusted than banks.
"If Google got up and said we are going to offer a savings account, for me, that would be very difficult and confronting," McAweeney said.

Graphic from Darren Pauli/ZDNet Australia

So we're to have a national referendum sometime in the next three years....

Well this is bound to get interesting.
Prime Minister Gillard has just announced a long overdue national referendum on including formal recognition of Aboriginal first peoples in the Australian Constitution.
The trick's going to be how to keep the entire proposition from turning into a prolonged and painful train wreck.
Those sticky-fingered political power brokers need to be penned far away from consultations on any proposed wording of the question being put to the vote.
Because as sure as night follows day they will want to tack other questions onto the ballot paper, with the sole purpose of extending political party power over the federal parliament and the people.
Such a move would almost surely sink any hope of formal recognition.

North Coast Voices celebrates its third birthday with a give-away

In October this year the regional group blog North Coast Voices reached the three-year milestone in its daily publication of news and opinion.

To say thankyou to our readers and celebrate this occasion we are giving away two sets of two flora and fauna studies by well-known NSW North Coast photographer Debrah Novak.

These photographic studies are signed and mounted but unframed.

The first reader from outside of Australia who sends an email with the subject line "Birthday" to northcoastvoices@gmail.com after 9am GMT/UTC on 10 November 2010 will be sent one set, provided they supply a legitimate return email address required to arrange mailing.

The first reader from within Australia who sends an email with the subject line "Birthday" to northcoastvoices@gmail.com after 9am AEST on 10 November 2010 will be sent one set, provided they supply a legitimate return email address to arrange mailing.

Clarencegirl, Clarrie Rivers, WaterDragon, K. Roo and Petering Time

* NCV contributors listed in the blog sidebar and their families are of course ineligible in relation to this birthday offer.


Image from The Impulsive Buy

Update:

Congratulations to Michael from Leeds, U.K. and Sharon from Woolongong, NSW.

Your wildlife studies are on there way and we hope that you will enjoy these examples of NSW North Coast flora and fauna.

Bank finances in pictures to compare with the Commonwealth Bank's overblown rhetoric

With Commonwealth Bank CEO Norris (of the $16M salary package) currently defending that bank's blatant cash grab when it raised its loan rate 45 points on the back of the latest official interest rate rise of 25 points, perhaps it's time to look at what The Reserve Bank of Australia had to say on domestic financial markets in November 2010:

The average cost of the major banks’ long-term
funding continues to rise as maturities are rolled over
at higher spreads. However, in recent months, this has
been largely offset by the narrowing in the spread
between bank bills and OIS rates. Overall, this suggests
that, in aggregate, the major banks’ funding costs are
likely to have been little changed over recent months,
though trends differ for individual banks depending
on their mix of funding.

In terms of net interest margins, banks have recently
reported mixed results; most have experienced a small
decrease in margins, though some have experienced
a small increase. In aggregate, the net interest margin
of the major banks has fluctuated in a relatively narrow
range since 2004, between 2¼ and 2½ percentage
points......

Financials’ profits rose by 10 per cent, largely as a result

of lower bad and doubtful debt charges and an increase in net
interest income.

UPDATE:

Commonwealth Bank chief executive Sir Ralph Norris has conceded his bank's 0.45 per cent interest rate hike will cost some of his customers their homes, a reality he says troubles him.
But in defence of his bank's Melbourne Cup Day hike, Sir Ralph said it was better to see "a few" foreclosures than have an economy hamstrung by a low-profit banking system.

Read more in The Courier Mail here.

Surely Teh Rabbit didn't say that?

Sue Neales writing in The Mercury on 7 November 2010 :

FEDERAL Coalition leader Tony Abbott has told the Tasmanian branch of the Liberal Party it must woo women, plumbers, blue-collar workers and students if it is ever to regain its political strength.

Woo, Mr. Abbott? Woo?

Why not smooze, flatter, flannel or lead up the garden path? Because if Neales is quoting then you obviously aren’t seeing women, plumbers, blue-collar workers and students as responsible adult voters who have a right to be honestly presented with considered policy and promises at the next federal election.

When it comes to The Greens I feel a "please explain"coming on....

I’m guessing that the Victorian Greens are going to be run out of Emma Bull's office in Canberra from now on. But why, when The Greens are still registered at state level in NSW, Queensland and West Australia.

From Twitpic on 7 November 2010:
Bob and Victorian candidates after the Greens' election campaign launch in Melbourne today

From the Australian Electoral Commission:
The Australian Greens – Victoria

Updated: 4 November 2010

The Australian Greens – Victoria was registered on 9 May 1995 and deregistered on 29 October 2010.

Reason: s135(1) - voluntary de-registration.

# Victorian State Election Saturday 27 November 2010 website