Maintenance in NSW public schools - it's a lottery

The new kid on the block in Macquarie Street, Chris Gulaptis (Member for Clarence), has been refreshingly honest (well, partly) in a piece that gives readers a distinct impression that he, rather than a staffer, prepared for a column "Chris Gulapris - Clarence MP" in this week's Coastal Views.

Gulaptis wrote about the government allocating $40m to its Public School Upgrade Fund.

BIG PROBLEM - Gulaptis didn't let on the time frame the $40m has to cover. In terms of what's needed to fully fund maintenance problems in NSW public school, $40m is just a drop in the bucket.

Now, to the "win-lose"scenario. Gulaptis said Casino High School "won "$70,000 to fix its roof.

Gulaptis's statement begs two questions:
1. What would have happened if Casino High School hadn't been so lucky with its lottery ticket?
2. What does the Local Member suggests other, not so lucky, schools do about their maintenance problems?

St. Patrick's Day 2012

Sydney turns green on Sunday the 18th of March

for the

2012 Sydney St Patrick's Day Parade & Family Day

The Parade commences with pre-parade entertainment in front of Town Hall on George St from 10.30am to midday, to keep early crowds entertained.

The parade commences at midday and consisting of floats, marching bands and walking groups, starting at the corner of Town Hall on George Street and Bathurst Street continuing to Park St and around Elizabeth St, ending at Hyde Park near St James Station.

The festivities continue at the Family Day at Hyde Park, from 1.00pm until 6.30pm. There will be two stages with Irish music and dancing, Irish food stalls to sample the best of the nation’s cuisine, children’s areas and of course, a the bar will stock Guinness to toast St Patrick himself!

Keep safe and drink responsibly

Have Fun!

Graphic from HelloKids.com

National Napping Day: proof that America can no longer man-up

Ever wondered if the Home of the Brave and Land of the Free was as full of pioneer-hardy folk as its relentless skiting makes out?

Well here’s proof in Huff Post that those babies can’t even take daylight saving in their stride:

“Daylight Saving Time means more afternoon sunshine, but that may have been little consolation to those who lost an hour of sleep Sunday morning.

If you're still groggy from losing that precious hour, then take advantage of National Napping Day, observed today, March 14. This unofficial holiday encourages you to catch forty winks and enjoy the health and productivity benefits of napping.

First observed in 1999, National Napping Day is the brainchild of Boston University professor William Anthony, Ph.D. and his wife, Camille.

"We chose this particular Monday because Americans are more 'nap-ready' than usual after losing an hour of sleep to daylight savings time," Anthony said in B.U.'s press release. " 

Google Images harvested the cartoon

Ah, those were the days in Sawtell!

Google News Archives for Granny Herald on 1st January 1950 threw up a digital memory of days gone past in sleepy Sawtell

Chris Gulaptis in the chamber (Thursday, 15/3/12)

Chris had a rather quiet day at work yesterday. Hansard records him as an early riser, having spoken about Community Recognition Notices not long after the starting whistle was blown at 10.00am.

He spoke in relation to the Grafton Daily Examiner Hockey NSW Media Award  and then the Grafton Regional Gallery Foundation. After that he kept a low profile. Perhaps he'd been told to keep his head down while another north coast National MP, Geoff Provest the Member for Tweed and Parliamentary Secretary for Police and Emergency Services, donned a flak jacket and readied himself for the cross fire heading his way.

During Question Time the Leader of the Opposition, John Robertson, asked What action will the Premier take against the Parliamentary Secretary for Police, given his electoral returns clearly demonstrate he received a donation from a property developer on 30 March 2011?

The Premier replied, I am happy to seek advice on that question from the Election Funding Authority ... .

O'Farrell then added,  I will seek the advice of the Election Funding Authority, but I also make the point that we are all expected to abide by the law and if we do not, it is the Election Funding Authority and Mr Barry who will take action.

Provest jumped up at when question time finished and provided the following explanation:
 I wish to make a personal explanation. Earlier today during question time the Leader of the Opposition asserted that I accepted a political donation from a property developer. Let me say at the outset, I have always been full and frank with my parliamentary affairs—hence, the detailed nature of my pecuniary interests. I did not realise that Power Industries and/or James Power may have been prohibited donors. I am now seeking advice from the New South Wales Election Funding Authority. If those donations are not permitted under the legislation, they will be dealt with accordingly.  (Expect to hear a lot more about this in coming days.)

What is it about NSW National Party MPs and the position of Parliamentary Secretary for Police? The former, now disgraced, Member for Clarence, Steve Cansdell obtained his 15 minutes of fame as a consequence of events he was associated with when he was in that position. Is it just a matter of a couple of good local MPs having a run of bad luck or is it something more sinister?

Here's what Gulaptis said earlier in the day:

 Grafton Daily Examiner Hockey NSW Media Award
 (1) Congratulates The Grafton Daily Examiner on winning Hockey New South Wales's top media award for Outstanding Coverage in 2011.

(2) Commends sports writer Gary Nichols for his reporting on local hockey activities in the Clarence Valley.

(3) Commends the Grafton Hockey Association, in particular Robyn Anderson, Stephen McIlveen and photographer Shane Sedger for the role they play in compiling articles on local hockey.

 Grafton Regional Gallery Foundation
 (1) Congratulates The Gallery Foundation, its Chairperson George Burkitt and Committee, on the successful d’Art 7th Anniversary Dinner and Art Auction on 2 March 2012.

(2) Thanks author Dr Shirley Walker being the guest speaker for the evening.

(3) Commends the Foundation for its commitment and dedication to support the Grafton Regional Gallery through various fundraising activities during the year to fund the gallery's collection and facilities.

(4) Notes the economic benefits from the gallery and its contribution to the cultural, social and educational life of the Clarence Valley.

It's only taken the Australian Securities and Investment Commission three years to dig a hole big enough to bury its head in

It’s only taken the Australian Securities and Investment Commission three years to dig a hole deep enough to bury its head in. The Age must be wondering why it bothered outlaying time and resources on investigative journalism.

The Age 31 October 2009:

BIPARTISANSHIP is rare in Canberra these days, but the Government and Opposition are as one on the scandal-racked Reserve Bank subsidiary Securency: they don't want to know about it. Since May, The Age has exposed a string of allegations about the way the company goes about the business of selling its banknote polymer to other nations, some of which are notoriously corrupt.

The Age 5 March 2012:

FEDERAL police have referred to the corporate watchdog evidence of possible illegality by senior Reserve Bank officials and business figures in connection with the nation's worst bribery scandal.

The referral to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission marks a significant shift in the investigation of the Reserve firms Securency and Note Printing Australia, which allegedly paid millions of dollars in kickbacks to win foreign banknote contracts.

For the first time in three years - and after last year charging 10 former senior banknote executives with paying bribes - authorities are examining the conduct of several Reserve-appointed directors of NPA and Securency between 1998 and 2009.

It is understood federal police have gathered significant documentary evidence and witness statements that point to improper corporate behaviour and have sought legal advice about the material before referring it to ASIC. Those whose conduct is under scrutiny over possible illegality include:

A former deputy governor of the Reserve and former chairman of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, Graeme Thompson, who chaired NPA and Securency and who allegedly approved highly irregular company behaviour that fuelled bribery.

An assistant governor at the Reserve, Frank Campbell, who as NPA director was privy to information about company corruption and bribery in 2007 which he and his board did not refer to the police.

The managing director of NPA, Chris Ogilvy, who also sat on Securency's board and who was party to highly irregular corporate behaviour, including the payment of secret commissions via inflated contracts.

A former Reserve assistant governor, Les Austin, who was a director of Securency and NPA.

If ASIC pursues civil or criminal charges against any of the directors, they could face jail sentences or heavy fines.

Company directors have a legal obligation to act honestly and diligently, and if their recklessness is found to have contributed to bribery or other improper conduct, they can be charged.

ABC News 12 March 2012:

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission says it will not launch an investigation into bribery allegations against two companies linked to the Reserve Bank.

Seven former employees of polymer banknote companies Securency International and Note Printing Australia (NPA), and the companies themselves, have been charged in relation to bribes allegedly paid to foreign officials to win note-printing contracts overseas.

Securency is 50 per cent owned by the RBA, while NPA is wholly owned by the RBA.

ASIC says it looked for evidence of possible breaches of the Corporations Act in material supplied by the Australian Federal Police.

"In line with its normal practice, ASIC has reviewed this material from the AFP for possible directors’ duty breaches of the Corporations Act and has decided not to proceed to a formal investigation," the regulator said in a statement.

Millions of dollars were alleged to have been paid in bribes to officials in Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam between 1999 and 2005 to secure contracts to produce bank notes for those nations.

If you own a dot com website the U.S. Government 'owns' you

In March 2012 Wired.com blows the whistle on Uncle Sam:

“When U.S. authorities shuttered sports-wagering site Bodog.com last week, it raised eyebrows across the net because the domain name was registered with a Canadian company, ostensibly putting it beyond the reach of the U.S. government. Working around that, the feds went directly to VeriSign, a U.S.-based internet backbone company that has the contract to manage the coveted .com and other “generic” top-level domains.

EasyDNS, an internet infrastructure company, protested that the “ramifications of this are no less than chilling and every single organization branded or operating under .com, .net, .org, .biz etc. needs to ask themselves about their vulnerability to the whims of U.S. federal and state lawmakers.”

But despite EasyDNS and others’ outrage, the U.S. government says it’s gone that route hundreds of times. Furthermore, it says it has the right to seize any .com, .net and .org domain name because the companies that have the contracts to administer them are based on United States soil, according to Nicole Navas, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman.

The controversy highlights the unique control the U.S. continues to hold over key components of the global domain name system, and rips a Band-Aid off a historic sore point for other nations. A complicated web of bureaucracy and Commerce Department-dictated contracts signed in 1999 established that key domains would be contracted out to Network Solutions, which was acquired by VeriSign in 2000. That cemented control of all-important .com and .net domains with a U.S. company – VeriSign – putting every website using one of those addresses firmly within reach of American courts regardless of where the owners are located – possibly forever….”