Quote of the Week

This weekend Abbott will be on the Pollie Pedal, a familiar and comforting excursion. He gives the impression of a leader for whom the core task of governing and delivering has become very hard. [The Conversation 15 August 2014]

Meme of the Week

Terrorist beheadings could happen in Australia, Tony Abbott warns as he pushes tougher security laws

Mid North Coast Greens: NSW Minister for Primary Industries admits to being industry mouthpiece on coal seam gas

Mid North Coast Greens Media Release Tuesday 19 August 2014:

Minister Hodgkinson admits to being industry mouthpiece on coal seam gas

The Greens NSW mining spokesperson Jeremy Buckingham was astounded to hear the Minister for Primary Industries, Katrina Hodgkinson read an AGL press release to answer a question about the ability of coal seam gas to coexist with the dairy industry.

Mr Buckingham asked Minister Hodgkinson whether she had read the report of the parliamentary inquiry into coal seam gas, and particularly the evidence given by North Coast dairy co-operative NORCO that they could not coexist with coal seam gas.  NORCO recently reported on their rapid expansion of its dairy exports to China.  Minister Hodgkinson answered by reading verbatim from this AGL press release. 

“It’s appalling that the Minister for Primary Industries resorts to literally being an industry mouthpiece by reading our an AGL press release to answer a serious question,” said Greens MP Jeremy Buckingham.

“Except for an official tour of AGL’s coal seam gas facilities at Camden, Ms Hodgkinson seems to have put no thought into the subject and is happy to just read from an industry press release.

“She admits she has not visited the gas area near Narrabri, nor been to Queensland where the coal seam gas industry has rapidly expanded in agricultural areas, nor could she remember whether she’d read the parliamentary report into coal seam gas.

“If I were Agricultural Minister, I would have quickly visited to the United States to find out for myself how fracking for gas affects agriculture.  Instead we have an ignorant minister reliant on industry spin.

“Farmers are up in arms around the state, worried about the impact of gas and mining on their ability to farm and to source clean water, yet the minister is asleep to the issue.  

“Farmers would be disappointed that Minister Hodgkinson seems disinterested in her portfolio.  Agriculture is a vibrant and innovative sector of the economy and needs a passionate advocate, but instead we have an ineffective minister.”

A Lesson For Japan: Southern Ocean Research Partnership proves non-lethal whale research both possible and productive

A satellite-tagged minke whale in the Antarctic. 
Picture: ARI FRIEDLAENDER/AUSTRALIAN ANTARCTIC DIVISION

The Herald Sun 16 August 2014

Department of the Environment Australian Antarctic Division 13 August 2014:

The extraordinary feeding behaviour of Antarctic minke whales has been recorded for the first time, showing the mammals lunge feeding up to 100 times per hour under the sea ice, gorging on Antarctic krill.

Scientists from the United States and Australia attached multi-sensor suction cup satellite tags to minke whales off the west Antarctic Peninsula last year to study their foraging patterns.

Australian Antarctic Division Chief Scientist, Dr Nick Gales, said the tags measured the whales’ orientation, depth and acceleration.

“Prior to this work the movements and diving behaviour of these whales was something of a mystery as no tags had been deployed on the species,” Dr Gales said.

“We found that the minkes were swimming just beneath the sea ice, feeding at incredibly high rates, taking mouthfuls of krill every 30 seconds.

“This is very different from other whale behaviour, for example the gigantic blue whales lunge up to four times during a dive and smaller humpbacks lunge up to 12 times.”

The study also found the minkes’ size and manoeuvrability allows them to take advantage of the sea ice habitat.

“The minke’s preferred prey, Antarctic krill, aggregate under the sea ice and attract the whales to the area, leading to these feeding frenzies,” Dr Gales said.

“But any future change in sea ice has the potential to impact on the minke whales’ foraging habits.”

The study is part of the Australian-led Southern Ocean Research Partnership, which is focused on non-lethal research and is endorsed by the International Whaling Commission.

“It’s clear from the insight we have gained into the whales’ behaviour through this work, that you simply don’t have to kill the whales to study them,” Dr Gales said.

The study was published in the Journal of Experimental Biology.

Background

The Southern Ocean Research Partnership was established in 2009 to enhance cetacean conservation and the delivery of non-lethal whale research to the International Whaling Commission (IWC). SORP partners include Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, France, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States. The Partnership research focus is on post-exploitation whale population structure, health and status; and changing atmosphere and oceans: Southern Ocean whales and their ecosystems.

Has Tony Abbott finally lost the plot completely?

Unable to govern effectively at home,  Liberal-Nationals Coalition Prime Minister of Australia Tony Abbott looks elsewhere to validate his self-importance.

He spends tens of millions hunting the ocean floor for a missing Malaysian commercial aircraft, postures aggressively towards Russian Prime Minister Putin and, tries to invite himself into a civil war.

Not content with alienating various Asian trading partners, traditional allies and the United Nations, now English-born Abbott is inserting himself into the debate concerning Scotland’s independence.

This ill-considered, opinionated move made Page One of The Times on Saturday 16 August 2014:

BBC News  also reported on his interview on 16 August 2014:

He said the nations who would "cheer" the prospect were "not the countries whose company one would like to keep".

A spokesman for Yes Scotland said: "Independence seems to be working well for Australia."…..

Mr Abbott told the Times: "What the Scots do is a matter for the Scots and not for a moment do I presume to tell Scottish voters which way they should vote.

"But as a friend of Britain, as an observer from afar, it's hard to see how the world would be helped by an independent Scotland.

"I think that the people who would like to see the break-up of the United Kingdom are not the friends of justice, the friends of freedom, and the countries that would cheer at the prospect... are not the countries whose company one would like to keep."

A spokesman for Yes Scotland, which is campaigning for independence, said: "These comments have echoes of Lord George Robertson's "forces of darkness" speech in April which was widely ridiculed, even by No supporters, as one of the anti-independence campaign's most outlandish scare stories.

"The decision about Scotland's future is one for the people of Scotland to make - a point that even David Cameron asserts. After a Yes vote, Scotland will take her place as a normal and valued member of the international community - just as Australia did when she gained independence at the turn of the century."

A spokesman for Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond said: "Tony Abbott has a reputation for gaffes, but his bewildering comments have all the hallmarks of one of the Westminster government's international briefings against Scotland."

He added: "Scotland's referendum is a model of democracy, which has been cited as such internationally, including by the US Secretary of State. An independent Scotland will be a beacon for fairness, justice and cooperation in the international community - and a great friend of Australia."….

Scotland's First Minister went further in a BBC News report on 17 August 2014:

Scotland's first minister has said the Australian prime minister's comments on Scottish independence were "foolish, hypocritical and offensive".

* Snaphot from animated video Tony Abbott - Wrecking Ball

The next time a News Corp journalist tries to point a finger at someone at a rival media outlet, remember these recent examples of that company's own lapses from grace

The Daily Mail 8 August 2014:

First edition blunder: This is the Daily Telegraph's first edition printed on Thursday, August 7, featuring the photoshopped image of Boston bombing victim, James Costello - who became one of the iconic figures of the terrorist attack tragedy - on the right hand side of Page 11. The image shows the stricken body of Mr Costello as he staggered around dazed in shredded clothing with severe burns to his legs and shrapnel wounds. The paper replaced his face with that of Sydney Morning Herald columnist Mike Carlton's, complete with an Arab headdress

Whoops, take two: The Daily Telegraph removed the photograph of Boston bombing victim James Costello from the photoshopped image, replacing his injured torso with that of a man buttoned up in a brown suit, but keeping Mike Carlton's head and the Yasser Arafat style headdress

Adjudication No. 1614: Third Party Matter 130256/The Daily Telegraph (August 2014)
The Press Council has considered whether its Standards of Practice were breached by material published on The Daily Telegraph's website on 3 February 2014 relating to the death of the actor, Philip Seymour Hoffman. The material was headed “Kids grieve for junkie actor dad” and included a photograph of his children and an assertion about what their response would be to the circumstances in which Mr Hoffman died.
The Council has concluded that the combined impact of the references to the children and their alleged feelings, a photograph of them and the use of the term “junkie”, was highly unfair and offensive, especially as the material was published only a few hours after Mr Hoffman’s death.
The Council also concluded that serious breaches of its Standards of Practice occurred in this case even though the offending aspects were removed from the website within an hour. The Council noted it is entirely foreseeable that, as occurred in this instance, material which has been removed from a website may nevertheless be seen widely before its removal, and remain permanently available from other internet sources

Adjudication No. 1598: Cameron Byers and others/The Australian (July 2014)The Press Council has upheld complaints arising from a front page article and an editorial in The Australian on 16 September 2013 and a subsequent item headed “clarification” on 21-22 September. The items related to an impending report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), especially about observed rates of global warming of surface air temperature.
The Council concluded that an erroneous claim in the headline of the article about a revised warming rate was very serious, given the importance of the issue and of the need for accuracy (both of which were emphasised in the editorial that repeated the claim without qualification). It considered that there had been a failure to take appropriately rigorous steps before giving such forceful and prominent credence to the claim. Accordingly, the complaint was upheld on that ground. The Council considered that the gravity of the error, and its repetition without qualification in the editorial, required a correction which was more substantial, and much more prominent, than the very brief “clarification” on page 2. It said the heading should have given a brief indication of the subject matter to help attract the attention of readers of the original article and editorial. Accordingly, the complaint was upheld on those grounds.
The Council welcomed the acknowledgement of error and expressions of regret which the publication eventually made to it. But it said they should have been made very much earlier, and made directly to the publication’s readers in a frank and specific manner. It expressed considerable concern that this approach had not been adopted.

One rule for us and another for those super-entitled Liberal Party politicians

This is Australian Treasurer and millionaire Joe 'I'm the friend of the poor & downtrodden even though I have reduced their incomes' Hockey alighting from his taxpayer subsidised chauffeur-driven car. Please note (lower right hand corner) that this car has stopped on a disabled parking spot. Says it all really......

* Hat tip to Richard Chirgwin for bringing this to my attention