There's nothing even remotely funny about Trump's profound ignorance about climate change

https://youtu.be/naR2V6UOjkA

Who can provide Coco with a permanent loving home?

What's not to love about this happy face?

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"Coco" is a 10 month-old female Dalmatian-cross dog.

She has been the only dog in the household and has been rendered homeless because of the difficulty associated with keeping a dog in rented accommodation.

At the moment she is temporarily housed in the Lower Clarence Valley on the NSW North Coast and is desperately in need of a permanent home.

"She is an affectionate and beautiful dog once she gets to know you.

"She loves the water, walks, and just being with you in the garden where she will happily chew on a bone or chase and drink the water coming from the garden hose, or occasionally give you the ball back."

Coco has had all her vet work done and is ready for a loving home."

If you can offer "Coco" a forever home please contact Gabby on (02) 6645 7081.

The Australian Face of UK-based Noble Caledonia Cruise Line

The Noble Caledonia Limited cruise line would like the option of extending the number of its cruise days this coming October when it boards its UK passengers on the MV Caledonian Sky for its Australian Coastal Odyssey down the east coast of Australia.

This “small” cruise ship of 4,200 gross tonnage, dead weight of 645t, 90.6m in length, 15.3m wide, with a 4.25 maximum draft, will enter the Port of Yamba-Clarence River across a difficult bar at the river mouth in a month where coastal storms and strong wind warnings are not uncommon.

A ship with a reputation for damaging reefs will attempt this crossing in close proximity to a culturally important reef protected by Native Title.

It will ignore potential risk - not just to the ship and marine environment but to race relations in the Clarence Valley should the ship’s captain collide for a third time with a mapped underwater natural feature.

Noble Caledonia will be sending its cruise ship into the Clarence River estuary because it can – reaping the benefit of insistent and persistent lobbying of the NSW Berejiklian Government by the international cruise industry.

Which included meetings last year between Minister for Roads, Maritime and Freight & Nationals MP for Oxley Melinda Pavey and Royal Caribbean (28 February & 8 June), Carnival Australia (10 March, 8 June & 8 July), Carnival Global (21 March), Norwegian Cruise Lines (8 June), Cruise Line International Association (8 June & 21 June). As well as meetings between cruise ship industry representatives and Deputy Premier, Minister for Regional NSW, Minister for Skills, Minister for Small Business, Nationals MP for John Barilaro, Minister for Tourism and Major Events, and Assistant Minister for Skills, Nationals MP for Northern Tablelands, Adam Marshall. Minister for Trade, Tourism and Major Events and Minister for Sport, Nationals MLC Niall Blair and, Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, Nationals MP for Bega Andrew Constance.

However, the then predominately British and Swedish owner-shareholders of Noble Caledonia Limited (UK) went one step further when they first contemplated a move into Australian waters. 

They formed a partnership with the APT Group (owned by wealthy Victorian businessman Geoff McGeary) in 2012 - thereby providing themselves with a number of Australian beards and the lobbying services of a political donor to the Liberal Party of Australia who had through this partnership become a significant shareholder in the cruise line.

Meet these alleged beards………………..

Christopher Phillips "Chris" HALL  – Group Managing Director of Noble Caledonia Limited and Noble Caledonia Holdings Limited since 7 May 2015, as well as Group Manager APT Group since July 2014 – allegedly still resident in Australia.

Ross Malcolm KEMP – Group Finance Director of  Noble Caledonia Limited and Noble Caledonia Holdings Limited since 9 October 2014, as well as Group Finance Director APT Group since 2012 – allegedly still resident in Australia.

Russian Dolls 101: news of historic Australian security breaches discovered nested inside a more recent national security breach

Opps, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) permanently lost 707 Cabinet and National Security Committee documents between 2008 and August 2013.

 The general public find out about these losses approximately four to ten years later in January 2018, when mention was made of the situation in one file document within thousands of other top-secret and highly classified documents obtained by the ABC after yet another security breach involving Cabinet papers and other classified files found in old government locked filing cabinets sold at public auction in Canberra.

Even John le Carré would have thought this plot line was nigh on unbelievable - but then he didn't know our very own federal bureaucracy.

ABC News, 31 January 2018:

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) lost nearly 400 national security files in five years, according to a secret government stocktake contained in The Cabinet Files.

The Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet regularly audits all government departments and agencies that have access to the classified documents to ensure they are securely stored.

The missing documents are not the same files the ABC has obtained.

The classified documents lost by the AFP are from the powerful National Security Committee (NSC) of the cabinet, which controls the country's security, intelligence and defence agenda.

The secretive committee also deploys Australia's military and approves kill, capture or destroy missions.

Most of its documents are marked "top secret" and "AUSTEO", which means they are to be seen by Australian eyes only.

An email exchange between the cabinet secretariat and the AFP reveals the documents were lost between 2008 and 2013……

Troop deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq, counter-terrorism operations, foreign relations and Australia's border protection were among the top-secret and sensitive issues decided in the five-year period.

The cabinet secretariat's general practice was to give up searching and write off lost documents if they could not be found after consecutive audits, according to another document in The Cabinet Files.

Of course it is only three or four years ago that nearly 5,000 secret, confidential and restricted documents from two major federal departments held in a "B Class" secure container ended up in a recycling yard in Canberra.

There was an internal inquiry at the time but that obviously didn't translate into accounting for the whereabouts of all secure containers/filing cabinets and safes holding sensitive documents.

Given the fact that Australia's public broadcaster actually had possession of documents in the latest security breach, rather belatedly the secutity services began to care about national security.

ABC News, 1 February 2018:

ASIO officers have moved to secure the thousands of top secret and classified Cabinet files obtained by the ABC, in early morning operations in Canberra and Brisbane.

Officers delivered safes to the public broadcaster's Parliament House Bureau and South Bank studios around 1:00am, just hours after the massive national security breach was revealed.

The ABC still has access to the documents, now kept in the safes, and negotiations are still underway between lawyers for the ABC and the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C).

The department launched an urgent investigation on Wednesday, after it was revealed the trove of documents had been discovered in two locked filing cabinets offloaded to a second-hand furniture depot in Canberra.

The Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C) launched an urgent investigation into how the massive breach occurred, within an hour of the ABC revealing the trove of documents.

But the ABC understands the Australian Federal Police (AFP) are yet to join the inquiry.

* Russian Doll pic found at Google Images

Bellingen Environment Centre (BEC): “The reality is the hardwood native forest industry on the North Coast is in long term decline following the overharvesting of our native forests to meet over commitments in wood supply to North Coast sawmills"

Guardian News, Nambucca Valley Conservation Association, 29 January 2018:

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Melinda Pavey's  recent comments on forestry issues  frequently begin with phrases like  " let's consider reality" or "let's listen to the science". 

Unfortunately she appears to do neither according to the Bellingen Environment Centre (BEC) and the Nambucca Valley Conservation Association. 

"The reality is the hardwood native forest industry on the North Coast is in long term decline following the overharvesting of our native forests to meet over commitments in wood supply to North Coast sawmills . In response the industry  is seeking  to intensify harvesting to convert remaining available forests into highly flammable matchstick farms, harvested  intensely  by machines  when very young with much of the outputs burnt in 3 biomass plants proposed for Grafton, Kempsey and Taree," BEC spokesperson Ashley Love said.

"The authoritative document for the North Coast forests is the Regional Forest Agreement (RFA) for North East NSW.  It is one of nine regional forest agreements covering the majority of the forested regions of Australia. 

"The reality and the data shows that  North Coast  forests  have the worst representations of forests in conservation reserves of any of the nine regional forest agreement regions throughout Australia.

The forestry industry is seeking to intensify harvesting to convert remaining available forests into highly flammable matchstick farms

Ashley Love, Bellingen Environment Centre

"Rather than a ratio of conservation reserves to harvestable forest of 6:1 as Ms Pavey claims, the RFA  reveals a ratio of conservation reserves to total forest area of 1:3.

"Admittedly, not all the forests are harvestable and not all the reserves are covered in forest, so Ms Pavey must be cautious with figures which she uses."

Mr Love said Ms Pavey's claim that recent field survey work had found high koala occupancy in state forests did not have a broad scientific consensus as "the methodology used for the assessment was largely based on the results from placement of limited numbers of sound recording devices in the field – a very imprecise way of assessing koala populations".

"Her claim that harvested areas of forest regenerate is contradicted by the recent progress report of the RFAs which reports natural regeneration of  70 per cent over of areas harvested during the last 15 years. 

"We don't want to see 30 per cent of our forests lost each time they are harvested." 

"Ms Pavey's report of 27 timber mills between The Hunter and the Tweed indicates just how much the industry has declined – once there were hundreds of mills on the North Coast and thousands of employees in the timber industry.  Logging practices of cutting smaller and smaller trees have meant that the future sawlogs are not being left to grow on."

"She infers that 750 direct jobs in the timber industry are at risk by the establishment of the Great Koala National Park (GKNP) .  In so claiming, she is including in her estimate all the people employed in the industry between the Hunter and the Tweed Rivers and is including those working within plantations and private forest areas which are not included in the GKNP proposal."

NVCA president Paula Flack said that regardless of the National Party's continuous exaggeration of timber industry job numbers on the North Coast, they were dwarfed in comparison to the number of direct and indirect jobs which the GKNP would generate. 

"One recent study from Victoria indicated that one conservation reserve proposal for the Central Highlands forests would generate an additional 750 jobs," Ms Flack said.

"The establishment of national parks on public land and marine parks at sea is a global phenomenon and one of the universal responses to the increasing recognition of the need to protect and, in many cases, restore our natural environments. 

"Unfortunately our current Liberal National Party political leaders are unwilling see the wider environmental, social and economic benefits of the Great Koala National Park and would rather ignore the facts and science by swimming against the tide." 

Quotes of the Week

"The Cozy Bear [Russian] hackers are in a space in a university building near the Red Square. The group's composition varies, usually about ten people are active. The entrance is in a curved hallway. A security camera records who enters and who exits the room. The AIVD hackers manage to gain access to that camera. Not only can the intelligence service now see what the Russians are doing, they can also see who's doing it. Pictures are taken of every visitor. In Zoetermeer, these pictures are analyzed and compared to known Russian spies. Again, they've acquired information that will later prove to be vital."  [De Volkskrant, on the subject of Russian interference in 2016 presidential election, 25 January 2018]

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"The separation of powers doctrine dictates that the judiciary should not be the subject of improper influence by the other branches of government – being the executive and legislature. Comments by Dutton and other Coalition ministers to the effect that members of the judiciary should be selected on the basis of their ideological leanings and ability to deliver "tough" sentences – rather than independently look at all factors and apply the law – seek to undermine this doctrine and unduly influence both the selection process and practices of the judiciary. Dutton's populist political grandstanding may have some members of the public "egging him on", but the reality is that such rhetoric seeks to undermine one of the central pillars of our democracy." 

[Sydney Criminal Lawyers, 23 January 2018]

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“No president in history has burned more public money to sustain his personal lifestyle than Donald Trump”  [former George W. Bush staffer David Frum in his book Trumpocracy: The Corruption of the American Republic]

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“The events I’ve described in these pages are based on conversations that took place over a period of eighteen months with the president, with most members of his senior staff—some of whom talked to me dozens of times—and with many people who they in turn spoke to. The first interview occurred well before I could have imagined a Trump White House, much less a book about it, in late May 2016 at Trump’s home in Beverly Hills—the then candidate polishing off a pint of Häagen-Dazs vanilla as he happily and idly opined about a range of topics while his aides, Hope Hicks, Corey Lewandowski, and Jared Kushner, went in and out of the room.

Conversations with members of the campaign’s team continued through the Republican Convention in Cleveland, when it was still hardly possible to conceive of Trumps election. They moved on to Trump Tower with a voluble Steve Bannon—before the election, when he still seemed like an entertaining oddity, and later, after the election, when he seemed like a miracle worker.

Shortly after January 20, I took up something like a semipermanent seat on a couch in the West Wing. Since then I have conducted more than two hundred interviews.” [Author Michael Wolff from his book “Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House” published 5 January 2018]

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What those cruise industry lobbyists probably don't tell the NSW Minister for Roads, Maritime and Freight

Once National Party MP for Oxley Melinda Pavey was appointed NSW Minister for Roads, Maritime and Freight in January 2017 she met with representatives of international cruise lines and cruise industry lobbyists on at least six occasions before that year ended 1.

In fact the cruise ship industry has been busy lobbying any state minister2 that is seen as even remotely capable of advancing its greedy drive for more harbour access along the New South Wales coast.

I would be greatly surprised if at any of these meetings any mention was made of the fact that cruise ship tourism is often seen as a nuisance to be avoided by those land-based tourists who actually like to holiday near harbours, bays and river estuaries and who freely spend their money there.

So to fill a possible knowledge gap I offer these ministers a few quotes..........

“There are few places in the world with sunset views as spectacular as Santorini, but the tiny island in the Greek Cyclades is reaching breaking point. Almost two million people visited in 2017, 850,000 on cruise ships which drop anchor in its caldera, with passengers staying for a matter of hours rather than days. While those numbers have been capped to 8,000 a day by the island's mayor, with a rising population due to the tourist boom, Santorini is in serious danger of losing its charm.” [CNN Travel, 12 destinations travellers might want to avoid in 2018, 24 January 2018]

"Hi, We are hoping to stay a few days in West End and a few in West Bay and would like to avoid staying in West Bay the days that cruise ships arrive. Does anyone know which days of the week they arrive? Thanks!" [Trip Advisor, 27 January 2018]

“My spouse and I are going to Belize for two weeks next month and would like to make a trip to Roatan. We have been to Belize twice already and love to snorkel so we would love to check out Roatan as it's an easy flight from Belize City. We are concerned however about crowds as we heard Roatan is a cruise ship port. How large is the island? Any recommendations for a place to stay on the island that is far enough away from the cruise ships that we can avoid the crowds and the high prices? Somewhere far enough away that cruise ship passengers wouldnt spent their time going to for just a day but close enough for us to spend a few days? Thank you.” [Trip Advisor, 25 February 2017]

“Cozumel and Grand Cayman can get overrun with passengers from the giant cruise ships that call there. The only way to avoid the cruise crowds is to dive at off-peak times or to go with a dive operator who knows the secret spots.” [Wendy Perrin, 10 March 2017]

If you really want to be on the fjords I’d recommend staying in a village nearby Ålesund, Geiranger, and Trollstigen, but also not too close to any of them. Definitely avoid Geiranger itself, as it’s crammed with hotels and only really offers views of cruise ships and tourist buses. [Heart My Backpack, 11 April 2017]

“For centuries their remote location off the far north of Scotland ensured that they remained an idyllic outpost of tranquillity. Now the Orkney Islands, once pillaged and settled by the Vikings, are struggling to cope with an invasion of cruise-ship passengers. Residents of the archipelago, which has a population of just over 20,000, will be joined by more than 120,000 visitors this summer. The waterborne influx is putting attractions such as Skara Brae, Europe’s best-preserved Neolithic settlement, under strain. Such is the desperation of the island authorities that they are looking at introducing berthing permits and charges in an attempt to ease the congestion. Last year there was an outcry when dozens of German tourists barged their way into a funeral at St Magnus Cathedral…”  [The Sunday Times, 16 May 2017]

i'm happy to report that my husband and i have planned and booked our first visit to key west! we will be there for five days the first week of june, so four weeks from today! i'm super happy to report this, because it is how we are celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary, and i won the 'argument' over which trip to take. my husband wanted to do a western caribbean cruise, and i didn't (we've cruised before, me more than him). my point was that cruises are crowded and rushed. i sold this as a 'land cruise'--we will be driving down from MIA over the course of two days, stopping in key largo and marathon to really take our time getting there. we are super excited about it. and....then i checked the port schedule. there will be a ship in port all but one of the days of our visit, and on tuesday there are two (and i fear one is a disney ship). we don't have kids. we don't particularly like kids (sorry). and we definitely do not love huge crowds. so i'm looking for tips on how to best approach our time in key west, knowing that it is going to be pretty packed. [Trip Advisor, 9 May 2016]

“On the day I planned to visit St. Mark's Basilica and the Doge's Palace, I had company from about half a dozen cruise ships. Consequently, St. Mark's Square, the locale of these attractions, was flooded with tourists, way more compared with other days. Plan around these behemoths of the seas. Visit top attractions on days with few cruise ships in port, or get there early. Consult Cruise TT for a calendar of cruise ship arrivals.” [Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2015]

“We will be in Dubrovnik Saturday thru Tuesday (or perhaps Wed) in September. A friend has told us that the cruise ships fill the old town with tourist hordes. Does anyone know if they arrive every day or if they leave by certain time or anything that might help us avoid these crowds? thanks in advance roland” [Rick Steves’ Europe, 4 December 2015]

“Just off the coast of Mexico's Riviera Maya lies the small island of Cozumel, a Caribbean gem of an island. Due to its close proximity to the United States, Cozumel welcomes thousands of visitors each day. Scuba diving is the defining attraction here: with many world-class reefs only minutes away from shore. If you don't dive or snorkel, nor enjoy spending time in or next to the ocean, Cozumel is probably not for you. The tourism industry is developing rapidly here, creating two distinct groups of visitors: those divers staying in the Cozumel Hotels and the people straight from the gigantic cruise ships. Sometimes as many as 11 ships (with plans for more) unload their human cargo onto the island in just a few hours. This means that you could be sharing Cozumel's somewhat limited space, with as many as 6,000 other day-trippers. I've seen many divers and hotel guests become extremely frustrated and annoyed by this cruise ship phenomenon, having to share resources and endure price gouges. So, I'm here to offer you a friendly guide with some handy suggestions and advice for best avoiding the herds.” [Travel Notes, undated]

FOOTNOTE

1. Minister Pavey's 2017 meetings were with Royal Caribbean (28 February & 8 June), Carnival Australia (10 March, 8 June & 8 July), Carnival Global (21 March), Norwegian Cruise Lines (8 June), Cruise Line International Association (8 June & 21 June).

2. Some Berjiklian government ministers who also appear to be on the cruise ship industry's lobbying list are:
Deputy Premier, Minister for Regional NSW, Minister for Skills, Minister for Small Business, Nationals MP for John Barilaro;

Minister for Tourism and Major Events, and Assistant Minister for Skills, Nationals MP for Northern Tablelands, Adam Marshall;

Minister for Trade, Tourism and Major Events and Minister for Sport, Nationals MLC Niall Blair; and

Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, Nationals MP for Bega Andrew Constance.