Gans and Quiggin on climate change and emissions trading

Before the last federal election Joshua Gans and John Quiggin made a submission to the Prime Ministerial Task Group on Emissions Trading.

Put simply, when there is uncertainty, action should be taken if the risks outweigh the costs. Scientific uncertainty has been diminished. The critical feature of this is not that the extreme risks have been revised but that the probability that no significant change will occur has been revised downwards; arguably to zero. That means that the possible upside associated with doing nothing has been eliminated only making the case stronger for action. Those who focus purely on the most extreme risks and their likelihood miss the point. The case for action is compelled by the fact that it is now clear that change is occurring.

This submission has an excellent section giving a brief history of climate change theory, science and disinformation campaigns.

PDF copy of submission here.

That tinnie Malcolm Turnbull!

There's a site called Website Outlook which will quote a dollar value on websites indexed by the large search engines.
I've just run the Federal Leader of the Opposition's own www.malcolmturnbull.com.au through the mix and Truffles' little blog is worth around US$5635.6 in today's values.
His sidekick, Deputy-Leader Julie Bishop's www.julie-bishop.com is priced at an estimated US$2000.2 and Nationals Federal MP for Cowper Luke Hartsuyker's website is worth about US$1679.
By contrast the Labor Federal MP for Page Janelle Saffin's site www.janellesaffin.com.au is only worth around US$146.
The Nationals State MP for Clarence doesn't get a look in as he has opted for what appears to be a hosted page and is therefore worth nothing on the market it seems.
However, the major Aussie blogs beat the pollies hands down with Club Troppo coming in at US$5978.7, and Larvatus Prodeo at a whopping US$14381 to name two examples.

Did you hear the one about the chamber of commerce?

Something you don't hear all that often.

A certain Clarence Valley chamber of commerce has got itself in such a fix that it has apparently allowed its incorporation to lapse, doesn't remember exactly how many financial members it has and, is in the rather strange position of being financially viable but otherwise up the creek without a paddle when it comes to effectively representing local business in the town.

Australia Day 2008 celebrations on the NSW North Coast

"Australia Day, January 26, is the biggest day of celebration in the country and is observed as a public holiday in all states and territories.

On Australia Day we come together as a nation to celebrate what's great about Australia and being Australian. It's the day to reflect on what we have achieved and what we can be proud of in our great nation. It's the day for us to re-commit to making Australia an even better place for the future." http://www.australiaday.com.au/

In the Clarence Valley:

Whoever you are, wherever you live, you are invited to CELEBRATE AUSTRALIA DAY IN YOUR OWN NEIGHBOURHOOD by hosting a BBQ in your backyard, street, cul de sac or park and Council will pick up the bill.

This Australia Day, we are taking the party to your door - you just need to stick your hand up with a "I'll have one of those mate".

I'm in - how do I get the snags?

To apply for a BBQ package, call Council's Events Coordinator on 6645 0229, email edu@clarence.nsw.gov.au or download an application form from clarence.nsw.gov.au before 7 January 2009. BE QUICK, limited number of packages available. Individuals, households and community groups based in the Clarence Valley are all welcome to apply.

So have some fun in the sun with your neighbourhood on Australia Day, while the snags sizzle, the hamburgers fry and the backyard cricket shouts howzat!..........

A casual yet sophisticated and joyous celebration, honouring all the 45 amazing nominees for the Australia Day Awards.
Enjoy a delicious lunch at the Grafton Community Centre and celebrate with our worthy citizens and their family and friends between 12 noon and 3pm on Monday 26 Janaury 2008 at the Grafton Community Centre, Duke Street, Grafton.

At Ballina:

It's a double celebration…. Australia Day and the Ballina Bowling Club Centenary Celebrations!
Join us on Monday 26 January in Hampton Park (Moon & Bentinck Sts) between 9am and 5pm and help us celebrate all things Oz.
The day kick starts at 9am with a special breakfast... so get here early! At 10am the official award and citizenship ceremonies will get underway.
After the official ceremony, grab the kids and don't miss the fun of the jumping castle, merry-go-around and ferris wheel. If they love animals and reptiles then head over to Old McDonald's Farm and Reptile Park and delight in their squeals of delight as they get to know the animals and reptiles a little better.
Relax and sit back and tap your toes to the live entertainment from Fossil Rock and enjoy aboriginal dancers, rock 'n' roll dancers and individual buskers and performers vying for your attention.
A number of food vans including the Lions Club BBQ and a licensed drink tent will be available on the day to satisfy your Aussie thirst and hunger pains.

At Tweed Heads:

Held at Uki Sports Club House, Kyogle Road, Uki this Australia Day Celebrations begins at 10.30am with Musical Entertainment by Ian Holston & Ayesha Gough followed by an Official Program with speeches by the Australia Day Ambassador and Federal and State Members, and the presentation of the Australia Day Awards.
Councillor Joan van lieshout, Mayor of Tweed will then conduct the Citizenship Ceremony. Finishing around 12.30pm with the singing of the National Anthem and a light lunch.

In the Richmond Valley:

A community celebrations with attractions to surprise any age.
Enjoy good food, music, markets and activities for the whole family between 10am and 3pm on Monday 26 January.
Staged in and around the New Italy Museum on the Pacific Highway just south of Woodburn.

At Coffs Harbour:

The official Coffs Harbour celebrations this Australia Day started with a Flag-raising Ceremony at the cenotaph in Vernon Street at 8.30am, followed by a Citizenship Ceremony inside the Coffs Ex-Services Club, after which the 2008 Australia Day Awards were presented to the winners by Coffs Harbour Mayor, Councillor Keith Rhoades.
At the Citizenship Ceremony, 59 residents of Coffs Harbour coming from 18 different countries became Australian citizens by pledging allegiance to Australia. Each was presented with their certificate of Australian citizenship and a gift. Read more about citizenship ceremonies here.

Obama and Biden promise but others deliver

Obama and Biden are promising that they "will embrace the Millennium Development Goal of cutting extreme poverty and hunger around the world in half by 2015, and they will double our foreign assistance to achieve that goal. This will help the world's weakest states build healthy and educated communities, reduce poverty, develop markets, and generate wealth."
So what will that mean?
An increase in foreign aid as a percentage of US Gross National Product from around 22% of one per cent to 44% of one per cent?
With most of it targeted to flow into Iraq or Afghanistan and out again in the pockets of American corporations?
Well whoopee.......the US might just retain its position as second last within DAC for this statistic.

Think we Aussies with a population of only about 21 million do a bit better than that in percentage terms.
According to the OECD:
"Australia has made substantial, positive changes to its aid programme since 2004, reinforcing its focus on reducing poverty, on promoting the MDGs, and completely untying its aid programme. Its aid volume was USD 2.67 billion in 2007, representing 0.32% of its gross national income (GNI). Australia has committed to contributing 0.5% of its GNI to official development assistance (ODA) by 2015/16."

Of course the sheer size of the American economy up to 2007 has meant that the US was at, or near, the top of the table for total of actual dollars contributed when you include its debt forgiveness to countries it unlawfully invaded, politically destabilised etc., and its low-interest loans.

Aid at a Glance charts for all donor countries are found here.

Vatican says, Pill pollutes. Scientists say, Rubbish!

Vatican says: the pill is polluting the environment & is responsible for male infertility. Scientists say: Rubbish!

Holy hectors! Reports are pouring out of the Vatican that the contraceptive pill is polluting the environment and is in part responsible for male infertility.

CathNews reports that the Vatican newspaperL'Osservatore Romano is carrying an article that says:

The pill has "had devastating effects on the environment by releasing tonnes of hormones into nature," Pedro Jose Maria Simon Castellvi, president of the International Federation of Catholic Medical Associations, says.

"We have sufficient evidence to state that a non-negligible cause of male infertility in the West is the environmental pollution caused by the pill," Mr Castellvi said in a L'Osservatore Romano article.

"We are faced with a clear anti-environmental effect which demands more explanation on the part of the manufacturers," Mr Castellvi said.

But the article was promptly dismissed by several organisations.

"Once metabolised, the hormones contained in oral contraceptives no longer have any of the characteristic effects of feminine hormones," said Gianbenedetto Melis, vice-president of a contraceptive research association, quoted by the ANSA news agency.

The hormones contained in the pill such as oestrogen "are present everywhere... in plastic, in disinfectants, in meat that we eat," said Flavia Franconi, of the Society of Italian Pharmacology.

The Gaza fight enters cyberspace

Click to enlarge

I suppose it had to happen - Palestinian supporters are hacking in protest at the situation in Gaza.
Arabia Mirror tracks some of these hacks.

This North Coast Voices post will probably not be possible if the Rudd-Conroy plan to impose national mandatory ISP-level filtering on the Australian Internet is implemented.

Way to go, mums!

According to GlobeLife on 31 December 2008:

They called it a "virtual nurse-in."

Earlier this week, 11,000 mothers who use Facebook changed their profile pictures to photos of themselves breastfeeding children to protest against the social networking site's decency standards.

It's the latest blow in a continuing battle between Facebook and some of its users since it began removing photos that show breastfeeding.

The single-day protest, known as the Mothers International Lactation Campaign, was organized by Stephanie Muir, an Ottawa woman and mother of five who is one of more than 87,000 members of the group "Hey, Facebook, breastfeeding is not obscene!"

The group is pushing Facebook to change its policies regarding breastfeeding pictures and its regulations surrounding how much of a woman's breast can appear in photos posted on the site.

"This societal attitude that women's breasts are lewd, sexually explicit or pornographic in their very nature serves only as a detriment to breastfeeding," Ms. Muir said.

Make 2009 the year of the green purchase

We all know how to recycle household paper, aluminium and glass, and to avoid purchasing goods with triple wrapping, but what about those other things we buy?

The Green Pages is a great online place to start looking for things in its BeGreen range such as nifty pens made from recycled material, ethically manufactured underwear and beer that swears it is green.

Every little bit counts in a country whose government is still playing catch-up on climate change mitigation measures.

It's the start of the first full working week of 2009

I could say just be thankful that you have a job - but I know that wouldn't help the situation right now as everyone gears up for another 12 months of working for that dollar.

2009 on the NSW North Coast: time to brace ourselves for price hikes

Well the festive season is virtually over and there is only Australia Day left to mark the end of most people's December holiday break.

So what have we to look forward to on the NSW North Coast?

The cost of prescription medication under the Commonwealth Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme went up this month by $1.60 to $32.90.
Pensioners will have to pay $5.30, up from $5, and will also have to pay for 62 scripts before they qualify for the safety net provision.
Of course, as it was getting harder to find prescribed medication being dispensed for $5 this will come as no surprise to many pensioners.
There is also no indication that Centrelink's pharmaceutical allowance will be increased to cover more than the current one script per fortnight.

The New South Wales retail price of electricity supplied to residential customers is likely to be fully deregulated sometime this year, coupled with the latest decision by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal to allow a 26 per cent increase in electricity prices within the next two years.
The first price change is likely to be on 1 June this year.

Residential and business water charges will go up again this year, by around a 7.6 per cent annual increase if the North Coast Water timeline is any indication.

The Rees Government appears to be endorsing the IPART recommended 8.5 per cent increase of the maximum cap on regional bus fares.
As Sydney metropolitan and outer-metropolitan rail and bus fare increases have already been announced, expect to see local bus companies increase fares soon after any government announcement.
Further fare rises can also be expected over the next four years., but for the first time all-day pensioner excursion tickets will be available on the North Coast.

Home grown art from the Northern Rivers

Untitled beach painting Michael John Taylor

Clarence River Catch Carmen French


Coming Ready or Not Melinda Gibbs

Favourite local media snap over the holidays

Photo by Adam Hourigan, The Daily Examiner

A feisty bull tells Chris Williamson 'bollocks' at the 27th annual Maclean Twilight Rodeo on 27 December 2008.

Further delays for the Big Billabong

Tourists waiting to flock to the Clarence Valley's newest tourist attraction have been told to be patient.

The word around the traps was that Angourie's Big Billabong, which was estimated to be costing its proprietor about $10million to construct, would open for day trippers' viewing early in 2009.

However, the latest goss is that the owner Gordon Merchant won't be moving into his Angourie premises anytime soon. Furthermore, the cost of the project is now said to be close to the $16million mark.

The Gold Coast Bulletin reports that plans for the massive beach shack were lodged with the Clarence Valley Council in 2002 and when The Bulletin first visited the building site in October, 2007, it had already been under construction for three years.

At that time a builder on the site said the house would be finished in three to six months.

Well, those deadlines have come and gone and as our latest pictures show, there is still plenty of work to be done.

A member of the nearby Yamba Rugby Club, who wished to remain anonymous, said there were rumours the cost had blown out from $10 million or $12 million to $16 million.

"It's taken a long time generally because if he (Mr Merchant) is not happy with something he just gets it changed as it goes along," he said.

"It's taken a while, so everyone is looking forward to being invited to the opening party."

Mr Merchant can afford to be picky.

The man who founded the international clothing and accessories company Billabong on the Gold Coast in 1973 is worth an estimated $805 million.

He has long been a fan of Angourie, 5km south of Yamba in northern NSW, which boasts some of the best waves in Australia.

Another Angourie local said Mr Merchant was often seen about town.

"I was surfing the other day prior to Christmas and he was in this perfect Billabong wetsuit," he said.

"Their family is often seen around town. The house is taking a long time because he includes nothing but the best.

"The local tradies aren't complaining."

The mansion has totem poles sitting in gardens, five garages and a pool that spills over as a fountain between the garage doors.

It is built on four house-blocks and will be one of the biggest homes in Australia.

The mansion has a copper roof, which already has a tinge of green due to exposure to the elements, and is built from sandstone.

Besides the mansion at Angourie, Mr Merchant is believed to be investing heavily in and around Yamba.

His helicopter is often heard flying the divorced father of four into the town.

Mr Merchant recently won approval to build a helipad at the house to transport his young son interstate for medical treatment.

He also offered to make the helipad available to the Yamba community for emergency services. It has landing lights that can be activated by telephone.

That sort of community spirit has helped to win over Angourie locals.

"There are those with a little envy, but despite his obvious wealth and helicopter there is no real showiness about him," said a resident.

Snail-paced travel reform in NSW

At long last pensioners living in the Clarence Valley and other parts of rural and regional NSW are about to receive some sort of equity with their counterparts who reside in Sydney and its hinterland.

The Daily Examiner (3/1/2008) reports:

North Coast Busways customers will be able to buy $2.50 Regional Excursion Daily (RED) tickets from tomorrow.

RED tickets will provide pensioners with unlimited travel within the local route bus network. They will be sold by bus drivers.

People with a valid Australian Government Pensioner Concession Card, NSW Seniors card or a War Widowers card are eligible for the tickets.

Contact South Grafton Busways depot on 6642 2954 for more details.


Why, one must ask, has it taken the NSW Government so long to extend to the pensioners of rural and regional NSW bus travel concessions that have been available for what seems like donkey's years in the Sydney metropolitan area and more recently in the area that stretches from the Hunter, via the Blue Mountains, to the Illawarra?