Filling In The Gaps

Hello and welcome to the blog and wow it's hammering down out side and I'd reckon it's well welcomed....

And that was as far as I got with yesterday's post at approx 0630hrs before the phone started ringin', then I headed out, and then last night there was the Agricultural and Horticultural Show Society meeting re sale of the North-West corner of the Showgrounds to Aldi, which meant I got home after 2200hrs and went to this 'ere computer only to turn around again and walk away...had a bit of a 'that damn computer isn't going to run my life, there's nothing that can't wait 'til the morn' moment...I've gone from nearly all day at the blog to barely time to get to it at all, literally filling in the gaps...

This situation is of course a temporary one re the Mayoral Candidacy stuff, and is duly exacerbated by the fact that SAPol still have my laptop, that they "seized" as 'evidence' and/or an 'exhibit' or whatevs back in May 2014 when they raided my home and stated to me that I should "expect to be charged" for talking about the fact that a (if not the most) powerful state Authority allegedly did what that Authority is supposed to do...and that Authority has been all over the local media recently trumpetting it's own wondrousness for exposing a limited series of farcical minor infractions by a small group of low-ranking public employees...

Pardon the obscureness of the last paragraph, but I've still got the whole 'probably can't even name the Authority' bullshit hangin' over me...(even though you haven't been charged-Ed)...indeed...and I completely reject this bleating from said Authority that 'hey, gee whiz, our powers/legislation are a bit restrictive so we'll look at that'...the Rann/Weatherill Labor government fought against even forming this particular Authority, and has then deliberately set-up a very scary 'Star Chamber' style body that has absolute power to completely censor issues out of the media, hold secret meetings where you can be forced to answer questions, etc, etc...

And if I'm not at home I'm stuffed, no laptop you see...and I've realised just how much I rely on the 'cut and paste' thingy stuff you can do with a computer that on the written page soon becomes an irretrievable mish-mash of arrows, cross-outs, add-ons, etc...for all my terrible typing and Editorial expletive deletion, etc, doing the blog on a computer is really the only way...I'm a convert...(after 20 months of doing this blog?-Ed)...yeah, well, ya' don't wanna' rush into these things...

So hello Tunisia, Colombia, Canada, and France and welcome to the blog...and of course the big news locally is that there was no vote either way last night re a Showgrounds sale to anyone, it's been deferred re the Constitution...the impression I got was that there were (obviously) 2 camps, one for, one against, but the pro-Salers were quite subdued...overall it was a very polite meeting that was very well attended...they kept crackin' wise that it would be great to see that many people rock-up for the A&HS Annual General Meeting..

I'm somewhat less impressed with whom didn't show up...no-one from Mt Gambier City Council, not Mayor Perryman, not one Councillor...if there was anyone there from Council I didn't see them, hear them, etc, and it certainly wasn't in a 'Council' capacity...nor was there the rumoured/expected presentation from the Real Estate agents involved, in fact I'm not sure they were there either...certainly weren't referred to...and of course no-one from ALDI...(actually it's 'Aldi', not 'ALDI' I think-Ed)...whatevs...and 'Aldi' still haven't even acknowledged my email and/or phonecall...

I'm not entirely sure who exactly has been pushing this potential sale from within the A&HS, but clearly it has been pushed by Aldi whom allegedly approached them in the first instance, as noted repeatedly in the meeting...and also noted, that the block involved was worth way more than the $1.3million on offer, eg, $7m for another block that sold a couple of years back...I think that chap was referring to the Woolworths/Big W thingy on Penola Rd, but whatevs...there's an interview with A&HS Society President Peter Woodroofe currently on ABC Local Radio...but moving on...

The SA parliament has just passed legislation that allows for Wind Turbines on Crown Land in a context where 'the pastoral leaseholder can negotiate with Turbine developers, but if they (leaseholder) oppose Turbines the state government will force them on to that site'...(so basically leaseholders can negotiate right up until those Turbines are going there anyway?-Ed)...exactly...it's another round of blatantly Fascist legislation that removes access to Courts and/or any opposition...

This legislation means that if a Turbine company says 'we're putting 100 Turbines on your lease' that's it, it's happening...I've been researching the term 'Crown Land' but there's sortta' floating definitions that seem to indicate National Parks are included in that, and then it broadens to include land for schools, parks, etc...I'll try to find a specific definition, and can only re-iterate my absolute opposition to 1) the definitively Fascist pro-Turbine legislation that denies access to the Courts, and 2) the ludicrously inefficient Turbines themselves...

Minister Ian Hunter stated that re this new legislation, 'it's a bit like mining', there's provision for 'negotiation', but ultimately the mining company get their way...it fascinates me how the Greens amongst others (and I am a bit of a greenie myself) can continue to rail against  the lack of rights for farmers/landholders/whatevs when it comes to mining/fracking/whatevs, yet they (Greens) completely ignore the same issues with the Fascist Turbine legislation...(well that's because they like Turbines but not mining-Ed)...well that's exactly the point I was already making, but thanks for your input...

Heard an interesting thingy on the ABC coupla' weeks back about 'foraging' for herbs, fungi, etc, and a caller stated that there was this wonderful chef in Mt Gambier, Kirby Shearing, who 'takes people on foraging classes including scouring rock-pools, etc' (paraphrasing but close)...I rang the ABC to state my belief that it's actually strictly illegal to 'take' anything from the Inter-tidal Zone, but my comment was not read out...

Same thing happened when A-grade Betrayer, Member for Frome Geoff Brock helped Labor pass their Marine Parks legislation and was on the ABC and I rang to define that farcicality by observing that the entire Seagrass beds just off Adelaide's suburban beaches, a critically threatened ecosystem that is the nursery for multiple species including the iconic King George Whiting, none of that is protected, at all...the woman who answered the phone agreed with me but when I said my name, her tone changed and my message or even a similar statement was not read out...a critical issue just ignored by the ABC...

And imagine my surprise that the ABC has just announced (earlier today) interviews today with Mt Gambier Mayoral candidates Paul Jenner and (current Councillor) Allen 'Is The Key' Smith...(when are you on?-Ed)...haven't even heard from them...(mmmm-Ed)...indeed, mmmm...and wow, Allen Smith has just straight-out lied about the cost blow-out on the Main Corner, stating that it wasn't a blow-out because Council received $5million for the project that had to be spent on that project..Mr Jenner quite rightly reminded Mr Smith that the $5m was several grants and half went on the Library...

And there was a wall of waffle from Mr Smith about how Heritage issues dictated everything that happened with the Main Corner...(does that include the massive, almost random holes gouged in the side of the old Kings Theatre for the cross-beams?-Ed)...indeed, it looks like someone's pointed from across the site and said 'about there should be right, don't bother measuring it' and then smashed some foot square holes roughly where the beams were going...

Mr Smith also stated that the Solar Lights around the Blue Lake were a goer, stating that the Tenders had been received and accepted...(but I thought there was a bunch of shenanigans about one Tenderer putting in 2 different costings for the BL Lights, then being awarded the Tender, and Council then indicating that it was going to 're-negotiate' upward toward the $120,000 more expensive one, and that The Border Watch announced the awarding of the Tender days before it was actually voted on in Council, etc, etc, and now the whole things been withdrawn and, effectively, a new Tender process will have to be initiated-Ed)...absolutely correct Ed, it's just yet another rank bastardisation of appropriate process by Mt Gambier City Council...(and one that Mr Smith is apparently unaware of-Ed)...  

Furthermore Mr Smith reckons everything's just fine with Council's fiscal position, and again Mr Jenner rebuked him for misrepresenting the reality...and it is that reality that will haunt Mt Gambier for years to come, and makes it virtually impossible to make any statements re future projects/initiatives/whatevs...gunna' finish here today and will do a full run-down of the Candidates forum,

Tomorrow: Vote 1 Large Angry Hippy

Written and Authorised by Nick Fletcher, Kooringa St, Mt Gambier...cheers and laters...