Can't See The Forest For The Trees Are All At Portland

piled up as logs and on their way to China...hello Latvia, France, the USofA and of course China, and welcome to the blog and another great excuse to be floggin' the loggin' issue, but first...

Former Oz TV person Robert Hughes has just been found guilty on 9 of 11 charges of Child Sexual Assault involving 4 girls/young women, and a further 2 charges are to be 're-considered' by the jury...apparently Hughes mouthed no to each 'guilty' and yelled out 'I'm innocent' when one of the verdicts was read out...(well he's hardly likely to plead 'Not Guilty' all the way through and then at the end leap up and yell 'actually, nah you're right, yes I did molest those girls'-Ed)...fair point if snidely made.

Missed my own anniversary again...April 6th 2005 was the day of my last Radiotherapy, following Chemo and stuff, all to treat lymphoma...and altogether a very strange day...please see previous post re this anniversary (from April 6th 2013)...cheers...

What Is The Matrix?:...(a series of increasingly bizarre 'futuristic' movies starring Keanu Reeves and Hugo Weaving?-Ed)...well yes but nope, not for the purposes of this post...(the medieval precursor to the modern April Fools?-Ed)...nice, but also nope...(shenanigans with a prostitute called May?-Ed)...definitely not...(the possessions of my good friend Richard?-Ed)...sorry, don't get that one...(who's stuff is this?...it's my mate Rick's-Ed)...clever, but again no...it is a system of allegedly just recompense...(sorry, now it's my turn to say whaaa?-Ed)...

Just listening to some of the latest from the Federal Child Abuse Royal Commission, and The Matrix is apparently the sliding scale template created and utilised by the Salvation Army to calculate financial compensation for Child Abuse victims...basically, the more the Salvos thought they could deny abuse and/or could screw down on any complainant, the less compensation they initially offered according to a specific scale.

Essentially, they would go through a rudimentary and highly compromised internal 'investigation', and if that was followed by any Court action, then any compensation offer would be calculated based on their own judgement of the likelihood of the abuse being proved, and therefore the potential compensation should there be a successful legal action, all conducted under the guidelines of The Matrix... 

Today also marks 20 years since the Rwandan Genocide...following 3-4 years of 'Civil War', there had been a 12 month ceasefire between the predominantly Hutu government and the Rwandan Patriotic Front (Tutsi) when on April 6th 1994 the President Juvenal Habyarimana's plane was shot down as it came into land and this triggered the Hutu dominated police, military and government to unleash on the Tutsi...whilst there were terrible massacres on both sides, it was a predominantly the Tutsi and moderate Hutu who were killed.

The official end of the violence was in July 1994 but the conflict has continued between Hutu and Tutsi, with a series of 'wars' in the Goma region of the Democratic Republic of Congo (then Zaire) and other areas, and there are still massive refugee populations of both Hutu and Tutsi in neighbouring countries...it is guesstimated that as many a 1million people were killed, close to 1/5th of Rwanda's population. 

It was/is a massive indictment of the United Nations who effectively just sat by and watched for months, a pattern of behaviour being repeated in the Balkans War (1992-1996)...and it makes a notable comparison...the Rwandan Genocide wasn't just some ugly African anomaly with a bunch of savages slaughtering each other, because the exact same 'racial Cleansing' was happening in Europe between 'white' factions.

In both cases there was an almost immediate disintegration of public order based on decades even centuries old differences, and people who had been peaceful neighbours were driven into the sort of 'us and them' paradigm that brings the disconnection that allows the murders and destruction...but I digress...

Just Caught the tail-end of an ABC/BBC Radio news report stating that 3 people in South Australia's South East have been charged with Child Pornography and/or Child Procurement offenses, but that was unfortunately all I heard...I'll keep an ear out for anything else and post if I hear...   

There was a lot of coverage in last week's The Border Watch newspaper (and elsewhere recently) about growing concerns that One Forty One Plantations, the '3 Rotation Leasees' of the South East Forestry Estate, is looking to recoup their $680million (alleged) investment as quickly as possible, eg, there were reports last year that they were logging undersized trees only approx 25 years old, rather than the usual 33-35 year harvest cycle...

(It just occurred to me that the Labor state government, when effectively selling the Estate to 141 Plantations, threw-in the Glencoe Nursery for $2 at the last minute...and yes that is $2, not $2m or even $2k...$2...which makes promises of renewal and responsible future management look rather empty-Ed)...how so?...(well, if you were committed to renewal, replanting, etc, wouldn't the critical nursery facility be something included as a fundamental and precious resource?...not something to be chucked in at the last moment for $2...almost seems like 141 weren't interested in a nursery because they had no intention of ever using it-Ed).

Great point well made Ed, so you're suggesting that it is quite possibly the case that 141 intend to cut and run...(well, cut, ship, and then run-Ed)...so you're suggesting what pretty much everyone in the South East feared would happen and now believes is happening, is happening...(well everyone who isn't a moronic Labor sycophant, stool-pigeon, or stooge-Ed)...fair enough...

Because of the extent of detail in the The Border Watch articles, rather than try to re-phrase them, I will just add them across 2 posts...below please find attached the TBW Friday 4th April 2014 front page and page 4 morphed together using the most cutting edge technology...(you folded back the pages-Ed)...shhhh, you'll destroy the reader's sense of wonderment...(right about now they're wondering what they're doing reading this dross-Ed)...pardon?...(nothing-Ed)...

I note the massive spike in log volumes leaving via the Port of Portland (Victoria) and apparent reluctance of authorities to share information about these numbers, info that they were happy to broadcast only months ago...

Tomorrow: CSTFTTAAAP Part II - 

That headline is Export alarm...more about this quite genuine and reasonable response to the reality along with other stuffage on the morrow...

I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog...cheers and laters....    

Those Three Little Words

Hello Germany, Nigeria, France, and Indonesia and welcome to the blog...and I've just lost the first 2 paragraphs of today's post so's it looks like another long day of the blog dropping out, not saving, etc...(yay...you sure you're not being hacked or some't similar?-Ed)...well I don't know, wouldn't be surprised, but I think it's just the joy of Mt Gambier's limited Interweb accessibility...if there's a bit of bandwidth pressure or some other issue, the whole thing spits the dummy and says 'not today champ'...but I digress...

(I Love You?-Ed): gee thanks Ed, um, me too...(no, no, I'm guessing what the 3 words are-Ed)...ah right...(conquer and divide?...cut and run?...what the f-Ed)...okay, thanks, I think I'll just tell you...'old bus shelters'...(old bus shelters'?...what the heck does that mean?-Ed)...exactly what it says...Council had a 'surplus to requirement' auction and some of the stuff for sale was old bus shelters...more later...

Malaysian Airlines MH370: I know that I like many people have had my say about what might have happened to the missing flight, but the constant barrage of conflicting information and unsettling sense that there is something about this that authorities know but won't disclose, must be an absolute nightmare for the families involved...there has been a perpetual avalanche of 'Debris Spotted' headlines.

This morning it was reported that a Chinese ship, searching for some reason well outside the official search area, had picked up a "ping'" for a period of approx 90 seconds and had picked it up again a bit later but again only for 1-2 minutes...and another ship has picked up a "ping" somewhere inside the search zone...and that these were thought to be at a frequency consistent with the Flight Data Recorders of an aircraft...(well that sounds reasonably positive news, albeit about a terrible situation-Ed)...true... 

Unfortunately, these reports also stated that it was this 'ping frequency' could also have come from a whale who's calls can fall in that range, or a submarine (possibly tracking the Chinese ship), or some other cause...(so it could be anything-Ed)...pretty much...and I had a brief and distant glimpse of what it must be like for the families of the passengers and crew because I was 'pleased' to hear that there might finally be some resolution, only to have it almost immediately removed again...why say anything? why not just wait until you know something definitive?

Ahhhhhh: I just got caught out whilst channel surfing, dropped the remote, and accidentally watched 5 seconds of an Andrew Bolt diatribe denouncing Global Warming as an un-proven non-reality, "where's the evidence"...(and doesn't he have that wonderful slavering air of the fundamentalist lunatic coupled with the drooling arrogance of deliberate pig ignorance-Ed)...he should do a blog...(hey, that's my line...but you're right, he is a gold-plated moron-Ed)...that's 3 albeit hyphenated words - gold-plated moron.

Maybe Mr Bolt needs to look at the world's shrinking glaciers and the problems this is causing in many places across Asia and Asia Minor...last week there was yet another long program on the ABC/BBC Radio covering the drastic drops in Hydro-electric production in countries like Bhutan that rely on regular glacial melt from the Himalayas for their water...this has been coupled with drastic flooding events from glacial lakes forming then collapsing, increased melting across summer, and then because of the much reduced glacier, much lower flows in Winter.

Theses rivers of course flow down through numerous other countries, eg, India, Pakistan, etc, and Bangladesh is essentially the river delta/ocean outflow of the Ganges River...flooding upstream is devastating in the lower reaches, reduced flows means drought, etc...perhaps Mr Bolt should look at the data re the melt run-off from the Siberian Tundra and Greenland into the North Sea that is causing a measurable decrease in salinity which therefore reduces the motion of the North Atlantic section of the current that runs up from the Equator past Ireland, etc, and is responsible for the relatively mild climate in some of those very Northern latitudes...

Basically the current runs North, cools and becomes 'extra-saline' (cold water can hold more dissolved solids*), sinks, runs South, and the process repeats...the last time that stopped it caused an 'Ice Age'...it's a relatively simple equation...if the current stops and there's no warm water getting dragged North, then the cold will quickly move South and there'll be another 'Ice Age' across Europe and North America, Russia, China, etc...and if the Northern Hemisphere stuffs up its a matter of time before we all here in the very deep South is livin' in the Antarctic...it's happened before...

(*The Blue Lake in Mt Gambier is a perfect example of this...the entire South East is under-laid with a thick belt of Limestone, basically animal bones laid down on the floor of a prehistoric ocean, and now holding a massive freshwater Aquifer...(please don't go off on a tangent about the lunacy of Shale Gas Fracking that threatens such a wonderful asset-Ed)...don't need to now...and this Limestone (Calcium Carbonate or Chalk) readily dissolves in water...and as the cold, Calcium Carbonate saturated water warms through Spring into Summer it cannot hold as much dissolved solid which crystalises and sinks, hence the blue colour.)  

The Bass Strait is such a treacherous section of water because it's so shallow and subject to Southern storms...and not so long ago, roughly 30,000 years, Bass Strait was a grassy plain as the world's oceans withdrew as water became locked up in Northern glaciers across Europe, etc, and a massively increased Antarctic...these are natural cycles that ebb and flow, coastlines come and go, etc, but there's just no way that our polluting influence isn't affecting climate.

If you don't know where Mt Gambier is...(and why would you?-Ed)...check us out on a map or some such and see where in the Southern Heck we is...(Google Earth it matey, this is the 21st Century-Ed)...yeah, yeah...we is in the Southern latitude of 38degrees...(you have a bad latitude young man-Ed)...I'm 47...and I digress... 

I know I bang on relentlessly about the Bus Issue in Mt Gambier, but there's a raft of issues that make up that bangage...now I couldn't get to City Council's "monster auction of surplus material" because it was 5kms from my home, a $30-$40 round trip by taxi, and there's no public transport on weekends...(or public holidays...yeah, yeah, heard it all before-Ed)...well it's a fact...so I couldn't get to the Auction, even if just for interests sake...but fortunately I've managed to hear a little bit about it...

Apparently these 'old bus shelters' were in fairly crap condition, but unfortunately having not seen them myself I can't compare them to the bus shelters in our area that haven't seen any maintenance in probably 10 years, most likely longer...(and don't forget the stops that don't have any shelters at all-Ed)...ah yes, hooray...can't help wondering if anybody on City Council has ever caught the local bus, let alone had to rely on it...

My experience of Council is that this is one of those issues that Mt Gambier City Councillors consider to be beneath them and of no import...and so sorry, just realised how far off the topic I've strayed yet again today, so;

Tomorrow: Just More Of The Same

And just seen another shreckin' ad  about 'no violence against women and no sexism', etc, from the Limestone Coast Violence Against Women (Collaboration? Coalition?-sorry)...and I'm still waiting for the police to get back to me about the 'domestic violence' incident I stepped into a month ago where I was also threatened...(do you ever wonder if it's because it's you?-Ed)...yeah I do...well you heard that police officers tone of voice immediately change when I gave my name...(yeah, I wasn't going to mention it but yeah I did hear that-Ed).

I am Nick Fletcher and apparently I continue to be the problem...cheers and laters...

Wind Turbine Legislation Latest

Hello, India, Hong Kong, Sweden, and Canada...and welcome to the blog...sorry for late post and potentially appalling attempts at humour, but it's been a long day of not achieving much other than walking 4kms to the shops (round trip), and clothes washing, and some housework...there's always plenty of all that shizzle to do...(well you will be a large, angry, smelly, hippy-Ed)...indeed, I already am...

But First: down the gurgler...is the diagnosis for South Australia's economy, particularly in Adelaide's Northern suburbs where the Holden factory closure (Elizabeth Plant) will impact the hardest...(butt first, head first, what's the difference?-Ed)...with similar trauma being experienced in Victoria, trauma compounded by multiple closures and/or job losses, including just this week with Boeing and Phillip Morris...(one is sorely tempted to observe that Victoria is getting the Catholic Contraception method from these companies-Ed)...sorry, I'm not with you...(well they're withdrawing before all the money is shot-Ed)...oh nice...

And it is traumatic to lose your job through no particular fault of your own and be looking at a very uncertain future other than down a bloody mine somewhere...and it's good to hear Labor Premier Jay Weatherill (SA) and his Liberal Victorian counterpart Dr Dennis Napthine exchanging purile barbs about who's done what and who isn't doing the other...(really, let's call the whole thing off-Ed)...but in Dr Napthine's defense he did have a specific figure, $100million, that he claimed Labor/Weatherill had failed to stump up as promised for retraining, etc.

(I believe they actually call it 're-skilling'-Ed)...what, after they've been 'liberated' from their current full-time employment and transitioned onto 'Aspirational Employment Agendas'...(you mean sacked and dumped onto dole-queues?-Ed)...I do, but "liberating" is the exact term that Prime Minister Tony Abbott used to describe the closure's effects on workers...(ah yes, 'I'm not giving General Motors any more money and they'll close but I'm just liberating those workers to get better jobs'...a paraphrase centred on the quote "liberating"-Ed)...phwhat an arse...

Responding to Dr Napthine's specific reference to "$100m", Premier Weatherill's witty retort was a triumph of diplomatic petulance, stating 'we'll talk about it when Dr Napthine wants to have a mature discussion'...(because Jay's the mature one...huh, phwat an arse-Ed)...it strikes me that one side of that 'discussion' had a specific figure they were prepared to identify, and indeed this amount has been reported previously as being SA Labor's response, and the other side was purely derogatory and abusive...(yay Team SA-Ed)...but I digress...   

I feel I must apologise a bit when it comes to the Wind Turbine Issue because it has been one of the casualties of my recent attempts at addressing so many other issues, itself compromised by a goodly amount of 'burnt-out'...and also thanks to those still sending me related stuff, eg, links, articles. etc...I immediately refer availees to the sort of websites I'm perusing, sites like 'Stop These Things', and/or 'National Wind Watch', the Waubra Foundation, the Australian Industrial Wind Turbine Awareness Network, etc.

Please refer to my previous posts re Wind Turbines for a reasonably accurate synopsis of the Development Plan Amendment as first introduced in November 2011, and the subsequent reality that it presents for Regional Sow Strayans...

There's been some fascinating stuff on the above sites in response to the National Health And Medical Research Council's (NHMRC) recent declaration that there is 'no science proving any negative health issues with Wind Turbines' and the direct inference that therefore there's nuthin' wrong with 'em at all...and of course the Australian Medical Association has jumped straight on that bandwagon in mimicking/referencing the NHMRC drivel...and I'm not sorry for being so abusive because for 2 such allegedly responsible organisations this is some right bollocks. 

(And when you say 'bandwagon' do you possibly mean 'gravy-train'-Ed)...what are you suggesting Ed?...that the NHMRC and the AMA are acting in such an unprofessional, unscientific, and biased manner because they have external influences and/or fiscal priorities and/or career aspirations that compromise their objectivity and therefore undermine their statements re Turbines?...(um, yeah, I think that's what I said-Ed)...

Is there anything less scientific, less medically ethical, than denouncing a potential problem as being non-existent before the appropriate testing is done and conclusive evidence gathered...(well yes there is something even more un-ethical and inappropriate, and that would be saying that something is hunky dory and using that lack of investigation/evidence as the reasoning-Ed)...fair point...and who are you so learned in the ways of science?...(I am your king-Ed)...my liege...

Seriously though, how completely inappropriate and unethical to state unequivocally that there are no health issues stemming directly from Wind Turbines, and base that conclusion on a lack of data...sure, do some appropriate testing, gather the data, and then when the evidence shows there's no connection, then the NHMRC and the AMA can cut crook about it all they like...and clearly they like...and I don't thank them for their rabidly biased misinterpretation of the reality that would seem to be entirely indicative of a pro-Turbine agenda.

And when I talk about testing I don't mean the sort of dodgy, bit-piece, bullshit, half-arsed, hide-the-equipment-under-a-tree kind of testing that passes for science at the SA Environmental Protection Authority...there are various 'Acoustic' studies that I've seen referred to that indicate that there are noise and pressure issues stemming from any propeller style apparatus, but it hasn't been specifically applied to Wind Turbines...(well not quite...there is some-Ed)...ah yes...

Steven Cooper, a professional 'Acoustician' (and not to be confused with that A-grade idiot 'Professor' Simon Chapman) did his own testing parallel to the EPA nonsense at the Waterloo Wind Turbine Site...if you search 'Dr Steven Cooper Waterloo results' you'll find a whole bunch of references, quotes, etc, from Dr Cooper and others, eg, Dr Sarah Laurie of the Waubra Foundation.

I can't dissect that evidence, mostly because I don't understand the specifics, but it does to my mind confirm what I have experienced personally from standing near Turbines at Bridgewater Bay, Victoria, and at Lake Bonney, near Millicent...there are many levels of acoustic and 'pressure' issues with Turbines...and one thing that is undeniable, Turbines have been approved all over SA without appropriate testing...it's a fact Jack...  

Strictly for balance I must reference sources of conflicting views, eg, the Clean Energy Council, but even then they are an industry lobby group, so their position is not one encumbered with objective observationings...(they should start a blog-Ed)...hilarious...I did have one particular link I'd like to pass on, and that's Senator John Madigan's most recent effort in Federal parliament from March 19th (?) 2014, available at http://www.johnmadigan.com.au/senate/senate-speeches-video/...check it out.

Beyond passing on this information there's not much more I feel that I can do at this time, but I'll continue to trawl through all of this Turbine stuff I've got in my emails, and if anything interesting comes up I'll post it...the harsh reality is that Fracking is a far more immediate threat to the South East...when the Turbines are rusted out and falling over, the Aquifer will likely be highly contaminated and decades if not centuries away from recovery...(yay-Ed)...

Tomorrow: Three Little Words

No spoilers today but I look forward to y'alls company on the morrow...

I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog...cheers and laters...
  

Just Some Very Tired Mind Dribble

Hello Finland, Poland, and welcome to the blog...and to the United Kingdom and the United States of America where the blog apparently had more views yesterday than here in Australia...(how bizarre-Ed)...
and apologies but no Wind Turbine stuff today...and again any necessary apologies for any offense caused by my hilarious jokage re the Geltwood Quilt Festival...in researching that well-tooled piece, I was amazed at how many Quilt festivals there are around the world...

And one can only apologise yet further if one cannot maintain the mildly manic hilarity of the last few posts and plunges off into the post-Hilaric Malaise...(ah, PHM, arch nemesis of the terminally furious seeking to turn their anger to humour so as to engage the sceptical with vaguely attractive prose and entertaining discourse-Ed)...wow, that's a very specific syndrome...(yes it is-Ed)... 

Tathra Shark Attack: I haven't travelled much (it's the whole 'don't care much about anything' attitude), but I have been to Tathra nearly 30 years ago, when that famous jetty was rundown and full of large holes, etc...it is a casually beautiful area with long white beaches, extensive cliffs and headlands, and heaps of coastal National Park...I remember even then that locals were not likely to swim near the jetty because it was a popular shark fishing platform and people would be down there burleying all night...

I'm not a surfer but I also recall something about a special surf-break in certain conditions where waves would break on the point and roll right across the bay, meaning that you could ride the one wave for nearly a mile...and the fishing was amazing...I was thrilled to catch my personal biggest fish ever (a Tailor?), but my fishing companions stuck some big hooks in it and threw it back saying, 'let's see if we can catch something decent'...

I am aware that 'anti-burleying laws' now apply in South Australia, particularly off metropolitan beaches, but I don't know what goes on in New South Wales...even as I type, the fishing/baiting issue is being discussed on whatevs morning show (0930hrs) and it does appear that the shark fishing practices are frowned on but continue, but they are also reporting large schools of bait fish in the area that sharks often predate...our thoughts are with the family and friends of Ms Christine Armstrong... 

PATS Unbelievable: I'm not sorry for not believing a single word from Labor state Health Minister Jack 'The Rat' Snelling when he says that 'we will honour our $2.5million election commitments' in response to news that the Patient Assistance Transport Scheme has had 'cost blowouts' 3 of the last 4 years...he briefly mentioned 'changed criteria' but there was no further explanation of exactly what that was...one assumes that this was in reference to the Labor PATS Review conducted last year, that was directed by Aunty Jack to reduce people applying for PATS funding by making them ineligible...(what a champ-Ed)...  

Grow Up: Mt Gambier because your population growth rate is currently only 0.2% where as it's more like 0.5% in Regional South Australia...and not surprisingly 1% in Adelaide...is this the harsh reality resultant of the Labor government's devastating Shared Services strategy and general contempt for Regional SA with associated lack of funding, collapsing infrastructure, etc, that makes it increasingly difficult to live in Regional areas?

Can't Believe I Agree: with former USofA President Bill Clinton, who has stated that the best hope for humanity, the most likely catalyst for us getting our collective shizzle together and stop slaughtering each other all over the globe, would be an invasion by militant extra-terrestrials...(right...has young Willy been at his special 'organic cigars' again, you know, the big green ones he drives to Colorado for-Ed)...not sure, but in a purely philosophical sense he is absolutely correct, and is basically referencing the multiple examples of socio-political and religious conflict that is subdued by a common enemy, eg, relative peace in the Balkans when under the control of the former United Soviet Socialist Republic.

(I get it...when that threatening oversight was all powerful it was a common enemy for most if not all of the various 'factions' who then tore the Balkans area apart when the USSR collapsed-Ed)...exactly...much the same thing happened/is still happening in Iraq...the Rwandan Genocide was old prejudices run riot in wake of a socio-political collapse...he is theoretically referencing reality.

Going Off In Morwell: this morning the power it was...(thanks Yoda-Ed)...with a spectacular light show caught on camera by a local...(must have gone on for a bit for someone to get several of the explosions filmed-Ed)...good point...yes there was a series of 'short circuit' explosions at the Morwell Electricity substation earlier today that blacked out some 80,000 homes in Eastern Victoria...now 1530hrs and it's being reported that power is restored to most areas...(most excellent work them electricities peoples-Ed)...indeed...

Victorian Premier Dennis Napthine is quoting unidentified 'authorities'...(one assumes 'Electric authorities'-Ed)...whatevs, authorities who have been quick to rule out as responsible the recent Hazelwood Coal Mine fire that blanketed the entire area in sickening smog for over a month and left behind a fine layer of most excellent toxic Brown Coal ash...it is alleged that a build-up of this ash on lines and/or conductors, etc, led to a main cable breaking and/or a series of short circuits, but this has been quickly denied...(a bit too quickly if you ask me-Ed)...nobody did...   

It is also reported that workers at the 'Sub-station' have been complaining for sometime about a failure to conduct regular and critical maintenance, meaning that some sort of incident was almost inevitable...it's not being irresponsible to suggest that it was probably a combination of both inadequate maintenance and excessive dust/soot, which can be an excellent conductor and easily flammable...(fair enough-Ed)...

And panic spread like wild fire on a Qantas flight today...(terrorism?-Ed)...no...when the Sydney-Perth flight was re-directed...(engine exploded?-Ed)...no...and had to turn back...(wing fell off?-Ed)...no...turn back to make an emergency landing...(the pilots had the Salmon Mousse?-Ed)...no, will you just let me finish...they had to turn back and do an emergency landing due to a 'Smoke Warning Light' activating re the cargo area...(did they land safely?-Ed)...perfectly safely, everyone's fine...(well what was the panic then?-Ed)...the plane was forced to land in Adelaide...(NOOOOOOOOOO, anything but that-Ed)... 

This unfortunately segues into the latest on the missing Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, news which remains much as it was last time I mentioned it several days ago...numerous countries have multiple ships and aircraft in a zone off Western Australia where authorities 'guess' the plane flew to after it was 'assumed' to have been deliberately re-directed...and someone spotted some debris that turned out to be old fishing gear...

It is easy for me sitting in Mt Gambier to hypothesise about cause, effect, motive, and response, but I do struggle with the way that authorities have handled this situation, and the continuing sense that there is much not being said relative to what is officially known...some other reports are straying to the idea that the plane will never be found...

Tomorrow: The Wind Turbine Stuff

Sorry, but I wanted to research some stuff properly and didn't get a chance today...

And closing today with data from a Social Equality report stating that in Australia the 'bottom 20%' have only 1% of our wealthy countries wealth, and the top 20% have 50% of the cash...(well that's a fine ol' kettle of fish-Ed)...indeed...(lucky maybe, but nobody said it was the Equitable Country-Ed)...indeed.

I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog...cheers big ears and laters Ron...

I Don't Miss Missing This

Hello Brazil, Russia, Dominican Republic, and Romania, and welcome to the blog...apologies for my mistake yesterday where I referred to the former Gambier Contracts site in Eucalypt Drive as being Green Triangle Services...not sure why, or if there is and/or has ever been a GTS as such, but apologies anyway...

Other than once asking for 'Nomination Support', and the odd round of frustrated taunting and/or pleading, I don't believe that I've specifically asked for blog availees to get involved in my particular brand of perpetual bollocks, but there's always a first time...and now we are in it...re my post yesterday and the ludicrous $600,000 that Mt Gambier City Council is about to burn on the fake creek and pondy thingy on the Rail Lands site, please write to The Border Watch and/or call the ABC Local Radio, etc...with TBW you can remain anonymous in print after providing your details.

Now I do appreciate that this is largely a pointless exercise given Council's almost purient obsession with the Rail Lands Retail Agenda and clearly defined contempt for ratepayers and what we think, want, and/or need, but hopefully if people express enough outrage via the media even Council may reconsider...please contact the local media asap and ask/demand that the $600k be used to renovate the Old Rail Station and/or some other reasonable purpose...(but fa' gord sake, don't mention the blog-Ed)...or me...(or him...strewth, or me for that matter-Ed)...I mean, you can try writin' ta' Council directly but what chance they'll even read it?

I Miss Not Missing This: even though I missed it the other night I still don't miss going to City Council's meeting Tuesday 18th March 2014 because this $600k mind-spew is exactly the sort of crap you get to witness without being allowed to say a word...but if one doesn't attend one misses critical stuff like when Mayor Steve Perryman declared an "Accommodation" Conflict of Interest with the company that was 2 minutes later awarded the Old Hospital demolition...

A CofI that the Independent Commission Against Corruption couldn't find even when they had it in front of themselves where they placed it themselves as per the copy of the Meeting Minutes they'd downloaded themselves and what they done show me when we had a coffee and our little chat...and thusly ICAC completely exonerated City Council, thusly proving just how corrupt ICAC is...and that there is some't ya' just don't wanna miss now. 

And in today's The Border Watch Thursday 3rd April 2014 a charming article about the terrific sawdust-burning 'Bio-furnace' used to heat the Mt Gambier pool...it is apparently super efficient and cheaper than gas, and Council has hit on the brilliant idea of further reducing costs by closing the pool from April to next October...(clever-Ed)...I'll say it again...just put a roof over the present pool - too easy - and use the roof space for solar thermal...

Resplendent In Her Refinery: once upon a time, but BP's Bulwer Island (Brisbane) facility is to close with the loss of approx 300 jobs...losing said Refinery places Australia in an increasingly vulnerable position re our petrol supply, and I don't accept the argument that there's little difference between importing fuel oil and just importing petrol straight from Singapore...1) I'd rather run the risk of something going wrong with shipping oil about the place, it's far safer to transport, greatly reduced terrorism target, etc, and 2) I'd rather be supplementing by import a massive oil reserve ready for refining as necessary than trying to store the equivalent of petrol. 

Bulwer Island is now set to be used solely as a storage site...ultimately it's about cost of production and our ongoing failure to invest in crucial infrastructure...it is allegedly far cheaper to import petrol from the massive plant in Singapore than refine it ourselves...and while we're on the subject of closures... 

Butting Out: of Australia, tobacco manufacturer Phillip Morris has announced the closure of it's Victorian plant with the loss of 180 jobs and that production to be moved to South Korea...the excuses include production costs and more importantly 'Plain Packaging' legislation that compromises exports to Asia, etc...(can't they just print different packaging for overseas markets?-Ed)...well given that they produce different brands from the one plant, I would have thought that different packaging for external markets was possible...

(Pardon my ignorance, but perhaps the PP legislation covers production within Australia so they can't do the standard packs for other markets-Ed)...possibly, but I think it's yet again mostly about the production costs and the profit margin for the company, and the PP argument is a bit of a furphy, a red herring if not quite a lie...(didn't we just sign a 'Free Trade Agreement' thingy with South Korea?-Ed)...yep...(to be implemented incrementally across a range of products?-Ed)...again, yes...(and does that 'FTA' have the provisions whereby companies and/or state run businesses can sue Australia and/or Ozzie businesses for 'Anti-Competitive Behaviour'?-Ed)...dunno...

I'm not sure about any of that, but I can see where you're headed...you're concerned that Phillip Morris has moved to South Korea possibly partly with a view to suing over the 'discriminatory' PP legislation, getting probably damages for losses, etc...(just sayin'-Ed)...

Boeing, Going, Gone: as the aircraft manufacturer Boeing also announces that it is not (yet) closing it's Victorian operation but is also axing 300 jobs...and yet again it's a range of 'issues' but the real bottom line is the bottom line...and these are the sort of jobs that Toyota, Ford, and Holden workers would be after...it's looking more and more like it's down the mines for all a' ya'...and a self-justifying argument for the relentless expansion of all forms of mining...we need those jobs...(yay-Ed)...

A preemptive apology for any offense caused by the following, and a Rude Joke Warning...

(Adult Entertainment Industry Retirement Expo: is currently being held at Millicent, but I can't get there without the car...not that I'm retiring from the Adult Entertainment Industry...not that I've ever been in the AEI...just sayin'-Ed)...yes, exactly what are you saying?...there's no AEI Expo at Millicent and/or a Retirement Expo, or anything like that, there's only the Quilting Festival and that's not a ahh wait, hang on a minute, I think I can see what you've done...mmm yes, that's not two 't's, one of them is an 'l'...it's a 'lt' in those words, not 'tt'...(ah, so it says 'Quilting' not 'Quitting' then?-Ed)...exactly...but I still don't see where you got 'Adult Industry' from because it's ah no wait, yes I do...

Ed is of course referring to the relatively famous Geltwood Quilting Festival currently underway in Millicent, 50kms Westish of Mt Gambier...where I went for my lovely drive last year round and round the Wind Turbines at Lake Bonney...and now running off yet again into the dead joke area with absolute apologies to anyone involved with the festival who might take offense at what is genuinely just a rude joke...(so it wasn't the Gettwood Quitting Festival then?-Ed)...no, no it wasn't...(you know, sometimes I feel like you just use me as a vehicle for your schoolboy humour and atrocious punning...sometimes I don't feel like a real person at all, sob-Ed)...um, moving on...

I know I've put the boot into several other Festivals, etc, in previous posts, but the Geltwood Festival is a in a whole different context, good luck to them I say...which segues nicely into another quick mention of Chris Plunkett who recently stated on ABC Local Radio that City Council's claims about axing the 'Mayoresses Family Fun Day' due to the cost of $46,000 were "misleading"...Ms Plunkett said that $46k was largely for the Council Immunisation Program and for her wages.

Apparently the ABC rang Council to offer them 'right of reply' but Council said they do not believe another interview is necessary but instead would provide a written statement to explain the 'inaccuracies in the Plunkett interview'...(ahahahaha, so those claims by Ms Plunkett are true then-Ed)...it would appear so...uhhh, I'm done for today...(yep, me too-Ed)...well then,

Tomorrow: Some Latest Wind Turbine Stuff

Just a catch-up post re some windy stuff...oh, and I don't apologise for my 'humour' recently because I've been ticking over nicely after hearing the tail-end of a report earlier this week about a teacher who had been found guilty of Inappropriate Contact with a 12 year old student, but was off doing private tutoring...this is exactly what happened at St Martins Lutheran School with teacher Glyn Dorling in 2002...

The school removed Dorling from the classroom following direct disclosures from several children, and then knew he was tutoring St Martins students at his home unsupervised...it has been put to me that the school actually deliberately organised this tutoring so they could attack the 'allegations' as being false - 'there's nothing wrong, look, we're prepared to allow kids to go to his home, it's just those bad parents complaining'...

Whoever organised it, senior St Martins staff used that tutoring to undermine and discredit the children's disclosures and parent complaints...it was just a small part of the broader Character Assassination Agenda that the Lutherans and SAPol and Rory McEwen et al used against us parents to protect Glyn Dorling and try to hide the abuse...rot in hell the lotta' ya'...  

I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog...cheers and laters...

Rail Lands Shenanigans Again My Friend

Hello Turkey, Ukraine, Netherlands, and Canada and welcome to the blog...and I realise that the amounts of money I claim are being wasted and/or rorted by Mt Gambier City Council are globally trivial, but for the people of Mt Gambier who are having to pay for this corruption and incompetence, every $500,000 casually wasted on a Council whim is yet another impost barely bearable.

I refer of course to the latest effort from Council in building a $600,000 fake creek and pond on the Old Rail Lands...$600k I believe that should be spent on the Old Rail Station to restore that beautiful old building that could then be utilised as an art studio and gallery with the bus terminal as part of it...I've covered this in many previous posts...

What picture would it present to people who come to Mt Gambier if they arrived either via bus utilising the Terminal that should be there, or in motorhomes and caravans utilising the large designated carparks that should be there, or in biking groups along the bikeway that should already be running from Bordertown to Portland along the disused Rail Line, etc, to a Gallery/Studio as part of a Parkland with a busy covered plaza leading through to the covered pool that should be there, etc, etc, etc...as I say, please see previous posts.  

It greatly concerns me that Council is stating that the $1m that they just received suddenly and unexpectedly from the Labor state government a fortnight before the 2014 March election, will now allow them to do $1m of works...following on from the $1m that they received that got the first $1m bit done...but they doubled their borrowing capacity last year because they needed 'at least $2m for the Rail Lands'...(wasn't it announced as a $10m project in November 2011?-Ed)...exactly, the $10m Parklands Concept Plan...all over the shop, making it up as they're going along....

Council looks determined to burn as much money as possible on the Rail Lands without actually achieving what they claim is their 'goal', because that 'goal' is a lie...the Rail Lands Retail Agenda reigns supreme and all else is smoke and mirrors...(very expensive smoke and mirrors-Ed)...in brief, the RLRA is the plan to build a massive expansion of the Lakes (Centro) Plaza across the Rail Lands...a plan conceived and pursued by a handful of vested interests with their own profit in mind.

With the benefit of hindsight, I have no doubt that the Tourism Railway that was running from the Old Station was deliberately shut down by these vested interests, with former Mt Gambier CEO Greg Muller at the reins...that Tourist service compromised the plans to move the easement to clear the space for the shopping centre...and that means there's one major obstacle still in the way, the Old Station...

The real worry is the complete absence of the Old Rail Station in recent reportage of these works...I believe it's a case of ignore it and hope it goes away...in the latest The Border Watch article, front page yesterday Tuesday 1st April 2014, there is discussion of;
         "...$300,000 to undertake construction of the platform extension, access ramps, stairs and
           platform balustrading...the extension of the existing platform and a galvanised iron
           chain-mesh balustrade"
and possibly;
         "...an artistic woven laced wire feature within the fence..."
and also;
         "...a fully automated irigation system...worth around $72,000."
and finally;
         "...nearly $594,000 (for) the construction of a concrete wall for the pond, as well as a
          rock-lined creek."

The article quotes Council's Acting Operational Services Director Daryl Morgan as saying that this wetlands thingy will take 6-9 months, and that;
         "By the end of the year it should be a green site with trees, grass and a linear path running
          from East to West and a number of other elements of the platform."
Repeatedly onto the platform but not one word about the Old Station Building.
 
As previously noted, I fear that there is an unfortunate accident/fire/whatevs in the future of the Old Rail Station and everything I see not being said leads me to believe this is highly likely...I maintain it is the primary reason that Council refused to put the Bus Shelter at the Old Station...same motivation as removing the Tourist train...nothing can be allowed to make that building a viable and useful space that the community has an affinity for, because that compromises the RLRA.

And behind all of this manipulation, and deceit, and corruption of appropriate process and responsible development, etc, etc, is the sense that everyone is just quietly nodding to each other...and by everyone I mean the Labor government, local Councils, the Independent Commission Against Corruption, etc, etc, etc...lots of nodding, plenty of winking, and all corrupt...  

I remain entirely convinced that City Council, the Grant District Council, local Mayors and politicians, they have all had the Green Light on Corruption from the Labor state government, and all of it off the back of the St Martins Lutheran School Child Abuse Cover-up...Labor is itself little more than a criminal organisation...actually, I take that back, Labor in South Australia are definitely a criminal organisation...

All due respect, but I don't care what anyone else thinks about this, it's a fact...even if the parties involved haven't had a sit-down meeting where Premier Jay Weatherill explained it to all concerned that 'so long as you help us keep the St Martins Cover-up covered-up, you's guys can rip off ratepayers to your hearts content', that is the irrefutable state of play...when you have a state effectively run by paedophiles, petty defrauding of public funds by elected officials and public servants is derigeur.   

I am a relative new-comer to politics, but others have observed to me that the comparatively petty corruption of City Council's past pales in comparison with what has happened in the last decade, most particularly the last 5-6 years...and I have explained my belief that the Rail Lands Retail Agenda has been driving this escalation in corruption, an escalation possible because of the Nod-and-a-Wink politicking re St Martins.

(Don't forget the rank corruption of the Allendale and Green Point Wind Turbine projects and the direct connection to former Premier Mike Rann, himself a critical player in the St Martins Cover-up...I'm sure that these projects and the general Fascism of Wind Turbine legislation all play a part in the 'corruption plume'...and Mike Rann is so corrupt that he had to be moved out of the country for several years...what a scumbag-Ed)...indeed, a scumbag amongst scumbags...and now some bits of stuff.

Pardon my cynicism and suspicion when I note that the large 'hangar' style shed that was in Eucalypt Drive as part of the Gambier Contracts site has 'gone'...(and was it Councillor Des Mutton who was involved with GTS when it was operating from that site?-Ed)...maybe, and maybe it's ended up at another Council site, but you'll excuse me if I consider the possibility that that massive shed has ended up in some Councillors backyard somewhere, at ratepayers expense...whilst these are currently 'allegations' I'll try to find out what I can.

NATO Say No Go: to Russia about it's posturing along the Ukraine border, but Russia claims that it is already withdrawing some of the troops that recently moved to the region...not sure if there were any specific sanctions to go with the NATO declaration other than the suspension of Civil and/or Military co-operation, or to what degree the Russian 'withdrawals' are genuine...

In Egypt my reservations about 'the Arab Spring' are playing out with terrible consequence, including the sudden announcement of death sentences for over 500 people...hundreds were killed in the demonstrations to oust the democratically elected Muslim Brotherhood, and Egypt is back in the grip of the military.

Woohoo: we really showed Bangladesh how to play cricket with a win in our fourth and final pool game in the Twenty20 World Cup, after losses to India, West Indies, and whoever else...yay team...

Mt Gambier yesterday hit 35.8C, a record high for April, and just one more to add to the 150+ records broken across the country this Summer/Autumn.

Grant District Mayor Richard Sage was on the ABC Local Radio this fine morn about Oceanlinx going into administration expressing his surprise and disappointment, and stating that the state and Federal governments are responsible...there was no funding from Grant District Council only $4.5m public funding...(any idea what's gonna happen with it?-Ed)...not really...rust where it sank?...

Heywood Interconnector: Raine Korte of Electranet was also on re the Heywood 'project upgrade' stating that it would require "no new lines" to improve the "transformation capacity", just "some plant along the line"...and acknowledging that this is about getting SA power to Vic when 'a lot of wind means relatively cheap energy' and that on 'windless very hot days of peak demand, allow more cheaper power to SA from Victoria'..."everyone benefits"...also, this Wind Power goes right across the National market...it was the usual diet of unsupportable propaganda...please see previous posts.

I'm Just Gobsmacked: at the plethora of locally produced TV ads about 'Stop Violence Against Women' and having respect for women and stopping sexist behaviours, etc, being produced and aired on behalf of various local groups including SAPol...gobsmacked because I'm still waiting for SAPol to get back to me nearly 3 weeks after I contacted them about the screaming idiot I confronted just over 3 weeks ago, the one who threatened to 'smash my f***in' head in'...enough for today but more...

Tomorrow: An Eclectic Collective Of Subjective Observationings

(So business as usual?-Ed)...yep...

I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog...cheers and laters...

Pegging Squarely At A Whole New Oval

Good day to you one and all...hello Dominican Republic, China, France, and the USofA...and a great day for Adelaide and therefore the world...(not sick of saying that yet?-Ed)...clearly not...I am of course referring to the official opening of the Adelaide Oval Redevelopment with the Adelaide vs Port Adelaide AFL match held there on Saturday 29th March 2014...(yay-Ed).

Rather than bang on relentlessly about this yet again, I will refer to the many previous posts about what this stadium has cost SA...remember that this was a Labor knee-jerk pre-election promise made in early 2010 that has been financed by the disastrous and highly corrupted South East Forestry Sale...it's ludicrously unsupportable to state that the Sale money went into the bucket of public funds and that the same bucket then provided the $600m for the stadium but it wasn't the same money...(bollocks-Ed)...

(That bucket was empty, they dumped the Sale cash into it, then pulled out the cash for the stadium...no confusion there-Ed)...absolutely...so you'll excuse me if I don't join the throng in vacuous celebration and instead peg critique at the bloody monstrosity...(pity, you look good in a throng-Ed)...saucy...

I'm sure there was oodles of song and lashings of dance and everybody said 'how fabulous...except when the setting sun cast long shadows across the ground', and 'what an economic boon for Adelaide'...and bully for them because I doubt I'll ever step foot in that ludicrous, unnecessary and entirely unedifying edifice...paid for with the Forestry Estate sale...and again all due respect but that's just not open to debate...forget what the entirely moral-less deceivers in the Weatherill Labor government have to say.

One shall quote oneself thanks very much - we sold a lung to pay for a facelift...that bloody oval is a shocking indictment not a shining addition...the many claims about how great this Oval will be for Adelaide's economy do not account at all for the cost of building the bloody thing...it has to make at least $100million per year to recover the income lost through the Forestry Sale before it actually makes anything even resembling a profit...

A Pinch Of Acid In their Punch: is what I reckon Mt Gambier City Council must have had before deciding to spend nearly $600,000 of ratepayers money on an artificial pond and creek as part of their Rail Lands lunacy...(it's only not their money, they don't give a rats arse-Ed)...indeed, but they think it's their money and that's how they behave...

And what really concerns me is the apparent absence of the Old Station in the reportage about what is and isn't being done on that site...I thought the whole thing was an April Fools joke but it was still there in The Border Watch at 12:01hrs...more tomorrow...

Artfully Dodging Being Nice: as much as arty types can really annoy me, I reckon that the Old Rail Station would be a perfect gallery for local artists with all the tourists coming through there because of the bus Terminus but oh wait that's right the bloody bus terminus is out at the Lady Nelson and the bloody...(ah folks, he's going to go off a Rail Lands Retail Agenda Rant, I know the signs...go make a cuppa' or somethin' and I'll yell when he's nearly done-Ed).......................

(............YO.........and we'rrrrrre back-Ed)...and the bloody enclosed pool we'll never have, but I've covered it all in previous posts...where'd you get that cup of tea?...anyhoos, I am aware that some vaguely talented persons are looking for a permanent studio space and I feel that a renovated Station/Terminal/Studio/Gallery could be perfect...tomorrow...

Some Gnashing Of Teeth: but no whaling at all for Japan after the International Court of Justice upheld Australia's case that the alleged 'Scientific Whaling' Japan has been doing in Antarctica was inappropriate and have therefore ruled it 'out of bounds'...(yay for the Justice League-Ed)...no, not the Justice League, they're comic characters...(so are the ICJ...those guys are a riot...you should see IJC President Peter Tomka do karaoke-Ed)...I know, his 'I Will Survive' is hilarious...(hey, do they have an International Food Court?...I could murder a nachos...and some fried rice-Ed)...yeah, I'll have some cold rolls thanks...

Good Reef: is what the residents are saying down Normanville way...as if things couldn't get worse, company Oceanlinx has been placed into administration with their allegedly Pt MacDonnell bound Wave Generator still stuck in shallow water just off Carrickalinga Beach (approx 100kms South of Adelaide)...(well who the hell's gonna clean that up then?-Ed)...no idea...

Hardly Shocking News: that the Australian Energy Regulator has approved the $110million Electricity Interconnector to be built by Electranet at Heywood, Victoria, some 80kms from Mt Gambier...this project is to be paid for by $110m of taxpayer funded 'grants' from the Victorian and South Australian state governments...it is due to be completed by July 2016, when it will be used to trade energy between Victoria and SA...it will have a transfer capacity of some 650mw.

And the usual shizzle about how this transfer will reduce future energy costs, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, etc...(all noble causes no doubt-Ed)...no doubt...by allowing the exchange of 'cheap' electricity backward and forward across the border...but the reality of what this transfer process achieves falls far short of the promotion...there is never any discussion about the massive losses still inherent in sending electricity over distance, or the realities of peak demand on windless high temperature days when there is no Wind Turbine output, etc.

I have covered this at length in previous posts...generate power close to where it is used and stop this transfer nonsense...companies factor these losses into their wholesale price...when the wind stops, Adelaide will need the power from Victoria that Vic itself needs, which will be at premium prices, which then drags in the Playford Power Station at Pt Augusta, etc...and Wind Turbines all over SA to get the Eastern states their feel-good 20% Renewable Energy, etc...

An Ebola Outbreak: in West Africa has spread from Guinea into neighbouring Sierra Leone and Liberia with a handful of cases reported...the original outbreak apparently 'died-out' after killing 80 people because nearly all of those exposed had died, including all the hospital staff who were infected whilst treating patients and then died...it is a bitter irony without humour that the epicentre of this outbreak was the local hospital.   

Ebola has a 90%+ fatality rate and is rightly feared across Africa, leading to Senegal officially closing it's border...there was a long article about this outbreak on the ABC/BBC World Service recently, and the harsh truth that there is no confirmed source or pattern of transmission for the 4 Ebola 'strains', but it's thought to be from bats and/or primates consumed as bush meat...it's nearly as frightening as the 2 laboratories who artificially developed the Human-to-Human Transmission Bird Flu but didn't have proper bio-hazard security measures...(super-Ed)...

Take A Downer: and send him to be High Commissioner in London, replacing our main man former SA Premier Mike Rann, who is getting shunted to Italy...in the fine tradition of moving irretrievably dodgy politicians to diplomatic positions on the other side of the planet...I wouldn't be surprised if this sudden move for former Liberal Foreign Minister Alexander Downer was prompted by the East Timor spying scandal and/or other like Downerisms...

(I'm very confused because AD was just recently made President of the SA Liberal Party, and then I heard Treasurer Joe Hockey say that he was sending AD around the country to help out-Ed)...are you sure...(yeah, Joe said "we will provide a tool for the states"-Ed)...ah yes, I can see how you might make that mistake, but that was actually in reference to the 15% Infrastructure Co-Funding commitment that the Liberals offered the states for selling their public infrastructure...that 15c per $1 was the tool for states to fund their own infrastructure.

Tomorrow: Fully Sick On The Rail Lands

Again...and I ain't apologisin' for none of if, none of it ya' hear me...

I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog...cheers and laters...