Thursday, January 17, 2013

Thu 17th Jan Todays News

Happy birthday and many happy return Wei SU. Remember, birthdays are good for you. Remember.

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United Nations Security Council chamber

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Events

[edit]Births

[edit]Deaths

[edit]Holidays and observances


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Ask the jobless if they ‘value’ Labor’s policies

Piers Akerman – Thursday, January 17, 2013 (5:53pm)

FORGIVE the hyper-bowl, but when Julia Gillard is not blaming Tony Abbott for the nation’s woes and shrieking about Miss Ogyny, she is hammering the virtues of something called Labor values. I know she won’t mind me mentioning this because the Prime Minister firmly believes Labor culture embraces informality. 

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Keep Canberra out of local government

Piers Akerman – Thursday, January 17, 2013 (9:26am)

END the push to give local government Constitutional recognition.
The Constitution is already under siege from various self-interested groups trying to thwart the intentions of its authors.
It should be kept as simple and as clear as possible or it will end up just like the Tax Act – a huge document no layman can follow and only of benefit to armies of tax lawyers and accountants.
Anyone who has had anything to do with most local councils would know that most councillors are self-aggrandisers looking after their own interests or pushing their own barrows.
Councils, to a great extent, are run by their staffs for their staffs and the councillors rapidly fall into line with the wishes of the local manager – no matter what they say during council elections.
Ratepayers get short-changed almost every time.
Councils pushing for federal recognition claim they will be able to tap federal funding directly if they are recognised by the Constitution.
The federal government has pushed its fingers into too many areas which are properly the responsibility of the states, as it is.
It should not be side-stepping the states and dealing directly with the petty politicians at the parish level.
Law experts have told the current inquiry into Constitutional Recognition of Local Government $80 million would be wasted just running a referendum to maintain the status quo or have federal grants “equalised” and urban areas lose out.
Constitutional law professor Anne Twomey said it would cost up to $80 million to hold on a referendum that would only achieve the same outcome that already exists.
“There is no clear evidence or reasoning that local government will get more money,: Professor Twomey said, warning councils could end up worse off financially.
She said changing the constitution and a following shake-up of federal funding could mean the commonwealth distributes grants by need rather than population, which would see Victorian and NSW councils “lose out hugely”.
“Disadvantaged rural areas would get more money, and city areas would get less, in terms of fairness that is probably good, but in terms of how it would affect people, it would probably give an advantage to 1 per cent of the population, and would disadvantage something like 98 or 99 per cent of the population,” she said.
The federal government doesn’t hold the answers to the big issues it should deal with, why would anyone think it can deal with schools, roads and childcare facilities?

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Even Hansen concedes a pause in the warming

Andrew BoltJANUARY172013(3:40am)

Even warming extremist Dr. James Hansen of NASA GISS concedes warming has paused, even if he quarrels over the cause: 
The five-year mean global temperature has been flat for the last decade, which we interpret as a combination of natural variability and a slow down in the growth rate of net climate forcing. 
Can local warmists now at least concede this basic fact, rather than sow panic based on a fire in one state or some hot spell in one city. Or is deceit in the warmist cause now not just permitted but essential?

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TUNE IN, TALK BACK

Tim Blair – Thursday, January 17, 2013 (6:14pm)

I’ll be on 2GB with Steve Price at 8pm.
UPDATE. Program archived here.

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CLUTCH CRIME

Tim Blair – Thursday, January 17, 2013 (4:51pm)

Responsible motorists will be absolutely shocked by this fellow’s complete disregard for smooth, well-timed upshifts:



It’s a crime against cogs. There are probably also one or two safety issues.

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WRIGHT AND WRONG

Tim Blair – Thursday, January 17, 2013 (1:01pm)

Greens senator Penny Wright complains about churches being exempt from anti-discimination legislation (from 4.07): 
This effectively allows them to operate above the law in Australia and contrary to community standards. 
The Greens are Australia’s greatest hypocrites. But you already knew that.
(Via James J.)

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FROM THE BEIJING END

Tim Blair – Thursday, January 17, 2013 (12:54pm)

The Chinese have perfected leg spin.

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NO HARM DONE

Tim Blair – Thursday, January 17, 2013 (12:50pm)

Ominous words from Margo Kingston
i have a funny feeling the SMH is getting its act together! 
Margo now publishes what she calls “our newspaper”, so she knows all about the industry. Over at the newly Margo-endorsed SMH, here’s Paddy Manning
Green prankster Jonathan Moylan has been widely blamed for temporarily wiping $314 million off the value of Whitehaven Coal last week but shareholders in fact lost a fraction of that – no more than $450,360. 
A mere half a million bucks! What’s everyone complaining about? At least Manning sought out an alternative view: 
The federal opposition spokesman on the environment, Greg Hunt, said most people would consider $450,000 ‘’a substantial sum’’.
‘’If someone were to take and burn that amount of cash from retirees, families or businesses, that would rightly be denounced for its economic damage, personal damage and would inevitably attract the interest of the authorities,’’ he said.
‘’It is the principle of the hoax which is the issue. Since when has it been right to take action which impacts on others in such a negative way? People have a right to oppose and protest but they must respect the law.’’ 
Quite so. St Moylan can’t rest easy yet: 
Whitehaven is considering legal action against the activist. 
Good.

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BAN THE BEAN

Tim Blair – Thursday, January 17, 2013 (12:46pm)

Vegans are eating the forests
Embarrassingly, for those who portray it as a progressive alternative to planet-destroying meat,soya production is now one of the two main causes of deforestation in South America, along with cattle ranching, where vast expanses of forest and grassland have been felled to make way for huge plantations. 
They should run a few bike lanes through them, too.

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PAINASONIC

Tim Blair – Thursday, January 17, 2013 (12:40pm)

The fine art of hangover journalism.

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CHILDREN JUST AREN’T GOING TO KNOW WHAT SNOW IS

Tim Blair – Thursday, January 17, 2013 (4:03am)

The Independent, 2000: 
Snow is starting to disappear from our lives.
Sledges, snowmen, snowballs and the excitement of waking to find that the stuff has settled outside are all a rapidly diminishing part of Britain’s culture, as warmer winters – which scientists are attributing to global climate change – produce not only fewer white Christmases, but fewer white Januaries and Februaries …
Global warming, the heating of the atmosphere by increased amounts of industrial gases, is now accepted as a reality by the international community …
According to Dr David Viner, a senior research scientist at the climatic research unit of the University of East Anglia, within a few years winter snowfall will become “a very rare and exciting event”.
“Children just aren’t going to know what snow is,” he said. 
The Independent, 2013: 
Stand by for icy blasts and heavy snow 

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THEY HAVE FACTORIES FOR LIES

Tim Blair – Thursday, January 17, 2013 (12:57am)

The latest from Australia’s moderate mufti:



(Via geoffff)

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BEARS COMPARED

Tim Blair – Thursday, January 17, 2013 (12:56am)

• Teddy bear wheels. Not so cool. 

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If our heavenly Father has already given us Jesus, heaven’s best, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Check out today's devotional. Be sure to click "like" to help spread the word! Thanks, all!http://bit.ly/SCthAf
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Sorry for waffling on about how great these are...
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Only a Coalition Government can deliver a STRONG and Prosperous Economy.
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This will not happen, not because of lack of political will, but because of reality. Australia is being made bankrupt with its 5% renewable impost because renewable is less efficient than coal. - ed
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A MESSAGE FROM THE QUEEN 

To the citizens of the United States of America from Her Sovereign Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

In light of your failure in recent years to nominate competent candidates for President of the USA and thus to govern yourselves, we hereby give notice of the revocation of your independence, effective immediately. (You should look up 'revocation' in the Oxford English Dictionary.)

Her Sovereign Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will resume monarchical duties over all states, commonwealths, and territories (except North Dakota, which she does not fancy).

Your new Prime Minister, David Cameron, will appoint a Governor for America without the need for further elections.

Congress and the Senate will be disbanded. A questionnaire may be circulated next year to determine whether any of you noticed.

To aid in the transition to a British Crown dependency, the following rules are introduced with immediate effect:

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1. The letter 'U' will be reinstated in words such as 'colour,' 'favour,' 'labour' and 'neighbour.' Likewise, you will learn to spell 'doughnut' without skipping half the letters, and the suffix '-ize' will be replaced by the suffix '-ise.' Generally, you will be expected to raise your vocabulary to acceptable levels. (look up 'vocabulary').

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2. Using the same twenty-seven words interspersed with filler noises such as ''like' and 'you know' is an unacceptable and inefficient form of communication. There is no such thing as U.S. English. We will let Microsoft know on your behalf. The Microsoft spell-checker will be adjusted to take into account the reinstated letter 'u'' and the elimination of '-ize.'

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3. July 4th will no longer be celebrated as a holiday.

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4. You will learn to resolve personal issues without using guns, lawyers, or therapists. The fact that you need so many lawyers and therapists shows that you're not quite ready to be independent. Guns should only be used for shooting grouse. If you can't sort things out without suing someone or speaking to a therapist, then you're not ready to shoot grouse.

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5. Therefore, you will no longer be allowed to own or carry anything more dangerous than a vegetable peeler. Although a permit will be required if you wish to carry a vegetable peeler in public.

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6. All intersections will be replaced with roundabouts, and you will start driving on the left side with immediate effect. At the same time, you will go metric with immediate effect and without the benefit of conversion tables. Both roundabouts and metrication will help you understand the British sense of humour.

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7. The former USA will adopt UK prices on petrol (which you have been calling gasoline) of roughly $10/US gallon. Get used to it.

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8. You will learn to make real chips. Those things you call French fries are not real chips, and those things you insist on calling potato chips are properly called crisps. Real chips are thick cut, fried in animal fat, and dressed not with catsup but with vinegar.

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9. The cold, tasteless stuff you insist on calling beer is not actually beer at all. Henceforth, only proper British Bitter will be referred to as beer, and European brews of known and accepted provenance will be referred to as Lager. South African beer is also acceptable, as they are pound for pound the greatest sporting nation on earth and it can only be due to the beer. They are also part of the British Commonwealth - see what it did for them. American brands will be referred to as Near-Frozen Gnat's Urine, so that all can be sold without risk of further confusion.

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10. Hollywood will be required occasionally to cast English actors as good guys. Hollywood will also be required to cast English actors to play English characters. Watching Andie Macdowell attempt English dialect in Four Weddings and a Funeral was an experience akin to having one's ears removed with a cheese grater.

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11. You will cease playing American football. There is only one kind of proper football; you call it soccer. Those of you brave enough will, in time, be allowed to play rugby (which has some similarities to American football, but does not involve stopping for a rest every twenty seconds or wearing full kevlar body armour like a bunch of nancies).

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12. Further, you will stop playing baseball. It is not reasonable to host an event called the World Series for a game which is not played outside of America. Since only 2.1% of you are aware there is a world beyond your borders, your error is understandable. You will learn cricket, and we will let you face the South Africans first to take the sting out of their deliveries.

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13.. You must tell us who killed JFK. It's been driving us mad.

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14. An internal revenue agent (i.e. tax collector) from Her Majesty's Government will be with you shortly to ensure the acquisition of all monies due (backdated to 1776).

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15. Daily Tea Time begins promptly at 4 p.m. with proper cups, with saucers, and never mugs, with high quality biscuits (cookies) and cakes; plus strawberries (with cream) when in season.

God Save the Queen!

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