Jennifer Marohasy

a forum for the discussion of issues concerning the natural environment

Humour

After Gina Rhinehart Buys Fairfax

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‘The hilarious implication – and secret terror of every Melbourne hipster – is that Rinehart will turn Fairfax into some kind of 24-hour Mining Channel, with endless re-runs of Red Dog and Wake in Fright, interspersed with ads for blue singlets. You won’t be able to so much as pick up a copy of the Age without finding your hands stained red with dust, as you search in vain for a single article that isn’t about the Hancock family, while averting your eyes from the topless pictures of Andrew Bolt on page 3. 

I don’t know about you, but given the uniformly mindless dross scraped up, warmed over, rehashed and then served as ideological bubble-and-squeak on the ABC (even drizzled with its jus of self-righteousness and dark-green sea foam), I long for alternatives. In fact, I long for the much-anticipated sale of the ABC under the most enthusiastic sort of Liberal government, and dismantled by an equally enthusiastic Mark Latham. During the Renaissance, it was the independently filthy rich – the oligarchs, bankers and popes – who sponsored the finest artists of the age. Let a new Renaissance bloom at the touch of button 2 on the remote: I hope Rinehart buys the entire Fairfax group, and then casts hungry eyes on the ABC itself…

Read more here: http://www.quadrant.org.au/blogs/qed/2012/06/one-woman-army

From ‘One-woman Army’ by Philippa Martyr
Published at Quadrant Online on June 20, 2012

Qatar Outbids US and Australia for Soccer Matches

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The oil rich Gulf state of Qatar has out bided Australia, and even the US, for the FIFA Soccer World Cup.  According to The Australian:

“The Gulf state’s climate that will be so hot during the World Cup that the organisers admit they will need to build massive air-conditioning systems for entire stadiums, training facilities and fan zones to avoid serious health risks.”

Perhaps there are opportunities here for the carbon offsets industry?   Perhaps those who really care about Anthropogenic Global Warming should boycott the event?

After all, according to Wikipedia:

“Qatar has the highest per-capita carbon dioxide emissions, at 55.5 metric tons per person in 2005. This is almost double the next highest per-capita emitting country, which is Kuwait at 30.7 metric tons (2005) and they are three times those of the United States. Qatar had the highest per-capita carbon dioxide emissions for the past 18 years. These emissions are largely due to high rates of energy use in Qatar. Major uses of energy in Qatar include air conditioning, natural gas processing, water desalination and electricity production. Between 1995 and 2011 the electricity generating capacity of Qatar will have increased to six times the previous level. The fact that Qataris do not have to pay for either their water or electricity supplies is thought to contribute to their high rate of energy use. Despite being a desert state they are also one of the highest consumers of water per capita per day, using around 400 litres.”

From Rod Kerkhoven in South Australia

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I saw this one man from Adelaide University at Milang and I asked him about these barrages and he said that if they let the sea in the caravan park would have been flooded. He mentioned something about the Surveyor General’s Office telling the Premier that hundreds of acres of land would be inundated if the sea were allowed back in.   I suppose it has risen since they put the dam things in which was in 1948… They are all slashing their paddocks early this year. In fact it gets earlier and earlier and I have been here for 20 years…  One more thing:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zu0kCa61VSo

Canberra and Laputa: A Note from William York

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Gullivers_travelsHOW did he do it? Dean Jonathon Swift writing Gulliver’s Travels in 1726 made a long range forecast of such incredible accuracy that it would be the envy of any climate modeler. In this forecast you glimpse Kevin Rudd, the ANU, the academies and many practical men who may bring doom and destruction to Australia.

You may recall that on one of Lemuel Gulliver’s voyages he is rescued from a desolate rock by a rope dropped from a manoeuvrable island that floats in the air. It is the kingdom of Laputa, a small island no more than a few miles wide that can be steered over a country called Balnibarbi. The king of Laputa rules Balnibarbi and if the citizens below prove troublesome then Laputa can bring perpetual night to a rebellious town by keeping it in permanent darkness or at least until the citizens mend their ways.

There is an interesting resonance with our present rulers in Canberra, with a city that, to many, appears to float disconnected and threatening darkness to those who disagree. Perhaps the Cabinet town meetings are the equivalent of Laputa hovering over its citizens. [Read more…] about Canberra and Laputa: A Note from William York