Big Greenie Rally against plan to build cable car on Tasmanian mountain

There's never any end to their protesting. Building dams, cutting down trees, there's always something they are against.  They talk as if the cable car will make the mountain shrivel up and disappear. In reality the cable car will simply allow more people to enjoy the mountain. 

But Greenies always do want to restrict access to natural features by non-Greenies. It's stark elitism.  They think they are the only ones who deserve the privilege of entering natural areas.  Only they have the "sensitivity" required


It's just another local mountain

Thousands of people descended on Cascade Gardens in South Hobart to protest against a plan to run a cable car up to the summit of Mount Wellington-kunanyi.

So many people were packed into the park for the Mountain Mayday rally — held near the proposed base station for the project — that some had to stand outside the fence on the road in order to see.

The speakers included Tasmanian author Richard Flanagan, former Australian Greens leader Bob Brown and independent MP Andrew Wilkie.

They said the process for the cable car development had been corrupt and lacking transparency and community consultation.

Mr Flanagan talked down the likelihood the cable car project would ever get up, likening its chances to MP Rene Hidding getting the Speaker's role that was snatched away from him by fellow Liberal Sue Hickey earlier this week.

"The Hobart cable car company says the Hobart public support the cable car," he said.

"Rene Hidding's more likely to become Speaker than you can believe a word the cable car company says.

"The cable car company says they'll take the kids free up to the top of the mountain.  "Well, I've got some news — the mountain's always been free. Kids have been enjoying it forever and I was one of them.

"I've loved the mountain since I was little. To have this wonderland, this thumb of the southwest sitting itself into the pie of our city always seemed to be a miracle.

"I've walked all over it, camped in snow caves as a kid, I climb the zig-zag most weeks, I've watched the snow swirl round the columns of the organ pipes and I've walked on into the wonder."

Referring to the state's housing crisis, Mr Flanagan asked: "Why is this government more interested in building a cable car than houses for the homeless?"

Bob Brown said "kunanyi is in our safekeeping and kunanyi will be saved from this cable car".

Independent MP Andrew Wilkie told the crowd the strong support the Hodgman Government had provided the sole proponent of the project, the Mount Wellington Cable Car company (MWCC) led by Adrian Bold, had put many people offside.

"This is a monumental achievement to get so many of us so cross," he told the crowd.

"Even those people that support the idea of a cable car, or are at least open minded to the idea of a cable car, even they're getting cross now because what they see is unacceptable.

    "In the last week, I had one person who supports the cable car say 'but it really should be publicly owned'.

"I heard someone else say I support the cable car and I think it should be privately owned but I'm worried it's going to be bailed out by the taxpayer."

Government Minister Michael Ferguson said the process was transparent and had been proven so.

"You couldn't be more transparent than the Minister for State Growth [Peter Gutwein] cancelling a permit to ensure best practices are being followed," he said.

    "There is a Green constituency in Tasmania that will never accept any development on Mount Wellington and that is what you are seeing.

"We understand there's different points of view on the cable car, but overwhelmingly people of Tasmania do support that [the cable car], voted for that and expect us to get on with it."

Luke Martin from the Tourism Industry Council of Tasmania said the public needed to consider the alternatives.

"Within a few years there is likely to be more than a million people heading to the summit each year," he said.

"It is simply unsustainable to continue to have more and more vehicles and tour buses driving up a century-old road and a seemingly ever-expanding car park.

"What do they propose we do? Shuttle buses that mean expanding the summit road? Limiting visitor numbers through some kind of fee or quota system?

    "Ironically, across the globe it is conservationists who are pushing for the development of cable way technologies."

On Monday Mr Bold said the MWCC was not deterred by the protest and the large turnout.

[It] doesn't necessarily change our view of what the social licence should be," he said.

"We're quite aware that there are hundreds of thousands of people who didn't go to Cascade Gardens. "We've been listening to the people for a good six, seven-and-a-half years now and meeting with residents one-on-one, collecting and responding to thousands of emails. "We just have to stick it out, essentially."

The proposal from the MWCC has faced stiff opposition from conservationists and sectors of the Hobart community since it was announced that preliminary drilling works had been approved days before the state election.

SOURCE 





People try, and fail, to guess the meaning of Australian slang

A notable omission below is terms of abuse:  "galah" = foolish person; "Nong" = stupid person; "Drongo" an utter moron

IF YOU need proof of how unique Australian expressions are, get a load of these people from overseas trying — and miserably failing — to interpret them.

IF YOU’RE talking to someone from another country and they’re looking at you like you’re a few roos loose in the top paddock, it’s likely they literally have no idea what you’re saying.

Our beloved Australian slang is unique — and complete gibberish to most other people.

Just think of every time someone’s been confused, or demanded an explanation, when you’ve used a word like “thong” or uttered a phrase like “blowing the froth off a couple” while overseas, even an English-speaking country.

That’s something Aussie Matt Horsburgh, the PR manager for Babbel International, has realised since he started working in Europe alongside international colleagues.

“Working with people from all over the world on a daily basis, it’s eye-opening — and sometimes downright hilarious — to see how others react to some really everyday Aussie expressions,” he said.

“One of my favourite examples was when I said ‘yeah, no worries’ to a colleague and they asked me what I was worried about. I had to clarify that it meant ‘yes’.

“Even though I constantly end up having to explain what things like ‘she’ll be right’ or ‘togs’ mean, I think our slang is one of the most endearing things about being an Australian, and people from other countries always love hearing about our idiosyncrasies.”

Sometimes, though, it can start off sounding like total nonsense.

Babbel, the language learning app, recently polled people from the US, the UK, Canada, France, Sweden, Germany, Spain, the Philippines, Poland and Russia, seeking their interpretations of classic Australian slang.

Respondents successfully deciphered the easy stuff, like “g’day”, but other words and phrases left them totally baffled and perhaps even a little frightened.

Here are some of the survey results.

‘SHE’LL BE RIGHT’

UK’s guess: “The wife is always correct”

Russia’s guess: “She will be back in a minute”

Actual meaning: Everything will be fine

‘CHUCK A U-EY’

Germany’s guess: “Something that is disgusting”

Poland’s guess: “To drink fast”

Russia’s guess: “Everything is cool”

Actual meaning: To make a U-turn while driving

‘SERVO’

UK: “Bring the drinks”

France and Sweden and Germany: “Waiter”

Actual meaning: Service station

FLAT OUT LIKE A LIZARD DRINKING

US: “Absolutely no idea”

France: “To have a flat tyre”

Germany: “Spilling drinks everywhere”

Actual meaning: To be very busy

‘FAIR SUCK OF THE SAUCE BOTTLE’

UK: “Probably something alcohol related”

US: “To be drunk”

Actual meaning: To be treated fairly or reasonably

‘CARRY ON LIKE A PORK CHOP’

UK: “A fat person trying to finish a task”

US: “To talk excessively”

Actual meaning: To act in an overly dramatic manner

‘YOU HUM DINGER’

Sweden: “You fool”

Philippines: “You’re boring”

Poland: “You smell bad”

Actual meaning: A remarkable person or thing

‘HEAD LIKE A DROPPED PIE’

Germany: “To be confused”

Sweden: “Having a headache”

Actual meaning: To be unattractive

‘KANGAROOS LOOSE IN THE TOP PADDOCK’

Canada: “Someone who isn’t very smart” (bingo!)

Poland: “To be very messy”

Russia: “Mobbing the losers”

Actual meaning: To be foolish, nonsensical, crazy

‘SHE’S A BLOODY RIPPER’

France: “She just wants your money”

US: “A big storm”

Actual meaning: Something awesome

‘KEN OATH’

US: “One of the former Prime Ministers”

Actual meaning: Enthusiastic yes, you bet (taken from “f**ken oath”)

‘GOON BAG’

Sweden: “A crazy person”

Poland: “Not a very smart person”

Actual meaning: Wine, usually cheap, sold in a cask

‘CRACK THE SH*TS’

US: “To get nervous”

Germany: “To clear out quickly”

Actual meaning: To get angry or annoyed.

SOURCE 






Big group of young Africans trash Melbourne short-term rental: ‘Furniture was being thrown out of the house’

A TWO-storey property in Melbourne’s Footscray has been “trashed” by up to 150 youths who attended an out-of-control party at the residence after it was rented for a night through an online booking site.

Police officers were called to the Ryan St property following reports of an unruly house party about 7.30am on Sunday.

A group of people were throwing furniture onto the street when the authorities arrived, according to police.

“The property, which had been rented for the night, sustained significant damage both internally and externally,” a police statement read.

The owner of the house, identified only as Kelly, told 3AW’s Neil Mitchell that she was alerted to the incident as it was unfolding but police advised it was too dangerous for her to enter and that they could do nothing to help.

She said police told her the tenants who rented the home had invited the guests, so they couldn’t enter, the Herald Sun reported.

“I think they were powerless,” she said. “So I stood out there with the police and we all looked in while I could see my house — basically windows were being smashed, neighbours told me they could hear smashing noises, massive holes in the walls, doors knocked through,” she said.

“We were saying what can we do? We can’t just stand here and watch our house being trashed. And they said there is nothing you can do.”

She said she believed false names were used when the property was hired and because the damage was “malicious”, insurers weren’t going to cover the cost of repairs.

A resident who lives a couple of streets back told 3AW he noticed many of the partygoers hanging around his place.

“The police did come within about five minutes and told them to move on,” he said.  “The police didn’t raise their voices, and the African guys did adhere to what the police said so I’m very thankful.”

A 19-year-old Point Cook man has been arrested for drunken behaviour. No one was injured during the incident and the investigation is ongoing, police said.

SOURCE 





PFAS chemicals not linked to disease but health effects 'cannot be ruled out', expert panel finds

PFAS is the latest false alarm from the disastrous Erin Brockovich

There is limited or no evidence to link exposure to PFAS chemicals with human disease, but health effects cannot be ruled out, an independent panel has advised the Australian Government.

An expert health panel was set up in October 2017 to advise the Government on the potential health impacts associated with exposure to the chemicals, which were historically used in firefighting foams, and to identify priority areas for further research.

It found there was "mostly limited or no evidence" for any link with human disease and there is "no current evidence that suggests an increase in overall cancer risk".

While it concluded there was no increase in overall cancer risk, it did note the "most concerning signal reported" in the scientific studies was a "possible link" with an increase risk of testicular and kidney cancer.

Per-and poly-fluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS chemicals, were used in firefighting foams at 18 Defence bases across the country starting in 1970.

Use of the foams was phased out from 10 years ago but caused widespread contamination in the soil, groundwater and surface water around some of the bases.

Since revelations about contamination, residents who live near Defence facilities in Katherine in the Northern Territory, Williamtown in New South Wales and Oakey in Queensland were offered blood tests, and some offered alternative sources of drinking water.

Katherine was exposed to the chemical from firefighting foam used at the nearby Tindal RAAF base in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Voluntary blood tests got underway in Katherine in March this year, following an interim human health risk assessment that warned against eating local seafood and home-grown produce.

The entire town has been on water restrictions since August 2017, while a permanent solution for an alternative water supply could take up to two years.

PFAS chemicals build up in animals and humans, and remain in the body for many years, the panel report said.

"Importantly, there is no current evidence that supports a large impact on a person's health as a result of high levels of PFAS exposure," the report found.

"However, the panel noted that even though the evidence for PFAS exposure and links to health effects is very weak and inconsistent, important health effects for individuals exposed to PFAS cannot be ruled out based on the current evidence."

The panel reviewed 20 recently published reports and academics reviews.

It found that "although the scientific evidence on the relationship between PFAS exposure and health effects is limited, current reports, reviews and research provide fairly consistent reports with several health effects".

The panel noted, however, the level of health effects in people with the highest exposure was generally still within "normal ranges" for the whole population.

Considering all the evidence before it, the expert health panel advised Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt any health screening for exposed groups should be for research purposes only.

"The evidence does not support any specific health or disease screening or other health interventions for highly exposed groups in Australia, except for research purposes," the report stated.

SOURCE 

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).    For a daily critique of Leftist activities,  see DISSECTING LEFTISM.  To keep up with attacks on free speech see Tongue Tied. Also, don't forget your daily roundup  of pro-environment but anti-Greenie  news and commentary at GREENIE WATCH .  Email me  here