" Civilized " Laws on Alcohol !

Australia has had a troubled past with the laws that permit the drinking of alcohol.  When a colony was established in New South Wales in 1788 there was a shortage of actual money and so the demon rum was the currency used in settling debts.   The import of this spirit was quickly claimed by the army's officer corps which led to what became known as the " Rum Rebellion ".  Alcohol has been subjected to restrictive laws ever since.

During the first world war as an austerity measure and to maintain work production the serving of alcohol ceased at six pm in all the mainland states. The exception was Tasmanian where the pubs opened at 10 am, and closed at 10 pm - on the dot.  At that time the age at which a person could purchase alcohol was legally set at twenty-one years of age.

That six o'clock closing saw what became known as the " six o'clock swill ".  Lines of people surged into pub bars just before the closing time and ordered glasses of beer which they consumed on the pavement outside when the doors were closed.  That law was changed in 1955 in favour of universal 10 pm closing.

The imposition of the draft to fight the war in Vietnam brought a change in the drinking age. It was deemed unreasonable that at eighteen a man could be forced to serve in the army and fight a war, but was considered too immature to either drink alcohol of legally vote in elections.  The age of maturity was lowered to eighteen.

Sydney became the " rest and resuscitation " city for both American and Australian troops fighting the Vietnam war and entertainment facilities expanded accordingly.  The suburb of Kings Cross became a night life centre that endured and after the war it attracted vast and unruly crowds carousing into the small hours of the morning.  Fearful that this was getting out of control, the government slapped on trading restrictions that stopped movement between venues and mandated last drinks at what became known as the " lockout laws ".  Kings Cross faded into obscurity and Sydney lost its reputation as a world city.

Those laws will be lifted on January 14, just in time for Mardi Gras.  A host of new regulations will come into force and that will include last drinks  called at 3-30 am which is in line with most world cities.  Small bars will gain new freedoms to attract more of the holiday crowd, and bottle shops will again be open until midnight.  This relaxation will not extend to those old haunts in Kings Cross.

This revival is opposed by the medical profession which claims it will increase the workload for hospital emergency departments, but the general consensus is that Sydney is out of step with entertainment in the great cities of the world.  The restrictive laws were necessary to curtail an unruly past and they have served that purpose.

Most fair minded people will approve this change.  From January 14 it will be up to the  venues providing entertainment and the people of Sydney using them to avoid a return to those unruly mob scenes that caused the close down.  And they will need to remember that reimposition is simply a matter of a small law change away  !

Is This Drought Permanent ?

Conventional wisdom tells us that droughts are an inescapable component of the Australian climate - and that they always come to an end.  Such is the knowledge gained from our two hundred and thirty one years occupation of this continent and this is supported by the tales of the Indigenous people who were here thousands of years before white settlement.

This present drought is fast reaching crisis point in many country areas where the taps are running dry and even water supplies for the city of Sydney have a definable limit, but city residents have the backstop of a massive desalination plant that can ensure that at least bottled drinking water will still be available.

Global warming is changing the weather pattern of the world and science is warning us that we are reaching the dangerous tipping point where recovery becomes impossible.  What if this drought persists for another hundred years with just the occasional rain flurries barely wetting the ground  ?
We are entering the unknown with climate change and the fact that the great ice sheets are melting in both the polar regions means the water circulation in the oceans is slowing.

Our farmers are barely hanging on.  Many have not had a crop in the ground for several years and both sheep and cattle herds have diminished as a nucleus is kept alive by hand feeding.  If the rains do not arrive soon most of those farmers will have to permanently leave the land and inland Australia will simply cease to exist.

The pessimists claim that what we do in Australia will have no effect on world weather - and they are right.  If we ceased mining coal and stopped using oil our small population of twenty-five million people would not register even a blip on the activities of the seven billion who populate this planet. The necessary action is not taking place because to do so would so convulse individual economies that governments fear the public backlash.  The average Joe is very self centred.  He demands that his job is secure and that there is food to be bought in the supermarket - and if that does not happen he votes the offending government out of office.

World governments cling onto power because of the rewards that power brings.  They agree  change is necessary, but they delay implementation because to do so will lose them public support, but attitudes are starting to change.  The fires burning in eastern Australia are heralding an advanced fire season and children are challenging the apathy of their parents.

The Australia a hundred years into the future will be a very different country to the one we know today.  Rising sea levels will have inundated the coastal cities where we cling to life today and inland Australia will have become a salty sea where evaporation may have renewed the rain pattern.  In a hotter world we may have become a tropical country with a different lifestyle.

Whether we like it - or not - we are experiencing change.  How we adapt to that change will decide the type of country that will emerge and how that will fit in the pattern of world countries that will have to earn a living on planet Earth.   And it will all depend on whether an end to this drought eventuates  !

When Music becomes A Weapon !

The live music scene in Australia is under threat because of drug use and a heavy handed police approach using sniffer dogs and strip searches.  The law requires a heavy presence of paramedics and doctors to be on site to treat drug overdoses and this is adding to costs. Unfortunately, this is becoming a hindrance to the emergence of new Australian  rap groups who need these events to draw audiences.

One such group by the name of " OneFour  ' has an international stream of thirty million followers  that stretches to both the USA and the UK,. but is battling to get live gigs in its own country.  It reports that cancellation of bookings is usually the result of police pressure.  The police claim their music is associated with " street level " crime because their lyrics  cover issues such as racism, marginalization and crime.

What is alarming is that this group also seems to be the pivot point of gang emergence in Australia. Western Sydney is fast splitting into two groups who are at war with one another and gang members refer to themselves as either the " greater west " or the " inner west ".   There is fear that if this goes unchecked it could develop into the type of gang warfare that convulsed New York city many decades ago.

The thinking seems to be that if OneFour are prevented from touring it will prevent these western Sydney gangs from establishing chapters in other Australian states. OneFour has become the police target simply because of the type of music they play.  Their Melbourne show has already been cancelled and both Perth and Sydney are now in doubt.

The emergence of gang culture in Australia is probably  remarkable by its absence.  Sydney is Australia's biggest city and its western suburbs are the melting pot of many different races, cultures, religions and vastly differing lifestyles.   The " west " sees itself as very different from the established " north shore " and its residents tend to vigorously support sporting teams which base themselves west of the city.

Australia has produced many bands that have gone on to international success and in most cases the authorities have not been comfortable with their lyrics, but this is the first time police pressure has been used to cancel live performances to cancel out street crime.  It is quite possible that OneFour may decide to establish their base overseas if gigs in Australia are blocked and that could still provoke the support of these two western based gang groups.

The police would be wise to understand a tenet of pop culture.  If something is banned, it immediately adds to its allure.  Cancelling OneFour concerts will probably have the exact opposite effect of what was intended  !

Independence - At Any Cost !

Hong  Kong is a city of seven million people and it has just had an election to install the council that will run the city.  Voting is optional and usually only a small number of people take the trouble to record a vote, but this time over three million queued for hours to have their voice heard.  The vote went overwhelmingly to pro-democracy candidates.

The turnout was 71.2% of registered voters and that contrasts with the 45% that voted at the last election.  It cements the opinion of the people who have rioted in the streets for the past five months in support of independence from Beijing.  There has been an expectation that the Chinese Communist party would send PLA troops into the city to rule with an iron fist.  This election has been a slap in the face for the president and the ruling elite in Beijing.

The big question is what happens now  ?  Beijing may question the credentials of many who won office but this was a de facto referendum and the result was crystal clear.  Hong Kong wants to keep its independent status as an offshore trading entity, free of the restrictions the Communist party impose on residents of the mainland.

To allow that to happen contrasts sharply with the Communist party stance on that other independent island of Taiwan.  When the Chinese civil war ended in a Communist victory the defeated Nationalists retreated to the island of Formosa and renamed it Taiwan. It conducts world trade with implied military support from America but Beijing regards it as an integral part of China and threatens to invade unless it agrees to unification under a similar arrangement in place with Hong Kong,.  The rejection of that agreement in this Hong Kong election takes that option off the drawing board.

In the early years of Communist China,  Hong Kong needed China, but China no longer needs Hong Kong.  The majority of Chinese exports travelled through the port of Hong Kong but now mainland Chinese ports have established their own identity as Chinas heads towards becoming the world greatest economy.  Hong Kong relies less on trade and more on its status as a world tourist destination.

What happens next depends on what is served out to the hundreds arrested during the street marches and the storming of the university citadel.  If they are punished with a moderate fine and sent home it is likely that the unrest will subside now that a pro democracy element is running the city.  If the Beijing leadership takes a heavy handed approach and imposes prison sentences to be served in the western gulags where millions of Muslims are interned to achieve a re-education programme it is likely the city will continue to erupt.  Xi Jinping may continue to play the long game, knowing the rioters must soon return to earning a living and exercise further patience.

What is now clear is that the future of Hong Kong awaits the decision making that must take place in Beijing.

A Threat to the American Supreme Court !

The Justices of the United States Supreme Court are appointed for a life term unless they decide to willingly stand down.  When a vacancy occurs it is the job of the President of the United States to put forward a nominee and have that person confirmed by a majority vote in the US Senate.  Such nominees are usually heavily influenced by the political outlook of whoever is holding office in the White House at that point of time.

President Trump was elected under the Republican banner and his choice of Justices is expected to favour a deeply conservative outlook.  Such was the fear when two of his nominees survived intense Senate questioning and were appointed to the nation's highest court.  They were Neil Gorsuch in April, 2017 and Brett Kavanaugh in October 2018.

The news that the courts oldest member has been admitted to hospital to treat an infection will be greeted with alarm across the United States.  Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is  eighty-six years old and is regarded as a " liberal " in her voting pattern.  Should Ginsburg die, or choose to stand down because of her health worries, the selection of her replacement would enable Trump to stack the Supreme court with a Conservative majority.

The possibility of another Supreme court vacancy comes at a time when Trump's hold on the presidency is in itself under threat and if he survives impeachment he will face re-election next year for another four year term.  Because Justices are appointed on a life term the flavour of the High court will persist for long after whoever is in office has vacated that post.

The pivot point on which the Supreme court may change America is its decision on a challenge to " Row versus Wade " which was decided on January 22, 1973.   The Supreme court ruled that state regulation of abortion was unconstitutional, and since then abortion has been freely available in America.  Republican convictions have been closing down that availability with the intent of seeking a review of that Supreme court decision.

A deeply conservative Supreme court would probably roll back many of the decisions that have encouraged women to seek careers in the workforce.  The question mark hanging over Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg will give new urgency to the impeachment debate as liberal elements will seek to remove the president before the issue of a High court replacement becomes a reality.

In the distant past, the selection of incoming Justices saw the nominees face intense questioning during the confirmation hearings.   The decisions they had handed down in their lower court careers were carefully scrutinised item by item and they were directly questioned on their outlook on many issues.   Sitting presidents went to great lengths to choose candidates who would be acceptable to both sides of politics.

The constituency of the High court is now the imperative issue of Trump's last year in elected office. Whether the voters grant him another term is yet to be decided but the years of the Trump presidency may re-echo for long after his term ends as his influence is reflected in the decisions that the court hands down for years to come.

A Welcome " Defector " !

The problem with " democracies" is we cherish things like " freedom of speech " and a free press that  are exactly the tools a foreign power needs when it seeks to change public thinking.  It is public forums like Facebook  that open us to manipulation when most of the matter openly discussed is comment introduced by agents of a foreign power.

All the great powers employ information gathering networks built around their diplomatic missions with the task of gathering both commercial secrets and the strength of  military services.  We have similar organizations sharing information with friendly countries and just what degree of penetration is achieved is kept a national secret.

Now a spy sent to Australia undercover by the Communist Chinese government in Beijing has defected and we are learning of the vast spy network infiltrating this country.  Wang Liqiang has thrown himself on the mercy of the Australian government and is willing to reveal all in exchange for protection.   He has made it quite clear that Chinese agents are willing to commit both kidnapping and murder in this country to protect their information sources.

We are well aware that agents of Russia's GRB military intelligence have no scruples against the murder of dissidents who have fled to Britain, often years after they have settled in that country.  The use of highly radioactive " Polarium " often features in such attacks because it allows the perpetrators to flee the country before the symptoms appear.

The enigma of a Chinese Communist state employing a Capitalist trading system has created many Chinese billionaires and many choose to live outside China.  This is the vital conduit their masters in Beijing use to distribute money to buy influence.  It has been obvious that Chinese money has been skilfully employed to try and direct the outcome of both state and Federal elections in Australia.

Mr Wang is a valuable asset and we should guard him carefully.  There is no doubt that China would like to silence him and preserve the secrecy surrounding their spy network in Australia and to keep him safe we will needs to provide both a new identity and undercover work that will merge him with the Asian content of this country.  That should be information restricted to the highest level of our security services.

We have a flash point to Australia's north with China claiming sovereignty of the South China sea and it looks like China is trying to secure a military foothold in various countries scattered about the south Pacific ocean. We are a continent with a small population by world standards and where military power will be concentrated decades from now is an open question.

The security of Australia has always rested in our alliances with other countries.  It seems the fulcrum of  power is again shifting and it is important that we carefully preserve our independence from whatever new power blocks emerge.  We can only do that by neutralising the spy networks within working to dictate how we think - and how we vote.

Mr Wang will be a valuable source of such information  !

Downfall of a Prince !

Sex scandals in Britain seem to be a regular happening.  In 1961 just such an event rocked Harold McMillan's Conservative government for many days when John Profumo, the  Secretary of State for War was forced to resign and stand down over his association with a nineteen year old model.

There were lurid accounts of parties at a luxurious country estate organised by a mystery man in political circles in which attractive young women provided sexual services.  Two of them, Christine Keeler and Mandy Rice-Davies had their photographs splashed across the front pages of the nation's media.

Espionage was suggested when it was learned that Christine Keeler not only slept with John Profumo, but was also seeing a naval attache from the Russian embassy in London.  This time around the target is a senior member of the British Royal family and a girl just seventeen years old.

The Prince of York appears guilty on two counts.  He enjoyed the hospitality of notorious US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and a picture exists of him with his arm around the waist of the young woman making the sex claim.  His televised statement that he " does not recall" ever meeting her seems disingenuous.

It is evident that the Palace is deeply embarrassed and the  59 year old second son of the Queen and Prince Phillip has been asked to step back from royal duties.  What is surprising to many people is that sex continues to tarnish reputations despite the sexual freedom that exists in the society we enjoy today.

Prostitution is now legal and brothels are common in world cities.  The vast consensus of young people experience a range of sexual encounters before they finally choose a permanent partner and this is done openly.  Sex is no longer the finger waving sin it was made out to be in the early years of the twentieth century.

Contraception is freely available on supermarket shelves - and in dispensers behind the toilet doors in many social venues.  It seems strange that a fifty-nine year old, divorced man is pilloried and forced to withdraw from society because he accepted sex from a compliant young woman at a house party.  Somehow the suggestion that sexual deviant Jeffrey Epstein probably recruited young women for that purpose seems immaterial.  His sin seems to be lieing about the encounter.

Would the same stigma exist if Prince Andrew had gone to a brothel, paid the required fee and made a selection from the women offering - and taken one to bed  ?   The girl at the party was aged seventeen, and eighteen seems to be the sticking point where commercial sex is involved, although the age of consent is  usually set at sixteen in most world countries.

It seems that Epstein got what he deserved, but Prince Andrew is mostly guilty of failing the believability test in the public eye  !

Class Action Win !

Just three women started a class action  against one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the world to seek redress when it marketed a medical device without adequate warning of the risks involved.  Very quickly this trio were joined by 1350 other women suffering the pain and discomfort from medical failure and this week a Federal Court judge delivered a finding in their favour.

The company defending the action was Johnson and Johnson and two of its subsidiaries. This week Justice Anna Katzmann brought to a close this trial which started in July, 2017 with a finding that Johnson and Johnson and its attending companies engaged in misleading conduct and each was negligent as the risks for the devices were " known and not insignificant ".

All the devices carried risks of complications - against which no adequate warnings were given.  The case will now proceed to the compensation stage and there is the expectation that this could run to many hundreds of thousands in damages.

The mesh products involved were supposed to treat stress  urinary incontinence or uterus prolapse after childbirth.  In finding the companies  liable for damages, Justice Katzmann said  risks of the nine mesh or tape devices included in the case were minimised " or not mentioned at all ."  She also found that all three companies had been negligent as they knew the risks of the devices and knew these risks could " cause significant and serious harm ".

There was also criticism of the Therapeutic  Goods Administration which approved most of the devices for use on the basis that they had been approved for use in the European Union without doing their own checks.

It is suspected that the women involved in this class action are only the tip of an iceberg.  It is unfortunate that the condition this mesh is supposed to treat makes its appearance in various degrees of severity associated with childbirth and is fairly widespread.  It is evident that no reliable relief is yet available.

One of the women involved in the class action commented that Johnson and Johnson still had the opportunity to appeal against this ruling, but it was an " incredibly pleasing result.  "  For all us women who have had to stand and be heard, we can all start to heal a little bit " she said.

This finding will send shock waves through  the entire Therapeutic industry.   The devices used in medical surgery are an important income earner for the companies that develop them and this case brings home the need for adequate testing and a frank revelation of the risks involved before they are released on the market.

Taxing Electric Cars !

As the tax structure now stands the few people already owning electric cars are getting a huge advantage over the owners of petrol and diesel powered cars.  The government imposes a fuel tax to recover the cost of building roads and highway infrastructure and diverts much of that into what is euphemistically called" consolidated revenue " .    Since 2001 that tax has fallen by thirty percent due to the mix of electric and hybrid cars avoiding this " car fuel tax ".

Statistically, the people driving petrol or diesel powered cars are contributing tax at the rate of four cents for every kilometre driven and this is paid directly to the government every time they pull up at a fuel bowser.  It is a magnificently efficient form of tax collection.

There is the expectation that electric cars will begin to inundate the new car market and that by 2046 their share of the traffic stream will reach sixty percent.  Both the Federal and state treasuries are frantically mulling over plans to introduce a new tax regime to restore tax collected when electricity replaces oil and diesel as the car fuel.

Advanced thinking is already opting towards a tax based on charging car owners for every kilometre they drive but that is a lot more complex than just collecting tax at the fuel bowser.  It would probably work in  a similar manner to the charges that apply to mobile phones.  The more you use the phone, the higher the charges accrue.

Like the phone, a national grid would know the exact whereabouts of the car at all times and would apply charges accordingly whenever it moved.  Ideally, those charges would differ according to the time and traffic density.  A trip to the supermarket at a time of low traffic volumes would be taxed at a lower rate than using the car at a peak time of traffic congestion.  The change in timing would allow tax to be the determining factor in car use.  Tax would encourage people to use public transport in preference to driving when the economic factor dictated.

It is obvious that whatever system is chosen it will have to run in tandem with the existing fuel tax for many years.  Petrol/diesel cars and electrics will share the road during the changeover period and registration of an electric car will need to have its connection to a data base installed at the point of manufacture.   It is essential that there is uniformity between the Australian states so that this system is applicable Australia wide.

What is disquieting is that plans to tax electric cars is still at the discussion stage.  Given that any form of tax change is fraught in political diversity, it is not likely that a cohesive plan will emerge quickly and yet it will be urgently needed if the electric car revolution is to become reality.  The statistician tells us that by 2050 the cities of both Sydney and Melbourne will have population totals exceeding eight million people.

With a little forward planning, this could be the ultimate answer to the nightmare that is fast descending onto Australian roads.  Too many cars trying to reach a common destination - resulting in overload.  Only a tax relating to the time of use will solve that dilemma.

Extortinate " Road Toll " Definitions !

A long time ago it was the dream of many Australian families to have a holiday home somewhere near a distant beach.  A block of land in many choice spots cost just a few hundred dollars and building that holiday shack was usually the task of the family and their friends.  The outgoings by way of council rates were a mere fraction of the prices charged in the city.

Today, that situation has changed dramatically.  Land anywhere near a beach has at least a hundred thousand dollar price tag and country councils demand the same building code requirements as the city.  The rate charges are similar and holiday home owners now need rental income to cover the overheads.

When owning a holiday home became the prerogative of the wealthy, ordinary Australian families embraced the caravan holiday with enthusiasm.  The caravan industry produced comfortable vans with all mod cons at very competitive prices and this delivered the ability to reach a range of distant locations and enjoy different holiday themes.  Towing a mobile home behind the family car became a common sight on Australian roads, catered for by a vast range of caravan parks.

Today, owners of caravans who do not have off street parking are coming under pressure to remove vans from the street outside their homes.  Providing space where vans can be parked legally is now a new industry but the prices charged are nearing extortion levels.  Those same charges that escalated to make holiday homes unaffordable are slowly bringing about the death of caravanning.  They are becoming less prevalent in the holiday traffic stream.

Now a new definition in the road toll system is about to make that caravanning holiday even more expensive.  If the car doing the towing and the van behind it  are greater than 12.5 metres in total length and the height exceeds 2.8 metres it is defined as a " Class B vehicle ".   That's puts it in the same toll category as a B-Double truck  !

Until now, cars towing caravans were classed as " Class A vehicles " and the toll cost of using  M2 and M7 on a journey from Sydney to Canberra was sixteen dollars.     When that new classification came into effect earlier this year that charge increased to $ 47.75 for the same journey.

Simply getting a car and caravan in or out of Sydney is now an expensive proposition.  This " Class B " definition is already in force on Sydney's other toll roads including both the cross city tunnel and the Lane Cove tunnel - and a host of new roads under construction will be subjected to a toll when finished.   The mass of those tolls put together is a frightening figure.

There is an old Chinese curse that says " May you live in interesting times ".   That is certainly an apt definition for those planning a route to get their caravan out of Sydney without the need for an overdraft.  It seems the dream of a cheap caravan holiday just crashed - and burned  !

The " New Trains " Enigma ?

Next month, the first of a fleet of fifty-five new inter-city trains will arrive at Port Kembla from South Korea and begin testing with services expected to begin early in the new year.  This upgrade is costing  $ 1.6 billion and there is the expectation that these new air conditioned carriages will deliver an upgrade in reliability and comfort.

Already, there are rumblings coming from the Rail, Tram and Bus Union who accuse the government of wanting to delete the post of guard from the new trains.  Where this form of transport is used overseas the trains run on a driver only mode and the union suspects that the government will be looking at a similar disposition to lower running costs.

That does raise the question of what purpose a guard serves on a train ?   In the days of the old steam trains the guard travelled in the rear compartment and alighted at each stop holding a red flag.  It was his job to watch to see that passengers were safely aboard and the doors closed before he waved that flag for the driver to continue the journey.

In the city Transit rail system we have moved to driverless trains but this mode of transport is usually taking passengers to and from work and they travel unencumbered.   The inter-city services will serve families with children and often it will involve luggage.  It used to be the guards function to check that passengers had a valid train ticket but today the Opal system delivers ticketless travel.

There is the expectation that the guard will keep order on the train and counsel unruly passengers but the cabins will be under camera review by the driver who will have radio contact to call police to board the train if necessary.  The main function of the guard today seems to be to assist passengers to safely board the train when they have children and luggage and it can be argued that this is a task better managed by station staff, except many stations today are unmanned.

The Transport minister has made it clear that these new double-decker  trains will have both a driver and a guard who will have a dedicated and enclosed crew cabin.  This customer service guard will be visible and will travel through the train assisting passengers with boarding and alighting.  Perhaps in todays world that term " guard " is a misnomer.  In some other countries the term has been changed to " conductor " or " Service Manager ".

Despite this assurance the Rail, Tram and Bus Union is digging in its toes and threatening to raise the presence of a guard as a safety issue.  Guards in the rest of the train fleet are responsible for making announcements and responding to passengers at various help points and this would be performed by the driver in these new trains via electronic means.   The union would prevent passengers getting on trains if the safety issue was unresolved.

It looks like manning these new trains is fast developing into a turf battle.  The government is signalling that manning will be unchanged and the union is promising a fight if that situation changes. What the passengers want is a fast and reliable service.

The Real Deal !

Sydney is such a popular destination for the growing fleet of cruise liners that we are reaching the point of turning away bookings.  There is simply not enough terminal space for them to dock and allow thousands of passengers to spend their money on the city delights.

A luxury cruise on a ship is the fastest growing world holiday segment now that air travel is being condemned for adding to global warming.  The world's shipyards are inundated with orders for ever bigger ships to accommodate this trade and in the eyes of world travellers Sydney is the harbour bridge and the Opera house which feature so heavily on tourist brochures.

There is an answer to that problem.  Garden Island is the home of the Royal Australian Navy and its use as a port terminal would solve the problem,. but a decision in Malcolm Turnbull's term in office resolved that in the negative, so the alternative is to built a completely new terminal in Botany Bay. Any thought of providing more docking facilities west of the harbour bridge is out of the question.  Todays cruise ships can not fit passage under that icon.

A cruise ship terminal in Botany Bay is brewing into a major political fight..  The vast masses living with water views of this tranquil body of water do not want it blocked with the bulk of cruise ships and objections ranging from interference with planes landing on the airstrip that projects into Botany Bay to Indigenous land rights are being marshalled in rejection. There is fear that the dredging to provide water depth for the ships in this shallow bay will  permanently disturb the natural fauna that so entranced Joseph Banks when he arrived with Captain Cook.

There is a security concern about allowing cruise ships to share Garden Island with the navy and some people even consider having the navy concentrated in a major city an unacceptable risk because of the explosives they carry.  The alternative would be to displace the navy to somewhere like Jervis bay but that would come at a cost running into billions of dollars.

Sydney as a navy port was quite acceptable when it comprised wooden ships with smooth bore guns primed with gunpowder. Visiting naval ships today are usually nuclear armed and at any time there could be a catastrophe waiting to happen in the heart of our biggest city. The weapons carried by our own navy are ever growing in both strength and complexity.

Perhaps a time to give serious thought to relocating the navy to Jervis bay  ?  Sydney is fast discharging its commercial shipping operations to Botany Bay and Port Kembla.  If we create a cruise ship terminal there it is inevitable that this same space problem will recur a few more years down the track.

There will also be the problem of buyer resistance to ships docking in Botany Bay rather than Sydney harbour.  That does not equal the pleasure of cruising through " the Gap " to the vast vista of Sydney city with the bridge and the Opera house.   Overcrowding recently saw a cruise ship dock at Port Kembla and that will not be repeated now it is to become our gas terminal.

Short term solutions to long term problems are usually a waste of money.  When people pay big money for a cruise that features Sydney, it is the bridge and the Opera house they expect to see.
We would be wise to deliver value for their money !

China Travel Bans !

The censors in Beijing are extending their reach and what you may say in Australia about China will be the decisive factor in whether an entry visa will be granted,  Two government members of the Federal parliament have had entry refused.  China demands that they need to " repent and  redress their mistakes " before they will be granted visas to visit that country.

The two members of parliament barred from China are Liberal Andrew Hastie and Senator James Patterson.  Mr Hastie is the chair of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security and what has offended Beijing is an opinion piece he published in the Sydney Morning Herald in August in which he likened the world approach to containing China  to the failure to prevent the rise of Nazi Germany.

Senator Patterson has warned of  Communist Party interference in Australian universities.  Both banned members of parliament were part of a delegation titled " China Matters " to tour China and speak to both the government and the Chinese people.  This delegation included members of the Labor party who have not been included in the ban.

It is evident that Mr Hastie's raising of the plight of China's Uyghur population in parliament has raised the Communist party ire.   Mr Hastie is adamant  that he will not change his approach.  He was elected by Australian citizens  to represent our values and interests, and that's pretty straight forward. Senator Patterson describes China's decision as " disturbing ".

This seems to be part of the enigma that is China today.  When Communism took hold in the Soviet Union it led to the " iron curtain " in which Russia restricted contact with the rest of the world  Even radio broadcasts were jammed to isolate the Russian population from any form of contact.   In contrast, Chinese people can obtain passports and are free to travel the world, but what they say and do in their own country is tightly restricted.   China has adopted a capitalist trading economy with the Communist ideological approach of restrictions on what its citizens may say or think. Step out of line in China and you end up in a gulag.

It seems that China's emergence as one of  the worlds great trading nation is enabling it to flex its muscles in trying to damp down criticism abroad.  It is trying to curb free speech in Australia by using visas as the entry gateway and that invites a tit for tat response.  Don't be surprised if Australia puts obstacles in the way of highly placed Chinese officials visiting this country.

It is a clear warning to Australian citizens thinking of visiting China.  A visa is needed to both enter - and exit the country.  Exit restrictions could easily come into force unexpectedly if that suited the machinations of the mandarins in Beijing  !

A Public Service !

We have just had one of the most severe bushfire days on record with more than four hundred homes destroyed and four lives lost.  The situation in New South Wales and Queensland was described as "catastrophic " and yet vast areas in both states were spared.  Bad as it was, it had the potential to be a lot worse.

What we watched on the television news was heartening.  Wherever there was fire there were dozens of fire trucks and an army of men and women battling the flames and saving lives and property.  In this country that vast army that springs into action every fire season are volunteers. They are people who walk away from the jobs which earn them a living and put their lives on the line doing immensely dangerous work.  Without them we would be virtually defenceless in the annual fire season.

Those fire trucks and the equipment they contain are provided by the government and being a member of a volunteer fire brigade is an all year task of training to use that equipment safely and to get the best result.  Their employers accept the duty of releasing them in a fire emergency and often that evolves into a task that takes many days to bring a forest fire under control.  We have reciprocal arrangements with other states where relief crews are flown in to allow exhausted firefighters to stand down for a break while the fire fighting continues.

Just about every little community in the bush seems to have a volunteer fire brigade.   There is an ongoing spirit of camaraderie and the people who train together rely on the good judgement and skills of the team when that work puts their lives at risk.  During this latest fire, crews were injured and a truck destroyed when a falling tree hit a vehicle.

This fire was unusually early and remarkably extensive, and that is probably what we can expect in the future.  Global warming is extending the fire season and it is being exacerbated by this ongoing drought.  The people who give their time to work as volunteer fire fighters perform a very important public service and there is now a need for more public spirited citizens to join their ranks to keep Australia fire safe.

In recent times fire retardant dropped from aircraft has become a new weapon in fighting bushfires but nothing beats an experienced crew on the ground, setting back burning to deprive the fire of fuel and generally planning a hazard reducing approach.  Now would be a very good time for healthy people with public spirit to consider joining a volunteer fire brigade.   They would be putting on a uniform for which Australia is justifiably proud.

Treating " Mental Health " !

In the century in which Australia was founded the world had " Lunatic Asylums "  to care for those  with mental disorders.   That term became repugnant and by the twentieth century they were called " Psychiatric Institutions " and they served the same purpose.

The human brain is perhaps the least understood of the organs that constitute the human body.  Only recently have we made progress into the field of artificial intelligence which seeks to duplicate the thought processes that has bestowed the wonders of ingenuity that now surround us.  Despite ongoing progress, the brain is still something that we do not yet fully understand.

One experiment had a profound impact on the way mental studies progressed.    In 1973 a gifted Stanford psychology professor by the name of David Rosenhan persuaded  eight healthy people to feign hallucinations and get themselves into mental asylums.  Once inside, they would have to prove their sanity to get out.

The difficulties they encountered were so explosive that they demonstrated the inability of even trained professionals to tell the difference between the mentally ill and the mentally healthy.   That experiment is still widely used in psychiatric training regimens.

It is often claimed that this experiment caused the world to turn away from central institutional care of the mentally unwell and replace it with a few beds dedicated to mental health in local regional hospitals.  The impetus changed to using psychotic countering drugs to achieve a speedy discharge, with the hope the patient will continue using that medication on their return to society.

The whole field of psychiatric care was turned on its head.  Those massive institutions closed their doors and were not replaced.  Big Pharma had a major say on how psychiatric illness was treated and what evolved was a " shadow mental care health system " in which those that fell through the cracks usually ended up in state prisons.

That is where we are today.  It is estimated that at least twenty percent of those incarcerated in prison fit the criteria for serious mental illness.  Usually the diagnosis and provision of psychiatric drugs ceases when they go behind iron bars and they re-emerge with their illness untreated when their sentence is served.

Much has been written about the horrors of 19th century asylums but today we have replaced them with a different sort of hellhole.  The money saved by closing psychiatric hospitals is being spent on ever greater expansion of the prison systems  !

Ending the " Hong Kong " Dream !

The stage is fast being reached where China will have to send in the PLA troops to restore order and prevent the destruction of the city of Hong Kong.  When that happens the freedoms its residents have enjoyed under the 1997 hand back of the former British colony will probably end.  The rest of the world will grudgingly give approval because  Hong Kong residents are now rioting for an unattainable cause.

Initially, they wanted an end to a new law that could see Hong Kong residents moved to mainland China to answer for crimes committed in Hong Kong.   The Beijing Communist government keeps tight control of its courts and the conviction rate is near a hundred percent.  Hong Kong residents feared dissidents would be swallowed by this corrupt system and simply disappear permanently into a gulag somewhere in a remote part of mainland China.

They had a win when that law was withdrawn - but not abolished, and that is where the mood of the rioters changed.  Vast crowds have swarmed through the city, week after week setting fires and in open combat with the police.  Public utilities have been smashed and fires lit.  Commerce, which is the life blood of Hong Kong has virtually come to a standstill.   That mood is now demanding that Hong Kong be granted stand alone freedom as a separate nation and that is something that Xi Jinping will not allow.

There is no question about Hong Kong being legally a part of China.  It was hived off as a temporary British colony as settlement of the opium wars and when its lease expired and it was handed back a " one country, two systems " law system was supposed to grant freedoms not attainable on the mainland for fifty years.  That expires in 2047.

China has long threatened to go to war and invade Taiwan, that other enclave island to which the defeated Nationalists retreated when they lost the civil war.  Taiwan has enjoyed its freedom because it has the protection of a treaty with America which would bring that country to its defence.  There is no similar arrangement pertaining to Hong Kong.

Xi Jinping has been patient in the face of what is a clear challenge.  The PLA is grouped at the border with Hong Kong and the rioters would be wise to back off and negotiate with the mainland Communist regime.  Unfortunately, it is university students who are now heading the riots and this is the same quest for freedom that ended in mass bloodshed when troops and tanks crushed a call for political freedom in Tiananmen Square in 1989.

Unfortunately, a bloody end to this unrest now seems inevitable. The big difference with Tiananmen square is that this time most fair minded people will agree that using force to restore order in Hong Kong is reasonable.  The Hong Kong residents are destroying their city !

The Ubiquitous Mobile Phone !

There is absolutely no doubt that using a mobile phone while driving a car contributes to crash risk and because of that it is unlawful.  We have just had a test where two cameras in Sydney photographed the traffic stream passing below with sufficient clarity to recognise individual drivers illegally using a mobile phone while driving.

During the test period, no court action followed and the driver simply received a warning in the mail but camera use to detect this driving offence is about to impose both a fine and loss of demerit points for offenders.

Until now, most drivers ignored the restriction because of the low risk of getting caught, but if this " guilt by photograph " becomes law that will change.  During the test period 8.5 million drivers were photographed and a hundred thousand were illegally using a mobile phone while driving.  This contrasts with the conviction figures issued by the police last year, when just 37,500 penalty notices were served.

The parliamentary committee overseeing this issue heard that about three percent of " mobile phone use " cases are challenged in court.  Usually the defence is that the object believed to be a mobile phone was something else and if this camera surveillance becomes law there is likely to be  a " reversal of proof " to convict drivers of holding a phone in their hand.

The sticking point is likely to be a draconian points loss which will double in times of holiday weekends.   If drivers suffer license cancellation we may be inflicting an increase of those driving with a cancelled license because car use has become an essential for most people and the numbers challenging that conviction in court may increase sharply.

If this offence becomes law there is the probability that the courts may be overwhelmed.  During the camera test it was found that 1.8% of drivers photographed were illegally using a mobile phone and that test was conducted with just two cameras.   If testing moves to all cameras that infringement number could move to 2,480,000 convictions.   If that three percent court challenge holds up it would represent 72,900 court appearances and cases would face a hearing delay of years.

Perhaps road safety would be better served by a different type of law change.  A requirement that mobile phones be subjected to electrical interference within cars to be unusable.  To make or receive a call, the car would need to pull over and the engine be switched off.  Unfortunately, that remedy would apply to all occupants and not just the driver but it would certainly equate phone use to call urgency.

What we are seeing now with phone use by car drivers is a massive case of wilful civil disobedience. Like all legislation designed to curb illegality we need to be careful in what we wish for  !

A " Rethink " on Drugs !

There is something very depressing about the debate about saving the lives of people who take mood changing drugs at music festivals.  Decade after decade exactly the same arguments are put forward and rejected and consequently the Coroner is called upon to examine more bodies.

What we are experiencing in Australia is a form of social change.  In the past this mood changing stimulus was derived from alcohol and it still is for many people, but these illegal pills enhance the " high " and keep it in place longer without the stumbling characteristics so obvious with excess use of alcohol.

In the world of today there are a majority of people who would not think of attending a music festival without access to these type of drugs.  Many will arrive with them in their purse or pocket and there is the expectation that illegals will be selling them interspersed in the crowd.  No matter what action either the government or the police take to stop the drug flow it continues unabated.  Even the publicity associated with a death is virtually ignored.

The main cause of death is the unknown type and strength of the drugs being illegally brewed to service the drug trade.  Given that music festival crowds often exceed thirty thousand people and that the majority are using drugs, the small number of deaths that occur tell an interesting story.  Are we justified in keeping such drugs in a moderate strength from the public  ?

It is the illegality of the drug trade which makes it so profitable for the criminal world.  Would it not make more sense if a controlled strength of the drug used at music festivals was on sale at chemist shops ?  That would put safety back into the hands of each individual user.  People seeking that " ultra high " might take a tablet excess but the outcome would be predictable because the strength of the individual tablets sold would be common knowledge by treating medics.

Both the state premier and the Police Commissioner have dug their toes in and signalled " no change ".  Pill testing has been rejected and in its present form it could not have done more than perhaps weed out the most toxic brews emanating from the drug cooks.  There are many things from our distant past that are now legal and in most cases that legality was conferred simply because the public mood changed.

Clearly, if the vast numbers attending music festivals willingly take drugs despite unknown strength causing deaths then the message sent is loud and clear.   The drug war is one we did not win.  About time to call a truce and install a compromise that actually works  !

An " Unacceptable " Fire Risk !

Fire and rescue services in New South Wales have been diverted from its usual work of issuing fire safety reports by the prevalence of flammable cladding awaiting rectification.  There is now a growing backlog of work waiting to be done and yet we seem no closer to an action plan to strip that cladding and replace it with a safer material.

The Grenfell Tower fire in London happened  in June, 2017, alerting the world to what has become an international problem.  In New South Wales the issue awaits a recommendation from the Building Commission and this contrasts with Victoria, which has implemented a $600 million package to fix buildings with flammable cladding.

We have people living with an unacceptable fire risk in 444 seemingly prestige buildings in this state and we know how that Grenfell Tower inferno started.  A simply fire in a unit gained the intensity to break a window and escape and within minutes the entire outer surface of the building was burning. Quick action by our fire brigade has prevented several similar breakouts spreading to the cladding and luck has been on our side.

There is a much more sinister  danger threatening those buildings with flammable cladding. There is a terrorist element within Australia which has made several attempts to cause death and destruction in support of religious war.  High on the list have been plans to cause an airliner to crash with its high body count.

We go to stringent lengths to screen both passengers and their luggage passing through airports and so far we have been successful in preventing such an attack, but it is frightening to know that there are 444 buildings standing absolutely defenceless against an arson attack and apart from terrorism, we always have a small element of what we call " firebugs " with a propensity to start fires.

It is interesting to interpret the figures suppled by the New South Wales  Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research  ( BOSCAR ), which were obtained through freedom of information.  BOSCAR reports that this risk is " stable " and in fact the number of arson cases decreased from eight in May and June  2018 to just two in the same period this year.

That flammable cladding can not be left in place indefinitely.  It would only take one successful arson attempt to repeat that Grenfell Tower disaster here.  Living with that risk is simply unacceptable  !

The Perils of Recent History !

History books are supposed to be a true and accurate account of what happened during the period being reviewed.   The history of Australia generally starts back in 1788 when a first fleet of ships arrived to start a penal colony at the behest of Britain.  No doubt that story has been constantly revised and has had many different tellings but it has the great advantage that all the people involved are now long dead.

It is a very different matter when the task involves what may be best described as " near history " - the events that have happened in the past half century when at least some of the people who took part are still alive and may have a very different view of what exactly happened.  This is accented when it comes to Australia's military history.  That involves our relationship with neighbouring countries and it is just too easy to portray them in an unfriendly light.

News reports of military action are usually heavily censored before they are released for public consumption.  There is the propaganda aspect.  When a government commits troops to enforce military action it likes to think that action is justified and has public support.   The censor's pen is usually wielded on the grounds of security.

When Tony Abbot served as our prime minister he handed the writing of our military action in East Timor, Afghanistan and Iraq to the Australian War Memorials chief historian.   The first edition covering East Timor was expected to have been published two months ago but it is still bogged down in acrimony because of fact resistance from Canberra bureaucrats demanding change.  The chief historian is said to be considering resigning from frustration.

In the case of East Timor this history has not progressed past the draft stage and.resistance is coming from our Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.  DFAT has concern that this history could anger  Indonesia and humiliate the Australian negotiators " who in hindsight look overly accommodating of Indonesia and it's actions ".   Our support in freeing East Timor from Indonesian rule intruded heavily into the diplomatic sphere.

Writing the history of our in involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq is even more troubling.  Both were a mixture of civil war and an insurgency that departed from the usual rules of war.  The fact that the strife was also a clash of religions introduced a savagery that was beyond reason.  It will be impossible to write an accurate description of those events without treading on toes and roiling passions that are better left undisturbed.

Perhaps the writing of the history books is better left to following generations - when all who served in such actions are long dead.   The passing of time introduces moderation in outlook and the academic approach to history is less likely to produce anger and pressure to alter history to fit in with the customs that society now uphold.   Rarely does the past fit the image of the present  !

An " Inconvenient " Opinion !

We cherish the notion that Australia is a " free speech  " country.  We jealously guard what we see as our right to express our opinion in public forums and yet in some ways that right has limitations.  We recoil when someone disparages the femininity movement and usually a wide body of women respond angrily to any form of criticism.

Sexual orientation is another dangerous area.  We are fast reaching the stage when people can no longer be classified as merely " male " or " female " because some are stranded in between.  This has devolved into a serious argument over which bathroom they are permitted to use.  Today it is quite usual to find a person claiming part content of the two genders - and dressing accordingly.

The laws of this country are proclaimed by way of the votes cast by the representatives we send to parliament.  It is usual that this is the common view of the masses but in the majority of cases there will be a body of people who are bitterly opposed. Despite our support of that free speech principal, we often vilify those who dare express their opposition vocally.

That has cast a shadow over the experience of one of our most gifted tennis players.  Homosexuality has emerged from the shadows and is now perfectly legal in Australia and we have embraced the concept of same sex couples legally marrying.  At the time this was being considered in parliament Margaret Court went public with her views which were conditioned by her religious beliefs.  Unfortunately, this was angrily rejected by the majority favouring change and now retribution is  being considered.   It is proposed that Margaret  Court's name be removed from the arena named in her honour.

Margaret Court was our greatest female tennis player and this coming year will be the fiftieth anniversary of her greatest achievement,  That was her 1970 grand slam win of all four single titles in the same year.   As well as removing her name from the arena there is doubt that the anniversary celebration of her wins will be honoured in the same way Rod Laver's achievement was last year when his grand slam was celebrated.

It seems a new, unwritten law has emerged when it comes to free speech.   You are perfectly entitled to your own opinion on any subject - just so long as you keep that opinion to yourself and don't proclaim it publicly.   In many countries of the world any form of disagreement with the laws of the country will get you to see the inside of a prison.

In this country a more insidious punishment regimen exists.  The offender becomes opaque on the social scene and no longer receives invitations to events.   Whatever claim to fame that exists in the public forum is quietly erased.   Such achievements count for nothing and that person is thrust back into obscurity.

Can we really claim to be a free speech nation when we crucify anyone who disagreed publicly with the opinion of the masses  ?

A Positive Recall Action !

There are several thousand cars covering a range of makers travelling on Australian roads that are subjected to a faulty airbag recall.  Airbags manufactured by the Takata company are fitted to a wide range of cars and a fault gives them the capacity to shower metal fragments into the face of drivers and front seat passengers if they are activated.   This has been described as similar to being shot in the face with a shotgun and there have been both fatalities and serious injuries.

Despite the recall, many owners have ignored the warning while others have found a long delay in getting the free replacement fitted by the dealers in their car brand.  There seems to be a degree of complacency because not all of these airbags are faulty, but driving with one fitted is like playing a game of Russian roulette.

Now it seems a similar fault has been discovered in the airbags of one of the worlds prestige motoring marques.  BMW has not only issued a recall, but is telling the owners of the twelve thousand cars affected in Australia to stop driving immediately.

BMW advises that this fault is present in 12,663 of the 3 series models  sold between 1997 and 2,000.  A bulletin from BMW asks owners to urgently contact their local BMW dealership to organize a free vehicle inspection.  Vehicles will be either towed to the place of inspection or a mobile technician will do that inspection at the owners home.

If the car does have a faulty airbag BMW will arrange to have a loan or a rental car  or provide reimbursement for alternative transport costs.  BMW also suggests that it would be open to discussion on the faulty vehicle being purchased by BMW to avoid the owners becoming stranded.

This is a very new approach to the vexing question of car manufacturers responding to vehicle faults. Lesser manufacturers leave it to the owners to get the faulty vehicle to a service provider and suffer the delay in having the fault attended to until replacement parts become available.  One of the consequences is that long after the recall we still have many cars on the road with that fault not yet attended to.  It is probable that many may never be presented to have that fault fixed.

BMW is a prestige brand sold in the higher price range and this positive reaction to a developed fault will not go unnoticed.  A person who owns and drives a BMW gains status in the community and the fact that the marque takes safety seriously will certainly encourage sales.

It seems that the only way to get other brand recalls into dealer hands for correction will be to make this an inspection check item on annual " pink slip " vehicle roadworthy certification that must be produced before registration can be completed.

A Mystery Deepens !

In July of 1998 twelve year old schoolgirl  Quanne  Diec left her Granville home to walk to school - and simply disappeared.  It was feared that she had been abducted and this resulted in an intense police investigation.  This was before the extensive use of cameras, both in cars travelling nearby roads and in the extensive system that covers shopping precincts that we have today.

Despite police using a model dressed in recognisable school clothing walking the route to jog memories it seems that Quanne's disappearance remained a mystery and her loss was grieved by her family.

In November 2016 a man walked into a Sydney police station and voluntarily confessed to killing this schoolgirl.  He claimed that he abducted her in a ransom attempt gone wrong, panicked and strangled her and buried her body in bushland south of Sydney.  Hr willingly took police to an area where he claimed this burial took place.  Despite extensive digging, no body was found.

On the basis of this confession, Vinzent Tarantino (52) was charged with murder and stood trial in the NSW Supreme Court.  The jury heard evidence that Tarantino had confessed this murder to his brother and two former partners over several decades, but had been disbelieved., but he now changed the story and claimed that his confession was a lie.

In a new twist, Tarantino claimed he confessed to ensure he would be locked away in prison and this would enable him to be protected from bikie revenge.    He had witnessed the aftermath of a triple murder in 1997 and as a consequence he and his family were under threat from a bikie gang.

The murder trial then heard evidence from two psychiatrists and a psychologist who agreed that Mr Tarantino was experiencing a schizoaffective disorder - a long term mental illness involving persistent delusions and hallucinations.

The jury of four men and seven women deliberated for  six days before  returning a " not guilty " verdict.  Mr Tarantino walked from the court a free man.

We can understand the anguish this trial has caused Quanne Diec's family.  The hope that her disappearance may be leading to closure has been dashed and the mystery remains.  It will be impossible to estimate what this false confession cost the state of New South Wales by way of the police investigation and the trial that followed but there is no doubt it would be in the realm of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

When Mr Tarantino left court he was pursued by a media pack.  As her got into a taxi he shouted  " You want to come and see me, get your chequebooks ready. I've wasted three years of my life ".
It seems ironic that a man with a mental disturbance has brought a twenty-one year old mystery back to life, caused anguish to the parents of a dead little girl and now stands a chance of selling his life story to newspapers ad magazines because he has become the latest " celebrity ".

It is no vindication to know that this missing person case remains open - and active - in the ongoing activities of the NSW police.

Integrating Australia Day !

January 26 of each year has been set aside as " Australia Day " which commemorates the arrival of the first fleet of ships from Britain to establish a colony in New South Wales.  A section of our Indigenous population object to that on the grounds that to them it represents " invasion " day, and there is now a movement to have Australia Day scrapped and replaced with an Aboriginal festival called  " Yabun ".

" Yabun " is already celebrated on January 26 and it is a festival of Aboriginal and Torres Strait culture with musical performances, stalls and community forums. Common sense indicates that these should be combined festivals celebrating both the people who were here before 1788 and the new arrivals that together have created the prosperous country that is Australia today.

One of the sticking points is the custom of awarding citizenships certificates to migrants who have been accepted into our community on that day.  It is elevating to new citizens to receive their certificate at a ceremony held on their new country's national day and to move it to a lesser date would be to lower its significance.

This movement to replace Australia day is coming from a small militant portion of our Indigenous population with support from some in the non-Indigenous community.  One of our inner west shires has a population of 200,000 people, of whom about 2,000 identify as Aboriginal.  This shire has been threatened with losing the right to hold citizenship ceremonies if it refuses to award them on Australia day.

Most Australians agree with the national holiday falling on January 26.   It falls in the summer and there is every chance that it will deliver good weather for a trip to the beach or to attend a sporting  event.   In the eyes of many people it has become a celebration of our nation today rather than a remembrance of 1788.   Thee are few nations that would not have events from their past that they would prefer to regret than to remember and it is fortunate that we now live in a more enlightened age.

It would be ridiculous to suggest that we simply wipe the memory slate clean and forget that white settlement here was by way of a penal colony imposed by another nation.  There was conflict between the Indigenous people and the new arrivals with their sheep and horses, but out of this came a trading nation with a high standard of living.  It was inevitable that this continent located deep in the southern hemisphere would be discovered by way of the sailing ships being developed in the northern part of the world.

A better compromise would be the integration of Yabun into that January 26 celebration so all Australians have a reason to celebrate together.  It is obvious that the prosperity this country has achieved has been by way of the  " melting pot " that has fused people of all colour and creeds into the race the world now knows as " Australians "  !

Ducking for Cover !

On October 31 an explosive document came into the hands of the New South Wales Legislative Council and was immediately slapped with a security claim to keep it secret.  It was compiled by Equity Economics at the request of the CFMEU and it lists the 444 buildings in New South Wales which have their exteriors clad with flammable material similar to the substance that caused the appalling Grenfell Tower fire in London that killed seventy-two residents.

What has the government on tenterhooks is the fact that this report clearly identifies the individual buildings at risk for the first time.   It is claimed that its publication would increase the risks of terrorism incidents by naming potential targets and hurt property owners, potentially mislead the public and breach expectations of confidentiality.

What is left unsaid is the need for that cladding to be removed and replaced, and that comes at an estimated cost of six billion dollars.  There are probably thousands of families living in dangerous buildings that are yet unaware that their building is a fire risk.  Little is being done to remove this cladding because it looks like the cost will settle on the shoulders of each individual unit owner.

What seems to be spooking the government is the reality that if this report is released the properties named will suffer a sharp drop in value.   People seeking to sell their unit may find the banks reluctant to provide finance and there will be obvious buyer resistance.  Individual families who have bought in good faith will suffer loss and there is every expectation that they will be angry.

The Grenfell Tower fire happened in June, 2017 and the lack of action to strip flammable cladding from buildings here is simply putting our trust in good luck, and that can't go on forever.  The fact that this report is to be kept secret will condemn many people to buy into a dangerous building because news of that danger is being withheld.   In protecting the home values of existing owners of units in buildings with dangerous cladding the risk is being extended to a new strata of buyers who are being mislead about building safety.

It is a fact of life that 444 buildings in New South Wales have an unacceptable fire risk and sooner or later that has to be removed.  It is simply dishonest to screen that market fact from potential buyers by keeping the locations of affected buildings secret.

It is inevitable that this report will leak and then market forces will come into play.  Prices for units in affected buildings will retreat, which is exactly what is happening in buildings affected by building irregularities or land movement and that is the reality of the real estate market.

An " Asian " Australia ?

In the past, the prime minister of neighbouring Malaysia clashed with Australian leaders  Bob Hawke, Paul Keating and John Howard when he referred to our predominantly white population as a " European colony ".    Dr Mahathir  Mohamad is Malaysia's ninety-four year old statesman and he recently rescued  his country from a wave of political corruption when he forced his way back into power.

Our two nations are a source of trade and direct foreign investment in one another and there are about 150,000 Australians of Malaysian descent living in Australia.  At any one time there will be about 26,000 students from Malaysia studying in Australian universities. It is quite evident that the Australian economy is tightly interlocked with our Asian neighbours.

Dr Mahathir makes the observation that " whatever white Australians may think of it, the fact is geographically they are more in the Asian region than Europe ".   That view is definitely supported by the 2016 Australian census.   Our overseas born population now comes from Asia rather than Europe and heavily features migration from China, India, the Philippines , Vietnam,. Malaysia and Sri Lanka.

Originally our support base was Britain but that changed during the second world war when the threat of a Japanese invasion  brought us closer to America.   The world chess board of power has again changed and now it is China that is fast dominating trade and exercising military power.   We have a nearby flash point because China is claiming sovereignty over the South China sea despite the rejection of its claim by the United Nations and this important waterway being vital to world trade.

At the moment Australia faces no clear threat from another country but it is evident that the United States is withdrawing from its role as the " world's policeman ".   We are a continent with a population of just over twenty-five million people and that " populate or perish " mantra is as important today as it was when Japan started a war of aggression to gain a colonial empire.

We broadened our population base after the second world war and received a volume of people with different nationalities and languages.  Today, it is their children and grand children and great grand children who make up the cosmopolitan culture of Australia.   With the passage of time exactly that same metamorphose will happen with people of Asian descent who will integrate to form the Australia of the future.

In a  century past Australia was really a European outpost isolated in the southern reaches of the world. A century into the future and Australia will definitely be an important Asian country in what will have become the centre of the world.  The centre of gravity is fast changing and it seems that this twenty-first century will be the Asian century.

There is wisdom in the views expressed by Dr Mahathir. To stand in the street and view the passing parade of people is to gain the view that we are now an Asian city in an Asian country.  It is important that we control the migration flow to ensure that the inflow from any particular country does not dominate the numbers.

A Dignified Death !

Death eventually comes knocking on everyone's door.  We know we will die but the hope is we will    have a painless death and that is far from guaranteed.  New South Wales is now the only state that has rejected a voluntary euthanasia law and has no plan for a reconsideration.

The right to " die with dignity " is now enshrined in Victorian law.  It is very likely to become law in Western Australia later this year and is being considered in public enquiries in Tasmania, Queensland and South Australia.

Unfortunately, some diseases deliver a lingering and painful death that results in the terminally ill dieing in a hospital bed where pain relief may be inadequate.   Public opinion research shows that eighty percent of the population would prefer that death be negotiated with their doctor and allowed to happen in the time and place of their choosing.

We came just one vote short of gaining that right in New South Wales in 2017, but the bill was rejected in the upper house and never reached the lower chamber for consideration.  Considering the weeks of agonising debate on abortion that riled religious fervour our politicians are not keen to clash swords with the religious zealots who insist that God demands we suffer until our last breath.

A long time ago we removed suicide from being a criminal offence.  People who fear a painful death when they discover they are suffering from a terminal disease sometimes resort to suicide and often the mode selected puts others in danger.  If euthanasia laws are enacted their use becomes a matter of personal choice.  Those with strong religious convictions are perfectly free to choose to not take advantage of their availability.

Not so long ago the issue riling religious conviction was same sex marriage and that needed to be decided on a national basis. It was put to an unofficial vote to determine public opinion and this showed the public overwhelmingly supported this law change in Australia.  That is now law and the change is settling with few incidents ruffling tranquillity.

This " death with dignity " euthanasia law should not be enacted on a state by state basis.   It is a matter of great importance to all Australians and its introduction nationally to this country is only possible by a law change in the Federal sphere.

Like same sex marriage it would best be served by a referendum to gauge national feeling, followed by a conscience vote in the Federal parliament.  If the majority of the Australian people support a bill to be placed in the Federal realm it would be a very brave politician who chose to defy what would be in effect the " will of the people ".

The Federal parliament was brave when it embraced the same sex marriage issue.   The right to die with dignity has similar significance.  It is time it received national attention  !

Locking the Stable Door !

Most people dream of winning a million dollars in Lotto but after each draw an amazing amount of money goes unclaimed and sometimes it includes the first prize which amounts to millions of dollars.
To make a claim you need to produce the ticket. Few people buy a ticket with the expectation of becoming a winner and as a consequence tickets often  reside in the murky depths of handbags - or go through the wash in trouser pockets.

In fact, a lot of people don't even take the trouble to check their ticket and there is a time frame applicable after which the lottery is not obliged to pay the winner.   We often hear of desperate searches for a missing ticket and sometimes a happy customer retrieving it and making a claim just in the nick of time.

The problem is that buying chances in lotteries is usually an impulse buy.  The wise register that purchase by presenting a registration card at time of purchase and this eliminates the need to present the ticket to claim a win. A registration can be made anywhere tickets are sold and the card arrives in the customers mailbox for later continuous use.

The experience of one such buyer of un registered Lotto tickets has been entertaining newspaper readers for some time.   He purchased a ticket in the Lotto game in the Lotto draw scheduled for September 23, 1997  in Greenfield Park and later after the draw presented it at the Granville railway station newsagency to check the result.   He claims he saw " provisional winner " appear on the screen but the attendant - who didn't speak English - said " No winner " and threw the ticket in the bin - and refused to hand it back to him.

That draw had a $3.3 million winning dividend - which was unclaimed and this unlucky punter has been pursuing his claim through the courts.  It is certainly a salutary lesson to others of the need to carefully keep lottery tickets in a safe place or to take the trouble to register the purchase so that any win will automatically be sent to the winner.

A better idea in this cashless age in which we live would be to establish a credit account with Lotto. This would allow the ticket purchase to be made by phone and wins are credited to your credit account.  There is the obvious advantage that you do not need to lodge a claim.   The Lotto computer checks each ticket number and automatically disperses winnings accordingly.

In the distant past, the law was such that should someone manage to find that winning ticket even years after the draw a successful claim could be made for the money.  That time factor has since been curtailed by law and after the cut off date the winnings disappear into what the government euphemistically  calls " consolidated revenue "  and which others describe as a " bottomless pit ".

Perhaps this is a timely warning to curb impulse buys and make sure that if luck smiles your way the loot will land in your bank account.

The Fire Season Erupts !

This coming summer will probably be perilous for Koalas and all the other native Australian animals that live in the bush.   It is feared that the fires burning near Port Macquarie have killed somewhere between two hundred and three hundred and fifty of these already dwindling marsupials.  The rural fire service people are preparing for a long, hot summer and the ongoing drought is making the forests a tinderbox.

Sydney is getting a taste of what is to come with smoke blanketing the city.   The big danger comes from lightening strikes setting fires in the deep bush where fighting them is difficult.  Koala habitat is already shrinking and the Koala is fast becoming an endangered species.

A lot will depend on the generosity and goodwill of people living on the fringe of these fire zones. There is the expectation than survivors may wander into their yards looking for water and it is important that residents not only make sure water is available but also alert the wildlife rescue people so help can be given.  Undernourished and burned Koalas are taken into care and released back into  the bush once they have sufficiently recovered.

So far this fire season several dozen country residents have lost their homes to fire.  There is probably worse to come once the really hot weather arrives and if this drought persists, but we are a resilient race and homes lost will be rebuilt.   For the animals that call the bush " home " these fires are a complete disaster.  Everything they knew has been swept away and that includes their food supply,.

It is not only Koalas, an amazing panoply of animal life lives in each hectare of the bush and this includes possums, gliders and a big range of nocturnal animals.   In the aftermath of a fire we will have a similar situation to the refugee hordes assailing the shores of Europe and many western countries, and probably their arrival will create the same sort of resistance happening there.

The animals that live in areas adjacent to a fire see the arrival of survivors as an " invasion " and fight to protect their turf.  That introduces competition for the best nesting places and obviously the food supply needs to be shared.  Where food is in short supply the newcomers will be specially unwelcome and some may be forced in desperation to invade the space of nearby humans.

The animal rescue people hope that residents living near fire areas will be generous and make sure accessible water is readily available in a form wandering animals can access.  In many cases this can be the decisive factor between life and death.  When fire strikes the little creatures of the bush need a helping hand as much as the services that swing into action to help us humans  !

Electric Power Uncertainty !

Summer is nearly upon us and the big question is whether we will be able to keep the lights on when those very hot days arrive.  We are still reliant on ageing coal burning electrical generating plants to shoulder the base load and the Snowy upgrade is still years in the future.

It seems that solar and wind generation can carry the load during daylight hours but a question remains over what happens when the sun goes down and those oppressive hot nights get people switching on their air conditioners.   The sale and installation of air conditioning is probably the biggest ticket sales item flowing out the doors of electrical item showrooms since we started breaking heat records.

Since electricity passed into private hands we have had a continuing battle with commercial interests over the replacement of ageing power stations.  Their primary need is to make a profit and deliver to their shareholders and this contrasts with the government's need for reliability.  In this state, the closure of Liddell power stations contribution of 1680 megawatts to the state grid will be decisive in reliability.  Closure is planned for 2023 and there is doubt as to whether it can maintain full capacity as its machinery deteriorates.

Liddell is owned by the giant AGL corporation and a deal has finally been struck to build a series of batteries to  contribute enough power to serve thirty thousand NSW households.   This is similar to the battery deal that saved South Australia from rolling blackouts but the problem is that construction of each of these four batteries will not be completed until just before Liddell closes in 2023.

One of the main problems is that electricity generation is a state responsibility and yet the reliability solution is an integrated power grid connecting the states so that overload can be shared.  States generating more than their needs can feed in power to where an overload is threatening.  The weather conditions are never constant across the entire Australian continent.

Creating a national power grid would mean connecting the states with a reliable high tension cabling network - and that would be a high cost operation.  Individual costs would vary because of the discrepancy of state sizes and the only authority capable of integrating such a scheme would be the Federal government, and that seems loath to get too involved in what it sees as a state problem.

Its high time that electrical power was moved out of the state orbit and became a national responsibility.  We have a mix of old coal powered electricity generators that need replacement and eventually we will need to face the question of nuclear generation.  That is the only way base load can be met if we intend to keep our commitment to a  cooler planet.

We are at risk of losing our first world status.   The very idea of rolling blackouts is a misery that afflicts third world countries and having it happen here is unimaginable.   It would be a very brave politician who would promise that the lights will continue to shine brightly during this coming summer - and if they don't there will be an inevitable backlash at the ballot box.

The standard of living in Australia depends on electricity flowing on a twenty-four hour basis  !