SKY COQ posted:

So the ABC have commissioned a documentary about indigenous recognition - starring one Andrew Bolt.

quote:

Lord Monckton claimed fellow sceptic Ian Plimer​, now an emeritus professor of geology at the University of Melbourne, phoned Mr Abbott in 2009 as "the final persuader" to urge him to run against the then opposition leader Malcolm Turnbull.

Lid posted:

http://m.smh.com.au/environment/un-...207-glhtco.html

Gaze into the abyss

Solemn Sloth posted:

we're doing a documentary about indigenous recognition starring a white guy

Solemn Sloth posted:

we're doing a documentary about indigenous recognition starring a white guy

TheIllestVillain posted:

Solemn Sloth posted:

we're doing a documentary about indigenous recognition starring a white guy

Zenithe posted:

Yeah, can we not make fun of genetic diseases thanks. The gently caress Auspol.

Starshark posted:

My wife has the exact same illness and she doesn't look like the Cookie Monster. The difference is, she sought treatment as soon as she noticed symptoms. Monckton brought it on himself.

SKY COQ posted:

So the ABC have commissioned a documentary about indigenous recognition - starring one Andrew Bolt.

Orkin Mang posted:

may death meet you all, in the final reckoning.

"SMH posted:

Massive increases to the GST that would raise up to $45 billion annually will be on the table when Malcolm Turnbull and state premiers meet on Friday, according to a leaked document obtained by Fairfax Media.

The Council of Australian Governments document, marked "for official use only" and titled "Reform of the Federation", reveals modelling prepared by the federal treasury at the request of the states in July, and will help frame the crunch tax meeting, which will be led by NSW Premier Mike Baird, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Mr Turnbull.

Eight options for tax reform – including six GST options and two Medicare Levy proposals – are canvassed in the paper, which sets out four previously unpublished tax options that have been costed by the federal Treasury, and four more that will be costed as the federal and state governments pursue tax reform.

Soon after becoming Prime Minister, Mr Turnbull said everything – including a consumption tax rise – was on the table as his government pursued tax reform.

The document confirms that a rise in the goods and services tax remains a live option and raises the prospect of a federal election in 2016 fought over the issue if the federal government adopts a plan to hike the GST and can strike a deal with the states, whose support will be needed for any increase...

Doctor Cave posted:

I like nerding out about the weather so I looked this up, so far this month Adelaide has had both it's lowest and highest December minimum on record

TheIllestVillain posted:

quote:

Gaze into the abyss

Guardian AU posted:

Australia ranked third-last in climate change performance of 58 countries
2016 Climate Change Performance Index released at Paris climate summit, day after Julie Bishop said Australia was meeting and beating its climate targets

Australia has come third last in an annual assessment of 58 nations’ climate policies, with only Saudi Arabia and Kazakhstan ranking worse.

The assessment by Germanwatch and Climate Action Network Europe was released at the Paris climate summit, just one day after foreign minister Julie Bishop told the assembled ministers Australia was meeting and beating its climate targets and transforming its energy production.

The report measures actual emission levels per capita, the trend in emissions projections, the deployment of renewable energy, and the energy intensity of the economy, and assesses climate policies for each of the 58 countries.

Australia’s score is slightly better than last year, but not enough to shift it very far up the rankings.

The Australian Conservation Foundation acted as one of the “expert advisers” for the review, and its chief executive, Kelly O’Shannassy, said the study showed up the difference between what Australia was saying at the Paris conference and what it was doing.

“This report cuts through the government’s spin to show that we are a climate laggard,” she said.

Denmark topped the ranking, while the UK, Sweden, Belgium and France all scored well. Japan and Korea ranked only slightly higher than Australia.

Australia’s high per capita emissions means it scores very badly in the first category of the assessment – measuring emissions levels. It scores better, although not well, in a second category assessing projected future emissions across a number of sectors. It also scores poorly on renewable energy deployment, where other countries are moving faster, and on both national and international climate policy.

The expert comments would have contributed to the negative assessment. A selection are printed in the report, including:

The current policy framework is evaluated as inadequate to meet Australia’s minimum 2020 target of 5% below 2000 level.
Through legislative amendments in June 2015, Australia’s renewable energy target (RET) was scaled down from 41,000 GWh to 33,000 GWh. The definition of renewable energy was also altered to include burning of biomass from native forests. Experts criticise that this move would restrict uptake of real renewable energy, drive deforestation, cause carbon emissions and reduce sequestration.
Experts criticise that policies like the Emission Reduction Fund are weak, poorly designed and do not cover major emitters. The “safeguard mechanism” sets baselines for industrial emitters but in its currently proposed form does not capture many of the nation’s largest emitters and does not seek to reduce emissions.
The report was finalised before the recent change of prime minister and does not appear to reflect what many negotiators believe is a more positive attitude by Australia in Paris.

It says Australia’s record at global climate talks in recent years has been “poor” and that Australia tried to “relegate climate change off the agenda” in the leadup to the G20 meeting in Brisbane.

“Experts criticise that Australia’s attitude appeared to be to try to avoid making any substantive commitments, and to do the absolute minimum that it has to. There appeared to be no recognition of Australia’s national interest in minimising climate change; rather, the focus seems to be on protecting domestic energy and resource exporters (coal and gas industry),” it says.

The UK moved up the rankings, from six to five, because it has continued to expand renewable energy and set a deadline for phasing out coal-fired power.

Indonesia also moved up, despite rampant illegal deforestation, because it has low per capita emissions and – according to the report – “improvements can be seen in the renewable and the efficiency scores”.

Au Revoir Shosanna posted:

pffaaaarrrrrbbabt~

quote:

Almost 20pc of Melbourne's investor-owned homes empty

The number of empty houses and apartments in Melbourne is much higher than traditional estimates, with as many as one-fifth of all investor-owned properties lying empty, according to a study of water usage by think tank Prosper Australia.

Victoria leads the country in terms of new housing approvals and planning authorities gave the tick to 70,472 new dwellings in the 12 months to October – more than half of them apartments – but the Prosper figures indicate that while local and offshore investors are hungry for properties, they are not necessarily making those homes usable housing stock.

"There is an oversupply of housing that's not being used," said Catherine Cashmore, Prosper President and author of the report. "When the Victorian government talks about the need to build more housing to bring down prices, that strategy isn't working. We don't have anything to ensure those homes are being utilised. It doesn't matter whether they're foreign owned or investor owned the economic cost to us is enormous."

A total 82,724 properties used less than 50 litres per day – the equivalent of a dripping tap and far less than a single person's daily usage – suggesting they were effectively unoccupied, the data from retailers City West Water, South East Water and Yarra Valley Water shows.

Night light: apartments being deliberately kept vacant don't add to the country's stock of available housing, Prosper Australia says.

That's equivalent to 4.8 per cent of greater Melbourne's total housing stock and 18.9 per cent of all investor-owned housing stock.

As many as 24,872 properties consumed no water at all, making them clearly unoccupied.

The number of vacant properties leapt 28 per cent last year, according to Prosper's Speculative Vacancies report, now in its eighth year. The think tank advocates for broad-based land taxes to raise the cost of holding land unproductively, as well as for an end to stamp duty, which it says impedes the market for land transactions.

"Capital gains are a much more powerful market motive than earning mere rents," says Karl Fitzgerald, Prosper project director. "That's why the tax game needs to change."

The idea has support.

"Should there perhaps be some kind of differential land tax that changes people's incentives?" said independent economist Saul Eslake. "I have some sympathy with that view."

It's not clear how much of the vacant housing stock is foreign-owned and how much is locally owned. However, the Melbourne CBD – which has drawn much investment from overseas buyers – had the largest number of vacancies, with just over 1100 – 6.7 per cent of its 16,632 homes – using no water at all. Almost 15 per cent – 2478 properties – consumed less than 50 litres per day.

The student-heavy areas of Carlton and Carlton South had the highest ratio of empty homes with 7.6 per cent, or 597, of their total 7837 homes using zero water.

Melbourne's hidden vacancies will become visible if the property market slows.

"When we get a downturn in housing markets it does lead people to sell their properties or rent them out to the market, that's when these vacancies will become visible," Ms Cashmore said.

Ket posted:

I think the real question is do you reckon you could convince conspiracy nutters that the Australian Embassy is a Muslim haven

Solemn Sloth posted:

we're doing a documentary about indigenous recognition starring a white guy racist

asio posted:

Att Brisgoons

http://m.brisbanetimes.com.au/queen...social_facebook

The Kingsford Smith Drive upgrade contract has been signed and Graham Quirk announced himself Santa.

It's now pretty obvious he's on the take because even RACQ has come out opposing the plan (guess they should have donated more).

The ALP has opposed it because they're scared of big numbers and only wanted to dump $150 mil into it instead of the current $650 mil.

The greens support trees over people so they want it left alone altogether.

I'm thinking it could be stopped/retarded by the residents in the area, who are fairly active and vocal against other recent poor development proposals in the toowong area, and they will probably stand up against having more homes and parks demolished for the upgrade. Other than this sort of piecemeal grassroots activity there isn't really much else to stop it going ahead at this point.

Merry Christmas Brisbane

quote:

http://www.pressreader.com/australia/the-advertiser/20151209/281900182145566/TextView
"In Australia this means talking to decent people who happen to be Muslim as well as to "official" Muslims inclined to see "Islamophobia" in any criticism."

Jumpingmanjim posted:

Ooooh Baby


http://www.macrobusiness.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/ATO-Notice-of-Data-Matching-Program.pdf

I think some people are going to get caught out.

EXAKT Science posted:

Hey Kommando, do you have a link to a full-size version of the cartoon in your av?

Kommando posted:

Kingsford Smith drive has needed work for far too long. And to do it they need to resume some Old Qlders, fancy houses and build out over the river.
what Brisbane really needs is a ring road and better cheaper public transport but that's not happening.

after Newman's tunnels and putting suicide barriers on the Story Bridge I have trouble giving a poo poo.

bulldoze Brisbane flat, start over.

Kommando posted:

Kingsford Smith drive has needed work for far too long. And to do it they need to resume some Old Qlders, fancy houses and build out over the river.
what Brisbane really needs is a ring road and better cheaper public transport but that's not happening.

after Newman's tunnels and putting suicide barriers on the Story Bridge I have trouble giving a poo poo.

bulldoze Brisbane flat, start over.

Kommando posted:

instead of looking into why people want to kill themselves and boosting mental health services, they were cut and barriers were put up instead.

So now people will jump in front of trains or off KP Cliffs.

people jumping off bridges was causing traffic problems and that wasn't good for Newman's traffic easement message.