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Woman shot in Sydney's west

Written By Unknown on Sabtu, 09 Maret 2013 | 13.23

Shooting in Auburn Picture: 9 Channel Source: Supplied

A WOMAN has been shot a number of times in her legs in Auburn, before more shots were fired at a house in the same western Sydney suburb.

Police were called to Auburn Road at 2.40pm (AEDT) on Saturday after reports of a shooting.

They found a 43-year-old woman with a number of gunshot wounds to her legs.

She was taken to hospital in a stable condition.

In a second incident, which happened 20 minutes later, a number of shots were fired into a house on Provincial Street, also in Auburn.

No one was injured but police are continuing their investigations.

Police say it's too early to link the two shootings.


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Suicide bomb in Kabul during Hagel visit

A bomb has exploded near Kabul's defence ministry during a visit by the US Defense Secretary. Source: AAP

A LARGE suicide bomb has exploded near the defence ministry in central Kabul during a visit to the Afghan capital by new US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel.

A spokesman for the Afghan defence ministry said there were civilian casualties but didn't give any further details.

"A suicide attacker has detonated himself within 30 metres of the defence ministry gate, there have been casualties among civilians, but defence ministry personnel have not suffered any casualties," Zahir Azimi told AFP on Saturday.

One soldier covered in blood at the scene said he had helped carry five people from the attack site.

An official there told reporters that the bomber had arrived on a bicycle.

Gunfire erupted after the loud explosion was heard across the city, and reporters travelling with Hagel were informed that he was taken to a safe area as streets around the blast were closed off by security forces.

"We can confirm a suicide improvised explosive device attack, followed by small arms fire, near the Afghan ministry of defence compound in central Kabul this morning," a statement sent from the NATO-led military coalition said.

"No ISAF troops were directly involved."


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Man found shot dead in Perth park

THE shooting death of a man whose body was found in a Perth beachside park is being treated as a murder.

Police say the man's body was discovered with a gunshot wound to the head at Lime Kiln Field in Swanbourne just before midnight (WST) on Friday.

A witness said they had heard a gunshot shortly before the body was found.

Police are seeking help from the public to establish the man's identity.

They say he was about 180cm tall and of medium build, with fair skin and brown eyes.

The top of his hair was thick and dark, while the back was dyed a lighter colour.

He also had a goatee beard and a moustache and a two to three-centimetre wide scar on the inside of his right forearm.

Police said they suspect the man's death was a homicide and are seeking any information that could assist their investigation.


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Lawyer threatens Tinkler arrest

Written By Unknown on Jumat, 08 Maret 2013 | 13.23

A LAWYER has threatened to have mining magnate Nathan Tinkler arrested if he fails to front a NSW court next week over his failed company Mulsanne Resources.

The former billionaire was due to appear in the NSW Supreme Court on Friday to be questioned about Mulsanne's failure to pay $28.4 million for buying a major stake in listed coal explorer Blackwood Corporation.

But Mr Tinkler failed to appear for questioning by lawyers for Mulsanne's liquidators about the unpaid debt.

After lawyers for all parties held talks behind close doors for several hours, Mr Tinkler's barrister Alec Leopold SC called for a stay of the proceedings.

But Ferrier Hodgson's barrister, Robert Newlinds SC, branded the application "half baked", arguing he should still be allowed to examine Mr Tinkler.

"Where is there any evidence that this is anything but a forensic stunt, the type of which Mr Tinkler, at least in the press, has a reputation for," he said.

In a heated argument between the two lawyers, Mr Newlinds said Mr Tinkler should be held in contempt of court if he did not appear at the hearing.

When senior deputy registrar Rebel Kenna asked whether Mr Tinkler was in attendance his lawyer said: "No".

"We want to make it 900 per cent clear that if Mr Tinkler is not here next Thursday we will be applying to have him arrested," Mr Newlinds said.

Mr Leopold said the proceedings should be stayed because the same solicitor had acted on behalf of Mulsanne's liquidator Ferrier Hodgson, Blackwood and a major shareholder.

He also said the liquidator had met with Blackwood and the major shareholder.

"The liquidator is not acting in the interest of the creditors as a whole," he said.

But Mr Newlinds said there was nothing improper about the liquidator meeting with Blackwood or sharing the same solicitor as the coal company was by far the biggest creditor and the others were small claims from other companies owned by Mr Tinkler.

Registrar Kenna adjourned the stay application until Monday so it can be heard by a judge.

The public examination of Mr Tinkler and other Mulsanne directors is currently listed to go ahead on Thursday.

Blackwood sued Mulsanne Resources after Mr Tinkler's company agreed last July to buy a 33.85 per cent stake in it for $28.4 million.

However, Mulsanne then failed to follow through with the deal.


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

I miss Peter Beattie: Campbell Newman

Queensland Premier Campbell Newman says he misses Peter Beattie's (pic) political antics. Source: AAP

QUEENSLAND Premier Campbell Newman says he misses Peter Beattie's political antics, but won't say whether he wants to see him make a comeback.

Mr Beattie, a former Labor premier, has said he retired too early and feels responsible for the party's crushing defeat last year by grooming a successor, Anna Bligh, to take the helm.

The comments have sparked debate over whether he will make a return to state politics.

Mr Newman said he would leave any speculation to political commentators.

However, he said during his days as Brisbane's lord mayor, he worked well with Mr Beattie, despite being on the opposite side of the political spectrum.

"I've always enjoyed his company," he told reporters in Gladstone on Friday.

"He gave me a fair run as lord mayor of Brisbane and I'll always be appreciative of that."

He said Mr Beattie brought a unique style to Queensland politics.

"I miss having him around to actually talk to and to enjoy sort of some of his political repartee, there you go," he laughed.

But the premier was far less diplomatic about other former Labor MPs making a comeback, especially former treasurer Andrew Fraser.

"Mr Fraser is the person who ran the state's finances into the canyon of financial mismanagement, he is one of the guilty party," he said.

"It's not just Anna Bligh - Andrew Fraser had his hand on the helm and he created over $62 billion in debt."

Mr Newman said he would be amazed if Labor was considering bringing back Mr Fraser and other former ministers.

Mr Beattie also agreed the former Labor leadership team needed to remain out of the picture.

"If Beattie, Bligh, (former attorney-general Paul) Lucas and Andrew Fraser are involved in the next campaign in any way, then that just gives Campbell Newman his election platform," he said.

But he named other former MPs, such as Cameron Dick, Grace Grace, Di Farmer and Murray Watt, who he says should be pre-selected and made shadow ministers from outside parliament.


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Facebook tries hip makeover

Facebook says it's reorganising the stream of updates at home pages into a "personalised newspaper". Source: AAP

FACEBOOK doesn't want to be dismissed as an internet has-been before its social network even enters its adolescence.

In an effort to remain hip, it is infusing the focal point of its website with a more dynamic look and additional controls designed to empower its 1 billion users to sort streams of photos and other material into more organised sections that appeal to their personal interests.

The changes unveiled on Thursday (Friday, Australian time) are a bid to address complaints that Facebook's hub - the News Feed - is degenerating into a jumble of monotonous musings and disjointed pictures.

This has come as users' social circles have widened from a few dozen people to an unwieldy assortment of friends, family, businesses, celebrities, co-workers and fleeting acquaintances.

That evolution requires a more nuanced approach than the computer-generated algorithms that Facebook has been relying on to pick out the most relevant content to display in each user's News Feed.

The growing popularity of smartphones and tablet computers equipped with high-quality cameras also is turning the News Feed into a more visual gallery, another shift that Facebook is tackling by carving out more space to display photos and video.

Facebook Inc. CEO Mark Zuckerberg hopes the makeover turns the News Feed into something like a newspaper tailored to fit the particular interests of each user on every visit to the website.

"This gives people more power to dig deeper into the topics they care about," Zuckerberg said while discussing the makeover at Facebook's Menlo Park, California headquarters.

Although Zuckerberg didn't say it, the overhaul also appears to be aimed at carving out more space to show larger and more compelling ads within the News Feed as Facebook seeks to boost its revenue and stock price.

Previous tweaks to the News Feed have triggered howls of protest among Facebook's users. Hoping to minimise the grousing this time around, Facebook intends to roll out the changes in phases.

It will probably be at least six months before everyone who accesses Facebook on a personal computer sees the revamped News Feed, the company said.

New mobile applications featuring the changes should be released within that time frame too.

The transition is likely to be completed before Facebook celebrates its 10th birthday next February.

The facelift is likely to be more jarring for those who only visit Facebook on a PC because it incorporates some features already deployed in the social network's mobile applications for smartphones and tablet computers.

The new features will enable users to choose to see streams of content that may feature nothing but photos or posts from their closest friends, family members or favourite businesses. Or they can just peruse content about music, or sports, as if they were grabbing a section of a newspaper.

Other newspaper-like changes will include lists of events that users' social circles have flagged for the upcoming weekend and other summaries meant to resemble a table of contents.

Facebook still intends to rely on algorithms to select some material to feature on the main part of the News Feed, much like newspaper editors determine what goes on the front page.

The additional space being devoted to photos and video is an acknowledgment how dramatically the composition of Facebook's content has changed during the past 16 months.

About 50 per cent of the posts on News Feed now include a photo or video now, up from 25 per cent in November 2011, according to Facebook's data.


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Qld MP won't reveal Whiskey Au Go Go names

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 07 Maret 2013 | 13.23

A QUEENSLAND MP who was expected to reveal to parliament the identities of people involved in one of Australia's worst mass murders has backed down.

In March 1973, 15 people died, mostly from suffocation, when two barrels of petrol were used to set the Whiskey Au Go Go nightclub on fire in Brisbane.

Although two men were convicted for the crime, independent MP Peter Wellington says he has new information which may spin the case on its head.

He was expected to reveal the information in parliament on Thursday, but said he had since realised he couldn't because he was a member of the Parliamentary Crime and Misconduct Committee.

"In light of possible action this committee may take as a result of this ongoing investigation, I am now no longer able to refer to this new information as originally intended in this chamber," he told parliament.

Mr Wellington said he instead intended to write to Attorney-General Jarrod Bleijie about the new information, asking him to investigate as soon as possible.

Earlier, he told AAP he would reveal to parliament on Thursday afternoon people who were involved in the fire bombing.

Mr Wellington said he had hoped the move would put pressure on the government to reopen the coronial inquest.

"This new information needs to be heard," he said.

Mr Bleijie told ABC radio that Mr Wellington should go to police with the information instead of raising it in parliament.


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Gillard says goodbye to Rooty Hill

PM Julia Gillard continued to defend her interaction with "real people" in a Sydney radio interview. Source: AAP

BEING mobbed by admirers at a jobs expo was a welcome bit of adulation for Prime Minister Julia Gillard as she wound up her very public five-day stay in Sydney's west.

Her tour felt like an election campaign, with ministers and local MPs in tow and on show, and a big media pack on her trail.

But the attention on the prime minister's western blitz was marred by recent dire opinion polls for Labor in the region, showing the party faces losing a slew of seats.

And comments on the street from residents in places like Rooty Hill, where the prime minister based herself, hinted at widespread unrest over her leadership style, even from Labor voters.

Ms Gillard had some relief from that on Thursday when she visited a jobs expo at Liverpool and was mobbed by hundreds of admiring job seekers, many of them recent migrants.

During her western Sydney stay she maintained she was just governing, listening to local concerns and outlining what the government was doing to help.

But a rousing call-to-arms speech to a thousand Labor Party faithful applauding at the University of Western Sydney on Sunday was all about rallying the troops in tough times.

Ms Gillard promised that Sydney's west would not be placed second to other regions by her government, which was responding to residents' concerns.

This week she announced a series of initiatives to benefit the region and address local concerns about traffic congestion, gang crime and jobs.

But her promise to stump up $1 billion for the WestConnex road project may have bought a fight with the NSW government, after she set conditions that routes must go all the way to the CBD and Port Botany.

Her initiatives to crack down on gang crime have also upset Liberal state governments with her call for the states to hand over certain legal powers to the Commonwealth.

On Thursday, Ms Gillard said she'd had a "good week" in the west but she declined to comment on whether Labor was "dead in the water" in the west.

"We're not here to talk about opinion polls, we're here to talk about issues that matter for the people.

"People will make their own decisions in September about how they want to vote.

"This government has a very clear plan for the future. We've charted the course and we want to pursue it ... on the other side of politics we just see negativity. Come September people will make their choice."

At Mulgoa preschool in Sydney's far west on Thursday, Opposition Leader Tony Abbott said he didn't need to make a big deal about his visits because he knew the area so well.

"The people of western Sydney want a plan, they just don't want a visit," he told reporters.

"This is not foreign country as far as I'm concerned.

"They want a constructive engagement that doesn't just start on Sunday and end on Thursday."


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

ANU scientists find ancient fish

Scientists have found the fossilised remains of a previously unknown large marine predator. Source: AAP

A FANG has led to the discovery of a new species of ancient fish that's named after a NSW town.

Gavin Young and a research team were excavating the skeleton of an extinct armoured fish from 360 million-year-old rock near Eden in 2008 when they realised there was an other very interesting fossil at the site.

"As we lifted out the block, we noticed a very large fang, at least four centimetres long," Dr Young said in a statement.

"Armoured fish don't have teeth, so we knew there must be a much larger predator also preserved at the site.

"We uncovered an almost complete skull and shoulder girdle of an enormous lobe-finned fish, with jaws about 48 cm long."

The Australian National University researchers say it is largest fossilised lobe-finned fish skull ever found in rocks of Devonian age and its descendents are believed to have evolved into the first land animals as the boned fins became legs.

When it was alive, Australia and Antarctica were joined in the great southern supercontinent of Gondwana.

"We compared the shape and structure of the preserved bones with about 100 fossil fish species from elsewhere in the world," Dr Young said.

"It turns out that we have not only a species new to science, but also a new genus (genus) of lobe-finned fish, which we have named Edenopteron after the town of Eden."

The species (species) name Edenopteron keithcrooki acknowledges Professor Keith Crook of the former ANU Geology Department.

He supervised student geological mapping on the NSW south coast over several decades, when many of important fossil fish sites were discovered.

This fish has some different features compared to Devonian fish fossils from the Northern Hemisphere, including extra bones in its palate, and strange ornamentation on the scales.

The Eden site is only the fourth place in the world where Devonian fish show these unusual features," Dr Young says.

Preparing the fossil in the ANU laboratory took years - and excavating to see if the rest of its body lies deeper in the rock could take a while too.

"That would be a massive excavation because it would be two to three metres long, but would most definitely be an absolutely spectacular find," Dr Young said.


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Two women sexually assaulted in Perth

Written By Unknown on Rabu, 06 Maret 2013 | 13.23

A 16-YEAR-OLD girl and a 23-year-old woman have been sexually assaulted in two separate attacks in Perth's eastern suburbs in the past month.

The teenage victim was walking home from the CBD on February 15 at 1am (WST) when two men in a white sedan pulled up beside her and offered her a lift.

They drove her to a park in Lathlain where they sexually assaulted her before one of the men dragged her from the car and drove away.

Police said the sedan had indicators in the side mirrors and a black or grey coloured protective strip on the side.

One offender is described as being 17 to 19 years old, with a dark brown complexion, about 165cms tall, with a slim build.

He has brown eyes and brown hair that is shaved on the sides and short on the top, going into a long mullet.

The second offender is described as being 19 to 21 years old, with a fair complexion, full facial hair, blonde hair, light-coloured eyes, about 183cms tall, with a medium build.

In a separate incident, a 23-year-old woman was walking in Kewdale at 7pm (WST) on Tuesday when a man approached her and tried to have a conversation with her.

When she attempted to walk away, the man grabbed her and forced her to the ground before indecently and sexually assaulting her.

The woman phoned for help and the man fled on a bicycle.

He is described as being about 19 years old, about 175cm tall, of slim build, with short brown hair and wearing a dark coloured t-shirt.

Anyone with information about either incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Arson bid as Israel starts separate buses

Israeli buses designated for Palestinian workers only have been torched by vandals in the West Bank. Source: AAP

A DAY after Israel began running separate West Bank bus lines for Palestinian workers, vandals have tried to set fire to several of the vehicles, police say.

"Two buses were apparently set on fire, but we are looking into all possibilities," police spokeswoman Luba Samri told AFP, saying the incident took place in the Arab-Israeli town of Kfar Qassem which lies close to the Green Line.

Police sources quoted by army radio said the buses had been torched as a protest against the new transportation system which came into effect on Monday.

The incident took place just hours after Israel began running separate bus lines for Palestinian workers and Jewish settlers, in a move which was bluntly denounced by an Israeli rights group as "segregation" and "simple racism".

But Israel's transport ministry denied the charge, saying Palestinians with a permit to work in Israel were allowed to travel "on all public transport lines".

The controversy over the separate bus lines continued to draw sharp criticism from Palestinian officials on Tuesday.

"This is a racist policy of segregation," said deputy labour minister Assef Said.

His remarks were echoed by the Palestinian Workers' Union which also denounced it as "a racist measure" and said the buses would become an easy target for attacks by settler extremists.

The new bus route ferries Palestinian workers from the Eyal checkpoint just north of the West Bank city of Qalqilya to several cities in Israel where they have permits to work.

The transport ministry says the new line are to serve Palestinian workers entering Israel in a bid "to replace the pirate operators who transport the workers at inflated fares."

But Israeli media reports said the service was launched after Jewish settlers complained that forcing them to share public transport with Palestinians was a security risk.

Until now, the workers have been reaching Israel by catching buses which run from outside Jewish settlements which they would ride alongside settlers travelling to Israel.

Ron Nahman, the late mayor of Ariel settlement, had in November said he was in talks with the army, the police and the transport ministry to find ways of "stopping Palestinians from boarding the buses that go to Ariel."

"All of them are working on this problem, and we hope that they will soon find a solution to the reality that is bothering our people," he wrote on his Facebook page.


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

$A higher on stock market strength

THE Australian dollar has reached its highest level in more than a week, following gains on stock markets.

At 1700 AEDT on Wednesday, the currency was trading at 102.84 US cents, up from 102.44 cents on Tuesday.

It reached 103.02 US cents on Wednesday afternoon, its highest level since February 25.

Westpac chief currency strategist Robert Rennie said the Australian dollar received a boost early on Wednesday after the Dow Jones hit a record high in the US.

The gains continued during Wednesday's local session, with stock markets across Asia higher.

Mr Rennie said the move towards risk assets indicated traders were ignoring negatives such as the onset of $US85 billion ($A83.35 billion) in automatic spending cuts in the US, known as the sequestration.

"I guess what US equity markets are telling us right now is that sequestration doesn't matter.

"The fact we don't have an Italian government doesn't matter and the fact we're seeing increasing signs of policy hawkishness out of China doesn't really matter," he said.

"I think some of that optimism that we have seen through equity markets over the past few days is infectious and it has caught the Aussie and generated some gains."

Mr Rennie said the Australian dollar could continue to gain ground over the next few days but was likely to come under pressure when market attention turned back to the spending cuts and Italy's political situation.

"This period of strength does look as though it can continue to a few more trading sessions, but I think beyond that the focus will shift."


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Pakistan premier to make first India visit

Written By Unknown on Selasa, 05 Maret 2013 | 13.23

PAKISTAN'S Prime Minister is set to make his first visit to India, officials from both countries have confirmed.

"Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf will be in India on Saturday. This is a private visit and he will be accompanied by his family," an Indian official said on Tuesday.

"He is not expected to meet any Indian political leaders. This is clearly a religious and spiritual trip," he told AFP.

Ashraf and his family are expected to pray at the shrine of Sufi saint Hazrat Khwaja Gharib Nawaz in Ajmer Sharif, some 400 kilometres west of New Delhi.

A senior Pakistani government official confirmed the visit and said details were being finalised.

"What he will do there and who he will meet are being worked out," the official said.

Ashraf will be the most senior Pakistani to visit India since last April when President Asif Ali Zardari made a similar pilgrimage and had lunch with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours increased in January when six soldiers were killed in exchanges along the de facto border in Kashmir, a region claimed by both countries.

The situation has calmed since a ceasefire was agreed at the end of January.

India and Pakistan have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir.


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Group says Google ads fuel ivory trade

A conservation group says the internet giant Google is helping to fuel a surge in ivory demand. Source: AAP

A CONSERVATION group claims that Google has something in common with illicit ivory traders in China and Thailand. It says the internet search giant is helping to fuel a dramatic surge in ivory demand.

The Environmental Investigation Agency, a conservation advocacy group, says there are some 10,000 ads on Google Japan's shopping site that promote the sale of ivory.

About 80 per cent of the ads are for "hanko," small wooden stamps widely used in Japan to affix signature seals to official documents. The stamps are legal and typically inlaid with ivory lettering.

Google prohibits the promotion of ivory sales on its shopping sites.

A spokesperson for Google in Japan did not immediately respond to a request for comment.


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Placenta Study Looks At Autism Link

Stress can be transferred from a mother's placenta to her unborn child, researchers say. Source: AAP

A PREGNANT mother's placenta can transmit damaging effects of stress to her unborn child, say researchers.

The impact is felt by a protein that affects the developing brains of boys and girls differently.

Scientists believe it could explain known links between maternal stress and disorders such as autism and schizophrenia, which are more common and serious in male offspring.

"Almost everything experienced by a woman during a pregnancy has to interact with the placenta in order to transmit to the foetus," said lead researcher Dr Tracy Bale, from the University of Pennsylvania's School of Veterinary Medicine in the US.

"Now we have a marker that appears to signal to the foetus that its mother has experienced stress."

The researchers studied female mice that were exposed to mild stresses such as the smell of foxes or unfamiliar noises during the first week of pregnancy.

They identified an enzyme called OGT that was present at lower levels in the placentas of stressed mice than in unstressed mice. Male offspring placentas also had lower natural levels of OGT than those attached to female offspring.

Further research showed that cutting levels of OGT triggered changes in more than 370 genes in the brains of unborn mice.

Many of these genes play a role in functions critical to neurological development, such as energy use, protein regulation and creating nerve cell connections.

The findings, reported in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, are likely to translate to humans, say the researchers.

Analysis of human placentas discarded after the birth of male babies showed evidence of reduced OGT levels.

The results suggest that OGT may protect the brain during pregnancy. Males have less of the protein to begin with, placing them at greater risk if their mothers are stressed.

"We want to get to the point where we can predict the occurrence of neurodevelopmental disease," said Dr Bale.

"If we have a marker for exposure, we can meld that with what we know about the genetic profiles that predispose individuals to these conditions and keep a close eye on children who have increased risks."


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Drink companies win recycling challenge

Written By Unknown on Senin, 04 Maret 2013 | 13.23

COCA-COLA has won its Federal Court challenge to the Northern Territory's cash for containers recycling scheme.

In the Federal Court in Sydney on Monday, Justice John Griffiths found in favour of three major beverage companies which had applied for the NT scheme to be declared invalid so they wouldn't have to comply with it.

Coca-Cola Amatil, Schweppes Australia and Lion Pty Ltd took the case against the NT government over the scheme, which is similar to a long-running one in South Australia and involves a 10 cent deposit on drink purchases, refundable when the container is returned to a recycling agent.

Coca-Cola increased its drink prices in NT when the scheme was introduced a year ago, and said its prices would drop if it won the court case.

Greenpeace, which had campaigned vigorously against the challenge, said the decision was a major blow for recycling in Australia and "an outrageous win for Coke's corporate self-interest".

"For a proven and effective recycling system to be ruled invalid is unacceptable and will only galvanise public support for a national recycling scheme," Greenpeace Campaigner Reece Turner said in a statement.

It was now up to other states to "stand up to Coke's bullying".

With a COAG meeting on April 11 set to decide on a national recycling refund scheme, it was vital for NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell and his Victorian counterpart Ted Baillieu to back the scheme, he said.

Speaking outside court, Jeff Angel, national convenor of the Boomerang Alliance of environmental groups, said Coca-Cola had had a "pyrrhic victory" which was only temporary.

"They took to court the Northern Territory cash for containers scheme against the wishes of the community, against the wishes of the government and in fact, the majority of Australians," Mr Angel told reporters.

"Coke have proven themselves to be a bully.

"The fact they won is simply a temporary victory.

"The NT government has already got the agreement of the other states and territories to reinstate the act through the COAG process.

"The NT will see their cash for containers scheme returned to operation."


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Family feuds spark brawls in Qld town

HUGE street brawls sparked by family feuds are regularly breaking out in a remote Gulf country indigenous community, Queensland police say.

In the most recent fight in Doomadgee a female police officer allegedly had her nose broken by a man as she tried to break up a fight on Sunday morning.

Following the man's arrest an angry mob of about 100 people went to the local police station and demanded his release.

A group then smashed the glass door at the station.

Senior Sergeant Matt Campbell says reinforcements have been sent from Mount Isa to support the nine officers in Doomadgee.

"If someone thinks it's okay to attack a police station then certainly they're going to have no regard for the remainder of the residents," he told AAP.

"It's important that the people in this town have the same freedom to move about as those in any other town in Queensland."

He says the situation on Sunday was daunting and frightening for the police officers involved.

Fights involving up to 200 people have occurred every few days over the past month, Sen Sgt Campbell says.

Normally just two officers are rostered on to work at any one time in Doomadgee.

"As you can imagine these officers become fantastic mediators and negotiators, but at times those skills are not enough," Sen Sgt Campbell said.

"It is certainly a sad day for the police and the greater community."

A large number of people allegedly involved in the fights have been arrested over the past month.

Sen Sgt Campbell says the brawls are often caused by family feuds which erupt when petty arguments between children spiral out of control.

A spokesperson from the Doomadgee Council was not immediately available to comment.


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

Dying let down by health system: report

Researchers say chronically ill Australians lack the support they need as their condition worsens. Source: AAP

CHRONICALLY ill Australians are being let down as they near the end of their life, according to an article in the Medical Journal of Australia.

Chronic disease accounts for more than half of Australian deaths but scant attention is paid to the support a patient needs as their condition slowly deteriorates, says the article.

Senior Adelaide University lecturer Teresa Burgess and her co-authors say the palliative care system was developed to help people dying of cancer over a relatively short period.

However, chronic diseases tend to follow a much slower process and are less predictable.

There is a "a progressive functional decline, poor quality of life and increasing dependency on both formal and informal caregivers as well as the health system".

The authors favour a patient-centred approach based on actual needs and symptoms rather than a prognosis.

They also want increased funding, better leadership and the use of palliative care specialists in end-of-life education and support.

Currently health workers assume a referral to palliative care providers will lead to the most appropriate care for people dying with a chronic disease.

"However, often this process is poorly handled, and GPs and primary-care clinicians are left to manage an unco-ordinated and challenging situation," the article says.

The result is patients too often receive inadequate care and die in an intensive care unit rather than in a preferred place of death.

"There is little opportunity for patients and their families to discuss issues around death and dying, and increasing stress on staff who are not trained in the provision of palliative care," say the authors.

"Using the term end-of-life care rather than palliative care could help to change health professionals' attitudes to the skills and training they require."


13.23 | 0 komentar | Read More

SpaceX's capsule nears ISS for rendezvous

Written By Unknown on Minggu, 03 Maret 2013 | 13.23

A PRIVATELY-OWNED unmanned US space capsule is nearing the International Space Station (ISS), preparing to dock to deliver food, scientific materials and other crucial equipment.

"Dragon is scheduled to be captured Sunday at 6:31am EST (2231 AEDT) by NASA Expedition 34 Commander Kevin Ford and NASA Flight Engineer Tom Marshburn," the US space agency NASA said in a statement.

NASA said SpaceX's Dragon would be installed onto the Earth-facing port of the ISS's Harmony module by ground experts at mission control in Houston and bolted into place via commands by the ISS crew.

The original plan was for Dragon to attach to the space station on Saturday and return to Earth on March 25, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Mexico's Baja California peninsula.

But the capsule ran into troubles with its thrusters shortly after launching on Friday from Cape Canaveral, Florida, triggering the delay.

SpaceX engineers found that only one of the spacecraft's four thruster pods, which help manoeuvre the capsule in orbit, was working. The problems were later fixed.

"SpaceX said it has high confidence there will be no repeat of the thruster problem during rendezvous, including its capability to perform an abort, should that be required," NASA said.

The delay will not affect the capsule's splashdown, which remains planned for March 25, the US space agency says.

Dragon is carrying 544kg of supplies on SpaceX's second resupply mission to the ISS.

This is the third commercial mission by SpaceX - Space Exploration Technologies - to the orbiting space station under contract with NASA.

In May 2012, SpaceX made history when Dragon became the first commercial spacecraft in history to successfully attach to the International Space Station.

Previously only four governments - the United States, Russia, Japan and the European Space Agency - had achieved this challenging technical feat.

SpaceX has now begun regular missions to the Space Station, completing its first official resupply mission in October 2012.

NASA is relying on SpaceX and other commercial ventures to take over for its retired fleet of space shuttles, which last flew in July 2011.


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Titanic II a tribute to lives lost: Palmer

Clive Palmer has dismissed critics who claim he isn't serious about building a Titanic II. Source: AAP

MINING magnate Clive Palmer has told British critics of his plan to build a replica Titanic that it's "bulls***" to suggest he's simply seeking publicity.

And he's denied inappropriately making money from the 1912 tragedy that cost over a thousand lives, arguing his Titanic II will be a tribute to them.

Some 1500 people died when the original Titanic sank on its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York.

At the London launch of Titanic II the first question fired at Mr Palmer was from a reporter with Southampton's daily newspaper.

The city still mourns 550 seafarers lost on the passenger liner.

"There are some concerns, putting it bluntly, that you are making money on the back of 550 dead," the Southampton reporter said at the Ritz Hotel.

Mr Palmer replied: "I haven't made any money yet and we still may not make any money."

The Mineralogy owner went on to argue Titanic II would actually be a tribute to those who lost their lives.

"It's significant that 100 years later we should be mature enough to pay tribute to those people," he said.

"If I'm dead in 100 years time and someone wants to spend some money commemorating my life and the things I've done I'll be very happy about that."

Mr Palmer insisted many descendants of those involved with the original Titanic had expressed interest in travelling in the same cabins their relatives had stayed in.

Titanic II is due in 2016 to retrace the original ship's planned route.

When it reaches the point where the Titanic sank "it'll be very symbolic for the world", Mr Palmer said.

In a "metaphysical" sense the replica would be carrying the hopes and dreams of generations who left Europe to find a better life in the United States.

To those suggesting the whole endeavour is a hoax to generate publicity the Queenslander declared: "It's bulls***."

"We're building four (iron ore) ships now bigger than the Titanic at the shipyard.

"I'm not somebody with no money."

British Titanic Society president Bob Pryor says the people of Southampton don't believe anyone should "play around" with the name Titanic.

"The idea of sailing a replica into Southampton - down there they are absolutely horrified by the idea," Mr Pryor told AAP.

Locals are afraid there'll be an inappropriate "song and dance" when Titanic II reaches the point where the original sank.

"Mr Palmer has got to prove them wrong," Mr Pryor said.

The society president is himself excited to see a replica being built.

But the man who's made many Titanic models, including one that's 12-foot long, is sad to hear Titanic II won't have fake rivets on her hull.

"It's going to look very bare without them," Mr Pryor said.

"They are almost like a signature of the ship."

Mr Palmer on Saturday announced replica rivets weren't needed.

"We want the best technology - we don't want to appear that we've got the worst technology," he said.


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ADF investigates Afghan boys' deaths

Two children, have been accidentally killed by Australian soldiers in Afghanistan, authorities say. Source: AAP

AUSTRALIAN Defence Force (ADF) commanders are trying to find out how two Afghan children were killed during an allied operation involving their soldiers.

The boys, aged seven and eight, were shot dead on Thursday morning as they tended cattle in Oruzgan province in Afghanistan where Australian soldiers were fighting back after a Taliban attack.

Defence force chief General David Hurley offered his condolences to their families, but said it was too early to say how it happened or who was responsible.

But the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said it took full responsibility.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard, who has been briefed on the incident, declined to comment on Sunday, saying she would leave any commentary to General Hurley.

"I'm not going to deal with the details of the incident in question," she told reporters in Sydney.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott said civilian deaths were a "horrible feature of war".

"It is absolutely tragic, absolutely tragic whenever we get civilian casualties of war," he told reporters on Sunday.

The ADF and ISAF are jointly investigating the incident in the northwestern province, but have only confirmed no Australian soldiers were injured.

A joint Afghan-ISAF team visited the district of Shahidi Hassas in Oruzgan on Saturday to investigate and meet with local leaders.

Australian soldiers from the Special Operations Task Group were conducting a routine liaison patrol.

ISAF said the troops had opened fire at what they believed were insurgent forces.

"We deeply regret that the International Security Assistance Forces were responsible for the unintended death of two young Afghan boys during the operation," General Hurley said in a statement.

He said Australian personnel immediately reported the incident to Afghan government officials and military leaders.

"It is premature to make any determination about how the incident occurred or who was responsible," General Hurley added.

ISAF expressed its "deep regret" at the civilian casualties.

"I offer my personal apology and condolences to the family of the boys who were killed," ISAF commander General Joseph Dunford said in a statement.

"I am committed to ensuring we do the right thing for the families of those we harmed, as well as for the community in which they lived.

"We take full responsibility for this tragedy."

General Hurley said defence took seriously the issue of civilian casualties and that soldiers operated under a strict set of rules to minimise unintended deaths and injuries.


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