Put Another Credit Card on the Barbie

I saw this last month, but forgot to get it up:

Americans still dream of holidays Down Under
Posted Tue Jul 3, 2007 6:34am AEST

"Australia has topped the list of the most popular vacation destinations for Americans, if money were no object. "

Unfortunately for Americans (and Australian tourism), the only places more expensive for Americans are Antarctica and outer space.

Big Brother Over Sydney

Google Earth goes all fuzzy over the Sydney business district - just a few weeks before the APEC summit. Coincidence?

RTA Launches New Anti-Speeding Campaign

Part of New South Wales Road and Traffic Authority's latest anti-speeding campaign. . .

Split/Vis

If you flew from Frankfurt to Split, Croatia, who would you expect to see on the plane? Germans? Croatians? How about a couple of dozen American pilgrims on their way to Christian holy sites? If you picked the latter, you'd be spot on. I personally, felt a twinge of guilt as our journey was all about self-indulgence.

We arrived in Split and were met by Davorka, mother of Ivan, former roomie of Uta from her GA State days. Uta and Davorka go way back, almost 10 years, when Davorka spent two weeks in Atlanta visiting her son. To say that she was ecstatic to see Uta would be an understatement. We'd arranged to stay with the family for a night before continuing on the island of Vis. Fortunately, for us, Croatian hospitality rivals that of anything one could find in the southern USA. Davorka provided us keys to an empty flat (allegedly purchased in an as yet unsuccessful attempt to lure Ivan back to Split to join the family business), which included a fridge stocked with goodies. She then escorted us around old Split, through Diocletian's Palace, along the embankment and most of the city's coastal frontage. She treated us to dinner in Bacvice Inlet, joined by Ivan's siblings.

The following morning, we met up with Ana and Michelle along the embankment and boarded a ferry for the two hour trip to Vis (check out this article on CNN as well). We were met at the ferry docks by Ivo, proprieter of our accomodation. We'd rented a couple of rooms in his 16th century house on the Vis harbour. Ivo took the bags in the car, and we proceeded on foot, which was fine, as any car trip in Vis is a hair raising experience, particularly in the towns where the roads are barely wide enough for a single car (one sees a lot of vehicles moving in reverse).

The following week was nothing but pure decadence (except the part where we got stopped by the police). We arranged for Ivo to transport us to various beaches on the island, and spent a day reaching some of the area's more remote locations by boat (including Biševo and the Blue Cave). Ultimately, we were joined by Maya and Victor, as well as Ivan himself, who dropped in for a night. We also spent a coule of evenings in Komiža, the island's fishing community, which hosts a fisherman's festival on Saturday nights. We largely skipped breakfast, as a Croatian breakfast appears to consist of Turkish coffee and cigarettes. We passed on the cigarettes. Lunch could also be hard to come by - we walked out of one spot after we leanred that our fellow patrons had been waiting for 1-2 hours for food. However, each evening was an occassion for a 3-hour feast of grilled seafood and wine. The town of Vis proved quite a picturesque spot for a morning jog, and Uta found a staircase that would challenge the anaerobic metabolism of the leg muscles of the most hardened athlete). The weather was perfect for the dration (save for a storm that blew in and out out one night), and the island is still sufficiently off the beaten path to not be overrun by tourists (as evidenced by the limited English and lack of friendly service). However, based upon the number of high priced yachts sailing into and out of the harbour, it's clear that the island is hardly undiscovered. After a week in paradise, we ventured by to Split, where we were once again met by Davorka and a restocked refigerator. We had a drink in the evening with the family and then spent one more night in Split, tackling Marjan Hill with Ivan's brother the following morning before starting the long trip back to Australia. Incidentally, Crotia's parting words to me were spoken by the chick at passport control - as she stamped by passport she commented: "Benjamin, you have interesting hair-do". With her accent it sounded pretty sexy, but then this could have also meant "dude, you look like a jackass, get out of our country".

The return trip was a test of endurance. An 1.5 hour flight back to Frankfurt (with the pilgirms) where we had a six hour lay-over in the airport. Incidentally, the Frankfurt airport, like Lufthansa, is somewhat of a no-frills zone. Though extremely busy, other than free newspapers in several languages, the airport offers little in the way of food options or ways to occupy oneself for six hours. We actually ate at McDonald's (I ended up with a happy meal due to some problems on Uta's behalf with her native tongue - I didn't get full, but at least I got a toy). Also, the aiport must have the worst indoor air quality of any airport in the western world, due to the prevalence of smokers and the half-assed mechanisms in place to prevent second-hand smoke. The experience was not unlike sitting in a bar, although even most bars in the world are now smoke free. This was followed by a 11.5 hour flight to Singapore (punctuated by an early conflict between two grown mean fighting because one was pushing the seat of the guy in front of him), where we had a five hour layover - fortunately, the Singapore airport is stacked with goodies. The last leg was 6.5 hours down to Melbourne, arriving around 6:30 in the morning. Jet lag has been kicking our asses around the block for the past couple of days, but hopefully we're on the tail end of its effects. Another work week is just around the corner. . .

Photos here

St. Peter-Ording

What does one do on a 10 hour flight from Bangkok to Frankfurt? Not much, particularly when no-frills Lufthansa doesn't even have movies on demand. Mainly, I tried to keep circulation to my legs going. Karin und Hartmut met us in Hamburg after a quick connecting flight and escorted us north to their retirement villa in St. Peter-Ording on the North Sea - a little spot of heaven in Germany's north.

We had two leisurely weeks on the coast, where we were joined by numerous family and friends. Oma and Opa dropped by first - happy to see us, although Oma found the current status of my hair to be less than ideal. The first few days were sunny and warm, allowing us to (finally-after many years) enjoy some quality time on the beach. We also got to take in Germany's Beach Volleyball Championships during that first weekend, where one of Uta's friends was coaching one of the women's teams. Saturday night, a tournament party rocked the beach - complete with all varieties of daggy music and Warsteiner tents featuring the latest rage in Germany: flavoured beer (yes, I know, when Germany starts serving up fruity beer one's got to start wondering about where the world is heading). Uta managed to run into another of her old buddies at the party, which led to hours of humorous recollection, particularly as said friend is now a teacher at Uta's old high school. I, however, made some new friends of my own - there's not too many people that look like me in northern Germany, so apparently it's one of the few places in the world where I'm cool by default. Katrin also arrived over the weekend, reuniting the Dittmer family once again.

As we headed into the following week, Bavarian Pia arrived, but the weather became a bit less reliable, driving up competition for the most critical piece of infrastructure in northern Germany: the Strandkorb. This piece of beach hardware acts as both a wind break and a comfy chair, and nothing appears more beloved among beachgoers. Some go as far as to erect ramparts around their Strandkorb to defend it against would-be usurpers. We had two rented for the duration, which enabled us to forceably evict squatters. And let me tell you - if you want to piss off a German, boot him out of his Strandkorb. It's not a pretty sight. Due to dodgy weather, we took one day and headed down to Hamburg via train to do a little shopping and meet up with Nina and Sylvia. We enjoyed a leisurely breafast at TH2, picked up some items at H&M (the only establishment cheap enough for our Aussie dollars to be useful), did some celebrity spotting (Michael Stich, but only from a distance) and then dined at the hip eatery Vapiano.

Back at the beach, we were eventually joined by the Lagerpusch cousins, Nico and Merit, as well as Matthias, leading to a full house indeed. We capped off the trip with a celebratory evening at the local tennis club, where Uta caught up with everyone from days of tennis gone by, and I put my German to the test trying to keep up with conversations (which become increasingly difficult as the night wore on and speech started to slur). Pia and I finally packed it in at 1:30 and biked back to the ranch, leaving Uta to rage til dawn.

All in all, a daily routine of food, bicycle rides, and lying on the beach is an idyllic existence, particularly with the occassional Dorf Fest, round of golf, or booze up. But all good things must come to an end, and in this case, we ultimately had to hop a plane to Split (which necessitated waking up at a truly criminal hour).

Photos here

Bangkok

We left for Thailand on Friday the 13th, arriving in Bangkok about 6 in the morning after an overnight flight from Melbourne. We took a cab into the city and woke up our hosts, Newley and Anasuya. We hung out at Anasuya's pad and caught up for a few hours before catching breakfast across the way at Crepes & Co. We headed down to the river and did a quick cruise with the tourists with our guide pointing out all the #1 spots in Bangkok to visit ("if you have time"). We also took in some beef noodle and proceeded to Khao San market to observe Bangkok's playground for grudgy backpackers (check out Newley's recent article in the NYT). We grabbed some tasty Thai vittles and finished off the night at the Suan Lum Night Bazaar where we drank German beer and watched a tacky stage show featuring Thai versions of top-40 hits. Not bad for day 1.

Day 2 we dared to venture into Chatuchak Weekend Market. If you can't find it at Chatuchak, you don't want it. Highlights included the rabbits in knitted sweaters and the squirrels with little hats. But an outdoor market in Bangkok's heat and humidity can only be endured for so long. We rewarded ourselves with a proper Bankok Sunday brunch at Trader Vic's at the Bangkok Marriott Resort and Spa. Three hours of devine gluttony! We took a siesta in the afternoon, and Uta and I wandered off down the road to check out the neighborhood and dropped in on Bei Otto.

On Monday, we turned into proper tourists, and hit some of Bangkok's cultural sites. First stop was the obligatory Grand Palace followed by Wat Po. We had to do the tourist dance with a clown outside Wat Po who tried the ol' "the temple is closed for lunch, you can come back later, in the meantime why don't you take a tour with my buddy" routine. We said thanks and proceeded to walk into Wat Po. We then had a spot of difficulty catching a cab to Siam Square, as none of the cabbies wanted to use the meter - we had to hop in and out of a few cabs before finally getting a lift. Siam Square and the neighboring shopping precincts represent some of the more posh shopping in Bangkok, no shortage of Prada, Gucci and other things we can't afford (not to mention one of the biggest freakin' food courts we've ever seen). We regrouped with Newley and Anasuya to finish off the night with dinner at Cabbages and Condoms, before taking a cab through some of Bangkok's peak traffic (dreadful) to the airport to travel to our next destination.

Photos here

Return to Oz

Our vacation has come and gone. We spent four weeks overseas, trekking from Australia to Thailand (Bangkok), Germany (Hamburg and St. Peter-Ording) and Croatia (Split and Vis). Hit the links to check out a summary of each leg of the journey.

News from the Northern Hemisphere

Melbourne became too cold for us so we decided to jump ship and head north (way north) for a few weeks. We stopped by Newley's place in Bangkok (shown here - Bangkok that is, not Newley's place) for a couple of days before moving on to Germany, where we're currently dug-in in the northern coastal town of St. Peter-Ording on the North Sea. Here for another ten days before slowly returning to Australia via Croatia. More later, for the moment, we're busy doing as little as possible.

News from the Great Beyond

I received the following email this week. It's rather unintelligible, but amusing nonetheless, and I suppose I should feel priviliged to be the recipient of such intergalactic wisdom:
_______________________________________________

Subject: Metereology in the Solar System due to the Astronomical Cycle, of 26,000 years, of the Sun in the Star Cluster of Alcyone in the Pleiades. Intercession by A.D. 2012.

Re:

- ' The Great Global Warming Swindle ' = ' Glass Half Full '

- Cimate Change > the Environment > Astronomy > the UFO Matrix = Current <
Events < Genuine < Correlation

- " Focus on solar outbursts '" & " Radio 'screams' from the Sun warn of
radiatio storms " : European Space Agency (ESA)

- Perception on the Rescue of Humanity from the Astronomical Events
anticipated within A.D. 2012 due to the orbit of the Solar System in the
Photon Band - Exposure to the Centre of the Galaxy.

- Foreword from Jesus the Christ, Lord and Redeemer - Treatise: 'PROJECT
WORLD EVACUATION' - Compiled through Tuella by the ASHTAR Command.

- Treatise by Director Satya, from the Central Library of Alcyone in the
Pleiades, our local Star System, through Barbara Hand Clow - The anticipated
Astronomical Events discussed in Depth.

- The Official Website of the Sirian Command within the Galactic Federation
- Weekly Updates.


There is virtual evidence that our planet and solar system are gradually
receiving, and being influenced by, the energies originating from the centre
of the Milky Way Galaxy.

Two animated photos of the European Space Agency (ESA), and related article
by the title "Focus on solar outbursts", showing the Sun with great
emissions of gas into space from its North and South Poles are on the
record:

http://www.esa.int/export/esaCP/SEM1V5XLDMD_FeatureWeek_0.html

With a complementary article of 29 May, 2007: "Radio 'screams' from the Sun
warn of radiation storms"

http://www.esa.int/esaSC/SEMOPF9RR1F_index_0.html

The following is a quotation from the weekly 'Update by Sheldan Nidle for
the Spiritual Hierarchy and the Galactic Federation':

"We also have briefly examined the present state of your Sun's
family. Your entire solar system is in a state of enormously accelerating
hyperactivity. At first, this heightened activity seriously affected her
innermost planets. More than a decade ago, Vulcan cracked and was destroyed.
Over the same decade, Mercury's orbit became slightly more eccentric. Venus'
dense atmosphere became more disturbed as volcanic and earthquake events
increased. Mother Earth's base frequency rose and her central sun - her core
- became more magnetic. Mars' ice caps began to melt more quickly and severe
dust storms occurred more frequently than before. The upper atmospheres of
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune encountered increased flux.

"As Mother Earth reacts to the Sun's increased energy transference,
she heats up. Temperatures in the lower atmosphere rise. Meanwhile, the
energy upheaval in Mother Earth's atmosphere and central 'sun' increase
exponentially. These factors lead to escalation in global volcanic and
earthquake activity.

[http://www.paoweb.com/sn120203.htm] Archives: http://www.paoweb.com

Our solar system orbits in the Pleiades. We are part of a conical spiral
star cluster, originating from the star Alcyone, at the vertex, with the
star systems of Mereope, Maya, Electra, Tayeta, Coele, Atlas and our Sun
which is the eighth star of the Alcyone Spiral.

Each star system of the Alcyone Spiral travels in the Galactic Night for
varying lengths of time. Alcyone is always exposed to the light of the
centre of the Milky Way Galaxy through the Photon Band, whereas, our Sun,
being the most far-off from Alcyone, spends most time in the Galactic Night
- 11,000 years in the Galactic Night and 2,000 years in the Photon Band and,
again, 11,000 and 2,000 to complete a cycle of circa 26,000 years.

December 21, 2012 is the culmination of the Sun's present cycle, referred to
as the Precession of the Equinoxes, and the beginning of the next, when our
solar system will re-enter the Photon Band and begins to be totally exposed
to the centre of our Milky Way Galaxy for a period of 2,000 years, before
re-exiting the same Photon Band and re-entering the Galactic Night.

More info:
'THE PLEIADIAN AGENDA', by Barbara Hand Clow
1995 Bear & Company Publishing
Rochester Vermont USA.
[Channeling Satya, the keeper of the records of Alcyone, the
central Pleidian library]

Between now and, well before, December 2012 the reality of the Precession of
the Equinoxes awakens the world into a galactic awareness and, by necessity,
humanity will require the assistance and help of the Board of Command of the
Galactic Federation as there will be predictable surface living conditions
that will affect all unless the Spiritual Hierarchy and the Member
Starnations, led by Sirian Command, within the Galactic Federation MEDIATE
in an effectively programmed way.

Also from Lord Ashtar:
"I am Ashtar, the Commander of ten million men surrounding this hemisphere
(northern) in the protective force within the Alliance for Peace in the
Intergalactic Council. "There is method and great organization in a
detailed plan already near completion for the purpose of removing souls from
this planet, in the event of catastrophic events making a rescue necessary.
"The possible polar shift has been greatly lessened and gentled by the
actions of our scientific volunteers from many worlds. "There are also
tracking units with the Ashtar Command which continually trace the pathways
of all asteroid action within this solar system and beyond.

More info:
PROJECT WORLD EVACUATION
Compiled through Tuella by the ASHTAR Command
1993 Inner Light Publications
New Brunswick NJ USA.

The Commanders and Teachers contributing to the Treatise above:

Jesus the Christ, Lord and Redeemer of the Planet; Ashtar; Kuthumi;
Andromeda Rex; Lytton; Avalon; Monka; Korton; Jycondria; St. Germain;
Cassion; Hatonn; Anton; Soltec; Voltra; Hilarion; Joshua.

Ecos

For a relatively brief article on the benefits of greenhouse gas mitigation, see the latest edition of Ecos, in which Roger and I have an article summing up work from the Energy Futures Forum and other sordid tidbits.

Live Earth

Live Earth is now underway, having kicked off in Sydney. So over the course of 24 hours, musicians and their fans will rock while Rome burns, in the latest attempt to save the world through rock & roll. But hey, rock and roll changed the world once, maybe it can do it again. But I doubt it. Remember Live Eight? I didn't think so.

Science in the Public Interest

CSIRO's scientists have been busy doing what real science is all about - generating a competitive edge. CSIRO's own Jack Katzfey has been embedded with the Swiss yachting team Alinghi, which just recorded its second consecutive victory in the international race thanks to Jack's weather prediction skills.

Fore!

Uta took to the greens and fairways (which are now actually green thanks to a few weeks of rain) for the first time this past weekend, trying out her new found skills at golf. She triumphed through 9 holes of Ambrose play dropping her tee shots on the green (well, once at least) while the rest of us hacked away. She's pumped and ready for more!

Boom Town

Australia's population passes the 21 million mark.

A Tale of Two Climates

It was the worst of times, it was the worst of times. . .

While two months ago, Australia was struggling to come to terms with the scope of the drought that was taking its toll on farm and city, Australia is now struggling to come to terms with rainfall and flooding that is taking its toll on farm and city. Whereas previously the Bureau of Meteorology was saying things like "lowest rainfall every recorded" it's now switched to saying things like "highest rainfall ever recorded". It's a stark reminder that Australia has the highest rainfall variability in the world. Small comfort to those that have gone swimming in their living rooms over the past few weeks.

Meanwhile, the Pasha Bulker is still stuck on the beach outside Newcastle. Apparently it's not so easy to refloat a coal freighter after its run aground. In the meantime, Greenpeace has been cleverly using the ship's hull for its usual fun and games.

Mayday, Mayday. . .

After a bit of a pause, I can now report on a minor adventure, delivering climate change science to the people of the NSW south coast as part of the NSW Department of Primary Industry's Risk Management Regional Forums.

I caught a small commerical flight out of Melbourne and flew into the coastal hamlet of Merimbula where I hitched a ride over the Bega. Enjoyed a nice reception and dinner before getting down to business the following day in the unheated (and not entirely water tight) Bega Town Hall. This made the day a bit uncomfortable as the east coast low sitting off the NSW coast and sent temperatures way down. But hey, we're intrepid scientists right? It takes more that a bit of frostbite to keep us down. In any case, the workshop had a good turn out and the various farmers that showed up (largely dairy folks, given Bega is one of the nation's dairy hubs) were much appreciated. In addition to thanks, I got several comments along the following lines:

-"You don't look like a CSIRO scientist."

-"When I first walked in the room and saw you sitting there, I thought you were one of those rap guys. . ."

-"Man, I love your hair!"

Things got more exciting as we left the workshop and had to hop a small charter flight and shoot up the coast to Nowra racing the storm. Rob, the pilot, was cool calm and collected, although I raised an eyebrow (or two) when he proceeded to wipe off the condensation on the windscreen with his hand and don a headlamp to view the controls. From where I was sitting it was a long and bumpy 45 minutes. Rob rated the turbulence with a dispassionate ("moderate").

We calmed the nerves with another fine meal, liberally supported with wine and then got up the next day to do it all again with another set of equally enthusiastic farmers in Nowra. After which, Rob safely conducted us back to Sydney on much smoother and pleasant flight right over the city at night. Good fun.

Barnstorming

I'm off to regional NSW for a couple of days to deliver climate change science to the people. Best of all, due to limited commercial air traffic to the area, I get to do some sight-seeing from a seat on a very wee charter plane.

Just Like Home

Melbourne became even more like an American city this morning, as at least three people were gunned down at Flinders Street and Williams during the morning rush. Reports are all over the place at the moment - some saying a cafe, some saying the Rialto, some saying backpackers were the victims (tough break for tourism). At least one individual is confirmed dead. Uta is currently barricaded in a doctor's office, as the shootings took place around the corner from her office and the shooter is apparently still on the loose.

NSW Storm

A storm off the coast of New South Wales has turned the state's central coast into a bit of a mess - washing out roads, cutting power, flooding communities, and, strangely, dumping a coal freighter on the beach. Flood waters have begun to recede, but they're going to need some mops, cement, and superglue over there.

Runs Open

For the first time in seven years, Australians were able to go skiing on the first day of the ski seasons. Snowfall combined with larger snow-making capacity allowed the major ski resorts in the Alps to open up a few runs, causing operators to forget about that string of bad years, punctuated by last years disaster.

Gramps

OK. An American, a German, a Chilean, a Mexican, an Australian, and an Irish woman go camping. . .

I know what you're thinking: here comes the odd, long-winded joke making fun of ethnic stereotypes. Nope - just another holiday weekend spent with friends in the Grampians National Park of Victoria.

The six of us hit the road early Saturday morning in two of the more improbably recreational vehicles on the road: a Getz and a Lada - certainly not what any outback guide to Australia would recommend. However, we ended passing even more modest autos in transit. We stopped off at The Vines in Ararat for second breakfast and arrived in Halls Gap around mid-day.

We pitched camp at the Lakeside Caravan Park (or some of us did - Rodolfo appeared to erect something that looked more like a Hyatt than a tent), ominously set at the base of the dam, but since the reservoir doesn't have any water in it, I suppose the consequences of dam failure were minimal. We spent the afternoon around Brambuk cultural centre and took a quick stroll to see some of the roos, deer, and emus. By nightfall, temperatures were dropping rather quickly, so we bundled up, cooked up some Gluehwein, and enjoyed a barbie by the fire. Then we beat a hasty retreat to the sleeping bags to insulate ourselves against the cold, with temperatures overnight dropping to just above freezing.

We had a lazy breakfast Sunday morning before heading out to check out Zumstein (skip it), followed by Mackenzie Falls (where we ran into some folks that we knew - as one does in Australia) and the Balconies. We ended the hike over coffee in Halls Gap. We headed back to camp at dark, cooked up more Gluehwein, and commenced with a chili cook-off, accompanied by a raucous Aussie family reunion/birthday (we scored some cake!).

Monday morning, we broke camp and headed for the Pinnacle for a final trek over rocks and around the charred remains of trees (still standing after the 2006 bushfires that swept through much of the park and almost claimed the town).

Thanks to the Queen and the Commonwealth for giving us an opportunity for a day off.

Photos here.

Blues Win It

We took advantage of today's lovely winter weather to stroll over the MCG to catch a little footy action: Carlton vs. Western Bulldogs. As we strolled up to the arena, a kid selling raffle tickets opened his pitch with "is this your first footy game?" So apprently we still have some work to do on blending in. Perhaps it was our complete lack of team paraphenalia, or maybe we looked too sober. In any case, despite the two teams not exactly being in the top tier of the ladder at the moment, it proved to be a good game - a few changes of lead and a close contest down to the wire. This of course meant that we got to hear all manner of classic Aussie sledging and shouting of obscentities right down to the last buzzer. Nice!

No He Didn't!

Responding to the Task Force on Emissions Trading, John Howard has given the Australian government until 2012 to implement a national carbon cap-and-trade system. Has a new era begun in Australian (and international) climate policy? Perhaps, but he's also hinted that whatever cap is set on emissions, it isn't likely to be terribly stringent and lots of players are likely to receive a free pass.

Winter

Winter has arrived and brought all sorts of strange forms of water-based precipitation to southeast Australia. Stuff like rain. And snow. Things most people haven't see any of in a very long time. Farmers and ski operators are using words like "optimistic" and even smiling. It's madness, I say. Could this be a sign that things are returning to normal (and by normal I mean a normal chronic drought as opposed to a stupefying, acute drought)? On the other hand, the month of May was the warmest for Australia in, well, recorded history.

Drunks: Vulnerable to Climate Change

The climate community has invested decades in studying the potential adverse consequences of climate change, but as usual, it's the stuff we never saw coming that haunts us. Who ever gave consideration to the risk that heat waves would increase drowning fatalaties among drunks?

28 die in heatwave drunk-drownings
1145 GMT (1945 HKT), May 30, 2007
MOSCOW, Russia (Reuters) -- Twenty-eight people, many of them drunk, have drowned in the Russian capital this month as Muscovites cool off from a record heatwave in ponds, fountains and canals, rescue services said on Wednesday.

C John Trade

Well, well, well. John Howard appears to be getting all friendly with climate policy all of a sudden. His Task Group on Emissions Trading released it's assessment of potential carbon trading in Australia this morning, and it was chock full of stuff that Howard has for years been either ignoring or denying. Things like:

"Climate change is a global challenge that requires a long-term global solution in order to avoid environmental, social and economic dislocation."

or

"On balance, there would be benefits in the Australian Government now setting a post-2012 constraint on emissions."

or

"The overriding goal of Australia’s efforts should be to lower emissions at least cost."

or

"For Australia to commit to emissions trading now would place us in advance of most of the world community."

So almost overnight, it's as though a national cap-and-trade system is a feasible option. But then, it is an election year, Howard's getting killed in the polls, and the opposition are almost certain to advance the issue, so what choice does he have. If he can somehow rescue himself politically, he can always back out on any deal that's made. After all, that's what Bush did in 2000. But wait, strange things are also afoot in the White House. What the hell is going on?

Melbourne Social Hour

Well, Americans might be widely regarded as the friendliest people on the planet (present regional skirmishes, excepted), but Aussies are no slouches when it comes to striking up a casual conversation.

While waiting on the wife in the CBD last weekend, I sat myself down on a bench, basked in the sun, and sucked down a tasty Boost Juice (which I still enjoy, despite the recent unpleasantness).

A short time later, a middle aged man strolled over and started chatting me up. Had I been back home on America's fertile religious ground, I would have smelled what was up a mile away, but can't say I've been a party to much proselytizing in Australia. But hey, Australia continues to go the way of America, so I guess we just have to accept that and get used to bible thumpers rocking up to bring Jesus into an otherwise perfect Aussie day.

So anyway, the usual dance commenced as he set about trying to catalog my many and varied sins and offering to throw me a life line from the hell I've committed myself to. I countered with the secular humanism bit, but he wasn't buying. Apparently honouring my mother and father, my marriage vows, and my fellow man isn't enough - I'm still going to hell (why is God so freakin' selfish? It's always ME, ME, ME!). He told me to abandon my scientific beliefs, embrace faith, and beware of all the false prophets employed by Satan. I suggested for all I knew he was such a minion of Satan come to lead me astray. He countered with a clumsy attempt to take on science head-on, attempting to convince me that C-14 dating is proven rubbish and that scientists were wrong 500 years ago in thinking that the world was flat. Now as far as attempts to debunk science go, these are pretty lame, being the former goes against fundamental physics (presumably God created the physical universe so maybe one should have a little more respect for its structure and properties) and the latter recorded history. So I lit him up with these points, at which point he got a bit sad and opted to end the debate. He parted with "there is only truth and lies", to which I said "don't you mean truth and faith". Overall, I still haven't figured out why such folks continue to have such piss poor knowledge of fundamental science - this reminds of the time I got jumped on New Year's Eve by thumpers, one of whom (on the subject of evolution) stated, "what, do you think monkeys just fell out of trees and started walking around like men?" followed by "humans have 36 chromosomes, right . . . [I don't remember what he said after this because I got hung up on the 36 chromosomes bit]. I don't insult fundamentalists by butchering the bible, how come they can't show me the same courtesy? Maybe because fundamentalists only have 36 chromosomes?

That nonsense, aside, I was immediately joined by a far more pleasant elderly gentleman, who had stopped to see what the fuss was about. The 85 (soon to be 86) year old was an expat from Belgrade who'd migrated to Australia in 1949 and had been living in St. Kilda ever since. He asked where I was from, to which I replied "America". He said, "South America". "No," I said, "the US". "You don't look like an American," was the reply (go figure). We chatted for a bit, at which point work-mate Julian strolled by (see, what a social town) and so I broke off to catch up with him, before returning to Mr. Belgrade. At this point, Uta walked up which added another dimension to the conversation, which continued on in German (with the occasional lapse into French, Italian, or Spanish - this guy was talented). Anyway, we enjoyed getting the dirt on one of Melbourne's old guard, and he seemed to be highly amused to speak with us (particularly in German - I think it'd been a while since he had occasion to use it).

Scheiss Wissenschaft

Suchen Sie schlechte Informationen über Klimawandel? Lesen Sie, bitte:
Der CO2-Betrug, der groesste Skandal der Wissenschaftsgescichte der Neuzeit?

Escape from Gitmo

After more than five years in the tropical paradise known as Guantanamo Bay, David Hicks is back in Australia. He'll serve several more months at a prison in South Australia, before being released outright.

America Rules. . .Almost

The world's hotels love Americans. Maybe not as much as Japanese, but clearly quite a bit, as the Yanks pulled the #2 spot in a survey of the world's best tourists. Granted, Americans came in dead last in the "best dressed" poll, but who's surprised by that. The Australians came in seventh overall.

The trouble-makers appeared to hail from France, India,China and Russia. Oh, and the Germans took bottom marks in the generosity category. This is starting to make me think this was more a survey of international stereotypes. . .

Structural Argument

Victoria has released its climate change risk assessment of the state's infrastructure.

Part I
Part II

Liz Minchin covered the initial release (which of course has the word "shock" in the title - seems to be one of the most overused words in Australian journalism), and the follow-up story on what the gov plans to do about it.

Hallelujah

The federal government's faith-based drought management strategy, known affectionately as "Pray for Rain," appeared to be achieving some success this week as significant rain fell throughout much of southeast Australia. In response, John Howard reiterated the importance of national support for his policy by requesting Australians to "keep praying." Not sure how robust of a risk managment strategy prayer really is, but at least it certainly has a long history of implementation.

A Three Hour Tour

Strange things are always afoot on the Frankston Line. I'm used to the break downs, cars stalled on the tracks, the "signal failures," as well as the colourful passengers who keep me company on my rides to and from work (today it was a pleasant chap drinking a VB - at 8:30 in the morning). But this evening, mental illness and train malfunctions joined forces to create a perfect commuter storm. Some poor duffer opted to climb a signal tower at Glenhuntly Station and treatened to off himself. As a result, Connex shut down the trains, just in time for peak hour traffic. Chaos ensued as masses of people scrambled to get on board the occassional bus chartered to rescue stranded commuters. Now I know what it was like when Saigon fell. I left work at 4:15 to head for karate training. Three hours later, I arrived home, having already missed training and wondering why I bother with public transport (incidentally, this is about the sixth transit mishap I've experienced in the past month - it's getting a bit absurd). Melbourne's starting to make the rail services in America look down right efficient.

By the way, Youth Group have a song entitled The Frankston Line. . ."

"The Frankston Line's full of teenage crime
and the cops can't do no more
Hooded tops, cigarettes at stops,
I don't love you anymore"

Achtung!

Travel warning for Germany
May 9, 2007 - 1:43PM

"The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade tonight reviewed its travel advice for Germany, alerting travellers that the German government had warned terrorist attacks might be possible."

You Can Take an Asshole Out of America. . .

. . .but you can't take the asshole out of an American.

Outrage over Virginia Tech game
Stephen Hutcheon
May 16, 2007 - 1:33PM

"A Sydney youth who created an uproar with an online game based on the Virginia Tech massacre, says he will remove the game if he receives $US2000 in 'donations'."

Hardball

In a respectable demonstration of principle, the Howard government has banned the Australian cricket team from a scheduled tour of Zimbabwe. Given Australia's love of sport, it's a painful decision, and one not without critics. But for fair play and sportsmanship to mean something on the playing field, it has to present off the field as well. Clearly, that's not the case under the current regime.

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner

Another year, another Eurovision song contest. The damn thing gets stranger and stranger every year, as it struggles with itself in attempting to decide whether it should be taken serious. Anyway, Serbia won. Go Serbia! But does this mean that the Balkans are the last bastion for truly cheesy pop music (with former Soviet republics running a close second)?

Youth Group

We wrapped up the working week last night by catching Youth Group (see also here) at Richmond's own Corner Hotel. The Corner is Melbourne's premier small venue for music, and despite having lived in the neighbourhood for over two years, we only now found a reason to drop in. The venue reminded me quite a bit of the old 9:30 Club in DC, but a little bit cleaner and with a huge rooftop beer garden. The show was short and sweet - YG's set was only an hour, preceeded by 45 minutes from Gersey (which seems like an unnecessarily avante garde spelling of Jersey, but I'm sure there's another connection I'm missing). For $20, we couldn't go wrong, and the music didn't fail to please. But, I have to admit, when I walked in the door and saw the schedule for the evening "Youth Group - 11:15 to 12:15", I thought to myself, "man, I'm too old for this shit. . ."

Aussie Hotel Foxtrot

WilcoWorld is currently streaming the band's 21 April show in Sydney on their website. I caught their earlier show on the 18th in Melbourne, and what a treat it was. The grizzled guys keep getting better with age (at least their live shows). And a rather amusing audience as well - 7,500 Jeff Tweedy look-alikes (except for me of course). The new album is also available for a listen.

New Climate Blog

There's many on the market, but Nature (through Nature Reports)has launched a new climate change blog designated Climate Feedback.

Hidden Costs of Addressing Climate Change

In Mexico, it was tortillas, but in Germany the rapid rise of biofuels is affecting the price of a more precious commodity: beer.

A Campus Fit for a Queen

It's not everyone that can claim a 314 year old academic institution as his alma mater, much less visits to his alma mater by, say, a Queen or something. But good old William and Mary has always had a close connection with England (it was the throne of England that started the humble institution, after all). As a student, I remember standing in a parking lot one afternoon when Margaret Thatcher (the Uni's chancellor at the time) walked by. However, I took a pass on the visit from Prince Charles, when he rocked up for the institution's 300th birthday. But all of that pales in comparison to Friday's visit by Queen Elizabeth, who returned to the campus after a 50 year abscence as she celebrated the 400 year anniversary of the colony of Jamestown. Some things never change. Some things change a lot.

Brisbane

While most folks spent last Wednesday doing the ANZAC Day/Gallipoli rembrance thing, I jetted off to sunny Brisbane to get a bit of rest and rendezvous with Die Frau, who's been sequestered up there for a few weeks for work. We used the ANZAC holiday to check out the up-and-coming James Street in Fortitude Valley (not the most promising name I've heard for a neighborhood), cruise down the river on the Citycat, grab a refreshing beverage in the Botanic Gardens, and stroll through Southbank which was packed with Queenslanders enjoying the holiday.

Thursday and Friday I was left to entertain myself - most of that time was spent in coffee shops doing work, but certianly strolled around the city a fair amount. I checked out the impressive Roma Street Parklands and its collection of subtropical vegetation (as well as its collection of vagrants who were being sent packing by surly gardeners as I arrived), picked up a new digital camera to replace the bit of rubbish Kodak doomed us to suffer through for the past two years, and glanced briefly at St. John's Cathedral which is still under construction (allegedly the last gothic cathedral to be built in the world. It's pretty young to be comparable to the great gothic cathedrals of Europe, but they've been building it for over a century, so it has some history. In the evenings, we had our choice of emerging hip eateries, and took in a showing of Das Leben der Anderen (which was awesome) at the James Street cinema.

Saturday, we broke out of Brisbane and headed to the ever beautiful Gold Coast - Australia's greatest example of untouched wilderness. Oh, wait. I've got that wrong. How about Australia's greatest imitation of Orlando, Las Vegas, and Atlantic City all rolled into one (which I previously visited back in June of 2005). No shortage of people, high rises, and it's one of the few places we've found in Australia where one can go shopping at night, because the Gold Coast is the city (or rather, sprawling metroplex) that never sleeps. Well, OK, it sleeps, but not until about 10 pm. We booked a hotel with the friendly tourist information office, ending up with a cozy room on the 17th flood of one of the many towers in Surfer's Paradise. We cruised around the strip in the afternoon, walked on the beach (which really is impressive, despite the buffoonery of the neighboring community), and dined at a little cafe called Marmalade. Sunday brought beautiful Gold Coast weather so we ate breakfast at the Northcliffe Surf Life Saving Club and then joined all the European backpackers on the beach before cutting out early to return to Brisbane via the Harbour Point outlet mall.

Shizzle

Snoop barred from Australia? How can you bar a pimp from a country where prostitution is legal? First Rocky was run out of town on a rail and now this.

OK all you American celebrities out there. If you want a tip on how to be welcomed in OZ, try rocking up with wads of cash. Case-in-point, Spielberg and Hanks are set to shoot a Pacific follow-up to Band of Brothers, which will undoubtedly mean heaps of additional sales of coffee and donuts to the city of Melbourne.

Group Think

The Age recently ran an interesting article on the growing phenomenon of "crowdsourcing", whereby companies and organisations draw on the collective wisdom of the massed public to generate ideas and solve problems.

Carbon Credability

John Howard has once again overlooked some fundamentals about climate change and climate policy in a recent speech. As usual, he warned his audience of the potential risks of greenhouse gas emissions reductions, and reminded them of his determination to avoid lasting economic damage that such policies might create. On the other hand, he apparently didn't make any mention of the lasting economic damages associated with the persistent drought that has settled over the nation, or the findings of any number of assessments that the costs of climate damages will be equal to or greater than the costs of reducing emissions. As the public increasingly perceive that they are paying the costs of climate change right now, the spectre of potential economic damages from emissions reductions is going to appear more and more transparent.

Pirates of the Coral Sea

Ships off the Queensland coast have lately had a habit of turning up without their crews. . .

Granny Got a Gun

With the shootings on the VA Tech campus now a week behind us, America's fair and balanced media outlets have apparently been in search of a "positive" gun story. What'd they find? A comical yarn about a little old lady (and former Miss America to boot) who put two caps in the wheel of an escape car, allowing police to capture would-be thieves. Yes, yes, another demonstration of how guns in the hands of law-abiding citizens is a strong deterrent of crime. We should give guns to all of America's elderly to ensure they never become defenseless victims. Yet it's a bit comical that the Constitution doesn't guarantee an old duffer the right to continue driving his car after frailty and dementia set-in, but it does guarantee that same old duffer the right to blaze away with a handgun. And they call that security?

Article can be found here, and a light-hearted video here.

Halt Climate Change

Brought to you by Climate Movement.Org

Guns

In the wake of last week's shootings on the campus of VA Tech, Newley has assembled a collection of insights on the incident and America's gun culture in general. I was flattered he asked for my input, which you can find at Newley.com. In addition to simply ranting away, I provide a quick summary of Australia's experiences in this arena and its policies on gun control.

Also, here's an opinion piece from The Age, which offers a wholly Aussie look at the issue.

Water, Water. . .Nowhere

We're approaching crunch time for water availability in southeast Australia. John Howard indicated last week that unless the nation gets rain in biblical proportions in the next 6 to 8 weeks, the irrigators in the Murray Darling Basin would have to go without water next season (to which the irrigators responded - "duh, John"). In addition, John's gone as far as to suggest the Murray River may be effectively turned off, as environmental flows are cut-off to maintain water in the dams and weirs along the waterway.

Melbourne got a good soaking yesterday, last night, and this morning. Just 39 more days and nights to go. . .

Ode to a Q-Club

OK, I've been a member of Qantas Club for all of two weeks, and given the numerous trips I've made over the past ten days, I've had ample opportunity to take it for a spin.

First, I must acknowledge that my membership is provided for by the fine folks at CSIRO out of respect for those of us burdened to jet around the country (or world) for the sake of science in the public interest. After listing the 14 trips I made in the last 12 months and the 12 already scheduled over the next 9, I was deemed worthy.

Now you're all familiar with airline clubs - special back rooms located in airport terminals where frequent travelers and VIPs can hide out and soak up some perks while they await their flights. The Qantas Club is Australia's most ubiquitous and upmarket of these - you walk through the doors and there's lots of genuine wood, comfy chairs, brie, espresso machines, and wine. Very nice. Every elite. Very exclusive.

Well, nice, yes. But exclusive? No way. From what I gather, Australian's are granted a membership at birth, because it appears more people are members than aren't. For example, while waiting in Melbourne for a flight to Canberra a few weeks ago in my pre-Q-Club days, I was quite shocked to find that I was one of about 5 people at the gate. But once the flight started boarding, the Q-Club masses came a running, and thus something like 95% of the flight's passengers had been hanging out together in 'Da Club. Last Tuesday, I was in the Q-Club in Townsville and I couldn't find a seat. The place was packed (granted, there was only seating for about 30 people, it is Townsville after all). So except for the free beer, brie and reading material, I would have been better off out with the small number of proletariat travelers soaking up the space in the main terminal.

Don't get me wrong. I love the Club. It does make frequent flying a bit easier. But the bottom line is Australians act like the Q-Club is hot shit and if you're inside, you're a far sight more elite than everybody on the other side of the door. The only problem is this - there's no one out there. The reason why people join the Q-Club is so they won't be lonely. So enjoy the beer, but drop the attitude. Any place that lets my chronically under-dressed ass in can't be that highbrow.

Back to the Beach

Sometime in 2005, I ventured off to the great state of South Australia to join the Adelaide crew for Easter buffoonery on the beach. I played Trivial Pursuit (South Australia edition - a game at which I truly excelled), watched a bizarre U.S. film called "The Wanderers", and came within inches of spewing all over the SS Minnow on a fishing expedition at a quiet coastal spot called Death from Below Bay (or something like that).

Easter 2006, we, uh, hell I don't know. My blog is barren as is my Outlook calendar. Oh well, obviously we didn't do much. . .

But Easter '07, it was back to SA, different beach (Aldinga), same crew (well, not really, Uta was there this time along with our kid, and various other folks came and went, but I was there and that's all that matters, right).

All manner of beach-side buffoonery was pursued - beach cricket, walks on the beach, fishing from the beach, running on the beach, lying on the beach, and so on. Trivial Pursuit was replaced by Jenga, and although much was made of my allegedly shaky hands, I opened up the schoolhouse to allow my competitors to learn a thing or two. Just like the good old days of our youth, we busted the place up a bit. A bottle was broken within minutes of our arrival, and a number of other glasses met their maker on the hardwood floors. But with the ladies vacuuming the floor 8 to 10 times per day, the place remained immaculate.

And of course, we found time for cultural pursuits. The ladies took-up a short study of language, whereupon we discovered that Uta's name, when translated into English, means "Cindy". I suppose that explains some things. They also got their intellect on by attempting to power their way through a pirated copy of Babel - one which lacked sub-titles. They got about half-way through before they gave up. And apparently without translation, the movie can be completely misinterpreted, as they walked away convinced it was a documentary about the international child sex trade.

Ryan took the award for most productive house member, slaving through the weekend to write an essay on post-war urban planning in Australia. He also took the award for the greatest contribution to the region's biodiversity as he diligently fed the fish off Cape Jervis during Sunday's fishing outing. But this award was promptly revoked once his heaving off the starboard side was determined to be a clever ruse to attract more fish, ultimately contributing to our efforts to deplete the region's snapper stocks. Herbie walked away with the prize catch. Despite hooking my fair share, I couldn't land anything of legal size (so I had to remain satisfied with clubbing the odd baby seal). During our expedition, we also had a crash course on what to do when you're in an overloaded fishing boat in open water, the bilge pump doesn't work and you can't get the engine started. Answer: keep trying until the bloody thing starts.

All in all, another successful escapade. Granted, these days every one's going to sleep and rising earlier and the alcohol consumption is falling off. But on the other hand, the quality of cooking is rising, and what could be more important than that?

My only concern is about the quality of care our kid's receiving. Kerry and Mike tried to convince us that Ava's wounds were the result of mosquito bites, but I'll let you draw your own conclusions from the evidence. Any more of this nonsense, and we'll have to bring her back to Melbourne.

Security Alert!!!

The UN Security Council took time off from its usual agenda of doing nothing to debate the issue of climate change in a security context. Some apparently consider this to be an inappropriate encroachment on the council on other UN bodies, but hey, let's face it, the Security Council needs something to do other than sitting around talking about what they're not going to do in the various insecure parts of the world, so I say give them a break.

Around Australia in 8 Days

This time last week, we were flying back from sunny Adelaide after an Easter retreat on the SA coast. 12 hours after landing, Uta was off to Brisbane, while I flew off to Sydney, followed later in the week by Canberra. We regrouped back in Melbourne Friday night, but were off again on Sunday - Uta back to Brisbane, while I headed out to the novel destination of Townsville.

Townsville. What to say? Nestled on the coast of northern Queensland, it's a small tropical paradise (of sorts). It's an important military town, used by both the navy and the army. With under 200,000 residents, there's not much going on, just sunshine, beach, and water. Arriving yesterday on a Sunday night, I was a bit taken aback by how quiet the town was - I mean, I'm accumstomed to sleepy Aussie towns on Sunday evenings, but this was absurd. It's the kind of place where the local news reports on scandals at the local primary school or thefts of street signs. Two of the commericals I saw on TV this evening featured a medication to rid cattle of parasites and a public service announcement asking people to be vigilant against pools of standing water on their property to aid in the prevention of dengue fever. The pedestrian mall next to the Holiday Inn (the tallest building in town) features as many vacant store fronts as occupied ones, so it appears that the rapid economic boom that's plauging southeast Queensland has yet to make it this far north.

That said, it's actually somewhat of a picturesque little community. The cliffs backing the beachfront have a diverse array of quaint houses perched on their sides, commanding what I'm sure are wonderful views. Meanwhile, the town is an excellent jumping off point for other spots such as the wet tropics, Magnetic Island, or the Great Barrier Reef. And I'm guessing the cost of living here isn't nearly as high as Australia's more famous and populous seaside communities, yet there's no shortage of late 19th century tropical architecture (some of it reminiscent of New Orleans, only here they've got enough sense to put things on stilts). I'd be interested in coming back at some point in the future and exploring a bit more of the city and the surrounding region.

Another Deadly Creature

As if there weren't enough things in Australia that can kill you, now it turns out that even the stuff that can't kill you can, apparently, kill you. How nice.

'Harmless' snake proves deadly
Dan Harrison
April 16, 2007 - 4:34PM

"Friends of a reptile enthusiast who died after being bitten by a snake have expressed their shock that a man who knew snakes so well had been killed by a species generally regarded as harmless."

Climate $$$

At today's meeting of the Council of Austrlian Governments, the PM announced a new climate change adaptation centre to the tune of $126 million as well as an additional $44 million to CSIRO to support a ramping up of research efforts on climate change and its consequences. This represents a significant boost to the nations' efforts to understand climate change consequences. However, the PM balked at committing the nation to greenhouse emissions reduction targets. So the States are left again to go it alone.

Blue Skies

The Age's expose today on Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy (currently touring Australia).

House Party

In the universe of profoundly stupid acts, this must rank fairly high:

MySpace invite sees party home trashed
April 13, 2007 - 10:15AM

"Two British parents were left with a $48,000 bill after a party advertised by their teenage daughter on MySpace attracted hundreds of revellers who trashed their home."

The Grates

Recently watched a live concert by Australia's "the Grates". Loved it. Here they are via YouTube with "Rock Boys."

Live Earth a Go!

The Live Earth global concert to raise awarneness about climate change is set to do it's rock & roll thing on July 7th. The-line up for the U.S. show is as follows:

AFI
AKON
ALICIA KEYS
BON JOVI
DAVE MATTHEWS BAND
FALL OUT BOY
JOHN MAYER
KANYE WEST
KELLY CLARKSON
KT TUNSTALL
LUDACRIS
MELISSA ETHERIDGE
RIHANNA
ROGER WATERS
SHERYL CROW
SMASHING PUMPKINS
THE POLICE

Can't say that's inspiring me to fight climate change, but the line-up for the UK is a bit more promising:

BEASTIE BOYS
BLACK EYED PEAS
BLOC PARTY
CORINNE BAILEY RAE
DAMIEN RICE
DAVID GRAY
DURAN DURAN
FOO FIGHTERS
GENESIS
JAMES BLUNT
JOHN LEGEND
KEANE
MADONNA
PAOLO NUTINI
RAZORLIGHT
RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS
SNOW PATROL

Still waiting to hear who'll rock up for the Sydney show. . .

Go Dollar Go

The Aussie dollar (not what one would normally consider a titan among developed world currencies) has surged in recent months, gaining almost ten cents on the U.S. greenback.

Boom Town!

The Age ran an interesting article over the weekend describing how the resources boom is transforming regional communities in WA.

"Many workers earn more than $100,000 a year, have pay TV and get six days straight off work. So what is it really like in a remote Western Australian mining boom town? David Cohen reports on life in Tom Price."

Kill the Rabbit

"WELLINGTON, New Zealand (Reuters) -- A New Zealand environmental body is targeting the Easter bunny in a renewed war against one of the country's worst natural pests. Environment Canterbury on the country's South Island wants people to come up with an alternative Easter symbol as part of a campaign to highlight the damage caused by the non-native pest.

"They're like an environmental curse," Mark Oldfield of Environment Canterbury said.

"We did have a similar competition a number of years ago and we came up with the Easter Kiwi," Oldfield said, referring to the flightless bird that is the country's national bird."

Cities on Top

The the long-fought battle for urban supremecy, yet another annual quality of life/living survey has been released, this one from Mercer. Once again, if you live in a highly taxed city in Europe, your livestyle is apparently fabulous (despite the cold), and if you're in New Zealand or Australia, you're not doing to badly either. A list of the top 50 for 2007 can be found here.

CO2=Pollution

It's official. That bastion of liberal ideology, the U.S. Supreme Court, has ruled that carbon dioxide can be regulated as an air pollutant, clearing the way for the U.S. EPA to take up the regulatory cause. In fact, the old agency even received a bit of a rebuke:

""EPA has offered no reasoned explanation for its refusal to decide whether greenhouse gases cause or contribute to climate change," Justice John Paul Stevens wrote for the majority. The agency "identifies nothing suggesting that Congress meant to curtail EPA's power to treat greenhouse gases as air pollutants," the opinion continued.""

I guess it's back to the drawing board for the climate policy obstructionists in the U.S. Wonder what gem of policy logic they'll come up with next.

Kids

What better way to spend a Sunday morning than running one's ass around the city of Melbourne. I joined 25,000 or so of my close personal friends on the annual Run for the Kids benefit tour-by-foot of the city. Having not run in oh, I don't know, let's say many moons, I was a bit intimidated by the 15.2km distance (especially since I usually ahve enough sense not to sign up for anything over 10 km), but managed to plod my way through with little or no hardship (thanks in part to a kind granny who paced me around the course). Final damage - a time of 1:27:45, almost ten solid minutes behind Uta's time from last year (but then she only had to run 14.7 km. . .).

Earth Hour

Enlightened City Knocks the World's Lights Out
Sunanda Creagh, Urban Affairs Reporter
April 2, 2007

"MORE than half of Sydneysiders - as many as 2.2 million - switched off their lights to celebrate Earth Hour on Saturday night, a poll has found."

The Real Cause of Global Warming

Courtesy of Kevin

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