The Perfect Storm: Who Wins When Big Business, Greenies And The Voice Face Off?

A relatively small simmering dispute may suddenly be thrust into the national spotlight and will see at least one of the three protagonists lose out. And it is no accident that the ante has been upped  when the ALP National Blabfest was on in Brisbane.  But it’s possible two of the biggest losers will be Saint Albo and Mother Plibersek.  not to mention the inner urban indigenous elite.

The Bulletin snoozes, the mayor council dodges and weaves, and the ratepayers cop another pineapple.  Big announcement about the North Rail Yards takes us nowhere, and no questions asked, nothing new revealed. But The Magpie sure has a few queries.

Clarity in communication: Townsville again gets an object lesson from Cairns about community information , and The ‘Pie renews his call for the same method be used here. The Bulletin and the council are too compromised to do it, but someone should … and it would cost bugger all

From the Nothing New Here File: English as she is writ cops another hammering from News Corpse.

And this week’s American gallery shows that if you thought life in the US of A couldn’t get more interesting,  ummm … think again.

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Matilda Mania Is Over, But The Gals Have Done The Job For Australian Sport

Despite going down to Sweden in the bronze medal playoff  – no disgrace there, Sweden way higher in the ratings than Australia –  the Tilley’s have done the job for womens sport. Albo has announced $200m in available grants to build the gals some shelter sheds and the like to change into their elasto=sporting  undies in privacy.  Wasn’t aware that that issue was holding back womens sport, but a worthwhile move, one supposes.

Maybe some of those people made homeless by the policies of successive governments could become soccer players. Be somewhere to go out of the rain. But if you think The ‘Pie is being cynical, then he’s not alone, Bentley has a problem with political sincerity.

But that’s not the big story for Albo and Labor. Something else has snuck up on them.

Oh, Plibbers, What’s A Gal To Do?

Well, has our federal minister for Environment and Water got her Victoria’s Secret dainties in a twist, with a veeerrry tricky decision landing in her lap. Tanya is probably seeking and getting shed loads of back room advice at the national ALP conference in Brisbane over this matter, and ads that appeared in papers today – with exquisite timing that Kid Crisafulli must have loved.

The long and short of this is that Ark Energy (pommy company owned by Korea Zinc with HQ in England) wants to build a wind farm up on the Atherton Tablelands, and quite rightly, they went through all the hoops with the local tribe claiming the area as their ancestral country.  The indigenous folk went through all their own arcane process and eventually narrowly voted to back the wind farm.  Many welcomed the jobs and income that would flow from the renewable energy coffers. So why the expensive ads in the papers (paid for no doubt by Ark Energy)?

Because the vote was a close run thing, and now the losers in the tribe are noisily and publicly not accepting the outcome aren’t happy campers, and are still stridently opposing the project, pulling out every card in the pack of tricks that successive governments have given them.  And no one’s being nice and polite in this stoush, harsh and explicit)words have been exchanged.The upshot is that the whole thing has been plonked down on the desk of the Minister for Environment and Water for a decision.

And Albo will have his Men’s Tradies undies in a bunch, too.  Because while blundering about on the disastrous Voice campaign shoring up his entry (he thinks) in virtuous voter heaven, he is also trying to claim Labor’s sincerity in economic AND climate matters. And all three matters make the perfect storm for this wind farm project, because it cuts across all the lines, economic,  climate change with renewables like wind power a central theme … and indigenous people’s right to be heard on matters that affect them (called The Voice, remember?)

This one issue has all the hallmarks of loser, loser, loser about it, and could unravel integrity claims across all three areas.  The main one of these is a blow to the Yes campaign, highlighting how a constitutionally-approved Indigenous Voice might face similar problems. guesses that both ALBO and Plibbers have decided their initial reaction of WTFH isn’t the required answer.

We now all await, some with glee, others with foreboding, at just what answer is forthcoming.

Plibbers And Palaszczuk Have The Same Conundrum.

Was a bad week for this load of divisive nonsense to land for Anna seeking love and absolution from citizens already suffering from her neglect in nother core areas, like health and crime.

More dough chasing after the literal billions that the indigenous industry has sucked out of the public ncoffers, while putting exactly nothing back in … except of course allowing us to live in ‘their country’.

For fuck sake, grow up everybody.

The Labor Party are having two bob each way with this sort of twaddle. We are told the Voice and other indigenous programs and exclusive benefits are NOT divisive, but condescending programs like this in the business arena are exactly that. And what exactly is an indigenous business, who does it sell to, only indigenous people?  Of course not, it will seek the wider Australian public’s support to buy goods and services that the same public is apparently subsidising.  And presumably be competing against non-indigenous businesses who don’t enjoy the same benefits.  Yet the same public are being told they will face restrictions from a treaty on their movements and freedoms in the land of their birth.

This racial grifting has to stop … like the Voice nonsense, …  it is racist in the extreme, and in the long run will only give rise to more virulent racism, and violence. Although anyone who suggests this is automatically … a racist.

A Nothing Burger Of A Story Gets The Caviar Treatment From The Bulletin

Has The Magpie ever mentioned that the Townsville Bulletin is an absolute disgrace of a newspaper?  Just in case you missed the odd occasion (usually daily) when the old bird points out this fact, there was further proof of just how gormless this rag is, a story about nothing which nevertheless posed multiple question. Which, as usual, went unasked.

Local property  … ummm … operator John Rosel,  who as far as The ‘Pie can discover, has had a wholly undistinguished and unremarkable career getting people to invest in property, has suddenly bobbed up as the first board member and chairman of a new TCC company which will take the blame when yet again, nothing happens with this benighted site near the railway station. But anyone taking the mickey out of Mr Rosel when yet again, nothing is achieved with this benighted site, had better hope he doesn’t relapse into his old ways – as reported in the bulletin six years ago.

 

Mr Rosel may be remembered as a self-professed angry ant, who turned to martial arts to control his anger management problems (but of course … nothing like punching wood to calm one down, what else would one do?),  but his new gig with the council (but presumably not on staff) will no doubt call for a lot of patience.. Because for all his high flown title, it appears that Mr Rosel is simply a real estate agent flogging a particularly difficult piece of land. He knows it’s not going to be a walk in the park, more over hot coals … but we’ve all known that for years, ever since Mayor Mullet’s financial genius picked up this white elephant for $20,000 from a state government laughing up its sleeve at the sale to a rube.

This week’s story tells us:

The 4.5ha site has laid dormant since its closure in 1990 and after navigating issues surrounding a site contamination and how to repurpose the rail yards heritage sheds, the property is ready for redevelopment.

Mr Rosel, who has extensive experience in property development, says he knows it’s “not an easy site” and that council has been working hard behind the scenes to come up with solutions to some of the site’s issues.

With plans to make the North Rail Yards an inviting precinct, Mr Rosel says the “activation” of the heritage sheds will be the “key to the development of the residential component.”

Mr Rosel can see plenty of potential for the heritage sheds to be turned into bars, restaurants, and childcare facilities and allow room for parklands to attract people to the site.

We’ve heard that fairy floss before ad infinitum, but somehow it didn’t occur to the reporter to ask Mr Rosel about a statement he made in an earlier version of the story that the council had been working through many of the difficulties with the site, ‘so now we are here’. Whatever that means, but no one asked him what the hell he was talking about. So just for starters, what has been done about the expensive decontamination of the site which has been a major stumbling block to its development from the outset? This is a situation that ensures Peter Honeycombe said no thanks to the land way back when, at time when one of his employees was one John Rosel.

And the laughable heritage value of the tumble down buildings has also been another millstone … one wonders why someone was given a box of Redheads to put a jewish stocktake through the place. Would’ve been developed years ago if someone had.

Anyway, seems Mr Rosel is on a nice little earner, no matter what the outcome and is all gung ho, telling the paper that with expressions of interest for the development of the site being released tomorrow (Monday, August 21), ‘ I am  hopeful we will see construction start on the site in 2024′. . Hope away, Johnno, hope away.

The Magpie is now wondering if he should start book on which will be started first, Mr Rosel’s North Rail Yards wonderland or the Double Cross Hotel across the creek from it.

Weirdest Quote Of The Week …

… proving The ‘Pie’s long held belief that psychologists and psychiatrists are themselves completely cracked … never met one with any sort of grip on reality … or English. This from the week’s Bulletin discussing the honour for former coach Paul Green at this week’s Cowboy’s match. The last line seems to reflect the good professor’s own problem in the noodle department.

But Then, We Know That News Ltd Headline Writers Have The Same Problem

But the kiddies who write the click bait puffs for Murdochistan think ‘syntax’ is a brothel surcharge. Certainly nothing to do with writing coherently.

Bit of a harsh judgement on a whole team.

Keeping A Disorderly House.

A respected Townsville businessman who has the good sense to read the Nest is a tad upset with the selective porkies from Walker Street about all things being rosy with our new housing progress under this council. He writes: ‘Claims by the Mayor and Deputy Mayor is just ill-informed posturing . Townsville house sales last year Core Logic down 11.3 % , average house value down 1.2 % . Unit sales down 8.6 %.’ 

That prompted The Magpie to hunt for some TCC building approval info for Townsville After beaking a round briefly, found this at Townsville City Council dashboard.

…. and then nosing around further, this …

Now The ‘Pie knows he has made this plea before,  but while all the information is there on this and other related council matters,  there is absolutely no effort to engage the community to keep them accurately informed about both the council and the city’s performance.  If it doesn’t have squealing tyres,  pass a footy or sing songs in spangled costumes, the mayor has no interest in making information easily available to we the great unwashed. There are just cold, hard statistics offered without context, background nor trend explanations, and often aren’t easy to find.

And what about up-to-date employment data, property prices, rental situation, airport performance, even water levels in RRD, where is a coherent and consistent commentary on these matters so crucial to the community? Not all these things are the purview of the council, so how can we be informed on a regular and comparative basis for full awareness of our city’s performance, standing and prospects?  (Anyone who says read the Bulletin obviously hasn’t been reading the paper or its website for some years … it’s a disjointed dog’s dinner in this area. And highly compromised with big questions about credibility.)

But look northward, the answer is staring us in the face.

Cairns has had the answer for some time, and yes, The Magpie has previously pointed this out, but their take on keeping a running contemporaneous  economic record is light years ahead of Townsville, or probably any other regional city.  And it is becoming a matter of record, something even the Cairns paper gave up on long ago. Sample this opening snapshot from the August edition of the monthly Cairns Report.

The report, as you see in the link, goes on to provide greater details in graphs and charts,  and these are accompanied by sensible, unhysterical or sensationalised commentary on the various sectors.

A Townsville version could not be published by the Bulletin, a paper too highly compromised, subject to outside influences and now Tony Raggatt has retired, very little if any analytical business acumen, being completely driven in this area – and others – by revenue considerations. And of course, the council itself, or even (laughably, TEL) could be trusted at present with the required probity.

But think how well received an honest and compact  appraisal of our city would be to those down south looking north. And if the Chamber of Commerce isn’t interested (it wasn’t at the suggestion previously) a small consortium of reputable businesses could pull together this monthly information for a similar website.

And it could all be cost neutral with a modest amount of advertising, or even government support – God knows, they support every other thing. Maybe that will be covered if a couple of indigenous folk are hired to put it together (not joking, why not?)

The Blowtorch Is Just Heating Up

There’s a new heroine in America now, who takes no shit from no one … no matter who they are. And Donald Trump is shitting himself. Hail Judge Chutkan, who cuts right through the man-baby’s drivel and may just well jail him sometime in the next 48 hours – unlike Trump, she takes the law … and treason …  kinda seriously. This week’s US gallery.

Republicans’ knee jerk response to the mildest labor and class reform is  anguished cries of ‘Socialism running rampant’. ‘

The fact that they have no idea what socialism is, they equate it with communism, which turned out to be more like fascism in practice  …  so among the many ills America endures areone of the most callous health care system in the world, and the deliberate creation of a class of the ‘working poor’.  This is just a small sample of the latter.

……….

Another week gone. But you can bet there’s more where that came from. Until then, happy daze.