More from Google news on bird flu (H5N1) spreading to Germany here and Austria here.
Category Archives: Writing
Bird Flu Reaches Italy
The BBC has a breaking news story that H5N1 has reached Italy in Sicily and other cases are suspected elsewhere.
Tasmania 2005 Photos in Gallery
Well finally gotten around to uploading some photos from our 2005 trip to Tasmania where we stayed near the town of Penguin on the north coast, which as it was coming up to Christmas had dressed the large penguin on the seafront in a seasonal costume! 🙂
We also took a trip across the island down to the south west coast and dropped in at Zeehan where we had a look around the Pioneer cemetery from this once prosperous town. It was quite odd wandering around, especially seeing some of the wooden graves that were there – no longer legible leaving you to wonder about who was buried there. Some of the graves had been destroyed by trees that had grown up in the hundred years or so since the people were buried there, shattering the tombstones and buckling the ground.
We also took a trip over to Queenstown and found that some wit had altered a roadsign on the descent into the famously desolate area to give it a bit of a Tolkien twist..
We also trundled around the north coast area a bit too, visitin the Leven Canyon (where we found a tiger snake sleeping under the steel walkway), Preston Falls and generally had a good time!
Australian Flying Car
Damn, they’ve spotted us!
Did US Vice-President Authorise Leak of CIA Agent ?
The plot thickens in the US.
According to this Australian ABC News report Dick Cheney authorised his aide to leak the identify of a CIA agent, Valerie Plame, which is a crime under the US’s Intelligence Identities and Protection Act stating:
Whoever, having or having had authorized access to classified information that identifies a covert agent, intentionally discloses any information identifying such covert agent to any individual not authorized to receive classified information, knowing that the information disclosed so identifies such covert agent and that the United States is taking affirmative measures to conceal such covert agent’s intelligence relationship to the United States, shall be fined not more than $50,000 or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both.
Yet Another Mistaken Detention of an Australian as an “Illegal Immigrant”
So, about a year after Cornelia Rau was found locked up, the subsequent ongoing enquiry, then the disclosure of the wrongful deportation of Vivian Alvarez Solon (another Australian who was reported as a missing person when DIMIA spirited them away) the Federal Minister for Immigration announces another mistaken detention of an Australian with mental health problems.
Once is a mistake (a severe & tragic one at that), twice is carelessness, but three?
How many more cases like this are there ?
Bird Flu Found in Africa for First Time
According to the BBC H5N1 has arrived in Nigeria, the first time bird flu has been identified in Africa.
This has been seen as something of a worry by scientists due to the size of the continent and the prevalence of AIDS which means many people with weakened immune systems who could both succumb and provide carriers for future mutation of the virus. As this New Scientist editorial said:
It is pretty clear now that wild water birds are carrying the virus. We do not know how many are infected, but they could spread the infection to the rest of Asia next and to Africa, where the prevalence of backyard chickens, poverty and HIV will be an explosive mix. The more humans are infected, the more likely it is that H5N1 will learn to spread between us.
On a complete tangent, Rich Boakes “autometa” tag generator for Technorati came up with the following, rather appropriate, list: h5n1 arrived nigeria time bird identified africa worry
Mobile Cookery
How to boil an egg in 3 minutes with 2 mobile phones.
I guess it’s obvious when you think about their power output, but it’s still a little disturbing…
Via Leon
Relatives Storm Offices of Haj Ferry Accident Company
The BBC is reporting (as breaking news) that relatives of those on the ferry that was bringing back Haj pilgrims and migrant workers have stormed the offices of the ferry company and trashed it after more details about the tragedy and subsequent apparently disorganised rescue emerged.
Iran to be reported to the UN Security Council
Reports about Iran being reported to the UN Security Council are being reported at the ABC and BBC with the vote going 27 for, 5 abstentions and 3 (Venezuela, Cuba and Syria) voting against.
Predictable reaction from Iran, they say they’re going to do what they threatened to do if referred which is to scale back cooperation and immediately restart reprocessing.