Surfing Culture
January 17, 2008
Surfing has sprinted from the shadows of subversion into the big business world of mainstream media.
Ma and Pa stores are being phased out, board design is going back to the future, and a new generation of surfers is being marketed to like never before.
What has this shift done to the culture surrounding board riding?
I spoke to some surfers from varied backgrounds about the appeal of surfing, the realities of business, and the spirituality of, “worshiping at the great alter of the ocean.”
Luke Beaver
The Green Behind the Gold
January 11, 2008
Coomera Falls
A determined wet season brings out the best on the Coomera Circuit in Lamington National Park. Recent heavy rains have caused some track closures. Check with Parks and Wildlife for details. Beechmont, January 2008
Delusion lets smokers breathe easy
January 11, 2008
Smokin’
A survey by the Cancer Council Victoria reveals that 60 per cent of smokers cling to “self-exempting beliefs” that smoking-related diseases such as heart and lung cancer are caused by air pollution or genetics.
Quit Victoria executive director Fiona Sharkie said: “We asked smokers to list what diseases were commonly linked to smoking, and a high proportion didn’t voluntarily nominate heart and lung cancer.”
The survey found 43 per cent of people aged 50 or over thought exercise could undo the harm of smoking, and one in five smokers believed the habit was not that dangerous because many smokers had lived long lives.
The Australian
Seahorse sanctuary makes first overseas export
January 11, 2008
Karajini
The Kalbarri Seahorse Sanctuary has sent a small test shipment of 200 of the creatures.
Sanctuary manager Mick Payne says there is a large market for seahorses as ornamental animals overseas.
He says he is delighted to start exporting after months of effort to get started.
“[It was] a long, hard struggle; I think it probably took us about six months all-in-all to get federal permission to export a listed animal, which applies to the seahorses,” he said.
“About one month ago we finally got the approval to actually do this.”
ABC News
Sony Joins Other Labels on Amazon MP3 Store
January 11, 2008
SAN FRANCISCO — Sony BMG announced that it would become the fourth and final major music label to sell digital music on Amazon.com, offering its entire catalog in the MP3 format by the end of the month.
The move by Sony BMG, which represents such artists as Bruce Springsteen, Foo Fighters, Santana and Justin Timberlake, further positions Amazon’s digital music store as a significant rival to the market leader, Apple’s iTunes.
Sony’s embrace of the MP3 format also signifies the latest blow to the technology called digital rights management software or D.R.M., which is designed to prevent consumers from making unauthorized copies of digital material. Read more
Rocketing water bills for ratepayers
January 11, 2008
Hinze Dam
With Brisbane-based bureaucrats at the Queensland Water Commission dictating the water grid roll-out, Mayor Ron Clarke fears that Gold Coasters could be left high and dry.
Gold Coast Water officials yesterday negotiated a $512 million windfall for the city’s bulk water assets, but in the process the council has lost all control of its lucrative water charges.
The transferred bulk assets include reservoirs, the Hinze and Little Nerang dams, pipelines and water pumps across the city.
According to Cr Clarke they have all been undervalued and the State Government has offered only a token figure for compensation.
Gold Coast Bulletin
ASIO to protect schools
January 11, 2008
TAXPAYERS are to spend $20 million on high-technology security measures to protect Jewish, Muslim and other schools at risk of hate-based attacks.
The Rudd Government plans to order ASIO and the Australian Federal Police to assess risks at all of the nation’s schools to identify those with special security needs.
Education Minister Julia Gillard confirmed the plan yesterday as Jewish and Islamic community spokesmen said they would welcome help with security measures such as cameras and 24-hour patrols, bollards to restrict vehicle access and shatter-proof glass.
Ms Gillard, who is also Acting Prime Minister, said at-risk schools spent large amounts of money providing their own security at the expense of their teaching budgets.
Labor would assume responsibility for the costs of schools assessed as being at risk. The Australian
New bird flu fears as virus found in dead swans
January 11, 2008
Swans
The swans carried the lethal strain of bird flu, sparking fears that the virus had again landed on Britain’s shores.
Urgent tests were under way to check other birds and ducks at the swannery, in Abbotsbury, where the dead mute swans were found in the past 48 hours.
Guardian Unlimited
The Weather
23/02/2012, 3:13 pm 
Cloudy
current temperature: 22°Creal feel: 24°C
current pressure: 102 mb
humidity: 82%
wind speed: 3 m/s S
Windgusts: 3 m/s
sunrise: 5:34
sunset: 18:25
