Australian Election -That Green Light on the Hill
Media commentators focus on the overall national swing against Labor, in the Australian election results.
But what about that other equally big, equally national, swing – towards the Greens?
I note that some mainstream media are describing the elected Greens as “extremists”, and as “completely irrational”.
But a swing to the Greens, across Australia, and the prospect of 9 Greens Senators – it’s hard to write off such a sizeable representation of the Australian public as “extremists” and “irrational”
In the more positive article, Paul Strangio’s ”post-materialist cosmopolitans” is mentioned, as the constituency for new Greens MP Richard di Natale. These people represent a growing new breed in Western culture – progressive, broad-minded, ready to lead a satisfying lifestyle with fewer material things, and less energy use.
It’s unfortunate that the newly elected Senators will not take their places until July 2011. This means that Australians will need to be aware of their politicians rushing bad laws through between now and then – Christina Macpherson 23 Aug 2010
New Greens Senator brings hope for renewable energy
There’s a new light on the hill, and it’s bright Green, The Age, Jewel TopsfieldAugust 23, 2010 “… there was no stopping Victoria’s first Greens senator Richard Di Natale in this sweet, long-savoured moment. ”There is a new light on the hill and it’s powered by renewable energy,” he thundered at the Greens election night party in Melbourne,………..Comprising the former working-class suburbs of Fitzroy, North Melbourne, Brunswick and Richmond, the electorate is home to many progressive-thinking, educated professionals – a tribe Monash University lecturer Paul Strangio dubbed ”post-materialist cosmopolitans”. There’s a new light on the hill, and it’s bright Green
Only the Greens dared mention nuclear issues
Australians watched in amazement and amusement, as the media and election campaigns focused on personalities, buzz words, mantras – “going forward” “real action”. If possible – anything but policies, it would seem.
Focus groups, daily opinion polls, and good old spin – these were the factors driving Australia’s ever dumber election campaigns by the major parties.
Some real policies got a mention, – seemingly in inverse relationship to their importance.
What got little mention is Global Warming, Climate Change.
What got no mention at all- the nuclear issue.
It must have come as a shock to Australia’s major political parties to realise that The Greens do have leaders of vision – Bob Brown, and Christine Milne. These leaders do have clear policies on Climate Change, uranium mining, and nuclear power.
Self cleaning solar panels a solution to dusty desert areas
The researchers found that 90 percent of deposited dust can be removed by the transparent screen in fewer than 60 seconds.
Self-cleaning solar panels could find use in the dusty environs of Arizona, the Middle East or Mars, Scientific American, By Larry Greenemeier, Aug 22, 2010, The best places to collect solar energy are also some of the dustiest on Earth and beyond, a quandary that leads to inefficiencies in how well the cells are able to convert strong sunlight into renewable electricity. The solution, according to new research, is to coat solar cells with material that enables them to chase away dirt particles on their own with the help of dust-repelling electrical charges. Continue reading
Perth, Western Australia – anti nuclear protest
Nuclear protest – inMyCommunity – Perth, Western Australia, 10 Aug 2010, ANTI-nuclear protesters took their message to voters in the electorate of Tangney last Friday morning, capitalising on peak hour traffic outside the office of Liberal and pro-nuclear energy candidate, Dennis Jensen, to make their point.The protesters from the Anti-Nuclear Alliance of WA (ANAWA) held banners at the corner of Leach Highway and Karel Avenue, Willetton.The protest coincided with the 65th anniversary of the Hiroshima bombings.
ANAWA spokeswoman Sarah Holt-Foreman said the occasion was an opportunity to remind people of the dangers of uranium mining and nuclear power production.“We want to remind people what Dennis Jensen stands for… we don’t believe nuclear power is a solution to climate change, or anything,” Ms Holt-Foereman said. Nuclear protest – inMyCommunity – Perth, Western Australia
India’s Nuclear Liability Bill makes profits private, and liabilities public
India’s Sham Nuclear Liability Bill, By Toxic Watch, 22 August, 2010, Countercurrents.org “….Srikumar Banerjee, Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission and ex-officio Secretary, Department of Atomic Energy, one of the drafters of the Bill is guilty of ignoring the consequences of possible nuclear disaster because his text has privatized profits and made liabilities public.
Mamohan Singh who is in-charge of Department of Atomic Energy appears to be guilty of dereliction of duty as well. The Report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Science & Technology, Environment & Forests chaired by T Subbirami Reddy reveals their culpability quite categorically……
India’s Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Bill, 2010 is meant to pave the way for India to sign International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)’s Convention on Supplementary Compensation (CSC) for Nuclear Damage, 1997. The question that stares citizens in the face is: whether or not the proposed liability Bill and the pre-existing IAEA’s compensation treaty in the supreme interest of present and future generation of Indians?
If India decides to join the CSC, it will be an exercise in surrendering its sovereignty to a conflict of interest ridden regime like IAEA which is both the promoter and regulator of nuclear commerce. Like IAEA, Indian the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) is dependent on the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) whose mandate is charged with promoting nuclear power in India……
Saman Pathak and Barun Mukherji. Both have observed categorically that the provisions of the Bill will unduly favour the foreign suppliers of nuclear equipment and it is being done to make the provisions compatible with the Convention on Supplementary Compensation (CSC). Like all Indians both these members are not convinced with the rationale of India joining the CSC because this legislation on civil nuclear liability does not “keep the interests of the Indian people, who may be affected in a nuclear accident, as its core concern’………….
It is frightening to know that any nuclear incident may induce radioactive contaminations in surface, ground water bodies, and other water resources. U N Panjiar, the Secretary, Water resources was of the opinion that the Ministry does not have any facility for testing water quality, from point of view of nuclear contamination because this work has been done by the Department of Atomic Energy.
1 This month
of the week – Disrupting War & Militarism in Oceania. Active solidarity. Radical practice.
Antinuclear 