Safety
Max, a young and handsome American pit bull, sits on death row in Miami-Dade County’s Animal Services, a victim of possibly the world’s toughest breed-specific dog laws.
The paperwork on his cage labels him “aggressive”, but it’s more out of caution. He’s never bitten anyone.
Max has got 24 hours for a reprieve. His owner is a soldier on duty in Afghanistan who left the dog with his family. They became panicked that they would be fined for harbouring an outlawed breed and handed him to the Animal Services pound.
Continue reading "Dog ownership laws a load of total bullpit" »
It was a performance worthy of a Guinness World Record. Barreling along Sydney Road Fairlight, the truck driver was texting on one mobile phone while speaking on another, steering the rig with his knees.
I hit the horn and indicated – in no uncertain terms – he should stop before he kills someone. Still clutching the phones he slowly and deliberately raised his middle finger.
If only he’d read the story of 21-year-old Sarah Page, a serial texter from New Zealand. “It’s fine Mum, I do it all the time!” she’d protest. Until she wrapped her car around a pole in 2009.
Latest 2 of 191 comments
View all comments-
Zopo says:
It doesn’t help that all new cars have Bluetooth connections, iPod connectivity, GPS, and every other control you can think of. If the studies are correct shouldn’t car manufacturers reduce this technology in cars so we can all focus on driving. I heard its even illegal to answer a call… Read more »
-
Mark says:
i recently sent an email to QLD police suggesting that, particuarly during festive seasons, the penalty for drink driving, speeding, and hell, add mobile phone use to the list, should be a $20,000 fine and loss of licence for 12 months with no avenue for appeal it would stop some… Read more »
Last week I was standing at a pedestrian crossing at the Adelaide Airport with my two kids, aged five and eight. There was a car coming towards us, moving fairly slowly and appearing to slow down. In one of those split-second moments which people without kids will pontificate about, but which parents understand, we started to step onto the crossing.
The driver didn’t stop. He went straight through, missing us by inches. I shouted at him, as did a bystander, but he kept meandering along the road for about another 30m. He stopped his car smack-bang in the middle of the road, right on the white line between two lanes, where a security guard approached him to inquire as to what the hell he was doing.
The driver was so old that he possibly didn’t even know he was in a car at all. He looked like he was 90 in the shade. At least.
Continue reading "Doddery old drivers should not be a protected species" »
Latest 2 of 111 comments
View all comments-
David Chewings says:
I agree with the early comment by Mahrat that you are being too accusatory and I would add a little simplistic. We parents of the very young cannot be too careful when there is so much distraction. I am annoyed that a search of this blog reveals not a single… Read more »
-
Andrew says:
Gee Stephen Alcotrel will be a bit pissed off that you’ve labelled him a national voter. Read more »
To fly, or not to fly, that is the question/Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of disgruntled travellers/Or to take flight against a sky of troubles/And by opposing, end them?
Like Hamlet, airlines face a lose-lose situation. Do they cancel flights at the expense of customer good will or risk planes falling out of the sky from catastrophic engine failure? Because, let’s be honest here, there are no good plane crashes.
In June 1982, Capt Eric Moody and his crew were flying from Kuala Lumpur to Perth when all four engines on their British Airways jumbo jet failed. Without knowing it, they’d flown into a volcanic ash cloud. For the next 13 minutes, the lives of the 248 passengers and 15 crew were in the balance. Without engines, they were ditching into the sea. That they restarted the engines and saved 268 lives is well known and dramatised on TV shows. But what if the outcome was different?
Continue reading "It could’ve been ashes to ashes, dust to dust" »
Latest 2 of 26 comments
View all comments-
Gregg says:
@Phil. ” To an extent sure, you are paying for a service that isnt able to be provided. “ Have you bothered to read the fine print Phil and you can remain ignorant of what a re natural causes beyond an airlines control if it makes you feel warmer and… Read more »
-
Gregg says:
@Anubis, Yes there were economic aspects in Virgin’s decision though I think they have also cancelled some flights now with ash clouds being lower. It is up to the airlines whether they want to start doing that type of thing to avoid the ash clouds at their normal operating altitudes. Read more »
If you’re a science or nuclear energy buff, you’ll have to excuse us for starting pretty much at the bottom of the knowledge tree here. First of all, let’s define a meltdown: basically it’s when the core of a nuclear reactor is unable to cool, because of some kind of system failure like, oh, a 10 metre wall of sea water crashing into a nuclear power plant. Radiation can then be released, and that’s when things get really dangerous. So is it happening in Japan? Latest reports say no, not yet and hopefully not at all.
Click this link for an incredible series of graphics on the internal workings of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, pictured above. This really is some amazing work the New York Times has done at short notice. There’s another really helpful infographic here:
Despite what appears to be an easing - or at least a temporary containment - of the threat of a major radiation leak, let’s dwell briefly on the worst case scenario. Could we be facing another Three Mile Island or Chernobyl? The answer, according to the Science Media Centre of Japan, is almost certainly no. Read a full Q&A at the SMCJ website here. Highly informative, yet accessible, material. Well done them.
Continue reading "A busy person’s guide to Japan’s nuclear threat" »
Latest 2 of 94 comments
View all comments-
Mel says:
I am most curious about the thorium reactors that have been mentioned a few times on ABC 24, but so far not too much mention on other tv stations. Sounds like it could be a goer - without cooling needs, and without the production of materials for nuclear weapons production. Read more »
-
skepdad says:
@alcotrel: it is my understanding that a comprehensive risk analysis was done, but with Japan’s total lack of natural resources they had a choice of massive energy imports or nuke plants. Not hard to see how they arrived at the decision, and to be fair the plants have stood up… Read more »
Roadkill is a reality of Australian life.
Drivers should slow down, be aware, and avoid killing native animals without putting their own lives in danger. Other animals, though, may not deserve so much care.
You shouldn’t run down kangaroos, for example - but cats could be another matter.
Continue reading "Would you brake for a cane toad? A kangaroo? A cat?" »
Latest 2 of 114 comments
View all comments-
LC says:
There’s that, and there’s also the possibility that you’ll lose control of your car from such a sudden sharp bump, especially at speeds of 100+. Read more »
-
Laura says:
I just had this bizarre mental image of a roo in a ninja suit skulking outside the house until the people went to sleep & then cartwheeling through the window in a blaze of nunchucks and swords…. Read more »
Across Australia today a familiar push and shove is taking place as cyclists vie for space with the ever increasing numbers of cars on our roads. It is a pattern that is repeated throughout our towns and cities; a symptom of our car loving culture and sense of road entitlement from drivers and cyclists alike.
Drivers resent the packs of Lycra warriors when they take up entire lanes and invent their own road rules, and cyclists understandably fear cars which are often wielded like 100 tonnes of road clearing debris.
Neither party is blameless in this dangerous game of chicken, but it is up to state governments to appreciate the differing needs of commuters and adjust their infrastructure accordingly.
Continue reading "Ensuring safe passage for our Lycra warriors" »
Latest 2 of 121 comments
View all comments-
Gavin says:
On the issue of riaetlve speeds of cyclists and motorists, when I was living in Salisbury (11km south of Brisbane CBD) and cycling to work in Fortitude Valley (next to Brisbane CBD) I would usually average about 28kmh and would exceed this speed on flat or downhill stretches, and would… Read more »
-
Elphaba says:
@Shifter, nooooo! Black leather pants are completely different to lycra. They have an edge. They’re badass. Mmm, black leather pants… However, after further thinking about this, Lars used to wear spandex pants on stage in the 80s. Ewww… Looks like you win. Lars can wear lycra, but if I see… Read more »
The key take out that everyone in Australia got from the recent Qantas incident in Singapore is that pilot experience is critically important.
As more and more information filters about just how serious the situation was with QF32, pilot training and experience are being widely acknowledged, from the CEO of Qantas down, as having arguably made the difference.
Given the travails of Qantas over recent weeks, you would think that Jetstar would think twice about its absurd plans to put less and less experienced pilots in the cockpit of its aircraft.
Latest 2 of 158 comments
View all comments-
sarah says:
And sooooo unsafe! They already have the cabin crew from cheaper countries with training that is not up to scratch. I know someone who works for Jetstar and if there is a “medical” onboard, the foreign crew go get an Aussie to deal with it cause they dont know what… Read more »
-
Meh says:
Better still, why not outsource Jetstar management to the Thai and Singapore based crews? They all hold at least one (in many cases multiple) degree, speak several languages and are happy to work the 17+ hour days that JQ management require them to do for under $700 per month. That’ll… Read more »
Imagine heading off to Christmas lunch in a few weeks, having a few soft drinks and a big chunk of brandy-soaked Christmas pudding, only to have to get a taxi home because you’re over the drink driving limit.
Sounds a little stupid but that could be the reality considering the new drink-driving discussion points from the Australian Transport Council. And if you’ve been taking cough medicine at the same time then you’re really in trouble.
In the new National Road Safety Strategy it’s suggested that the legal limit for alcohol in drivers be reduced to either 0.02 or even zero. Not that there’s really any difference between the two.
Continue reading "How far is too far when fighting drink driving?" »
Latest 2 of 293 comments
View all comments-
Jimbo says:
I agree it’s a waste of police resources. The police should be on the roads WITH us to witness the maniac drivers, instead camping on the side of the road picking little old ladies who accidently had half a glass of wine too many. Read more »
-
Frontest says:
Because life, Chris, is frightening, illusory, and gone before we know it - and so we self medicate in the absence of meaning. Haven’t you worked this out yet? How old are you? I sense you’ve got quite a bit to look forward to. Read more »
Fact: You are more likely to be bitten by a New Yorker than by a shark.
Summer is a matter of weeks away, and almost on cue, sharks are being sighted, and a media frenzy is beginning.
A frenzy not one unlike the shark one they would have us believe is approaching.
Continue reading "The monstrous shark and other myths of the sea" »
Latest 2 of 41 comments
View all comments-
Steve says:
Wrong. We have built machines to enable us to venture into environments that we are not NATURALLY built to survive in. If we were meant to be in the ocean then we would have gills and webbed feet. Read more »
-
Laura says:
Really good article, Matt ! People have to look past those stereotypes of man eating sharks, enhanced by Jaws (seriously, I don’t think sharks roar that loudly..) and try to consider it from their point of view. Its an ethical debate and most people will probably be all destroy the… Read more »
My kids love playing in parks – I think every kid does.
Swings, slides and see-saws can sometimes be a God-send for parents who need a break.
Tell the kids to go off and play and if you’re lucky, there could be five minutes of freedom in it for you too.
Continue reading "Kids, swings, parks and needles don’t mix" »
Latest 2 of 84 comments
View all comments-
Akansha says:
Well, I hate to make your headache even worse, but there’s also the pseact that our Federal and all of our state prison systems are bursting at the seams with inmates, nearly all of those state prison budgets are hurting, and not only is this creating a dangerous situation for… Read more »
-
James1 says:
Since when did we use the word liberal to describe progressive politics in this country? That is the real outrage here… Read more »
You don’t grow up in Brisbane with a name like Thornton and not know who Merle Thornton is.
For those of you who did not grow up in Brisbane and who don’t have the Thornton surname, Merle Thornton chained herself to the foot rail in the public bar of the Regatta Hotel at Toowong in 1965 to protest the drinking laws in Queensland.
Rosalie Bogner was her gal-pal at the time. I suspect there are people with the surname Bogner out there who do know she was with Merle at the time, or maybe she’s the Buzz Aldren of the Brisbane women’s movement.
Continue reading "Girls, with the right to drink comes the need to do it safely" »
Latest 2 of 83 comments
View all comments-
At Work says:
Dude. You need new friends. I’ve had a clean out of drinking buddies over the last couple of years, and removed the women who can’t handle themselves and don’t know their own limit. Nowadays I no longer spend my rare nights out worrying whether they’re OK- nor do I get… Read more »
-
Monica says:
nicely explained BK. Read more »
YOU’RE standing at a city pedestrian crossing, with cars backed up on either side of the lights. Your “walk” light goes green and you step off the kerb.
Suddenly a blurred object zaps past you, missing you by millimetres. As it dissolves into the traffic, leaving you shaken and furious, you get a vague impression of two wheels and a figure wearing a helmet.
And there isn’t a thing you can do about it, other than shake your fist and shout redundant expletives at the long-vanished perpetrator.
Continue reading "Forget taxing road warriors, no matter how obnoxious" »
Latest 2 of 84 comments
View all comments-
Charles Kelly says:
Go back and actually read what I wrote AJ of Here. Then read it again, s l o w l y - just to make sure. Maybe, just maybe, you’ll see where it was your delusional ignorance has led you astray. It’s clearly there for all to see, but I’m… Read more »
-
AJ of Here says:
Ah, yes, the ceaseless ad hominem attacks with no substance to advance the debate. So typical of the Leftards, especially the greenies. Tsk tsk tsk. You might as well have Godwinned the thread, Charles. How pathetic. Next time you call for a war, my dear Charles, you might want to… Read more »
It’s the deadly season of drownings. Sounds terrible, doesn’t it? The bad news is that it’s going to get worse this summer. There will be umpteen drownings across Australia.
I feel sick every time I read - or worse, report - about a child drowning. I know they are always accidents but I also know that the parents are not at arms’ length from the child.
It’s common knowledge that people drown if they put themselves in a risky situation. The simple ways to prevent a drowning are:
Continue reading "Vigilance is the only way to prevent drowning" »
Latest 2 of 14 comments
View all comments-
relay says:
don’t think the guy in the picture will make it either Read more »
-
Carl Palmer says:
No brainer - the majority live near water and it should be mandatory in schools. I would highly recommend kids becoming nippers. It is the most educational thing you can do for your kids and yourself. They do their nipper thing and you do your bronze medallion and the parental… Read more »
As I write this piece, news has just filtered through that Victorian Water Minister Tim Holding has been found alive on Mt Feathertop, in the Victorian Alps. Thank God.
I don’t yet know many details of his bungled trip, but I do know this: Holding is just the latest in a series of backcountry adventurers who’ve failed to pay the Australian Alps the respect they deserve.
For nine months of the year, the Australian Alps are a benign bunch of hillocks which are scarcely fit to be called mountains. Our highest peak, 2228m Mt Kosciuszko, is so rounded that tourist buses were once permitted to drive all the way to the summit.
Continue reading "It’s time we respected the Australian Alps" »
Latest 2 of 17 comments
View all comments-
Brad Jackson says:
Helen, I understand what you are saying and it certainly has merit but I have a ‘‘thin edge of the wedge’ outlook on emergency beacons. (Although in 5-10 years time, I expect my arguement to be considered quite quaint) When do we ‘expect’ people to carry such a device -… Read more »
-
Helen says:
You’re right, Brad. They don’t need an emergency beacon as long as there is a mysterious AFP plane flying around to spot them. The beacons are meant to be used when you are in danger. They are not compulsory (except for category 2 yach races) but they are a good… Read more »
The fastest crash I had was in Italy, in 2002. I was testing tyres for Pirelli. We were trying different types and, naturally, sometimes they’re good. Other times, they’re not quite what you need.
It happened on a very fast left-hand corner – I was probably doing around 250 or 260km/h, and the rear tyre started to slide. Then it bit the road again and the bike suddenly snapped up straight again.
It’s what we call a high-side. I got thrown off the bike and into the air.
The best thing about it was – this might sound funny, but it’s true – I landed on my head and got knocked out.
The next thing I knew I woke up in a hospital room.
Continue reading "I ride fast bikes. Here’s what it’s like when they crash" »
Latest 2 of 15 comments
View all comments-
mark says:
sorry but i think girls are good riders evan the fat 1nnnns Read more »
-
Mark T says:
Chris your a great rider and i would say the best in the wet, for you 2 idots Dave and Abe watch the next Motogp race and just see who Chris is and what an amazing talent he has. I have to say I have been lucky so far on… Read more »
There’s a favourite pastime in Sydney aside from complaining about Generation Y and no longer talking about the value of your house – it’s whingeing about speed cameras and how close you are to losing your licence because of a string of minor offences.
Thousands of people a year cry foul when they rack up so many demerits the Roads and Traffic Authority cuts them off. They get no sympathy from me. If you go over the speed limit you risk getting caught. If you get caught enough times you risk losing your licence.
But now the NSW Government is considering mechanically speed limiting all new cars and is on the hunt for 100 vehicles to take part in a trial.
Continue reading "Speed limiting drivers is a human rights breach" »
Latest 2 of 3 comments
View all comments-
Glen says:
Two points: The ‘road toll’ has become an empty signifier. It means whatever someone wants it to mean. In real terms, as a function of drivers on the road and km’s travelled, the road toll has been dropping for over two decades. Where are some real statistics? The problem shouldn’t… Read more »
-
Peter Knight says:
Being a Victorian, I have copped speeding fines even though I wasn’t speeding - even my GPS device confirmed that my speedo was accurate. The rediculous low-tolerance system they have is simply a cover for the corrupt speed camera system. There’s even a speed camera in laverton - over the… Read more »
Facebook Recommendations
Read all about it
Punch live
Up to the minute Twitter chatter
How much fun is it retweeting people who can't spell?
In other Olympian news, Steph rice is advertising Sunrice Chinese style Mongolian chicken. Think about that for a tick
Recent posts
The latest and greatest
Is there a nicotine patch strong enough for this?
Ok. I am not a leading expert in world’s best practice on prisoner rehabilitation — my experience…
A great win by Webber, but it sure as hell wasn’t sport
This morning I joined millions of other Australians in accelerating, braking, swearing and spilling coffee…
Fighting Assad one strongly worded statement at a time
This weekend’s massacre in Houla, Syria, is one of those stories that invites but doesn’t…
Nosebleed Section
choice ringside rantings
From: They must pay for one’s bitter disappointments
Michael S says:
"A teacher at Geelong Grammar had criticised her for using words that were too long, which had left her confused and had made her doubt her ability to write essays. She became ''quite distressed'' when her English marks began to fall." I can sympathise. My scholastic mentors conveyed to me a causal relationship… [read more]From: Welfare for breeders is a bonus for everyone
Change Up! says:
I have no problem paying my taxes. As a single, childless person on a very decent income, I can afford it and not have my life severely altered. Plus I understand that my taxes paying for things like schools, childcare and infrastructure is ultimately a good thing. A better community is better for me… [read more]Gentle jabs to the ribs
They must pay for one’s bitter disappointments
A private school girl’s family is sueing her elite, extremely expensive private school for not… Read more
Latest 2 of 305 comments
View all commentsAdd your comment