Today's Headlines
Friday 10th May 1996
International:
The Deputy Chairman of (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission) ATSIC and one of the most verbois hecklers and rabble
rousers, "Sugar" Ray Robinson, is being investigated by the Federal Police over allegations that he was party to a Au$70,000 bribe.
ATSIC has come under increasing scrutiny following the election
of the Coalition. Some very strange decisions such as the move to halt the Hinmarsh Bridge
incident perpetrated by outgoing Aboriginal Labor minister Robert Tickner created a lot of resentment in the wider community.
Political:
Today is D-Day for the gun lobby in Australia. The State Police Ministers are meeting with the Federal Government who want to
outlaw the private ownership of automatic and semi-automatic guns. This follows the massacre at Port Arthur. It would appear that
a resolution will probably fall somewhere imbetween with severe restrictions being enforced on a national level.
In today's paper the Sporting Shooters Association of Australia have placed a half page ad calling for donations and support while
making the following statements:
- The Federal Government's gun control plan is a waste of your money and an attack on individual liberty.
- The Sporting Shooters Association of Australia for more than 30 years has protected the rights of sporting shooters to lawfully own firearms.
- However, to do so in the face of an undemocratic attack from the Federal Government on your rights it needs financial assistance.
- This is why we believe in uniform national gun laws. However we do not believe the Government has a right to infringe on individual liberty or a right to implement an undemocratic process to seize private property.
- Help us fight this attack on democracy and individual freedom by joining us in protecting the rights of law abiding Australians.
The article is headed up: You may ask where was the Sporting Shooters Association of Australia when your firearms were taken away?
Well I (Mr Ted Drane) ask, where were you?
Well Ted sorry to burst your bubble but I don't own a gun but I would like to ask you a question. Who protects my rights when a madman with one of those guns
gets stuck into me and my family? The Sporting Shooters Association of Australia certainly haven't in the past.
Business:
Fosters brewing group has made a second major disposal of its assets in the United Kingdom selling off a third of it's joint venture
pubs for Au$504 million. The sale follows the Au$1.2 billion disposal of its UK brewing subsidiary, Courage, a year ago.
Sport:
Triple swimming world record holder, Kieren Perkins, who performed so poorly in the recent swimming trials has been diagnosed
with a blood imbalance. He is now being treated with massive doses of vitamin C after medical tests revealed abnormalities in
his iron consumption. Coach John Carew said: "Basically what is happening is that the iron in Kieron's system is not transferred
properly through the blood stream and the end result is that he is feeling tired."
Happily the coach expects the problem to be fixed before the Atlanta Olympics start in a few weeks time.
Well the sun shone all day yesterday and the Brisbane River is now nearly back to its normal depth. However a fair amount of damage has
been done by way of erosion to the river bank opposite us. That bank faced the main part of the river's current. The top soil has
been ripped away exposing sandstone like rocks which are now clumped in a rough pile where the bank used to be.
Today its off to the big smoke again.. it is overcast and looks like it will be a cool but dry day.
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