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Here's the real story... http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/web-of-lies-uk-press-plays-up-spider-invasion-20090508-axgx.html

Good thing you've got plenty of electrons in your body then! They shall give you strength.

A comment further below suggests it's not really as bad as it sounds; "There have been no more than 10 sightings of these spiders here". But ten large spiders looking for better shelter isn't a very exciting story, so now it's an invasion of giant spiders.

That's because it's been blown out of proportion - http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/qld-news/web-of-lies-uk-press-plays-up-queensland-spider-invasion-20090508-ax58.html

When I said 'daguerreotypical' I was making an adjective out of daguerreotype, the first common method of photography. If you told Louis Daguerre in 1839 that in little more than a century we'd be taking pictures of astronomical events that span back through 95% of the time this universe has existed, physical waveforms travelling a mere three thousandths of a percent slower than light itself, and constructing cameras with lasers (not that he would understand those) that would take 6.1 million pictures/second. (Not to mention atomic force microscopes imaging atomic structures.)

I'm sure that faced with all that, Louis Daguerre would be agape. Seminal technologies are fantastically underwhelming compared to refinements (Exhibit A vs. modern computers). I would say that given current technological trends in neurological imaging and analysis, the mere idea of mapping and copying is conservative. Most likely there are even more advanced applications that haven't even been conceived that will rear their heads in a century or two.

...countries such as Australia and Canada with much stricter banking regulations (and seemingly more effective ones) have escaped the brunt of the current crisis relatively well.

Four of the top 20 banks in the world (20%) are currently Australian, which is an amazing feat for a country of only 20 million people.

As an Australian I do not share your confidence in Australian banks/economy at this stage. Australians are neck deep in debt, just like Americans, and we've only just gone from a significant budget surplus to massive deficit. Had we started this from a position of deficit like the US, I doubt it would be looking so good now, and even so:
http://business.brisbanetimes.com.au/business/bank-gamble-on-first-homes-20090412-a41y.html
THE rush of first-home buyers is emerging as a bad-debt time bomb for banks, as government cash incentives for new home owners drives about a quarter of all new mortgage applications for banks.

Combined with the additional lure of low interest rates, analysts have warned that the new customers are inherently risky for banks, particularly given the likelihood of unemployment increasing in the next year.

"The confluence of artificially high housing prices, lack of a savings track record and higher unemployment risk makes the first-home buyer segment the high-risk segment within the banks' portfolio," RBS Equities analyst Jarrod Martin said.

Tough prudential rules have meant Australian banking has largely avoided extensive subprime lending losses that occurred around the world, but first-home buyer losses could drive hundreds of millions of dollars in extra losses for banks.

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/cheap-rent-tax-break-is-pushing-up-house-prices-20090412-a3zl.html
Cheap rent tax break is pushing up house prices

But analysts warn that the scheme, intended to increase the supply of cheap rental accommodation, is contributing to a boom in house prices under $500,000, making home purchase more expensive.

Risky mortgages being made to people who couldn't get them without government interference in a market with artificially high house prices. Sound familiar? Watch this space. Our money supply also is based on the inflated "value" of these houses, and the capacity of the borrowers to pay. That's the problem, due entirely to regulation. The market uses that system because it has to by government edict. Our currency ought to be based on current economic production, not wistful thinking about the future.

...countries such as Australia and Canada with much stricter banking regulations (and seemingly more effective ones) have escaped the brunt of the current crisis relatively well.

Four of the top 20 banks in the world (20%) are currently Australian, which is an amazing feat for a country of only 20 million people.

As an Australian I do not share your confidence in Australian banks/economy at this stage. Australians are neck deep in debt, just like Americans, and we've only just gone from a significant budget surplus to massive deficit. Had we started this from a position of deficit like the US, I doubt it would be looking so good now, and even so:
http://business.brisbanetimes.com.au/business/bank-gamble-on-first-homes-20090412-a41y.html
THE rush of first-home buyers is emerging as a bad-debt time bomb for banks, as government cash incentives for new home owners drives about a quarter of all new mortgage applications for banks.

Combined with the additional lure of low interest rates, analysts have warned that the new customers are inherently risky for banks, particularly given the likelihood of unemployment increasing in the next year.

"The confluence of artificially high housing prices, lack of a savings track record and higher unemployment risk makes the first-home buyer segment the high-risk segment within the banks' portfolio," RBS Equities analyst Jarrod Martin said.

Tough prudential rules have meant Australian banking has largely avoided extensive subprime lending losses that occurred around the world, but first-home buyer losses could drive hundreds of millions of dollars in extra losses for banks.

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/cheap-rent-tax-break-is-pushing-up-house-prices-20090412-a3zl.html
Cheap rent tax break is pushing up house prices

But analysts warn that the scheme, intended to increase the supply of cheap rental accommodation, is contributing to a boom in house prices under $500,000, making home purchase more expensive.

Risky mortgages being made to people who couldn't get them without government interference in a market with artificially high house prices. Sound familiar? Watch this space. Our money supply also is based on the inflated "value" of these houses, and the capacity of the borrowers to pay. That's the problem, due entirely to regulation. The market uses that system because it has to by government edict. Our currency ought to be based on current economic production, not wistful thinking about the future.

People who can use punctuation, capitalization, and spell properly. Actually, I think he was referring to those who voted the President into office.

Actually, no, most of the people voting for Obama didn't know some very basic things about him or the opposition. And what they did know, was often wrong.

In the particularly striking example, the vast majority attributed the infamous I can see Russia from my house! to Sarah Palin, when, in fact, the phrase was coined by Saturday Night Live, who were mocking her lack of foreign policy experience, while willfully ignoring Joe Biden's — whom Obama picked for the supposed foreign policy expertise — lunacies.

What's much worse, though, is that these supposedly educated and well-versed people are now trying their damnest to keep the truth from becoming known — people trying to add mentions of Obama's association with (unrepentant) terrorist Ayers to Obama's Wikipedia entry have their changes reverted within minutes and their accounts banned for days...

He is proposing to restrict things like beheading videos. Do you support terrorists' "rights" to kidnap people and post videos online of their brutal murders? Yes? Then you are a sick person. No? Then you support censorship.

That is a false dichotomy. Terrorists who kidnap and murder people have no regard for laws in my country about whether or not I can watch the video of it. I don't support changing the law to allow kidnapping and murder. I do claim the right to see those videos if I wish. I don't have any desire to watch them over and over but I do find them informative about the kind of people who oppose us and what is going on in other countries.

A friend of mine sent me some pictures of jihad that was going on in her country at the time. She was showing me what was happening to her people, it was very distressing for her. The photos she sent were substantially the same as the ones sent out by the terrorists but for a very different reason. Should she be censored? Unequivocally no! Her right to free speech and appeal for help outweigh any consideration about terrorists.

Banning videos is not a solution to either terrorism or child molestation.

As a sort of P.S. I'm in Australia. In the middle of the governments plan to introduce internet censorship, a man was arrested and charged with using the internet to access and publish child-abuse material for posting a video of a guy swinging his baby around. The clip was broadcast on TV in the USA. You'll notice I haven't linked to it but I'm sure you can find it. Just not in Australia, if our internet gets censored. We already have laws against murder and child molestation. Censorship doesn't help stop those things, it only helps us pretend it isn't happening.

Turn out was disappointing. The Brisbane protest was probably the most successful, but of the thousand people on Facebook who said they'd attend only a hundred turned up. Kudos to those who did.

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/queensland/rally-rejects-rudds-internet-filter/2008/12/13/1228585168416.html

The Sydney rally was a disaster. Poorly organized, it was supposed to start at 11AM but didn't start till 11:40AM. When they did it was a very poor speech by of all people some wannabe-politician from the "Sex Party", and by some dufus with a guitar who thought this was going to be his break into the music world. Those few who attended just wandered off.

http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=1102985&p=35

> there was 1/2 a million for the anti Iraq rallies, I guess since the public couldn't stop the government on that one they just can't be bothered anymore.

True. The people got out and protested but the then Howard government ignored them. The people said "well, what can you do?", went home and re-elected Howard anyway. LOL Western Two-party Democracy.

But back to the protests... the organizers of the Sydney one should be shot. I went to a few of a the war rallies after the big one and they were a poor effort: organized by students whose egos were overblown at their now found (and very short lived) celebrity. If they try these anti-censorship rallies again, they need some decent organizers. Get rid of the hangers on like marginal parties no one will ever vote for and any wannabe musician who is friends of the organizer. Get someone from the Greens or even the Liberal Party to speak. My enemy's enemy is my friend if you will. This was an opportunity lost through sheer ego. Sure the Greens/Liberals would have got on board if anyone asked them. Next time get EFA: they've got far more experience at lobbying than the Sex Party clowns do.

I noticed the protests received marginal coverage from the mainstream media (at least for the Sydney protest their lack of coverage was deserved). They're probably hoping the net dies anyway.

This got sidespread coverage yesterday. A citizens activist group raised $30,000 in donations to fight the Rudd Firewall IN JUST ONE DAY. There are protests planned around Australia around December 15. I'm going.

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/technology/cash-floods-in-to-fight-rudds-web-censorship/2008/12/05/1228257284512.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1

Pro-tip: Writing to Conroy is pointless at this stage. He's quite foolishly staked his career on it, and will never back down no matter what the price for everyone else. The only way out of it is to lobby the senate and convince Rudd that this will cost him the next election. I voted for Rudd but I'm thoroughly disillusioned with him - not just for this, but but this weighs heavily on my mind. I've already decided my vote three years out.

Now all we have to do is find him. If anyone knows where our jettsetting Prime Minister is, please send him back home because we'd like to talk to him. First place to look: anywhere in China. http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/prime-ministers-600000-flying-circus/2008/12/04/1228257229282.html

Well, I don't know if you'll get around to reading this, but:
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/queensland/collapse-contaminates-water/2008/11/17/1226770337911.html
Metal roofing hangs in the trees nearby the reservoir at The Gap, where the roof collapsed, contaminating the water supplies of three Brisbane suburbs.

All residents and visitors to Brisbane suburbs The Gap, Enoggera, Mt Coot-tha and parts of Keperra have been warned not to drink tap water after the collapse of the roof into a reservoir.

HA! Double HA!

Sorry, that's an old article written by two gun advocates. In reality, the laws have worked very well

"Family First Senator Steve Fielding wants hardcore pornography and fetish material blocked under the Government's plans to filter the internet, sparking renewed fears the censorship could be expanded well beyond "illegal material"."
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/technology/family-first-sparks-net-filter-fears/2008/10/27/1224955922160.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1

Family First are a "Family Values" party that control the senate. They only got 56,000 votes last election, but due to a preferences deal with Labor (the same people doing the filter) he got a senate spot and controls the balance of power. If Labor want their other laws passed, they have to make a deal with him. Since Conroy and Rudd are both good Christian "Family Values" types, I bet they're willing to go along with this.

It really all relates to political appointees, those who get their positions purely as a result of which political candidate they supported not on their skills and qualifications. This is not to be confused with skilled employees with in government who attained their position in much the same fashion as skilled employees in private industry. So the political appointees are always looking for those magic box solutions where the computer will do their job for them because they are not sufficiently competent to do it themselves.

Note these exact same things happen in corporations, where corrupt executives will promote their criminal accomplices in the corporation as they go higher up the corporate ladder, as well as of course the inevitable nepotistic placements, who else will employee the pretty but stupid spawn. So it is most definately not a government problem but, typical in most industries.

My solution when getting harassed for magic box solutions, I just politely remind them if the computer is going to do their job for them, then why would the company continue to employ and pay them. Doesn't work for political appointees of course they are just shameless frauds, much the same as the politicians who appoint them. What a way for political leaders to be viewed by the rest of the world, http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/articles/2008/09/15/1221330684259.html, childhood love of cows indeed, now that is to funny to be criminal, well, as long as it is some else's country.

I just wanted to make it clear that I'm neither unaware of, nor afraid to criticize, the failings of a system that could allow a decision like that to be generated

You could not be so unafraid to criticize a judge in Australia. Just check this response on one of the Brisbane Times blogs http://blogs.brisbanetimes.com.au/bluntinstrument/archives/2008/07/post_1.html JB: Actually yr right about me forgetting to unload on the majesty of the Law. I should have. Although, without a First Amendment we are much more constrained in the criticism we can make of the bench. Contempt of Court applies swiftly and mercilessly.

You can also be given jail time here for refusing to answer questions from the Australian Building and Construction Commissioner
If you refuse to attend an ABCC interview, or if you refuse to answer questions, you face six months' jail.

There is no right to silence.

Nor right to bear arms. I do wonder about my fellow Australians, most of whom seem not to notice these things.

You're actually the first I've heard negative things from (apart from the aforementioned video game laws).

Read the comment on this opinion piece which has this as part of the reply:
JB: Actually yr right about me forgetting to unload on the majesty of the Law. I should have. Although, without a First Amendment we are much more constrained in the criticism we can make of the bench. Contempt of Court applies swiftly and mercilessly.

We do not have a constitutional protection of free speech, we don't have the right to bear arms, we have only common law protection against being forced to incriminate ourselves. You don't hear bad things about it from Australians because most of them are quite ok with it being like this. The only thing many people understand about the US is that you have a different accent and a lot of guns (which scares them). Most have no idea of the ideals this country was founded on.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but this story seems contrary to this post. http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/world/destruction-of-spy-satellite-may-be-delayed/2008/02/21/1203467222165.html

AFP Commissioner Mick Keelty believes organised crime gangs will utilise cloned part-robot humans in the future

Mr Keelty said the police force would have to use experts from the private sector to fight tech-savvy organised criminals, because it lacked the necessary skills.

Here in Oz the search for a run of the mill tourist (who is presumed to be in mortal danger) gets similar effort to a missing prime minister, however the length and publicity of the search for a presumed body would seem to relate to your social standing, most "lost in the bush" searches are scaled back after a couple of weeks depending on the chances of survival - none are forgotten by the authorities. Judging by the intensity of the search for the missing English girl in Portugal I would say Europeans behave in a similar manner and I think many US citizens at least expect similar treatment in their own country.

Note: Because of the circumsatnces of his dissapearence Holt was presumed dead after two days and despite a long and expensive search for the body, it was never found (people get suspicious when a politician or a billionare dies and there is no body to burry). I live not far from where Holt went missing, but hundreds (if not thousands) of seals and the two ton white pointers that prey on them live closer.

I'm an Australian, you insensitive clod!

Same story from Australian paper.

Dude. 30 seconds on Google.

. I am not sure if that is why founders of your country ever took up arms and fought back, but if that was the case, I look forward to you joining the war on behalf of the people in American Samoa who have been paying taxes for decades, but don't get a vote on who should be president, despite the POTUS being their head of state and drafting them into the Vietnam war.