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"are you even Australian, because if you were, you'd call it a bushfire"

Deliberate, point to one other "bushfire" that has melted windsreens and engine blocks or one where the radiant heat could kill people taking refuge in the middle of a footy field with blankets? I drove through Kilmore on the evening on the Feb fires, I also witnessed ash wednesday and the '68 fires up close. The 15km high smoke plume from the Feb firestorm was more like Mt Pinatobo than a bushfire.

"see the regrowth now"

Because it all has to happen insantaneously or it's not happening at all, right?

"Toxic lakes and dead red gums are a reflection of water management policies"

Agreed, AGW is simply the proverbial straw.

"Melbourne haven't built a new dam in over 20 years"

We haven't been able to get close to filling the ones we have for the last 20yrs. Or are you suggesting we continue mismanaging water by damming the Mitchell and depriving the most fertile valley in the state of water while simultanously turning lakes entrance toxic?

"Tasmania does not lack water"

You have a valid point in that domestic water restrictions were lifted in Feb 2007 for Hobart, however basslink are claiming this is due to their ability to IMPORT power and thus avoid running the hydro turbines.

"Issues with occasional dust storms date back to the first European arrivals"

I wasn't talking about the occasional dust storm. I was talking about the fact that there is a light sprinkling of dust virtualy every morning on my car for the last 10-15yrs. I've lived in Melbourne for nigh on 50yrs, that is neither "normal" or "occasional".

You may also want to check some of your other assumptions with the CSIRO

Green policies are to blame? - under a decade long Howard government? - hehe hoho 'tis to laugh.

Except that they aren't patent trolls - they are the Australian Government's science organisation - Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), they have been in this battle for quite a while.

Read up on the WLAN stuff here http://www.csiro.gov.au/science/wireless-LANs.html

Then get back to us when you think that inventing wireless networking technology is easy and doesn't warrant the possibility of being patented.

A company in Australia is developing this type of technology for self-contained power generation in remote locations (and 3rd world countries/natural disaster areas). They are using a parabolic dish made from mirror polished bands of stainless steel. Stainless steel (while expensive) stands up to bad weather much better than glass mirrors - and by making the dish with bands (with gaps in between them) you reduce the effect that wind had on the dish.

They are making a dish that isn't affected by wind (except for wind that flattens buildings) doesn't get damaged by hail (unless it's bigger than a cricket ball) and is only 5% less efficient than the same size mirror dish. They don't have a website worth mentioning - but they are developing all this in conjunction with the CSIRO - so you may find something here (CSIRO) http://www.csiro.gov.au/ about it all. Look for Sterling engine power generation. The CSIRO did publish something recently in a subscription only publication about this.

In case you were wondering how I know - my brother works for the small electronics firm that came up with the parabolic dish idea. They have also come up with a sun tracking mechanism that costs $15 to manufacture.

Pity a 5KW generation system costs $25000 all up - but they expect it to last for 25 years or more.

All dollar figures here are Australian Pesos.

Oh yeah - they get around the "How do you generate electricity at night without sunlight light" issue, by using the dish to heat up 300KG (or so) of salt and graphite - which then acts as a heat battery. Apparently they can run the Stirling engine for 3 days or so after the Salt Cell gets to about 900 degrees centigrade.

One of their other tech products is super-capacitors for "portable electronic devices" which extends the life of the batteries (that digital camera of yours may very well have CSIRO tech inside it.).

Government sponsored research laboritories.

Wow! Goldfish(Carp) are one of the most hardy fish around and will survive in the most disgusting sespool.

This introduced pest has devistated our waterways here in Oz and has proven so far to be virtually indistructable.

And yet you can kill them in just two days!

I am sure the CSIRO would love to talk to you.