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There are actually large empty towns in China because the wealth is actually disproportionate there and there are rich people who own property just because that is the only way to gain wealth. Money gets taken. But they can have their empty towns. Communism fail.

https://www.google.com/search?q=empty+chinese+towns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=rnmxUbHtDbGg4AOM7IHABA&ved=0CCoQsAQ&biw=1201&bih=814

http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1975397_2094492,00.html

http://www.news.com.au/business/china-building-mega-cities-but-they-remain-empty-sparking-fears-of-housing-bubble-burst/story-e6frfm1i-1226611169281

So you guys might not have to worry. People may never inhabit this structure. It might be purely for vanity.

Given that Fosters has something like a 45% share of the Australian market, some combination of this must be true: it still has fans, remains a guilty pleasure that isn't admitted to, or nobody can find enough export victims.

Okay, but no true Australian drinks it.

You're joking, right? We export that crap so we don't have to drink it.

Given that Fosters has something like a 45% share of the Australian market, some combination of this must be true: it still has fans, remains a guilty pleasure that isn't admitted to, or nobody can find enough export victims. At least it has some snappy advertising to help.

Frankly, I have no idea what can be done about vegemite. People have been warned.

Bill Gates to call on the Prime Minister to get this nipped in the bud in 4 3 2...........doh he was there yesterday!

  http://www.news.com.au/national-news/prime-minister-julia-gillard-meets-microsoft-founder-bill-gates-in-canberra/story-fncynjr2-1226652083384

China has really only gone from poverty when they abandoned communism. Look at China during the pro-communism era (Cultural Revolution) where historical sites were desecrated, many were killed and starved, and political and religious freedoms were suppressed.

Compare that to Hong Kong which has been (mostly) capitalist under British rule and it was much more prosperous (and still is!) than the rest of China.

Today, we can't even accurately tell the growth of China due to manipulated statistics, but China is undoubtedly in a bubble with manipulated statistics and fake construction ( http://www.news.com.au/business/china-building-mega-cities-but-they-remain-empty-sparking-fears-of-housing-bubble-burst/story-e6frfm1i-1226611169281 ) producing decent numbers but no wealth.

In my mind, the question is, did he use more than one negative to create the image, or cloning or additions? I agree, the simplest way to put the discussion to bed is for him to produce the original raw file. He claims he used one negative and no cloning. He is either telling the truth or he is lying. The practice he *claims* to have done is valid and accepted by all photojornalist and more importantly the awards rules. FWIW, As an amateur photographer myself, I would not consider what he *claims* to have done to be wrong.

The photojornalist's claim:

"In the post-process toning and balancing of the uneven light in the alleyway, I developed the raw file with different density to use the natural light instead of dodging and burning. In effect to recreate what the eye sees and get a larger dynamic range."

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/technology/photographer-says-his-2013-world-press-photo-of-the-year-is-not-a-fake/story-e6frfro0-1226642304141#ixzz2THb8ihps

If I were him I would post the original, and the post-production images side by side. It would be very easy for him to do.

Here we go: citation 1

Or another one: citation 2

the mars rover is tracking and recording our brainwaves also

That would explain this

Is this bill PR to divert attention? The government has given itself permission to breach privacy anyways: http://www.news.com.au/technology/nicola-roxon-backflip-gives-green-light-for-online-spying/story-e6frfro0-1226464553027 http://www.theaustralian.com.au/australian-it/government/data-retention-laws-risky-canberra-told/story-fn4htb9o-1226465841909

I realize that Australia has had some unique species but given the fact that the Cane Toad is threatening to wipe out native species and that people are having mass cane toad whacking parties. Why in the hell would they want to bring back another toad, er frog? I mean shouldn't they be spending their energies in coming up with a crocodile that eats cane toads or cats that have 5 inch saber like claws that could kill them? or maybe just an ad campaign "Cane Toad, it's what's for dinner mate!"

  This just seems so counter intuitive on so many levels.
 

...no, no -- that's not how it's going to be "picked up".

Let's take a look:

NBC News: Particle confirmed as Higgs boson

Associated Press: Physicists say they have found a Higgs boson

Reuters: Strong signs Higgs boson has been found: CERN

Wall Street Journal: New Data Boosts Case for Higgs Boson Find

FOX News: Physicists say they have found long-sought Higgs boson

Washington Post: A closer look at the Higgs boson particle that helps explain what gives matter size and shape

Chicago Tribune: Strong signs Higgs boson has been found: CERN

Sky News: Higgs Boson: Experts Sure Of 'God Particle'

New York Daily News: Physicists say they have discovered crucial subatomic particle known as Higgs boson

Boston Globe: Physicists say they have found a Higgs boson

BBC (UK): LHC cements Higgs boson identification

BusinessWeek: Case for Higgs Boson Strengthened by New CERN Analysis

The Daily Mail (UK): Scientists say they HAVE found the 'God particle' - but admit they still aren't sure what type of Higgs boson it is

The Independent (UK): Have they found the Higgs boson at last? Cern physicists say they're confident of 'God particle' breakthrough

Telegraph (UK): Higgs boson: scientists confident they have discovered the 'God particle'

News Limited (AU): Higgs boson, the God particle, discovered by CERN

US News and World Report: Physicists Observe Higgs Boson, the Elusive 'God Particle'

None of these articles make any links to "God" other than a few -- mostly UK, not US -- sources referring to it as the so-called "God particle", but even those explain exactly what this particle is theorized to be, not anything supernatural, "proving God exists", or having anything whatever to do with God.

We have equality in Australia then - http://www.news.com.au/national-news/nsw-act/uganda-tv-star-blasts-gina-rineharts-2-comments/story-fndo4bst-1226468099594 Where the richest woman in the world wants Aussies to work for $1 a day. How we're expected to pay out $500 a week rent on that is what the rest of Australia can't work out, but apparently Gina is a financial wizard who expects Aussie workers to do exactly that.

Even just one punch can result in death

Someone needs to let the Doc know about those:
http://resources0.news.com.au/images/2011/09/09/1226132/929308-back-to-the-future.jpg

Spy agency ASIO wants powers to hack into personal computers

Natasha Bita, National Social Editor / News Limited Network / January 13, 2013 12:00AM

http://www.news.com.au/technology/spy-agency-asio-wants-powers-to-hack-into-personal-computers/story-e6frfro0-1226552661701

"SPY agency ASIO[1] wants to hack into Australians' personal computers and commandeer their smartphones to transmit viruses to terrorists.

The Attorney-General's Department is pushing for new powers for the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation to hijack the computers of suspected terrorists.

But privacy groups are attacking the ''police state'' plan as ''extraordinarily broad and intrusive''.

A spokesman for the Attorney-General's Department said it was proposing that ASIO be authorised to ''use a third party computer for the specific purpose of gaining access to a target computer''.

''The purpose of this power is to allow ASIO to access the computer of suspected terrorists and other security interests,'' he told News Limited.

''(It would be used) in extremely limited circumstances and only when explicitly approved by the Attorney-General through a warrant.

''Importantly, the warrant would not authorise ASIO to obtain intelligence material from the third party computer.''

The Attorney-General's Department refused to explain yesterday how third-party computers would be used, ''as this may divulge operationally sensitive information and methods used by ASIO in sensitive national security investigations.''

But cyber specialist Andrew Pam, a board member of the Electronic Frontiers lobby group, predicted ASIO could copy the tactics of criminal hackers to seize control of target computers.

Australians' personal computers might be used to send a malicious email with a virus attached, or to load ''malware'' onto a website frequently visited by the target.

''This stuff goes on already in the commercial and criminal world, and security agencies could be using the same techniques to commandeer people's computers and use them to monitor a target,'' Mr Pam said.

''Once you get control of a computer and connect to their network you can do whatever you want.''

The ASIO Act now bans spies from doing anything that ''adds, deletes or alters data or interferes with, interrupts or obstructs the lawful use of the target computer by other persons''.

But ASIO wants the ban lifted, so Attorney-General Nicola Roxon can issue a warrant for spies to secretly intercept third-party computers to disrupt their target.

The departmental spokesman said the federal government had made ''no decisions'' about whether to grant ASIO the new power.

The government would first consider advice from the federal Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, which is reviewing national security legislation.

Victoria's acting Privacy Commissioner, Dr Anthony Bendall, has told the committee that ASIO's proposed new powers are ''characteristic of a police state.''

''To access a third party's computer, which has no connection with the target, is extraordinarily broad and intrusive,'' his submission states.

But the Attorney-General's Department insists that ASIO will not examine the content of third-party computers.

''The use of the third party computer is essentially like using a third party premises to gain access to the premises to be searched, where direct access is not possible,'' it states in response to questions from the committee.

''It involves no power to search or conduct surveillance on the third party.''

The department said technological advances had made it ''increasingly difficult'' for ASIO to execute search warrants directly on target computers, ''particularly where a person of interest is security conscious.''

Australian Council for Civil Liberties president Terry O'Gorman yest

[news.com.au]
[time.com]

The number of violent, dangerous, angry, sadistic cops on the force is nothing but an embarrassment for the state. Police brutality and perjury is not just routine it is expected by almost everyone.

They're not angry. They're simply psychopaths.

People become cops because they enjoy your suffering.

Those that become cops for other reasons often become psychopaths (Is that possible? Perhaps they simply demonstrate psychopathic behavior) as demonstrated in the much referenced Stanford Prison Experiment.

I held that same belief until I reminded myself that emotions and feelings have no place in facts. So I did my research using ...

In your research, you didn't stumble over a possible solution that doesn't involve a forced global conversion to a vegan diet?

When it comes down to a trial the recording will be lost. Bet on it.

It depends:

Sometimes the footage goes missing.

Other times it is salvaged.

"Doctors say thousands have suffered permanent eye damage from looking at total solar eclipse":
http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/health-fitness/doctors-say-thousands-have-suffered-permanent-eye-damage-from-looking-at-total-solar-eclipse/story-fneuzlbd-1226516924022

Here's an example where Google ignored the Privacy Commissioner: http://www.news.com.au/technology/google-fails-to-comply-with-privacy-commissioner-order-to-delete-street-view-data/story-e6frfro0-1226492591021

Where I'm from (Pittsburgh, PA), many bicyclists don't use hand signals or stop at red lights - They buzz right through.

While I can't comment on the stupidity of failing to stop at red lights, I have to offer a possible explanation for the lack of hand signals. Two words:

• Fear
• Ignorance

I'm afraid to even attempt to use hand signals because of the possibility of being confused with using gang signs and I say this as someone whose hard of hearing and uses (pidgin) ASL to communicate with Deaf friends. Even with ASL I'm nervous about using them in public, there have been too many stories of people being attacked or confused for being a gang banger over use of hand signs.

Ignorance also plays a factor. How many motorists would recognize bike hand signals if they saw them? How many would only see a hand movement and decide they were being flipped off by rude bikers?

What good does it do to use signals that are unknown and likely to get you killed if misinterpreted?

Recently there were two cases of FGM (female genital mutilation) discovered in the muslim community in Sydney , and now this.

Muslims already have a bad name here and have been accused of shoving their way into Australia on boats and trying to get sharia law instated (in Sydney, no less) on the grounds of how many muslims there are in one area

Of course that doesn't stop them from trying..

Now words like islamophobia are being thrown around while a 8 year old muslim girl calls for deaths

Harken also to the darling child with the sign stating that anyone who insults mohammad should be beheaded

They most interesting thing about all of this? Combine this together and you have muslims fleeing their countries due to war, war caused by islamic based religious differences, muslims attempting to replace existing laws with mediaeval sharia law in other countries, threats and actual violence in multiple counties for a video made in America, muslims cutting their female children's genitals and one little 8 year old girl calling upon her kind to wage war.
I do really wonder if she will feel the same way when they take her into a back room, hold her down, pull off her panties, and cut off her labia and clitoris. Perhaps this has already been done, and this bile and hatred we see from this 8 year old girl is due to the constant pain and misery she is in and will be in for the rest of her life.

I won't hold someone's beliefs against them. If you tell me that you think that a magical pony that shits rainbows helps you get through life then I will thank you for sharing your unique view of this world with me and get on with my life. Threatening me my family or my country is quite another thing. Actually attacking me, my family or my country just provides physical proof of suspected intentions.

I have to go now, my uncle took a glass bottle to the head recently, thanks to some people who came here from another country claiming that they were being threatened and wanting to get away from the war in their home land. How sad.

If you think that Android is not full of spyware, I have a bridge to sell you.

But I am only using the pre-installed Apps, straight from the factory in China, Oh Wait.....

To a computer, traffic density and room to maneuver shouldn't matter. I'm just pointing out that flying has become much much safer with automation. The machine is extremely safe and reliable, and with very few exceptions*, almost to the point of being statistically insignificant, pilot error remains virtually the only outstanding issue now And the same will apply to automobiles.

* which to me are not being handled properly, but such is the nature of human economics.

No, all Americans are too fat to fit into their cowboy boots anymore ;=)

Fail.

One could write an entire article about what you don't know about US fashion.

I kid, of course.

Ludlam fiercely opposed the proposed data retention laws, but said he backed this reform to police power.

They seemed to be against some previous bill, but approve this one. Am I reading it right? If so, then screw them.

Mate, I don't think you are reading right.

The current legislation allow the police wiretap phone calls with a valid warrant. Extra police power may be needed in regards with Internet traffic - because, even with a valid warrant, they can't "wiretap" the internet traffic without the ISP collaboration. To bring back the balance, there is a need of a law requiring the ISP to "wiretap". And, this would be this reform to police power the Ludlam may be thinking is necessary.

Now, for phone tapping, the pre-existence of a valid warrant is necessary. Why Internet should be different? Why the police should be able require an ISP to "retain traffic" even without a warrant - as required by this law opposed by Ludlam?
Letting aside the matter of the "wiretapped person rights", why should the ISP pay for the storage and the cost of securing that storage (as one of the latest anonymous stunts was to show that any captured data by an ISP isn't that easy to secure?).

Flame got its name from itself, as it referenced itself in module and constant names as FLAME_

See for example screenshots of its source here and here. Or do a Google picture search for Flame yourself.

Actually, the costs without the wars has been over $1 trillion. If it were a billion, it wouldn't really be that much in the scheme of things, as it would be around $100 million per year since then.

What was the damage brought on by 9/11? Billions, and maybe even tens of billions. It was a lot of money, but did it justify a trillion dollars in spending? I tend to think that's a bit much. Lock the cockpit doors--that cost a few hundred million. Prevent non-passengers from going to the gate--that might have cost some terminal retailers and restaurants some money, but it might also have saved money by lowering operational costs such as cleaning and by shorter lines in the security scanners.

There are other things, but even in China, passengers no longer put up with hijackings. Absent someone willing to set off a competent bomb--something that was rare before 9/11 anyway--the risk is not really that much greater than it was, and is arguably lower. Said arguments generally come from people with much greater experience in the field than me, but the gist of it is clear to anyone who looks at it rationally.

What a peculiar example. I never thought of Usain Bolt as someone who was that bothered about what he wore on his feet. The man ran an Olympic-record-destroying time with his left shoelace untied after all...

and possibly other airlines http://www.news.com.au/travel/news/leap-second-crashes-qantas-and-leaves-passengers-stranded/story-e6frfq80-1226413961235

They're probably more worried that they might want to use their toilets.

Don't forget the Norwegian mass-murderer played World of Warcraft obsessively, so everyone who does this as well should be suspect.

Article from 2009 http://www.news.com.au/technology/german-teen-shouryya-ray-solves-300-year-old-mathematical-riddle-posed-by-sir-isaac-newton/story-e6frfro0-1226368490157#ixzz1w3LI5N1w' Bernoulli numbers solved by a 16 year-old. In this case an immigrant from Iraq living in Sweden. Bernoulli instead of Newton. But essential the same story.

So for people who put down the $30 to pre-order or $50 to pre-order the collectors edition have lost that cash. So I'd hardly say it's business as usual... My wife plans to pick up a few games from there but I'm still of the opinion that we should just get them from ebay or ozgameshop.com where it's cheaper anyway.

Interesting though, about an 8% vote for the Pirate party in Germany, and about an 8% vote for the Nazi party in Greece..

Greek neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party

Please understand that this guy has been attempting to manipulate Australian media coverage by trying to make crazy sounding headlines to distract from negative reports about his political allies.

Absolutely. It's just Crazy Clive at work - if this ship ever sails I'll eat my hat.

Clive sure as day has a hole in him, but I don't think he would sink!
clive-parmer.jpg

Please understand that this guy has been attempting to manipulate Australian media coverage by trying to make crazy sounding headlines to distract from negative reports about his political allies.

If anyone is interested, the video of an Australia spider eating a snake is interesting - http://www.news.com.au/travel/news/spider-eats-snake-caught-on-camera/story-e6frfq80-1226332961171

So, if we use this as an analogy .. who is the snake and who is the spider?
I think I'll go that.. the RIAA/MPAA/AFACT think that their customers are snakes.. and they are the spider (they want to control the web) .. and in this case the spider gets one over the snake.

Send more tourists!
The last batch were delicious.

Good reform? Doesn't look like it so far. Perhaps it is a case of wait and see.

Taking jobs? No. Breaking the law.
No issues with refugees, serious issues with people whos first act is to break the law. Good introduction right there. Anyone who doesn't want to blend with Australian culture doesn't have to come here.

5%? Fair enough. I think I've just heard of the bad cases then.

Batts waste? I was referring to the government putting up a scheme and not properly managing it. Yes, there is waste when so many houses claimed more than they needed to. For example, reports that they were not measuring houses, and just claiming the maximum.Fraud of several types. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/thousands-of-pink-batts-rorts-exposed/story-fn59niix-1225939385270

Numbers?
http://www.news.com.au/money/money-matters/ato-turns-heat-on-pink-batt-tax-cheaters/story-e6frfmd9-1226103882689

There's a bunch more articles floating around.

I wasn't saying it was the Government's fault for bad trandesmen practices. I'm saying that it was a good idea that they just didn't think through.

Bloody RTD tax :(

Perhaps in future they will have no choice but to run it all past the greens.. only question will be is whether or not Australia will be better or worse off.

By donkey vote, I actually mean just leaving the ballot slips blank, not ordering in preference. I can't find a citation saying the numbers rose, but I remember it being discussed in the news on account of this twit

I understand your feelings, and I just posted about why this stuff should be deleted. However, when this thing blew up I became curious about the correlations between child porn and child predation.

I found these: http://www.news.com.au/study-finds-no-link-between-child-porn-and-sex-abuse/story-0-1225749645592
http://www.physorg.com/news/2010-11-legalizing-child-pornography-linked-sex.html

It appears that child porn may not lead people to child predation, and perhaps the availability of what is or resembles child pornography can even lower child predation. I don't know how you separate 'harmless' use of child porn from the coupled market-making that would encourage actual predators to make more for these mere users. Nevertheless, it appears that child porn may not cause behavior escalation any more than snuff films produce serial killers or marijuana produces crackheads. In my opinion, there's likely something wrong with predators, chronic addicts, and serial murderers that goes well beyond the content and availability of their "soft" content like pot or movies. It looks like child porn leading to child predation may be one more "gateway" theory in which the correlation is far weaker than we believed.

I obviously don't support watching or producing child porn, snuff films, or even necessarily pot - but newer data suggests the situation may be a lot more complicated than people think.

Australia is not in the UK. We have our own laws seperate from the empire.

Although according to this article they have identified 100 customers and will be pursuing them for recieving stolen goods. I dont know how that'll go in court though.

The problem with this is The Wall Street Journal is now just another rag spewing the opinions of its owner, Rupert Murdoch.

And Rupert Murdoch's climate change skepticism and his willingness to push this agenda through his news empire through conservative fanboys and other stories is long documented. A simple google search on Rupert Murdoch climate change shows just how ridiculous it is to put your faith in any climate change story from a News Corp, News International or News Limited organisation - even if they're right.

In fact Rupert Murdoch's fanboys have done such an excellent job of muddying the waters and inciting mindless division that its almost impossible now to have a constructive debate on the topic. Which was always the intention IMO. Arguments sell newspapers.

And of course the "content providers" such as News Corp/Ltd don't seem averse to making liberal use of other people's content either.

If only Slashdot had thought to patent taking a reasonably well written article and having someone badly paraphrase it.

I was going to say the same thing. Telstra (in Australia) got a lot of flak from introducing a paper bill charge and reversed it - but they aren't the only one...

http://www.news.com.au/money/money-matters/telstra-drops-fee-to-pay-telephone-bill/story-e6frfmd9-1225794125751

The way I see it is that internet billing has reduced their costs considerably, so the few people who need to have a paper bill (usually older people who haven't cottoned on to the internet) should be extended the courtesy of a paper bill free of charge (with the internet payers essentially subsidising them). This small group of paper users will slowly decrease to zero.

That's just a lot of fingerpointing and maybes. What happened is that someone of them found an easily exploitable site, possibly an sql injection or a known vulnerability in an off the shelf software. They then made up a silly excuse about how it is righteous for them to hack said site and did so. Previously they have exploited a message boards softwares failure to strip html tags to post flashing images on a board for epileptics, blaming any seizures caused by said images on the webmasters failure to secure his software. Dumped customer email and usernames to a porn site because uh.. people looking at porn are bad? Hacked a Finnish government site becasue uh... Finland is ruled by a brutal military regime suppressing freedom of expression?

Quick update on this: http://www.news.com.au/technology/tablets/samsung-wins-australian-appeal-case-in-apple-tablet-war/story-fn6vigfp-1226210226842 They can't actually start selling yet, and apple are trying to overturn the overturned decision. And why would you get a Galaxy tab, especially now that the Transformer is out and about

Well, at least you chaps over in the US aren't alone. I submitted a story about six weeks ago about two malls in Australia that were using the exact same technology. It made the local papers here, but never prominently.

It's okay, soon, we will forget about it and given that other countries are also doing it, we will accept it as the norm.

*sips coffee*