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Tucker Carlson hits back at "stupid" Aussie journalist

<p>The poster boy for conservative America has locked horns with an Aussie journalist in a heated exchange that has gone viral.</p> <p>Tucker Carlson, a former Fox News host in the USA and all round controversial figure, is currently doing the rounds Down Under as a guest of Clive Palmer, and took to the stage to make a speech at the Australian Freedom Conference at the Hyatt Hotel in Canberra on Tuesday. </p> <p>With his signature move being to look for an argument, Carlson found a worthy opponent in AAP Newswire’s Kat Wong, who wasted no time in attempting to get under the 55-year-old’s skin.</p> <p>Wong quizzed Carlson about his controversial immigration views, saying he had “talked” about the “Great Replacement Theory” and how “white Australians, Americans and Europeans” are being replaced by “non-white immigrants”, but Carlson was quick to challenge the question.</p> <p>“Whites are being replaced? I don’t think I said that,” he interjected.</p> <p>“Well, it’s been mentioned on your show 4000 times,” Wong replied.</p> <p>“Really? When did I say that? I said ‘whites’ are being replaced?” he responded.</p> <p>When Wong insisted he had, Carlson challenged her to “cite that”.</p> <p>“I said native-born Americans are being replaced, including blacks,” he continued.</p> <p>“African-Americans have been in the United States, in many cases, for more than 400 years and their concerns are as every bit as real and valid and alive to me as the concerns of white people whose families have been there for 400 years."</p> <p>“I’ve never said that ‘whites’ are being replaced. Not one time and you can’t cite it.”</p> <p>When Wong said “I believe that’s untrue”, Carlson took it up a level.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Meet the Australian media. <a href="https://t.co/IyiEqihPkb">pic.twitter.com/IyiEqihPkb</a></p> <p>— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) <a href="https://twitter.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1806034521369776406?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 26, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p>“We just met, but when our relationship starts with a lie, it makes it tough to be friends,” he said.</p> <p>“You actually can’t cite it because I didn’t say it and I don’t believe it, and I’m telling you that to your face. So, why don’t you just accept me at face value?”</p> <p>Carlson doubled down on his views by calling immigration "immoral", saying governments were negligent by “shifting their concern” to immigrants in order to solve the population growth. </p> <p>“In my view, happy people have children,” he said. “And a functioning economy allows them to do that.”</p> <p>“So you need to fix the economy and fix the culture so the people who want to have kids can,” he continued. “You don’t just go for the quick sugar fix of importing new people. That’s my position and if you think that’s racist, that’s your problem.”</p> <p>Wong replied by saying “I never called you a racist” but it only fired Carlson up more.</p> <p>“But of course, you are suggesting … I must say one of the reasons why people don’t like people like you in the media is that you never say exactly what you mean,” Carlson said.</p> <p>“Your slurs are all by implication. You’re about to tell me the Great Replacement Theory is racist or antisemitic, whatever. I’ve said what I’ve said to you right now like 100 times in public."</p> <p>“I hope to, if I live long enough, to say it 100 more times. I think it’s completely honest and real, not racist or scary. It’s factually true. It’s not a theory, it’s a fact."</p> <p>Carlson then took the fight to the issue of gun control when Wong suggested that it is Americans the same immigration theories that turn to violence and commit mass shootings, to which Carlson quickly rejected as he took aim at Wong.  </p> <p>“Oh god, come on,” Carlson said. “How do they get people this stupid in the media? I guess it doesn’t pay well. Look, I’m sorry, I’ve lived among people like you for too long. I don’t mean to call you stupid, maybe you’re just pretending to be."</p> <p>He clarified his stance by saying, "But I’m totally against violence."</p> <p>But Wong wouldn’t stop her line of questioning, asking “Right, so therefore you support gun control?” </p> <p>“What?! I thought it couldn’t get dumber, but it did,” he said.</p> <p>“No, I don’t support disarming law-abiding people so they can’t defend themselves, so the government has a monopoly on violence. I don’t think so."</p> <p>Before leaving the stage, Carlson took a broad swipe at Australian media, saying, "I got here and the country is so unbelievably beautiful, and the people are so cheerful and funny, and cool, and smart. "</p> <p>“I’m like, ‘your media has got to be better than ours. It can’t just be a bunch of castrated robots reading questions from the boss’."</p> <p>“And then it turns out it’s exactly the same. Maybe even a tiny bit dumber.”</p> <p>A lengthy clip of the tense exchange has since gone viral amongst conservative X users, with <em>Sky News Australia</em> host Rita Panahi chiming in on the discourse. </p> <p>“If you are going to show up and make outrageous claims and try to connect Tucker Carlson to mass killers, then I don’t know, perhaps go to the trouble of citing a source, have a direct quote from the man,” Ms Panahi said.</p> <p>“Otherwise, you are going to look like an absolute fool.”</p> <p><em>Image credits: LUKAS COCH/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock Editorial </em></p> <p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 24px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </p>

News

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Woman slams parking note asking if she was “truly disabled”

<p dir="ltr">A driver has been left fuming after an “entitled” parking note was left on her mother’s car accusing them of misusing a disabled parking spot.</p> <p dir="ltr">Canberra resident Cheyenne took to <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/canberra/comments/12x8cr9/the_absolute_gall_to_leave_this_on_my_mothers_car/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reddit</a> to share her horrific experience and a photo of the note left on her mother’s car.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Hi, are you truly disabled,” the note read.</p> <p dir="ltr">“You both walked from your car like athletes. Please follow the rules.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Cheyenne who was left fuming at the situation captioned the post with “The absolute gall to leave this on my mother’s car in Gungahlin shops parking.”.</p> <p dir="ltr">She then explained: “My mother is disabled, her disability isn’t visible. She was legally given a disability parking permit because she is DISABLED! What a moron”.</p> <p dir="ltr">Speaking to <a href="https://au.news.yahoo.com/aussie-woman-slams-entitled-parking-note-how-dare-they-041811992.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>Yahoo</em> News Australia</a>, Cheyenne said that “it’s frustrating” because her mum doesn’t look like she has a disability, even though she has “multiple”.</p> <p dir="ltr">She also explained that her mum has suffered with a polycystic kidney and liver. After a kidney transplant caused further health issues, she was granted a disability badge.</p> <p dir="ltr">"Because she has all of her limbs and is able-bodied, many people have the wrong idea and get entitled," Cheyenne added.</p> <p dir="ltr">Other Reddit users have shared similar experiences.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I have arthritis in my spine and elsewhere – disabling, yet completely invisible. Have had old women yell at me for parking in the disabled spots, despite having a permit,” one user wrote.</p> <p dir="ltr">“My mother recently had surgery so she’s not able to drive. Ordinarily she has a disabled permit anyway. I picked her up from a doctor's checkup and a woman gave me a serve for parking in the disabled bay as I was picking up my mum. People are so quick to judge,” wrote another.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I’m sorry you found this note on your car. There’s no need to ever justify why you have a disabled ‘sticker’. It’s no-one’s business but your own,” commented a third.</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: Reddit</em></p>

Caring

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The most perfectly pink property to hit the market

<p>Who ever said there was such thing as too much pink?</p> <p>Not this homeowner, who has listed their perfectly pastel property for sale in Canberra. </p> <p>After passing at auction, the charming two-bedroom home in the suburb of <a href="https://www.domain.com.au/10-euroka-street-narrabundah-act-2604-2018451630?utm_source=nine.com.au&amp;utm_medium=cpc&amp;utm_campaign=editorial-content" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Narrabundah</a> is expected to sell for more than $1 million in a private sale. </p> <p>The home, which looks like it has been blessed by Barbie herself, boasts various shades of pink everywhere you look. </p> <p>Everything and the kitchen sink is pink in this house, including the cabinetry, windows, wall paint and tiles all boasting varying shades of blush. </p> <p>After entering through a hot pink door on the pastel pink house, prospective buyers are met with a state of the art kitchen, which has fairy floss pink cabinets in contrast with glossy black appliances. </p> <p>The bathroom a pink-lover's fantasy, showcasing a baby pink basin crafted from onyx from Afghanistan, atop an antique-style set of drawers, encased in banks of lipstick pink subway tiles.</p> <p>The house, which truly embraces the latest "Barbiecore" trend, also has a series of stained-glass windows and bright pink feature walls throughout.</p> <p>While the "proud aesthetic" of this house may not be to everyone's taste, there is sure to be a fuchsia-fanatic who would be tickled pink to call this pastel palace home. </p> <p><em>Image credits: Domain</em></p>

Real Estate

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"The time for lip service is over": Dylan Alcott serves it up to Centrelink

<p>During his appearance at the Jobs and Skills summit in Canberra, Aussie tennis legend Dylan Alcott delivered an impassioned speech on behalf of all people with disabilities, demanding they be allowed to work more hours without losing their Centrelink benefits.</p> <p>His plea comes as the nation suffers through what's been widely characterised as an extreme labour shortage – with Alcott's rallying cry to change the current rules surrounding employment and the disability pension powerfully underlined by his parting shot that "the time for lip service is over".</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">"My whole life it hasn't changed": Australian of the Year Dylan Alcott has called for an increase in workplace participation for Australians living with a disability during the government's jobs and skills summit in Canberra.<br />Read more on the jobs summit: <a href="https://t.co/iyFrzKUT9l">https://t.co/iyFrzKUT9l</a> <a href="https://t.co/MFdrsEoADy">pic.twitter.com/MFdrsEoADy</a></p> <p>— SBS News (@SBSNews) <a href="https://twitter.com/SBSNews/status/1565218388716261377?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 1, 2022</a></p></blockquote> <p>The Australian of the Year suggested that people with disabilities should have the advantage of picking up more work without losing Centrelink payments. Presenting the moving speech to 140 attendees, he spoke passionately about the current state of affairs for people with disabilities in the workforce.</p> <p>“Nearly 4.5 million people in this country have some form of physical or non-physical disability, visible or invisible, and only 54% of them are enrolled in the workforce,” he said</p> <p>“I'm 31 years old, that participation rate hasn't changed in 28 years. My whole life. It hasn't changed.</p> <p>“And to be honest, that's not fair. That really isn't fair. Because people with a disability are ready to have the choice if they want to work, just like anybody else.”</p> <p>“The time for lip service is over to be honest, because we've been getting that for a long time.”</p> <p>Australia's unemployment rate currently sits at 3.4% – however, the unemployment rate of people with disabilities is almost triple that.</p> <p>Alcott suggests the best solution to combat the problem is to allow those on disability support payments to work more hours without losing their benefits. Currently someone on that payment loses 50c in every dollar they earn over $190 a fortnight, putting them off working extra hours.</p> <p>“There are so many opportunities to get out there and work at the moment, yet it's not really translating into people with disabilities getting that chance,” Alcott said.</p> <p>“We need to have the opportunity to get out there and have a crack.”</p> <p><em>Image: Getty</em></p>

Money & Banking

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Canberra airport shooting: gunman arrested

<p>A 63-year-old man has been arrested after he allegedly fired several shots inside Canberra airport on Sunday.</p> <p>His rampage caused several bullet holes in terminal windows, and the evacuation of the airport.</p> <p>ACT police said one person was taken into custody and a firearm was recovered after the shooting, with no reported injuries from the scene. </p> <p>On Monday morning, ACT police confirmed the man has been charged with firearm offences and will remain in police custody.</p> <p>Police will allege the man arrived at the airport about 1.20pm on Sunday when he sat near the southern check-in desks on the first floor. </p> <p>Around 1.25pm, the man allegedly withdrew a firearm and fired a number of shots into the windows of the building.</p> <p>The man has been charged with discharging a firearm at a building, unlawful possession of a firearm and discharging a firearm near a person causing alarm, police said.</p> <p>He will face ACT magistrates court on Monday.</p> <p>All planes were grounded during the shooting, while some parts of the airport were evacuated while others were locked down. </p> <p>Frightened travellers documented their experience during the shooting online, with some witnesses saying they heard "8 to 10 gunshots".</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">More than a dozen police cars and an ambulance at Canberra airport, after reports of gunshots fired inside the terminal this afternoon. One witness told me they heard “8 to 10 shots”. Hundreds of people outside after the airport was evacuated <a href="https://t.co/wJQ8rsdRv7">pic.twitter.com/wJQ8rsdRv7</a></p> <p>— Josh Butler (@JoshButler) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoshButler/status/1558670417443037184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 14, 2022</a></p></blockquote> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">From Facebook: “Fun times at Canberra Airport. All evacuated due to gunman. None hurt from what I understand. Suspect apprehended by AFP.” <a href="https://t.co/ErnNj9KHlB">pic.twitter.com/ErnNj9KHlB</a></p> <p>— ayden dawkins (@AydenDawkins) <a href="https://twitter.com/AydenDawkins/status/1558666478882549760?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 14, 2022</a></p></blockquote> <p>ABC reporter Dan Bourchier was on the tarmac at the time and said the plane was held as police did a “security sweep”.</p> <p>Another man, who declined to give his name, said, “They told us ‘run, run’. It was very scary.”</p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p>

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Canberra takes out bronze in worldwide healthy city rankings

<p dir="ltr">The world’s healthiest cities have been crowned for 2022, with Australia’s capital claiming bronze.</p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-d9998b29-7fff-7f0e-603c-b9722c8b99bb">A <a href="https://www.money.co.uk/mortgages/healthiest-places" target="_blank" rel="noopener">new study</a> from Money.co.uk has ranked Canberra in third place, two places higher than last year’s rankings.</span></p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CaOaNydoLR5/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CaOaNydoLR5/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Visit Canberra (@visitcanberra)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p dir="ltr">The study analysed a range of factors, including obesity levels, life expectancy, air pollution, the number of sunlight hours, and safety, along with some related to the pandemic such as healthcare accessibility and the number of healthcare professionals in each country.</p> <p dir="ltr">Though the study ranked Japan as the healthiest country to live in, the top two healthiest cities were both in Spain, with Valencia retaining the top position for another year.</p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-72c27626-7fff-aa9f-16b9-d60a9b53a913"></span></p> <p dir="ltr">Australia also cracked the healthiest countries list, coming in 16th place.</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/Cagbx_5qF8I/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Cagbx_5qF8I/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Visit Canberra (@visitcanberra)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p dir="ltr">According to the study, Canberra significantly improved from 2021 to 2022. It is one of the safest cities in the world, has a high average life expectancy at 82.9 years, and experiences a whopping 2,813.7 hours of sunlight each year.</p> <p dir="ltr">In fact, the capital city ranked second when it came to cities with the cleanest air, followed by Wellington.</p> <p dir="ltr">Other Australian cities that made the list include Adelaide in 9th place and Brisbane in 16th place.</p> <p dir="ltr"><span id="docs-internal-guid-a9970f9c-7fff-e0d6-ea6e-255dfb6c5763"></span></p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: @visitcanberra (Instagram)</em></p>

Domestic Travel

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Drones are now delivering groceries in Canberra – how does it work?

<p>Major Australian supermarket Coles yesterday announced <a href="https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/7641084/supermarket-to-offer-drone-delivery-for-grocery-items-in-canberra/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-type="URL" data-id="https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/7641084/supermarket-to-offer-drone-delivery-for-grocery-items-in-canberra/">the launch of its partnership</a> with drone delivery service <a href="https://wing.com/en_au/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-type="URL" data-id="https://wing.com/en_au/">Wing</a> to bring drone-delivered groceries to customers in Canberra.</p> <p>The battery-powered <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/technology/robotics/drones-for-good/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-type="URL" data-id="https://cosmosmagazine.com/technology/robotics/drones-for-good/">drones</a> have a one-metre wingspan, weigh about 4.8 kilograms, and are equipped with both fixed wings and hover propellers, allowing them to behave as miniature versions of both aeroplanes and helicopters. They can travel at speeds of more than 110 km/h and carry packages of up to 1.2 kilograms.</p> <p>According to Simon Rossi, General Manager at Wing Australia, the drones typically require less energy to make a delivery than a kettle does to boil. </p> <p><strong>So how does drone delivery work? </strong></p> <p>Products can be ordered using the Wing app. Coles is currently offering delivery of more than 250 of its most popular grocery items, including bread, fresh produce, healthcare items, and toilet paper. </p> <p>When the order is received, the products are packed and loaded onto a drone, which ascends to its flying altitude of about 45 metres above ground and sets off for the delivery location. The drone will follow a route planned by Wing’s unmanned traffic management (UTM) software. </p> <p>“The aircraft automatically monitors its systems to make sure it is safe to fly and will prevent take-off or automatically take contingency actions if a problem is detected,” Rossi explains.  </p> <p>“Our trained remote aircraft pilots oversee everything to make sure the system is operating smoothly.” </p> <p>Once arrived, the drone descends to its delivery height of about seven metres above ground and hovers as it lowers the package to the ground on a tether. The package is automatically released, and the drone returns to the delivery facility. </p> <p>Customers can track the progress of their delivery on the Wing app. According to Wing, the company’s fastest delivery time to date is two minutes and 47 seconds from order to delivery. </p> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"> <div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> <div class="entry-content-asset"> <div class="embed-wrapper"> <div class="inner"><iframe title="Wing's drone delivery service in action in Australia" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4xrCuPACmq8?feature=oembed" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div> </div> </div> </div> </figure> <p><strong>Is drone delivery catching on?</strong></p> <p>Wing has existing drone delivery partnerships with several businesses in both Canberra and Logan, Queensland. The service also has a presence in the US and Finland. </p> <p>According to Rossi, the company completed more than 100,000 drone deliveries in Australia in 2021, and 30,000 in the first two months of 2022. </p> <p>Early feedback from customers on the partnership with Coles in Canberra has been positive, he says. </p> <p>“Customers are ordering a range of items including pantry staples like bread, eggs, and milk, fresh produce and convenience meals, as well as health care items like over-the-counter cough medicine and bandages.”</p> <p><strong>Are there any risks to drone delivery? </strong></p> <p>Adding large numbers of unmanned flying machines to the air would seem to have the potential to be disruptive. </p> <div class="newsletter-box"> <div id="wpcf7-f6-p183733-o1" class="wpcf7" dir="ltr" lang="en-US" role="form"> <form class="wpcf7-form mailchimp-ext-0.5.56 resetting spai-bg-prepared" action="/technology/robotics/drone-delivery-groceries-canberra/#wpcf7-f6-p183733-o1" method="post" novalidate="novalidate" data-status="resetting"> <p style="display: none !important;"><span class="wpcf7-form-control-wrap referer-page"><input class="wpcf7-form-control wpcf7-text referer-page spai-bg-prepared" name="referer-page" type="hidden" value="https://cosmosmagazine.com/technology/robotics/drone-delivery-groceries-canberra/" data-value="https://cosmosmagazine.com/technology/robotics/drone-delivery-groceries-canberra/" aria-invalid="false" /></span></p> <p><!-- Chimpmail extension by Renzo Johnson --></form> </div> </div> <p>“Perhaps Wing’s most interesting feature is its airspace integration and deconfliction,” says Pauline Pounds, an associate professor in information technology and electrical engineering at the University of Queensland. </p> <p>“Balancing the needs of CASA [the Civil Aviation Safety Authority], commercial aviation operators and other drone operators requires some care.”</p> <p>Because they fly in a zone between ‘ground clutter’ and manned aviation traffic, the drones are likely to remain comparatively safe. This also helps explain why flying drones are increasingly integrated into our everyday lives, while driverless cars languish on the sidelines. </p> <p>“It’s far easier to build a robot to fly in clear air where obstacles are rare, rather than on roads where pedestrians and human drivers may behave erratically,” says Pounds. </p> <p>However, the drones’ airspace won’t be completely risk-free. </p> <p>“A collision between a drone and a bird is unlikely to be a pleasant experience for either,” Pounds admits. </p> <p><strong>Is drone delivery the future of grocery shopping?</strong></p> <p>Unfortunately, a drone can’t yet do your entire weekly grocery shop for you, and Rossi emphasises that this isn’t the service’s intention. </p> <p>“Rather, it is to enable customers to quickly order small grocery and convenience items, coffees, and snacks which they may need in a hurry,” he says. </p> <p>But could it be done one day?</p> <p>“Scaling drones to carry heavier payloads is a fundamental challenge: the more the drone carries, the shorter its flight will be,” says Pounds. </p> <p>“Drones are optimised for specific payload-range characteristics. Improving performance requires more energy-dense batteries, more efficient propulsion systems; the same limitations that hold back flying cars. </p> <p>“However, a distributed network of mini-aerodromes allowing packages to make many short hops – like a drone ‘Pony Express’ – could allow these systems to scale without limit, much like mobile phone base station cells.” </p> <p>Coles frames the new partnership with Wing as part of its strategy to become Australia’s most sustainable supermarket, as drone delivery options could reduce the need for cars and trucks. </p> <p>Wing also emphasise their green credentials, describing drone delivery as “one of the fastest, safest and most environmentally friendly modes of delivering goods when compared to a truck or car”. </p> <p>But with the drones only able to carry a kilo or two, would environmentally-conscious supermarkets be better off investing in electric cars and trucks instead? </p> <p>“Flying is innately energy-intensive and will always be more demanding than a comparable electric vehicle rolling the same distance, but drones fly directly point to point and do not require detours or stop at traffic lights,” says Pounds. </p> <p>“However, both drones and wheeled electric vehicles also have differing manufacturing, maintenance and disposal costs; whether autonomous cars or drones turn out to be more energy efficient over their lifetimes has yet to be seen.”</p> <p><!-- Start of tracking content syndication. Please do not remove this section as it allows us to keep track of republished articles --></p> <p><img id="cosmos-post-tracker" style="opacity: 0; height: 1px!important; width: 1px!important; border: 0!important; position: absolute!important; z-index: -1!important;" src="https://syndication.cosmosmagazine.com/?id=183733&amp;title=Drones+are+now+delivering+groceries+in+Canberra+%E2%80%93+how+does+it+work%3F" width="1" height="1" data-spai-target="src" data-spai-orig="" data-spai-exclude="nocdn" /></p> <p><!-- End of tracking content syndication --></p> <div id="contributors"> <p><em><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/technology/robotics/drone-delivery-groceries-canberra/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">This article</a> was originally published on <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cosmos Magazine</a> and was written by <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/contributor/matilda-handlsey-davis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Matilda Handsley-Davis</a>. Matilda is a science writer at Cosmos. She holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Science (Honours) from the University of Adelaide.</em></p> <p><em>Image: Wing (Facebook)</em></p> </div>

Technology

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Ben Fordham unleashes on Canberra's "most toxic politician"

<p>Talk show host Ben Fordham has described Senato Lidia Thorpe as the "most toxic politician in Canberra" after she blasted Scott Morrison for his Stolen Generations speech in parliament.</p> <p>When the Prime Minister said "the hardest [word] is I forgive you" when referring to the national apology to the Stolen Generations, Senator Thorpe said Scott Morrison had shown "outright disrespect" to the Indigenous children who were removed from their families.</p> <p>Writing on Twitter, the Greens senator said, "This is outright disrespect to all those effected by Stolen Generations in this country. How dare you ask for forgiveness when you still perpetrate racist policies and systems that continue to steal our babies."</p> <p>In response to Lidia's statement, Fordham labelled her a "lunatic", saying "she doesn't belong" in parliament.</p> <p>He said, "Senator Thorpe is possibly the most toxic politician in Canberra, and that's saying something."</p> <p>"Her conduct is embarrassing. She entered office in 2020 and ever since she's had an appetite for destruction."</p> <p>Fordham went on to call Senator Thorpe a "fruit cake" and "unhinged" over previous instances of political passion in the Senate.</p> <p>The PM's "apology" was condemned by Indigenous Australians, as The First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria slammed the speech, releasing an official response containing only the four words: "Get in the bin."</p> <p><em>Image credits: Twitter @ben_fordham9 @senatorthorpe</em></p>

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Grandmother of missing baby speaks out

<p dir="ltr">The heartbroken grandmother of a missing child has spoken to the media for the first time, telling<span> </span><em>A Current Affair,<span> </span></em>“I don't know if he's died or alive”.</p> <p dir="ltr">Hoang Vinh Le was<span> </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://oversixty.com.au/news/news/police-searching-for-baby-who-was-left-at-a-coffee-shop" target="_blank">last seen</a><span> </span>in Canberra in April, when his parents took him from his grandmother’s care. The parents claim that around May 19, they gave a woman they met at a coffee shop $200 to care for the child, but have not seen him since.</p> <p dir="ltr">Vinh had been the subject of a bitter custody dispute between his maternal grandmother, Kim Huong Tran, and his parents. Despite several police searches and appeals to the public for more information, Vinh has yet to be found. In addition, his parents have been accused of withholding information.</p> <p dir="ltr">Vinh was born in June last year, and six weeks later, he and his mother Lyn Kim Do, Ms Tran’s daughter, moved to Canberra so that Ms Tran could help with childcare, as Lyn has an intellectual disability.</p> <p dir="ltr">But in February, Lyn reconciled with Vinh’s father, Hoang Thanh Le, and left Vinh with her mum. The parents eventually wanted him back, and in March a court order was made for Vinh to live with his father. Thanh has previously been found guilty of assault, stalking, and other offences unrelated to Vinh.</p> <p dir="ltr">Ms Tran was worried about Vinh’s welfare, so she didn’t hand him over to police. On April 9, the parents received a tip off about Vinh’s whereabouts, and they made a move. Ms Tran said, "He snatched the baby from the doctor room when I take Vinh to the doctor for the check up.” She claims the parents came to the doctors with five people in the car, and that Thanh jumped in to grab Vinh before running out the door with him. She continued, "He hold the baby in his arm and he slipped on the floor with the baby … he's on the floor and then he get up to run, quick to the car. The car just on the street waiting.” That was the last day she saw her grandson.</p> <p dir="ltr">The parents returned to New South Wales, where police conducted a welfare check. Thanh can be heard on an audio recording made during this visit telling police, "I've got the order from the federal court saying that the child's to live with me until 18, or else I wouldn't be snatching the kid off".</p> <p dir="ltr">10 days later, a judge granted Ms Tran custody, and the parents were ordered to hand Vinh back, but they failed to do so. On May 12, Thanh posted on Facebook, "just informing everyone that myself and my partner and our son Hoang Vinh Le is safe. I don't know why we are listed as missing people." Attached were the last photos ever seen of Vinh.</p> <p dir="ltr">On May 20, the parents were arrested. They claimed to have given Vinh to a person named Kathy Nguyen who they’d met at a coffee shop and paid $200 to take care of their son. Police have been unable to confirm whether such a person exists.</p> <p dir="ltr">The AFP issued an urgent call for help locating Vinh in November, after several searches failed to locate him. A recovery order remains in place to find Vinh, with a judge noting he’s extremely vulnerable and possibly at significant risk of harm or even death.</p> <p dir="ltr">Thanh posted on Facebook that he’d rather a stranger care for Vinh than Ms Tran, and added that because they were in custody, they did not know where Kathy Nguyen was.</p> <p dir="ltr">Ms Tran appealed to the public during her appearance on<span> </span><em>A Current Affair,<span> </span></em>saying, "Please if anyone sees a baby that look a bit like Vinh, when you see the photo on the news can you please contact the crime stoppers.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I want him to be safe home with me and I can care for him for the rest of my life, till I die."</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Nine</em></p>

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Canberra grandparents graduate from Rock School

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Maria and Chris Adams have proved that you’re never too old to learn something new and pursue a new passion. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The 76 and 78-year-old retired accountants from Canberra saw an opportunity for a unique experience with the Australian National University's Community Rock School, and asked themselves, “why not?”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"We were giggling as we filled out the application," Maria said to the <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-11-28/canberra-music-school-teaching-instruments/100650008" target="_blank">ABC</a>. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"But then we got accepted and thought, 'oh my god, Grandad and Grandma are going to rock school!'"</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Chris said he always wanted to be in a band when he was a kid, but neither he nor his wife’s parents could afford to send them to music lessons. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Now, the pair can play the ukelele, guitar and sing.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"We like playing the songs that we remember, because it gives us the memories," Chris said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"It's something we can share with each other, and share with our eight grandkids," Maria added.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The free program is run by Micha Forman through the ANU School of Music, and is open to anyone over the age of 18. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"We'll have really young participants who are just out of high school, right up to people in their 70s and 80s," Micha said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Throughout the program, students learn how to play as a group, as well as develop their own individual skills. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Micha says the program draws in all kinds of people who have different relationships with music, and is a uniting force to get people involved in something creative.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"It can be a part of their life in a way that they want it to be, not in a way that someone else has told them it should be."</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Check out Chris and Maria’s story below. </span></p> <p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/T8JF6Zwv7MM" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image credits: Youtube - ABC News Australia</span></em></p>

Music

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Police searching for baby who was left at a coffee shop

<p dir="ltr">The Australian Federal Police and the Federal Court have made the unorthodox decision to go public about a missing baby who was last seen at a Sydney coffee shop earlier this year.</p> <p dir="ltr">17-month-old Hoang Vinh Le was last seen in Canberra in April, when his parents Hoang Thanh Le, 28, and Lyn Kim Do, 21, removed him from his maternal grandmother’s care.</p> <p dir="ltr">Vinh’s parents say that around May 19, they gave a woman they met at a coffee shop $200 to care for Vinh, but they have not seen him since. They identified the woman as “Kathy Nguyen”, but authorities have been unable to locate this person or verify whether they actually exist.</p> <p dir="ltr">The parents were arrested on May 20, but Vinh has yet to be found.</p> <p dir="ltr">Identifying children who may be victims of a crime is illegal in NSW, but the Federal Court made an order allowing media outlets to publicise Vinh’s identity, in the hopes of obtaining assistance from the public to locate him.</p> <p dir="ltr">Following the removal of Vinh from his grandmother’s care, the court made a recovery order for him to be returned, but that order has not been complied with.</p> <p dir="ltr">The AFP says that the parents have not provided sufficient details to enable police to identify Kathy Nguyen, and authorities are concerned for Vinh’s welfare.</p> <p dir="ltr">Authorities say Vinh was last seen at a medical practice in the Canberra suburb of O’Connor on April 9, and was put into a silver ISUZU MU-X 4WD with the NSW registration of CF72Y1. Since then, Vinh could have been in any of the following areas in NSW: Cabramatta, Bankstown, Liverpool, West Wyalong, Temora and Wagga Wagga.</p> <p dir="ltr">The AFP says that anyone who is knowingly withholding information about the welfare or whereabouts of Vinh may be contributing to an offence. Anyone who has any information is asked to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: AFP</em></p>

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Game-changing cancer treatment enters second clinical trial

<p>Game-changing low-cost and non-toxic treatment could offer people battling cancer a new alternative to chemotherapy.</p> <p>Researchers at The Australian National University have discovered a way to use dead bacteria to help kickstart the body’s immune system and shrink the cancer.</p> <p>Aude Fahrer, lead research at ANU said ongoing clinical trials of the Complete Freund Adjuvant treatment had shown promising results and could significantly improve outcomes for patients battling the disease.</p> <p>“We do think it could be a game charger. If this works well, it will be a new treatment option with far fewer side effects, which will be available for cancer patients,” Associate professor Fahrer said.</p> <p>Complete Freund Adjuvant is made up just three ingredients: mineral oil, surfactant, and dead bacteria.</p> <p>Associate Professor Fahrer’s team tested the treatment on eight cancer patients at Canberra Hospital.</p> <p>“They were all late stages, but in one case in particular we were able to significantly improve the patients’ quality of life,” she said.</p> <p>The new treatment was able to reduce the amount of liquid around the patient’s lungs and shrunk their tumour.</p> <p>Associate Professor Fahrer said the new approach was less time-consuming and physically taxing than other cancer treatments such as chemotherapy.</p> <p>“The best things about this new treatment is that it requires few dosages, is simple to administer, and has how side effects,” she said.</p> <p>Extreme hair loss, nausea, fatigue, and physical pain are just some of the impacts of chemotherapy.</p> <p>And while some cancer immunotherapy treatments can cost up to $40,000, the ANU researcher’s new treatment is very affordable – clocking in at just $20 per dose.</p> <p>The bacterial-based immunotherapy is a simple, but unusual approach to treating tumours.</p> <p>“It involves injecting a slow-release solution of dead mycobacteria directly into the cancer,” Associate Professor Fahrer said.</p> <p>“The idea is this will bring immune cells into the cancer to attack the bacteria, even though they’re dead, and as a side effect cause the immune cells to attack the cancer as well.</p> <p>“Once the immune cells multiple they can travel around the body, so it would not only attack the cancer at the injection site, but any metastases – where the cancer has spread to another part of the body.”</p> <p>While trials have only been conducted on late-stage human cancer patients so far, Associate Professor Fahrer said the new treatment was able to eliminate some earlier stage tumours in animal studies.</p> <p>If the new treatment continues to show success in clinical trials, researchers say the treatment has the potential to help treat all forms of solid tumour cancer.</p> <p>Ms Fahrer’s research was largely funded by the Lea Chapuis Memorial Fund, a cancer patient who’s dying wish was to improve treatment options for sick Australians.</p> <p>“Lea asked people to contribute to the research in lieu of flowers when she passed way,” Associate Professor Fahrer said.</p> <p>A second clinical trial of the new treatment at the Canberra Hospital has already been approved.</p>

Body

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“Only in Canberra”: Locals rescue kangaroo from lake

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Three Canberra locals have had an unlikely run-in with a kangaroo, after finding it standing in the cold waters of Lake Burley Griffin.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Passer-by David Boyd filmed the moment two men rescued the marsupial from the water, which was later on a Canberra group Facebook page.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“This was my morning - only in Canberra - well done to these two guys,” Mr Boyd wrote.</span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">ONLY IN CANBERRA. From David Boyd 📸 <a href="https://t.co/KFc5Qmg4hw">pic.twitter.com/KFc5Qmg4hw</a></p> — Julian Abbott 💉💉 (@JulianBAbbott) <a href="https://twitter.com/JulianBAbbott/status/1440097357614379008?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 20, 2021</a></blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In the clip, the nervous roo allows the men to carry it out of the water and back onto land.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Then, the kangaroo offered its paw to ‘thank’ its rescuers for their help.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Aw, he’s thanking ya,” Mr Boyd can be heard saying in the background.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7844339/kangaroo.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/4d2ecbbcca2040c7b5d0eaf2b665c856" /></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image: David Boyd / Facebook</span></em></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The video, which has been viewed over 400,000 times, received a flood of comments from concerned viewers wondering whether the animal was okay.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Mr Boyd confirmed that the kangaroo “came good”, while another onlooker revealed that the animal ended up back in the lake again, prompting a second rescue.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 375px; height: 500px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7844341/242490125_10157139604002185_4809991376119986184_n.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/8f7f9c7559234f6dae9aa044af038177" /></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image: Penelope Twemlow / Facebook</span></em></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“The kangaroo ended up back in the lake so a second group of people rescued it again (twice over), only to see it deliberately jump back in the lake so we ended up calling the rangers,” Penelope Twemlow wrote.</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image: David Boyd / Facebook</span></em></p>

Domestic Travel

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Kerri-Anne Kennerley says "most men are fantastic" after parliamentary sex scandals

<div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in"> <p>TV veteran Kerri-Anne Kennerley has given her take on the latest parliamentary sexual misconduct scandals to rock Canberra in the last month or more.</p> <p>She told<span> </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/entertainment/sydney-confidential/kerrianne-kennerley-weighs-in-on-sexual-violence-against-women/news-story/53c0507ad12a6587195b80b466698e56" target="_blank"><em>The Daily Telegraph's Confidential</em></a><span> </span>that most men, in general, are not to blame when it comes to sexual violence against women.</p> <p>"Most [men] are actually fantastic. They want to help, they see the reasoning (behind inclusive discussions)," she explained.</p> <p>"There is only a small percentage of people who clearly have issues in their life."</p> <p>“I think all the marches have been fabulous. I’d like to see one that has as many men marching for the same reason because it’s not a female problem it is a social problem.”</p> <p>The "marches" KAK is referring to were the #March4Justice rallies, held in more than 40 Australian cities and towns, had thousands marching to protest against sexual violence against women.</p> <p>She also shared her opinion with<span> </span><em>The Daily Mail</em>.</p> <p>"I think the next march, I want to see just as many men marching side by side with women, because it is not a female sexual harassment issue," she stated.</p> <p>"It's a bullying issue, it's a social issue."</p> <p>"I think it's important to have people standing side by side to say this behaviour - whoever it's happening to - is not good enough," she added.</p> <p>Kennerley's comments come after other prominent figures in media, including Ita Buttrose, spoke their opinions about the issues in Canberra.</p> <p>“I think every woman in Australia should support the call (for better safety) and make sure our voice is heard,” Buttrose said.</p> </div> </div> </div>

Legal

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“I know who you are”: Peta Credlin’s bombshell claims

<p>Sky News presenter and former chief of staff for Tony Abbott Peta Credlin has revealed that she sacked the Coalition staffer featured in a video masturbating on the desk of a federal MP in Parliament House.</p> <p>Credlin also alleged that evidence was found that another staffer had held "gay orgies" inside Parliament, including during Question Time where their boss was in the chamber.</p> <p>Credlin said she was collecting evidence for the review being carried out by Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins into Parliament's workplace culture.</p> <p>She said that years earlier, she had dismissed the staffer in the video for disloyalty and leaking information against his boss.</p> <p>“That bloke I demanded to be sacked years earlier for disloyalty, for lying, for leaking against his boss,” she said.</p> <p>“I sacked him and I said he would never be back while I worked in that building.”</p> <p>He was rehired when Malcolm Turnbull became Prime Minister, but was fired again due to the publication of the video.</p> <p>“The bloke I sacked came back and dozens more like him. Mid-career women, women of ability, lost out in roles to well-connected factional twenty-somethings with not much on their CV of note other than the ability to stack branches,” Credlin said.</p> <p>“Much of the current mess on the ministerial blue carpet for the Coalition is a legacy from the Turnbull years.</p> <p>“These are my first comments on incidents in the past. They will not be my last.”</p> <p>She was very clear to the three other men in the video, saying: “I know who you are. I see you”.</p> <p>“The former minister who it is alleged had his male prostitutes delivered to Parliament House by this spiteful gang – signed in and all kept quiet – former minister I see you too,” Credlin added.</p> <p>Credlin said that there was evidence of the gay orgies held inside Parliament.</p> <p>“When the MP cleaned out the former staffer’s desk, and the computer, that MP uncovered evidence that for many months, that staffer had regularly met with other men during the middle of the day – while the MP was in question time – for orgies in political offices,” she said.</p> <p><em>Photo credits: Sky News</em></p>

News

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Julie Bishop slams "failed" Canberra culture in politics

<div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in"> <p>Former Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has slammed Canberra's culture in politics, saying that a group of male Liberal MPs who called themselves the "big swinging dicks" tried to ruin her career.</p> <p>She made the claims in an interesting interview with Leigh Sales on<span> </span><em>ABC's 7:30</em>.</p> <p>Sales directly asked Bishop about claims that a group of Liberal MPs tried to block her career progression.</p> <p>“It was actually big swinging dicks,’’ Ms Bishop said.</p> <p>“No-one self-identified to me. My ambition was to be the foreign minister of Australia, and I served in that role for five years. And likewise I was deputy leader of the party for 11 years.</p> <p>“If their ambition was to thwart my aspirations, then they failed.”</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Former Liberal minister <a href="https://twitter.com/SharmanStone?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SharmanStone</a> recently said a group of male politicians who called themselves the 'swinging dicks' sought to block <a href="https://twitter.com/HonJulieBishop?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HonJulieBishop</a>'s career aspirations: "If their ambition was to thwart my aspirations, then they failed." <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/auspol?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#auspol</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/abc730?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#abc730</a> <a href="https://t.co/ON5zC8xApH">pic.twitter.com/ON5zC8xApH</a></p> — abc730 (@abc730) <a href="https://twitter.com/abc730/status/1368853839642644480?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 8, 2021</a></blockquote> <p>Bishop also said that a coronial inquest into the rape claims against Attorney-General Christian Porter was a "logical step" despite having a longstanding professional relationship with Porter.</p> <p>“This is such a difficult area and I feel so unspeakably sad for everyone involved,’’ she said.</p> <p>“And there are families and friends who are still suffering and there will be trauma for some time. The challenge of course is that the allegations are historic, that the woman who made the allegations took her own life, and now a serving cabinet minister has been informed that the police investigation is at an end. So, there are no answers.</p> <p>“I do know, however, that the South Australian coroner is considering an inquest and to me that is the next logical step.</p> <p>“It’s within the criminal justice system. There are checks and balances and there are statutory powers. It has legal standing.</p> <p>“And so, that is the next step and I understand from media reporting that’s what the family would welcome.</p> <p>“I think the mainstream media have been taking very careful legal advice and are ensuring they don’t publish evidence, they don’t cross in the areas of contempt and defamation, although I note the Attorney-General has got a defamation lawyer.</p> <p>“I knew him when he was a young lawyer in Perth. He was a highly intelligent young man. He had a bright future ahead of him. People spoke of Christian Porter as someone who would go on to better things.</p> <p>“I didn’t work closely with him. No-one made complaints to me. The first I heard about these particular allegations was about six months ago from an informal source. So, people hadn’t raised these issues with me.”</p> </div> </div> </div>

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"Highly sexualised": Explosive claim rocks Canberra

<p>A former press secretary to Immigration Minister Alan Tudge has revealed in an explosive interview that she had an affair with him while working in his office and was left feeling like “damaged goods” when he asked her to war game denials.</p> <p>The former Coalition staffer Rachelle Miller made explosive claims on ABC’s<em> Four Corners</em> and revealed that she was terrified it would be found out.</p> <p>She also says she had disturbing experiences with other senior Liberal MPs.</p> <p>Ms Miller revealed a “demeaning” experience she had at the mid winter-ball where she implied Mr Tudge wanted her to walk in with him for the cameras.</p> <p>“I was walking with Alan and I was chatting to him and I intentionally dropped back. I wasn’t his guest. I wasn’t his partner. And I didn’t want to be on camera. And he stopped and he turned around, and he said, “No, I want you to walk in with me.” And I was really surprised by that,’’ she said.</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7838695/four-courners.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/3d848eedc1d44e45a73042e4452010cf" /></p> <p>“I have a feeling that my appearance had a bearing on why Alan would want to walk in with me on his arm, and I felt at that time a lot like an ornament.”</p> <p>The program detailed Mr Tudge had conservative views and aired his public reservations about changing the Marriage Act to include same-sex couples.</p> <p>After the affair ended, Ms Miller said she was later demoted in a restructure.</p> <p>She said she felt she had no choice but to leave politics.</p> <p>“I knew I was leaving a job that I really loved, but I didn’t see that there was any other way out,’’ she said.</p> <p>“You know, I actually at that time viewed myself as damaged goods and I was really worried about this coming out and impacting our chances at the election.”</p> <p>Alan Tudge said in a statement: “Tonight, matters that occurred in my personal life in 2017 were aired on the ABC’s<em> Four Corners</em> program.</p> <p>“I regret my actions immensely and the hurt it caused my family. I also regret the hurt that Ms Miller has experienced.”</p> <p>In 2018, Mr Turnbull rewrote the code of ministerial standards to ban ministers from having sexual relationships with staff.</p> <p>Ms Miller and Alan Fudge’s affair took place in 2017 when the politician was in Human Services.</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7838694/four-courners-1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/20c27554fea2499ca3623a98db1b7b3d" /></p> <p> She would later move out of his office and into another minister’s office.</p> <p>The show has expressed there no suggestion that Mr Tudge was in breach of the code, which only applied to sex with staffers in your office.</p> <p>No other senior minister was implied on the program to have breached the “bonk ban” or the code of conduct.</p> <p>Mr Turnbull did however say that when he announced the so-called bonk ban, that he had other MPs in mind that did not just include Barnaby Joyce.</p> <p>“Today, in 2018, it is not acceptable for a Minister to have a sexual relationship with somebody who works for them, it is a very bad workplace practice and everybody knows that no good comes of it,” Mr Turnbull said at the time.</p> <p>“This is the standard that I will hold — from this day forth — all my ministers to.”</p> <p>Ms Miller told <em>Four Corners </em>that Canberra could be a “highly sexualised environment.”</p> <p>“I don’t for a moment kind of say that all the men were predators and all the women were victims, but, you know, it was a highly sexualised environment at times, and I think that’s a consequence of the stress,” she said.</p> <p>“It’s kind of that “work hard, play hard” mentality that I’ve seen before early in my career And there is a kind of … an almost gung-ho kind of mentality by a lot of the senior males that they’re kind of almost beyond reproach, like, they can just get away with things. And … nobody calls that behaviour out.”</p>

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ACT Senior Australian of the Year tragically perishes in crash

<div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text "> <p>Disability advocate Sue Salthouse, the ACT's 2020 Senior Australian of the Year has passed away in a motorcycle accident.</p> <p>She was riding her wheelchair-accessible motorcycle when it was involved in an accident with a car.</p> <p>Salthouse was well-known in the Canberra community, as a long time advocate for people, particularly women, with disabilities.</p> <p>She was co-chair of the ACT Disability Expert Panel advising on the National Disability Insurance Scheme and influenced the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.</p> <p>"Arriving by surprise in the disability sector means that you're on a very steep learning curve to understand what it is that affects the lives and mentality of people with disabilities," Ms Salthouse told Nikki Henningham in an interview at the National Library of Australia in 2011.</p> <p>"The practicalities of 'having a place at the table' are difficult to confront for someone who needs two hours in the morning to get up.</p> <p>"Success in promoting the issues is one thing, another measure is seeing more women with disabilities in the workforce and more woman outside the ages of 40-60 involved in advocacy organisations."</p> <p>A spokesperson from the National Australia Day Council said that they were "saddened" at the news of Salthouse's death.</p> <p>"Sue was such a vibrant woman who lived life to the full and seized every opportunity. She was a huge force for change and for good in the disability sector," they said.</p> <p>"We will always remember Sue's beaming smile and great enthusiasm.</p> <p>"Our hearts go out to Sue's family and friends."</p> <p>Chief executive of the Disability Leadership Group Christina Ryan gave a statement, as she worked with Salthouse for 25 years.</p> <p>"She was a passionate part of our community, she was really a big part of the disability sisterhood," she said.</p> <p>"We were all working together, it wasn't about any of us individually it was a collective effort.</p> <p>"She was one of the most outstanding mentors of young talent right up until today."</p> <p><em>Photo credits: </em><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-21/canberra-sue-salthouse-dies-in-motorcycle-accident/12475816" target="_blank" class="_e75a791d-denali-editor-page-rtflink">ABC News</a></em></p> </div> </div> </div>

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Have you seen these people? 16 missing Aussies to feature on milk bottles

<div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text "> <p>Photos of 16 missing people from all around Australia will be featured on milk bottles in a new joint campaign with the Australian Federal Police (AFP) National Missing Persons Coordination Centre (NMPCC) and Canberra Milk.</p> <p>The profiles of 16 long-term missing people will be printed on 1 litre bottles and their stories will be shared on social media.</p> <p>"One person featured in last year's Canberra Milk campaign was located." AFP Assistant Commissioner Lesa Gale said.</p> <p>"It is initiatives like these that remind people that missing persons are real people, and this is something that needs to be spoken about more."</p> <p>Relatives of the missing people are on board with the campaign, saying that it brings them hope that their loved one might be found.</p> <p>"Our missing you is deepened by that of not knowing where you are. But campaigns like this prove we are not alone in our search," Jason Sallese, son of long-term missing Nicola Sallese, said.</p> <p>The 16 people that will be featured on the milk bottles are:</p> <ul> <li><strong>David Abuoi, ACT</strong><span> </span>who has been missing in Canberra on July 10, 2012</li> <li><strong>Laura Haworth, ACT</strong><span> </span>who has been missing since January 5, 2008 after she disappeared from Queanbeyan in NSW</li> <li><strong>Robert Jacob, ACT<span> </span></strong>who was last seen on November 12, 2015 in the ACT</li> <li><strong>Ruth Ridley, NSW</strong><span> </span>who was last seen on November 18, 2019 travelling from her home in Port Macquarie to Tumbarumba</li> <li><strong>Kylee-Ann Schaffer, NSW</strong><span> </span>who was last seen on September 11, 2004 when she went to a party at Willawarren</li> <li><strong>John Brown, QLD,<span> </span></strong>who was last seen on June 15, 2016</li> <li><strong>Ronya Livoni, NT</strong><span> </span>who was last seen on March 10, 2980</li> <li><strong>Richard Roe, NT<span> </span></strong>who was last seen on November 2, 2016</li> <li><strong>Danny Walker, QLD</strong><span> </span>who was last seen on May 21, 2008</li> <li><strong>Christine Redford, SA</strong><span> </span>who was last seen at her home on June 30, 1998</li> <li><strong>Eve Askew, TAS<span> </span></strong>who was last seen by her family on November 16, 1991</li> <li><strong>Nicola (Nick) Sallese, TAS</strong><span> </span>who has not been seen since November 17, 2008</li> <li><strong>Andrew Oleenik, VIC</strong><span> </span>who was last seen in Queenscliff on March 7, 2005</li> <li><strong>Lorrin Whitehead, VIC</strong><span> </span>who was last seen on February 8, 2013</li> <li><strong>Dragon Jankovic, WA<span> </span></strong>who was last seen since March 10, 2019</li> <li><strong>Josephine Jennings, WA<span> </span></strong>who was has not been seen since September 1995 </li> </ul> <p><em>Photo credit  </em><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.afp.gov.au/news-media/media-releases/missing-australians-featured-milk-bottles-second-year" target="_blank"><em>Australian Federal Police</em></a></p> </div> </div> </div>

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“Nice surprise”: Woman discovers unwelcome visitor in celery

<p>A woman claims that she found a “nice surprise” in a sealed bag of celery that she bought from Woolworths over the weekend.</p> <p>The woman posted images of the red back spider sitting on a stalk to the supermarket chain’s Facebook page on Sunday.</p> <p>“Got a nice surprise in my sealed bag of celery yesterday. Red back under a stem I broke off. Wasn’t expecting that!!” she wrote.</p> <p>The woman said she bought the celery from a store in Canberra and declined a refund because the spider “didn’t eat much anyway and he was the only one”.</p> <p><strong><img style="width: 500px; height:281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7835728/17ae9da0-83aa-11ea-bad6-5524a6c951bd.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/17620771e6664646aeae014b1b832594" /></strong></p> <p>Woolworths responded to her post on Monday, thanking her for bringing it to their attention.</p> <p>“We ensure that all of our products are at the highest standards so we're disappointed to see a spider in your celery,” the post said.</p> <p>“We'd like to raise this to our products team who'll look into this further.”</p> <p>“We'd like you to let you know that we do have a refund or replacement policy, the next time you visit our store please see our service desk with the product or receipt our friendly team member would be more than happy to assist you further. We're looking forward to hearing from you soon.”</p>

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