ABBOTT FOR ROUGH END OF PINEAPPLE ?

One of our correspondents,a keen observer of Queensland politics, predicts that Federal Coalition leader ,Tony Abbott, could be removed in similar fashion to that of Kevin Rudd if he persists to act like a rampaging Hollwood championship wrestler . He bases this on the quick demise of the former Queensland Leader of the Opposition , Lawrence Springborg , after he failed to win the 2009 election which saw Anna Bligh elected premier .

A veteran of the Queensland tag wrestling-head and groin kicking school of politics , Springborg overplayed the “ferocious” opposition role during the 2009 state election , especially in respect of the oil pollution episode , and turned many people off , nevertheless taking 10 seats from the government.

With Anna Bligh now under serious attack and internal bickering growing within the Queensland Liberal Nationals,likely to see the removal of its hapless leader, John-Paul Langbroek , Springborg is again resorting to his strident old self, in the process sounding remarkably like Abbott- peas in a pod of killer whales .

Our Sunshine State pollie Wally watcher says for aggressive Abbott to survive as leader , he desperately needs to engineer or have created through some unforeseen circumstance an early return to the ballot box in the belief that the Coalition will win.

THE LONGER ABBOTT CONTINUES WITH HIS BOMBAST , ATTACKING THE MINORITY GOVERNMENT, PAINTING THE GREENS AS WORSE THAN THE BUBONIC PLAGUE, AN IRKSOME LINE TAKEN UP BY SO MANY OF HIS ACOLYTES , THE MORE PEOPLE WILL BE TURNED OFF.

If the Gillard government looks like surviving for a reasonable time, the Coalition , it is suggested, would be forced to the inevitable conclusion that Abbott would not be a certain winner in the gruelling next Tour de Australie on a bicycle with over inflated tyres , despite a course of strawberry flavoured growth hormones .

Therefore , the only presentable member of the Coalition with a favourable public profile (itself a telling fact about the lack of talent ) , Malcolm Turnbull , could do a Lazarus, which would require a quadruple bypass in his case because of the snarky old guard in the Libs.

CHANGE COMING FOR FAMILIES

Expect an announcement soon on a new structure in the Territory Families unit as a result of serious shortcomings revealed by court cases and reports . Indications are that it is going to be a top heavy regime with little assistance for those on the lower rungs who are run into the ground trying to cope with the demand for services.

WHO SCARED THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL ?

During the pomp and ceremony associated with the official opening of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly-part of the self government celebrations- the Governor–General, Sir Zelman Cowen, recalled how he had dived for cover during the fateful February 19, 1942 Japanese attack on Darwin. A junior naval officer, he had arrived in Darwin in late 1941 when the Naval Officer In Charge of the Northern Territory was Captain Ernest Penry Thomas.

Cowen had been on duty when a signal came through about the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour. Captain Thomas was asleep at the time , so Cowen , “ fearful” of the officer, decided not to wake him and break the momentous news. Not long after , Cowen told the Assembly , he (Cowen) had to dive for cover in a gutter when the Japanese pounded the city and harbour.

Recently looking back on notes connected with Sir Zelman’s speech, I wondered just who was this Captain Thomas who scared the pants off his junior rating and could not be disturbed from his slumber to be informed about the day of infamy that caught the mighty American fleet off guard.

Captain Thomas had come to Australia from Britain as Commander ( second in charge )of HMAS Canberra and at the age of 52 was NOIC Brisbane . His reign as the Territory naval chief was from January 1,1940 to Feb 21 ,1942 . Googling revealed interesting additional information. It seems Captain Thomas may have been something of a stern old salt . The Journal of Australian Naval History Vol. 3, No. 1 contains details of how Lieutenant Syd Sharp was subjected to the eccentricities and attitudes of senior officers , one being Captain Thomas. Sharp received lessons under the tutelage of the”ancient” Lieutenant Commander Hoskings RN and the “affable “ ( and thirsty ) Lieutenant Commander Horace Thompson in l940.

Thompson instructed Sharp to sit down and drink scotch. Sharp, according to the Journal , also learnt an early lesson about the contagious effect of thwarted ambition as he witnessed Thompson’s hostility over the promotion of Farncomb and Collins( after whom our subs are named ) even though he ( Thompson ) passed out ahead of them at RAN College.Thompson resigned in 1943 “ a bitterly disappointed man”.

Lieutenant Sharp ,who had undergone antisubmarine officer training , was sent to HMAS Melville, Darwin, as a watch keeper in January 1941. Captain Thomas, however, had different plans , and sent him out for several months of mine sweeping experience. Back watch keeping at East Point the day of the attack , Sharp had just finished breakfast, heard planes and expressed relief that it was “the Yanks” coming to help us. The navy man said after the attack, in which he lost some friends, they had been left to scrounge for food and had to trap wild geese and catch fish with traps made from “purloined “ wire netting.

The Journal continues: Captain Thomas was transferred to Brisbane days after the first bombing. He was told of the Japanese air armada spotted over Bathurst Island beforehand and was apparently convinced that Darwin was about to have “visitors”, but neglected to disperse the fleet lying at anchor or de-congest the bottleneck at the wharf . His indecision was noted at the subsequent Royal Commission but Thomas’ s two year posting to Darwin had come to an end anyway.

FANNIE BAY TRAGEDY

A tragic death took place at Fannie Bay races on Saturday and failed to rate a mention in the media . The victim could not be revived by St John's Ambulance paramedics because they had RUN over the poor little blighter . According to a mug punter who has a pet Cockatoo called Dame Leonie , the sad event took place during the running of the last race. Across the track trotted a family- mother , father and two children. It was your average Plover family out living dangerously . One of the two tiny chicks went straight ahead and was run down by the ambulance. The other chick did an about face and scampered back across the track. The Darwin Turf Club may have to buy a brace of Andean Condors to make sure the track is clear of Avian obstacles in future race meets. Paramedics should be warned about dancing balls of cotton . Who knows, Plovers and the dangers they pose might be on the agenda of next month's AGM of the Racehorse Owners' Association of the NT?.

LAST OF THE FIGHTING EDITORS ******* THE "BIG JIM " BOWDITCH SAGA , Part 3. "OUR LITTLE SOCIALIST "

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Scouting gave young Bowditch his first understanding of the immense poverty in London. Each Christmas the scouts would obtain donations of food from their parents, parcel them up and distribute gifts in wheelbarrows and billycarts to the poor and needy.

The people who received the gifts lived in deplorable slums. Most of the homes consisted of one large room with a fireplace; there was no plumbing. Communal toilets and taps were in the courtyards . The scouts , bearing the gifts, would approach the hovels blowing whistles. The object of all the noise making, in Jim’s opinion, was more to bolster the scouts own spirits than to let the unfortunate recipients of this Christian charity know they were coming.

"We used to think that these strange people we had seen emerging from these places on previous occasions might be dangerous to us, ” said Bowditch. “The real tragedy of the situation was that the people could not afford to refuse the food, but they hated us. They would emerge from their filthy rooms, snatch the bread and dripping, or whatever, from our hands and slam the door in our faces.”

The squalor of the fetid residences compared with the leafy estate upon which he lived at Sidcup made a vivid impression on young Bowditch. At home Jim used to say it was wrong that people had to live that way .From time to time , he also spoke out about other things which he thought were wrong in society , causing his parents to jokingly comment that he was “ our little socialist” .

His brother, Peter ,was also in the scouts and they went on annual camps, looking very much alike because of their hair. Jim was supposed to take care of Peter- because he was older- but never did. They performed in the annual scout concert, the Gang Show, taking part in singing, sketches and , at times , dressed as girls. The two engaged in frequent fist fights

On several occasions Jim stood up to his father over the way he treated his mother . Responding to being chipped by Jim , Captain Bowditch once chased his son who climbed a chestnut tree and spent most of the day and part of a chilly night out on a limb. It was an ignominious situation for a boy nicknamed after Boadicea, the warrior queen.

DARWIN NAVAL BLOOPER

An embarrassing error dealing with the bombing of Darwin occurs in information on an important Northern Territory website. According to www.tourismtopend.com.au the parliamentary library has a painting of the corvette HMAS Kootoomba (sic) under attack in Darwin Harbour by Japanese on February 19, 1942.

The correct name is Katoomba , which was launched by the Deputy Mayoress of Katoomba, NSW, on April 16, l941. The painting, by Keith Swan, is on loan to the Legislative Assembly from the Australian War Memorial. The Katoomba was in dry dock when the Japanese attacked and escaped unharmed , its crew having put up a fight against the enemy planes.

HMAS Katoomba, in company with HMAS Deloraine and HMAS Lithgow, sank the Japanese submarine 1-124 , the first enemy sub sunk in Australian waters. The vessel was present at the surrender of Japanese on Timor in September 1945.


It is hoped that this error and the clangers pointed out by Little Darwin in respect of the Esplanade war memorial can be corrected before the 70th anniversary of the bombing of Darwin which is being planned by a high powered committee under the repulsive marketing heading : BRAND BOMBING

DEATH OF CYCLONIC DOCTOR

Blamed by religious fanatics for Cyclone Tracy , Dr Dorothy “Dot” Cole , 81 , has died in Townsville after a series of strokes . Fiercely committed to social justice and equity, she was a pioneer in the field of women’s health in North Queensland. In her time she was instrumental in bringing a fertility control practitioner to Townsville,lobbied for and assisted in running the city’s first women’s shelter which opened in 1975, assisted in the opening of the rape crisis centre and in 1983 was involved with the first abortion clinic in Townsville. Dot also assisted in the creation of the Aboriginal and Islander Health Service in 1980.

Her tireless efforts, especially in fertility control, drew what has been described as flak,hate mail and vitriolic letters . This included the bizarre claim that Cyclone Tracy had been God’s punishment for Dot’s work in the area of women’s fertility.Dot was also involved in the campaign which secured the broadcasting licence for Townsville's community radio station,4TTT-FM. A sample programme submitted to the Australian Broadcasting Authority , a copy of which is in the Little Darwin filing cabinets, included a women's health session conducted by Dr Cole with appropriate music. Another who supported the campaign was Chips Mackinolty,now a well known Darwin resident.

She and her husband , Alastair, who had been the superintendent at Townsville Hospital ,contributed to many worthy causes , including the arts , and lived on Magnetic Island where they actively campaigned to prevent despoilation of the island by those eager to turn it into the “new Noosa”.

In recent years Dot was in a group of placard waving protesters at the island ferry terminal informing guests at a development party that they and the project were not welcome on the island.

In 2005, James Cook University awarded Dot an Honorary Doctorate of Letters for her mighty efforts .Both she and her husband were avid yachties and sailed far and wide along the Queensland coast. Dot also helped a daughter run the Mary Who bookshop in Townsville . A large wake will be held on the island on Sunday