TRUMP CAUSES CYCAD SHOCK HORROR

Ever  since  boofheaded  Donald Trump  imposed  the  trade war , causing  Wall  Street to  become  wall-eyed , cycads  have  turned  unhealthy- like the  one  below  in  Australia.   

A  distressed   cycad lover   taking her  pet , cute   cycad  for  walkies on a leash  in a  North Queensland  public botanic  garden , told  LIttle  Darwin reporter Argus  Tuft  many cycads  have  developed  ugly , diseased  features   that  look like   Donald  Trump's  disintegrating , made- in - China  wig, way past  its use  by  date,  after  a   night  in  a  spin  dryer . 

Would  you  believe  this  is  not fake news?

(Trump. Slump.Cycads.)

RISING HOME REAL ESTATE

Due  to  the flooding  rain  in Queensland ,  magpie  geese  are  having to  raise  the  level  of   their  nests in  swamps,  pools  and   billabongs. 

The rising water level in a  lake  caused  a  pair  to  quickly  raise the  height of the  nest  by  adding  more  sticks and   pieces  off  nearby  plants.   The home alone  bird  below  on  its  nest  seems  somewhat nonplussed about the situation.    

                            

(Estate , Floods. Queensland. ) 

NEW VENICE OF THE NORTH

Because of a so-called rain shadow  over  Townsville  it became known as  Brownsville in the  dry season. According to the Bureau of  Meteorology , Townsville  misses  out  on  much rain  because  most onshore winds  from the  south- east , which bring  showers , bypass   the area  due to the terrain , unlike  Cairns that  has  mountains .  

However, so far this year, Townsville has experienced  record rainful of about 2400 millimetres  , flooding in some areas , the closure of a large shopping  centre  due to underground flooding, landslides which closed  Castle Hill  and the  Ross  River  has  been   cascading  across  the weirs.  

All  the  rain and  three nights  of  electrical storms  produced a new  large  lake, below,  in  the  Anderson Botanic Gardens , which  blocked  the  road .

The  usual lotus filled   pool in the gardens  has  also  expanded , attracting  much  more   birdlife  than usual , including  magpie  geese,  whistling  ducks, curlews  , peaceful doves,  pee wees  and  finches.

With so  many surface  pools  about  it  gives rise to  arty photographs of  the reflections  of   sky , clouds  and surrounds, like the one  following , taken   by   drenched  Vallis.

(Venice. Townsville. Rain.)

VIET NAM WAR SURPRISE

Found in  a number of  war  books  in the garrison city of  Townsville , in the one above, was  the    loosely  inserted   photograph of  a  crouched soldier   posing  with   a  rifle   and  what  looks  like  a  cullender  , a  kitchen utensil  used  to  drain  fluids  from  food , on  his  head .

The author , Gary McKay, served in  South Viet Nam in 1971, where he was  badly wounded   and  awarded  the   Military Cross  for  gallantry. 

According to the blurb, he interviewed more than  100 veterans and their families  to  build  up  a  picture  of  their  war.

He spoke to nurses  and  doctors, Qantas cabin crew and pilots, men who had served with the  Army, Navy and Air Force,  in helicopters, armoured units , maintenance divisions , destroyers , on  the gun line , units attached  to  American forces  and  ships carrying  troops.  

This  resulted  in  a  most  interesting  book , published by Allen and Unwin.

McKay also wrote   In  Good Company  and  Delta Four  and  Sleeping  With  Your Ears  Open : On Patrol  with the Australian SAS .

Bullets, Beans and Bandages was first published in l992 as Vietnam Fragments. 

There was another  inclusion , a Queensland Health Public  Patients' Charter  pamphlet , in The Accidental Guerrilla, fighting  small wars in the  midst of a big one , published by Scribe, Melbourne. 

Written by David Kilcullen, a former  Australian Army officer and one of the world's most influential experts on guerrilla warfare, the wide ranging volume includes extensive  coverage of  the  INTERFET  force  which went   into  East Timor. 

 (VIetnam . Guerrillas.   Books .)  

CAPE YORK AWASH

 

Evidence of  the  torrential  rain impact on  the countryside  is evident in this series  taken by  Aeronautical Correspondent  Abra   flying  into  Pormpuraaw , situated on the Edward River , the  western side of the cape,  about halfway between  the popular fishing spot of  Karumba and  Weipa   , 650 kilometres  by  road  from  Cairns. Pormpuraaw has  an arts and crafts centre.

(Rain. Cape. Abra.)

A DISASTROUS NEWSPAPER

In  our  exclusive  series- Rewind The  Press!- we  recalled  the  Northern Territory's  colourful  media  past. In  this  case , it   is   a  rerun   about  an   unusual   publication  and  the  dynamic  duo  who  produced  it  after  Cyclone  Tracy   destroyed   Darwin  in  l974.

Damaged Chinese Temple sign in shatttered  city. 

Victorian Pete Steedman , a seasoned and scarred ALP warrior, known as the Black Knight , had been in the eye of countless political storms. It was an epic tempest, Australia’s worst natural disaster, Cyclone Tracy, which saw him called in to utilise his skills as a  forceful  journalist / editor, publisher and communicator in the production of  the Darwin Newsletter .

The publication kept tens of thousands of evacuees down south informed about what was happening in the battered Territory capital and where they could go for help and services to try and sort out their lives which had been turned upside down. It became “ the Bible” for Darwin Resident Action Committees across the nation ,with a circulation of 20,000.

Edition number 1 was printed in Melbourne at the Salvation Army’s Citadel Press with money Steedman raised through various sources. It was illustrated with photographs supplied by The Age and included a statement in the Greek language. As the enormity of the problem became more apparent , Steedman was employed as a welfare officer by the Victorian Council for Social Service which had been studying and planning the organisational structures needed to cope with any disaster. Another journalist , John Ball, also a political activist, worked in tandem with Steedman on the Newsletter.

A Darwin Assistance Centre was set up on the fifth floor of the Australian Government Building in the Mebourne CBD , which an Age report said at times was like a noisy newspaper , with redtape between departments cut to a minimum as a thousand deadlines had to be met.

Subsequent editions of the Newsletter , printed at Stockland Press, where Steedman had previously been the publishing manager, were jam-packed with helpful information and articles which reflected his dynamic approach and the distinctive writing style of the two media men . The paper took a stand against bureaucratic inaction, unreasonable treatment of people, both down south and in Darwin.

For example, in an article dealing with the delays in handing out the millions donated to help the victims of Cyclone Tracy, administered by the Darwin Relief Trust Fund , held by four different voluntary organisations , it called for “ a quick decision by someone up top “ to allocate the “paltry” $200 per person. It was harder to find anyone who had received any of the money than to find a house that had not been blown away, chided the Newsletter .

It also was not reluctant to raise the issue of profiteering by some Darwin businesses, escalating house prices , problems with insurance companies. Ball was sent to Darwin to gather first hand information on the spot for the newspaper and was joined by Steedman . 

Ball had lived in Hong Kong and there were articles, illustrated with a picture of ships swept ashore in tidal surges , about how the British colony coped with regular hurricanes and information about its building code, The byline on one article billed John Ball as "our cyclone-proof obsessed reporter".

In Hugh Lunn's book Spies Like Us , the Brisbane journalist described his first meeting with John Ball, a long thin scar on his left cheek,in the Firecracker Bar in Hong Kong."Not  another bloody Aussie," Ball remarked on  hearing Lunn was a new journalist in the British colony, awash with  Australian newsmen .

Australia's famous journalist, Steve Dunleavy , who became known as  Mr Blood Guts in  American  journalism, was working as a bouncer in the bar and also  produced a publication called American Tourist .

In Darwin, Steedman and Ball worked closely with the executive director of the NT Council of Social Services ,Max Dumais, civic and government leaders.

A March 1975 edition told how few people in Darwin had known anything about video tapes until Cyclone Tracy. Now videos were flowing to and from Darwin keeping people in touch . Film Australia taught a Darwin team which included a housewife, a teacher and an air traffic controller how to take over the video service . In the first month of operation 260 taped messages were sent south.

Steedman addressed a national conference in Adelaide in April 1975 at which two representatives from all states and territories gathered to discuss the role of Darwin resident groups outside of Darwin and drew up an extensive agenda for future activities in Darwin. One of those was for a community newspaper in Darwin supported by the Darwin Reconstruction Commission. The role and requirements of such a paper were explained in great detail .

The idiosyncratic writing style of the two journalists was evident when Little Darwin recently perused Steedman’s own copies of the Newsletter, mementos of those hectic days. As an example, the May 1975 edition of the paper said Ball had lobbed in Darwin to collect stories , including some from the teams of scribes still resident in the battered city. 

It included a lively account of life aboard the former Greek Chandris Line cruise ship, Patris, costing the Australian government $15,100 a day, where up to 800 people paid $35 a week for full board. The Newsletter pointed out the ship’s swimming pool was not filled with water and that mothers were worried that children might fall through the railings and plunge 40 feet into the harbour .

Stories about the Patris becoming a Peyton Place may or may not be true , the article continued. From this very paragraph alone it can be seen that the Darwin Newsletter was no  bland government  publication.

Nightcliff politician Dawn Lawrie featured in another story and firmly stated that former residents should be allowed return to the city , despite the claim that they would strain resources. Tourists , she pointed out, were being allowed to come to Darwin and they had to eat . If the buses bringing them in were not fully equipped they would be straining the food supplies.

She was quoted as saying : “Bugger the tourists .They are part of Darwin’s bread and butter , but our first concern should be for Darwin people kept down south.” She went on to say that she was more than a bit browned off by tourists. “At one stage there was a private helicopter flying over to gawk at the city. When one swooped over my house, I couldn’t restrain myself and gave them a very rude sign.”

Mayor Ella Stack told the Newsletter she would like to provide facilities for hippies who passed through Darwin on the route to and from Asia to overcome the smelly Lameroo Beach situation and that drug dealers would get short shrift.  A local artist, Eddie Collins, provided cartoons.

Through his involvement with the Chinese community in Bendigo and Melbourne , John Ball arranged for a cutting of the ancient Bodhi tree in Thailand under which Buddha is said to have received enlightenment thousands of years ago to be sent to Darwin for the Chinese Temple rebuilding program. A Chinese message was also included in the paper. Former NT News journalist, Bluey Harley ,evacuated as a result of Cyclone Tracy , supplied a lighthearted column of anecdotes and there were several items from the NT News.

The June 2 edition , the last , contained extensive information about the Darwin Reconstruction Fair, including an interview with Melbourne artist and conservationist, Neil Douglas, photographed with local journalist /author and environmentalist, the late Barbara James , he having interesting views about how the city could be rebuilt, the Hong Kong approach mentioned .

Ball and Steedman were involved in a variety of projects which resulted in them dealing with Sandra and Kerry Byrnes at the Graphic Systems printery, who later ran the independent newspaper, the Darwin Star , the name inspired by the Hong Kong  Star. 

Steedman compiled an extensive report of some 300 pages ,with about l600 pages of appendices , on how to cope with a natural disaster anywhere in Australia. This , he said, had been chopped down, censored, re-written ,turned about and came out as something he did not quite recognise .

Ball later played a key part in a community newspaper , The New Darwin.As part of the Back to Darwin event, Steedman was one of many journalists who returned to see how the city had progressed a year after Cyclone Tracy. A dramatic event  forced him to reluctantly cut short his stay in Darwin on that occasion.

(Cyclone. Darwin. Melbourne.) 

STORMY OUTLOOK

Early morning  view  from  The Strand, Townsville, looking  towards Magnetic Island . Photo by Aeronautical  Correspondent  Abra. 

(Island. Townsville. Abra. )