It’s one thing to warn about severity, but headlines like ‘Countdown to Catastrophe’ are going over the line. It’s not the media’s job to promise a disaster. I’m definitely with Bob on this one.
I was going to rant about that one, but thought it’d get a bad response…
The premier coming out and saying ‘This will be the worst disaster ever’ (or something along those lines) doesn’t help, either.
CNN have solved the problem by simply relocating Queensland to the opposite end of the nation.
For those who need it, here is a map of Australia.
I was going to rant about that one, but thought it’d get a bad response…
The premier coming out and saying ‘This will be the worst disaster ever’ (or something along those lines) doesn’t help, either.[/quote]
Mike OConnor wrote a strongly-worded article about this in the Courier Mail: couriermail.com.au/news/perf … 6001366000
[quote]THERE was a time when political leaders appealed for calm in the face of a gathering storm.
Perhaps somewhere they still do. Not in Queensland, however, where the strategy, as evidenced by Premier Anna Bligh’s performance last week, is to scare the bejesus out of the populace with apocalyptic predictions of impending doom.[/quote]
Yes, unboubtedly. Their marker is exactly where Queenstown is. It clearly never occurred to them that Queenstown could not possibly be described as ‘far north’ by any stretch of the imagination, that Queensland is a state not a city, and that the place they identified as Queensland was several thousand kilometres away from the towns they identified as under threat. Highly ironic given that no one would miss Queenstown if it were wiped off the map; it’s a dirty little mining town that even Tasmanians say is full of inbreds.
Yes, unboubtedly. Their marker is exactly where Queenstown is. It clearly never occurred to them that Queenstown could not possibly be described as ‘far north’ by any stretch of the imagination, that Queensland is a state not a city, and that the place they identified as Queensland was several thousand kilometres away from the towns they identified as under threat. Highly ironic given that no one would miss Queenstown if it were wiped off the map; it’s a dirty little mining town that even Tasmanians say is full of inbreds.
Come on, it’s got one of the world’s only gravel Aussie Rules grounds in Australia. They say if you kiss that ground, you know what it’s like to get 50 lashes. It’s not a field, it’s a ground, because it grinds you.
That sounds very much like Queenstown living. Ever been there? I’ve hiked the area around Zeehan (Montezuma Falls), and the original ABT railroad trail (abandoned for about 50 years now), out of Queenstown. Lovely countryside, though hiking the rail trail can be dangerous unless you navigate the slopes and decayed bridges properly.
That sounds very much like Queenstown living. Ever been there? I’ve hiked the area around Zeehan (Montezuma Falls), and the original ABT railroad trail (abandoned for about 50 years now), out of Queenstown. Lovely countryside, though hiking the rail trail can be dangerous unless you navigate the slopes and decayed bridges properly.[/quote]
I haven’t been there but I’ve lived in a similar environment with unfenced mineshafts and hills that were denuded for timber and charcoal.
It’s a nasty site, especially when you can trek for an hour and find yourself in lush temperate rainforest. At least the rainforest managed to take over the railway once it was closed down. Parts of the railway are now buried under new growth.
I think the Daily Mail should take the prize, though. Back in January, it transformed northern Queensland into a new state: Capricornia.
Sensational effort!
So can someone give me a general summary of the cyclone? Was it as bad as predicted? Better?
Link? Capricornia is indeed an electoral district in the redneck wilderness, is it not? Is that what the Daily Mail, that bastion of Brit PC-ness, was referring to? Am I going to have to don my “Mr Angry, DSc (ret) from Tootleworth” hat and write an indignant letter? Don’t make me.
CP gave the link, here. Capricornia is an electoral district on the loony fringe of banana-bender territory, but it has never been a state. The map provided by the Daily Mail identifies it as a state, cuts the state of Queensland in half in order to create the pseudo-state of Capricornia, and does not even locate the pseudo-state in the electorate of Capricornia, which is far smaller.
CP gave the link, here. Capricornia is an electoral district on the loony fringe of banana-bender territory, but it has never been a state. The map provided by the Daily Mail identifies it as a state, cuts the state of Queensland in half in order to create the pseudo-state of Capricornia, and does not even locate the pseudo-state in the electorate of Capricornia, which is far smaller.[/quote]
Well, all I can say is that you should be thankful. It IS the Daily Mail, after all. Just be glad they didn’t just do a black sillhouette of Oz with a “here be sauvages and ne’er-do-wells” caption.
Good point. I’m impressed they managed to spell ‘Capricornia’ correctly, given the number of syllables. Mind you, I wouldn’t have minded them using the words ‘Here be bongs’ instead of ‘Capricornia’.
On the night that Yasi hit I stayed up quite late in order to follow its progress via the internet. The thing that really struck me was the efficiency with which twitter and Facebook reported the news: far, far better than traditional media. A Facebook page named Cyclone Yasi Update sprung into existence and by the end of the night had 90 000 people following it. Information from police, the weather bureau, power companies, phone companies, and local and state government was all coordinated on one Facebook page. The 10 admins moderated all of the Wall comments to keep information and advice accurate. Anyone with mobile internet could report in, providing their local tower was operative. For example, someone posted a link to a storm chaser driving around Townsville streaming live video; very soon 5000 people were watching the stream. There was a wikipedia page up well before the cyclone hit.
I doubt if I can give a satisfactory summary, but the Australian Bureau of Meteorology has info, including a summary, here:
bom.gov.au/cyclone/history/yasi.shtml
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation has a page called “Cyclone Yasi Live,” with info and pics, here:
abc.net.au/news/events/cyclone-yasi/
It has another page entitled “Cyclone Yasi,” here:
abc.net.au/news/events/yasi/
Thanks.