Category: Archive

Fuel industry chiefs could face criminal sanctions including jail if they are caught manipulating the market to force up petrol prices, reported The Daily Telegraph (7/8/2006, p.3).

NSW Govt talks tough: As a study shows the cost of running a family car in western Sydney is now topping $400 a week, the Iemma Government on 6 August called for a crackdown with harsh penalties.

PM Howard rules out fuel excise cut: It came as Prime Minister John Howard warned Australians the days of low petrol prices were gone forever and ruled out any fuel excise reduction.

PM speculates on oil price future: Howard expected prices would settle at 15 to 20 cents below current levels. "We hope that we’re not in an era of ever-rising petrol prices and perhaps somewhere in between, where that settles – $1.15, $1.20 – there’s some hope of that," he said.

Excise cut would kill $3bn Govt kitty: Howard said to make any difference to the retail cost of petrol, the Commonwealth would need to cut excise by 10c – equivalent to between $2.5 billion and $3 billion in revenue.

Fed Govt suggests cards for price manipulators: In a submission to the Senate inquiry into petrol prices, the Government recommended a football-style "yellow card" system to track offenders.

Sydney Westies bear brunt of price hike: New research shows families in Sydney’s west are among the hardest hit by fuel prices of $1.50 per litre. The Government’s weekly cost estimate of $400 includes fuel, depreciation, maintenance, insurance and tolls.

The Daily Telegraph, 7/8/2006, p. 3

Source: Erisk Net  

I was just curious as to why the “Commonwealth of Australia” is registered as a US corporation (CIK 0000805157).

Is this just something to do with the Free Trade Agreement or is there some more complex explanation for why a government is registered as a business?

I was thinking maybe it’s just an internal way for US SEC to keep tabs on what money is going where.

The links of interest are:
http://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-ed…any&CIK=805157
http://www.sec.gov/divisions/corpfin…on/cf2003c.htm

Also, for a laugh look here: http://www.nutech2000.com/webtext/up…opyrights.html

This fruitcake has decided it’s a conspiracy of the highest order!

Even some of the Prime Minister’s own backbenchers – Wilson Tuckey, Fiona Nash, Kay Hull and Jackie Kelly – want the Government to look at alternative fuels, reported The Daily Telegraph (8/8/2006, p.19).

Tuckey touts hydrogen: Tuckey, a West Australian MP, believes hydrogen is the answer. "I’m significantly disappointed with our Government," Tuckey told The Daily Telegraph. "The Government and its energy department are carbon-centric and they are not doing sufficient work in Australia to equip future generations with an alternative fuel."

CSIRO boffin sees auto power from water: CSIRO chief research scientist Dr Sukhvindar Badwal agrees and has researched new ways to power cars because "we are running short of liquid fuel". Badwal has developed a device that can run on mains power or from a solar panel that generates hydrogen from water and could power a family car for up to 150km. While he doesn’t think the world will ever run out of oil, he does believe prices will rise.

Electric cars recall mystery: Chris Paine last week appeared on a US talk show to discuss his documentary Who Killed The Electric Car? When electric cars were built in California, Paine bought one to see what it was like. The car could be plugged into the home garage. When he took the car in to get a new brake light and called the car manufacturer to find out if repairs were completed, he was told: "We took it back."

Electric car crunch: In fact, the manufacturer took all the cars back. Chartering a helicopter, Paine flew over General Motors headquarters in Arizona and saw the cars being crushed in the desert.

The Daily Telegraph, 8/8/2006, p.19

Source: Erisk Net  

A wind farm has exceeded its allowance for deaths of the endangered Tasmanian wedge-tailed eagle, with a third killed there in five months, reported The Age (8/8/2006, p.4).

1.8 eagle death allowance: The 62-turbine Woolnorth wind farm, in Tasmania’s far north-west, was expected to average 1.8 eagle deaths each year, said Josh Bradshaw, a spokesperson for the project’s owner, Roaring 40s.

Third death since March: An adult eagle was recently found injured at the farm and put down by a vet at nearby Smithton. It was the third to die there since March.

$3000 per head: The bird is down to around 130 breeding pairs, according to the Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife Service. Roaring 40s must pay $3000 for each bird that is "permanently incapacitated".

The Age, 8/8/2006, p.4

Source: Erisk Net