Category: News

When he announced his retirement at the end of the first sitting week of Parliament, Kevin Rudd surprised not only his own colleagues, he also shocked his old foe Dr Bill Glasson.

Glasson had only recently returned to work, and after some hesitation (he admits to exhaustion following the September election), he’s decided to step forward again for the LNP.

Dr Glasson is well known and well liked in the electorate and a speedily organised by-election would have suited him. However, by waiting until November 23 to formally submit his resignation, Mr Rudd bought some time for the Labor party and avoided a pre-Christmas poll.

The focus now is on who will replace Rudd as the Labor Party’s candidate for Griffith.

Two candidates, Terri Butler, an industrial lawyer on the Labor Left, and Jeremy de Lore, purportedly new to the Labor Party and supported by the right faction, will fight it out for that opportunity at a plebiscite (70 percent branch members; 30 percent party executive ‘Electoral College’), to be held on December 14.

For now, Jeremy de Lore is keeping a low profile. He has been reported as saying he won’t be spruiking his polices until after December 14.

Not so Terri Butler. She is active on Twitter, has her own ‘Terri Butler for Griffith’ blog, and has recently been interviewed on radio and in local media. She spoke with No Fibs this week.

She said she is talking to media now because she does not want Dr Glasson to get all the running on the issues.

Griffith, she said, is a diverse electorate and the issues vary across the suburbs, but key concerns include airport noise, childcare, and workforce participation, and not just for the young. “I am passionate about addressing age discrimination … it takes away people’s power,” she said.

The Newman Government’s block on Commonwealth funding for the cross river rail has angered parts of the electorate, Ms Butler said, which may be a factor in this by-election, particularly given what she terms the “disrespect” and “arrogance” Newman has shown voters by sacking the Crime and Misconduct Committee. This she said, “has given rise to great community outrage”.

Some have touted this by-election as an early litmus test for the Abbott Government and its ‘axe the carbon tax’ policies, so I asked Ms Butler what she made of Dr Glasson’s recent comment, reported in the Fairfax media, that: “If we try to sell it (the election) on a political basis, or a leadership basis, we won’t get up”.

Ms Butler responded that Dr Glasson “probably has some sense that Mr Abbott’s government is not travelling well. Voters must be horrified that the Government has so soon got into such a sensitive position with Indonesia”.

She added that the recent issues of the separation of an asylum seeker from her new baby has not played out well for the Government.

“After the results in this week’s Nielsen poll I can understand why Dr Glasson would want to distance himself from Mr Abbott,” she said, “the problem for him is that he is Mr Abbott’s candidate.”

It is still not known whether the Palmer United Party will run a candidate in the election. PUP was not a factor in Griffith in September and Ms Butler said that people are now waiting to see what that party will do, and commented: “We know about the public persona, but we don’t know enough about what they stand for”.

She acknowledged that Bill Glasson is a nice bloke, and is generally liked in the electorate, but said: “Being in parliament is not about being nice, it is not about who Tony Abbott would have a glass of wine with to sort things out privately, which is what Dr Glasson said on the ABC the other day, it is about representing the views of your constituency”.

“I think Dr Glasson will be hamstrung because he has to toe the party line. Voters can be confident that I won’t be a mouthpiece for Tony Abbott, but they can’t be confident about that when it comes to Dr Glasson.”

Ms Butler acknowledged that, “no-one really likes by-elections”, but noted that others have resigned in similar circumstances to Mr Rudd.

“Peter Costello and Alexander Downer did it, and Rob Borbidge after he lost the State election. I understand why a former leader might think it’s the honourable thing to do, to leave the party and make room for renewal, and I think people will understand that.”

Asked about the legacy of her possible predecessor, she said Mr Rudd will always be remembered for connecting with the community. “He donated over 900 bikes to the community”, and on a national level she said: “His apology to the stolen generation was a watershed moment in Australia’s history, and his government steered us through the Global Financial Crisis”.

Butler sees herself as a reformer within the Labor party, but it remains to be seen whether the party and its members are ready to embrace her as their candidate for Griffith.

And if so, whether she can replace Kevin Rudd in the affections of Griffith voters.

– See more at: http://nofibs.com.au/2013/11/27/whos-naughty-nice-silly-season-starts-griffith-jan-bowman-griffithelects-reports/#sthash.DkXOc6qs.dpuf

Anyone walking down Boundary Street in recent days will have noticed a hive of creative activity at the People’s Park in the middle of the street, with numerous people engaged in renewing the large mural which covered the entire wall on the northern side of the park.

This mural is a collaboration between Jugglers Art Space and five Indigenous Australian students, studying at Griffith University, Southbank Campus (formerly known as QCA). All the students are just finishing their first year of the Bachelor of Contemporary Australian Indigenous Art.

According to Andrew Gall, one of the artists, “As a group, my fellow classmates and I came up with a design and storyline for the mural. We sought guidance from one of our lecturers, Mr Laurie Nielson, who was the lead artist on the previous mural. The design was then shown to Mr Peter Breen from Jugglers and Councilor Helen Abrahams, both agreed that the design would be suitable and a start date was set.”

The new Mural will be officially launched, and presented to the people of West End, at a ceremony in the Park at 4.00 pm on Monday 9^th December. Light refreshments will be served. More information on the opening is available from Councillor Helen Abrahams’ office on 3403 2165.

The story reads from left to right when facing the wall:

Our story is ‘History in A Day’, that is to say from the far left to the end of the mural on the right, has a pallet of blended colours taken from sunrise to sunset then on into the night and finishing with the vibrant colours that make up the modern style of Graph art.

As you look to your left you will see a young Aboriginal boy sitting, looking down the river in a thoughtful pose, what he is thinking is left up to the imagination of the viewer. The young Aboriginal boy also represents a time when the river was young.

The river meanders through a tranquil natural bush setting until it reaches the next phase of its growth. Now it is midday and the colour tones have changed. This stage is represented by a young Aboriginal man, who is also looking downstream.

However this young man is standing next to a signpost and the name on the signpost is “Boundary Street”. The signpost is wrapped in barbed wire and a chain restricts this young Aboriginal man’s movements, illustrating a significant point in the history of both the river and West End.

(In Colonial times, Boundary St in West End and Spring Hill marked an actual boundary, which the local Aboriginals were prohibited from crossing to enter the young settlement of Brisbane, outside certain hours – Ed.)

As the day is coming to an end the river meanders past a site where the sacred fire used to burn bright, within the dancing flames there is a name, Musgrave Park.

It is evening now and the colours have changed, the river has grown older and bush has gone. There is an elderly Aboriginal man looking towards where the bush used to be, now there is a city with building taller than the trees which once stood proud and tall, the river keeps flowing on into the vibrant colours of the city lights, which reveal West End.

The Artists on this project are;

From Jugglers; Jordan Bruce (Lead artist) & Gus Eagleton

QCA Students were Emily Martin, Tori-Jay Mordey, Warraba Weatherall, Jason Murphy and Andrew T Gall.

Photo Credit: Kate Bennett, Embellysh Photography.
Caption: Back Row: Jason Murphy, Gus Eagleton, Andrew Gall and Cr Helen Abrahams
Front Row: Tori-Jay Mordey, Emily Martin, Jordan Bruce and Warraba Weatherall

Office workers can rest assured – as long as you are physically active, your desk job won’t kill you.

While increasing attention has been paid to the detrimental effects of overall sedentary behaviour in recent years, new research from the University of South Australia shows that long periods spent sitting can be combatted with moderate physical activity.

Published today in the international journal Obesity, the study shows a desk job won’t put you at risk of obesity and associated health problems as long as you exercise.

UniSA Postdoctoral Research Fellow Dr Carol Maher says her study is good news for office workers.

“The nice thing about these results is that people with desk jobs can be reassured that as long as they are doing a bit of activity, their desk job isn’t putting them at risk of obesity,” Dr Maher says.

“And our results suggest the amount of physical activity needed is actually very achievable.”

Dr Maher’s study was done on 5083 American adults, taking cross-sectional analyses on a nationally representative sample from the April 2003 to June 2005 US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. She undertook the study while she was a visiting scholar at Pennington Biomedical Research Centre in Louisiana last year.

“I looked at how people’s physical activity and sedentary activities were related to the risk of being obese and overweight,” Dr Maher says.

“We classified people into three activity and three sedentary groups – low, medium and high physical activity; and low, medium and high sedentary activity.

“We found that low physical activity was a strong predictor of obesity. People who had low levels of physical activity were up to four times more likely to be overweight or obese than people in the moderate and high activity groups, while sedentary time was unrelated to being overweight.

“Obesity was more strongly related to not being active than either TV time or total sedentary time.”

Dr Maher says the amount of activity needed is ‘achievable’.

“Small differences in daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity of just five to 10 minutes were associated with relatively large differences in the risk of obesity.”

The full study can be read at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/oby.20430/abstract

 

There are only a few weeks left to get your films into the West End Film Festival’s 2014 short film competition.

The West End Film Festival (WEFF) is Queensland’s biggest dedicated short film festival are very proud to be returning for their 5th year in March 2014.  WEFF are passionate about screening diverse and intriguing stories from local and national filmmakers. Organisers are looking for the best short films Australia has to offer across all genres, with a running time of less than 30 minutes.

On March 23rd 2014, WEFF will showcase a program of shorts at its pop-up cinema located in the heart of one of Brisbane’s most vibrant boroughs, West End. In previous years, sell-out crowds have attended the festival and enjoyed its relaxed atmosphere and urban outdoor setting.

So get your film(s) in before the deadline of December 31 for your chance to win cash prizes and be a part of WEFF 2014. Entry forms are available on the website. For enquiries please contact info@westendfilmfestival.com.au.

WEFF NOW ACCEPTING DIGITAL FILES

This year WEFF has worked to make it easier for you to enter your films and are now accepting Pro-Res or H.264 files as film entry formats. Please send file(s) via a DVD, hard drive, USB stick or file share. If needed, please include a self-addressed and stamped envelope, so they can be sent back to you.

For chance to be a part of one of Queensland’s biggest short film festival go to WEFF website and download the entry form.

http://westendfilmfestival.com.au/

Entry deadline: Dec 31st 2013.

The Westender is now twenty-one years old.

Part of the community, we just keep getting younger as new journalists, designers and artists come on board to keep the flag flying. We are proud to work with local design house Text and Image who have produced our new look.

You don’t get to be this young, though, without a bit of a back story. Founding editor Kerrod Trott lets a few secrets out of the bag …

In 1992 I was running a desktop publishing and marketing bureau – Perfect Pitch, no less – in Thomas Street (and living at Rio Grande in Vulture St) when my business partner and I had the great idea of starting a local newspaper as a showcase for our design and writing skills. We had one John Jiggens (aka John Freemarijuana) as our founding editor.

I’d been involved with community publishing in the 80’s when I lived on a Multiple Occupancy outside Lismore, working on the Northcoaster and publishing my own title, Incredible Times.

Thus was the Westender born – before there was a Quest newspaper in the area, before Brian Laver started his Neighbourhood News, and long before the glossy West End Magazine.

Fast forward to 1999, when I returned back to West End after a lengthy pilgrimage to ashrams, temples and holy sites in India. Out of work, and at a loss for something to do. I know, I said to myself, I’ll start the Westender again!

This, the second incarnation of the Westender, ran for several years and dominated the market. We had a delightful newspaper war running with Brian Laver and his Neighbourhood News, swapping insults in print and spreading the most scurrilous gossip about each other.

I had to cease publishing the Westender for personal and financial reasons and get a couple of real jobs to pay off my bills.

Then, in 2009, I was persuaded by a business acquaintance to re-commence publication. The third incarnation of the Westender was as a colour magazine, with a print run of up to 43,000 and letterbox dropped to homes throughout inner Southern Brisbane. We briefly ran on a weekly schedule, before the 2011 Brisbane floods dealt a body blow to the local business community and advertising revenue dried up.

(The Westender has never received any funding, its sole source of income has always been the support of the local business community, and the support of the creative local community.)

We managed to bring out a couple of special editions – usually at election time – but never quite recovered.

Here we are now in 2013 and, with a new business partner in Geoff Ebbs, the Westender is back in print, incarnation number four.

If all you want to do is Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas but are instead too stressed trying to Deck the Halls to feel Joy to the World, it’s time to take a Christmas reality check.

QUT Rehabilitation and Wellness manager Dr Leith Henry, a psychologist, said it was easy to fall prey to the same less-than-perfect holiday behaviour patterns year after year. Instead, this year give yourself the ultimate Yuletide present – treat angst-filled Christmases to an emotional make-over.

“Christmas can be a very stressful time for people,” Dr Henry said. “It does not have to be.

“Often, people hold unrealistic expectations about what the days should be. They have this picture in their head – the perfect Disney day with all the trimmings and everyone is completely happy and every morsel of food is delicious.

“It’s not in one person’s control to have a `perfect’ day.

“It might help to know exactly what you do want to experience. Determine your priorities, your values and the definition of what a `good Christmas’ is to you. And then make plans around that.

“Reflect on what is meaningful to you and create your own traditions and rituals.

“And take the focus of just that one day by shifting perspective to the holiday `season’.”

She said the key to Christmas resilience was to realise those anxiety-triggering circumstances which happen every year and then to work out a strategy to change them.

For example, the Santa tradition for many families represents a large financial burden. Consider an alternative, such as playing “Secret Santa” in larger families so you only have to buy one gift; or set a dollar-value limit that everyone agrees to stay below.

“And there’s nothing wrong with homemade or sentimental presents – sometimes these are the best kind,” Dr Henry said.

“The important thing to remember is that the Christmas period is one of the very few opportunities for families to spend time together during the working year. It’s a time for rest and relaxation, a time to enjoy being together. That’s the real meaning of Christmas.

“The magic of Christmas is about being kind to ourselves and those we love.”

How to build Christmas resilience:

Find a balance between meeting expectations and getting what you want – “let go” of perfect and Disney.
Start new Christmas traditions with connection as a focus – family, friends, self, others in need. Consider volunteering (Volunteers Australia or local acts of kindness).
As far as possible, maintain stress management, sleep routines, eating well, exercise etc.
Remember that others may be stressed too, so be patient and tolerant. Acknowledge emotion, listen for underlying meaning, be prepared to make some concessions and try not to personalise too much.
Decide purchases before hitting the shops, to avoid impulse buying. Consider homemade gifts (eg baking, cards, jams, vouchers for your labour), but remember also to “budget” your time.
Consider that others might be relieved for you to take the lead in setting limits on expectations.
Learn to say “no” – you don’t have to attend everything you’re invited to, be the life of the party or to stay till stumps.
Allow extra time for contingencies and delegate to others.

Christmas stress triggers:

Family – Increased contact with family can lead to conflict, tension, pressure. Moreover, because we might expect this contact to resemble a Disney movie, our sense of disappointment or upset over tensions may be heightened.
Split families and in-laws – We may feel pressure to please everyone, spread ourselves around fairly, manage sensitivities and coordinate lavish gatherings (as seen on Pinterest).
Religious matters – Our values may be challenged by perceived obligations and expectations and tensions may arise around ideological clashes.
Financial pressure – Buying for large families can be expensive, and there is social and media pressure to spend more each year or feel guilty. The costs of social events and catering can all cast a financial burden.
Grief – The reminder of absent friends, our first Christmas without someone special or since a major change or event, can leave a sense of loneliness and grief that we may feel we can’t share.
Loneliness – Separation and/or isolation can lead us to feel lonely and like ‘Christmas failures’.
Triggers – Upsetting memories related to Christmas or childhood, brought on by the season or what/who it brings back into your life can unsettle us and may even trigger episodes of mental illness.
Having to be jolly – On top of all the above, the pressure to put on a happy face and be jovial can lead to a sense of leading a double life in which no one really ‘knows us’.
Overeating and drinking – these can lead to weight gain, embarrassing displays, injuries etc.
Busy schedules of events – There is a danger of feeling exhausted and then having to return to work.