Hard News by Russell Brown

人怕名﹐豬怕壯 (idiom)
Men should worry about fame just as pigs about being fat.

Thanks to Media7 for resisting the temptation to play 'Born To Be Wild' when a motorbike appeared in the item, which appears to be mandatory in TV reports. I live in hope of one day seeing a piece about motorbikes soundtracked by the Manic Street Preachers' 'Motorcycle Emptiness', but I don't like my chances.

The hog associations may fade along with the boomers who romanticise them..

I want to hear music like that over scenes of mass low-powered commmuting in some Asian city. Heh.

And on the topic of a totally different bunch of crusaders, an opinion piece in the SMH lays the blame for the death toll in Victoria squarely at the feet of the green lobby, and its absolutist stance against "prescribed burning". When you read things like In nearby St Andrews, where more than 20 people are believed to have died, surviving residents have spoken angrily of "greenies" who prevented them from cutting back trees near their property, including in one case, a tea tree that went "whoomp" it's hard not to agree that maybe the green lobby needs to be accorded a bit less heed at times.

And on the topic of a totally different bunch of crusaders, an opinion piece in the SMH lays the blame for the death toll in Victoria squarely at the feet of the green lobby, and its absolutist stance against "prescribed burning".

This idea has gained currency in the past few days, but from what I can make out it's not entirely accurate. There's certainly no detail in the column to back up such a strong claim.

It also appears that controlled burning, which clears ground material, would not have helped in this case.

And George Darroch points out that the Australian Greens have long been in favour of controlled burns as a for of forest management. The lobby against it has been more in the line of middle-class conservationists.

Both links are from the discussion under a wildly shrill the-greenies-dunnit post from Poneke.

I live in hope of one day seeing a piece about motorbikes soundtracked by the Manic Street Preachers' 'Motorcycle Emptiness', but I don't like my chances.

We'll bear it in mind ...

The lobby against it has been more in the line of middle-class conservationists.

A state of affairs that would surprise me not in the slightest. Real conservationists understand that fire is part of the natural order. Since the human cost of allowing fire to burn in all its splendour is unthinkable, a la Victoria, letting the beast loose under controlled conditions is far preferable. But your average meddling do-gooder frequently has only a very slim grasp on all the details, and consequently does more harm than good. The unfortunate thing is that the average meddling do-gooder is often a far more appealing visitor to the office of their local MP than the neighbourhood greenie.

There's also the disconnect, as mentioned in other articles, between those who have moved to the land for the lifestyle and those who live on the land. Farmers know that fire is necessary, that bush must be controlled. Lifestylers want it to look pretty, and think that fire is bad because it does such things as we're currently seeing.

Also, It also appears that controlled burning, which clears ground material, would not have helped in this case.

So fuel reduction burning (which aims to reduce ground material) would not have stopped the spread of these fires through the canopy; but it should have reduced the chance of the fires igniting and moving to the canopy to begin with.

The second part of the sentence implies, and reasonably so, that the fires may well not have got to the point at which they race through the canopy had the ground loading been reduced. Constructing fire trails and other such "evils" also puts breaks into the path, helping to stop canopy fires.

Farmers know that fire is necessary, that bush must be controlled.

There's a two part statement.

Fire has, in many parts of the world, been part of the natural order of things.

Controlling bush is a much more modern, and not particularly 'natural' concept.

an opinion piece in the SMH

All Miranda Devine "opinion pieces" should come with the warning:

Written Without the Aid of a Functioning Intellect

Fire has, in many parts of the world, been part of the natural order of things.

Controlling bush is a much more modern, and not particularly 'natural' concept.

By "controlling bush" I meant allowing fire to do its thing rather than attempting to preserve the "greenery", such as it is in a drought-stricken area. Controlled burns to keep uncontrolled burns at a distance from people. Farmers get that this is important and that the uncontrolled fire will come, whether or not you have controlled burns. Stopping it is impossible, so you just have to hold it as far away as is possible.

Well, that was all kind of jolly--the Herald online pays due respect to David Hayward!

Both links are from the discussion under a wildly shrill the-greenies-dunnit post from Poneke

Ugh a moderated blog. Which means this poneke is a plonker who just likes ego massaging posts, or contrarian posts he can moderate, think up a rebuttal to and then put both up.

He seems to have a few crap ideas.

Controlling bush

hmmmm....no

All Miranda Devine "opinion pieces" should come with the warning:

Written Without the Aid of a Functioning Intellect

Just as I suspected. She's best thought of as the Ann Coulter of the Antipodes.

Matthew Poole: These "meddling do-gooders" sound like the types who think doing their bit for the environment is about slapping an 'I heart nature' sticker on the rear bumper of their Range Rovers/Porsche Cayennes/Ford Explorers.

the Herald online pays due respect to David Hayward

Do you mean Ana Samways being paid for his words without any attribution?

here is a quote I found online

Classy. It's one thing quoting a sentence in the middle of a long article, but not when the sentence is the whole thing.

She's best thought of as the Ann Coulter of the Antipodes.

Or for an analogy closer to home; Garth George in a Dress.
'scuse me I just have to go and throw up.

These "meddling do-gooders" sound like the types who think doing their bit for the environment is about slapping an 'I heart nature' sticker on the rear bumper of their Range Rovers/Porsche Cayennes/Ford Explorers.

haha. Love it. Not quite how I'd thought of it, but probably not far off. The kind of people who move to the country for the "peace and quiet" and then get uppity because their neighbour, who's a real farmer, is up at 4 in the morning with the quad and the dogs to get the herd to the shed for milking. They don't understand that life is different in the country, and think that they can mould it to be like life in the city only with different scenery.