It has come to notice that this land falls within the Grenfell Urban Conservation Area as identified by the National Trust and listed on the NSW State Heritage Inventory and the Register of the National Estate. These listings have been very important for council in attracting funding for heritage conservation and providing a focus for local tourism. Grenfell’s continuity of heritage buildings is what sets it apart from other places, and visitors often comment on the appearance and atmosphere of the town. Council is unable to impose conditions on development applications by the Crown (in this case the state govt) unless agreed, so it must be hoped that TAFE will do the right thing and design a building sympathetic to its surroundings. A modern new building would not be a good look and would cause resentment from other property owners who have complied with the restrictions. No doubt council's Heritage Advisor will have to play a key role here, and her report should be crucial. Representatives of TAFE will be present at the Hub on Thursday and Friday to explain the project for those interested. 

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Australia made the international news last week for all the wrong reasons. After weeks of protest action by unarmed Palestinians and increased shootings by Israeli snipers, the United Nations considered a motion to hold an independent review of the justification for lethal force in this situation. The motion was generated from broad concern across many countries that the Israeli response was excessive. The motion was immediately opposed by the USA which is a reflection of the influence of the Israelis in American politics. However, of all the countries in the United Nations, some of which abstained, there was only ONE which voted WITH the USA to oppose the motion. Yep, Australia. Makes you feel proud when the Canberra set acts like a lapdog, doesn’t it?

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China is well and truly in the news this week with the naming of a Chinese-Australian businessman as the one allegedly responsible for funding an attempt to bribe a United Nations official. The name was revealed under parliamentary privilege by Liberal MP Andrew Hastie, a former soldier, who appears to have taken it upon himself to do so without the approval of the PM or the party.

As it happens, the businessman is a billionaire who has donated over $4 million to the major political parties and $45 million to Australian universities, donations which have reportedly raised concerns in ASIO. It is not hard to understand why the Liberals and Labor alike were happy to keep him on side. Of course, as always, the donations were not intended to curry favour or exert influence.

Where does this leave Mr Hastie? Was he too hasty? Or do we have here a man of principle who was unhappy about the way things were being done and wanted the situation improved? There’s little doubt his action won’t be appreciated by the party if the donation stream dries up, but that may have been part of his intention. One thing is for certain: he has attracted the attention of the Chinese government and his career may suffer as a consequence. He has also caused a cooling in Australian-Chinese political relations and there may be retribution.

Thankfully we don’t (always) do things like the Chinese, so good luck to him.

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In a recent article, it was reported that only four towns in NSW did not have fluoridated water supplies. Byron Bay would be a given with its high proportion of alternative lifestylers, but seeing nearby Oberon's name was a surprise. When your scribe was still playing football, Oberon had a well-earned reputation for mountain men and hardy women, possibly exemplified by Tony Paskins, former rugby league captain of NSW: perhaps their nature is different now. According to the town's visiting dentist from Bathurst, Oberon has one quarter the number of children but twice the dental extractions and decay, but that is not persuasive enough for some residents who oppose putting "poison" in the water supply. Apart from having to avoid a whole range of food additives, it can only be presumed that these same people never smoke or drink as nicotine and alcohol are much stronger poisons than fluoride at the low concentration used. Clearly their children's teeth are already suffering but regrettably that does not seem sufficiently important to them. So this week's dedication is to the children of Oberon and the other three towns, and is "All I Want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth" by Alvin and the Chipmunks,  a group who know a thing or two about big strong front teeth.

Feather Duster No 3

T Lobb