Bruce

These days she lifts just as heavy as I do at exercise class, and she is 10 times meaner... who would win in a fight? No question, she would be the better soldier.

My wife was a sergeant in the RAAF and in 1969 was discharged on account of getting married. I wonder if we have a claim now. They didn't sack the blokes for getting married.

If they had done it the way put up by the republic lot, the head of state would need 2/3 of the parliament to put them there. This would ensure a bi-partisan head of state. Alas, it was stymied with lies.

The guy with the leg mangled by the boat prop actually got angry and started complaining to everybody. I would offer them the choice of waiting for the specialist or signing a disclaimer and getting fixed by a lesser mortal. I bet some of those lesser mortals would do a better job sometimes.

In Adelaide, there have been ambulances "ramped" for many hours because they can't unload their patients into an overloaded emergency ward. In Darwin, this guy waited 3 days with a mangled leg. All this in the last few weeks. The reason is obvious, and that is because they only use specialists for lots of things, and there is an extreme shortage of specialists. Many of the waiting patients could be fixed by nurses, or lesser qualified doctors, but this may expose the hospital to litigation. A totally insane system, say I. The specialist shortage is completely contrived and has the effect of keeping their incomes above 3 million a year. But why is the legal system unable to understand the idea of "least worst"? Are they stupid or evil or what ? And what of the pollies? Blame them too, say I.

space, why would you want a monarch anyway?

There was a great job going in Darwin last year... you went around to see people who had difficulty paying their power bills, and explained things to them like how leaving the airconditioner on all day when you were at work actually cost money, even if it did give you a nice cool house to come home to. Apparently this type of information was met with disbelief a lot of the time. Electricity bill deniers? What a good idea say I.

Hottest time ever in Darwin, but it was only noticed by the population when they got their electricity bills. They had been using their air-conditioners a lot more, so they didn't feel the heat. Their first reaction was to blame the evil supply company, but this is actually the government in the NT and prices had not actually gone up much.

A lot of that stuff is surely right, but personally I do not feel subjugated or deprived and reckon I am lucky to be living in a good country in the best of times. Now that doesn't mean that improvements are not wanted, CASA is a good example of a bureaucracy which deprives me of some freedoms I want. But I don't believe there is any conspiracy behind CASA, just the ignorance of my fellow Australians and their inborn fear of heights and too much freedom. Yes I voted against the monarchy, but I was in a minority and the monarchists used cunning tactics against a too-straight republic campaign. The republic campaign was led by Turnbull and I wondered at the time if he was deliberately sabotaging the case . ( I would have made hay out of the fact that under the monarchy, we are not free people but "subjects". Now this is an exaggeration, but the other side were doing worse and telling awful lies.) Would I swap places with Prince Charles? No way! He hasn't got a Jabiru or a Libelle as starters...

Yes he was at fault, but I reckon the worse culprit is our insane puritan culture. Just imagine a hypothetical society where the kind of stuff he did was praiseworthy and the kids were not considered as victims but as normal. This type of society possibly existed in ancient Greece and in the Royal Navy of 100 years ago. We have become more puritan in recent years and I don't know why When I was a kid in Alice Springs, there were a few characters around town ( one an Anglican official ) who were inclined towards boys. As far as I know, nothing much ever happened. If it did, why should the boy feel guilt and shame so much that he would commit suicide? That would be our culture doing that to them. Of cours the perp played his part, but it was only a part.

Don't try to land on it even if it looks dry and hard. I went walking out and after 50 m or so, my feet started sinking in the mud. There is soft clay mud under that salt white skin.

That old man river, " he must know something but he don't say nothing" deserves a visit from the grammar police.

Bex ( I hope he gets better and returns ) once said that the average educated Chinese thinks Australia is a corrupt country on the basis of political " donations" . Notice how both sides of politics accuse the other of being beholden to their donors? And Marty, an organization with lots of members can have clout because it can sway lots of votes. This is how some groups, like churches or shooters, exert influence far beyond their numbers

How much was the water worth that flooded out of qld? I bet it was billions worth, and it would have flushed the Darling. I sure would like to spend most of our military money on things like the Bradfield scheme. AND I'm hoping that the Diamantina puts enough into the Warburton to get to Lake Eyre. I'll fly up in the Jabiru to see it if that happens.

There have been a few cultures which traditionally drank beers and spirits. ( China and the US are just 2 examples ) . When they are introduced to wine, they gradually change over and never go back. The only exception is my son-in-law who steadfastly prefers boutique beers and bourbon. Yes he is from the US and he likes guns too... actually he's a nice bloke and can't help his culture.

This French chef was in a good wine commercial, he said " I use this wine for cooking... sometimes I even put a little in the food"

George Moffat ( he became world champion ) learned to fly gliders in France and he was taken aback when they all stopped at noon to have a dinner, with wine, before continuing flying. For myself, one day I was getting ready to service the car in the hangar when this CASA guy arrived. He had a clip-board and an alcohol tester. He said that although he could see I wasn't about to fly, could he test me anyway on account of how he had to fill in this form a bit. He was actually quite a nice bloke, so I agreed and he found that I was zero at 9am. A poor use of government money, thought I.

Nev, who were you impressed that you never saw one inebriated? Doctors, police or New Zealanders?

Here's what I would like to see... an ombudsman for keeping government tenders honest. It would work by investigating claims from cheaper but unsuccessful tenderers and , if their claims passed scrutiny, sacking the corrupt officials involved. Of course it will be falsely claimed that this already happens.

I've got a mate who says that ww1 and 2 were a big mistake because the true enemy of Anglo-Saxons is the French.

Same rules here hiho, they just took over the EU rules I think. 25km/hr cutout speed. So I can't be a racist, the peleton does over 30. Those recumbent one look comfortable, but maybe more dangerous on the road as you can't see or be seen so well from down low. Are they allowed on footpaths? Nice for trails tho... Your shop rider looks good to me space. Is there a limit on the width of those things? I ask this because there is a fat and rude woman around here with an enormous one which blocks a supermarket aisle. I reckon they should be no wider than yours.

The bike is a Nishiro MXT. It is legal in SA on the footpath or the road. So far it has done about 400k and is 6 months old. It can easily be found on the net. About $800 when I bought it, I think they are a bit more now, but not much. Lots of wise advice will tell you that you need to spend $3000 or so, I don't agree on account of being a cheapskate. A couple of things I wonder about... I wonder just what battery management system it has. I can't see one at all and maybe it needs one or the batteries will not last. But they are not showing signs of getting damage so keep an open mind but check it out before buying. I guess a BMS could be retrofitted.( The battery is inside the frame and not easy to get at... not a good feature either) The other thing is the control mechanism. To be a legal bicycle, the electric boost requires that you are actually moving the pedals to cut in. The bike is MUCH better if you use the provided twist throttle instead. That stupid rule about moving the pedals is obviously not required in China. You can change just with software and they tell you how in the manual ( which consists of a few cheap sheets of paper). Naturally, I just tried this in a safe place and then returned to the legal configuration. You will find yourself pedalling enough with the twist throttle, and the power cuts in faster when you start off, which helps when crossing main roads at the lights. On the subject of stupid rules, the helmet requirement means that you have to wear one or get a $94 fine. Only 2 countries in the world do that to adults riding on footpaths. The helmet makes you look like a dork but then who cares? But even with these gripes, I reckon the electric bike is the best thing I've got in recent years. PS ... you will be welcome here in Australia Phil. When they make me dictator, I will appoint you as Nev's assistant tax expenditure overseer.

The idea that action to save the planet is URGENT is new and not accepted much. Not like an invasion of aliens would be accepted. But I have to admit that there are limits to what I'd be prepared to do, and I really believe that urgent stuff is needed. Most don't. Take using human waste for fertilizer.. yes I would accept this but only if it were done in conjunction with population controls and similar stuff. ( human poo is ok for cooked food but not for salads, where tapeworm eggs survive most sewage treatment works). We are one of the few countries where it is safe to eat lettuce for example. I really like living here but it's not sustainable.

I really like my new electric bike. It cost $800 and has a 10 amp-hour battery at 36 volts. It can be ridden as a normal bike and is legal on footpaths. But when there is a headwind or an uphill bit, the electric boost is wonderful. With footpaths and bikeways and painted bits on roads, we riders are well catered for around here.( not on country roads I admit, where riding a bike puts you at the mercy of drunken lawyers in 4wd's).. But in the suburbs, you don't need to mix it with cars and trucks, yet there are hardly any bike riders around. Why so few? I notice that there are few pedestrians too, everybody is in a car.

Only a few years ago, the idea was that lithium batteries were too dangerous to consider. Now we are discussing a detail about how they can return some energy on descent. Progress huh? Personally, I have used a LiFe battery to start the Jabiru for years now, but at first I felt it wise to keep quiet because some people thought this was dangerous. I tried to explain the differences in lithium batteries, and I tried to explain how lead-acid batteries were not without risk too. In particular their weight is a bad feature. It must be the adoption of electric cars which has influenced safety authorities to allow electric planes. I'm surprised they are not fighting a rearguard action to stop them. On the regen, on the figures in octave's post, it's not much energy saved. Here's a bigger thing to be concerned about... How does the battery pack perform with age? I know that with r/c models, the battery is at its best the first time you use it. Guys use their old packs for practice and a new pack for a competition. If the pack is used at its max power ( as seems reasonable for take-off ) then a small loss will be very noticeable.