DEAR Jasminda, My wife is preparing for the latest weather event like we are getting ready for a world war. What can I do to put her mind at ease? Kevin B Dear Kevin, I received your conundrum during the calm before the storm, so to speak, at which point some media outlets were using […]
DEAR News Of The Area, LAST Monday night, I attended an industry seminar down in Martin Place in Sydney with the Australian Institute of Energy (AIE) and electrical industry professionals. I’m a member of the AIE Newcastle branch and this seminar was called “The Challenge of Social Licence in the Energy Transition” which was basically […]
DEAR News Of The Area, I write in response to Cherylle Stone’s letter ‘Nothing responsible about it’ in NOTA on 26 June 2025. She states that offshore wind development ”has the potential to seriously deplete and further distress the ocean, our main already overburdened heat and carbon sink”. Depleting the ocean implies diminishing its quantity, […]
INTERESTING headlines from the USA this week: “Billionaire sounds alarm on US economy’s ‘death spiral’”. That certainly gained my attention after a 40-year career in the finance game, including many years working in the USA and Switzerland plus a number of other western and Asian nations. Fortunately, this headline looks to be publicity for a […]
ROADS are vital to our everyday life. Whether it’s getting to work, school, or the local shops, we all rely on safe, well-maintained roads. We know roads are the most important issue for our community – we’ve heard it through our Community Satisfaction Survey, Liveability Survey and as Councillors out and about in our community. […]
DEAR Jasminda, I WAS scrolling through the local community page on the weekend and came across a cheeky post. The post didn’t raise an eyebrow, but what did was the pile-on from adults hating on this young person. It seems strange that people over a certain age would stoop this low. Why are people so […]
THE official film of the Formula One World Championship revs into theatres this week with F1, starring Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon and Javier Bardem. Produced in collaboration with Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile – the governing body for Formula 1 racing – and Hollywood legend Jerry Bruckheimer, this boasts some of the most thrilling […]
DEAR News Of The Area, THE concurrent use of the terms “responsible” and “offshore wind farm development” in Australian waters is oxymoronic. There is nothing responsible in developing something offshore that costs twice as much as a similar development onshore, will take twice as long to get up and running and has the potential to […]
ANOTHER week, another long-awaited “legacy sequel” in 28 Years Later, the pseudo-zombie, post-apocalyptic, horror film from director Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire). As the title implies, it has now been 28 years since the “rage virus” was initially unleashed upon the world, causing those exposed to instantaneously become uncontrollably violent. A small group of survivors living […]
DEAR Jasminda, WHEN I was in the hairdresser last week, I overheard the woman opposite me tell the hairdresser that she wanted a new style because she was about to leave her husband after 18 years of marriage. On my way out, I took a quick glance at the person in question, and realised, to […]
