Live Export Ban promoted by Get Up!

June 10th, 2011

Someone drew my attention to the recent change in the tone on the Get Up! forum regarding live export.  Many people are now adding comments saying they are dismayed at the banning of Australian live exports – the effect on cattle, the effect on primary producers, and the fact that it will do absolutely nothing […]

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A personal response regarding the 4 Corners story on live exports

June 10th, 2011

A letter from Jean Robbins, which basically sums up the personal affect of the 4 Corners story on rural residents: After the 4 Corners story aired last week I was horrified, shocked, numb. One part of me was struggling to cope with the images that I had seen. The other part of me very quickly […]

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A letter to 4 Corners regarding the live export story

June 10th, 2011

An excellent letter, full of important points and facts on the Indonesian side of Australian live export system: I must introduce myself. My name is Scot Braithwaite and my life has basically revolved around live export since I was 10 years old. I was unloading cattle boats in Malaysia at the age of 13. I have worked […]

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A letter regarding 4 Corners Live Export programme

June 9th, 2011

Over the last week, many people I know have contacted me about the ban on Australian live exports.  They are absolutely devastated by the whole situation – the cruelty to the cattle and then the hysterical public reaction since – some of which has been vitriolic, to put it mildly.  This is precisely the anti-livestock industry drama that animal […]

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Australia’s live export trade

June 7th, 2011

How many of the people calling for the banning of Australian livestock exports, will forgo holidays in Indonesia (in particular, Bali) by way of protest? How many Australians care enough to protest loudly about the way prisoners are treated in Indonesian prisons? How many of the people complaining about Australia’s live export trade, continue to […]

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‘A Little Aussie Battler’ article by Greg Bearup, Good Weekend Magazine

June 6th, 2011

Another classic quote regarding representation of rural Australia in urban media: ‘But this being Queensland, the owner, a stubborn 80-year-old grazier who’d live on the block all his life, refused to sell to the government at any price.’ The article concerns the preservation of the red-finned blue-eye fish whose natural territory is confined to a […]

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Keeping chooks in the backyard

June 1st, 2011

The rift between urban residents and rural residents has been steadily growing.  Primarily because in Australia’s largest cities, increasing numbers of people have never had anything to do with food-producing animals (and perhaps not even any kind of domestic pet), and little or no garden (that may not be the owner’s hands-on job to maintain, […]

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More bush blokes on television – Amazing Race Australia

May 16th, 2011

Two bushies are about to feature prominently on Channel Ten’s ‘Amazing Race Australia’ television series which begins at 8.30pm tonight.  One is Matt Nunn, from ‘Sunnyside’ near Stonehenge (south of Longreach).   Matt comes from an extended tribe of very keen bronco branding competitors, residing throughout western Queensland’s channel country down into northern South Australia, who have collectively won more […]

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Australian outback books heading overseas

March 1st, 2011

Just been running through the December 2010 quarter figures (BAS time) and discovered almost 25% of book sales at this time were mailed to overseas addresses.  Primarily America and New Zealand, but also Canada, Europe and England. Given that many countries overseas are having a tougher time economically and that the Australian dollar is stronger […]

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60 minutes story on NT cattle station price rises

February 25th, 2011

I stumbled upon a very interesting June 2008 60 minutes story on NT property prices, titled ‘Bonanza’.  Liz Hayes does a good job of interviewing Ben and Traci Tapp of Mountain Valley Station, Tony Davis of Limbunya, and Marlee and Franz Ranacher of Bulloo River Station.  The story focuses on the rise in cattle station prices and […]

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