the news thread

Polecat · Post by **Polecat** » Tue Nov 25, 2008 11:33 am

No. You're not changing the dna of the crop when you spray/gas with a hormone. You might change the physiology of the cells eg make them store more water so that the strawberries are bigger or make the banana start to ripen so starch turns to sugar. The DNA still remains the same.

You're changing the DNA when you insert some foreign DNA or knock out a gene so that it becomes inactive.

almax · Post by **almax** » Tue Nov 25, 2008 12:05 pm

kinda like the difference between steriods and genetic engineering mixxy

mixtress · Post by **mixtress** » Tue Nov 25, 2008 12:16 pm

thanks guys, appreciate the knowledge

home grown ftw! need more fruit trees around here.

Stray · Post by **Stray** » Tue Nov 25, 2008 1:29 pm

Film studios to become 'police, judge, executioner'

Internet users would have their connections terminated summarily on the whim of the film and TV industry should it win its landmark legal battle against iiNet, legal experts have warned.

Seven of the world's biggest film studios and the Seven Network last week filed suit against iiNet, Australia's third largest ISP, in the Federal Court.

They claim iiNet authorised copyright infringement by failing to prevent its users from downloading pirated movies and TV shows.

iiNet, and the industry body, the Internet Industry Association, say ISPs should not be required to take action against any customers until they have been found guilty of an offence by the courts.

ISPs argue that, like Australia Post with letters, they are just providing a service and should not be forced to become copyright police.

Conversely, the TV and movie industry want ISPs to disconnect people it has identified as repeat infringers. There would be no involvement from police or the courts and the industry would simply provide the IP addresses of users they believe to be illegal downloaders.

[more]

FoundationStepper · Post by **FoundationStepper** » Tue Nov 25, 2008 1:38 pm

fuckma

Direkt · Post by **Direkt** » Tue Nov 25, 2008 1:47 pm

Interesting.

Theft is so easy and guilt-free with the internet.

Something's gotta give.

Stray · Post by **Stray** » Tue Nov 25, 2008 2:32 pm

It won't happen. What happened to innocent until "proven" guilty

a1studmuffin · Post by **a1studmuffin** » Tue Nov 25, 2008 3:47 pm

Nah, no way that'll stand up in court...

almax · Post by **almax** » Wed Nov 26, 2008 1:37 pm

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/ ... 63,00.html

8 years in jail for that, taking the piss for sure

ADD_Boy · Post by **ADD_Boy** » Wed Nov 26, 2008 2:03 pm

Is that stoopid internet filter thing still going ahead?

spiral · Post by **spiral** » Wed Nov 26, 2008 2:20 pm

sickness
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/nov/2 ... -sentenced

Stray · Post by **Stray** » Wed Nov 26, 2008 2:25 pm

ADD_Boy wrote:Is that stoopid internet filter thing still going ahead?

yes

ADD_Boy · Post by **ADD_Boy** » Wed Nov 26, 2008 2:40 pm

That's ghey !!!

When? Best get downloading..

a1studmuffin · Post by **a1studmuffin** » Wed Nov 26, 2008 4:47 pm

Stray wrote:
ADD_Boy wrote:Is that stoopid internet filter thing still going ahead?
yes

I highly doubt it'll get past the pilot stage, as their system just doesn't work like it's supposed to:

http://www.efa.org.au/2008/07/31/efa-sa ... a-failure/

Past attempts at ISP filtering have been dismal failures as well:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/08/28 ... er_broken/

If it somehow makes it past the pilot stage, a class action lawsuit from Australians unable to access legitimate websites would bring it down soon enough. It just pisses me off that our tax is being wasted for these failed projects that nobody really wants. (I bet the only people wanting it are the ones that aren't using it, just like the 2am lockout.)

The Australian government is hellbent on wasting tax payers' money on this sort of stuff too... they just don't do enough research on what people want:

http://www.smh.com.au/news/web/web-porn ... m16.303144

The NetAlert package was estimated to be installed by 2,500,000 households in Australia. 29,000 were installed. That's 1.2% of their projection. Total and utter fail.

Stop wasting our money on this crap and start putting it into education and the health system.

Direkt · Post by **Direkt** » Wed Nov 26, 2008 4:59 pm

Word.

Paedo's aren't openly active on the net, I'm sure they're out there - but they're hardly advertising it.

But hey, let's slow down everyone's internet to filter out he majority of stuff that can be found at your local Club X.

ADD_Boy · Post by **ADD_Boy** » Wed Nov 26, 2008 7:46 pm

hmmm ... some good reading ther a1

knew nothing about it apart from what i'd overheard someone talking about.. after reading up .. agreed it ain't going nowhere.

mixtress · Post by **mixtress** » Thu Nov 27, 2008 12:09 pm

Terrorist take over Mubai hotel killing 80 injuring 200 with hostages.

http://www.theage.com.au/world/terroris ... -6iyh.html

They were searching out American and British tourists. I've been sending texts to friends in India all morning with no response...kinda fucking worried at this point

witty_pseudonym · Post by **witty_pseudonym** » Thu Nov 27, 2008 12:34 pm

was jsut about to post something about that.
very scary situation.
go the age's australian-centric coverage.
'warne stranded' 'cricket tours halted' 'aussie actress escapes'

not going to bother with them anymore. guardian pretty slow with updates though.

Hardy · Post by **Hardy** » Thu Nov 27, 2008 12:40 pm

witty_pseudonym wrote:was jsut about to post something about that.
very scary situation.
go the age's australian-centric coverage.
'warne stranded' 'cricket tours halted' 'aussie actress escapes'
not going to bother with them anymore. guardian pretty slow with updates though.

PLEASE!!!! WON'T SOMEONE THINK OF BROOKE SATCHWELL!!!!!

Utter fucking tripe. Be sure to look out for the inevitible Telemovie about it. The Age can suck a dick.

FoundationStepper · Post by **FoundationStepper** » Thu Nov 27, 2008 12:40 pm

the oz coverage seems better?

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/

witty_pseudonym · Post by **witty_pseudonym** » Thu Nov 27, 2008 12:41 pm

http://www.timeofindia.com ftw

i read this all thime and for some reason didn't think to check it today.

mixtress · Post by **mixtress** » Thu Nov 27, 2008 1:01 pm

My people responded

and now that I know Brooke's ok, I can get on with my day.

Post by **breaksRbest** » Thu Nov 27, 2008 1:27 pm

I don't see a problem with Australian-centric news, we're Australian after all

Direkt · Post by **Direkt** » Thu Nov 27, 2008 1:45 pm

Supply and demand.

Lil MiSbreaks · Post by **Lil MiSbreaks** » Thu Nov 27, 2008 3:55 pm

Its fucking awful whats going on - apparently they (the baddies) made calls to British and US citizens rooms and told them to leave for their own safety. Shit, like being led to slaughter.

menace · Post by **menace** » Thu Nov 27, 2008 8:23 pm

breaksRbest wrote:I don't see a problem with Australian-centric news, we're Australian after all

metal what is going on .. in mumbai

i was playing a trip in june mine work out cheaper now

spare a through on what is happening in Zimbabwe 2 with government playing down there cholera fears ...sounds bad

almax · Post by **almax** » Fri Nov 28, 2008 11:03 am

http://www.news.com.au/technology/story ... 39,00.html

facebook used to catch walk out diners at southbank

mixtress · Post by **mixtress** » Fri Nov 28, 2008 11:10 am

Inneresting. Easy to forget that our info is public property on FB.

Lizkins · Post by **Lizkins** » Fri Nov 28, 2008 12:33 pm

FoundationStepper wrote:the oz coverage seems better?

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/

yeah i have been reading The Australian. fuckin hell this is horrible

apophenian · Post by **apophenian** » Fri Nov 28, 2008 7:54 pm

menace wrote: metal what is going on .. in mumbai

i was playing a trip in june mine work out cheaper now

Totally fucked up man - I went there last year, and REALLY want to go back sometime in the next couple of years. Even hungout at Leopolds and went to CST etc..

Crazy...

mixtress · Post by **mixtress** » Mon Dec 08, 2008 2:03 pm

can someone explain this to me please...I've read it four times and I think it's saying that cartoons depicting child characters having sex is tantamount to child pornography.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=683689

Please someone, tell me I'm wrong.

Feigan · Post by **Feigan** » Wed Dec 10, 2008 4:28 pm

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,24 ... 21,00.html

Hmmmmmmm

Feigan · Post by **Feigan** » Wed Dec 10, 2008 4:31 pm

and this too

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,24 ... 77,00.html

what is it with Sydney & Food incidents!

almax · Post by **almax** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 10:53 am

Cops shoot 15 yo at Northcote skate bowl

http://www.theage.com.au/national/teen- ... -6wtt.html

they make it sound like the kid had a death wish.

Feigan · Post by **Feigan** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 10:54 am

^ saw that this morning

police labeled as trigger happy

hmmmm - this will cause an uproar I reckon

Stray · Post by **Stray** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 10:59 am

Axia shows its NBN hand

Mitchell Bingemann | December 10, 2008
LITTTLE-known Canadian group, Axia NetMedia, has broken its silence on the Rudd Government's $15 billion national broadband network, saying that unless it is built using fibre all the way to homes and businesses in metropolitan areas, then it shouldn't be built at all.

While the Government has called for the broadband network to be rolled out to 98 per cent of the population using fibre to the node (FTTN), building a fibre to the premise network has largely been disregarded by local telcos as too expensive to consider.

As the NBN bidding process has unfolded over the past year, Axia has kept out of the spotlight but today the company revealed that a fibre to the premise approach is the only option for a next-generation network built using taxpayer funding.

In regional areas it would build a fibre "grid" with a range of competing last mile options.

"If you want to leave it to an incumbent-driven approach then you don't even need to build an NBN," said Axia NetMedia chief executive and chairman Art Price.

"To invest in fibre and to not contemplate fibre to the premise, especially if it involves public money, why would you even bother doing it?"

Mr Price said a FTTN build was not necessary in metropolitan areas as it would rely too much on the incumbent's copper to deliver high-speed broadband to end users.

That incumbent is Telstra.

He also dismissed claims that a fibre to the premise network build would be too costly to rollout.

"We haven't seen a market yet where what the end user is already paying wouldn't fund a whole new fibre to the premise next-generation network," Mr Price said.

Axia's fibre to the premise backing contrasts with its rivals' plans to build the NBN. Optus has proposed an FTTN build that will use 75,224 nodes and 100,000km of fibre, while Telstra's proposal outlined an expansion of its existing DSL copper-based network, also using FTTN but only reaching 80-90 per cent of Australians.

"A network built on DSL technology is not a smart network. It is a dumb network because it is not duplex and it is not future proof," Mr Price said.

"The people around the world that are stepping up their game and building real next-generation networks want duplex speeds and a network that can self-heal and is easily scalable. And this is what fibre to the premise offers."

He declined to reveal how much Axia NetMedia had set aside to build the network if selected.

Beyond metropolitan areas Mr Price said a mix of local access technologies, such as wireless, Wimax and the incumbent's copper, would more than do the trick to service rural users.

"The practical solution is to roll fibre out as far as you can go. Fibre is not as expensive as every one thinks and it's the one future-proof technology that is scalable. Once on the edge it's then just a matter of using any number of competing local access technologies," he said.

Axia has already completed an open access, fibre network to service both rural and metro communities in the Canadian state of Alberta and is currently building 12 regional fibre networks in select French provinces, some which use fibre to the premise.

Earlier this year the group was also named as part of a consortium with Optus's parent company, Singapore Telecommunications, to build a $2 billion national fibre network in Singapore.

ACCESS to high-speed broadband could be twice as cheap and up to five times faster if little-known Canadian group Axia NetMedia gets its wish to build the federal Government's $15 billion national broadband network.

The group's cost modelling is based on what it expects to offer in Singapore, where Axia is in a consortium with Optus's parent, Singapore Telecommunications, to build a $2 billion national fibre network on the island.

Axia is touting a no-frills broadband charge to consumers of $15 a month, compared with the $85 a month being talked about by Telstra.

"In Singapore, on a fibre-to-the-premise network, we can offer an access price of $15 per resident per month. You could do this with similar pricing in any major metropolitan city, including Sydney," Axia NetMedia chief executive and chairman Art Price told The Australian.

On top of this basic service, providers would then add options that would cost the consumer more.

"Users now want to be able to choose what services they want so the right answer is to unbundle these networks from the services they offer," Mr Price said.

"That's the right answer from an end-user point of view and an economies-of-scale point of view."

Telstra has said entry-level access to its proposed NBN would start at $39.95 per month for a 1 megabit per second connection with 200MB of download capacity.

The proposed Axia pricing makes a mockery of the wholesale price that Telstra charges internet service providers to access its copper network.

For years Telstra has ignored calls from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to lower wholesale access pricing to its network and has long argued it should be able to charge $30 per month for access on its ageing copper wires.

Telstra currently charges between $17 and $30 pre service each month in most of Australia to access its copper network, which at best is only capable of providing internet speeds up to 24Mbps.

In comparison, a fibre network to homes and businesses can deliver broadband speeds that exceed 100Mbps to homes in metropolitan areas.

“It's a very basic question. If you can have fibre to the premise in a metropolitan centre for $15 a month, then who is justifying $15 for the local copper loop? How are people debating $20, $30 for just the local copper loop?” Mr Price said.

Mr Price said incumbents and retailers were fatally conflicted when it came to building next-generation networks.

"We are the new guy on the block who builds in environments that welcome transformational structure," he said.

"We only go where governments say they want next-generation networks on a no-customer-conflict open access basis."

Axia comes to the NBN bidding table as an outsider but one with considerable experience in building next-generation networks and dislodging incumbents.

Aside from its recent win to build the Singapore NBN, the group has already completed an open-access fibre network to service rural and metropolitan communities in the Canadian province of Alberta.

It is now building 12 regional networks in French provinces.

This weekend, Axia will present its case to the Government's eight-person expert panel on its credentials to build the NBN, kicking off a frantic six weeks of discussions ahead of a recommendation to the Government at the end of January.

Brain · Post by **Brain** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 11:42 am

Downturn forces DJ to sell teeth!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/engl ... 777532.stm

Stray · Post by **Stray** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 11:51 am

Brain wrote:Downturn forces DJ to sell teeth!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/engl ... 777532.stm

wow.. what a tool.

FoundationStepper · Post by **FoundationStepper** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 11:59 am

TOOL!

a1studmuffin · Post by **a1studmuffin** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 4:30 pm

"It's a big decision getting rid of my teeth and could actually cost me my career, as I don't know if I'll be noticed with white teeth."

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!! What a vote of self-confidence!!!

Hardy · Post by **Hardy** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 4:37 pm

Who the fuck is DJ Talent?

DBoy · Post by **DBoy** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 4:39 pm

Interesting that a 15 year old in Athens was shot by police and his peers rioted for a week, in Melbourne a 15 year old is shot by police and we have a bit of talkback on the radio.

mixtress · Post by **mixtress** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 4:45 pm

Been thinking on that DBoy, asked Mum about it too. She reckons Greeks have an inbuilt anarchy button and will protest and cause upheaval whenever they see a threat to democracy etc etc etc.

I don't understand why our coppers haven't been trained to 'shoot to wound'.

Hardy · Post by **Hardy** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 4:50 pm

mixtress wrote:Been thinking on that DBoy, asked Mum about it too. She reckons Greeks have an inbuilt anarchy button and will protest and cause upheaval whenever they see a threat to democracy etc etc etc.

I don't understand why our coppers haven't been trained to 'shoot to wound'.

Europeans do tend to be a touch hotblooded.

As for the 'shoot to wound' bit, guns (in particular handguns) are fucking hard to aim. I've fired police issue handguns before, and that shit aint like the movies.

I guess i'm on the fence on the thing. Obviously tasers would have been the better option, but if they don't have them, then they do what they have to do. 2 blasts of capsicum spray and a warning shot didn't subdue him, and until you've been in a situation where a crazed kid is coming at you with knives stating he wants to kill you, then it's pretty hard to know how you would react.

Remember, police are humans. They are not superheroes. They feel fear too.

almax · Post by **almax** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 4:51 pm

That is interesting, what are the circumstances in Athens though?
Perhaps the aussie kid has no friends?
They (Australian cops) make it sound like he had fair warning so if thats true and
he had knives and was as close as they say he was (14 metres away) and
meanacing them with knives then i think the shooting was reasonable.
Lesson learned here, don't fuck with cops, they have guns and will kill you dead!

Hardy · Post by **Hardy** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 4:54 pm

almax wrote:That is interesting, what are the circumstances in Athens though?
Perhaps the aussie kid has no friends?
They (Australian cops) make it sound like he had fair warning so if thats true and
he had knives and was as close as they say he was (14 metres away) and
meanacing them with knives then i think the shooting was reasonable.
Lesson learned here, don't fuck with cops, they have guns and will kill you dead!

The kids friends are speaking up now. The kid and his friends are part of the Southern Cross Soldiers, an anti-immigration group. Bunch of fucking deadheads.

I haven't followed the Athens thing too closely, but it could also be that the Greek police force are among the most corrupt in the world, and maybe this pushed the people over the edge.

mixtress · Post by **mixtress** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 5:02 pm

My first thought was that the kid deserved what he got, but I've been mulling it over. He's 15, not too bright obviously and possibly not with it mentally. He's got knives and he's threatened/threatening people. There are four cops around. Is it too much to ask that someone distract while another officer goes behind him and shoots the thigh, knees, foot, shoulder? I understand that shooting a gun isn't like in the movies, fair cop, but these people are heavily trained police officers. You'd expect that at least one out of the four could pull off a non lethal 'take-down'.

Sounds like overkill, pardon the expression.

Hardy · Post by **Hardy** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 5:06 pm

mixtress wrote:My first thought was that the kid deserved what he got, but I've been mulling it over. He's 15, not too bright obviously and possibly not with it mentally. He's got knives and he's threatened/threatening people. There are four cops around. Is it too much to ask that someone distract while another officer goes behind him and shoots the thigh, knees, foot, shoulder? I understand that shooting a gun isn't like in the movies, fair cop, but these people are heavily trained police officers. You'd expect that at least one out of the four could pull off a non lethal 'take-down'.

Sounds like overkill, pardon the expression.

Well that's the other side of the coin innit. Whilst none of us saw what happened, it does seem excessive, and surely there could have been another way.

It reminds me of the french guy that was shot on the beach in NSW a few years back. They had close to 10 cops surrounding him in very large and deserted area, but still shot him dead.

In either case, a fishing net probably would have been enough to take them down.

All anyone can do is speculate. None of us saw it, and none of us have been in this sort of situation.

almax · Post by **almax** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 5:11 pm

mixtress wrote: I don't understand why our coppers haven't been trained to 'shoot to wound'.

yeah would be nice, but not practical, if the kid was that close 14 metres, and he decided to charge a copper, he could have a knive in the torso/throat of them in about 1-2 seconds, in that time you have to aim at moving legs/arms and fire, not easy, if you miss, even slightly it may only be a monor flesh would and the kid gets a stab or 3 in

we need more Steven Segal like cops

I read somewhere that Steven Segal actual volunteers for the SWAT team, no shit, there
was even footage of him after hurricane Katrina saving people off rooftops

mixtress · Post by **mixtress** » Fri Dec 12, 2008 5:15 pm

almax wrote:
mixtress wrote: I don't understand why our coppers haven't been trained to 'shoot to wound'.
yeah would be nice, but not practical, if the kid was that close 14 metres, and he decided to charge a copper, he could have a knive in the torso/throat of them in about 1-2 seconds, in that time you have to aim at moving legs/arms and fire, not easy, if you miss, even slightly it may only be a monor flesh would and the kid gets a stab or 3 in

In that instance, shoot to kill. But he wasn't charging at them as far as I've read

But 14 metres is a loooong way imo. Curb to curb on an average street? That's a long way.

Hardy's right though, no matter what we talk about on this thread it's all hearsay and conjecture.