OPINION > YOUR SAY
Voice of the people
Question: Would the National Australia Bank’s move to pay a $700 mortgage fee for Commonwealth Bank
and Westpac customers who switch to an NAB mortgage entice you to change?
What do you think?
Go online to
have your say
YESTERDAY’S
QUESTION:
Will you celebrate Valentine’s
Day?
Yes 16.6%
Sandra Oakley
Wagga
Chris Moloney
Wagga
Jerry Baxter
Canberra
Geoff Wendt
Tumut
Will Davis
Wagga
I think it would depend on
if the interest rates were
lower and if it would save
money in the long run.
It probably would. It just
depends on everything
you had to go through to
change.
I think it’s good to have
choice. I think it will cause
other banks to look at
their exit fees and see if
they will follow.
I would do my homework
on it. They may get you on
something else.
I would find out more
about it. The benefit of it
would be making things
more flexible.
On this day
No 83.4%
Total votes: 578
Touch wood
Odd spot
Brain and brawn
of political agenda
Patrick Wood
Journalist
The Daily Advertiser
English actor and comedian
Simon Pegg turns 41 today.
1929
Seven hoodlums, rivals of the Al
Capone gang in Chicago, Illinois,
are murdered in what becomes
known as the St Valentine's Day
Massacre.
1946
A machine at the University of
Pennsylvania takes seconds to
do calculations that normally
take hours. It was called ENIAC,
or Electronic Numerical
Integrator And Computer.
1989
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini of
Iran sentences British author
Salman Rushdie to death for
allegedly insulting Islam, sending
him into hiding for years.
2003
The world's first cloned mammal,
Dolly the sheep, is given a lethal
injection after developing signs
of progressive lung disease. She
was six.
“HOW much do you weigh? I
reckon I could beat you in an
arm wrestle,” a confident
Senator Bill Heffernan said to
me last week.
Well, OK, but what does this
have to do with the political
issues I was calling him about?
“It’s all about arm length and
leverage. I beat Joe Hockey at an
arm wrestle and had a $500 bet
with Tony Abbott over an arm
wrestle too,” Senator Heffernan
continued.
Bill, I think we’re getting a bit
off topic.
“Yeah, you’re right. Oh, and
I’m not going to talk politics
today.”
Whether he meant it or not, he
touched on two key factors that
could very well define the outcome of the upcoming state election: political muscle and leverage.
Two organisations acutely
aware of this, and attempting to
use it to their advantage, are the
NSW Business Chamber and the
Local Government and Shires
Association (LGSA).
As
highlighted
in
The
Weekend Advertiser these two
highly-influential groups have
It’s all about arm
length and
leverage. I beat
Joe Hockey at
an arm wrestle
and had a $500
bet with Tony
Abbott over an
arm wrestle too.
Senator Bill Heffernan
taken the unprecedented step of
putting pressure on candidates
to deliver on certain outcomes.
And they’re not taking no for
an answer.
The LGSA has asked every
candidate in the state to outline
their policies in full. These policies, or more importantly any
lack thereof, will be very publicly broadcast by the association.
It’s the first time it has taken
this step and Shires Association
president Bruce Miller says the
50,000-plus residents associated
with his group shouldn’t be
underestimated.
Similarly, the NSW Business
Chamber is touring the state
gathering public feedback on
how the state government can
better service businesses.
Again, this has never happened before.
The two organisations are
flexing their political muscle
and attempting to gain leverage
on whichever party is in power
post March 26.
Some may be concerned at the
level of influence interest
groups such as these can wield.
A fair point, but look at it this
way: never before have candidates been held to account like
this and the general public had
the chance to contribute ideas to
the NSW Business Chamber
with a view to creating positive
change.
I would encourage all members of the public to engage in
these initiatives. The Business
Chamber bus will be in Wagga
on February 22 from 2.30pm to
4pm at the Victory Memorial
Gardens.
It’s a free event and your
chance to provide some constructive feedback on all things
business.
Senator Heffernan isn’t the
only one engaging in some political strong-arming, now we can
to.
And fair to say the stakes are
higher than a $500 bet.
Star signs
ARIES (March 21 to April 19) : Surprise events might catch
you off guard at home today. Or perhaps, a family member
has surprising news for you. Some might buy high-tech toys
for where you live.
TAURUS (April 20 to May 20) : You’re full of bright, inventive,
original ideas today! This is the good news. The bad news is
that this is a mildly accident-prone day, so be careful.
Last year
FREE&
4 slice Pizza Bread
Dessert Thingie
TODAY ONLY IN
from
Wagga Wagga
See page 4 for details
PRICE:$1.70 inc GST
Saturday and Sunday, February 13 and 14, 2010
SPARKS WILL FLY: Blake Street Country Fresh Meats owner Grant Yeo and Paul Caller from Duffy Bros will be without electricity for two Sundays at the end of February as Country
Energy shuts down power in order to perform upgrades. The power company has offered no back-up power alternatives, meaning there will be a costly loss of trade on those two
days.
Picture: Oscar Colman
Shop owners angry as Country Energy announces planned
electricity outages without offering back-up arrangements
ABUSE OF POWER
By STEPHANIE MUIR
SHOP owners have been left angry and
confused after just learning they would
lose two days of trading due to planned
power cuts by Country Energy.
Businesses in the Blake Street hub will
be without power from 8.30am to 1.30pm
on February 21 and 28 as Country Energy
carries out an “upgrade of the electrical
network”.
Duffy Bros Fruit and Vegetable man-
agement declined to comment to The
Daily Advertiser yesterday about the
situation with Country Energy, but were
visibly angry over the prospect of losing a
day’s business.
With more than 250 loyal customers
who shop with Duffy Bros on a Sunday,
the prospect of being forced to close for
consecutive weekends could see the business sustain a significant financial blow.
Blake Street Country Fresh Meats
I Continued Page 2
HOME OWNERS MAY HAVE TO PAY FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY TEST: PAGE 3
5 years ago
GEMINI (May 21 to June 20) : Trust your moneymaking
ideas today. In fact, surprise opportunities to earn money or
spend money might fall in your lap suddenly.
LIBRA (Sept. 23 to Oct. 22) : You’re unusually ambitious
today. Perhaps this why some aspect of your private life might
suddenly be made public, especially in the eyes of bosses
and VIPs. Be aware of this.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23 to Nov. 21) : Surprise chances to travel
or to explore opportunities in higher education, publishing, the
media and the law might exist for you today. Be on the lookout
for this.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22 to Dec. 21) : Unexpected gifts and
goodies might come your way today. The wealth of others or
your partner is bound to benefit you in some way.
CANCER (June 21 to July 22) : You feel unusually independent and self-reliant today! You want to do your own
thing. Today will have a range of moods and feelings for you.
(What’s new?)
LEO (July 23 to Aug. 22) : There’s a lot of energy in the air,
and this will make you restless and keen for adventure today.
Little surprises might happen behind the scenes. Or possibly,
right in front of you!
VIRGO (Aug. 23 to Sept. 22) : Any kind of group situation -a class, a meeting or a large conference -- will probably have
an original twist for you. You might meet someone new. You
might come up with some new goals.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22 to Jan. 19) : People are highly independent today. Partners and close friends might say or do
something that catches you off guard. Someone might want
more freedom. (It could be you.)
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20 to Feb. 18) : Your work routine will be
interrupted today by wonderful opportunities or computer
crashes, power outages and staff shortages. This unpredictable quality could go either way.
PISCES (Feb. 19 to March 20) : New love can fall into your
life today. Flirtations will be exciting. Surprising sports upsets
are also in the picture. Parents should be vigilant with children
to guard against accidents.
www.dailyadvertiser.com.au
IF LINGERIE is too intimate
and dinner out is too
expensive, the Bronx Zoo
suggests another Valentine's
Day gift: a Madagascar hissing
cockroach.
“Nothing says forever like a
cockroach,” spokesman John
Calvelli says.
The Wildlife Conservation
Society runs the New York City
zoo and is raising funds by
offering the public the chance
to name the huge roaches.
In return for each name, it's
asking for a $US10 donation.
Calvelli says about 1700
cockroach names were bought
in the first two days.
Recipients get a certificate.
The zoo says naming a roach
will honour a sweetheart's
resourcefulness and resiliency.
THE RIVERINA’S OWN
PRICE $1.10
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2006
OFFBEAT
I LOCAL
WORRYING about thieves is nothing new
for retail stores, but Outdoors Inc thought
its 2700-kilogram, nine-metre-tall
rock-climbing wall was safe. It wasn’t.
Someone made off with the $US30,000
($A40,700) wall one morning, but it was
recovered two days later at a vacant lot
near the Memphis airport.
The wall was stolen from a storage lot
used by Outdoor Inc, which rents the wall
to organisers of outdoors events and
festivals. Painted grey to resemble a rock,
the wall is dotted with raised handholds
for climbers.
SAD LOSS OF
SISTER ROSARIE
Tributes flow for foundation principal
of Trinity Senior High School
PAGE 3
SAFETY WARNING: Parents are being urged to obey the road rules and teach their children about road safety, with many drivers in this photo spotted parking outside a school at 3.10pm.
In no parking zones drivers cannot leave their vehicles unattended for more than two minutes.
Picture: Brett Koschel
DON’T RISK A
CHILD’S LIFE
Before and after school is becoming an increasingly dangerous time for schoolchildren, with drivers parking in
no parking zones, double parking and dropping children off while stopped at pedestrian crossings.
I Sean Plambeck reports: Page 2
TODAY’S WEATHER:
Fine, sunny. Max 33
TOMORROW:
Late shower/storm. Max 34
I Details: Page 21
Monday, February 14, 2011 – 33