MEDIA STORIES MAKING THE ROUNDS – April 11th to 14th 2012 Bob Brown quits as Greens leader, setting challenge for party and new leader Christine Milne Ben Packham and James Massola From The Australian Apr 13 BOB Brown has resigned as leader of the Australian Greens and will quit the Senate, with his former deputy Christine Milne to replace him at the helm of Australia's third party. Senator Brown, 67, will leave the Senate in June. The party will now seek a successor to fill his seat. Senator Milne, who was unanimously endorsed by colleagues as Senator Brown's successor, flagged a fresh push by the party to secure rural and regional support, and said the Greens would boost their engagement with “progressive” businesses under her leadership. The party will choose a deputy leader this afternoon. Senator Sarah Hanson-Young and MP Adam Bandt are considered the frontrunners for the post. Senator Brown's departure presents a huge challenge for the party, which faces the loss of its Senate balance of power position at the next election amid surging support for the Coalition and Bob Katter's Australia Party. Senator Milne said she faced a “daunting task”, but the Greens' team was up for the challenge. Full Story HERE COMMENT: Bob Brown is not entirely silly. He’s realised the writing was on the wall for the Greens. At the next Federal election his party will be shorn of their seats – just like in Queensland recently. The fact is ... It’s all over for Greens. It’s taken a little while, but facts will always trump bull in the end. Lyn Vickery – State President – One Nation W.A. Labor selling out environment with green tape cuts, says Greens leader Bob Brown Ben Packham and James Massola. The Australian. Apr 12 2012 GREENS Leader Bob Brown has attacked moves to cut socalled "green tape", accusing federal Labor of selling out the environment at the behest of multi-national companies. Top CEOs are meeting with Prime Minister Julia Gillard and state premiers today as part of a Council of Australian Government's business roundtable, with the streamlining of environmental regulations at the top of the agenda. COMMENT: Bob Brown is ducking out of politics – no profit anymore in that for him! The problem is the Gillard Government will be slaughtered at the next election, and now even they have worked out that the Greens are a total liability and are trying to distance themselves. Too late! Lyn Vickery – State President – One Nation W.A. 1 The US Navy Says Its New $700 Million Combat Ship Will Never Survive A Shootout With China Eloise Lee Business Insider 13th Apr 2012 The Navy's much-awaited Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) will fall below any expectations of standing up to a shootout with China if things get out of hand in the Asia Pacific region. The Pentagon is actively monitoring signs of Chinese aggression towards neighbors around the South China Sea, with countries in the region solidifying military partnerships with the U.S. Sydney J. Freedberg Jr. At AOL Defense reports the Chief of Naval Operations, Adm. Jonathan Greenert, is making sure we don't overestimate the LCS's capability. The Navy's "fast, agile" LCS wouldn't survive a war with China and here's why: The Pentagon's independent Department of Operational Test & Evaluation evaluated the LCS program and the Navy's plans to acquire 55 for its fleet. Contrary to the vessel's designation of being a "Combat Ship," the department's assessment concluded the "LCS is not expected to be survivable in a hostile combat environment." Adm. Greenert told reporters yesterday, "These are not large surface combatants that are going to sail into the South China Sea and challenge the Chinese military; that's not what they're made for." Instead, the LCS fleet will "free up" the Navy's more valuable warships by taking over the job of port visits, keeping tabs on maritime security, offering humanitarian aid, countering piracy and general "partnershipbuilding missions.." But the Navy's official description of the LCS says something else about the new ship's class: "It is designed to defeat asymmetric 'anti-access' threats such as mines, quiet diesel submarines and fast surface craft." Adm. Greenert revealed he wouldn't intend to send a Littoral Combat Ship to an anti-access area — not on its own anyway. He said the LCS would likely sail in groups of two to three to sweep mines under the protection of a more combat-suitable vessel such as an Aegis destroyer. The LCS isn't a total bust in the face of China though. Because of its lack of a combat threat, it could actually prevent maritime tensions from flaring up. A non-threatening presence of a relatively small ship — but with the ability to move quickly — can be a great asset to the U.S. in keeping any Asia Pacific maritime conflicts at bay. Full Story HERE 2 ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Astronauts condemn NASA’s global warming endorsement The Examiner 12th Apr 2012 In an unprecedented slap at NASA’s endorsement of global warming science, nearly 50 former astronauts and scientists--including the ex-boss of the Johnson Space Center-claim the agency is on the wrong side of science and must change course or ruin the reputation of the world’s top space agency. Challenging statements from NASA that man is causing climate change, the former NASA executives demanded in a letter to Administrator Charles Bolden that he and the agency “refrain from including unproven remarks” supporting global warming in the media. “We feel that NASA’s advocacy of an extreme position, prior to a thorough study of the possible overwhelming impact of natural climate drivers is inappropriate,” they wrote. “At risk is damage to the exemplary reputation of NASA, NASA’s current or former scientists and employees, and even the reputation of science itself.” The letter was signed by seven Apollo astronauts, a deputy associate administrator, several scientists, and even the deputy director of the space shuttle program. NASA had no immediate comment. In their letter, the group said that thousands of years of data challenge modern-day claims that man-made carbon dioxide is causing climate change. “With hundreds of well-known climate scientists and tens of thousands of other scientists publicly declaring their disbelief in the catastrophic forecasts, coming particularly from (NASA’s) Goddard Institute for Space Studies leadership, it is clear that the science is NOT settled,” they wrote. Full Story HERE _____________________________________________________________________________________ The President Of Iceland Tells Us How He Had The Balls To Stand Up To Britain Adam Taylor. Business Insider. 13th Apr 2012 The president of Iceland sits in his study drinking tea from an immaculate china set. “If a collapse in the financial sector can bring one of the most stable and secure democracies and political structures to his knees as happened in Iceland,” Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson says to me, “then what could it do in countries that have less stable democratic and political history?” The tiny country is unique not only in its stunning geography but also in its open democracy. This democracy was pivotal in the choice to let three giant banks fail during the financial crisis. For Ólafur, the crisis of 2008 was personal. Once the darling of the left wing, he worked as finance minister for several years before he became president of the country in 1996, a largely ceremonial role that he’s inhabited ever since. Like many in the country he was once a cheerleader for Iceland’s financial sector, 3 privatized at the start of the 21st century — and the sudden collapse was a painful reminder that Iceland was a small, isolated place. Now, of course, most headlines we see about Iceland seem positive. Iceland is repaying its IMF loans early, unemployment is down, and growth is above average. The streets of Reykjavik seem calm and happy. Other countries, of course, haven’t been so lucky. The crisis remains front page news in Greece, Italy and Spain — countries that followed a very different response from Iceland’s. Ólafur argues that his country’s strength came from recognizing the problem was not just an “economic and financial challenge”, but a “profound social, political, and even judicial” challenge. Full Story HERE COMMENT: As the slower parts of the Australian “multi-speed” economy slide even further backwards into recession and drown in debt we can learn much from Iceland. We are a small country with massive potential, but we must shake ourselves free of the Globalist banksters – or die! Lyn Vickery – State President One Nation W.A. MEDIA AND OTHER STORIES FORWARDED FOR YOUR INTEREST Unless listed as “comments”, the opinions expressed in this news round-up may not be the policies or views of One Nation Western Australia, but are provided as general interest stories. If you wish to read the full stories please followed the links provided. . This news round-up authorised by Lyn Vickery State President One Nation WA. PO Box 3030, Carlisle South W.A. 6101. Ph 08 9375 9991 or Mob 0415 030 442 Website: http://www.onenationwa.asn.au SPREAD THE WORD - PLEASE FORWARD TO A FRIEND 4