Czech President Vaclav Klaus will be in the country next month, but Julia Gillard doesn’t want to meet with him.
PARLIAMENTARIANS from Julia Gillard down appear ready to give the cold shoulder to Czech President Vaclav Klaus, an outspoken climate change sceptic, when he visits Australia next month.
Mr Klaus, a critic of the theory of human-caused global warming, will attend a series of seminars organised by the Institute of Public Affairs think tank.
[..]
Tour organisers have contacted a range of political leaders offering to arrange meetings with Mr Klaus while he is in Australia. A spokesman for Ms Gillard said yesterday: “The Prime Minister’s diary has not been finalised.”
But the organisers said her office had already declined an invitation to meet Mr Klaus, as had Victoria’s Liberal Premier Ted Baillieu and his Western Australian counterpart Colin Barnett.
They are yet to hear from Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd, Queensland Premier Anna Bligh and NSW’s Barry O’Farrell.
“It’s extraordinary that Australia’s political leaders are willing to risk our relationship with one of Europe’s most dynamic and open economies simply because their representative is a climate sceptic,” IPA executive director John Roskam said.
(h/t Christian Kerr, The Australian)
Julia is the Prime Minister, and as such has a duty to at least say hello to a visiting leader of another country, unless she really is busy with an important task, in which case I’d accept that the Deputy Prime Minister could meet the visiting leader in her place…although if I was a foreign visitor to this land, I’d much rather meet Julia than Wayne. The Foreign Minister doesn’t cut it as far as I’m concerned. It might be appropriate for the Foreign Minister to be present at a meeting, but not for them to be the person actually meeting the foreign dignitary.
The Premiers I’m not so fussed about. They aren’t the leader of the country, so if they can make it, that’s nice, but I wouldn’t hold them to it.
Personally, I’m waiting for the Institute of Public Affairs to announce a date for Mr. Klaus to visit Canberra. Hopefully I will be able to get to that event. Sydney and Perth dates have already been announced.
Samuel
June 6th, 2011 at 03:36pm
Prior to the construction of the Federal Highway between Canberra and Goulburn from 1932-1934, to get to Canberra from Goulburn you had to travel via Tarago, Bungendore and Queanbeyan, a scenic trip which can still be done today.
Samuel
June 6th, 2011 at 10:26am
I’m almost left speechless after reading this.
GORDON Stammers says his 14-year-old dog Wally is lucky to be alive after an enraged man kicked the old pooch nearly two metres in the air at Jan Juc.
The timid fox terrier-jack russell cross is still struggling to walk after Saturday’s vicious encounter with the muscle-bound man on a path between the Bird Rock lookout and Steps carpark.
Police have confirmed they are looking for the man and local laws officers have also been notified over fears he could seriously hurt other animals or their owners.
Mr Stammers said his dog was off its lead when he was walking along the path about 10am and he heard someone approaching from behind.
He said when Wally growled at the man’s long-haired german shepherd, its owner erupted.
“He got right up in my face and yelled, ‘why haven’t you got your bloody dog on a lead? You’re supposed to have it on a lead,’ and he was very aggressive towards me,” Mr Stammers said.
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Mr Stammers, who has lived in Jan Juc for 25 years and walks Wally in the area every day, said he didn’t realise it was an on-leash area and he asked the man where he lived.
“With that, he went back with his leg and kicked my dog so hard that he lifted him six feet in the air and on to the other side of the path. By that stage he’s walked off and my dog was screaming literally in absolute agony, he couldn’t walk and he was on his side.”
Mr Stammers, 57, shouted out to the man to come back but he continued walking. “I’ve never seen anybody so violently explode. He was very big, he obviously works out in the gym every day, he was like Mike Tyson, that’s how big he was,” he said.
He described the man as at least 180 centimetres tall, with short blond hair, wearing a red T-shirt and shorts.
Senior Constable Justine Woods urged anyone with information to contact Torquay police.
(h/t Alex Johnson, The Geelong Advertiser for both the article and photo)
Poor little Wally. I can almost understand the large man being in an already enraged mood and Wally growling at his dog tipping him over the edge, but I can’t understand kicking the poor little dog so hard that he ended up six metres in the air, or even worse, the complete lack of instant remorse for the awful act. If I was in as bad a mood as that, I might kick a wall or a bin or some other inanimate object, but kicking a dog isn’t something I would ever do unless I was being attacked by the dog.
This is the work of a very sick person, and I can only hope that, one day, he makes a similar move towards his German Sheppard, and the German Sheppard defends itself by biting a large hole in the man’s leg. Of course I would also like to see the justice system give the man a criminal record for this despicable act, but the job of punishing him won’t be complete until the animals get their comeuppance.
And for poor little Wally, I can’t imagine how traumatising this must have been. It gives me shivers up my spine when Nattie hurts herself on something (usually involving static electricity or a nail clinging to a flooring surface) and lets out one of those awful doggy squeals…her’s have always been for minor things, so I just can’t imagine how much worse this must have been for Wally and Mr. Stammers.
I do hope that Wally makes a full recovery. I’m sure that Mr. Stammers will look after his mate Wally as best he can, and that this will help Wally to feel safe and secure in the world again.
My best wishes to the both of them.
Samuel
June 6th, 2011 at 08:16am
