New anti-terrorism centre in Melbourne criticised for being ‘illogical’
The Victorian Fixated Threat Assessment Centre aimed at identifying and responding to ‘high-risk individuals’ has been deemed ‘illogical’.
Professor of Human Security at RMIT University, Joseph Siracusa said the new centre is unlikely to assist with the discovery of radicalists as there is little evidence that there is a set of criteria for identifying lone attackers or terrorists.
Australian National University Criminologist Clark Jones, also criticised the centre, suggesting the program should extend its services to preventing youth crimes in Victoria.
NBN becoming irrelevant in major cities
It’s been revealed in a Senate Estimates hearing that the Department of Prime Minister & Cabinet intervened in order to secure for Malcolm Turnbull a 100 megabits per second NBN connection at his Point Piper mansion.
Consumer advocate Allan Asher has penned an article in the conversation and called the NBN an “expensive white elephant” and warned it will “faces irrelevance in cities” after South Australian premier Jay Weatherill announced 35 million dollars for a fibre network in Adelaide if re-elected.
Key airport project 11 years in the making will generate 2200 jobs
Work has commenced this morning on the second runway for Sunshine Coast Airport, tipped to generate 2 200 jobs and $4 billion in revenue for the region.
Sunshine Coast Mayor Mark Jamieson said the new runway will accommodate larger aircrafts and open up direct access to the Sunshine Coast from Australian cities, and international markets in Asia in turn driving significant economic growth.
The new two-and-a-half kilometre runway built by the civil infrastructure giant, John Holland Group, will cost $225 million with completion due in 2020.
War Film to Employ 200 Veterans
A film based on the Battle of Long Tan begins production in Queensland later this year.
The film, provisionally titled Danger Close, is produced by former special forces commando Martin Walsh.
It is expected to create around 860 jobs, and will employ approximately 200 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans as extras.
Danger Close’s Vietnam sequences will be principally filmed in areas near Kingaroy and Nerang.
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Venezuelans flee to Colombia amid food shortage
Thousands of Venezuelans continue to flee the country every day seeking asylum in Colombia as the country’s economic collapse continues to worsen with stifling hyperinflation.
President Nicolas Maduro’s socialist government continues to oppress his people following a decision to allocate $2 billion to bondholders rather than food imports.
Venezuelans face dire life and death decisions; Migrant Yeraldine Murillo said It’s migrate and give it a try or die of hunger there. Those are the only two options.
Civil Rights Group Slams ‘Islamophobic’ Bill
Civil-rights group the Council on American-Islamic Relations has labelled as “contrary to our nation's values” an Idaho bill banning the implementation of “foreign law” in the State.
The group says the bill, known as HB - 419, fits into a wider pattern of “unconstitutional” bills demonising Muslims by barring Sharia Law as similar legislation is considered in Montano, Oregon, and Wisconsin.
Students urged to avoid orphanage work
On Thursday the Federal Government launched a smart volunteering campaign, working alongside universities and state authorities to ensure students are not unintentionally visiting or volunteering in programs that exploit young children.
A UNICEF report released last year found that most orphans living in Cambodia were neither orphans nor abandoned and were at risk of being exploited to attract funding and donations from tourists, including being forced to beg, interact and play with visitors.
Astronomers peek at Cosmic Dawn in Western Australia
A group of American Astronomers have glimpsed the first stars of the Big Bang through a small radio telescope in Western Australia.
The Astronomers received a faint radio signal from 13.6 Billion years ago, which showed frigid temperatures and an unusually pronounced wave that could be elusive dark matter, which scientists have been hunting for decades.
Finding a signal from these early stars has been likened to “hearing the flap of a hummingbird's wing from inside a hurricane” said Peter Kurczynski from the National Science Foundation.
Speed limits decrease on M1 for Commonwealth Games
Brisbane and Gold Coast drivers will need to lower their speed by 10 kilometres per hour on the M1 from today or prepare to face hefty fines.
In an attempt to improve road safety ahead of the Commonwealth Games in April, the 110km/h speed limit on the busy motorway will be dropped to 100km/h and 100km/h dropped to 90km/h.
Transport Minister Mark Bailey says considering its extensive advertising there will be no grace period, the new speed limits will be enforced immediately and the Queensland Government are unapologetic for it.