Solar power the new insulation debacle

WARNING that shoddy work and poor safety standards are rife in subsidised solar power industry.

Top companies have given warning that:

- Shonky operators are flooding the solar power industry on the back of government subsidies.

- Dangerous non-tempered glass and inferior imported panels are being used to cut costs.

- There is evidence of installations in Queensland so poor that panels could fall off the roof.

- So-called "free" 1.5kW units are insufficient.

Fearing a repeat of the ceiling insulation disaster, which led to house fires and the death of four installers, they have told the Federal Government it must change the way subsidies are allocated to safeguard homeowners and encourage a sustainable industry.

Householders are currently eligible for up to $6000 in federal rebates for roof-mounted solar power systems installed by an accredited operator.

There have been about 20,000 such systems installed in Queensland in the past three years. But industry figures warn some operators are cutting overheads to drum up business.

Solar Shop Australia managing director Adrian Ferraretto said some operators were offering 1.5kW installations "free", allowing government subsidies to cover the full cost.

"When things are for free, every man and his dog gets accreditation and starts installing," he said.

"We do not want a repeat of the ceiling insulation situation."

Mr Ferraretto said a quality 3kW solar system to power a family home should cost $16,000 to $17,000.

"A 1.5kW system is really only enough to power your shed," he said, adding that only householders willing to contribute their own money should get subsidies.

"If you had a 3kW system you would have mums and dads taking a lot more interest in what they are paying for. You would also have a worthwhile solar power system and we could ensure we continue to have a credible industry."

Greenbank Australia, the nation's largest independent trader of renewable energy certificates, revealed the dangers to a Senate Estimates hearing in Canberra.

"You actually have electricity generation on your roof and if you start putting in cheap panels that are made with just plain glass, not tempered glass, it is dangerous," Greenbank chief Fiona O'Hehir said.

Conenergy Australia general manager David McCallum said some substandard installations could simply fall off the roof.

"You could have . . . 5kg or 20kg modules falling from the roof line," he said.

Mr Ferraretto said he had photographic evidence in Queensland of wood being used to secure solar installations.

"That could simply rot and the installation fall off," he said.

Industry insiders said some operators were also installing low-grade solar panels.

Queensland National Party Senator Ron Boswell, who has been investigating the issue for several months, said the safety concerns were real but he did not believe they were life threatening at this stage.

"It is frankly cold comfort to be told by the department that safeguards are in place," Senator Boswell said. "The danger may be more of rorting and defrauding householders." Clean Energy Council Australia said there were credible concerns about the methods used by some solar panel installers.

The Courier-Mail 2 Jun 2010

The Government AGAIN fails to do its research 'properly' and pushes inadequate systems to the general populous.

AGAIN the government 'opens' the doors to fraud like it did with the insulations grants.

Government incompetance which the people pay for with HIGHER TAXES.

Carlton Audio Visual - Tivoli HiFi

The illustration shows a Tivoli Model 1 Radio, which at the time of writing of this post, retails in Australia for approx $350.

It is hailed by some as:

"The best sounding table radio ever made" by MSNBC in the USA. Quality audio components is one secret, right down to the cabinet - it's handmade real wood, not cheap veneer."

It also has a headphones plug together with an Ipod socket.


Also pictured (below) is a Generic Brand (Arch Audio HS5400A) or Dick Smith Electronic Classical Wooden AM/FM Radio Model No. A1676, which retails in Australia for $20.

Whilst anyone can argue with plausible results that a $350 is / must / has to be better than a $20 unit one has to be dubious about HOW MUCH better sound come out of ONE speaker.

Items with an Ipod socket are generally much higher priced, as also there are ROYALITES involved to Apple for using the Ipod connection.

Carlton Audio Visual are also stockists of JAMO products which are made in CHINA, BUT this is NOT clearly visible to the consumer, as it is written in small writing that it is made in PRC, which is the PEOPLES REPUBLIC of CHINA.

Goods manufactured in China are sold for HUNDEREDS of % in mark up values to the unsuspecting customer.

A recent trip to China confirms that RJ45 telephone connectors sold at a retail cost in China for 10 cents are sold in Australia at (e.g.) Dick Smith for $10.

Court rejects ex-wife's claim for $278k a month

One of the most expensive divorce cases in Australian history is being contested in Adelaide, The Australian reports.

The Family Court has rejected a woman's bid to claim $278,000 a month in spousal maintenance for herself and her autistic son.

The woman, who cannot be named, applied for the money before a final settlement from her Hong Kong-based ex-husband, who is thought to be worth between $77 million and $110 million.

She also tried to claim a $24 million property settlement, including a $3.3 million chalet in Switzerland, as well as $1.2 million per year to pay for her son's care.

The woman has already spent $16 million from the pool of marital assets, which she claims has been used on legal fees and living expenses.

She claimed their 14-year old son requires the support of four full-time carers to deal with his autism, three of whom are her siblings who are being paid $110,000 a year.

The ex-husband's lawyers are contesting that claim, as the court heard that the boy had become "very much the little prince" in his home.

A child psychologist told the court that the care of the son has become a "cottage industry" for the wife's family and that they have made a career out of their involvement with "the little prince phenomenon."

The father has been fighting in court since 2007 to see his son but the wife has failed to deliver the teen to meetings set up by the court, claiming that he gets anxious when told he must see his father.

The father, whose declared income is $300,000 a week, remarried in 2008 and now lives with his new wife in Hong Kong.

He proposed paying $10,788 a week, or $560,000 a year, to pay for his son's care and education.

He also recently placed $691,000 into a trust fund for his son.

The ex-wife attempted to justify her claims with a statement of recent expenses, including $4624 spent on balloons and flowers for her son's 14th birthday party and $125,000 a month in legal fees.

Her own weekly expenses were listed at $6524 a week, including $2300 for holidays and $800 for clothes.

The court has granted the ex-wife $375,000 in a lump sum payment to last her until the full hearing later this year.

The couple, from Adelaide, met in the late 1980s and married in 1994.

This latest hearing was the 29th in the case so far.

10 Jun 2010

This is NEWS according to the news desk of Channel 9.

Nonetheless another TYPICAL example of a WHORE WIFE or a GOLD DIGGER,

using the child as ransome.

Your DNA Government Property FOREVER

Just recently, the United Kingdom has announced that it will keep the DNA records of people on file, which means FOREVER.

The government starts of with the cataloging of 'criminals', and then naturally justifying it's actions that it is for the greater / benefit for humanity, as the DNA is used for 'research' into what makes a person e.g. a sociopath.

Governments frequently mask military activites with official reports of 'research'.

Once your DNA has made it into the government's hands it will be in their databse forever.

Conditions are doctored to create a need for this to occur.

In Australia, there is no formal need to collect the populations DNA.

In the near future there may be an occurence that will facilitate the need for the collection of the masses DNA.

This could be, a health threat, e.g. an epidemic, or a threat to 'National Security'.

This is the way of the Novus Ordo Seclorum.

Desperate shops slash prices to survive

MAJOR retailers try to entice wary shoppers by dropping their prices as much as 70 per cent.

Department store rivals Myer and David Jones will go head to head on Wednesday when they launch their highly anticipated winter stocktake sales, with some prices reduced by up to 70 per cent.

Myer and David Jones have been on a discounting spree for months to attract customers through the door.

A lack of consumer confidence has been blamed on increasing interest rates, the higher costs of living, continuing economic uncertainty and warmer weather.

Myer corporate affairs manager Damian Glass said the company was reacting to a "challenging period".

"Factors such as interest rates, problems in Greece and Thailand, volatility on share markets and increases in the cost of living mean disposable income is under pressure," Mr Glass said.

Australian Retailers Association director Russell Zimmerman said: "I expect them to be very, very big sales due to slow trade and warm weather.

"It really hasn't been a cold winter yet and it's already the end of May. At the end of the day, there is no sense in holding on to stock. You need money to pay your suppliers and summer stock arrives mid to late July

At Target, the biggest bargains are to be found in clothing and homewares. Managing director Laura Inman said that retail had been "highly competitive" and less profitable than the same period last year, when the store benefited from increased spending directly following the federal Government's stimulus package.

"Customers are more cautious in their spend, with higher mortgage interest rates and petrol prices eating into family budgets," she said.

Shoppers at Westfield Miranda last week said the almost constant stream of sales negated the need to buy items at full price.

"There is always one shop that has sales on, so you always look for a sale," Miranda teacher and mother-of-two Kat Bender, 34, said.

Friends Brittany Magson, 20, a student, and Gabriella Calpis, 18, an administrative assistant, both of Jannali, were spending their day off shopping for shoes.

"In stores like Wanted and Wittner, they're usually quite expensive, but now they're at market price," Ms Magson said.

"I will pay full price if I really, really need something, but everybody's displaying '50 per cent off' signs. - By Caroline Marcus

news.com. au 30 May 2010

More LIES that the MAJOR BRANDS are suffering.

The mark up prices in the retail clothes industry is anything from 300 - 500%.

MYER made it into the headlines many years ago that it was importing clothes for $1, then selling them for $10, or a mark up of 1000%.

MYER justified this by saying that the clothes 'changed hands' or realistically went through 'shelf companies'.

It is through the sweat shop conditions in 'poor' countries that companies can expolit for HUGE profits.

Another death at China iPhone maker's plant

* Latest death takes apparent suicide toll to 10 this year

* Foxconn denies report of another jumper who survived

* Clients including Apple, Dell investigating conditions (Adds latest suicide attempt, paragraph 3)

HONG KONG/TAIPEI, May 27 (Reuters) - A 10th employee of iPhone-maker Foxconn jumped to his death late on Wednesday, just hours after the company's chairman promised to make life better for employees at the sprawling production site in southern China.

The company did not give details of the death but China's official Xinhua news agency reported on Thursday that an initial police investigation indicated the 23-year-old man from northwest China had committed suicide by jumping from a seventh floor dormitory balcony.

Another employee at Foxconn's Shenzhen campus attempted to slit his wrists, but survived with medical attention, the Xinhua news agency said late on Thursday.

The deaths have thrown a spotlight on the labour practices of Foxconn, a unit of Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry, whose clients include Apple, Hewlett Packard and Sony Ericsson.

Apple and other clients have said they are investigating working conditions at Foxconn, which has some 420,000 employees at its base in Shenzhen and has come under fire for its secretive corporate culture.

Workers live inside the factory complex and churn out products for the world's leading computer and phone companies in round-the-clock shifts.

Taipei-based Hon Hai spokesman Arthur Huang confirmed the 10th death but denied reports on three Taiwan TV stations that another person, a young woman, had also jumped late on Wednesday, surviving with serious injuries.

Just hours before the latest reports, the usually media shy Foxconn Chairman Terry Gou had opened the company's sprawling facilities in Shenzhen to reporters and vowed to take sweeping action to prevent more deaths.

Gou made another trip back to the plant on Thursday following the Wednesday media tour. Pictures on Taiwan TV stations showed him boarding his private jet.

SAFETY NETS INSTALLED

All 10 of the deaths have been of young migrant workers, among the millions who leave the poor hinterlands of China for the boom towns of the south and east coastal areas in search of work and high wages.

Two others have been seriously injured after also jumping from buildings, in incidents that labour groups say expose the harsh working conditions at Foxconn.

Li Ping, secretary general of the Shenzhen municipal government, told a news conference on Wednesday that the pressure of being away from home with little care from society was part of a complex set of factors underpinning the suicides.

He said the government was joining with police and Foxconn to consider a range of ideas such as building up sports and cultural facilities to improve the living environment, Xinhua reported.

The firm was training about 100 mental health counsellors and installing 1.5 million square metres of netting, Xinhua said.

"Although this seems like a dumb measure, at least it could save a life should anyone else fall," Gou was quoted as saying.

In a report to clients, Bank of America/Merrill Lynch said that while the incidents would affect Hon Hai's image, they are unlikely to cause a significant impact on earnings, a view echoed by UBS, which noted that Hon Hai remains a "top-notch supplier".

Foxconn shares rose 4.2 percent in a Hong Kong market up 1.2 percent, having fallen to a seven-month low earlier this week. Hon Hai shares fell 0.4 percent in Taiwan, with the broader market up 1.1 percent.

In another sign of labour discontent in south China, Japanese car maker Honda said on Thursday a dispute had shut down one of its parts plants, causing the closure of four car-making plants. (Reporting by Simon Rabinovitch and Lucy Hornby in BEIJING, James Pomfret in HONG KONG and Jonathan Standing, Roger Tung and Baker Li in TAIPEI; Editing by Chris Lewis and Lincoln Feast) ((simon.rabinovitch@thomsonreuters.com; +86 139 0111 6692; Reuters Messaging: simon.rabinovitch.reuters.com@reuters.net)) ((If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com))

guardian.co.uk 27 May 2010

This is the miracle of capitalism / free enterprise / globalisation.

A company - eg. DELL, APPLE can support the practise of SLAVE LABOUR via another company.

Naturally an inquiry will not indicate '$weat $hop' conditions or any breaches of Human Rights.

Independant assesment will show the company has followed the law and it was the individuals that were unstable, which is Standard Cover-up Practice.

Penthouse Pet makes claim on Pratt fortune

A former Penthouse Pet of the Month has a made claim in court for a portion of the fortune of late cardboard king Richard Pratt.

Madison Ashton, a mother of two from Sydney's eastern suburbs, made a claim against the Pratt estate in the NSW Supreme Court last Monday, A Current Affair reported on Tuesday night.

Mr Pratt, chairman of Visy, was one of Australia's richest men.

The legal challenge comes just weeks after Pratt's former Sydney mistress, Shari-Lea Hitchcock, and the couple's daughter, Paula, went to court to contest the will in a bid to gain access to a larger slice of the Pratt empire.

According to Nine News, 12-year-old Paula inherited more than $20 million in shares from her father in his will.

Pratt's widow Jeanne is listed as the executor of his estate.

Both Ms Ashton, 35, and her lawyer refused to comment on the exact contents of the statement of claim.

Outside of her modelling career and the adult entertainment industry, Ms Ashton is listed on the Australian Security and Investment Commission register as the director of several consultancy companies.

According to a report on A Current Affair, she first became acquainted with Mr Pratt through his mistress Shari-Lea Hitchcock.

A Current Affair also alleges that Mr Pratt encouraged Ms Ashton to leave her job and promised that money would be paid to her.

ninemsn 25 MAy 2010

What only 2 mistresses outside of matrimony? UNBELIEVABLE !!!

Come one girls ! Come out!

Show just what sort of cheater this person really was.

Man charged with knowingly spreading HIV

A circus acrobat accused of spreading HIV to a woman through unprotected sex is being extradited from Sydney to the Gold Coast.

Queensland police have charged Godfrey Zaburoni, 31, with two charges, including grievous bodily harm, after a woman who tested positive to HIV made a complaint against him.

Health officials say other women in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria could have been infected.

Acting Queensland Deputy Police Commissioner Col McCallum says Zaburoni, who has been HIV positive since 1997, has given authorities the names of 12 women with whom he has had sex.

"What we're urging for is for anybody involved with this person to come forward. Firstly and primarily we're concerned about their health and wellbeing," he said.

"And we ask them to contact Queensland Health. If they have further concerns, we ask them to contact the police through the CrimeStoppers hotline."

Zaburoni, a Zimbabwean-born Australian citizen, has appeared as a contestant on Channel Seven program Australia's Got Talent.

A Sydney court this morning approved his extradition to Queensland and he will appear in the Southport Magistrates Court tomorrow.

Queensland chief health officer Dr Jeanette Young says it is possible more women could have been infected.

"I'm not confident about the numbers. I think there's a number. Of those 12, not all of those are in Queensland," she said.

"Seven of those were in Queensland. The others were in New South Wales and Victoria, but he's also been in other states.

"Unfortunately, he was not able to give us sufficient information so we could contact those women directly."

abc.net.au 25 May 2010

Filthy 'human' garbage, that should be executed.

Google street cars captured personal data

Cars used for Google's "Street View" mapping service have been mistakenly collecting personal data that people sent over unsecured WiFi networks for several years.

The Internet giant said it was "profoundly sorry for this error," which is likely to intensify criticism of "Street View" expressed by privacy advocates and officials in a number of countries.

Google said it was ending the collection of WiFi network information entirely by the Street View cars which have been used in over 30 nations.

It was also taking steps to delete the private data, which was scooped up as the cars drove around taking photographs and gathering publicly broadcast WiFi information for mobile versions of the online mapping service.

Street View, which is available for the United States and certain countries in Africa, Asia and Europe, allows users to view panoramic street scenes on Google Maps and "walk" through cities such as New York, Paris or Hong Kong.

Amid concerns that thieves could use pictures of private houses to gain access and that photos of people were being published without their consent, Street View already automatically blurs faces and car registration plates.

The collection of WiFi network information by Street View, which was launched in 2006, has also been controversial, particularly in Germany.

Google had insisted previously that it was only gathering publicly broadcast information such as a WiFi network name and a MAC address, the unique number given to a device like a WiFi router.

"It's now clear that we have been mistakenly collecting samples of payload data from open (ie non-password-protected) WiFi networks," Alan Eustace, Google senior vice president for engineering and research, said in a blog post.

Eustace said a coding error was responsible for the collection of personal data sent by people over unsecured WiFi networks.

He said Google discovered that personal wireless data had been collected a week ago following a request for information from the Data Protection Authority in Hamburg, Germany.

"As soon as we became aware of this problem, we grounded our Street View cars and segregated the data on our network, which we then disconnected to make it inaccessible," he said.

"We want to delete this data as soon as possible, and are currently reaching out to regulators in the relevant countries about how to quickly dispose of it," Eustace said.

"Given the concerns raised, we have decided that it's best to stop our Street View cars collecting WiFi network data entirely," he added.

Eustace said personal wireless data was mistakenly collected only from unsecured, or non-password-protected WiFi networks, and "we never used that data in any Google products."

"Maintaining people's trust is crucial to everything we do, and in this case we fell short," he said. "The engineering team at Google works hard to earn your trust — and we are acutely aware that we failed badly here.

"We are profoundly sorry for this error and are determined to learn all the lessons we can from our mistake."

A Google spokesperson said that about 600 gigabytes of personal information had been gathered, roughly the amount as in a standard computer harddrive.

Eustace said the data was just fragments. "Because our cars are on the move, someone would need to be using the network as a car passed by, and our in-car WiFi equipment automatically changes channels roughly five times a second," he said.

Google said Street View cars have been collecting WiFi data in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Britain, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Macau, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan and the United States.

afp 15 May 2010

Yet another means of cataloging the world's population.

There was NO MISTAKE made. Cars fitted with WiFi Sniffing (War Driving) equipment have that sole purpose to acquire data from wireless networks, which , is totally different from video / picture capturing hardware.

This move was DELIBERATELY made.

There is NO GUARANTEE that the information will be deleted.

Google one of the world's largest data aquisition companies.

A move supported by governments in keeping tabs on the masses.

KFC fined $A31,000 over food hygiene

Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) was ordered to pay out almost STG19,000 ($A31,000) on Monday after a cockroach was found eating a chip in one of its busiest branches in Britain.

The insect was seen on a food dispensing counter near takeaway boxes and tongs used to serve chicken by an environmental health officer in a restaurant in London's West End.

City of Westminster Magistrates' Court heard that during an inspection at the Leicester Square branch, the officer also saw a mouse, flies and dried chicken blood on the floor.

The Westminster City Council inspector also said there was no hand wash in dispensers in the food preparation area.

"There was no soap in the ground-floor food preparation room so, on the day of the inspection at least, it was not possible for food preparation staff to wash their hands properly," said Michael Goodwin.

The fast food giant admitted breaching five hygiene rules after the inspection in August 2008.

PAA 10 May 2010

One of the few cases that make it out into the public arena.

Truly Food for Canon Fodder, and an excellent staple for the mentally retarded.