Growing Up Gay in the Country I The Feed | Reupload

Oct 6, 2014 | Ivan hasn’t been back to his rural hometown of Tumut NSW in 21 years. He left as a teenager after a childhood of bullying about his sexuality, and never looked back. Until now.

As El Niño Arrives, Australian Region Sees ‘Catastrophic’ Fire Conditions

THE NEW YORK TIMES: The authorities ordered school closures on the south coast of New South Wales, where springtime temperatures were expected to near 100 degrees.

A controlled burn in Sydney, Australia, this month. The area is experiencing temperatures far above normal. | Cordelia Hsu/Reuters
Less than three weeks after the official start of spring in Australia, temperatures in many towns have set records, some as high as 60 degrees above normal. Ski resorts have closed weeks ahead of schedule. At the Sydney Marathon over the weekend, dozens of people were hospitalized after running in a heat wave.

On Tuesday, the authorities said the state of New South Wales was experiencing “catastrophic” fire conditions on its southern coast, with high winds and temperatures approaching 100 degrees Fahrenheit. They ordered 20 schools to close and residents in Sydney, the capital of New South Wales, not to light fires outdoors. Firefighters were already battling dozens of blazes across the country.

And in a possible omen for the months ahead, they also officially declared the arrival of the El Niño weather pattern, heralding the first hot and dry summer in the continent in three years.

Australia is bracing for a particularly dangerous fire season four years after the deadly Black Summer, when wildfires killed or were blamed for the deaths of nearly 500 people and scorched more than 60 million acres. The previous few seasons have had cooler and wetter La Niña conditions. » | Yan Zhuang, Reporting from Sydney, Australia | Tuesday, September 19, 2023

NSW Becomes Second State to Ban Nazi Flag and Symbols

THE GUARDIAN: Intentionally bearing swastikas can now land a person in jail for up to a year and a fine of over $100,000

Intentionally waving a Nazi flag in New South Wales or displaying memorabilia bearing swastikas could now land a person in jail for up to a year, along with a fine of over $100,000.

The Crimes Amendment (prohibition on display of Nazi symbols) Bill 2022 swiftly and unanimously passed the NSW upper house on Thursday.

The legislation was drafted in April, after an inquiry recommended a ban on the public display of Nazi symbols in a bid to tackle rising antisemitism.

NSW becomes the second state in Australia to pass the landmark legislation after Victoria in June.

NSW Jewish Board of Deputies CEO Darren Bark described the passing of the law as a historic day for NSW. » | Australian Associated Press | Thursday, August 11, 2022

A Love Heart Made Out of Sheep: Australian Farmer Pays Tribute to His Aunt

THE GUARDIAN: Unable to travel to a family funeral due to Covid, Ben Jackson used his sheep in a farewell message

Australian farmer pays tribute to his aunt with help of sheep – video
A sheep farmer stuck in lockdown in New South Wales who was unable to attend his aunt’s funeral has honoured her memory with the ultimate tribute: a love heart made from sheep.

Ben Jackson from Guyra couldn’t make it to Brisbane to be with his aunt during her final moments after a two-year fight with cancer that began at the start of the pandemic.

“Unfortunately, she didn’t make it,” Jackson said. “At those times of grief, you feel really helpless, you don’t know what to do, what to say.

“Especially in these Covid times, no one can prepare for that border closure grief, not being able to say cheerio or be there when she passes. It’s pretty difficult.”

Jackson said the idea for the heart came to him while he was out feeding his sheep “supplementary tucker” as they are “quite pregnant and need a bit of extra TLC”.

Actually making the heart took “three or four” attempts, Jackson said, with his initial efforts turning out less than desirable. » | Royce Kurmelovs | Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Lockdown in Sydney erneut verschärft

Saeed Khan/AFP/Getty Images | Ein Mann sitzt am Hafen von Sydney
ZEIT ONLINE – LIVE: Die coronabedingten Einschränkungen in Sydney sind nochmals verschärft worden. Einwohnerinnen und Einwohner dürfen ihre Wohnungen nun nur noch verlassen, um Sport zu treiben, zur Arbeit oder einkaufen zu gehen, wie die Regionalregierung mitteilte. Die Regelungen zum Verlassen der Stadt wurden verschärft, um eine Ausbreitung der Epidemie zu verhindern. Auch ist der Lockdown für den gesamten Bundesstaat New South Wales ausgeweitet worden. Corona-News aus aller Welt » |Von Ivana Sokola | Samstag, 14. August 2021

Australia’s Covid Crisis: Victoria Enters 6th Lockdown as New South Wales Cases Hit New Record

The Sydney Harbour Bridge in New South Wales. The Australian state recorded 262 new locally acquired cases of Covid-19 in 24 hours. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP
THE GUARDIAN: Three largest states under strict controls as Delta variant spread worsens and Sydney warned to expect more bad news in coming days

The Australian state of Victoria has entered its sixth lockdown to join the country’s two other largest states under varying degrees of coronavirus restrictions as the Delta variant continues to spread.

Lockdowns have been enforced across the east coast, including Australia’s three largest cities – Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane – putting more than 60% of the country’s 25 million population under strict stay-home orders.

Victoria, which endured one of the world’s longest lockdowns in 2020, began a snap, seven-day lockdown on Thursday in response to an outbreak of unlinked new infections.

The latest round of restrictions include rules that have become wearily familiar to Victorians – including only being allowed to leave home for five reasons, a 5km travel limit for exercise and shopping, and compulsory masks indoors and outdoors – and come only 10 days after the last mini-lockdown ended. » | Martin Farrer | Friday, August 6, 2021

Sydney Suffers Worst Day of Pandemic with 262 Cases and Five Deaths as Delta Spreads North

THE GUARDIAN: Beach party in Newcastle triggers snap lockdown in Hunter and Upper Hunter, while virus found in sewage puts Armidale and Dubbo on high alert

A beach party in Newcastle attended by young people from western Sydney has triggered a snap lockdown in eight regional local government areas as New South Wales authorities worry that the Delta variant of Covid is now spreading in the regions.

NSW recorded 262 coronavirus cases and five deaths in the 24 hours to 8pm Wednesday – its worst day so far in the pandemic. At least 72 cases were in the community for all or part of their infectious period.

But it is the detection of fragments of the virus in sewage systems in Armidale and Dubbo as well as in the Newcastle and the Central Coast that has authorities most worried. With video » | Anne Davies | Thursday, August 5, 2021

Soldaten überwachen den Lockdown in Sydney

FRANFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Trotz strenger Corona-Maßnahmen sind die Infektionszahlen in Sydney auf einem für australische Verhältnisse hohen Niveau geblieben. Nun sollen die Ordnungskräfte dafür sorgen, dass sich die Menschen besser an die Regeln halten.

In Australiens größter Stadt Sydney gehen seit Montag Männer in Tarnkleidung auf Patrouille, um die Einhaltung der Corona-Regeln sicherzustellen. Die rund 300 Soldaten der Australian Defence Force verstärken die Polizei in den besonders stark betroffenen Stadtvierteln auf der Straße und bei Hausbesuchen, bei denen geprüft wird, ob sich die Anwohner, die positiv auf das Coronavirus getestet wurden, an die Selbstisolation halten. Außerdem sollen sie bei der Verteilung von Nahrungsmitteln und dem Aufbau von Impfzentren helfen.

Dabei gehe es bei dem Einsatz, der auf Bitten des Bundesstaates New South Wales zustande gekommen war, nicht darum, „Angst zu verbreiten“, versicherte Mick Fuller, der Polizeichef von New South Wales. Damit reagierte er auch auf die Kritik, dass die Soldaten vor allem im Westen Sydneys zum Einsatz kämen, wo besonders viele Menschen mit Migrationshintergrund lebten. » | Till Fähnders, Politischer Korrespondent für Südostasien in Singapur | Montag, 2. August 2021

Anti-lockdown Protests across Australia as Covid Cases Surge to Record Levels in Sydney

THE GUARDIAN: Chaotic scenes in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Brisbane as protesters demand end to lockdowns

Anti-lockdown protesters have marched in major Australian cities, as Covid cases spiked to record numbers in Sydney and authorities warned of a “continuing and growing problem”.

Thousands of angry, unmasked people marched through the Sydney central business district on Saturday afternoon demanding an end to the city’s lockdown, which is entering its fifth week. Police made several arrests of protesters who broke through barriers or threw plastic bottles at officers.

Similar scenes unfolded in Melbourne and Adelaide, which are both in lockdown, and Brisbane, which is not.

As demonstrators were gathering in Sydney, the New South Wales health minister, Brad Hazzard, revealed a record number of new coronavirus cases had been detected – 163 in the previous 24 hours – and pleaded with people to stay at home.

“We really need our community, particularly in south-western and western Sydney, to stay at home, to hear the message and stay at home,” Hazzard said. » | Ben Smee | Saturday, July 24, 2021

Australia’s Most Populous State Declares ‘National Emergency’ over Covid Outbreak

THE GUARDIAN: New South Wales announces 136 new local Delta cases with Sydney under the strictest lockdown measures it has experienced

Australia’s most populous state has declared a “national emergency” as it struggles to contain a record-breaking surge of the Delta variant of Covid-19 amid a lockdown affecting half the country.

The state of New South Wales announced 136 new locally-acquired cases of Covid-19 on Friday, with continued community transmission among essential workers, including in supermarkets and pharmacies.

More than a year after the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, NSW has broken records for daily case numbers on consecutive days, and the city of Sydney is under the strictest lockdown measures it has ever experienced.

More than 13 million Australians – approximately half the country’s population – are currently under some form of lockdown or restriction, including the states of Victoria and South Australia.

On Friday, the NSW premier, Gladys Berejiklian, called for an urgent mass vaccination program in parts of Sydney, and warned that the city’s outbreak would endanger the entire country. Despite restrictions that have closed restaurants, pubs and bars, general retail shops, schools, offices, gyms and sport, and limited the reasons that people can leave the house, Covid numbers continue to rise. » | Naaman Zhou | Friday, July 23, 2021

Gladys Berejiklian Faces Instability Within as a Covid Storm Brews Outside

THE GUARDIAN: Disgruntled cabinet colleagues touting a plan B are making NSW premier’s job of imposing a lockdown on the public even harder

The New South Wales premier, Gladys Berejiklian, emerged from her crisis briefing at the Department of Health on Friday looking more stressed – with good reason.

All the signs are that NSW is losing control of this outbreak of the Delta strain of Covid-19, despite the increasingly stringent lockdown rules.

“To 8pm last night there were 44 cases of community transmission. Regrettably, 29 of those were either partially or fully exposed to the community and that is the number that is really concerning us,” Berejiklian said on Friday.

“It tells us that both the case numbers and unfortunately the number of people who may be exposed or have been exposed in the community is going to go up.” » | Anne Davies | Friday, July 9, 2021

Cold, wet and windy weather ahead for Sydney could pose added risk in Covid lockdown »

NSW Covid update: stronger restrictions for Sydney as Gladys Berejiklian flags lockdown extension »

Australia Covid Update: NSW Records 38 Cases, Highest Daily Number Since Sydney Outbreak Began

THE GUARDIAN: Gladys Berejiklian urged people to restrict movement and not visit family members unnecessarily during Sydney lockdown, as Queensland recorded two coronavirus cases

New South Wales has recorded 38 new local Covid-19 cases, including 20 people who were in the community for part or all of their infectious period, as the premier urged people to further restrict their movement.

Gladys Berejiklian said on Thursday those numbers, the highest in NSW since the current outbreak began, were “too high” but that it was still “achievable” for the lockdown to end next Friday, “assuming everybody does the right thing”

. But she backed away from a suggestion NSW would just lift lockdown regardless of case numbers, saying “you can’t live with the Delta variant unless you have a certain proportion of the population vaccinated”.

“We need to get those numbers down,” she said. » | Australian Associated Press and Calla Wahlquist | Thursday, July 8, 2021

Sydney Australia On Lockdown over COVID Delta Variant Outbreak | DW News

Jun 26, 2021 • A two-week lockdown has been imposed in Sydney to contain an outbreak of the highly contagious COVID-19 Delta variant. The new restrictions affect more than five million people in and around the Australian city.

At least 80 cases have been reported so far. Most have been linked to a limousine driver who was infected while taking an international flight crew to a quarantine hotel.

The country remains largely unvaccinated. New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian said: "A few days ago I said this was the scariest time that she felt since the pandemic started and that's proven to be the case. We should brace ourselves for more cases. We're finding that all household contacts, unfortunately, are getting the virus. Transmissibility is at least double what previous variants have been, so we do need to brace ourselves for potentially larger number of cases in the following days, and that is why it's so important we take action now."


Sydney, Australia, enters full lockdown for the first time in the pandemic to fight the Delta variant »

NSW Covid Outbreaks: Gladys Berejiklian Locks Down Sydney, Central Coast, Blue Mountains and Wollongong

THE GUARDIAN: New South Wales premier says lockdown will last two weeks and new restrictions will be in place for rest of state

All of greater Sydney, the Central Coast, the Blue Mountains and Wollongong regions will enter a two-week coronavirus lockdown until 9 July and new restrictions will be in place for the remainder of New South Wales.

The NSW premier, Gladys Berejiklian, announced the expanded lockdown – the first lockdown of greater Sydney since last year – would commence at 6pm Saturday, following crisis talks due to the growing number of exposure sites associated with the Sydney outbreak of the Delta Covid-19 variant.

The state recorded 29 cases up to 8pm on Friday, including 17 that had been announced Friday morning. Only 12 of those had been in isolation while infectious.

“We’re never afraid to take a decision we need to keep our citizens safe,” Berejikilan said on Saturday afternoon. “Unfortunately this is a situation where we absolutely have to.” » | Lisa Cox | Saturday, June 26, 2021

Covid-19 : la métropole de Sydney entièrement reconfinée pour contrer le variant Delta »

Australia: New South Wales Parliament Agrees That Donald Trump Is a "Revolting Slug, Unfit for Public Office"

Charges for 'Disrespect' in Australian Court after Accused Rejects Any Authority Other Than Islam

Supreme law courts in Sydney, Australia

THE TELEGRAPH: New South Wales will introduce laws to ban disrespectful behaviour after a 25-year-old man refused to stand in court for four judges

The Australian state of New South Wales will introduce laws to ban “disrespectful behaviour” in court after a devout Muslim charged with attempted murder repeatedly refused to stand, saying he did not recognise the authority of the judiciary.

Milad bin Ahmad-Shah al-Ahmadzai, 25, caused a public outcry – and his conduct was criticised by local Muslim leaders - but authorities said his failure to stand did not appear to be illegal under existing contempt laws.

Al-Ahmadzai has been charged with the vicious beating and shooting of a man outside a gay sex club in Sydney, apparently after the man interrupted an attempt to break into a mechanic business next door to the club.

For the past 18 months, al-Ahmadzai has refused to stand in court, insisting he was “not at the behest of any authority other than Islam”.

Dismissing his conduct as unacceptable, Gabrielle Upton, the state’s attorney-general, said she will introduce legislation early next year to create a new offence for disrespectful behaviour in court. » | Jonathan Pearlman, Sydney | Thursday, December 3, 2015

THE GUARDIAN: Man who refuses to stand in court to be considered for contempt: The NSW attorney general, Gabrielle Upton, seeks advice on whether man on attempted murder charges should be investigated ‘for breaches of contempt’ » | Australian Associated Press | Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Victim of Sydney sex club shooting shown running for his life in disturbing CCTV »

Australia: Muslim Woman Spat On, Verbally Abused At Service Station

THE NORTHERN STAR: A WOMAN said she was terrified after she was spat on and called a terrorist at a Murwillumbah service station this week.

The practicing Muslim, who requested to remain anonymous, said she was fuelling her car up when a hostile man pulled up and began to scream abuse at her on Wednesday.

"A man got out (of the car) ... He came towards the bowser and I wasn't sure if he was going to head butt me or punch me, or pour petrol on me and light me up," she said.

"But I knew there was going to be trouble."

She said the man approached her and started to call her a "terrorist" and told her to "go back to where you f***ing came from."

The Tweed Coast resident couldn't believe the man was treating her in such a way and believed it was because she was wearing a traditional Islamic face cover known as a niqab.

"(He was) calling me a terrorist when he was terrorising me," she recalled.

"Calling me oppressed yet he was oppressing me."

"He was loud and he was screeching." » | Emma Galliott | Saturday, March 16, 2013

New South Wales Parliament Embraces the Queen with New Royal Oath

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Politicians in Australia's largest state, New South Wales, will again be able to swear allegiance to the Queen and the royal family under moves to restore the oath after it was scrapped in 2006.

The bill, proposed by an ardently pro-monarchist MP, has been backed by the new Government which won office earlier this year. It would reverse a decision to scrap the oath by the former Labor government.

Under the proposals, politicians would no longer be forced to swear loyalty to the people of NSW and Australia and could instead choose to pledge allegiance "to her majesty Queen Elizabeth II, her heirs and successors according to law".

The change was proposed by Reverend Fred Nile, from the Christian Democratic party, who said the removal of the Queen from the oath was a "calculated snub" by Labor on the eve of a royal visit. Reverend Nile was buoyed by the most recent royal visit, which ended with jubilant scenes as big crowds came to farewell the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh after what may have been her final tour as head of state. » | Jonathan Pearlman, in Sydney | Friday, November 25, 2011

Australian Jihad Plotters Jailed for Up To 28 Years
THE TELEGRAPH: Five men convicted of plotting a terrorist attack in Australia will spend between 23 to 28 years in prison after a Sydney judge handed them the maximum sentences for their crimes.

Justice Anthony Whealy of the New South Wales Supreme Court said he had little hope that the men, aged 25 to 44, could be rehabilitated, saying they were motivated by "intolerant, inflexible religious conviction" and had shown contempt for the Australian government, its leaders and laws.

In October last year, at the end of Australia's longest ever trial, a jury found the Sydney men guilty of conspiring to commit a terrorist act or acts.

Their exact target or targets have never been identified.

The men, Australian-born or naturalised citizens with Muslim immigrant backgrounds, had all pleaded not guilty to the charges.

During the 10-month trial, the court heard the five jihadists wanted to terrify and intimidate the Australian public and the government in retaliation for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. >>> Bonnie Malkin in Sydney | Monday, February 15, 2010

As the Church Destroys Itself from Within…
Photo of Dr Barry Morgan and Gene Robinson courtesy of the BBC
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: A senior church leader says he would be willing to consecrate Britain’s first openly gay bishop, despite fears that such a move would further split the Anglican communion.

The Archbishop of Wales, Dr Barry Morgan, told The Sunday Telegraph that practising homosexuals should not be barred from becoming bishops.

He accused conservative Anglicans of being “exclusive” and narrow-minded in their opposition to gay clerics.

His comments, which come on the eve of the Lambeth Conference - the Anglican communion’s ten-yearly gathering of bishops - are set to inflame the bitter controversy over homosexuality.

Dr Morgan said that he was in agreement with the decision of the American church five years ago to consecrate the homosexual cleric Gene Robinson as a bishop - the move which has pushed the Anglican church to the brink of schism.

He said that if his fellow bishops in the church in Wales voted for a practising homosexual priest to be consecrated, he would back their decision and approve it. Church of England Should Appoint Britain’s First Gay Bishop, Says Archbishop of Wales >>> By Jonathan Wynne-Jones | July 13, 2008

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