Shaggy Dog Comments...
Southern Cross University is looking for dolphin lovers to shell out of a few bob to take part in a research project on the local dolphin population over the next fortnight, August 1-15. The Byron Bay Marine Park has about 300 dolphins and PhD student Liz Hawkins is researching the impact of recreational and commercial vessels on the behaviour and communication of dolphins in protected areas. Sailing from Ballina to Lennox Head and Byron Bay, participants in Dolphin Research Expeditions will help study the dolphins in their natural environment and can choose between sailing on a 12-metre yacht or a 6.5 metre inflatable boat. The cost is $75 for a half day or $130 for a full day, to cover the cost of the research project. The expeditions depart from Ballina. For details, phone Baysail Charters on 0418 646 160.
The Australian Breastfeeding Association is celebrating its 40th anniversary and the Lismore and Ballina groups are planning to mark the occasion by trying to set a new world record for the greatest number of women breastfeeding simultaneously. Everyone is invited to join them on Friday, August 6, at 11.30am in Heritage Park, Lismore. Bring a plate of finger food to share and the ABA is bringing the cake, which will be cut by Jan Mangleson, who founded the North Coast Group in 1974 and remains a councillor after more than 30 years. For details, phone Rebecca Carr on 6688 4464.
Southern Cross University chancellor Justice John Dowd announced he will quit the Supreme Court bench next month, firing off a broadside at NSW Premier Bob Carr and Prime Minister John Howard, citing personal attacks made by both leaders and the Government's anti-terrorism legislation as reasons for his resignation.
As chairman of the International Commission of Jurists, he made a submission to a Senate inquiry in 2002 that said new laws would be "subverting [liberty] more effectively than terrorism could ever do".
Responding at the time Mr Carr said "For goodness sake, can't John Dowd get into his thick head that Bali occurred, that we have a problem here, that these threats are real, and, when triggered, police ought to have the powers to arrest people, to question people, to search people?"
Justice Dowd was in Lismore on Tuesday, the day news of his resignation appeared in The Sydney Morning Herald, and recounted how he sent the Premier a letter thanking him for his comments and lamenting that journalists today seemed to lack the manners and accuracy of the one who interviewed Justice Dowd when he was NSW opposition leader 25 years earlier. The journalist? A young hack called Bob Carr.
First Playschool, now The Simpsons - it seems everyone's coming out of the closet. Apparently Matt Groening, creator of the cartoon classic, has devised an upcoming episode in which Homer becomes an internet-ordained minister and begins performing same-sex weddings - something conservative politicians on both sides of the Pacific have been doing their best to outlaw. Along the way, one of the show's central characters announces they're gay. Fans are speculating on who it might be. No matter - you can bet Mark Latham won't be letting his kids watch it. After all, they might mistake Bart for their absent dad.
Worried about the FTA's impact on culture? Australia spent $1.14 billion on TV production. More than half that money, $660 million, was spent producing news and sport. It costs $20,000 an hour to produce news, $13,000 per hour for sport, a whopping $223,000 for sketch comedy and $247,000 per hour for drama. Sport was the most common broadcast among first release shows at 23,600 hours (43%).
 The age of the octogenarian
Shaggy sends belated birthday wishes to environmentalist, social activist and The Channon legend Peter Hamilton (pictured), who turned 80 recently. Peter played a leading role in setting up multiple occupancies and was a founding member of Bodhi Farm at The Channon. He championed the introduction of low-cost sustainable housing and established The Channon Children's Centre. He was closely involved in the Terania Forest Protest, and the successful legal appeal to prevent the reintroduction of mineral sand mining on the North Coast.
The son of the principal of the Brisbane Boys College, he trained as a RAAF pilot during WWII and then went on to study architecture at Sydney University. In the mid 1950s, Peter started Wattle Films and Records, producing records of Australian folk songs and films.
In 1970, Peter accompanied his anthropologist wife and their two young children to spend 18 months living in the Central Desert with an Aboriginal tribe, where he studied the architecture of the traditional wiltja (shelter). He still sports a ponytail and continues to advocate for a more sustainable way of living. Long may he continue to do so.
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 Medal Found
The City of Lismore RSL Sub Branch would like to return an old WWI medal to its rightful owners after it was found at an old farmstead in Corndale recently. After a little bit of digging (no pun intended) the Sub Branch discovered the medal belonged to Archie Ferdinand Hayward, a corporal in the 53rd Battalion of the Australian Infantry Army, who was killed in action in France on September 1, 1918. Corporal Hayward was born in Condobolin, the son of William Henry and Rosalind Hayward.
"We're anxious to return the medal because otherwise it will be sent to the war memorial for storage," City of Lismore RSL Sub Branch secretary, Wilson McClelland, said. "We believe it's extremely important to return these medals back to the rightful owners so they can carry on the Anzac tradition." If you can help, phone Wilson on 6621 3851.
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