a 'crack' in Earth's magnetosphere - then rain.

AURORA OUTBURST: Last night,Feb. 27, 2012, for the second night in a row, sky watchers around the Arctic Circle witnessed an impressive display of auroras. "I've never seen anything close to this," says Aaro Kukkohovi, who photographed an eruption of light over Lumijoki, Finland: "What a fantastic burst of energy--like something blew a hole into Earth's magnetic field just above us!"
His rhetorical flourish isn't far wrong. The cause of the display was the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) tipping south and opening a 'crack' in Earth's magnetosphere. Solar wind poured in and fueled a G1-class geomagnetic storm. This was a high latitude event; the lights were brightest over Scandinavia, Iceland and Greenland.

Australian Bureau of Meteorology - New South Wales Significant Weather Media Release

Australian Bureau of Meteorology - South Australia Regional Office
SEVERE WEATHER WARNING

And there was a third man there.

With one down and another up, (Gillard will remain as Prime Minister after she comfortably defeated the challenge of Kevin Rudd in a contested ballot for the Labor leadership.) time to remember:

Holly: I suppose it wouldn't interest you to know that Harry Lime was murdered? You're too busy. You haven't even bothered to get the complete evidence...And there was a third man there. I suppose that doesn't sound peculiar to you.
Holly: I am leaving Vienna. I don't care whether Harry was murdered by Kurtz or Popescu or the third man. Whoever killed him, there was some sort of justice.

Who will come next?
Dennis Atkins argues in the Courier Mail that the "third man theory" is starting to gain traction.

And the winner is....

Aussie Kirk Baxter wins Oscar

Rudd goes - ALP says @#$%

Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd has announced his resignation at a press conference in Washington DC at 1.20am local time, February 22, 2012 5.20pm AEDT.

MOMEA stab man

Man stabbed in the back with a knife, group of 10 to 20 men of Mediterranean/ Middle Eastern appearance.

Granville 'Bekaa Valley"

Police investigate after bullet strikes Granville house - Operation Spartan
Illicit drugs Drugs have a long tradition in the Bekaa Valley, from the days of the Roman Empire until today cultivators and tribal drug lords working with militias built up a thriving cannabis trade.
Due to increasing political unrest that weakened the central Lebanese government during 2006 Lebanon War and 2007 (Opposition boycott of the government) and due to the lack of viable alternatives (U.N. promises of irrigation projects and alternative crop subsidies that never materialised) drug cultivation and production have significantly increased,[5] but remain a fraction of civil war era production and limited north of the Town of Baalbek, where the rule of tribal law protecting armed families is still strong.

ALP and lost jobs

ANZ to cut 1000 jobs

Sleep City 450 jobs.

And wood processing company Ta Ann is blaming environmentalists for its decision to shed 40 jobs in Tasmania.

Meanwhile, hundreds of workers stand to lose their jobs with one of Australia's oldest building firms, Kell & Rigby, going into administration last week.

Many children had blatant disregard for their safety

13 teenagers detained during blitz on children-at-risk in Surry Hills
“Many of the children had a blatant disregard for their own safety let alone the safety of their friends and those around them.
“A number of parents who were spoken to by police were shocked to discover their kids had lied about where they were going and were instead out drinking and causing trouble.
“Some parents could not be contacted when police or the children themselves tried to call. This a major concern to us, parents must make themselves contactable for their children at all times.
“We appreciate raising kids is a hard job, but parents need to take responsibility and be accountable for the actions of their children,” Det Insp Crews said.
“Every parent wants to think they can trust their child, and often they can, but as a parent it never hurts to check.
“Parents need to make every effort to know where their children are and to talk to them about the dangers of drugs and underage drinking.
“It is not worth it to engage in activity that could place children in danger or worse still, ruin their future with a criminal history.
“Police will continue to run the child-at-risk operations in partnership with FACS and the Kings Cross and Central Sydney Adolescent Unit,” Det Insp Crews said.

Sydney building firm ceases trading, 500 jobs lost.

Sydney building firm Kell & Rigby ceases trading, 500 jobs lost
From: AAP

About 500 Sydney workers are out of work after the collapse of building firm Kell & Rigby. Many employees and contractors have been left unpaid after the company ceased trading, the Nine Network reported today.
The company has reportedly gone into voluntary administration, but is yet to make a statement.
"The company has ceased trading and we suspect that there's about 500 jobs that have gone wanting here," Brian Parker from the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) told Nine.
Federal Employment Minister Bill Shorten says he is concerned for the affected families.
"My immediate reaction is for the families who'll be watching this news broadcast," Mr Shorten told the Nine Network.
"To know that dad works for this company and when dad gets home they'll be saying 'what's happening'."
...Established in 1910, Kell & Rigby is one of Australia's oldest building firms.
It was responsible for building some of Australia's best known landmarks, including the Anzac War Memorial, the renovation of Sydney Town Hall and the Apple building in Sydney's CBD.

The possum did not survive the incident.

Possum cuts power to 12,000 homes

A possum has caused power to be cut off from 12,000 Sydney homes and businesses this morning, an electricity provider said.

The possum acted as a conductor when it came into contact with two live parts of the electricity network near a large substation at Killarney Heights on Sydney’s north shore, a spokeswoman for Ausgrid told smh.com.au.

A short-circuit was created by the contact which triggered the network's safety mechanism at about 4.30am, cutting power to properties in Frenchs Forest, Belrose and Killarney Heights.

It was restored to 6000 Ausgrid customers at Belrose and Frenchs Forest at 7.45am and to 6000 other customers just before 8am.

"There are a lot of possums in Sydney and they use the power lines as their own highway — as a connection between trees or roads," the news website quoted Ausgrid spokesman Anthony O'Brien as saying.

This morning’s power outage was different to others caused by animals because it took place near a large substation, he said.

"It was 33,000 volts. The power line you would normally see running down your suburban street is 415 volts."

The possum did not survive the incident.

Ausgrid has installed equipment to try and protect possums from parts of the electricity network.

girl's desert death

Man to face tribal punishment over girl's desert death
Police say a man who got lost in a West Australian desert with an eight-year-old girl who later died is unlikely to be charged but will return to his community to face tribal punishment.


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