Straya!

[Tero]

About 800 kilometres to the east of Temple Bruer, Ross Brown from Brown Brothers Wines has an even longer weather record on file.

His family has been making wine in Milawa, Victoria, for almost 130 years.

Mr Brown says he used to be a climate change sceptic but his vintage charts are indicating things have changed.

In Milawa, Brown Brothers is also picking earlier and their records show temperatures are rising.

Some of the cool climate varieties his family always used to grow here — like pinot noir and sparkling whites — have now become too unreliable so the company has moved some of its operation to cooler country in Tasmania.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-03-05/f ... ge/9502320

[JimC]

I have visited Brown Brothers several times. A fine establishment...

[mistermack]

Adrian drives past a big sign while it's raining and he is chatting to a mate on the phone...

Serves the fucker right. It's illegal to use a phone while driving here, and you should be able to stop within the distance you can see anyway.
If kids on bikes had been stopped there by the water, he could have killed them.

[Hermit]

Adrian drives past a big sign while it's raining and he is chatting to a mate on the phone...

Serves the fucker right. It's illegal to use a phone while driving here, and you should be able to stop within the distance you can see anyway.
If kids on bikes had been stopped there by the water, he could have killed them.

He was using a hands-free set and earphones. Still, his phone conversation distracted him sufficiently to not notice the flood sign. He would have been aware of the rains earlier in the day(s), so a causeway situation just past any one of those signs is always a likelihood up there, especially during the rainy season.

From the SMH article: "The contractor was frustrated at the lack of signage heading up to the steep dip into the river and considering seeking legal advice over whether the Bundaberg Regional Council had a duty of care." Lack of signage heading up to the steep dip into the river? Fucking idiot.

[mistermack]

The important point is that anyone who was stopped, or standing at the water's edge would have been smashed into and shoved underwater, probably unconscious.
You have to be able to stop within the scope of what you can see. Otherwise you're going to kill someone.
There's plenty of evidence there for a charge of dangerous driving.

[Hermit]

The important point is that anyone who was stopped, or standing at the water's edge would have been smashed into and shoved underwater, probably unconscious.
You have to be able to stop within the scope of what you can see. Otherwise you're going to kill someone.
There's plenty of evidence there for a charge of dangerous driving.

Yes, you should be able to stop within the distance you can see. I was only disagreeing about the illegality of the use of the phone in this instance.

[mistermack]

Yes, you should be able to stop within the distance you can see. I was only disagreeing about the illegality of the use of the phone in this instance.

Yes I get that. It really illustrates that hands free sets are still distracting, and should be restricted to police and other emergency services only.
It's odd, because talking to a passenger doesn't seem to have the same effect. Maybe, because communication can be halted and restarted more easily with someone who is in the car, looking at the same things that you are.
Over the phone, you feel obliged to keep the communication flowing, so you are less likely to switch off and concentrate on the road. Also you are not time limited with a passenger.

[pErvinalia]

I think I read somewhere that talking to someone on the phone vs a passenger takes your attention away from your surrounds and puts it more towards the person at the other end of the phone. And i agree about the handsfree thing. The only benefit it would seem to give is that you can still have all hands ready to react quickly to any situation (if you're concentrating enough).

[JimC]

Yes, you should be able to stop within the distance you can see. I was only disagreeing about the illegality of the use of the phone in this instance.

Yes I get that. It really illustrates that hands free sets are still distracting, and should be restricted to police and other emergency services only.
It's odd, because talking to a passenger doesn't seem to have the same effect. Maybe, because communication can be halted and restarted more easily with someone who is in the car, looking at the same things that you are.
Over the phone, you feel obliged to keep the communication flowing, so you are less likely to switch off and concentrate on the road. Also you are not time limited with a passenger.

I think that's quite possibly the reason, mm...

[laklak]

It's the cell phone radiation, obviously.

[Hermit]

What do you do when a scrub python has eaten your cat and then slithered away under your house? Call in your local electrician who happens to know how to handle snakes, of course.

Too late for the cat, but at least the snake got tucked into the tool box and relocated.

[mistermack]

Good result for the native OZ species. It's usually the invasive species that come out on top.

[rainbow]

[Hermit]

Boomerangs can be problematic. Many Australians have suffered nervous breakdowns because of them. Mostly they were caused by getting a new one, then trying to throw the old one away.

[Scot Dutchy]

Just burn them.