THE BYRON SHIRE Volume 23 #42 Tuesday, March 31, 2009 Mullumbimby 02 6684 1777 Byron Bay 02 6685 5222 Fax 02 6684 1719 editor@echo.net.au adcopy@echo.net.au www.echo.net.au 21,000 copies every week
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ONE MORE CUP OF COFFEE FOR THE ROAD
Kids crack them up at Big Joke
Lands board under fire Byron Shire Councillor Patrick Morrisey plans to move a Notice of Motion requesting Council formally lodge an objection to the new LHPA rating system. ‘The Rural Lands Protection Board (RLPB) may have changed its name but not its draconian rating system,’ said Cr Morrisey in a press release. Landholders with more than ten hectares of land have just received their rate notices from the Livestock Health & Pest Authorities (LHPA), formally RLPB, with an increase in rates. ‘The only good news is that those landholders with less than ten hectares of land will no longer have to pay rates,’ said Cr. Morrisey. ‘But those with more than ten hectares will pay more rates but get no increase in services, and for many no service at all. ‘Again the angst for many is the Notional Carrying Capacity. Landholders pay a rate based on how many livestock the authority consider their property can carry.
Unfair system
Catherine, 11, bravely opens the signature Funny Kids show at Bangalow’s Big Joke Comedy Festival on Saturday. Funny kids they were, with Catherine refuting her mother’s claim that one day she would enjoy coffee, ‘I’ll probably like coffee around the same time as I will find bald men handsome!’ Story & photo Lou Beaumont
Along with the internationally renowned comedians, local children starred at the Big Joke Comedy Festival in Bangalow on the weekend. The jokes of course centred on coping with adults. There was the ten year old who bemoaned having Paris Hilton as a role model, another kid who prayed that her Sunday school scripture teacher would ‘disappear’ in a freak bible exploding accident and another who was jealous of babies as they wore nappies and could poo when and where they chose. Other funny kids bagged men
in suits, Jesus, school and, of course, their parents. Festival director Mandy Nolan said festival days ran smoothly. ‘We’ve had sellout shows previously but this was the first year we sold out three shows. Tim Minchin, Arj Barker and the Cracked Eggs Breakfast were all packed gigs which is fantastic given the current economic climate. The international standard of the headline acts was evident, everyone was blown away and the feedback has been great. I’m already looking forward to next year’s show but for now I can get on with having a baby.’ Associate director of the Melbourne
Comedy Festival, Toby Sullivan, told The Echo how much he enjoyed the shows, ‘The Bangalow festival is unique with its setting and the community owned feeling. I am used to the Melbourne Festival with over 330 shows, more than 140 venues right across Melbourne and 400,000 tickets, so to go to a little hall in the middle of nowhere with 400 people was very different but no less delightful. A good gig is a good gig and that was really good fun.’ Our editor managed to catch Tim Minchin’s act: ‘It’s hard to say anything bad about Tim Minchin’s act, especially when you witness him ex-
coriating a Guardian critic in one of his songs. Minchin has a ready-made career as an accomplished singer and pianist but puts his act into overdrive with extremely intelligent comedy. ‘It is brave comedy, too. In a shire not noted for its scientific approach to life, Minchin launched into a ten minute “Beat� poem about his encounter at a dinner party with a woman called Storm, who felt the mystery of life outweighed the progress of empirical evidence. Any sacred cows in the room were thoroughly massacred but Minchin’s satire was greeted by tumultuous applause. ‘Noel Coward with bite.’
‘It doesn’t matter whether you run livestock or manage your land for nature conservation or orchards, if you own more than ten hectares you have to pay, regardless of whether you receive a service or not. ‘I’ve again been receiving calls from irate landholders, people with conservation covenants on their land, complaining about the increase in rates for no service at all. These people feel penalised for managing their land for nature conservation. ‘The NSW Government needs to be consistent in their policies towards managing the natural environment. They can’t have one department saying they support nature conservation and another penalising them by rating their land for how many cows they can run, when in fact their land is forested. It is simply unfair and the fight will continue.’ Landholders can contact Cr Morrisey to register objections on cr.patrick. morrisey@byron.nsw.gov.au.
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