Hearsay
Andrew Weldon Cartoonist
We can’t just look at two animals and say, ‘Oh, those are super cute, they’ll make cute babies.’
“The Territory is the safest place in the world, except the moon.” The Northern Territory’s Chief Health Officer Dr Hugh Heggie on plans to extend its public health emergency for an additional 90 days – and some 1.25 light seconds. NT NEWS I AU
“You can’t beat a game at the ’G, to me it feels like freedom.” Die-hard Western Bulldogs supporter Valerie Kacarik on the joys of being back at the MCG for a game of footy for the first time since COVID. She goes leaps and bounds. ABC I AU
Kat Castle, from Save the Bilby Fund, on the breeding program that has brought the marsupial back from the brink of extinction. With a goal of breeding 10,000 bilbies by 2030, they use a stud book and microchipping to ensure the population maintains strong genetics.
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THEBIGISSUE.ORG.AU
ABC I AU
“Dear Colin, sadly the specimen is not a potato and is in fact the tuber of a type of gourd. For this reason, we do unfortunately have to disqualify the application.” The Guinness World Records in an email to New Zealand couple Colin and Donna Craig-Brown, mashing their dreams of holding the record for discovering the world’s largest potato, at 7.8kg, which the couple affectionately named Dug. It’s just no gourd.
“The TV industry and the movie industry are hurting us in some ways because they often show pictures of robots that are weaponised, and then people think that’s how all robots are.” Captain Michael Leo, from the New York Fire Department, reassures the public that their new robot dogs are being rolled out to save lives – not take over the city.
THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD I AU
“The billionaires are pushing the millionaires out of Byron.” Áine Tyrrell, a Byron Bay local who lives out of a bus as the NSW town’s real estate prices skyrocket out of reach: the average house price in Byron is north of $3 million; the average rent for a house is about $950 per week.
“You’ve got to understand that we come from a completely different generation – a different century. In our childhood, we grew up with phones plugged into the wall. We grew up before personal computers. We have a different perspective.” Placebo frontman Brian Molko on his reluctance to spruik the 90s alt-rock band’s comeback album on TikTok, preferring a “less is more approach”.
VICE I AU
NME I UK
THE NEW YORK TIMES I US
“We believe that a city has the right to frame such a tax, and then even a big company has to accept that. I can’t believe why an international company can’t switch to reusables if every small business can do that.” Boris Palmer, the mayor of Tübingen, on the German town’s new tax of 50 cents on any disposable packaging, and 20 cents on disposable cutlery, a move that hasn’t gone down well with McDonald’s – which is suing the city. BBC I UK
“It kept coming in crazier, in all directions. That’s when we really started getting comments.” Katelyn Samples, mother of toddler Lochlan, who is among just 100 people on the planet to be diagnosed with “uncombable hair syndrome”, which has no long-term health concerns. He’s since experienced a brush with fame, gaining almost 50,000 Instagram followers. BUSINESS INSIDER I IN
“Changing the clock twice a year is outdated and unnecessary. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Americans want more sunshine and less depression.” Republican Senator Rick Scott on a bipartisan bill dubbed the Sunshine