Thief robs till, returns some, leaves
/A Mt Magnet woman will appear in Geraldton Magistrates court after allegedly stealing money from a till at Pure & Divine.
The incident happened on Friday 14 November. The female entered a small reception area at the rear of the business and walked behind the counter where she opened the cash draw and took $200, according to Police.
The shop owner saw what had occurred and confronted the offender, who returned $70 and left the shop.
The 28 year old female will appear before Geraldton Magistrates Court on 4 December 2014.
Trade deal with China
/The Abbott Government has concluded negotiations for an historic free trade agreement with China – our largest trading partner – which will deliver significant benefits for both Australia and the Durack electorate, Melissa Price, Member for Durack said today.
In a little over 12 months in office the Abbott Government has now concluded three landmark free trade agreements with the major economies of North Asia, including South Korea, Japan and China. These agreements will add billions of dollars to the Australian economy and create tens-of-thousands of jobs in the years ahead. They will also bolster the standards of living Australians enjoy.
The China-Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA) gives Australian exporters new levels of market access to the world's second largest economy, its 1.36 billion people and growing middle class.
Ms Price said that more than 85 per cent of Australian goods exports (by value) will be tariff free upon commencement of the agreement rising to 93 per cent within four years.
“ChAFTA will deliver significant wins for Australia across key areas such as agriculture, resources and energy, manufacturing exports, services and investment,” Ms Price said.
Households and businesses will also reap the benefits of cheaper goods and components imported from China such as vehicles, household goods, electronics and clothing, placing downward pressure on the cost of living and the cost of doing business.
"This is an outstanding agreement, which will translate into greater economic growth, more jobs and higher living standards for the households and businesses of Durack," Ms Price said.
“Durack will particularly benefit from the elimination of tariffs on exports of items such as beef and seafood.”
The Abbott Government has also secured an unprecedented deal for a broad range of Australian services: the best ever market access afforded by China to any foreign country. This will provide enormous scope to build on a services export market already worth $7 billion.
"Australia is a services economy and ChAFTA will provide a range of new opportunities for our service providers everything from legal services, financial services, education, tourism and travel, through to health and aged care services, architecture, urban planning, transport and several more," Ms Price said.
"The Abbott Government, as promised, has now delivered a powerful trifecta of trade agreements with South Korea, Japan and China, economies which now account for more than 61 per cent of Australian goods exports. Without these agreements our future competitiveness would not be assured.”
Crypto Currency, Music and Geraldton - Introducing SongCoin
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Geraldton resident David Prince has an ambitious idea for the future of music.
Not just music in Geraldton. Music everywhere.
Ever since Napster and the digital revolution, individuals and companies have been struggling to find ways to distribute music and monetise the creative efforts of the artists.
Nowadays, YouTube, surprisingly, is the number one place to get your music. It's easy to create playlists and free is a nice price for most people to pay.
For those of us who like a little more convenience, services like Spotify, Pandora and iTunes are the ways to get our tunes.
But some artists (*cough Taylor Swift cough*) feel that their current options for distributing music aren't as financially viable as they once were.
David Prince's idea is to build a platform that allows music lovers to not only purchase songs, but purchase a share in a song's success.
This means that those who buy the song early have the opportunity to profit if the song becomes popular.
David hopes to give music artists a creative way to raise money, allow music lovers to access the songs they want in a convenient manner, and let you profit from music you invest in.
As the backbone for it all David has built a new crypto currency called SONG COIN.
If you have heard of bitcoin, you'll have some understanding of what song coin is.
Essentially it's a digital currency that uses complicated and mind bending mathematical techniques behind the scenes to prevent forgery and authenticate payments.
Bitcoin is the internet's crypto currency of choice at the moment, but a large number of "alt coins" have emerged in recent years, usually with slightly different variables and characteristics.
Google "what is bitcoin" if you want an education on crypto currencies.
David Prince hopes that as usage of SongCoin grows, so will it's value, making it desirable for artists and giving him a way to fund the entire operation.
To learn a bit more about SongCoin click here.
(Note, the coin in the photo is not a coin, it's a clever looking USB storage device with Song Coins on it.)
Scam alert - Watch out for FREE TRIALS
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From WA Scamnet:
Whether it’s a sponsored post in your social media feed or a pop up advertisement while you’re browsing the web, offers of ‘free trials’ or ‘samples’ are a common sight for internet users.
But you know the age-old saying ‘there’s no such thing as a free lunch’. Well WA ScamNet’s research into these offers certainly backs that theory up.
Here’s a typical case study:
- Consumer Protection receives a complaint regarding unauthorised credit or debit card transactions.
- The consumer has signed up for a ‘free trial’ or ‘free sample’ of a product while they were online.
- They were lured by an advert boasting promises such as weight loss by taking pills without exercise; muscle-building protein powders; teeth whitening gels; age-defying face creams; herbal medicines or natural remedies to cure health issues.
- They had to pay a small fee e.g. $9.99 for postage/shipping and handling and this involved supplying their credit or debit card details.
- After receiving their free trial or sample, they have received extra deliveries of the product without requesting it and their bank statement shows that they have been charged.
- WA ScamNet checks the terms and conditions and finds that the fine print states that unless the consumer makes contact to cancel a proposed subscription they will be sent and charged for further full-priced supplies.
“Should you fail to call us on 1234-567-890 or email us at xxxx@xxxx.xxx within 21 days of subscribing to your free trial, you will be sent a 30-day supply every month thereafter until you advise us of your wish to cancel arrangement.”
- Sometimes the business is based internationally and very difficult to contact because of the time difference and overseas contact points.
- It is unlikely the consumer’s credit card issuer will provide a chargeback because the transaction is not necessarily fraudulent – the consumer has agreed to it.
WA ScamNet recommendations:
- Think before you click – don’t be enticed by bold claims such as “fat-busting”, “miracle cure” or incredible “before and after” photos.
- Research the name of the website and product. Typing the name followed by the words ‘rip off’ or ‘scam’ into you search engine is a good way to look for negative information. You could find there is no scientific evidence to back up what’s promoted or fake photos may have been used; the website might even be bogus!
- Watch out for hidden terms and conditions that lock you into an ongoing supply of the product. Always read any fine print you are agreeing to.
- Beware of pre-ticked subscription sign-up boxes – uncheck them.
- Make an appointment in your diary to cancel if you decide to go ahead with a free trial despite the subscription terms and conditions.
- Keep an eye on bank statements if you have supplied your credit or debit card details, to make sure there are no unauthorised deductions.
WA SCAMNET is brought to you by the Dept of Commerce. Check out the Video above too from the US Federal Trade Commision which also gives a great explanation of the traps of free trials.
Food safety awards happening soon
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Food safety to be recognised
The Food Safety Awards and Conference are on again to recognise the hard efforts and award local food businesses who have maintained a high standard of food hygiene.
The awards will take place on Monday, November 17 at the Queen Elizabeth II Seniors and Community Centre at 1.45pm for registrations and a 2pm start with light refreshments.
Durack Institute of Technology, Department of Health Tobacco Unit and the City of Greater Geraldton will all provide small presentations on food safety.
City of Greater Geraldton Manager Environmental Health and Sustainability, Mark Chadwick, said the City implemented the Star Rating Awards system to recognise food handlers that make commitment towards demonstrating high standards and compliance with the Food Act 2008.
“The awards not only recognise and reward local businesses, it also educates and motivates consumers to seek out establishments that identify a particular star rating,” he said.
“Routine inspections and star rating evaluations are performed throughout the year. Premises can then receive a three or four star rating, or the highest at five stars which the City encourages businesses to strive towards.”
The main objective if the Star Rating Awards is to provide relevant food industry information and reward food businesses that have made an extra effort to gain a higher star rating.
All registered food businesses are invited to attend the event.
For more information on the Food Safety Awards and Conference contact Viraj Ballanthudaachchige or Emily Mace on (08) 9956 6600.
Congrats to Andrew Hunter for winning the Best Overall Regional Painter
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Eddie Vause, Andrew Hunter, Daniel and Tina Pendlebury
Congratulations to Andrew Hunter for winning the Best Overall Regional Painter at the Master Builders Apprentice Awards in Perth on Friday night.
Georgia Raven & Di Gilleland
Georgia Raven from Plunkett was a finalist for the Prestigious Ric New Medal.
Georgia is the youngest entrant to have ever been selected for this award and is a credit to her at such a young age, so just watch this space.
Geraldton Apprentice the best of the bunch
Painting and Decorating Apprentice Andrew Hunter is this year’s Master Builders Regional Apprentice of the Year.
This prestigious award was announced at the Master Builders Apprentice of the Year Awards in Perth on Friday 7 November.
The 23 year old who is now fully qualified started his apprenticeship in 2010 with Associated Painting Enterprises.
Mr. Hunter tried a number of different trades in high school, eventually choosing painting because of the art and decorating aspect.
According to Master Builders Training Director, Neil Du Rand, Andrew was a stand-out nominee who ticked all the selection criteria such as work and trade skills, personal attributes, ability to work unsupervised, a good relationship with other workers and competency in decision-making.
“Andrew’s keenness to learn and strong work ethic made him a cut above the other nominees” Mr. Du Rand said.
“Some of Andrew’s greatest strengths are his positive attitude and natural ability to perform under pressure.”
“With activity levels in the building industry being buoyant at the moment, Andrew is assured of a very bright future in pursuing his career as a painter”.
Mr. Hunter has already won a number of Master Builders Mid West Awards, including the 2014 Kevin Giudice Apprentice of the Year, the 2013 Master Builders Apprentice Encouragement Award and the 2012 Best First Year Apprentice for the Mid West region.
The Master Builders Regional Apprentice of the Year is determined from each of the best apprentices in regional WA. Andrew competed against Anthony Brien, carpenter from the South West; Jayde Ralph, electrician from the North-West and Bradley Mostert, Carpenter from the Great Southern.
Andrew won $350 and a framed certificate for his efforts, sponsored by the Construction Training Fund.
Shoppers are loving these
/Everything Geraldton has received multiple reports from very happy shoppers regarding the new trolleys at Woolies.
Apart from being shiny and lacking in the wonky wheels we all adore, there's more of the popular smaller trolleys.
And they even have a cup holder.
Thanks Jessica May and Damien Ethell for the pics.
WA Country Builders will build one of these four things
/WA Country Builders are going to build a monument in Geraldton for free.
The decision on what is to be built is to be made by Geraldton residents.
What do you want WA Country Builders to build in Geraldton?
Choose between
- A welcome entry statement to Geraldton
- Upgrade to community garden nursery
- Marina Beach Seating and Shelter
- Toilet Blocks @ Back Beach and Glendinning Park
Massive response to local business' sign
/
Tim, an Everything Geraldton reader, sent this pic of a sign from a local business here in Geraldton. We shared it to Facebook, and the response was massive.
So far nearly 90,000 people have seen the pic, and may agreed with the sentiment while some thought the sign was unnecessary.
The sign reads: Attention Customers. If you are on the phone you will not be served.
Check out the comments on the post by clicking here.
Do you have an opinion?
Your vote needed for local charity
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Watch the MWCBAH video
Your help is needed!
Midwest Charity Begins at Home is a finalist in the statewide Orange Seed Project. A project that could see them win a prize to include:
* $50,000 marketing service package from Jack in the Box
* $50,000 advertising sponsorship package from The West Australia, plus a $5,000 cash donation
* $10,000 community service announcement package from Channel 7
VOTING CLOSES Sunday October 19.
How can you help?
- Please follow the link below and VOTE for the Midwest Charity Begins at Homes video.
The Oil and Gas industry hated this advertisement in the Guardian
/On the 11th of July, Frack Free Geraldton ran this ad (it didn't have the big red x of course) in the Geraldton Guardian. Frack Free Geraldton are associated with the Conservation Council of WA (CCWA).
10 days later, the Chief Operating Officer of the WA region of the Australian Pertroleum Production and Exploration Association Limited (APPEA) had a letter published in the Guardian.
He essentially refuted the claims of the ad.
Then on 29 July 2014, APPEA wrote to the owners of the Geraldton Guardian, West Australian Newspapers Ltd (SevenWest), formally complaining about the ad.
The CCWA responded, basically declaring the complaint by Michael Bradley and the APPEA vexatious and motivated by a desire to suppress the true nature of the gas fracking industry.
SevenWest ruled in favour of the Oil and Gas industry in many of the points.
1. The APPEA claims that shale fracking is not the “process of extracting gas”. It says that hydraulic fracking is a technology used to enhance the flow of gas from a well once the drilling is completed and the rig is removed from the scene.
Totally different.
SevenWest actually ruled in favour of the advertisers CCWA in this point, stating that
"While technically shale fracking is not a “process of extraction” but a method to enhance the extraction of gas, the ordinary reasonable reader will not be led into error by this description. The description is used generally to describe the process in an ordinary or garden variety way."
CCWA said that the APPEA doesn't own the word fracking, nor does it get to decide whether it's a noun, adjective or verb. "Fracking" is an umbrella term just like "mining" is an umbrella term used to describe many different processes that result in the extraction of minerals.
2. APPEA contends that “toxic chemicals” are not used “to crack deep rocks”. It's the pressure that cracks the rock.
Totally different.
But SevenWest says that's beside the point.
Toxic Chemicals are used in the process.
But we only use a little bit of toxic chemicals!
SevenWest says because the ad says "toxic chemicals" are used, along with a drink bottle of water that has mostly turned black, you the reader will be mislead to think that ONLY toxic chemicals are used. But only .05% to .5% of the fluid pumped into the ground is toxic.
Hope that helps you sleep at night.
So SevenWest says the statement "toxic chemicals" is an exaggeration.
CCWA says that as the total volume of water is so large (10-25 million litres per well) even if the toxic chemicals constitute as little as 0.05%, that's 50,000 to 125,000 litres of toxic chemicals being pumped into the earth to kill bacteria, break down minerals and initiate fissures. Per well.
The WA Health Department in their preliminary submission to the WA Inquiry on Unconventional Gas found 195 "chemicals of concern". Some are known as suspected carcinogens, others have been shown to have developmental or reproductive toxicity. Many of the chemicals have NO SAFE LEVEL OF ORAL INTAKE and many have been banned completely overseas.
But does that image really imply that ONLY toxic chemicals are used?
The image in the ad shows a drink bottle with a syringe. The drinking container is approx 1.5 litres.
The syringe with the black fluid has a capacity of 30mL.
The point of the image seems to be that it only takes a small amount of poison in your drinking water to render the entire amount non-potable.
What about this image?
The APPEA has this picture of a lush green field and a big healthy tree at the top of their website, implying that using gas mining or gas usage as an energy source would be associated with such an image. While burning gas might create less CO2 than burning other non-renewable resources, this image implies things that could also be challenged.
The claims of gas being cleaner are being refuted by recent studies. While it may be cleaner to burn, the methane released into the atmosphere during the extraction process is worse the CO2 and many now believe that overall, gas is worse than coal.
This study from Cornell University shows that when viewed on a 20 year time horizon after emission, the greenhouse gas footprint of shale gas is considerably greater than that for coal or diesel oil, when the full effects of the methane emissions are considered.
3. Frack Free Geraldton says that fracking can “turn our water into a dangerous chemical cocktail”.
The Oil and Gas Industry says using toxic chemicals in shale fracking will not turn our water into a dangerous chemical cocktail.
Frack Free Geraldton and the CCWA didn't say that it will, just that it can.
And the APPEA didn't say that it can't, just that it won't.
A paragraph in the SevenWest report quoted CSIRO saying the risks of water contamination are low, in most cases.
However, the CSIRO website adds that the risks are low WHEN MANAGED PROPERLY.
This is a self evident statement however, as any contamination that has occurred can obviously be chalked up in hindsight to poor management.
What the APPEA and the Oil and Gas Industry in general haven't convinced the world of is that "this time" they'll manage it properly.
In addition to this...
SevenWest state in their report:
"That illustration (the water bottle) would appear to reflect a substantial contamination of the water by the black “toxic chemical” fluid. In the order of 70% of the water appears to be substantially “contaminated” by the black fluid."
But again, they seemed to have missed the entire point of the image. 70% of the water isn't poisoned. ALL OF IT IS.
And it only took 30mL to do it.
Moreover, CCWA say that the APPEA's claims of water never being contaminated by fracking are based entirely on a narrow interpretation of the term "fracking". They say there is extensive documented evidence of fracking well failure and subsequent leakage (of gas and fracking chemicals) into ground water.
SevenWest concluded this point by stating:
CCWA have not produced any evidence that hydraulic fracking fluid has in the course of any hydraulic shale gas fracking process permeated a fresh water aquifer. Its contentions are against the scientific literature. The advertisement is misleading in this regard.
But by SevenWest's own acceptance of the term "fracking" applying to the entire process of gas extraction, the CCWA HAS produced evidence that fresh water has been polluted.
In fact, they linked to a very thorough study that you can read here:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264817214000609
Here's a taste:
"poor well integrity is a far more likely cause of elevated concentrations of thermogenic methane in shallow groundwater and water supplies than pathways induced solely by hydraulic fracturing. Examples of leaks in shale gas wells have been reported and fines imposed."
In other words, the upward propagation of hydraulic fractures may not be the direct cause of the contaminations of fresh water aquifers, but other parts of the overall gas extraction process have demonstrably contaminated drinking water numerous times in the past.
Why SevenWest chose to semantically interpret "fracking" in this case, but accept that it applies broadly to the entire process in point 1, is unclear.
4. “Research in the US has found that 6% of fracking wells leak into ground water in the first year”
CCWA has admitted that this statement is not materially correct.
And the APPEA are chalking this one up as a win.
But, they should have read the response from CCWA.
“We have reviewed the report and agree with Appea to the extent that Professor Ingraffea’s findings related to well barrier or casing integrity failure which does not necessarily mean that leakage into groundwater has occurred in all cases. On further consideration, a more accurate statement would perhaps be that “6% of fracking wells leak into groundwater, surface water, soil or air in the first year”
So instead the ad should have read:
6% of fracking wells leak into groundwater, surface water, soil or air in the first year.
It's not likely to make the public fond of fracking, to know that risks apply to groundwater, surface water, the soil and the air we breathe.
The CCWA states that the claims by the APPEA that fracking has not caused contamination of aquifers are misleading and rely on a narrow definition of fracking designed to exclude well casing failure, surface spills, wastewater re-injection, and other common causes of groundwater contamination due to the fracking processes.
But SevenWest still ruled that the original statement is "misleading and deceptive".
7. Once our water is contaminated, it will be forever
APPEA challenged this, saying someone probably would be able to clean up our drinking water if a fracking company accidentally poisoned it.
But the CCWA said that there are no regulatory requirements in WA for contaminated groundwater to be returned to its original state. They also assert that remediation measures do not actually exist for all of the chemicals which could pollute our ground water.
The CCWA also assert that while it may be possible for remediation of contaminated groundwater, it's not possible to bring it back to its original unaltered state, even if it is technically drinkable again.
The APPEA provided SevenWest with some links to publications of how to clean up contaminated ground water, which record that to a greater or lesser degree, and depending upon the particular circumstances, remedial steps can be taken to resolve or alleviate water contamination.
So to a "greater or lesser" degree, if your drinking water gets poisoned, it's technically possible, depending on the circumstances, maybe, to possibly make it usable again, even though there's no legal requirement to do so, and the companies who do engage in fracking have made no commitment to do so.
Comforting.
The short TV advertisement from Clean Water Healthy Land about the risk of gas fracking that the Geraldton Guardian ad was based on.
New Fine Art Gallery Opened
/Congratulations to Erica Faith Lansley on the opening of the new Lansley Fine Art Gallery and Studio.
The Gallery is located on the North West Coastal Hwy, across from Shell.
The opening was attended by members of the local tourism industry as part of the Geraldton Visitors Centre's "Sundowner" on Monday evening.
Getting your groceries home delivered in Geraldton
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When I moved to Geraldton 8 years ago, I remember going online to try and order my groceries. I was rather frustrated to discover that there was no such service available here.
Time went on, and eventually Woolworths rolled out home delivery for the city, but I no longer did the grocery shopping; that task was carried out usually by my wife. We had discussed trying home delivery once or twice, but the hassle of figuring out how to do it at the time seemed to outweigh the convenience of our existing shopping routine.
Then one month life got extremely hectic. A combination of sickness, work demands, exhaustion, multiple young children as well as high school aged children left us with very little time and energy to get the weekly grocery shopping done, so we gave home delivery a go. We jumped on the computer, followed the prompts, ordered our items, and hoped for the best.
Sure enough, the food rocked up when promised. The cold stuff was cold, the fruit and veg wasn't rotten, and from memory most of the items were correct.
The home delivery option was still relatively new for the Geraldton Woolworths store, and often there would be mistakes in the goods supplied. But a friendly phone call always had the matter sorted quickly or money refunded as needed.
We still needed to duck out and get extra milk, organic produce that Woolworths lacked and other bits and pieces here and there, but we continued to order online each week, usually on the iPad in front of a movie on a Thursday evening.
One day a few months ago, we needed our groceries delivered at a time that Woolworths were unavailable. I forget whether it was a public holiday or something, but the end result was my wife and kids headed to the shops to purchase the week's groceries.
When they returned, there was nothing but praises for the magical wonder that is home delivered groceries.
"We had to handle the food 5 times!" my wife exclaimed. "Into the trolley, out of the trolley onto the check out, back into the trolley, into the car, then out of the car into the house."
It seems home delivered groceries is a bit like air conditioning; once you've had it it's hard to live without it.
So I suggest you never get your groceries home delivered as it's hard to go without it once you've tried it.
*Footnote: We also seem to spend less when ordering online. Perhaps it's the ability to see the total as you select items, or perhaps it's the reduced temptation for items you don't really need.
Bad news if you were hoping to see fewer derelict buildings in town
/You may recall the CGG council implemented a strategy not too long ago to entice owners of vacant and run down property in the CBD to put a tenant in or develop. They doubled the rates for unoccupied buildings.
But the rate payers were unsurprisingly not happy about paying the extra amount, and insteas of refurbing their run down eyesores, challenged the decision.
Now the State Administrative Tribunal has ruled against the CGG, meaning the council may even have to pay these investment groups back some of the rate money they've paid.
(From the SAT website: The Tribunal is the primary place for the review of decisions made by Government agencies, public officials and local governments. It also makes a wide variety of original decisions.)
These Gero girls are making money on social media
/A group of entrepreneurial teenage girls in Geraldton are using Instagram to run small business selling pre loved clothing.
Member of the group Rosina Hubble says "Our Instagram page is run by a few young Geraldton girls, selling our pre-loved clothes all at really cheap prices and all prices are negotiable."
The sizes range from 6 to 13.
Using an iPod touch, a free Instagram account and an Internet connection, these resourceful young ladies have found a way to generate a bit of cash.
Check out their instagram account here:
Introducing the new look Everything Geraldton website
/
We'd like to take a moment to introduce the new look Everything Geraldton website.
For the last 3 weeks we've been working around the clock to get this site ready, and we're very pleased with the result.
All the features you know and love are still here, including News, Job Vacancies, Rental Properties, Business Directory, Geraldton Events Calendar and others. And lots that were buried on the old site are now much easier to find, such as the "I'm new to Geraldton" section.
Popular services that had to be accessed through the Business Directory are now only one click away, such as Accommodation, Cafés, and 'Food and Dining'.
There a heap of new features, such as the Best of Geraldton section, which will feature community feedback on what places you think are the "best", like best coffee, or best steak. There's the new Things to do Blog, which we're super excited to get rolling.
New sections include:
- Buy and Sell
- Lost Geraldton (now part of this website)
- Births Deaths Marriages
- Community Questions (dedicated section)
- Council Information
- Employment Wanted (many requests for this one)
- Facebook Groups
- Garage Sales
- Gig guide (free to post on)
- Letters to the editor
- Lost and Found
- Public notices
- Surf Report (well, it's a link, not a section)
- Weather (back with bells on)
- News archives (easy to browse by date, category or author)
- Things to do Blog
Plus we're working on some more great features we plan on rolling out over the coming months.
To coincide with the revamp, we've refreshed our logo and colour scheme. Updates to the apps are on the way.
SUBSCRIBE SUBSCRIBE SUBSCRIBE
In addition to all the new content, we've made it easier than ever subscribe to just the content that interests you. Head to the "Subscribe to EG" section to choose from 11 different emails to subscribe to, as well as RSS feeds (if you know what the heck an RSS feed is).
So why the heck did you change it?
It's always frustrating when you know how to use a particular website, then they go and move the buttons... and with 15,000 weekly users of this site we're sure some of you will be frustrated by having to find things again. Sorry.
These are the reasons we have changed the website:
1. The old platform was a pain in the butt
The platform our previous site was built on was called Wordpress. It's the most popular CMS for websites in the world, and is a powerful and flexible service. But the large number of different services we offer on Everything Geraldton meant constantly configuring and reconfiguring plugins and themes and installing updates, fixing hosting issues, fending of a constant barrage of hackers, finding and fixing bugs etc etc etc. We spent more time and energy in keeping the website alive than generating the news and content that you actually come here for.
This new website is built on a platform that reduces our workload considerably, so we can spend more time getting you the information you want.
2. We want to be much more than just a news service
The home page of the previous website was very news centric. While keeping you informed of the latest news is certainly one of our core aims, Everything Geraldton's goal is to give you easy access to everything to do with Geraldton in one convenient location.
The way the old site was laid out meant any new features or services we introduced simply got buried in submenus, never to see the light of day.
Our new layout gives us the flexibility to introduce a lot more features without having them hidden, and its clean look means users don't feel overwhelmed when visiting.
Everything is laid out in a logical fashion, with a very limited number of menus; there's one menu along the left hand side of the site (top on a phone), and there's a couple of links at the bottom of the site. And that's it.
Apart from the very top and bottom, the menu is in alphabetical order for ease of use.
Some more tips for the new site
Comments - At the bottom of each article is the comments section. You can comment anonymously, like a post by clicking on the heart, and if you want you can subscribe by email to the comments. If there's a discussion you want to follow, just click Subscribe by email above the comment box, and follow the prompts.
Home Page - The home page displays a selection of content from the site. Above each row of images is a couple of small arrows you can click to scroll and see more headlines, without having to leave the home page. See something you like? Click the image or title.
More - The menu option "More" expands when you hover your mouse over it, or if on a mobile device, just click it to reveal extra items.
Categories - Beneath each article is the list of categories that apply to it. To see more items in the same category, just click on the category. If you want to browse all news by category, head to the news archives section which is under "More".
Feature requests - We'd love to know what you'd like added to the site. Head to the contact us page and let us know your suggestions.
We hope this website will be a very useful tool to serve residents, new-comers and visitors to Geraldton.
Everything Geraldton
Everything to do with Geraldton in one location.
Goodness Awards recognise the best of Geraldton community
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What connects IGA, Rangeway Primary, community gardens and a Smartphone app for monitoring beach conditions? They are all previous Goodness Award winners!
The Goodness Awards are an inspiring showcase of local organisations and individuals creating what is good in, with and for our community. Award winners will share in more than $10,000 worth of prizes that can help them do more ‘Goodness’.
And the Goodness Festival needs your voice. Let the world know what you admire about others "Goodness", their contribution and their achievements, and nominate them for a Goodness Award.
Full details and the online nomination form are online at http://goodness.org.au/awards/. Nominations close on Monday the 18th August with the gala Awards night on 30th August. In 2013 more than 50 nominations were received, and all nominees, winners and supporters celebrated in style at a Gala event.
Nominations for the Awards can be for 11 different categories of Awards:
- Leadership
- Innovation
- Health
- Science
- NRM
- Zero Carbon
- Zero Waste
- Social Enterprise
- Water
- Digital
Dan Clarke was the winner of the Education Award at the 2013 Goodness Awards and said, “I was stoked last year getting the award, there are people in this town who seem to think what we are doing is worthwhile and it’s not just me that thinks so it’s our town that is celebrating this.”
Dan Clarke will once again be taking part in this year’s Goodness Festival where he and other local teachers intend to run a stall on the Australian Sustainable Schools Initiative. Of the Goodness Festival Mr Clarke says, “What a crazy, beautiful thing to celebrate, I don’t want to celebrate anything more than goodness in our town.”
Further details of Dan’s award and the programs he runs are outlined online: http://goodness.org.au/dan-clarke-award-winner/
Using Gift Vouchers - What are the rules?
/Buying gifts for people is hard. Everyone hates getting presents they have no use for, and the hassle of swapping clothes that don't fit or appliances you already own is often more a chore than a blessing. But for some reason in our culture handing someone $50 cash is basically the equivalent of saying "I don't care enough about you to know what you want." (I personally have no problem with getting cash FYI).
Which is why gift vouchers have exploded in popularity over the last 10 years. Gift vouchers say "I care enough to make some effort" and "you can choose exactly what you want" at the same time.
But the execution of using a gift voucher or gift card has come up recently, with recent reports to Everything Geraldton that some local businesses not allowing the vouchers to be used multiple times.
Some businesses are more than happy to give change, in cash, when the full value of the voucher is not used, even though according to the Dept of Commerce they're not obligated to do this. However, there is the question as to whether you should be allowed to use your voucher more than once if you don't spend it all the first time.
One local shared their recent experience:
I had a $50 gift voucher to [a local establishment]. A friend and I went for lunch and our meals totalled $33.50. When paying I waited and eventually enquired as to getting my updated gift voucher. The answer I received was that they do not provide cash back for the difference. Fair enough. I explained I did not expect that, and that I only wanted the difference as an updated or new gift voucher. I was given a very condescending analogy along the lines of "if I went to jeans west with a $50 gift voucher and bought $30 jeans I would not be given $20 cash back". I reiterated that was not what I was requesting. The staff member then suggest she speak to the manager. She returned and said that the manager confirmed I have to forfeit the difference. As we all know, this is not how gift vouchers work. I said this to the staff member and received a very blunt "that's how we do things here" in reply. Frustrated that they were ripping me off I offered the remainder of the gift voucher to be used towards the customers behind me, which they did.
The following is from the Department of Commerce's website:
Vouchers:
- must clearly display the expiry date
- can be used more than once
- cannot be reloaded (in other words, the value cannot be increased or added to)
- cannot be redeemed for cash unless there is a remaining amount that, in the reasonable opinion of the trader, cannot be conveniently used'
It pays to know your rights as a consumer. The local office of the Department of Commerce can be contacted on (08) 9920 9800.
Is sexual discrimination alive and well in Geraldton?
/Editor's note- The company referred to below has not been specifically named as it is not our intention to unnecessarily name and shame businesses who endeavour to serve our community. However, the issue of discrimination does affect us all and is worthy of discussion. The intention of the article is that awareness is brought to the wider issue.
Since 1984, choosing someone to work for your company based on their gender has been illegal.
In the time that has transpired it is generally agreed that our society has made good steps toward gender equality, but there is still more work to do.
Apart from the fact that gender discrimination is illegal, it's widely accepted that your sex should be no barrier for people your employment prospects. Whether you want to be a plumber or a midwife, your gender should not determine whether you have employment prospects.
But some Geraldton residents were shocked yesterday after a local business advertised a job vacancy specifically calling for a "junior male".
It's possible that the role required some physical activity or lifting, and it's quite likely that the job may appeal to more males than females. But the description of the role gave no indication as to why someone lacking a Y chromosome would not be considered for the job.
The job was posted on the business' Facebook page. One commenter did pose the question as to why a girl could not fill the role. Another local resident complained that their comment asserting sexual discrimination was hidden.
While it's quite imaginable that the person advertising the position would never consider themselves sexist, it does serve to highlight how unnecessary gender biases still pervade our culture and thinking.
Societal expectations placed on impressionable boys and girls have a strong formative effect and, sadly, can prevent both men and women considering themselves suitable for roles they might otherwise excel at.
It can go both ways of course. This author, a male, has experience the opposite where being a man prevented me from obtaining some jobs I tried to get.
A recent viral video on YouTube (37 million views and counting) sought to demonstrate how sexist our thinking still is. The video is called "#LikeAGirl".
It starts with a director asking some actresses and actors to perform certain tasks, like running or fighting, "like a girl". As you might expect, the people performing the tasks act in a very uncoordinated fashion.
The same tasks are then given to some very young girls, who make no such effort to act uncoordinated. One young girl is asked: "What does it mean to 'run like a girl' ?"
Her response: "It means run fast as you can."
Watch the full video below.
From the Sex Discrimination Act 1984:
Discrimination in employment or in superannuation
(1) It is unlawful for an employer to discriminate against a person on the ground of the person's sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, intersex status, marital or relationship status, pregnancy or potential pregnancy, breastfeeding or family responsibilities:
(a) in the arrangements made for the purpose of determining who should be offered employment;
(b) in determining who should be offered employment; or
(c) in the terms or conditions on which employment is offered.
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