Iran comes in from the cold

Hassan Rouhani

The UN confirmed that Iran has now complied with its obligations and the US and the European Union announced they were lifting sanctions that have crippled the country's economy for years.  US and Iranian prisoners have also been released and are on their way home.

Iran President Hassan Rouhani, a moderate, who has helped to bring about the agreement, said that 2016 would be a year of prosperity for 79 million Iranians.

An article in the New York Times in 2014 pointed out just how much the Iranian people have suffered because of these sanctions.

In Iran, the impact of sanctions has been devastating.  Over the last year and a half, families living in poverty rose from 22 per cent to more than 40 per cent, the Rial plummeted at least 40 per cent and the price of food regularly consumed by Iranians - for example, milk, tea, fruits and vegetables - skyrocketed.  Moreover, the health of millions of Iranians has been compromised due to the shortage of western medical drugs and supplies.  Asian replacements have proved ineffective and often result in severe side effects.

One would think that President Obama has done a good thing by bringing Iran back from Coventry, right?  Wrong.

Republican candidate Ted Cruz criticized the move and said 'our enemies are laughing at us' and suggested the deal is part of the president's overall weak foreign policy.

And this is the man who will most likely be elected president later this year.  Are you worried? Absolutely! 

Male kangaroo and his dying mate

Evan Switzer, a man from Hervey Bay in North Queensland, was taking his dog for a walk on Wednesday when he came upon a touching scene - a male kangaroo cradling the head of his dying mate.  

He immediately dashed home to get his camera and when he posted the pictures, they went around the world.  He thought he was witnessing an animal who was experiencing grief.

"The kangaroo tried to lift her up but she couldn't stand, she'd just fall to the ground....he'd nudge her, stand beside her....it was a pretty special thing......he was mourning the loss of his mate.

But the Australian Museum's principal research scientist Dr Mark Eldridge said he was trying to get her to stand so he could mate with her, and couldn't care less that she was dying.

"The male is highly stressed and agitated, his forearms are very wet from licking himself to cool down.  He is also sexually aroused: the evidence is here sticking out from behind the scrotum, yes in marsupials, the penis is located behind the scrotum" Dr Eldridge said.  

"So the male wasn't trying to prop her head up so she could see her joey before she died, this male was trying to get the female to stand up so he could mate with her."

Mr Switzer said the male had been trying his hardest for over an hour and chased off other kangaroos who came near, and now we know why.

"It will certainly give us something to talk about tonight at our camera club meeting tonight" he said.

Muslim Navy Officer Counselled

Captain Mona Shindy

A senior Muslim Navy Officer has been counselled and her Twitter account closed down.

Captain Mona Shindy is a mentor for the Lebanese Muslim Association and it's alleged she used her account to show support for the Grand Mufti Ibrahim Abu Mohamed's response to the Paris attacks when he said that racism and Islamophobia were partly to blame for the massacre.  The Mufti later clarified his remarks and said "there was no justification for the taking of innocent lives."

Debbie Robinson

Debbie Robinson of Australian Liberty Alliance, complained to the AFD in writing in December. "The Australian Liberty Alliance is very concerned that the Australian Defence Force appears to be promoting pro-Muslim political views and attacking a party that has the support of many Australians" she wrote.  She also called for Captain Shindy to face disciplinary action.

According to the Captain's official profile, her role is chief adviser of Islamic affairs and she is responsible for "a better understanding and appreciation of serving Muslims, their needs, and how they view the world."

Another key function of her role is to attract more Muslims to the Australian Navy.

Captain Shindy is on leave and could not be contacted for comment.

Father drowns himself and 2 sons

Damien Little - a popular, great bloke

The whole country was shocked and sickened by the Robert Farquharson case. He was the man who drove himself and his three sons into a dam and left them there to drown, but managed to escape. He told the court he had a coughing fit and blacked out.

But that wasn't the real reason - he wanted to get back at his wife who broke his heart when she told him she didn't love him anymore and had found someone else.  He is now serving a lengthy prison sentence.

Today the town of Port Lincoln is in mourning after a father drove himself and his two small sons, aged 1 and 4 off the end of Brennan's Wharf into 30m of water.  

At 6am yesterday, Damien Little posted a suicide note on Facebook and then carried out the tragic murder-suicide.

That suicide note on the Facebook page he shared with his wife Melissa, a school teacher, has since been removed.

"We saw a car go passed and heard a bang" one witness said..."Then it.....flipped over the lip and sank to the bottom."

Police divers from Adelaide emerged from the water at lunch time with three body bags and a rifle with a telescopic sight.

"They are absolutely doting parents" one neighbour said.  "I tell everyone how blessed these children were to have such wonderful parents, I couldn't fault them in any way."

Damien Little was one of five brothers who played at Lincoln South Football club, winning premierships in 2009 and 2010.

An associate of the father said he saw him three days ago at the beach. "He seemed absolutely fine" he said.  "He seemed normal...he's not a big drinker....and I could not sense anything was wrong...I have never seen a bad side."

Port Lincoln Mayor Bruce Green said the community is in shock."First there is a sense of disbelief and then it moves to grief" he said.  

Camille Cosby - just as guilty

It's too late to act all upset and disgusted now Camille, we know where your loyalty lies.  

Camille Cosby has only abandoned ship now because she knows the game is up.  Her husband's infidelities were well known to her over the years yet she chose to do nothing.  Knowingly protecting her man who sexually assaulted women against their will makes her his partner in crime.

But now it's crunch time.  She has to testify against Cosby in a civil case filed by seven women who said he defamed them and she's in a panic.

The women say that after publicly accusing him of sexually assaulting or abusing them, he responded by calling them liars, thus defaming them.  Cosby has filed a counter suit, accusing them of making false allegations for financial gain.  

Camille told Judge David Hennessey she had nothing to tell the court because she had no first-hand knowledge of the events, but the judge didn't buy it.  Then she insisted she was protected by the state's marital disqualification law, but the judge didn't buy that either.

The deposition is scheduled for this Wednesday, 6th January 2016 and is the only criminal case ever brought against him.

Camille, as his manager and wife, has so many questions to answer.

Sydney Field Day Music Festival

State Premier Mike Baird said "enough is enough" and threatened to close down music festivals in the future if organisers don't clean up their act.  Dance parties were becoming dangerous and putting young people's lives at risk.

This summer, a 19 year old man died in Adelaide and a 25 year old pharmacist died in Sydney at the Stereosonic music events.  Last year Georgina Bartter died at Harbourlife dance party in the Botanical Gardens and in September Nigel Pauljevic 26 from Albury died from an overdose at Defqon dance festival at Penrith.

And the Field Day Festival held in the Domain on New Year's Day/night was even worse - it was awash with drugs and a 23 year old woman came close to dying from an MDMA overdose.

During the event, 212 people received medical treatment and five were taken to hospital.  Police charged 184 people with alleged drug offences and eight for drug supply.  One 28 year old woman was found carrying 100 ecstasy tablets and a 19 year old was found with 81.

So how did they get past the police dogs and a huge police presence? They put the pills in a plastic balloon, swallowed it and when they got inside, they vomited it back up again.  Others hide them in places on the body to gross to mention.

Dr Gordian Fulde, from St Vincent's Hospital said the kids don't like to come to the medical tents - they are frightened their parents will find out. "But we don't do any of that" he said.

"Bring your friend, call the ambulance, take them to the medical tent - you don't have to give your real name, and if we get these patients early, they won't die" he said.

"I think the focus has to be on the younger generations, and I mean kids younger than 10 because that's our only hope - the current generation is probably not going to change that much."

So there's another generation lost to drugs.

Sydney Uber customers upset over outrageous fares

Okay, it was New Year's Eve, but still, you can't blame Uber customers for feeling ripped off.  You could have flown to Melbourne cheaper than getting home from the city on New Year's Eve in Sydney.

It's only 16 kilometres from Pyrmont to Manly yet Laura Daniel was charged $368 - almost nine times the normal fare of $52.90.

Another unhappy customer complained to Uber's Facebook page. "OMG never using Uber again, the first time we tried it charged $720 to travel 40 minutes" she claimed.  "Uber!!! Seriously, someone needs to look into this matter asap" she wrote.  "I didn't even get a limo for that price!!! Never using Uber again."

However, Uber said that the surge remains constant once agreed on and you can always get an estimate first before you decide. However, the estimate may not match the actual fare, you need to read the small print at the bottom.

To be fair, on New Year's Eve morning, Uber Australia sent out an email to customers with tips to avoid paying higher prices. 

You'll see a notification screen in your app whenever there is surge pricing. You'll have to accept those higher rates before you can request a ride.  Remember you can always run a Fare Estimate in the app before you request.

Surge prices shouldn't be a surprise.  At times of high demand, prices increase to encourage more drivers to become available.  As soon as there are enough drivers to meet the demand for rides, prices go back to normal.  Supply and demand is monitored by Uber in real time with prices automatically surging when there is an increase in wait time."

I wonder how the disgruntled Sydney cab drivers felt when they heard the news, some of whom paid $300,000 for their taxi licence. It was probably the best Christmas present of all.