Snow hits SA - Times LIVE

Countrywide snowfall has left travellers stranded and children elated while bringing hardship to people living in shacks

Carbon [scam, plus new bureacracy and new frauds] to boost business - Swan | Finance | BigPond News

Treasurer Wayne Swan has reassured small businesses that almost half of their customers will have extra cash in their pockets under a carbon tax.

He addressed the Council of Small Business of Australia in Sydney on Tuesday, telling business owners not to be frightened by the 'dishonest' scare campaign being pursued by naysayers.

'The fact is that nine out of every ten households - your customers - will have assistance,' Mr Swan said.

A carbon credit charade

Some of you may recall a recurring scene in the brilliant HBO series, The Sopranos. Tony Soprano would be sitting at the bar in the Bada Bing club in a rather foul mood. The bartender-a big, tattooed, likable lug-would make an ill-timed comment and an enraged Tony would smack him upside the head with the telephone or beat him senseless with an ice bucket.

Next day, he'd feel a bit guilty about what happened and give the battered and bandaged server a fistful of money for medical bills and a new shirt.

In a word, this is the same as buying carbon credits. Those who feel a sense of shame regarding their carbon footprint are able to purchase credits through a system that supposedly uses the funds to reduce emissions elsewhere.

Costs for New Mexico’s Big Freeze coming in

The record-breaking cold snap last February that saw thousands of homeowners in New Mexico go without heat — some for nearly a week — led to payouts of more than $55 million in insurance company claims and at least $4.6 million in prelimary damage assessments from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).