FED:Katter to announce Queensland Party merger

AAP General News (Australia)
08-09-2011
FED:Katter to announce Queensland Party merger

Federal Independent MP BOB KATTER will today release details of the planned merger
of his newly founded Australian Party with the Queensland Party.

A spokesman for Mr KATTER says a joint press conference with Queensland Party founder
AIDAN MCLINDON will be held in Brisbane today.

AAP RTV cj/nb/nap/psm/

KEYWORD: KATTER (CANBERRA)

� 2011 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: ATSIC says giving away assets - report

AAP General News (Australia)
02-19-2005
Fed: ATSIC says giving away assets - report

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission says it's giving away everything
it owns so the federal government can't acquire its assets.

The government is abolishing ATSIC, and its services will be taken over by other agencies
within months.

However, ABC radio says the ATSIC board of commissioners has moved to transfer the
control of its assets to hundreds of indigenous corporations.

ATSIC chairman GEOFF CLARK says the peak indigenous body's valuable art collection
belongs to Aboriginal people.

And he says the ATSIC board believes the organisation's properties should be used to
help Aboriginal people.

A spokesman for Indigenous Affairs Minister AMANDA VANSTONE says her office has not
been formally advised of the resolutions.

AAP RTV lm

KEYWORD: ATSIC (SYDNEY)

2005 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

FED:Gillard backs women in combat

AAP General News (Australia)
04-12-2011
FED:Gillard backs women in combat

By Max Blenkin, AAP Defence Correspondent

CANBERRA, April 12 AAP - Prime Minister Julia Gillard has voiced strong support for
women taking on military combat roles to allow them to fight and if necessary die for
their country.

It's a view shared by Defence Minister Stephen Smith, who said women could even serve
in elite special forces, provided they demonstrate the intellectual and physical capability.

But Federal Sex Discrimination Commissioner Elizabeth Broderick doubted there would
be any surge of women into frontline infantry units because of the very stressful physical
requirements.

The debate on women in combat roles has simmered for decades.

It surged again on Monday when Mr Smith announced that Australian Defence Force (ADF)
chief Angus Houston would speed the opening up of its roles to women.

Ms Gillard backed that move.

"A few years ago I heard (former defence chief General) Peter Cosgrove say that men
and women should have an equal right to fight and die for their country," she told reporters.

"I think he's right about that, and I think it's a good turn of phrase. It puts the
choice very starkly."

Ms Gillard said many Australian women loved their country and wanted to be in the defence force.

"If a woman has the physical capability and intellectual capability to do a particular
job then I do not believe it should be denied her on the basis of gender," she said.

Mr Smith said women could even serve in special forces provided they demonstrated the
right stuff.

"That'll be a decision that'll be made on the basis of capacity, not on the basis of
sex," he said.

Ms Broderick said she hoped a woman would one day lead the defence force.

"It will send a strong message that men and women will have equality in terms of opportunity
for jobs," she said.

The 57,000-strong permanent uniformed ADF now comprises 14.5 per cent females, a figure
which has slowly but steadily risen.

Women can serve in 93 per cent of defence jobs and are barred only from roles which
could take them into direct combat. Women are able to serve in army infantry, armour,
artillery and special forces, navy clearance divers and RAAF airfield guards.

Women can pilot jet aircraft and serve aboard submarines. They can also serve in a
wide range of combat support roles, including in the field in Afghanistan.

Australia Defence Association executive director Neil James said in that regard Australia
was ahead of the US and UK and even Israel, often regarded as the benchmark for women
in combat roles.

But we lag behind Canada and perhaps New Zealand.

"There are two extremes to this debate. There is a belief by social conservatives and
some very old veterans that there should be no women in the frontline," Mr James said.

"The opposite extreme is the belief by some first-generation feminists that every job
should be open to all women in all circumstances, even at the cost of disproportionate
female casualties compared to men.

"There is a logical middle ground underlying current policy."

Mr James said the current practice could be tweaked by following Canada and allowing
females to serve in field and air-defence artillery.

"Whether we should have women serving in line infantry positions should continue to
be an evidence-based decision, not the result of emotive calls from people who do not
understand all the risks involved," he said.

AAP mb/sb/mp/nb

KEYWORD: DEFENCE WOMEN WRAP

� 2011 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

FED:Govt confident of mining figures

AAP General News (Australia)
12-23-2010
FED:Govt confident of mining figures

CANBERRA, Dec 23 AAP - The federal government is standing by the costings of its proposed
mining tax, insisting they won't lead to a budget black hole.

Treasurer Wayne Swan has reportedly been told of a multibillion dollar shortfall in
the $7.4 billion Minerals Resource Rent Tax.

An unnamed senior government figure, and numerous officials, have told the Australian
Financial Review the likely revenue is closer to $5 billion.

They claim the commodity price assumptions used to determine the revenue are unrealistic
and require downward revision.

Labor MP Richard Marles disagrees, saying the government's figures stack up.

"The independent costings have been done in a very conservative way, we are very confident
of the figures," the parliamentary secretary told Sky News.

"If anything ... we are seeing the spot prices on iron ore increase," he said, questioning
the report's anonymous sources.

Liberal MP Simon Birmingham criticised the government's handling of the tax, saying
it resembled a "daytime opera".

"It's just going from saga to saga," he told Sky News, noting numerous multibillion
cost variations since the tax was proposed.

"And now we are seeing the potential for a multibillion black hole that will see (the)
budget blown to smithereens."

AAP sld/mm

KEYWORD: MRRT

� 2010 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

NSW:Armed robbers terrorise women

AsiaInfo Services
08-16-2010
China Plans CNY 1.5trn Investment in Guangxi

NANNING, Aug 16, 2010 (SinoCast Daily Business Beat via COMTEX) -- China plans to invest CNY 1.5 trillion in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in a bid to boost local economic growth, according to an insider.

Chen Ruixian, vice head of administration commission of the Pan-Beibu Bay Economic Cooperation Zone, said China would upgrade a wide range of infrastructure in Guangxi like railway, road, airport, bridges, power generation factory and reservoir in coming three to five years with total investment of CNY 1.5 trillion. The Pan-Beibu Bay Economic Cooperation Zone covers China, Viet Nam, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines and Brunei Darussalam.

China hopes to build Guangxi into a bridgehead for trade with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

It is China's national strategy to develop Guangxi Beibu Bay Economic Zone into a logistics base, trade and commerce base, processing and manufacturing base and information exchange center on the back of Pan-Beibu Bay Economic Cooperation Zone.

Pan-Beibu Bay sub-regional economic cooperation aims to boost marine cooperation between China and the ASEAN members, which receives strong response from ASEAN countries.

Source: www.cnstock.com (August 16, 2010)

KEYWORD: NANNING INDUSTRY KEYWORD: Investing & Securities SUBJECT CODE: Investing & Securities
Investment Advice
SinoCast China Business Daily news
Pan-Beibubay Economic Cooperation Zone
ASEAN
Beibubay Economic Zone

Copyright 2010 AsiaInfo Services (via Comtex). All rights reserved

Vic: Main stories in the Melbourne newspapers =2

AAP General News (Australia)
04-07-2010
Vic: Main stories in the Melbourne newspapers =2

THE AGE

Page 1: President Barack Obama has set new limits on the potential use of the United
States nuclear weapons - even in self-defence - in a major policy move ahead of an international
summit next week on non-proliferation; A tiny school campus in Bendigo run by the controversial
Exclusive Brethren religious sect is receiving $1.2 million in federal funding to upgrade
its library, despite having just 11 primary students last year.

Page 2: Dramatically higher resource prices have emboldened the Reserve Bank to lift
interest rates for the fifth time in seven months, making it clear there is no end in
sight.

Page 3: Christine Nixon and other senior police failed in their responsibility to oversee
warnings on Black Saturday, the former chief commissioner told the Bushfires Royal Commission
yesterday.

World: A classified video showing a US air crew laughing at the dead after launching
an air strike that killed a dozen people, including two Iraqis working for Reuters news
agency, has been published by the website WikiLeaks.

Finance: Woolworths plans to spend almost $400 million establishing the first 12 stores
in its joint venture hardware chain, likely to be called Masters, according to documents
filed with Planning Minister Justin Madden.

Sport: The four suspensions recommended by the match review panel from the Geelong-Hawthorn
match were an inevitable repercussion of such a fierce physical contest, according to
Hawk midfielder Chance Bateman.

AAP jrd/jfm

KEYWORD: MONITOR FRONTERS VIC 2 MELBOURNE

2010 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: Underbelly starts shooting in Sydney

AAP General News (Australia)
08-24-2009
Fed: Underbelly starts shooting in Sydney

SYDNEY, Aug 24 AAP - The third series of Underbelly, focused on the Kings Cross underworld
of the early 1990s, has begun shooting in Sydney.

Called, Underbelly: The Golden Mile, the series, about events between the previous
two series of the gangland crime drama, will air next year.

"The Golden Mile is set in King Cross in 1989, where bent cops, straight cops, cool
criminals and colourful characters all converged to make their mark," Nine said in a statement.

"But by 1995 the Wood Royal Commission had put the black empire under threat of collapse
as strong and honest police fought to take back control of the most infamous strip in
Australia."

Among the characters will be former prostitute, stripper and policewoman Kim Hollingsworth,
portrayed by Emma Booth and Kings Cross identity John Ibrahim, played by Firass Dirani
and detective Chook Fowler, played by Damian Garvey.

Cops Joe Dooley and Eddie Gould will be played by Wil Travel and Diarmid Heidenreich,
best known as Dougie the pizza boy in the 1990s ads.

Peter O'Brien will star as George Freeman, whom he played in Underbelly II.

Policemen played by Paul Tassone, Daniel Roberts and Dieter Brummer also reprise roles
from the last Underbelly series, which was based on the events from the late 1970s until
the early 80s.

Other major cast members will be announced soon, Nine said.

Screentime executive director Des Monaghan said working on any Underbelly was "an exciting
and stimulating challenge", and the third instalment was no exception.

"Sydney's Kings Cross in the 90s provided an appropriately colourful stage for an amazing
gallery of characters and their often incredible exploits," he said.

AAP kaf/it

KEYWORD: UNDERBELLY

2009 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Vic: Plea for Marysville history to be returned

AAP General News (Australia)
04-15-2009
Vic: Plea for Marysville history to be returned

By Catherine Best

MARYSVILLE, Vic, April 15 AAP - Marysville's bushfire survivors are appealing for photos
and other memorabilia as the town tries to reclaim its history.

Virtually all records and artefacts kept by the Marysville Historical Society were
destroyed when bushfires roared through the 144-year-old town on Black Saturday.

The Victorian and federal governments have announced $4.5 million to help restore the
historical collections of bushfire devastated communities and document the February 7
disaster.

But many of Marysville's most prized relics have been lost forever, including a portrait
of the town's namesake, Mary Stevenson, painted in Paris when she was 18.

"The sadness is in the irreplaceable things," said Mary Kenealy, the secretary of the
Marysville Historical Society.

"People keep talking to me, 'Mary aren't you lucky to be alive?'. Well I've corrected
that statement - no we are lucky to survive.

"The things that made us alive are gone and part of that was our interest in history
and our love of history and our devotion to the collection.

"The loss of this has hit me more than the loss of our home."

Marysville was a popular honeymoon destination and the townsfolk are imploring Australians
to leaf through their family albums for old photos of the mountain town and any other
memorabilia.

Victorian Premier John Brumby flagged government support for a building to house the
relics when they start arriving.

"I'm sure that from around Australia, as this call goes out, there will be people who
lived in Marysville before ... they've taken with them photos and memorabilia and it will
be, I think, really important to get some of that memorabilia and photographs and historical
records back into the town so that the history can be rewritten there again."

Federal parliamentary secretary for the bushfire reconstruction Bill Shorten said he
hoped Marysville's rich history could be resurrected in time for its 150th anniversary
celebrations.

He also urged Australians with any connection to Marysville to see what treasures they
might hold.

"It's got a future but of course for every future you need to make sure that you keep
hold of some of your past," Mr Shorten said.

Some of the $4.5 million will also go towards restoring community spaces, newsletters
and recreation and entertainment activities.

In a separate joint funding announcement, $200,000 will go towards restoring the Marysville
Golf and Bowling Club, which has been the community hub after it was all-but destroyed
in Australia's worst bushfire disaster.

AAP cmb/bd/tnf

KEYWORD: BUSHFIRES VIC HISTORY

2009 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

WA: Indigenous housing needs $540m upgrade - WA govt

AAP General News (Australia)
12-10-2008
WA: Indigenous housing needs $540m upgrade - WA govt

PERTH, Dec 10 AAP - Aboriginal housing in outback Western Australia is in urgent need
of a $540 million upgrade, a government audit has revealed.

The audit found more than 90 per cent of the 2,400 houses the audit team inspected
in remote Aboriginal communities in WA needed upgrade work.

The report estimates it will cost on average more than $225,000 to bring each house
up to standard, equating to a notional total cost of about $540 million to upgrade the
full housing list.

WA Housing Minister Troy Buswell said the findings were "frightening" but were not
a surprise, given that many of the houses were more than 50 years old.

"The cost estimates for a major upgrade of every single house are frightening indeed
and beyond the state government's capacity in the short term, because it would not end
there," Mr Buswell said in a statement on Wednesday.

"A lot are to be found in small clusters in out-of-the-way places where the standard
of essential services is also often an issue.

"Before we could ever set out to bring every property up to scratch, we would first
have to take a hard, honest look at the sustainability of some of the smaller communities
involved."

The audit, conducted in consultation with the federal government, was the first of
its kind in WA.

Four audit teams took six months to physically inspect 2,400 houses in 130 remote Aboriginal
communities spread throughout the Kimberley, Pilbara, Gascoyne and Goldfields regions.

The houses were built over a period of 50 years and for much of their lives were left
to fare under sporadic or non-existent maintenance programs, the WA government said.

Many were built before the wind-up of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission
(ATSIC) in 2005 in the days when the Commonwealth practised a 'build and abandon' approach
and left responsibility for ongoing repairs and upkeep to individual communities, it said.

Mr Buswell said he hoped the federal government will commit some of the extra $900
million promised for indigenous housing at the recent Council of Australian Governments
(COAG) meeting, which would allow an early start to be made on a staged refurbishment
program.

AAP mn/maur

KEYWORD: INDIGENOUS WA

2008 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Main stories in the ABC's World Today

AAP General News (Australia)
08-06-2008
Main stories in the ABC's World Today

SYDNEY, Aug 6 AAP - Main stories in the ABC's World Today:

* Federal Water Minister Penny Wong has put up the white flag on the Murray River,
saying the government is now helpless to save the lower lakes in South Australia.

* A survey of hospitals has found that they are struggling to keep up with increasing
demand for genetic screening.

* There were dramatic scenes in a Sydney court as the case of Gordon Wood was aborted.

A judge heard that a journalist had been contacted by one of the jurors.

AAP pbc/wjf

KEYWORD: MONITOR WORLD TODAY

2008 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: GG outlines Rudd government priorities to parliament=12

AAP General News (Australia)
02-12-2008
Fed: GG outlines Rudd government priorities to parliament=12

Maj-Gen Jeffery said the government intended to strengthen Australia's relationship
with both traditional allies and regional partners, and address issues including the threat
of terrorism, nuclear proliferation and climate change.

"Australia's alliance with the United States will remain central to Australia's strategic
interests," he said.

"A stronger working relationship between Australia and the United Nations is also a priority.

"The government will also work to strengthen relations with countries in the Asia-Pacific
region in light of its importance to Australia's economic prosperity and regional stability."

The government will develop a national security statement to guide military, police,
and diplomatic efforts, Maj-Gen Jeffery said.

It will also commission a White Paper to ensure government expenditure provides a defence
force that Australia needs, he said.

Maj-Gen Jeffery said the government would withdraw combat troops from Iraq at the end
of the next rotation in the middle of this year.

"To contribute to a secure and stable Iraq, Australia will enhance its humanitarian
and developmental assistance to Iraq," he said.

"Australian troops will continue to be deployed in Afghanistan as part of the international
force in that region."

Australia will also continue to perform stabilisation and support roles in the Solomon
Islands and East Timor.

MORE mj/sb/jlw

KEYWORD: PARLY GG 12 CANBERRA

2008 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: Up to 34 planes grounded due to defects in Cessna Conquest

AAP General News (Australia)
08-25-2007
Fed: Up to 34 planes grounded due to defects in Cessna Conquest

Up to 34 aircraft have been grounded across Australia after serious defects were found
in a type of Cessna plane .. which could see the tail fall off.

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority has banned all Cessna Conquest with more than
22 and-a-half thousand hours of flying time from leaving the ground.

Corrosion near the aircraft's tail is to blame.

PETER GIBSON from CASA says the move is unfortunate but it's what has to be done for
safety reasons.

The conquest's are mostly used for charter flights.

AAP RTV kc/sw/wz

KEYWORD: CONQUEST (CANBERRA)

2007 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: Rudd goes green at home, now wants govt to

AAP General News (Australia)
04-11-2007
Fed: Rudd goes green at home, now wants govt to

MELBOURNE, April 11 AAP - Prime ministerial aspirant Kevin Rudd is doing his bit for
the environment on the home front, but says he'd like to do more for the nation.

The Labor leader has introduced several environmentally-friendly measures at his Brisbane
home, including a rain-water tank.

"We've had a few problems with water and rainfall in Brisbane in recent times, and
so that's been installed some time ago," he told ABC Radio in Melbourne today.

Energy-saving light bulbs have been introduced, but an attempt to install solar panels
could not proceed as he was advised his house didn't get enough exposure to the sun.

Mr Rudd said would like to see the government do more for the environment, specifically
with its vast fleet of cars.

If elected prime minister this year, Mr Rudd said he would make all government cars
petrol-electric hybrids.

"Obviously when the opportunity presents itself into the future, if we form the government,
we're going to hybrid the lot," he said.

Mr Rudd said he drove a Ford Territory because he believed hybrid cars were not available
in the government purchase arrangements.

However, when Victorian Senator Lyn Allison's office called the radio station to advise
she drove a government-supplied hybrid car, Mr Rudd said he would switch.

"In terms of my next purchase I'll see if I can do that. I was unaware of that," he said.

Mr Rudd said Labor would also introduce a $500 million innovation fund to help Australian
car manufacturers develop Australian-built hybrid vehicles.

"There's no such initiative from (Prime Minister) Mr Howard," he said.

"So in terms of fixing this for the country, sure, we can all do more on the home front
.. I'm concerned about doing it for the nation as well."

AAP ce/gfr/jt/de

KEYWORD: CLIMATE RUDD

2007 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: Falconio murderer launches appeal next week

AAP General News (Australia)
12-09-2006
Fed: Falconio murderer launches appeal next week

CANBERRA, Dec 9 AAP - Bradley John Murdoch, the man convicted of murdering Briton Peter
Falconio in the NT outback, will launch an appeal next week.

The case will be heard in the Northern Territory Court of Criminal Appeal in Darwin,
starting on Tuesday and running for three days.

Murdoch, 48, is serving a life sentence after a Northern Territory jury convicted him
of the murder of Mr Falconio, who was shot dead on a remote stretch of road near Barrow
Creek, about 300 kilometres north of Alice Springs, on July 14, 2001.

He was also convicted of abducting and assaulting Mr Falconio's girlfriend Joanne Lees.

Ms Lees managed to escape and was a key prosecution witness at his trial.

Murdoch, who made no admissions and always denied murdering Mr Falconio, was sentenced
on December 13 last year but promptly appealed.

The appeal is understood to centre on Ms Lees' evidence, with Murdoch's lawyer set
to argue it was unreliable and should have been excluded.

Neither Murdoch nor Ms Lees are expected to attend the appeal hearing.

AAP mb/jjs/cdh

KEYWORD: MURDOCH

2006 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

NSW: Elephants slow, steady, costly trip nears end

AAP General News (Australia)
08-02-2006
NSW: Elephants slow, steady, costly trip nears end

It's cost more than six million dollars .. and taken years to orchestrate .. but the
troubled transfer of eight Asian elephants from Thailand to Australian zoos is in the
home stretch.

Taronga Zoo director GUY COOPER says the elephants are in superb condition .. at their
final quarantine stopover on Australia's Cocos Keeling Islands.

They'll leave in three months for Melbourne Zoo and Sydney's Taronga Zoo .. where they'll
be encouraged to breed.

The transfer's been marred by months of costly delays .. caused by legal wranglings
with animal welfare groups.

AAP RTV pc/hn/wf/bart

KEYWORD: THAI ELEPHANTS (SYDNEY)

2006 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Vic:Motorcyclist dies after losing control of his bike

AAP General News (Australia)
02-13-2006
Vic:Motorcyclist dies after losing control of his bike

A motorcyclist has died after losing control of his bike in the state's south-west.

A Victoria Police spokesman says the 37-year-old man was overtaking some companions
on another bike when he lost control on a sweeping bend of the Hamilton Highway, six kilometres
east of Mortlake.

He says the motorcyclist ran off the road and crashed into a fence post and says preliminary
investigations indicate speed and alcohol were contributing factors.

The man's death takes Victoria's road toll to 33 .. seven less than for the same time last year.

AAP RTV sam/psm/

KEYWORD: TOLL VIC (MELBOURNE)

2006 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Vic: Police industrial action possible on one-up policy, union

AAP General News (Australia)
04-26-2005
Vic: Police industrial action possible on one-up policy, union

Eds: takes in aspects of ke TOLL VIC.



By Jamie Duncan

MELBOURNE, April 26 AAP - Victoria's police union has foreshadowed possible industrial
action to end the longstanding practice that allows some police to work alone.

It follows the deaths of two solo officers in the state in the past three days.

Calls to ban members from working "one-up" follow the murder of Senior Constable Tony
Clarke, who was shot dead early on Sunday with his service revolver by a man he had stopped
on the Warburton Highway at Launching Place.

The driver, Mark Bailey, 27, from suburban Croydon, later shot himself.

Today, a policeman died after being struck by a vehicle while issuing a ticket on the
Hume Freeway near Benalla, north-east of Melbourne.

While Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Christine Nixon said the one-up policing policy
would be reviewed, she said costs and circumstances could prevent change.

Police Association Victorian assistant secretary Bruce McKenzie said it was not safe
for police to work alone even if some members, including traffic police, preferred to
do so.

"The tragic events that have happened over the past three days, in our view, is ample
evidence to suggest that our members should not work alone, irrespective of whether or
not that is their preference," he said.

The union will meet Ms Nixon tomorrow to discuss Sen Const Clarke's murder and today's
death, Mr McKenzie said.

He said he hoped to arrive at a joint position with Ms Nixon tomorrow, but would not
rule out a mass meeting or a formal directive to members not to work alone.

"That (a meeting) is a matter that we will be consulting our members ahead, but we
certainly wouldn't rule that out," he said.

"It's our view that costs and funding are irrelevant when it comes to the safety of
our members working on the behalf of the Victorian community to ensure their safety."

Ms Nixon said one-up policing would be reviewed, but cast doubts on whether the policy
could change.

"I understand the call that people have made for single officers, but we have 103 single-person
police stations and so (a review) would also involve them, it would involve supervisors
and we have to think if that is the right strategy," she said.

"It (a ban on members working one-up) is very expensive, but so is losing a colleague."

Police command would examine the circumstances of Sen Const Clarke's death and would
consider the issue of one-up policing following a homicide squad investigation, Ms Nixon
said.

The force would examine making equipment, including mobile data terminals and vehicle
locators, more widely available, she said.

The union said that as well it would also renew its call for the force to issue members
with semi-automatic pistols used in all states except Victoria and South Australia to
replace its "antiquated" .38 revolvers.

But Ms Nixon, a 29-year veteran of the NSW police before she took the top job in Victoria
four years ago, said police command had decided against replacing the revolvers.

"It's a very simple kind of weapon," she said.

"We don't think there's any evidence which would substantiate the very substantial
retraining and investment to move to (another) firearm.

"We don't have evidence that the current firearm is ineffective."

AAP jrd/gfr/cf/cjh/bwl

KEYWORD: POLICEMAN NIGHTLEAD (WITH FACTBOX)

2005 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

saccharose

saccharose See sucrose.

Chebyshev's inequality

Chebyshev's inequality For a random variable X with expectation μ and standard deviation σ,for all positive values of the constant k. See also Bernstein's inequality; Hölder's inequality; Markov's inequality; Minkowski's inequality.

FILM/SNEAK PEEK : SEE SHORT FILMS IN WRIGHT PLACE.(L.A. LIFE)

The first annual L.A. International Short Film Festival, featuring short films from around the world, will run Oct. 3-5 at the Barnsdall Art Park, 4800 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood.

Activities will include screenings of short films (drama, comedy, documentary, animation and experimental) at the Barnsdall Gallery Theater, an opening night reception catered by Angeli Caffe, live bands, a tour of Frank Lloyd Wright's Hollyhock House, outdoor silent film screenings, panels on pitching and producing, a networking session for actors and directors, and an awards presentation.

The event is presented by Filmmakers United, a nonprofit organization. To order tickets by phone or mail, call Showtixx toll-free at (888) 566-8499. For information, call (213) 427-8016, or visit the Web site at 222.lashortsfest.com.

Waco revisited: ``Waco: The Rules of Engagement,'' a controversial documentary by William Gazecki that details step-by-step the alleged mishandling by the government of the 1993 stand-off against the Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas, begins a one-week engagement tonight, running through Sept. 18 at the downtown Laemmle's Grande 4-Plex, at 345 S. Figueroa St., between Third and Fourth streets. Information: (213) 617-0268.

Anti-momism: Get laugh therapy for your nastiest feelings about Mom this weekend at the ``Mean Mommies'' film festival to be presented at Laemmle's Music Hall theater, 9036 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills. At 10 a.m. Saturday and Sunday, the three-plex will host simultaneous screenings of the anti-Mom classics ``Mommie Dearest,'' ``Throw Momma From the Train'' and ``Harold & Maude.''

The event is meant to whet appetites for the premiere at the Music Hall of Philip Goodhew's ``Intimate Relations,'' a black comedy featuring Julie Walters as a seemingly perfect 1950s British housewife who seduces a vulnerable young lodger (Rupert Graves), setting off further mayhem.

For information, call the Music Hall at (310) 274-6869.

: A new source of tips and market information for screenwriters is now available online: Type in http://www.gotmilkstuff.com/shop/specscript.html on the Internet and you'll arrive at a Web site designed by Howard Meibach, publisher of the Spec Screenplay Sales Directory. ``I constantly talk to agents and producers and ask them who's buying what. There will be tips on the Web site, as well as interviews with first-time writers who have sold screenplays,'' said Meibach. Also featured will be links to other screenwriting sites.

CAPTION(S):

2 Photos

Photo: (1) A famous image from the Branch Davidian standoff, part of ``Waco: The Rules of Engagement,'' showing at Laemmle's Grande 4-Plex.

(2) Forensic work at Waco showed the Branch Davidians' interest in constitutional law.

NCompass Labs and WorldPoint Interactive Form Strategic Alliance to Provide Integrated, Global e-Business Solutions.

SAN JOSE, Calif., April 4 /PRNewswire/ --

NCompass Labs, a leading provider of enterprise Web content management solutions, today announced a strategic alliance with WorldPoint Interactive, a market-leader in multilingual e-commerce solutions. This alliance will link NCompass Resolution, the out-of-the-box, Microsoft(R)-centric Web content management system, with WorldPoint MarketPlace, WorldPoint's globalization procurement platform. Working together, the two companies will integrate their software and secure customers that can benefit from the combined offering.

Customers competing in global markets with a worldwide presence will find the joint solution particularly compelling. NCompass Resolution provides the powerful Web site design, content authoring, publishing, and site management capability necessary to deploy and manage sophisticated, dynamic Internet, extranet, or intranet sites. Resolution's easy content authoring supports the requirement for numerous, distributed content contributors to author their own content in their own language. Through a simple link to WorldPoint's MarketPlace solution, the content then can be translated and localized as needed. A customer will have direct access to WorldPoint's globalization procurement platform, including its established network -- the world's largest

-- of 10,000 native speaking, culturally sensitive, professional, in-country translators.

"We are very pleased to be working with NCompass Labs," said Massimo Fuchs, Chief Executive Officer of WorldPoint Interactive. "NCompass is clearly one of the early leaders in offering globalized Web content management solutions. The open API of NCompass Resolution 3.0 will permit seamless integration of our product offerings, ensuring that our customers possess the e-business infrastructure they require to meet the challenges and reap the rewards of operating in the global marketplace."

"From its inception, NCompass Resolution has been Unicode-enabled in order to support the world's major languages," said Gerri Sinclair, the Chief Executive Officer for NCompass Labs. "By linking our market-leading Web content management solution with WorldPoint's pioneering globalization solution, we extend our ability to offer customers a way to quickly and cost-effectively deploy and manage sophisticated, global Web applications for e-business."

With the release of NCompass Resolution 3.0, global deployment has been simplified. A Web Client allows non-technical authors to use their browser interface and common desktop applications, such as Microsoft(R) Word, to create Web content without requiring the installation and maintenance of desktop software. This browser interface, combined with support for all of the world's major languages and time zone synchronization, permit authors to easily contribute and schedule posting of up-to-date content, regardless of their geographic location.

About NCompass Labs

NCompass Labs offers the leading Web content management solution for the Microsoft platform to deliver out-of-the-box support for e-business and Internet relationship management. NCompass Resolution integrates site design, content authoring, publishing, and site management for a complete solution. Its market-leading features -- including quick deployment, simple browser-based authoring, and seamless integration with existing infrastructures -- ensure a low total cost of ownership. Separation of content from page format and support for all major languages permits on-demand serving of personalized content to multiple audiences. Support for diverse browsing devices, including palmtops and wireless devices, ensures that the site always looks good and is easy to navigate. Innovative organizations such as Sterling Commerce, GTE, CB Richard Ellis, Marriott International and "dot com" businesses have chosen NCompass Resolution. The company is based in Vancouver, B.C. with U.S. headquarters in the San Francisco Bay Area. Additional information can be obtained at www.ncompasslabs.com or by calling either 888-304-2222 or 408-558-9300.

About WorldPoint Globalization MarketPlace

WorldPoint Globalization MarketPlace enables friction-free global e-business that is defined by the Web -- not geographies, borders or treaties. This award-winning platform, leveraging open technology and the Internet to seamlessly connect buyers and suppliers of globalization solutions, offers:

-- Web-based interfaces for clients to easily procure services in

18 languages and 35 currencies

-- Globalization solutions provided by an international community of over

10,000 language professionals and globalization experts

-- A unique and innovative procurement framework managing transactions and

workflow worldwide

-- A network of best-of-breed partners offering complementary services.

About WorldPoint

WorldPoint has been the leading provider of end-to-end globalization technology & solutions for e-Businesses since it's inception in 1995. Through its award-winning framework, WorldPoint enables companies to add a multilingual, multi-currency, and multicultural dimension to their Web presence, Internet applications, trading communities, products and customer support. WorldPoint technology & solutions provide clients such as Kodak, NTT, Mitsui,QXL and Ziff-Davis access to worldwide markets for content syndication, the buying and selling of goods and services, and communicating from anywhere at anytime completely free from the friction of language and culture. WorldPoint Globalization Marketplace, the world's largest business- to-business globalization trading community, offers a comprehensive suite of globalization solutions providing unprecedented economies of scale. WorldPoint is an international corporation with offices in San Francisco, Honolulu, Dallas, and Zurich and can be reached by phone at 888-452-3939, 415- 743-0000 or via the Internet at www.worldpoint.com.

NOTE: NCompass and NCompass Resolution are either registered trademarks or trademarks of NCompass Labs Inc. Any other marks used in this document are trademarks or registered trademarks of the manufacturers or marketers of the products with which the marks are associated.

CONTACT: Gary Byrd of Nadel Phelan Inc., 831-439-5570, ext. 223, or gary@nadelphelan.com, for NCompass Labs Inc.; or Nancy McCluskey-Moore of NCompass Labs Inc., 925-426-6035, or nmcmoore@ncompasslabs.com.

Music Choice Offers Full-Album Digital Downloads of Unsigned Artists; Company Expands its Role in Helping Expose Unsigned Artists.

NEW YORK, Oct. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Music Choice, the world's largest provider of commercial-free digital music, today announced that it is launching a digital download store featuring full albums of unsigned artists on its web site, http://www.musicchoice.com. Singer-songwriter Kathy Fisher's album "One" and acoustic band Naked to the World's release "Glass Half Full" are available for sale via download beginning today.

In conjunction with the sale of their downloads on the Music Choice web site, Fisher and Naked to the World were featured throughout September on the "MUSIC CHOICE Unsigned Artist Spotlight" segment; an offshoot of the enormously popular "MUSIC CHOICE Unsigned Show." The "Unsigned Artist Spotlight" airs on the Music Choice Showcase 1 channel, and takes an in-depth look at select musicians through artist interviews and songs. By airing to more than 10 million U.S. Music Choice customers, these artists can reach new audiences.

The music will be downloadable in Microsoft's Windows Media, a Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI) compliant format. Each album will take anywhere from 60 to 120 minutes to download depending on the speed of the Internet connection. Recently, Music Choice became the first and only cable, satellite and Internet music provider to offer a full album by a major artist for digital download, when last month it announced that it was offering David Bowie's new release "hours ..." for download on its web site.

"This will help secure our position as leaders in the digital download arena," said Dave Del Beccaro, president and CEO of Music Choice. "We provide music fans with access to great music they can't find anywhere else and offer it to them in a secure format that is widely accepted. We look forward to working with other artists and record labels in the future by providing more digital downloads."

MUSIC CHOICE -- the world's first digital audio service -- provides cable, satellite, telephone and Internet customers with CD quality music 24 hours a day. Music Choice has 10 million customers worldwide. Headquartered in Horsham, PA, Music Choice is a partnership between General Instrument Corporation, subsidiaries of Sony Corporation of America, Warner Music Group, Inc., EMI Music and several leading US cable providers: Adelphia Cable Communications, Comcast Cable Communications, MediaOne, Cox Communications and Time Warner Cable. MUSIC CHOICE is a registered trademark of Music Choice. Visit the MUSIC CHOICE Web site at http://www.musicchoice.com.