Darwin due to blow away again

It would seem that each cyclone season I spend up in Darwin people keep asking, "will it be this year?". Those with science credientials tell us we are 'due' for another big cyclone, but how much faith should one have in statistics?

The pesimist in me says that the answer the the question "will it be this year?" is "probably". But rather than argue about 'if' or 'when', rather the answer to the question "what if?" is probably more alarming. As I understand, post-cyclone Tracey investigations found that designing houses for category 5 cyclones would be prohibitive and ultimately have us human folk living in concrete boxes with pin holes for windows. So the decision was made to build to survive category 4. Even IF the homes that are being built to survive category 4 winds, the ability of a house to survive a cyclone is more likely to be related to its ability to survive impact damage. With the vast amounts of trees and vegetation adding to the usual smattering of commercial & industrial debris spotted around Darwin, surely it's clear that the domestic building code will only work for the lucky people.

For those who are trapped in the rental market, it would seem that leaving town when the wind blows in is the most sensible choice. As a renter, how do you know if your dwelling is up to code? And even if your landlord told you before you signed up, could you believe them? Wouldn't it be a great idea in cyclone areas for building code compliance to be posted, by law, on rental agreements?

If I decided to build in Darwin, I think I'd be taking the building code to a new level for my own sake.

Australia Day

Happy Australia Day!

No commercial overtones intended, however I'm very proud to be an Aussie. There are arguable reasons about whether people should celebrate the day. I'm glad to call it home and think its a great place to live. And I think the shear number of wanna-be refugees trying to land here suggests I'm not the only one with that opinion.

The Population Debate

As a current issue, population growth seems to all of a sudden something to think about. Quite honestly, it seems trivial. If the world is having a hell of a time dealing with the outcomes of its own effect on the planet, then surely adding more people to the pool is not going to help.

The driver for population growth may well be the issue that people really don't want to deal with. Has any of our political leaders dared to answer that question? To put it bluntly, the question people should be thinking about is why do we want more people being born into this world than are leaving it?

I think the answer actually touches on personal beliefs and opinions born from the heart. A topic that vote-buying politicians would rather avoid like 'another hole in the head'.