Outsmarting Bellingen Shire Council Nicely

What about this one?  I think its good value too.  This could be another way to increase trade to the Antique Shop.

Premium Small Car Door Magnets by Vistaprint

I have been having a lot of fun looking around for ways in which we can increase the trade to the Urunga Antique & Collectables Shop down in the Industrial Estate on Short Cut Road.  It has been a constant battle to get trade when council will not allow any sign at the top of the street to alert passing traffic to the whereabouts of an antique shop.

 

From the point of view of tourism alone, this is a thorough disservice to visitors coming to the area.  I personally comb all antique shops where ever I go and find one when I am visiting other areas and I am vitally sure that there are many the same as me.  I would be sad to think I missed out just because I could not find it. 

The local council have been very sad and mean with their action regarding the shop.  No longer is the owner allowed to phone the council re issues or he will be charged and therefore all correspondence with the two parties will be via mail only.  This is outrageous.

 

Recently the shop owner ran alone in the local council elections and he came in fifth and he had a very large slice of the votes but of course he was not elected.  He was in a group all on his own and it went to show how much support he actually had throughout the shire.

 

 
So we will get some nifty Magnetic Car Door Signs made.  We will somehow outsmart them  and we will win this fight by finding alternatives. 


A sign at the top means forty to fifty people a day visit the shop.  No sign means perhaps four or five people visit the shop.  Council said he should move somewhere else.  What sort of solution is that for a struggling small business owner who only wants to earn an honest living.  He needs to get trade to the shop to survive though.  So what else can we do.  Thinking caps well on and if you have any ideas you want to share with me then by all means share them.


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Images @ Melopopzdropz Flickr

Trans Pacific Trade is death to reality as we know it.

Take this stuff off the table, its been around since 2006 and its the reason everything is so bad.

Stop TPP and Carry On (Photo credit: IronCurtaiNYC)

A summit with leaders of the member states of the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement (TPP). Pictured, from left, are Naoto Kan (Japan), Nguyễn Minh Triết (Vietnam), Julia Gillard (Australia), Sebastián Piñera (Chile), Lee Hsien Loong (Signapore), Barack Obama (United States), John Key (New Zealand), Hassanal Bolkiah (Brunei), Alan García (Peru), and Muhyiddin Yassin (Malaysia). Six of these leaders represent countries that are currently negotiating to join the group. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

           TPP SNAPSHOT
           Including Australia 
GDP - US$20,734 billion (2011) / GDP Per Capita US$31,491Billion (2011)
Population: 658.5 Million (2011) / Trade with Australia $135.303 Billion (2011)

Weigh it up!

About the TPP negotiations

The government’s highest regional trade negotiation priority is the conclusion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP). This agreement will build on the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement (P4) between Brunei Darussalam, Chile, New Zealand and Singapore, which entered into force in 2006.
The TPP includes the P4 Parties as well as Australia, Canada, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, the USA and Vietnam.
The Australian Government will pursue a TPP outcome that eliminates or at least substantially reduces barriers to trade and investment. The TPP is more than a traditional trade agreement; it will also deal with behind-the-border impediments to trade and investment.
It is intended that the TPP be a living agreement that remains relevant to emerging issues and allows for membership expansion. While expanded membership of the TPP is desirable, those seeking membership would need to demonstrate commitment to early and comprehensive liberalisation so as to maintain the momentum that has been generated by existing TPP parties.
Australia's decision to participate in the TPP in 2008 followed an extensive public consultation process. Overall, there was widespread interest in and support for Australia's participation in the TPP. Input received through the consultation process is being used to inform the Government's priorities and objectives for Australia's ongoing work on the TPP.

Key interests and benefits

• The TPP has the potential to form a building block for Asia-Pacific regional economic integration. It is in Australia’s interests to be involved in order to shape the direction of the initiative.
• Regional rules of origin will provide new opportunities for Australian exporters to tap into global supply chains.
• The TPP could provide additional market access for goods and services into the markets of existing FTA and future TPP partners.
• Inclusion of Investment and Financial Services chapters in the TPP could provide improved opportunities for Australian financial services providers by mitigating barriers, such as foreign restrictions on capital and investment flows.



• The TPP provides a framework for engaging with Peru, a country with which we do not have an existing bilateral trade arrangement. In particular there is potential for better access for dairy products and mining services to Peru.
  http://www.dfat.gov.au/fta/tpp/index.html

On reading more and more about this I find that this is all about  making us all like the USA.  I am against this in unison with many others.

The TPP Agreement  Asia-Pacific trade agreement that reflects U.S. priorities and values”.  The the draft text remains largely secret, the outline indicates that the agreement is wide-ranging, covering some 20 areas, including competition, customs, e-commerce, intellectual property, investment, industrial relations, and trade according to Matther Rimmer. (Associate Professor, Australian National University 2011)

I think we have enough on our plates with the mining issues and now we have this as well.  I am feeling very overwhelmed with the world and its heartless practices that are all economically based and the facts they say that fix things don't fix anything.  This makes rich people richer!  This is the end result and I am afraid you will not change my mind because it is the biggest threat to free speech and intellectual property ever seen before. 

Images @ Melonpopzdropz Flickr

Related articles

• A warning at the Trans Pacific Partnership negotiations... (petermartin.com.au)
• Company drops plan for second trans-Pacific cable (radionz.co.nz)
• Australia jumping off a copyright cliff with TPP: Ludlam (zdnet.com)
• Madison Ruppert ~ ACLU: TPP Is The 'Biggest Threat To Free Speech And Intellectual Property That You've Never Heard Of' (shiftfrequency.com)

Council Stand Firm on LEP and No Moratorium

The Hillman Gizelle

Trying so hard to understand what sort of world we live in around here and who exactly is in charge here!  What is the agenda of such ridiculousness around signage in the community?

I will always stand up for the under dog amongst us.  I think some people have rocks for brains and that I should not put down my knowledge that has amassed itself to me.  Most of it I never even understood in the first place.  Hectic as to be me,  is all I can say.  Long Live Urunga Antiques and Collectables.

Images by Mezza