Salman Rushdie remained hospitalized in serious condition Saturday after being stabbed at a literary event in New York state in a shocking assault that triggered widespread international outrage, but drew applause from hardliners in Iran and Pakistan.
The British author, who spent years under police protection after Iranian leaders ordered his killing, underwent emergency surgery and was placed on a ventilator in a Pennsylvania hospital following Friday’s assault. His agent said he will likely lose an eye.
“Salman Rushdie — with his insight into humanity, with his unmatched sense for story, with his refusal to be intimidated or silenced — stands for essential, universal ideals. Truth. Courage. Resilience,” Biden said in a statement.
On Friday, a 24-year-old man from New Jersey, Hadi Matar, rushed the stage where Rushdie was about to deliver a lecture and stabbed him in the neck and abdomen.
Beyond Rushdie’s eye injury, the nerves in one of his arms were severed and his liver was damaged, according to his agent Andrew Wylie.
The fatwa followed publication of the novel “The Satanic Verses,” which sparked fury among some Muslims who believed it was blasphemous.
“For whatever it was, eight or nine years, it was quite serious,” he told a Stern correspondent in New York.
– Assailant raised in US –
Security was not particularly tight at Friday’s event at the Chautauqua Institution, which hosts arts programs in a tranquil lakeside community near Buffalo.
Matar’s family apparently came from a border village called Yaroun in southern Lebanon.
Matar was “born and raised in the US,” the head of the local municipality, Ali Qassem Tahfa, told AFP.
“I was very happy to hear the news,” said Mehrab Bigdeli, a man in his 50s studying to become a Muslim cleric.
In Pakistan, a spokesman for the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan –- a party that has staged violent protests against what it deems to be anti-Muslim blasphemy — said Rushdie “deserved to be killed.”
British leader Boris Johnson said he was “appalled,” while Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the attack “reprehensible” and “cowardly.”
– Write memoir in hiding –
But his 1988 book “The Satanic Verses” transformed his life. The resulting fatwa forced him into nearly a decade in hiding, moving houses repeatedly and being unable to tell even his children of him where he lived.
Since moving to New York, Rushdie has been an outspoken advocate of freedom of speech and has continued writing — including a memoir, “Joseph Anton,” named after his alias while in hiding.
David Mundy has returned to an almost empty Optus Stadium nearly an hour after his final western derby to have a kick with his three children.
The retiring Fremantle great was given a rousing reception by more than 53,000 home fans in his last ever regular season game in Perth.
He spent time in the rooms with teammates before returning to the western end of the ground, kicking a ball with his children and wife Sally.
Extended family and friends, who had watched the game from a box on level four, then joined them on the ground for a group photo.
The Dockers held on to beat the Eagles by 24 points and win a third-straight western derby, before Mundy completed a lap of the playing surface and was given a guard of honor by West Coast players.
David Mundy on his lap of honour. Credit: Jackson Flindell/The West Australian
Mundy will retire at the end of the season, with the Dockers to play Greater Western Sydney in Canberra next week, while the win over the Eagles secured Fremantle a final at home in either the first, second or third week of September.
In the 16th minute of the first quarter, Dockers fans stood and applauded Mundy as part of the moving tributes.
The games record holder recognized the adulation with a subtle thumbs up before a center bounce, which came just moments after the two teams were split from a spiteful melee.
Indira Naidoo had walked past the Moreton Bay figs in Sydney’s Royal Botanic Garden and Domain many times without giving them much thought.
That changed after her youngest sister Manika took her own life during Melbourne’s darkest year of rolling COVID lockdowns in 2020.
Two weeks after the shocking news, Ms Naidoo was sitting on the lawn in the Domain with her head in her hands when she noticed a “sense of shimmery-ness around me and golden warmth.”
“I was thinking what’s happening and I opened my eyes, and all this light was coming through the branches of this tree above me, and I realized all these branches belonged to one tree,” Ms Naidoo told ABC TV’s Compass.
“There was such a sense of solace — as if it was giving me a hug and a real warmth and calm about it.”
As she looked closer at the giant tree, she was struck by its magic.
“I suddenly thought there’s something special here,” Ms Naidoo said.
“This is a special tree. This is a special place.”
Ms Naidoo, who presents ABC Radio’s Nightlife program, has since written a book about finding healing in nature after her sister’s death.
The Moreton Bay fig where she returned over and over seeking solace is featured in her book, The Space Between the Stars.
Since the book’s publication in April, hundreds of people have flocked to the same remarkable tree — many seeking its comfort as they navigate their own grief.
‘Such a beautiful tree’
Tracey Fitzpatrick has visited the tree, which is thought to date back to at least 1871, several times since reading Ms Naidoo’s book.
“It’s so inspirational. It’s such a beautiful tree,” she says.
Ms Fitzpatrick has lost family members in the past 12 months.
The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney has run several tours for people wanting to visit the tree.(Supplied)
“[The book] inspired me to look beyond my own inward grief and really connect with nature and see how it helps you heal,” she said.
“When I’m looking at the tree, I think it’s an energy that emits from it that is life going on and continuing to be okay.”
The Royal Botanic Gardens has even organized several tours of the tree due to the demand from people wanting to visit and learn more about it.
Fiona Jostsons brought her cousin Jennifer Vince from Melbourne to visit the tree.
“There is a bit of an emotional response to this tree because I lost sisters in my youth … so that resonates with me,” Ms Vince said.
Ms Jostsons said she was drawn to the tree’s “sense of calmness — that you can get through anything.”
Connection with trees common
Moreton Bay figs are the signature tree of the botanic garden and the Domain, with the oldest remaining one planted in 1845.
The one that Ms Naidoo formed a special connection with has a boardwalk around it to protect its roots as it towers over the road that runs through the Domain.
“Like a lot of really old urban trees, it’s lived a life and had to deal with all sorts of changes over time,” says Royal Botanic Garden Sydney senior horticulturist and volunteer manager Paul Nicholson.
Ms Naidoo says she visited the tree every day after the death of her sister during the first year of the pandemic.(ABC: compass)
There are signs it has suffered some dieback, and a fire has been lit in one of its hollows.
“It’s certainly a symbol of resilience.”
Sydney’s Moreton Bay figs have long provided shade on a hot day and a retreat from the busy city.
Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume.
Indira Naidoo: losing a sister and finding healing
But Mr Nicholson says it’s not uncommon for people to form a special attachment to particular trees.
“There’s a tree that they’ll always visit in the garden. In some cases, they might know the person who planted it,” he said.
“Trees are things that outlive us, and they provide stability and amenity in the landscape.”
Once Ms Naidoo noticed what is now known as “her tree”, visiting it became part of her daily routine.
“Bit by bit, things started to show themselves, reveal themselves to me that had always been there, but I had just been too busy or too silly to actually take it in,” she said.
“I didn’t want to leave it.
“That was the other thing I found is that nothing compared to the joy and the wonder and the awe of what I was experiencing when I was near the tree and in the gardens.”
Watch the Compass episode ‘Indira’s Tree’ on Sunday, August 14 at 6:30pm or on ABC iview.
Back on Monday, we announced the start of our ambitious DC Down Under project, an attempt to drive an electric car—in this case a 2022 Kia EV6—across the Australian Outback. The journey was to take us on a 1,700-mile trek from Adelaide to Perth. Our goal was to show that for all the concerns about range anxiety and charging access that have stymied the mass adoption of EVs, here in 2022, it’s now possible to take one on an epic journey through an incredibly remote area like this and come out the other side unscathed.
Well, we didn’t make it. Technically we did, as staffers Lewin Day and James Gilboy finally rolled into Perth around 7:00 pm local time on Friday, Aug. 12. But unfortunately, the EV6 did not—and not because of broken chargers, as was predicted by many.
We’ll have the full story of what happened next week, with daily updates on the site chronicling the ups and downs and untimely end for Kia’s flashy electric car less than 200 miles from the finish line. Suffice it to say Lewin and James did not hit a kangaroo or one of Australia’s famous road trains, but still, the best laid plans o’ mice and men and all that.
If you haven’t been following along this week, you can still check out our Instagram where Lewin and James have been filming real-time updates every day via Instagram Stories, which are all being collected in one mega highlight reel accessible through our profile. Again, look for the whole story every day on The Drive next week!
Aussie triple-threat Johnny Ruffo and his partner Tahnee Sims have been through a lot.
Along with all the usual trials and tribulations that come with a relationship, Sims has also supported Ruffo through not one, but two, brain cancer diagnoses.
In fact, Ruffo has credited his relationship with Sims as his saving grace.
“Without her, I may not be here,” Ruffo said in an interview with now to love.
Johnny Ruffo and girlfriend Tahnee Sims (Instagram)
READMORE:Olivia Newton-John met the ‘love of her life’ at 59
“She was the one who made me get in the car [to go to hospital] when it [the headaches] first happened. And she’s encouraging me to do things. She keeps me active, getting me to go for runs and swims.
“We’ve been through so much together now. The longer we stay together, the stronger the bond.”
the Dancing with the Stars winner met his now-partner at a dance studio in 2015 and the two have been dating ever since.
Ruffo was diagnosed with brain cancer after undergoing surgery for a tumor in 2017. Though he announced he was in remission in 2019, in a 2020 interview, he revealed his cancer had returned.
READMORE:Denzel Washington proposed three times before she said yes
But through it all, Sims has remained by his side.
“She’s been there with me from day one,” said Ruffo in a 2021 interview on Fitz & Wippa“She’s unbelievable.”
In a recent Instagram post, Sims commemorated five years since her partner’s first brain cancer diagnosis.
“Five years on. In awe of you every single day,” she wrote. “Still a huge battle ahead but a major milestone reached that was at times uncertain. Grateful for you always.”
Ruffo replied, “Five years to the day and I’m still so grateful for every day I get to spend with you.”
READMORE:How Tina Turner’s husband Erwin Bach saved her life
When asked about the secret to the strength of their relationship regardless of adversity, Ruffo told now to love it was all about laughter.
“We just have fun. We make each other laugh so much, You know that gut-wrenching laugh with tears coming from your eyes?” said the Home and Away star.
“We argue and fight just like every other couple, but we make up too.”
When asked about Sims in a 2019 interview with TheDailyMail Ruffo said, “She’s been incredible. I can’t fault her.”
The most captivating love stories in popular culture
Clarkson’s signature is no guarantee of premierships or grand finals. Messiah coaches frequently fail, sometimes because clubs aren’t sturdy enough to house their dominating ways. Or they don’t have the players. Or their use-by date has passed.
Luke Hodge has already cautioned about his old coach’s foibles, and North, even while in thrall to Clarkson, would be wise to heed Hodge’s warning that clubs can’t allow “the Clarko show” to hijack the joint. His dealings with North chief executive Ben Amarfio will be intriguing, given it is the president, not the CEO, who has driven the pursuit.
That said, the instant gains for North dwarf the negatives.
The bigger picture is that Clarkson’s return to North would show that even the most struggling Melbourne club can attract an alpha coach with the right pitch.
Conversely, for Clarkson to spurn the Giants, despite a stronger playing list, with superior senior players, would be a measure of the challenges that face the AFL in its evangelical mission to convert Sydney’s west.
If the Giants were based in Melbourne, where Clarkson resides, rather than on the (inner) edge of Sydney’s vast western sprawl, I have little doubt that Clarkson would have signed with them.
But as the second Sydney team, they are subject to structural disadvantages that Melbourne clubs seldom comprehend; as staffers who work for GWS and Gold Coast attest, they can’t operate on the same premise that underpins other teams.
They pay excessive contracts for top players in length and dollars. They find it harder to land assistant coaches for a reasonable price, although the Suns have a lifestyle pitch that players and coaches are warming to, so to speak. Draft picks have less value to them than salary cap space – the converse of North.
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North have found it tough to attract players, even when offering “overs.” But they’ve never had an issue losing them.
The Giants shed seasoned players in every single post-season, replacing them with draftees. For several years, they’ve had zero scope to fill specific holes with anyone on a sizeable contract, as Geelong routinely can.
GWS and North both under-performed in 2022. The Giants, however, have done so with a playing list that includes Josh Kelly, Toby Greene, Lachie Whitfield, Sam Taylor, Tom Green, Tim Taranto, Jacob Hopper, Callan Ward and Stephen Coniglio , plus youngsters from the draft’s top 20.
Their list has excessive investment in midfielders, compared with forwards, but they should be around the eighth, rather than 16th, as the past two games suggest. The likely loss of Taranto and Hopper should not hurt much.
North have few senior players of such quality and probably will need at least another two years of list renovation before they can compete for finals.
Clarkson, thus, has/had the chance to take over a GWS that, with some Collingwood-like pluck and luck, could make a rapid rise. They will have a better hand in the draft than North (who have pick one and daylight, barring a priority pick). Yet, the betting heavily favors Clarkson taking the team that is further back.
Personal and family considerations, obviously, are an important factor. Much of Clarkson’s time is spent on his farm on the Mornington Peninsula. His former manager Liam Pickering said he would have advised him to pick North because “I don’t see Alastair Clarkson in Sydney”.
In another time and place, the AFL hierarchy might have intervened in Clarkson’s choice, by increasing the dowry – in the guise of an AFL ambassadorship in NSW – to a level that would see Clarkson leave Victoria and join GWS.
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They made certain, for instance, that Tony Lockett would pick the Swans; they’ve handed the Suns extra picks and concessions, and they even helped deliver Chris Fagan (via Mark Evans, now Suns CEO) to Brisbane.
GWS reckon they need the AFL dowry to have a real chance of landing the Bachelor. But, if we take Gillon McLachlan at his word from him, no AFL ambassador payment can be considered until Clarkson strikes a deal, with whichever club.
So, if after all the careful courtship, Clarkson chooses North instead of traveling north, the AFL should contemplate what this tells us about the competition’s expansion.
Keep up to date with the best AFL coverage in the country. Sign up for the Real Footy newsletter.
When Diane Parnell woke up one morning to find 25 sheep dead at her Hunter Valley property, she was devastated.
Wild dogs had been lingering for years but the attack that night was the worst.
“They just ran them down, killed them, didn’t eat them, didn’t tear them to bits or anything — it’s just a sport for them.”
Ms Parnell would wake up at night to check the sheep, she invested in cameras to monitor them and even tried alpacas to keep the dogs away.
“And the dogs got the alpacas.”
Diane Parnell hasn’t seen a wild dog in months since buying a protection donkey.(ABC Upper Hunter: Amelia Bernasconi)
The savior was an animal perhaps known best for its stubborn nature, but donkeys have an incredible ability to bond with other livestock and protect them from predators.
“She’s lovely… [the sheep] just follow her like she’s their mum,” Ms Parnell said of her donkey.
“If I hear anything I’ll go out at night with the torch, but I’m more relieved because I’ve been out here at night when there’s a fox around and she’s got the sheep all herded together, watching them.”
Worth their weight in gold
Quiet donkeys like Ms Parnell’s are hard to find in New South Wales.
Hers came from the Last Stop Donkey Program (LSDP), a Hunter Valley charity working to handle and rehome feral donkeys as guardians.
Brooke Purvis founded the program with hopes of helping feral donkeys and farmers.(ABC Upper Hunter: Bridget Murphy)
LSDP founder Brooke Purvis said she knew there had to be something more that could be done with donkeys after learning the extent of how they were culled in outback Australia.
“Out on stations, the donkeys really are classified as feral because they’re taking up prime livestock feed; for farmers they’re of no value and to muster them is pretty interesting, so there are a lot of costs there in mustering.
“They’re too handy to be shot.”
Donkeys have an incredible ability to bond with other livestock.(ABC Upper Hunter: Amelia Bernasconi)
So Ms Purvis began learning how to break in donkeys and support local farmers to find their confidence again.
“There was a lot of sheep farming going back a generation or so and a lot of people went out of that due to stock losses,” she said.
“They’re just soul-destroyed and they’re not confident and the donkeys have brought that back.
“Through lambing and calving they’re really worth their weight in gold.
“If something comes into their paddock, they’re quite territorial and they actually go towards the danger instead of running away, so if a dog does come in to attack, a donkey just stomps it or runs it off.”
Students have played a key role in handling the donkeys.(ABC Upper Hunter: Jake Lapham)
Back to school for everyone
The Last Stop Donkey Program took shape at St Catherine’s Catholic College in Singleton, where agriculture students were a key part of training the once-feral animals.
“We made the assumption that the donkeys were probably quite similar to breaking in cattle, so we just applied that sort of learning and it was just … no,” agriculture teacher Joanna Towers said.
“So it was just learning on the job and just gaining an appreciation for their personalities and how they like to be treated, that whole reward system.”
Jacob Merrick lives next to the school farm and would be first to spot new foals.(ABC Upper Hunter: Jake Lapham)
Student Jacob Merrick often can’t believe how far the donkeys have come.
“They were feral,” he said.
“They’d come straight out of the Northern Territory, no human contact, been mustered in helicopters, quads; they’ve never had facilities like at St Catherine’s, so it’s really different for them and different for me.
“I’m quite impressed, quite proud I guess of what we’ve achieved.”
Jaslin Boyd has a real bond with the herd jack, Cracker Jack.(ABC Upper Hunter: Bridget Murphy)
Jaslin Boyd worked alongside the initial team and she and Jacob have become a crucial part of the LSDP outside of school.
“At the start I really had no clue what to expect, but now they’re completely different to anything I’ve worked with,” Jaslin said.
“They have their days off or when they want to work with you and when they don’t, but we just work around that.
“They love to play. They surprised me… from being wild donkeys to now quiet donkeys who will come up to you for pats and cuddles.”
The Last Stop Donkey Program has welcomed dozens of foals in recent months.(Supplied: Brooke Purvis)
Lessons linger beyond the farmgate
The LSDP team quickly learned that gaining the donkeys’ trust was one of the most important things.
Most farmers considering donkeys worry they don’t know how to care for them, which Ms Purvis said was why she started doing training days too.
“The donkeys’ welfare has to be taken into account because we do hear a lot of stories where farmers just turn them out in the paddock with their sheep, and their teeth, feet, all of that is ignored.”
Watch Landline on ABC TV on Sundays at 12.30pm or anytime on iview.
2022 marked a monumental year for Kawasaki’s retro-leaning RS range. The flagship Z900RS celebrated the Z1’s 50th anniversary with a stunning, throwback “Fireball” colorway. The special-edition livery wasn’t the only addition to the Z900RS lineup, though, with Team Green introducing the up-spec 2022 Z900RS SE variant as well. Still, the RS series lacked a true entry point and the 2022 Z650RS filled the void.
After such an eventful 2022, we can’t fault Kawasaki for taking it easy in 2023, and the RS lineup returns largely unchanged for the new model year. Starting with the Z650RS, the classically-styled standard retains its iconic Candy Emerald Green paint scheme but adds a new Metallic Spark Black to the repertoire. Under the surface, the Z650RS still champions Kawi’s liquid-cooled, 649cc parallel-twin that’s good for 67 horsepower and 47 ft-lb of torque.
4Photos
Up the ladder, the Z900RS follows the same tactic as its smaller sibling, bringing the 1975 Z1-inspired Candy Tone Blue paint job from 2022 back for another go-around. Kawasaki’s design team pairs that returning paint option with the new Metallic Diablo Black/Metallic Imperial Red in 2023, however. Of course, the 948cc inline-four engine still produces 109.5 horsepower at 8,500 rpm and 72.3 foot-pounds of torque at 6,500 rpm, marrying the model’s vintage-styled aesthetics with modern performance.
While the 2023 Z900RS SE carries over that same street-tuned four-banger, it stands apart from the pack with an Öhlins S46 rear shock and revised front suspension. Brembo M4.32 front brake calipers, Brembo disc rotors, and steel-braided front brake lines encourage riders to push the pace.
Unlike the base Z900RS and Z650RS, the SE doesn’t earn a new graphic in 2023, but the Metallic Diablo Black is just as eye-catching as last year, especially with the matching gold wheels. Kawasaki’s Z range may arrive short on updates and upgrades, but the charming, retro colorways keep the Z650RS, Z900RS, and Z900RS SE attractive propositions in 2023.
I stuck it up my jumper, kept playing it on the station and it was beginning of a whole new life for me. I found that in no time at all I got the station 60 sponsors! From there we went to Brisbane and I walked into the station 4BH and said to the manager, “I’m a disc jockey,” and he thought I rode horses! The term wasn’t well-known then. In some ways I was Australia’s first disc jockey, and the rest is history.
Fitz: And one of the most interesting parts of that history is by the mid-1960s when you’re at Sydney’s own 2SM, they send you to London for three months to tour with The Beatles as they make their way to Australia!
Rogers with the Beatles who he went on tour with in Australia in 1964.Credit:Archive
BR: Yes, the deal was I would tour with them, and I would have exclusive rights to interview them every two days.
Fitz: How extraordinary.
BR: We got to Darwin at two o’clock in the morning, in June 1964, and 200 people came to greet them. But truly, The first sign of just how big Beatlemania was came in South Australia, when more than half of Adelaide turned out.
Portrait of Bob Rogers at his broadcast desk at radio station 2CH in Pyrmont, 2010.Credit:Fairfax
Fitz: And there’s Bob Rogers, in the middle of it. When you were with John Lennon, did you feel like, “I’m in the presence of genius?”
BR: No, I didn’t feel that. But he didn’t act like that.
Fitz: And the moment with Lennon that always comes to you first, when you think of him?
BRIn Melbourne, I got a phone call from John and he said “I’m in room 711. Come around and have a drink.” It was seven o’clock in the morning. John was sitting in bed with a bottle of red wine and we drank it a bottle of red wine together.
Fitz: And what did you talk about?
BR: I forget. But there are a lot of stories of the Beatles I can’t tell.
Fitz. Yes you can! It’s sixty years ago!
BR: In those early days in Melbourne I kept getting sick of all the women trying to get to them. They’d ring me up and say, “Would you tell the boys we’re in room 612?” or whatever. And I rang the management of the hotel, and said “Would you please stop sending girls up to my suite! I can’t get them to the Beatles!” And I can remember 40 years ago playing tennis down at White City, taking a call at four o’clock in the afternoon saying that John Lennon had been shot dead. It was just disastrous.
Fitz: Speaking of tragic deaths, this week we lost Olivia Newton-John. You had a key part in her discovery of her…
BR: In 1965, Channel Seven had a new show on television called Sing-sing-sing, hosted by Johnny O’Keefe. He’d had a few failures along the way – he went to America wanted to be Elvis Presley and failed – but he came back and started this show. He had a number of girls competing for prizes. And this night I was a judge and I noticed this one girl, Olivia Newton-John, and I picked her to win. I was always very proud of the fact that she became such a success. I am saddened by her death of her, just as I was saddened by the death of her. . . what’s the name of the girl in Melbourne who died this week..?”
Fitz: Judith Durham..?
BR: Judith Durham. Yeah, see, I’m nearly ninety-f—ing-six and I am forgetting a few things.
Fitz: How’s your health these days?
BR: Not good. But, if you don’t mind me saying, at least I’ve got all my hair. . .
Fitz: But you’re still here, still going strong! Is it amazing to you that so many of the people you knew and loved are no longer here and you still are…?
BR: And it is. Somebody the other day called me, asking for a phone number. of the former rugby league boss, Ken Arthurson. I went to my address book and going through, I would say that eighty percent of the people in there have died. So I guess I’m looking forward to my 96th birthday. But I do get a bit bored at times because I don’t get around much any more.
Fitz: One of your contemporaries who is still going strong is John Laws, and he’s still on air.
BR: We met in the late ’50s at 2UE. Fairfax had just sold it because they thought radio was about to be taken over by this new thing, television. But the head of the Lamb family had been to America, and realized that not only was radio surviving, it was thriving, playing popular music for young people, and so they had bought 2UE. The other fellow there had a beautiful voice, and that was John Laws. Now, since the days of Ghost Riders in the Sky, I had realized the value of having records no one else had., and I had organized for mine to be sent to me from America. So I could play songs like the Purple People Eater six months before anyone else could play it. I came in one Monday morning and was told that John had been playing all my important records on Saturday night.
Fitz: Did you have a falling out with him? Did you say, “How dare you?”
BR: Oh yeah. Fifty years later, Derryn Hinch was interviewing me at a restaurant at the Finger Wharf, while we had lunch, and John Laws came up, leaned over and said, “You two are the most despicable ^#&!” I have repeated it three times, before leaving. I said to Derryn, “Isn’t it good you got that on tape!” He said, “No, I turned it off.”
But 2UE has been my favorite station. Forty years ago, I used to follow Gary O’Callaghan doing breakfast. And I’d come on at nine o’clock and inherit his wonderful audience from him. That went well over several stints until one day many years later, I was doing afternoons and I said to my panel operator, ‘You’re a f—ing idiot’ and that was the end of my career at 2UE.
Fitz: Your most famous employer though, was probably John Singleton, at 2CH?
BR: Yes, I was at 2GB, doing mornings, and they wanted me to do afternoons and I didn’t want to. So I arranged with John Singleton to go to 2CH, and I stayed there for 20 years until he sold it.
Fitz: Your final day must have been tough?
BR: And it is. I was astounded by the reaction I got after I retired in October 2020, with letters from all over the world. Even in North America I had several listeners begging me to stay. They ask me to come back on occasionally, but I am too old.
Fitz: Bob, you sound so strong, I reckon you’ll cruise through 100 and knock over 105. But when the time comes, what do you want us to say of the life and times of Bob Rogers?
BR: Life was very good. Particularly after I got that record in 1949, called (Ghost) Riders in the Sky; then 73 years marriage, and the love of my life is still with me. I don’t think I’m the love of her life de ella any more … (A cheery protesting cry is heard in the room.) 73 years is pretty good in this business.
Matter of fact, One of the first songs I used to love in Hobart was called, The Folks Who Live on the Hill.
It goes:
“Someday we’ll build a home on a hilltop high, You and I,
Shiny and new a cottage that two can fill,
And we’ll be pleased to be called
‘The folks who live on the hill’.”
And now we live on the best hill in town, one of the best in the world, looking down on Balmoral Beach. It’s been a great life.
joke of the week
I had a dream the other night. I was in the old West riding in a stagecoach. Suddenly, a man riding a horse pulls up to the left side of the stagecoach, and a riderless horse pulls up on the right. The man leans down, pulls open the door, and jumps off his horse into the stagecoach. Then he opens the door on the other side and jumps onto the other horse. Just before he rode off, I yelled out, “What was all that about?” He replied, “Nothing. It’s just a stage I’m going through.”
Quote of the week
“There is suddenly a very real risk of violent political instability in this country for the first time in more than 150 years.” – Joel B. Pollak, a senior editor of the right-wing outlet Breitbart News, after Donald Trump’s home at Mar-a-Lago was raided by the FBI, and Trump supporters rose in outrage.
What they said
“My beautiful home, Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, is currently under siege, raided, and occupied by a large group of FBI agents. They even broke into my safe!” – Donald Trump complaining about being treated like a criminal.
“Treaty will provide that mechanism for us to negotiate equal terms on how we can live together in the same country and celebrate us as well. We’ve made it clear that the Greens want to see progress on all elements of the Statement [from the Heart]. We support legislation that improves the lives of First Nations people, and I look forward to talking with Minister Burney about how we achieve that together in this Parliament.” Senate deputy Greens leader Lidia Thorpe saying the Greens will pursue a treaty with Indigenous Australians and a truth-telling commission in exchange for backing the Voice to parliament in negotiations with the Albanese government as it seeks to build cross-party support for the constitutional change.
“It’s bittersweet. I wanted the win but starting with a medal that’s what we wanted. There was a lot of pressure, a lot of anticipation. I think we lived up to it and that’s the first medal down. . . if we had maybe another 20 meters I could have won, but we’re only running 800 meters, not 820.” – Peter Bol after taking silver in the 800m at the Commonwealth Games.
Peter Bol (left) won silver in the 800m.Credit:Getty Images
“Whatever the words, whatever the melody, whatever the tune, there is that sense of hope and joy and love that really blasts through. And that’s very much who she was.” – Xanadu director Robert Greenwald remembering Olivia Newton-John.
“If I had my time again, I would have asked him not to. If everyone knew what they knew now about the process, I mean, the whole situation has been incredibly disappointing for everyone who has been involved.” – Dominic Perrottet about John Barilaro and the whole damn mess.
“What you’re suggesting here is that I knew I was going to retire, therefore I was creating this job [trade commissioner in New York] for myself. I know where you’re going with this and it is absolute rubbish which I refute.” – John Barilaro before the parliamentary inquiry.
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“Classrooms have effectively become phone-free and this has allowed staff to focus on educating students. Finally, in eight weeks of the policy, there has been a 90 per cent reduction in behavioral issues related to phones in the school.” – Davidson High School principal David Rule, saying there had been significant changes since students in years 7 to 10 were banned from using mobile phones at school. The high school in Frenchs Forest requires students to put phones in a pouch that, once closed, cannot be reopened without breaking a lock.
Rhea Papadopoulos had just started at the Australian National University in Canberra when a third-year student at her college told her about Inward Bound (IB) — a mixed-gender ultramarathon orienteering race.
Drawn in by the stories of adventure and the training runs up Black Mountain, Rhea was initially excited to take part in Inward Bound, before becoming frustrated by rules stating teams needed a minimum of seven women out of 28 runners.
Despite her excitement, Rhea never felt like the sport was inclusive of women and gender-diverse people who wanted to be involved.
“Having that low quota of only seven [female runners], it was this constant struggle where you’re like, ‘am I one of the best seven girls?’ rather than ‘am I one of the best 28 runners?’ And I think that’s something that all girls could say they felt,” Rhea said.
Women haven’t always felt welcome in Inward Bound.(ABC Sport: Julia Faragher)
“It’s this kind of weird impostor syndrome, which is such an awful feeling and it’s not what IB should be about.”
Rhea, now a 23-year-old political science and arts student, discovered the barriers that women were facing in the Inward Bound training program during her two years running the race for her residential college in Division 5 and later becoming a coach.
“In 2019, I was the only [female] coach out of seven [coaches] and even though I loved all my colleagues and we all had the best time and I never felt tokenistic by any means, it was really hard being the one who was in charge of pastoral care because I was the [woman],” she said.
“If a team member had problems they’d come to me and not one of the boys.”
Rhea wanted to do something about it.
“I didn’t want another girl to have to go through that again. It was such a bad feeling.”
What is Inward Bound?
Inward Bound sees runners in teams of four navigate their way through the Australian bush.(ABC Sport: Julia Faragher)
Inward Bound is an ultramarathon orienteering race where ANU students compete in teams of four runners representing their colleges.
Runners are blindfolded and driven in circles before getting dropped off at a random location in the bush, usually somewhere in rural NSW, and given the coordinates of an endpoint that they must run to.
For runners in Division 1, this will involve approximately 100km. The divisions range down to runners in Division 7 which involves approximately 40km.
Students never know the course before they begin the race.(ABC Sport: Julia Faragher)
The exact distance run by each team depends on their ability to navigate the Australian bush and whether they get lost.
Across the seven divisions, each college puts forward a team of 28 runners, and a total of 280 students run in the race each year.
There is a winning team for each division, as well as an overall winner decided by adding up the results of all the divisions
‘I was told no, you can’t do it’
Erin Ronge was previously the 2021 equity officer and is currently the 2022 co-race director on the IB organizing committee.(ABC Sport: Julia Faragher)
Erin Ronge, a 22-year-old law and science student, had similar experiences to Rhea when she ran for her college twice in Divisions 6 and 7.
Erin noticed that women weren’t being offered the same leadership opportunities as men and when she tried to volunteer, she said she was shut down.
There have been changes to Inward Bound’s rules to ensure there are more female navigators in teams.(ABC Sport: Julia Faragher)
“I wanted to [navigate]. I was told no, you can’t do it. I wanted to coach. I was told no, you can’t do it,” Erin said.
Each IB team of four consists of two navigators and two scouts. As the navigators set the route, they usually also act as the leaders of the team.
“Female-identifying runners weren’t encouraged to come on the maps. If anything, male-identifying runners were hand-selected by coaches to be on the maps,” Erin said.
Eventually, Erin’s persistence paid off and she was taught how to read the maps.
But she knew that it shouldn’t have to take that much effort on her part and that other female runners shared her struggles.
Responsibility to bring about change
Erin and Rhea became the equity officers on the 2021 Inward Bound organizing committee to have an active role in making it as inclusive as possible.
“On a personal level, I felt it was important because I had many experiences in IB where I felt overlooked or that I unjustly had to advocate for myself and my abilities and skills where I was uncomfortable in certain contexts and I feel like that was to do with my gender,” Erin said.
This year’s Inward Bound race is set to feature the greatest number of female runners in its 60-year history at the ANU.
The Inward Bound organizing committee is made up of students from across the participating halls and colleges.(ABC Sport: Julia Faragher)
It’s the result of Erin and Rhea’s work to create a new 50:50 gender policy in consultation with other students.
Together with co-race director James Holley, they were inspired by the lack of substantial difference in performance between men and women in ultramarathons and the fact that Inward Bound is a mixed-gender event just like ultramarathons at the professional level.
“I felt as if that was an opportunity more than anything else. I really thought we had a responsibility to bring in that change,” James said.
In their roles as equity officers, Erin and Rhea spent a large portion of 2021 consulting with students from each of the 10 participating ANU colleges and halls to determine how they could introduce the 50:50 policy.
Erin found that everyone supported the policy in principle, but there was resistance to implementing it immediately rather than over a longer period.
“It made no sense to do it over a process of four years. It was delaying the inevitable and it just seemed tokenistic,” Erin said.
While the policy is colloquially referred to as the 50:50 policy, it uses gender-inclusive language.
Instead of instituting a quota for female runners, as has been the case in the past, halls and colleges now must pick a team where no more than 50 per cent of their runners identify as the same gender.
ANU students are looking forward to the return of Inward Bound in 2022 after COVID-19 forced the cancellation of both the 2020 and 2021 races.(ABC Sport: Julia Faragher)
Erin and Rhea spoke to queer officers from the halls and colleges to make sure that the policy included all students, such as non-binary and transgender people.
“We wanted our sport to also be representative of the community that it came from,” James said.
Inward Bound is for everyone
Erin, Rhea, and the rest of the organizing committee wanted the policy to be the first step in creating long-lasting cultural change.
One of their hopes is that the policy will encourage colleges and halls to think about female runners from the very beginning of their training program and implement the support that they need.
The 50:50 policy has helped make significant changes in a short space of time.(ABC Sport: Julia Faragher)
“Colleges and halls shouldn’t be panicking in September thinking ‘oh, we don’t have enough female-identifying runners. What should we do now?'” Erin said.
“It should be one of the first thoughts at the very start of the program: ‘How can we be as inclusive as possible to all people who want to run this program?’ Which I don’t think it has historically been.”
In fact, the 50:50 policy not only targets runners, but also sets out rules for coaches and navigators as well to tackle gender equality in all parts of Inward Bound.
Erin and Rhea never doubted the importance of what they were doing.
“It’s not only just a running race, it’s an experience that you’ll hold or carry with you for the rest of your life,” Erin said.
“It changed my life. It’s the best thing I have ever done, especially at university. I think it has so many flow-on effects in terms of confidence, resilience and perseverance,” Rhea said.
This year’s Inward Bound race is scheduled to go ahead on October 7–8 for the first time since the pandemic began in 2020, with Erin at the helm as one of this year’s co-race directors.
Julia Faragher is an artist and writer living in Canberra and is an intern with ABC Sport.
