Johnson & Johnson has announced it will stop selling talc-based baby powder in Australia in 2023, as it transitions its popular, but controversial, global product to a cornstarch base.
Key points:
The company said the change was part of a “worldwide portfolio assessment” of its products
The company faces about 38,000 lawsuits from people who claim the talc caused cancer
Experts say the evidence available to prove that link is “far from established”
In a statement to the ABC, a company spokesperson said while its talc-based range would be discontinued globally, cornstarch-based powder was already being sold in Australia.
“As part of a worldwide portfolio assessment, we have made the commercial decision to transition to an all corn starch-based baby powder portfolio,” it said.
The move comes two years after it ended US sales due to thousands of consumer safety lawsuits.
Johnson & Johnson said the lawsuit had failed in the wake of “misinformation” about the product’s safety.
The company faces about 38,000 lawsuits from consumers and their survivors who claim the talc-based products caused cancer, due to contamination with asbestos which is a known carcinogen.
Johnson & Johnson has always denied the allegations and said decades of scientific testing and regulatory approvals have shown its talc to be safe and asbestos-free.
Experts like Professor Bernard Stewart from the Cancer Council have said the current evidence that talc-based powders caused cancer was “very slight” and “far from established.”
A family-friendly brand since 1894
Sold since 1894, Johnson’s Baby Powder became a symbol of the company’s family-friendly image.
But talcum powder has fallen out of favor with parents who are now choosing products that contain other natural ingredients to use on their babies’ skin.
In October, Johnson & Johnson spun off subsidiary LTL Management, assigned its talc claims to it and immediately placed it into bankruptcy, pausing the pending lawsuits.
Before the bankruptcy filing, the company faced costs of $US3.5 billion ($4.9 billion) in verdicts and settlements.
In one case, court records show 22 women were awarded more than $US2 billion.
A proposal by shareholders to end global sales of the talc baby powder failed in April.
An investigation by Reuters in 2018 found Johnson & Johnson knew for decades that small amounts of the carcinogen, asbestos, sometimes presented in its talc products.
Johnson & Johnson has always said its talc products are safe and do not cause cancer.
While some modern cars can play video games on their entertainment systems, one TikTok user has taken the idea to a new extreme by fitting his MX-5 with accessories from a Nintendo Wii.
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A TikTok gamer in the UK has converted a first-generation Mazda MX-5 into a tribute for Nintendo’s Wii console.
Initially spotted by gaming website VG247British gamer Tyler Atkin (aka @ttptng) has been gradually swapping his first-generation MX-5’s standard Mazda interior parts for accessories from the Nintendo Wii.
Dubbed the “Wiiata” – a play on the ‘Miata’ name used for the Mazda MX-5 in North America – Atkin replaced the original steering wheel for the steering controller accessory used for racing games on the Nintendo Wii.
While the toy plastic steering wheel is likely no match for the sturdiness and feel of the original leather-wrapped, from what we can gather it may not be illegal for road use given the original MX-5 wasn’t fitted with an airbag.
Atkin also decided to swap the MX-5’s gear knob for the Nintendo Wii’s ‘nunchuck’ controller as well as replacing the car’s stock hand brake cover for the Wii’s ‘baseball bat’ accessory – both of which required minor modifications before installation.
To cap off the build, the car’s standard radio was removed and replaced by a Nintendo Wii console.
Atkin later mounted a small screen on the dash, making the Wii totally playable in all conditions – but illegal to do so while driving.
As the finishing touch, the original Mazda MX-5 floor mats were removed in favor of Nintendo Wii yoga mats, trimmed to fit with the contours of the car’s footwells.
It’s not yet known if Atkin will repaint the exterior of his quirky Mazda MX-5, however gamers believe it would be remiss of him not to adopt a Mario Kart-themed paint job.
Jordan Mulach is Canberra/Ngunnawal born, currently residing in Brisbane/Turrbal. Joining the Drive team in 2022, Jordan has previously worked for Auto Action, MotorsportM8, The Supercars Collective and TouringCarTimes, WhichCar, Wheels, Motor and Street Machine. Jordan is a self-described iRacing addict and can be found on weekends either behind the wheel of his Octavia RS or swearing at his ZH Fairlane.
R.Kelly‘s federal trial in Chicago that starts on Monday is in many ways a do-over of his 2008 state child pornography trial, at which jurors acquired the singer on charges that he produced a video of himself when he was around 30 having sex with a girl not older than 14.
There’s one big difference: This time, prosecutors say, she will testify.
Kelly goes into Chicago federal court already sentenced by a New York federal judge to a 30-year prison term for a 2021 conviction on charges he parlayed his fame to sexually abuse other young fans.
READMORE: A timeline of the case against R. Kelly
R. Kelly leaves the Leighton Criminal Court building in Chicago on June 6, 2019. (AP)
Among the most serious charges the Grammy Award winner faces at his federal trial is conspiracy to obstruct justice by rigging the 2008 trial, including by paying off and threatening the girl to ensure she did not testify.
Testimony by the woman, now in her 30s and referred to in filings only as “Minor 1”, will be pivotal. The charges against Kelly also include four counts of the enticement of minors for sex — one count each for four other accusers. All are also slated to testify.
Even just one or two convictions in Chicago could add decades to Kelly’s New York sentence, which he is appealing. With the New York sentence alone, Kelly will be around 80 before qualifying for early release.
Prosecutors at the federal trial plan to play the same VHS tape that was “Exhibit No. 1” at the 2008 trial. While it was the only video in evidence 14 years ago, at least three other videos will be entered into evidence at the federal trial.
Prosecutors say Kelly shot the video of Minor 1 in a log cabin-themed room at his North Side Chicago home between 1998 and 2000 when she was as young as 13. In it, the girl is heard calling the man “daddy.” Federal prosecutors say that she and Kelly had sex hundreds of times over the years in his homes, recording studios and tour buses.
Before the 2008 trial, Kelly carried a duffle bag full of sex tapes everywhere he went for years, but some tapes later went missing, according to court filings. In the 2000s, bootleg copies of some videos appeared on street corners across the US.
READMORE: Khloe Kardashian’s ex breaks silence after welcoming baby number two
R. Kelly performs at the BET Awards in Los Angeles on June 30, 2013. (Frank Micelotta/Invision/AP)
Kelly, who rose from poverty on Chicago’s South Side to become a star singer, songwriter and producer, knew a conviction in 2008 would effectively end his life as he knew it.
On June 13, 2008, Kelly shut his eyes tight and bowed his head as jurors returned from deliberations. As a court official read the jury’s decision and it became clear Kelly would be acquitted on all counts, tears streamed down his cheeks from him and he said over and over, “Thank you, Jesus.”
Two Kelly associates, Derrel McDavid and Milton Brown, are co-defendants in Chicago. McDavid is accused of helping Kelly fix the 2008 trial, while Brown is charged with receiving child pornography. Like Kelly, they have also denied any wrongdoing.
Double jeopardy rules bar the prosecution of someone for the same crimes they were acquired of earlier. But that shouldn’t apply to the Chicago federal trial because prosecutors are alleging different crimes related to Minor 1, including obstruction of justice for fixing the 2008 trial.
Minor 1 first met Kelly in the late 1990s when she was in junior high school. She had tagged along to Kelly’s Chicago recording studio with her aunt, a professional singer working with Kelly’s music. Soon after that meeting, Minor 1 told her parents of her Kelly was going to be her godfather of her.
READMORE: Hilary Duff reveals her daughter was diagnosed with hand, foot and mouth disease
A file photo of R. Kelly during a hearing at the Leighton Criminal Court in Chicago in 2019. (AP)
In the early 2000s, the aunt showed the parents a copy of a video she said depicted their daughter having sex with Kelly. When they confronted Kelly, he told them, “You’re with me or against me,” a government filing says.
The parents took it as a threat.
“Minor 1’s mother did not want to go up against Kelly’s power, money, and influence by not following what he said,” the filing adds.
Kelly told the parents and Minor 1 they had to leave Chicago, paying for them to travel to the Bahamas and Cancun, Mexico. When they returned, prosecutors say Kelly sought to isolate Minor 1, moving her around to different hotels.
When called before a state grand jury looking into the video, Minor 1, her father and mother denied it was her in it. Prosecutors say an attorney for Kelly sat in on their testimony and reported back to Kelly what they said.
Prosecutors from the Cook County state’s attorney’s office chose to push ahead with charges and to take the case to trial in 2008 despite what they knew was a major hurdle: their inability to call the girl in the video to testify.
Any confidence Kelly may have had of beating similar charges a second time were likely dashed when he learned Minor 1 was now cooperating the government. With more resources, federal prosecutors also boast conviction rates of more than 90 per cent compared to around 65 per cent for their state counterparts.
In 2008, his lawyers argued the man in the VHS video who appeared very much to be Kelly was not Kelly. They showed jurors that Kelly has a large mole on his back of him, then played excerpts of the video in which no mole was visible on the man.
A file photograph of R. Kelly arriving at the Cook County Criminal Court Building, in Chicago in 2008. (AP)
One of Kelly’s attorneys, Sam Adam Jr., told jurors during closings that no mole on the man’s back meant one thing: “It ain’t him. And if it ain’t him, you can’t convict.”
Some 2008 jurors told reporters after the trial that they weren’t convinced the female in the video was who state prosecutors said she was.
That shouldn’t be an issue at the Chicago federal trial. Prosecutors say both the girl and her parents of her will testify.
What defense Kelly’s legal team will present this time isn’t clear.
The defense is likely to say Kelly’s accusers are misrepresenting the facts. Kelly was more blunt in a 2019 interview with Gayle King of CBS This Morningsaying about the women: “All of them are lying.”
It was either the Dalai Lama or Shania Twain who once said, “OK, so you’re Brad Pitt? That don’t impress me much”.
But Brad Pitt is not the kind of guy who cares about impressing the Dalai Lama and Shania Twain. He knows he impresses everyone else. That’s why he’s now taking confident strides into the next era of his life from him and embarking on a style revolution.
The 58-year-old has been hitting the red carpets over recent weeks for the premiere of his new movie Bullet Train while rocking a distinct new lewk.
The key fashion elements? Cakes and skorts.
Classic. Timeless. Sophisticated. I wore the same thing to my formal school.
Brad has entered a new phase. Throughout his career, he has transitioned smoothly from Hollywood heart-throb to bona fide movie star. Now he’s keen to explore the territory of eccentric artist.
And, look: We’ll accept Brad Pitt any way we can get him. He has reached a point where he can do whatever he wants and we’ll continue to take him seriously.
In the past, the actor has been accused by memes of stealing his girlfriends’ styles. He cut his hair like Gwyneth Paltrow when the pair dated in the ’90s. I borrowed Jen Aniston’s sea salt spray in the 2000s. And when he started dating Angelina, it seemed the pair made frequent trips to the blow bar together.
But his latest style revolution is truly one to behold. Is he simply being an eccentric artist? Or has he suddenly slipped into competing with the TikTok kids?
Whoever thought we’d see the day where Brad Pitt is trying to keep up with the internet’s boyfriends Timothée Chalamet and Harry Styles — with their flamboyant fashion choices of crushed velvet and bold statement patterns.
In Berlin I rocked a pink shirt, combat boots, and kilt. Then he brought a burst of color to LA with a green suit and yellow sneakers. Other appearances have seen him donning zip-up tops, relaxed jacket-shirts and baggy drawstring pants in a variety of pastel hues.
Asked about the skirt and his latest sartorial explorations, the actor simply replied: “I don’t know! We’re all going to die, so let’s mess it up”.
He makes it sound like there’s not much thought going into it at all – that he’s just taking life as it comes. But coordinated pastels don’t just happen. Co-ordinated pastels are achieved through many meetings with stylists who strategize with Pinterest boards.
For us regular people, you get to a certain age where it’s just too late for a style revolution.
When you’re younger, you can experiment with looks and people. But by the time you reach your 30s, you’ve pretty much settled into who you are. Your style is as predictable and expected as Bart Simpson’s blue shorts and orange shirt combo.
A style revolution doesn’t just affect your own life. It rocks the worlds of everyone around you. Like, imagine if your dad just started wearing accessories.
Or if your mum became one of those annoying people who really overcommits to 1950s rockabilly fashion.
Even a colleague. If your middle-aged boss waltzed into the office tomorrow morning wearing a bowler hat, it would throw the workplace off its axis. No deadlines would be met that day. The pings would be going insane.
It takes a certain kind of confidence to wake up one morning and decide on a whim that you’ll now become Bowler Hat Guy. And it’s foolish to think that the rest of the world will accept it without comment.
Remember when Karl Stefanovic shook up his personal life a few years ago and went through his own style revolution by trying to be Matthew McConaughey with a fedora and braided leather bracelets? We all had a field day.
A style revolution is only for the brave. Like those women who decide they’re going to exclusively wear purple until the end of time. They dedicate their entire lives to purple like it’s a religion. Suddenly, their entire wardrobes are a patchwork of magenta and violet. Amethyst. Lilac, plum and mauve.
They usually also get a purple streak in their hair. Then paint the front door of their home a glossy shellacked purple. If you spot one of these women in the wild, follow them to the car park and you’ll find she probably drives a purple Honda Jazz.
It goes without saying Brad’s new style revolution would be tipping his ex Angelina Jolie over the edge. Her mates of her will have been texting her relentlessly after every red carpet appearance of her: “Did ya see the skort?”
Seeing an ex move on with their life is annoying enough. But seeing an ex go through a style revolution? Enraging. Who the hell do they think they are?
In Australia, a style revolution of Brad Pitt’s scale just wouldn’t fly. Russell Crowe? The country couldn’t handle it. We as a nation will only ever allow Rusty to wear that one black Best & Less tracksuit.
In a white-walled room inside a community center in Sydney’s inner west, about 20 people are sitting in a circle.
One of them, a young man in a beanie, starts reading from a pamphlet:
“Corporate and institutional power is driving the climate crisis and blocking climate action.”
He’s a member of Blockade Australia, the protest group which shut down parts of Sydney in late June.
Today — June 26 — is the day before that happened.
“The very system we’re in is one of domination, so to resist that we have to be able to organize in a different way — organizing non-hierarchically and co-existing non-hierarchically.”
Sitting on a floor of rough gray carpet tiles, the small audience is nodding in agreement as the young man in a beanie continues.
“Blockade Australia is a coordinated response that aims to develop a culture of effective resistance through strategic direct action.”
This is the planning and preparation workshop held 24 hours before the protests which stopped thousands of Sydney commuters from getting to work on time on June 27.
“This is systemic, a system called Australia, a system that’s been extracting and dispossessing on this continent for centuries now.”
Phrases like “so-called Australia” are common parlance here. An Aboriginal flag features prominently on the wall above the man addressing the group.
The message, essentially, is this: Australia’s economy is inherently exploitative and extractive and if catastrophic global warming is to have a chance of being prevented, Australia as we know it must be stopped in its tracks.
Not surprisingly, for politicians, the police and much of the public, that’s a lot to swallow.
But it makes perfect sense to Elizabeth Hartick who is at the back of the room that Sunday, sitting on a stool.
“People say to us over and over again, isn’t there another way? Can’t you be more polite and write letters and do things through the proper channels?”
“But it hasn’t worked. It hasn’t worked.”
Elizabeth Hartick puts Blockade Australia stickers up on a Melbourne street.(ABC News: Danielle Bonica)
‘The right to protest is on a slippery slope’
Elizabeth is a retired Melbourne university administrator and researcher, and a grandmother, too. She’s 74, but she bristles with bright-eyed energy.
She has formed as a climate change protester in Melbourne with groups like Extinction Rebellion. She’s had run-ins with the police before but she has no convictions.
“I figure that what I can do with the last couple of decades I’ve got of my life, [is] put myself on the line to make a noise and to keep attention focused on the issue,” she says.
Elizabeth has traveled here from Victoria to attend the workshop. There are classes on how to occupy space in non-violent ways and a medical briefing telling people what to do if they’re pepper-sprayed.
But it’s the legal briefing that Elizabeth’s come to hear.
“The main thing is this issue with the punitive, repressive fines and jail terms that they’re threatening us with,” she says.
Elizabeth’s referring to amendments to the NSW Roads Act, which passed back in April.
The changes make it an offense punishable by up to two years jail and/or a $22,000 fine if anyone damages or seriously disrupts or obstructs the Sydney Harbor Bridge or Tunnel or “other main roads”.
Everyone here, the day before the June protests, knows about these laws because they’re being told about them by the young woman leading the legal briefing:
“This is a scare tactic and it’s just one of the ways that this devolution of protest laws and human rights, the right to protest, is kind of on a slippery slope in so-called Australia.”
Elizabeth’s tuned in and confident she can avoid arrest.
“I think I can handle myself like I have in the past. If I’m told to get off the road by the police, then I’ll just get off the road,” she says.
“So I’m pretty sure that I can avoid getting arrested in this sort of situation.”
Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume.
Police break up climate protesters in Sydney CBD
The protest
It’s about 8am on Monday, June 27, and Sydney’s Harbor Tunnel is in crisis.
At the North Sydney end, a small white car has parked across several lanes, stopping thousands of commuters from getting to work on time.
Inside that car, a young woman is broadcasting via Facebook live, speaking into her phone with her neck bike-locked to the car’s steering wheel.
“My name is Mali. I’m 22. I’m currently locked on to a car at the start of the Sydney Harbor Tunnel in protest of the climate destruction that is happening on this continent right now.”
Mali Cooper has traveled to Sydney from flood-devastated Lismore.
“I’ve watched mass devastation happen up there this year with two one in 100-year floods that have happened. This is climate change. It is here. It is happening now.”
As Mali speaks, a growing number of traffic-jammed commuters are getting furious.
“There are some really angry people who are screaming and threatening me and banging on doors. The police are on their way and I’m not sure how long this is going to happen for. I’m a bit overwhelmed.”
Behind Mali, a man is approaching her car window. Her camera captures him leaning in… his face distorted with fury.
“You’re f**king everyone’s day up, you dumb c**t. Get the f**k out of the way. You f**ing selfish c**t.”
At the same time, on the other side of the harbour, Elizabeth Hartick is among the Blockade Australia protesters walking out of Hyde Park and marching down various streets in Sydney’s CBD.
She’s nowhere near the Sydney Harbor Bridge or the Tunnel and manages to avoid arrest.
“I’m honored to be amongst them. I’m happy to be here. I think we’re all fighting for a good cause. I’m really glad to be on their side,” she says.
Ten people were arrested that day and nine were charged. Elizabeth isn’t among them.
So she heads out again for the second day of protests in Sydney’s CBD.
Blockade Australia protests in June 2022(ABC News: Jake Lapham)
‘You’ve been placed under arrest’
The next day, I catch up with her a bit after 8am near the low sandstone wall that wraps around Hyde Park in Sydney’s CBD.
“We just want to keep putting the pressure on, putting the pressure on. We’re at the pointy end so that people start to take notice of what the reality is,” she says.
Elizabeth’s fired up.
“You’ve got to work hard to understand the immensity of the problem that we are facing. And very few people really do.
“They sort of say, Oh yeah, we know about climate change. We’ve been hearing about it for years. Well, but what the f**k has happened?
“You know, we try to do stuff with our plastic and recycling and things like that. It’s going to take a much bigger… a much bigger project”
Members of Blockade Australia the day after the Harbor Bridge protest.(AAP: Flavio Brancaleone)
As we’re talking, a detective approaches us.
“We’re from South Sydney police. What was your name, sorry?
“At this stage, I’ll just let you know that you’re … under arrest in regards to yesterday’s protest. You’ve been identified as being present there.”
Elizabeth is being arrested not for what she was doing right now, but because she was filmed the day before marching with the protesters.
“It’s alleged that whilst you were present and protesting, you were disturbing a major road, and that’s now a new offense under the Crimes Act. And so for that offense, yesterday, you’ve been placed under arrest.”
She’s been charged under the section which refers to the Sydney Harbor Bridge and Tunnel.
In other words, she’s been identified as someone who obstructed one of the “other main roads” that have been attached to a section that deals with the Sydney Harbor bridge and Tunnel.
‘We had to take action’
To find out which roads the amendments to the Roads Act apply to, I go to see the NSW Roads Minister Natalie Ward.
It turns out that when it comes to climate change protesters, she’s experienced them herself.
“One morning I sat there on the Spit Bridge in that traffic and saw the family next to me in the car with three kids in their school uniforms trying to get to school, a stressed parent, people trying to get to work and just go about their daily lives,” she says.
“That really brought home the scale of the interruption. So we felt that we had to take action.”
NSW Roads Minister Natalie Ward says protest is a “fundamental right of everybody in this country”. (AAP: Bianca De Marchi)
Ward says she’s a passionate supporter of more action on climate change and supports the right to protest.
“That for me is a fundamental right of everybody in this country. But we also need to balance that with our obligations as a community to respect each other.”
Looking out from her office window in Sydney’s Martin Place, there’s a spectacular view. I ask the minister if she can point out the roads which it’s OK to walk on without fear of being jailed for two years.
“There’s nothing illegal about walking on streets,” she says.
“You can’t walk on the roads unless you’ve organized to do so, unless you’re crossing voluntarily at traffic lights when the light is green.
“I don’t want to be trite about this. This is important, sensible legislation that I think, you know, puts in place a real standard for behaviour.”
Essentially the minister is saying that you can walk on roads as long as you’re acting peacefully and not obstructing them.
She tells me the list of roads which you can’t obstruct is easy to find.
“We’ve put out there where… those roads are and are not.”
But the web address provided to me only links to a general page for Transport NSW.
After further inquiries, her office provides me with a list of roads to which the amendments apply.
Almost 8,000 roads, tollways and freeways are included in that list, along with about 700 “main roads” across NSW.
Essentially this means that unauthorized protesters in NSW who obstruct hundreds of main roads can be jailed for up to two years under a law designed to protect the Sydney Harbor Bridge and Tunnel.
Elizabeth Hartick at home in Melbourne(ABC News: Danielle Bonica)
The waiting game
All of the Blockade Australia protesters have pleaded not guilty to the offense of obstructing the Bridge, the Tunnel or “other main roads”.
Except 22-year-old Mali Cooper — who parked a car across the entrance to Sydney Harbor Tunnel in North Sydney.
None of their hearings are expected to be before court before next year.
Until then, many are banned from entering NSW and from using encrypted apps on their phones or from communicating with each other in any way at all.
Elizabeth Hartrick is back at home in Melbourne, feeling isolated and alone.
She’s been hoping to soon visit her grandchildren in New Zealand, but strict bail conditions may prevent her.
In spite of all this—her resolve is unwavering.
“I can’t not do this. I can’t not do this. I can’t just sit at home, you know, being a retired granny. And not get out there and bloody do what I can,” she says.
“Social change hasn’t happened without some kind of rebellion or revolution. And that we’ve got to do it… we can’t keep sleepwalking.”
The Roosters have delivered a commanding performance against Payten’s high-flying Cowboys, winning 32-18.
It was a night to forget for the North Queensland side, who made their first appearance at the historic Sydney Cricket Ground — while Trent Robinson’s side continued their five-game winning streak heading into finals football.
Roosters enforcer Victor Radley took over in the first 16 minutes, recording two try assists.
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The first came from a floated rainbow pass to find young gun winger Joseph Suaalii, and then moments later the No.13 hit Matt Lodge with a short pass to cross untouched.
“No one was expecting that, the defense weren’t ready for it and didn’t read it,” Fox League’s Greg Alexander said.
In the process, Lodge broke a 43-game try-scoring drought before the Cowboys struck back.
Luciano Leilua cleverly tipped the ball on to find winger Murray Taulagi, but the Roosters wouldn’t sit down.
Tricolours center Paul Momirovski found space on the left side of the field, hitting winger Daniel Tupou to score with a diving effort.
To kick-off the second half, hooker Sam Verrills threw a huge dummy, opening a clear passage off the back of a scrum to score.
Payten’s men then scored their second and final try of the afternoon, courtesy of a Griffin Neame offload to Reece Robson.
It looked like the men from Townsville would mount a late comeback, but once again the Roosters were able to shut them down with a pair of tries.
Enforcer Jared Waerea-Hargreaves charged over with a “big run” before Verrills scored his second of the night, surprising himself in the process.
The Cowboys scored a late Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow four-pointer after a Tom Dearden effort but it was a consolation try in the overall picture of the contest.
Read below for the three key takeaways from this afternoon’s clash!
ROOSTERS FRONT ROW MASTERCLASS
The Roosters starting front row pairing of Matt Lodge and Jared Warea-Hargreaves stunned the Cowboys early and laid the platform for their side to take a 10-0 lead after only 17 minutes.
In the first 24 minutes of the contest, Warea-Hargreaves hit 100 running meters, while his partner tallied 86 in a brutal showing.
The former Warriors big man even came away with a four-pointer and broke a 43-game try scoring drought in the process, earning praise from Fox League’s Greg Alexander.
“The two front rowers have been outstanding to start the game, both Lodge and Warea-Hargreaves, they know they enjoy the bulk of the possession,” Alexander said.
“17 minutes into the game and now they combine to get the Roosters their second try, it has gone from a fast start to a red-hot start.”
Then in the 65th minute, Waerea-Hargreaves grabbed a try of his own to complete the pair’s stellar night.
“Warea Hargreaves, he really is a warrior here,” Fox League’s Andrew Voss said.
“Both of them have been outstanding today, the opening 20 minutes from both has set up what the Roosters has done throughout the game,” Alexander said.
“Big moment, front rowers scoring, rare thing that they both grab one.”
As a duo, Lodge and Waerea-Hargreaves finished with 320 running meters, two tries, six tackle breaks and two line breaks.
Their 320 run meters were more than the entire Cowboys starting pack while it was the first time since 1982 that the entire Roosters starting front row scored a try.
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RADLEY’S IMPRESSIVE SHOWING
English rugby league fans got a good glimpse of what they could be seeing in this year’s World Cup after a stellar showing from Roosters enforcer Victor Radley.
It took only 16 minutes for the 24-year-old to rack up two try assists, finding Joseph Suaalii with a floated rainbow pass before executing a short ball to Matt Lodge to cross untouched.
“Victor Radley in a World Cup year, England pretty impressed with what they have just seen,” Voss said.
“Radley has manufactured a pass… body jammed up, had to throw it awkwardly but found the mark,” Alexander said.
“Victor Radley having a great time out here on the SCG, he has already got two try assists in this all-important matchup,” Fox League’s Lara Pitt said.
“Of course we know now he will feature in the World Cup wearing England colours.”
Radley was dubbed “the best player on the field” in the opening 40 minutes by Fox League’s Corey Parker, finishing the night with impressive statistics.
Radley recorded 97 running meters, two tackle breaks, two line break assists, two try assists and 33 tackles in a game-defining display.
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SUAALII’S EXCITING DISPLAY
Joseph Suaalii has again shown why he is one of the competition’s most exciting players with a strong display against the Cowboys.
The 19-year-old scored for the first try of the night, and though all four wingers crossed in the contest, Fox league’s Cooper Cronk labeled him the best of the bunch.
“Good day for the wingers… Suaalii has been the pick of the wingers so far,”
“Suaalii has got a really good ability of being really physical and doing the hard work, but the try as well and the line breaks.
“He is a very good player this young man.”
The young gun came up with a number of big tackles in the first half, highlighted by a brutal hit on Cowboys fullback Scott Drinkwater.
Suaalii is fast becoming one of the competition’s most exciting defenders and that factor is what “excites” Fox League’s Corey Parker the most.
“The thing that excites me most about Suaalii is his ability and want to go after the contact,” Parker said.
“Off the kick-off or play two he is ripping straight into the teeth of the middle defenders and he has done it all season.”
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If you’ve been on the lookout for a robot vacuum to help you clean your home, a new sale at Wellbots gives you the chance to pick up some of iRobot’s most advanced devices for less. The Roomba j7 and j7+ robo-vacs are both $200 off when you use the code ENGAGET200 at checkout, bringing them down to $399 and $599, respectively. If you want to go all-out, you can also get $200 off the Roomba s9+ using the same code and get it for $799.
Buy Roomba j7 at Wellbots – $399 Buy Roomba j7+ at Wellbots – $599 Buy Roomba s9+ at Wellbots – $799
Both the j7 series and the s9+ earned spots in our best robot vacuums guide. The j7 models are better for most people because they’re cheaper and still have a ton of advanced features. iRobot came out with these models about one year ago and billed them as their first pet poop-detecting robo-vacs. AI-driven computer vision helps these machines navigate around obstacles more efficiently, which means they should be able to avoid any accidents your pets have on your floors. Plus, if they don’t avoid the mess, iRobot promises it’ll send you a new vacuum to replace your soiled one.
In use, the Roomba j7 cleans both carpeted and hard floors well and it navigates back to its charging base before it runs out of battery. If you go for the j7+, you’ll get a clean base as well, which is essentially a garbage can attached to the charging dock into which the robot empties its bin after each job. If you really don’t like vacuuming and want to interact with your machine as little as possible, the clean base will come in handy since it can hold up to 60 days worth of debris.
As for the Roomba s9+, it’s probably overkill for most people — but it’s one of the best robot vacuums available today. It has a sleek design and, since it has 40x the suction power of a standard Roomba, it cleans floors really well and does a good job picking up pet hair. It also returns to its clean base after each job and it’ll empty its dustbin automatically. Both it and the j7 series can connect to iRobot’s mobile app, allowing you to start cleaning jobs remotely and set schedules and check in on the machine if it gets stuck anywhere in your home. iRobot’s app is another major selling point for these devices — it’s pretty straight-forward and easy to use, so if it’s your first time using a robot vacuum, it won’t be too hard to set it up and customize it to your liking.
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Programs including Teach for Australia and La Trobe University’s Nexus program already enable professionals to obtain a teaching qualification in less than two years while working in a school.
Australian Education Union federal president Correna Haythorpe, who attended the roundtable meeting, said the union had reservations about giving career changers accelerated entry into the teaching profession.
“We believe that every child deserves a fully qualified teacher,” Haythorpe said. “We don’t think that training someone up for six to eight weeks then putting them in front of the classroom and letting them develop their skills on the job over two years is an appropriate way to go.”
Haythorpe said that to retain teachers, it was important to give them proper pay and better conditions and not pit teachers against each other with performance-based bonuses.
“It’s not the case that one teacher is solely responsible for changing a student’s life; that takes a community of teachers. So if we’re serious about retaining the workforce, we have to have proper pay and conditions for everybody.”
The NSW government said ahead of the meeting that it was looking to introduce new teaching jobs with salaries of up to $130,000 a year to stop an exodus of educators.
NSW Education Minister Sarah Mitchell said the higher salaries were about “rewarding excellence and making sure that our best teachers don’t feel that they have to leave the classroom … to get a higher salary or to get career progression”.
Federal Education Minister Jason Clare speaking in Canberra, after hosting a teacher workforce conference.Credit:alex ellinghausen
Victorian Education Minister Natalie Hutchins said the Andrews government’s recent workplace agreement with public school teachers had focused more on easing workload than boosting salaries, with a commitment to give teachers 90 minutes less face-to-face teaching time each week from next year.
“That comes at a massive investment of around $700 million, which equates to an investment in 1900 more teachers,” Hutchins said.
Associate Professor Rachel Wilson, of Sydney University’s School of Education and Social Work, said Australia already effectively had a performance-based pay system for teachers – the private school system – in which teachers often attract higher salaries.
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“We are currently the only wealthy nation that sends its brightest and most experienced teachers to our most advantaged schools,” Wilson said.
Clare said the Albanese government was keen to prioritize visa applications for international teachers who want to work in Australia.
December’s national action plan will also seek to elevate the teaching profession in response to feedback that teachers feel undervalued.
the Overwatch Anniversary Remix Vol. 3 event is going on, and it’ll mark the last time players can purchase loot boxes in the game. Since this game was arguably the title that first implemented the mechanic in a way the general public found acceptable, it’s truly the end of an era.
Overwatch scraps loot box purchases after six years
Blizzard previously announced that Overwatch 2 would do away with loot boxes, but the cut-off date is coming a little earlier than anticipated. In the official blog for the Overwatch Anniversary Remix Vol. 3 event, the company dropped the news that loot box purchases would end at the event’s conclusion on August 30. After that, Overwatch players can earn loot boxes as usual. However, if you have any left when Overwatch 2 launches, they’ll be automatically opened and the contents added to your armory.
While plenty of titles have had loot boxes over the years, Overwatch was one of the first that implemented them in a way that most players found tolerable. However, the mechanic has recently begun to come under fire by politicians as a form of gambling, and paid cosmetic stores and battle passes are becoming the norm. As a result, Overwatch 2 will join the likes of Apex Legends, Fortnite, and Call of Duty by adopting a similar system.
Of course, some believe Overwatch’s success inspired rampant monetization throughout the traditional gaming space. They criticize the season pass system as being as toxic as loot boxes due to its manipulation of players with limited availability cosmetics. Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) is a powerful psychological tool, and it’s argued that it’s as effective (if not more) than the gambling mechanic loot boxes present in generating negative spending habits.
In other news, Activision apologies for stolen Call of Duty dog skin, and Forspoken’s latest trailer was meme-tastic.
State, territory and federal energy ministers have started the process for significant reforms to Australia’s energy future.
The ministers met on Friday in Canberra where they received a briefing from energy market operators and the consumer watchdog on expected gas and electricity shortfalls in 2023 and 2024.
On top of the agenda was the establishment of a new National Energy Transformation Partnership (NETP) to better collaborate on Australia’s transition to greater reliance on renewables in the electricity grid.
Federal Climate and Energy Minister Chris Bowen announced that as part of the new NETP, emissions reduction would be included in the national energy objectives for market operators.
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Mr Bowen said the decision would send a “very clear” message of certainty to investors and would ensure emissions reduction is at the forefront of every aspect of energy market operators’ functions.
“This might not sound much, this is the first change to the national energy objectives in 15 years this is important,” he said in Canberra on Friday.
“It sends a very clear direction to our energy market operators that they must include emissions reduction in the work that they do.
“And the message of certainty to investors in renewable energy and transition and storage around the world that Australia is open for business, Australia is determined to reduce emissions.
“And we welcome investment to achieve it and we will provide a stable and certain policy framework.”
The ministers also agreed to extend the powers of the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) to better manage east coast supply shortfall risks.
It will also provide AEMO with the option of direct market participation ahead of winter 2023.
In its interim gas report, the Australian consumer watchdog warned of a serious shortfall in natural gas in 2023.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commissions (ACCC) said LNG exporters needed to redirect excess supplies to the domestic market or Australia would risk its energy security heading into next year.
It comes after AEMO intervened in the Victorian gas market to redirect excess supply from Queensland producers to avoid mass shortages in the southern state – using its emergency mechanism for the second time in history.
The ministers joined the ACCC in calling for producers to redirect excess gas to the domestic consumers rather than the lucrative export market.
NSW Energy Minister Matt Kean said it was a “non-negotiable” for his state when it came to protecting households and businesses.
“What we don’t want to see is domestic gas producers prioritizing profits and exports ahead of local users, that is a non-negotiable for us in New South Wales,” he said.
“There is going to be a shortfall in gas in 2023 and 2024. That shortfall needs to be met.
“And what we need to do is prioritize Australian gas for Australian gas users ahead of companies making super profits and exporting that gas offshore.”
His Victorian counterpart Lily D’Ambrosio shared the concerns and said the country produced “more than sufficient gas” to meet domestic needs but “too much of it was sent overseas”.
“And that’s got to change and that’s really the task of all of us and we’re all up for it. And we’ve all agreed about how we can go about doing that,” she said.
On top of the gas market reforms, the ministers also discussed a future capacity mechanism to ensure firming power in the grid during the transition away from coal.
Senior federal and jurisdictional officials have now been charged to provide options for a framework which delivers “adequate capacity, ensures orderly transition, and incentivises new investment in firm renewable energy.”
“Ministers intend to take a more active role in delivering the firming capacity needed as the system transforms and consider the best means to manage the risks of a disorderly exit of coal generation,” the joint communique said.
