Wednesday, July 19, 2023
Comm Games cancelled; Mystery space capsule on WA beach; Aussie sailor found at sea; and pink burgers in Brazil’s Barbie mania.
LINKS
YES and NO arguments for Voice referendum: https://www.aec.gov.au/referendums/pamphlet.htm
Barbie burger: https://twitter.com/BurgerKingBR/status/1678858830334001153
Mystery space capsule:
Squiz Kids Book Club: https://www.squizkids.com.au/book_club/
Newshounds
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THE LOWDOWN
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Have you ever taken part in a debate? In your classroom perhaps – your teacher might have given you an argument – with one group in the class being told to take the affirmative- or YES – side – and the other group told to argue the negative – or NO side.
Well that’s what’s happening on a national scale at the moment as the referendum on an Indigenous Voice to Parliament looms ever closer.
Yesterday – the official arguments in favour and arguments against a Voice were published for all the country to read – with the YES and NO camps putting forward their pitches for why – when Australians go to the polls to vote in the referendum later this year – they should vote one way ot the other.
You’re going to hear a lot about the referendum in the coming month – and while all that politics and Canberra stuff might seem like a total snooze fest – it’s actually really interesting. Which is partly why we’re in the process of producing a special two-part series on referendums – keep an ear out for that.
The referendum on the Voice – which has nothing to do with Delta Goodrem or Guy Sebastian or spinning chairs, by the way – will ask Australians whether they’re in favour of changing the Constitution – or the rule book by which Australia is run – to give Indigenous Australians a say, or a voice, on matters that affect them and their communities.
According to the official arguments released yesterday, the YES camp reckon it’s about recognising Indigenous Australians and sending a powerful message about Australia’s unity – while the NO camp say it will be legally risky, will divide the nation and could have unknown consequences.
I’ve stuck links to both arguments in today’s episode notes – dive in and take a look. Because, as any good debater knows, the more you research, the better your argument will be.
– BREAK
Cue the spooky music … a mystery capsule from outer space has washed up on a Western Australia beach and no-one’s quite sure where it came from ..
The capsule was discovered washed up on a beach at Green Head – 250 kms north of Perth. And while for a moment social media went a little nuts – wondering aloud if it might be part of an alien spaceship – experts were yesterday suggesting it’s a piece of space junk – perhaps a fuel cylinder from an Indian rocket.
I’ve stuck a link to a photo of it in today’s episode notes ..
SPIN THE GLOBE
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Each day we give the world globe a spin and find a news story from wherever it stops .. and today we’ve landed in Brazil – where Barbie mania has reached new heights with the release of a Barbie themed hamburger .. complete with pink sauce.
Burger King in Brazil has released the special Barbie meal – complete with Ken’s Fries – ahead of the release of the Margot Robbie film which hits cinemas around the world tomorrow.
It’s just one example of how Barbiemania has swept the world – with pop stars Dua Lipa and Lizzo dressing in pink, and sales of pink scrunchies jumping in some countries by as much as 1000 percent. Which is a lot.
It’s called ‘Barbiecore’ and it’s a pink wave that’s making it way to our shores – where pink nail polish, pink glitter and pink feather boas are all expected to feature heavily.
Now where did I put my pink neon lycra hot pants?
SPORT TIME
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If you’ve been busily training for the 2026 Commonwealth Games – and let’s face it, who amongst us hasn’t? – then you might want to press pause on making any travel plans after Victorian Premier Dan Andrews yesterday announced he was going back on his offer to host them.
The people in London who organise the Commonwealth Games – which for Australian athletes at least, is a big deal – were yesterday left scrambling to find a new host city after the Victorian government pulled the pin – saying it was going to be too expensive.
The Games were announced with a great deal of fanfare in April last year – with a big deal made about the fact they’d be regional games, with events to take place in Shepparton and Bendigo and Ballarat. But – um – no. It’s all off.
Maybe I won’t need my pink neon lycra hot pants after all. For that cycling event I was going to take part in …
BELIEVE IT OR NOT
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Imagine floating at sea for two months … just you and your dog, somewhere off the coast of Mexico … without radio contact, without a working engine – no way of getting an SOS message to anyone. Because that’s what has happened to a Sydney man and his beloved pet dog, Bella – who was yesterday pulled from his broken boat by the Mexican coast guard.
Fifty-one year old Tim Shaddock from Sydney was sailing from Mexico to French Polynesia two months ago – a journey of some 6000 kms – when he got caught in a storm which disabled his boat and all its electronics. For two months he floated aimlessly about on ocean tides – surviving on raw fish that he managed to catch and rainwater.
Amazingly: he appeared to be in good health when authorities plucked him from the sea. Tim and Bella were yesterday being transported to a Mexican hospital – where he said he was looking forward to a good meal. You don’t say.
NEW SCHEDULE NEWS
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THE S’QUIZ
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This is the part of the podcast where you get to test how well you’ve been listening …
- In which Australian state has a mystery space capsule washed up on a beach?
- In which country has Burger King released a Barbie burger?
- What’s the name of the dog that survived two months at sea with its Aussie owner?
SHOUT OUTS
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It’s July 19 – the Aussie women’s cricket team have retained The Ashes after a thrilling one day game on Monday – today it’s the turn of the Aussie men’s team as what could be the deciding Test Match for The Ashes starts at Old Trafford in England. C’mon Aussies!
It’s also a special day for these Squiz Kids celebrating a birthday today… Wilson from Vermont South, Lachlan from Cronulla, Kuei (pronounced K-way) from Andrews Farm, Dawood from Ryde, Denzi from Echuca, Pippa from Clothiers Creek, Patrick from Killarney Vale and Blake from Jerilderie.
A belated birthday shout out goes to …. Amelia from Cherrybrook and Taj from Narraweena.
Also as a note: if you’re just tuning back in after the school holidays, we did lots of belated birthday shoutouts in last week’s podcasts – so if you missed yours, have a listen back – I’d just hate for you to think you missed out.
Classroom shoutouts today go to … class LA9 and Miss Davey at Atwell Primary School, class 5/6A and Mrs Wright at Austinmer Public School, class 5/6B and Miss Keenihan at Warracknabeal Primary School, class 5C and Miss Mace at Gulgong Primary School, to all the students at St Mary’s Catholic Primary School in Orange and to Ms Deroukakis and the students at St John’s College listening over in Johannesburg, South Africa.
And finally, a special shout out to Ms Snell’s class at St Elizabeth’s in Tarragindi – who sent in the rap they’d written about surfboard eating otters … you guys are the best! And JayZ better watch his back..
The S’Quiz Answers:
- Western Australia
- Brazil
- Bella