Triffic initiative in Victoria next week with the State’s Emergency Service (VICSES) unveiling its annual WOW Day as a way to recognise the thousands of volunteers who donate their time and risk their safety to protect the State’s communities all hours of the day and night fighting off storms, floods, road accidents, rescues and much more.
Launched by the Service itself with the explanation that WOW stands for ‘Wear Orange Wednesday’ and the invitation: “Our members wear a safe and distinctive shade of bright orange, and we want YOU to do the same.”
The official pre-publicity announcement came undone however when it turned to declaring that buildings, bridges, arenas, tunnels and other landmarks would all go orange as well.
“However, that’s the only thing you’ll see in orange!” the announcement announced imperfectly.
It looks to PS-sssst! that a recalcitrant ‘not’ had failed to take its place between the ‘that’s’ and the ‘the’, leaving readers with the vision of just one attraction!
Fortunately WOW is all go for next Wednesday (20 May) and the date and details for taking part are fully intact at this PS News link.
In Normal we trust
Always on the lookout for things that look out, PS-sssst! found its pedantry gland tickled more than once in recent weeks as media reports on the Coronavirus pandemic display the abnormality of promoting ‘normal’ from the adjective it is to the noun it should relatively easily become.
Depending on who we listen to, the social return we all hope for is either a hope for either ‘normality’ or a hope for ‘normalcy’?
What, PS-sssst! wonders, is the norm!
Dictionaries are no help.
Oxford defines normality as a ‘situation where everything is normal’ but it recognises ‘normalcy’ as a word from ‘North American English’.
North America’s Webster dictionary defines normalcy as ‘the state or fact of being normal’ but chooses not to recognise normality at all.
In the meantime our TV newsreaders and other journalists are riven – Normality for some, Normalcy for others.
What’s clearly missing here is a ‘Normative!’
Printing money
And while on the topic of journalists at a loss, spare a thought for the good officers of the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) entrusted with handing out $50 million of taxpayers’ money to the country’s bush-based newspapers facing a fatal future due to the invasion of the internet.
While $50M is a huge amount of taxpayers’ hard-earned, the chance of it making a difference in the bush is probably about 50 million to one too.
Just as Bill Clinton’s offsider made history pointing out ‘It’s the economy stupid’ PS-sssst! can state from experience that ‘It’s the audience, stupid’ when evaluating the success or otherwise of the publishing trade.
After 20 years of world-wide internet we can be pretty sure that if the good bushpersons of Bullamakanka want to know what their local Mothers Club is doing they’ll check it out on the club’s website; how their favourite local sports team is going they’ll check its website too and if they work in the Public Service locally they’ll check out PS News. If they needed a newspaper to tell them, they’d buy one.
Fortunately, ACMA has a clear view of whether the grants scheme works or not as the first round of payments were delivered almost two years ago and the results are well in by now. The test for the scheme will be the number of recipients from back then who line up for another grant this time.
The sad reality is that if their audience isn’t behind them and they want another grant this year, they’re just as likely to line up again next year, the year after and every year after that until they eventually, and possibly begrudgingly, accept their audience’s judgement.
Maybe with today’s taxpayer very likely to be un- or under-employed, virus-affected, stressed out, emotional and in need of every dollar she or he can find, they’d be better off served with a break.
Giving it away again!
To Rama Gaind’s weekly giveaway now in which three active and observant readers stand to win copies of the DVD police thriller Protect and Serve starring Thomas Jane, Luke Kleintank and Bridget Moynahan.
To be among the fortunate three, all we had to do was identify for Rama the actor who plays the ambitious rookie policeman in the movie, the answer to which was Luke Kleintank, an actor successfully named by Simon G from the Western Australian Department of Transport, Jennifer H from the Queensland Department of Housing and Public Works, and Robert M from the Federal Department of Social Services.
Congratulations to all the winners and thanks to everyone who also joined in the fun.
The DVDs will be on their collective ways soon.
For another of Rama’s giveaway goodies, simply follow this PS News link for her bonza book bounty or this link for another DVD delight.
Good luck to all who do.
Welcome mat
And finally, a warm, well-worn welcome to the 600+ public sector members who went to the trouble of subscribing to PS News during April, taking the PS News family to more than 163,000 cherished readers, every one of whom is personally appreciated, treasured and held dear by the same committed crew that has been pumping out PS News for almost 15 years.
With more than 100 pages a week of news, information, entertainment and advice on how to be the best Public Servants our country deserves, PS News has made it its duty to support the public sector when the main media have made it their duty to knock it, even when they don’t know what they’re talking about.
In tough times like today, your continued support makes it all worthwhile, energising us to do even more, try even harder and dig even deeper to repay you for your ongoing and long-standing support over so many years and through so many ups and downs.
So welcome to our new 600 comrades, 600 more reasons to keep the PS News fire burning.
And just a reminder, if any of the 600 – or anyone else for that matter – feels they shouldn’t be on our (top secret!) subscriber list, let us know so we can take your address off it.
Till next week…..
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