I'm guessing that, by Nissan Navara, the 1,900 mile, 3,000km drive from Cairns, Queensland to Melbourne, Victoria, could be an interesting way for Mrs Fitz to say she has seen a bit of Australia...

If anyone from Cooktown to Townsville tonight sees a bright luminescent splendiferous glow in the sky, dont be concerned...it will just be me testing the Nissan Navara's massive Grand Array of headlights etc in the car park at Earlville. I reckon they could cook a curlew at about a mile...which ISNT exactly what I wish to do. It is a safety issue for night driving between home and work, along those torturous 4 kilometres of dangerous 6 lane ultra smooth roads in Cairns going through such places as Manunda and Cairns North. This is why I also have the 4WD capacity, the bullbar, the UHF radio, and the snorkel. We tough all-terrain Aussie blokes like to feel secure in case of...well...moths, spiders...etc.

Early Planning: Mrs Fitz and I are very good at early planning and are now into our 3rd 5 year plan. I have just tookend the Nissan Dual Cab 4x4 Common Rail turbo diesel Ute (The Mahayana Diamond Vehicle) to Ultratune for them to reconnect the Grand Array of Spot / Flood and Led Light bars, for the Townsville trip in November, inoperative since the local irascible rascal broke in and stole my dash cam and broke the turn-on light switch for the Grand Array. I haven't missed the dash cam at all and it was a pretty silly thing to have and did run counter to the Nissanistic '1998 artistic retrospective aesthetic of the 2015 ute' in terms of its profound simplicity. As Melbourne beckons, although yet to be confirmed, I will be selling the ute I expect. I expect we will put the Honda Jazz (a far more Melbournish vehicle) on the train and go by plane.

I must admit daughter DJWAWA looks kind of happy with the news about getting into RMIT 2017/ Sound engineering/moving image design

Old Chinese saying in relation to claims in the South China Sea, Hong Kong and Taiwan: "If your neighbour steals your bicycle and gives it to his son, it is still your bicycle".

Like all young men I set out to be a genius, but mercifully laughter intervened. (Lawrence Durrell)

The North Korean authorities have drastically tightened border security to block defections in the wake of recent flooding in North Hamgyong Province. At the same time, the Chinese government is also working to block defectors and has begun rebuilding a barbed wire fence that was damaged by the floodwaters.

The North Korean authorities have drastically tightened border security to block defections in the wake of recent flooding in North Hamgyong Province. At the same time, the Chinese government is also working to block defectors and has begun rebuilding a barbed wire fence that was damaged by the floodwaters.     

The Chinese government has assigned evening work to residents in the border areas in order to expedite the fence reconstruction. This indicates a level of high priority for the project. The government has also erected banners in the border region warning that residents who assist defectors will be fined 500 RMB (approximately U.S. $74). Residents are openly discouraged from coming into contact with defectors. 

In a telephone conversation with Daily NK on October 19, an inside source from China said, “In China’s Longjing City, Kaishyan Village, local residents are working night shifts to rebuild a barbed wire fence. The fence on the Chinese side was totally destroyed during the recent flooding. The authorities are hoping to block attempted defections by reconstructing the fence as soon as possible.” 

 

When asked about the atmosphere in the area, the source noted, “There’s been a lot of upheaval lately. Since the order came down, we’ve been quite busy. Plenty of Chinese people living in these areas are concerned that a large number of North Koreans will cross the border and commit crimes.” 

The Chinese authorities appear to be responding with a sense of urgency in order to prevent potential security issues associated with an increased number of defectors. 

Another Chinese source in the area said, “The Chinese authorities are prioritizing these kinds of projects in areas that have a high possibility for defector surges. Because North Korea’s economic situation has deteriorated in the border regions, there has been a steady stream of so called ‘livelihood crimes’ from North Koreans who cross the river. The Chinese government is taking proactive measures to try and stamp out this trend.”  

Daily NK has acquired images of signs on display in Kaishyan Village that warn of fines for local residents who aid defectors. Other signs encourage residents to give up their possessions quickly if threatened with violence by defectors.

“In the past, we have heard of some shocking stories about Chinese and North Korean border guards working together to smuggle drugs into the country. Residents are concerned about this type of criminal activity reoccurring,” the source added.

“These days, Chinese residents generally agree that it’s best to just quickly hand over your possessions if threatened by a defector. But most draw the line at providing shelter for the defectors; that is something most people won’t do.”