The Pentagon has denied that,but locally the claims won’t have come as a surprise to Greens senatorPeter Whish-Wilson,who has been pursuing the matter of little green men from Mars in parliament for several years.
David Grusch testifies before the US Congress on the subject of UFOs.Reuters
Whish-Wilson has repeatedly used Senate estimates to quiz the military about – producing this exchange late last year.
Senator Penny Wong:Is this a UFO question?
Whish-Wilson:You could call them UFOs,if you like,Senator Wong. They are now technically known as unidentified aerial phenomena.
Wong:Just so I am clear.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong has backed the US over its shooting down of a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon.
Whish-Wilson:Do you think it is funny?
Undeterred by Wong’s obvious amusement,Whish-Wilson pressed ahead,eventually getting the military to concede that “if there are issues raised that we thought were relevant to the safety and security of operations in our airspace then we would be seriously concerned about it”.
Whish-Wilson did not wish to comment further on Sunday,but CBD understands he’s encouraged by the growing seriousness with which this is all being taken. We can all wear our tinfoil hats proudly.
In an effort to get a sense of the public mood,CBD tried to contact Australia’s local UFO watchers. The Australian UFO Research Network advertises a** to call in UFO sightings,but it seems to be disconnected – unfortunate. But they are still.
“New members always warmly welcomed. If anyone has seen a UFO or has other interesting information we would all love to hear about it.”
BRIDESMAIDS
Former Liberal stafferBrittany Higgins’ upcoming nuptials to partnerDavid Sharaz is promising to be a very Canberra Bubble sort of wedding. Albeit a Canberra Bubble wedding inviting plenty of tabloid interest.
Brittany Higgins and her fiance David Sharaz.Instagram
The Daily Mail,who just happened to get exclusive snaps of Sharaz’s Byron Bay proposal,will no doubt be all over it. And we’re sure uninvited News Corp scribes will find a way to squeeze a hit piece out of it.
Meanwhile,planning for the big day appears to be in full swing. This weekend,Higgins revealed Hawker Britton lobbyist and formerDan Andrews stafferEmma Webster as her maid of honour.
Webster and Higgins are close friends and more recently,business partners after the pair registered a company called Power Blazers Pty Ltd earlier this year.
All very Canberra Bubble,but not nearly as Canberra Bubble as Sharaz’ last wedding in 2018 to ex-wifeAlexandra Craig,where the tables were all named after former leaders of the Labor Party.
ROYAL FLUSH
While the Matildas lick their wounds – salved byNikki Webster making a surprise appearance at a celebration event to singStrawberry Kisseson Sunday – the final of the Women’s World Cup at a sold-out Stadium Australia on Sunday night was a right-royal affair.
Queen Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano of Spain flew in to watch La Roja defeat the Lionesses 1-0 on Sunday night and was on hand for the medal presentation. Her Majesty is a former journalist – proving that some newshounds really can make it good!
Queen Letizia of Spain joined FIFA president Gianni Infantino for the medal ceremony.AP
Australia’s head of state,King Charles III,couldn’t make it,as he is,whilePrince William,head of the English Football Association,has declined to fly out for the final because the colonies are simply too far.
The prince was forced to,but that’s not good enough for former Socceroo and co-chair of the Australian Republic MovementCraig Foster. “The Queen of Spain is here for our final,” he wrote on the app formerly known as Twitter. “And yet not Australia’s own Head of State,nor future king.”
“The future King of Australia has no regard for Australia’s hopes,achievements,dreams.”
Nobel Peace Prize laureateMalala Yousafzaimade it to the game,having watched Australia’s 3-1 semi-final loss to England. Yousafzai is here to meet exiled members of the Afghan women’s football team – who were forced to flee when the Taliban came to power.
She also had time for a bit of corporate girlbossing,giving the keynote speech at Coca-Cola’s Diversity,Equity and Inclusion summit in Sydney on Friday,joined by former Australian of the yearDylan Alcott and ex-sex discrimination commissionerElizabeth Broderick.
GREEKING OUT
Former deputy prime ministerMichael McCormack’sGreek heritage,where his maternal grandfather was born,was all but forgotten after he was cleared of any dual citizenship issues during the section 44 snafus of 2017.
But turns out MicMac is still proud of that ancestry. He’s just taken on a new role as co-chair of the World Hellenic Inter-Parliamentary Association’s communications committee,an organisation bringing together politicians from the Greek diaspora.
Clearly,the opposition backbenches afford him a bit more spare time.
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