Squiz Today – Tuesday, 27 March

SQUIZ SAYINGS

“It's a big job.”

Said Victorian Transport Minister Jacinta Allan of efforts to scrape 10 tonnes of pigeon droppings from the dome of iconic Flinders Street Station. That’s a lot of misplaced fertiliser.

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CRICKET NOW A BLAME GAME

THE SQUIZ
As the finger-pointing started, cricket administrators hustled to start dealing with the ball tampering crisis that has left the reputation of our national team in tatters. Cricket Australia investigators have arrived in Cape Town, South Africa to commence an internal process that will involve captain Steve Smith, deputy David Warner, coach Darren Lehmann and the player charged with doing the deed, Cameron Bancroft. CEO James Sutherland also headed to South Africa as angry questions, including from the team's sponsors, were asked of those in charge.

DO WE KNOW WHAT WENT DOWN?
There’s a lot of tight lips around at the moment. But two things have come through in the reports that suggest this might not be out of the blue:

• English cricketer Stuart Broad said the Aussies were able to achieve reverse swing in their bowling in unexpected conditions in the last Ashes series. Which is as good as saying he reckons the Aussies have been at the ball tampering caper for a while.

• And to that point, footage of Bancroft putting sugar in his pocket during one of those Ashes matches has emerged. The allegation is he used the granules to rough up the ball to get it to swing.

IS THIS REALLY A BIG DEAL?
Is this life and death stuff? No. But it’s Australian cricket's darkest hour. Cricket is a proxy for fair play, and on that score, our best of the best have been found badly wanting. Which is why Cricket Australia will have little degree of error in executing its response. Good luck with that. And on the other side, how ‘we’ (think media and the broader community) treat Smith (who is said to be in significant distress) and others involved will say a lot about ‘us’ too.

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COFFEE MADE EVEN BETTER

PRESENTED BY 7-ELEVEN

Most of us need/love/dream about our morning coffee. Problem is your takeaway cup can't be recycled in the normal way. Bummer.

So yay for 7-Eleven and Simply Cups who will today launch a new initiative to rescue 70 million cups from landfill this coming year. Recycling stations have been installed in 200 stores across Oz and anyone can dispose of their takeaway cup in an eco-friendly way.

Click here for more info on the 7-Eleven and Simply Cups recycling program.

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SQUIZ THE REST

CHILDCARE SHUT DOWN
Childcare workers across Australia will not show up for work today. The “Keep Your Children Home Day” strike is the third in the last year and was sparked by the Fair Work Commission's rejection of a +30% pay-rise claim last month. The union, Unite Voice, says wages in the sector (95% of workers are female) should be lifted to meet male-dominated industries like manufacturing. The government has condemned the strikes.

LABOR TO AMEND DIVIDEND IMPUTATION POLICY
You’re still with us, right? After catching a lot of heat, Labor leader Bill Shorten is set to announce amendments to the recently outlined policy to wind back tax credits on dividend payments. More than 300,000 pensioners are expected to be made exempt from the revenue-raiser leaving 890,000 individuals and self-managed superannuation funds to hand over +$55 billion over 10 years. This is all contingent on Labor winning the next election, of course.

US TO EXPEL 60 RUSSIAN DIPLOMATS
Twenty-one nations including the US, Canada and many across Europe have announced the expulsion of more than 100 Russian diplomats. America led the tally with 60 diplomats told to leave. The move is to show solidarity with the UK over Russia’s suspected involvement in the recent poisoning of former double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia on UK soil. Wonder if we'll follow suit?

And while we’re in America, adult actress Stormy Daniels‘ interview with 60 Minutes about her alleged ‘encounter’ with US President Donald Trump happened. Best wait until after breakfast to read the details.

SIBERIAN SHOPPING CENTRE FIRE TOLL CLIMBS
Authorities say 64 people have died, including at least 40 children, in a fire that engulfed a shopping and entertainment centre in the Siberian city of Kemerovo. Reports say there were no emergency alarms and the fire exits were blocked. The cause of the fire is unknown, but the deputy governor said a child with a lighter near flammable materials could have ignited the inferno. Investigators say their search has been hampered by the roof collapsing.

HARVEY NORMAN’S MILK SOURS
A whitegoods/electrical/furniture retailer buys into a dairy. What could possibly go wrong? Sadly dairy farm and cattle breeders Coomboona Holdings went into receivership yesterday. It's 49.9% owned by Harvey Norman which paid $34 million for its share in late 2015. Australian Shareholders Association’s Allan Goldwin had a bad case of "I told you so" yesterday; "I said three years ago when it was first announced they should never have invested in dairy." Chairman Gerry Harvey might like to listen to Allan next time…

MIKE’S NO CHICKEN
‘Mad Mike’ Hughes, a committed flat-earther, launched himself almost 600 metres into the air on the weekend as part of his bid to ultimately prove the world is shaped like a Frisbee. A Californian limo driver by profession, Mike has talked a big game about his ambition to prove his theory and said he had to “manned up” to start his rocket testing after many said he wouldn't do it. “At least I can go home and have dinner and see my cats tonight,” he said afterwards. One day he hopes to get more than 80km into the atmosphere to get a good look at the earth. And he wants to run for governor. Dream, believe, succeed.

SQUIZ THE DAY

ABS Data Release - Additional Census data

World Theatre Day

Mariah Carey's birthday (1970)

20th anniversary of the US Food and Drug Administration approving Viagra