Yeetle Box - Mayor John Molony Digs Deep Hole in Australian Mining Town

To reverse a shortage of eligible women in Mount Isa, Queensland, a remote Australian mining town, the mayor, John Molony has sent out a plea for lovelorn female "ugly ducklings" to move to his town. Ugly men and women in the town were offended - but for different reasons.

Mayor John Molony has refused to apologize for angering local women when he said "with five blokes to every girl, may I suggest that beauty-disadvantaged women should proceed to Mount Isa," in north-west Queensland state.

He continued.

"Quite often you will see walking down the street a lass who is not so attractive with a wide smile on her face. Whether it is recollection of something previous or anticipation for the next evening, there is a degree of happiness," Molony told the local newspaper.

He continued on despite both feet in his mouth.

"Others in Australia need to proceed to Mount Isa, where happiness awaits. Really, beauty is only skin deep. Isn't there a fairy tale about an ugly duckling that evolves into a beautiful swan?" Molony said.

The mayor said he was "telling it like it is" in a town more famous for cowboys and mining lead, silver, copper and zinc than for match-making, sitting atop one of the world's biggest underground mines.

And, he continued, both feet in his mouth and his head lodged within his rectum.

"I'm a bloke who respects women. I believe we should look after women. I'm told men outnumber women here by five to one. If that's the case, then perhaps it's an opportunity for some lonely women," Molony said.

Fellow council members and the local chamber of commerce said they had been swamped with phone calls from both women and men complaining about the mayor's remarks.

"It paints the women here as second rate and suggests the men will settle for anything. I think it's quite disgusting," Mount Isa domestic violence worker Shirley Slann told the Courier Mail newspaper Monday. "We know the men here are quite selective. Several men tried to find a mate on Match.com and were given the option of a couch and hand lotion. What does THAT tell you?"

In a related story, in 2008 a Queensland Government Health report found that more than 10 per cent of children in Mount Isa had lead levels above World Health Organisation recommendations.

The mining operator Xstrata has denied responsibility and has stated that the town has naturally high levels of lead in the soil - or unnaturally high levels of lead, depending on one's perspective.

The Yeetle Box