A TOWN of hardened miners struggling to attract female company has come up with what it believes is a breakthrough idea, invite ugly ones who will be grateful for the attention.
But the proposal led to John Molony, mayor of Mount Isa in the Australian outback, coming under fire today.
He had originally told a local newspaper: "May I suggest if there are five blokes to every girl, we should find out where there are beauty-di
sadvantaged women and ask them to proceed to Mount Isa."
The mayor added that many women who already live in the remote Queensland state town seem quite happy.
"Quite often you will see walking down the street a lass who is not so attractive with a wide smile on her face," he continued. "Whether it is recollection of something previous or anticipation for the next evening, there is a degree of happiness."
The quotes, published at the weekend in the Townsville Bulletin, sparked outrage among the town's female population, led to furious online debates and drew criticism from the local chamber of commerce.
"There's a lot of anger circulating among the community at the moment - a lot of passionate anger," Mount Isa Chamber of Commerce manager Patricia O'Callaghan said today. "There's a lot of women voicing their opinions."
Mr Molony declined to elaborate on his comments today adding they had been "twisted and warped."
"I've been shredded," he added, before hanging up the phone.
The situation may not be quite as dire as Mr Molony noted. According to the 2006 census, males made up 52.6% of the town's population of nearly 20,000.
And several local women said there are not many gems to be found among Mount Isa's men, either.
"We've got a saying up here that the odds are good, but the goods are odd," 27-year-old Anna Warrick told The Brisbane Times.
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