Auspol May: it's a Bloody Budget Bonanza!

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > Auspol May: it's a Bloody Budget Bonanza!

fiery_valkyrie: Mar 26, 2003; I'm proud of you, Bender. Sure, you lost. You lost bad. But the important thing is I beat up someone who hurt my feelings in high school.

ewe2 posted:

Bingo. Cries of bias, sure, but what are they against? Fixing the design that kills people. Crush protection has been fought against for years, using the novel argument that fitting it would make manufacturers more liable.

Yeah it totally sounds like the manufacturers are having a tantrum because they don�t want to have to go to all the bother/expense of making their product safer.

# ? May 7, 2018 10:11

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# ? May 31, 2024 19:35

ewe2: Jul 1, 2009

I did a quick google on the crush protection debate, they've been fighting this since around 2014, particularly after WorkSafe in Victoria made anti-roll bars mandatory for quad bikes.

# ? May 7, 2018 10:17

aejix: Sep 18, 2007; It's about finding that next group of core players we can win with in the next 6, 8, 10 years. Let's face it, it's hard for 20-, 21-, 22-year-olds to lead an NHL team. Look at the playoffs.

That quote is from fucking 2018. Fuck you Jim; Pillbug

Well if i have to choose between changing the design, getting the design verified, paying the extra material costs, training my workshop staff to assemble the new design, and passing the cost on to the consumer

OR

A bunch of kids get mashed up underneath my product

Then quite frankly the kids are going to continue to be ground into a paste. Its just simple business and i am a job creator

# ? May 7, 2018 10:17

Doctor Spaceman: Jul 6, 2010; "Everyone's entitled to their point of view, but that's seriously a weird one."

https://twitter.com/workmanalice/status/993416756956807170

# ? May 7, 2018 10:23

I would blow Dane Cook: Dec 26, 2008

Are you having a nice day? Well i'm here to change all that.

quote:

Young, pregnant and homeless: Hobart�s rental market at breaking point

Rachel and her partner, Harley, are expecting a baby in October. But they�ve got nowhere to live, so for now they�re camped out in a tent at Hobart Showground.

The tent has three rooms. Right now, one is being used as a storage room. It�s crammed with bags and boxes. Soon, it�ll be the baby�s room.

�This is a storage room until we turn it into a baby nursery. Which is not really good in a tent,� Rachel told Hack.

Despite her circumstances, Rachel is upbeat.

�I�ve got my own fridge. And I�ve got power which I�m allowed to have, which I�m pretty thankful for,� she said.

As winter nears, temperatures plunge. The average temperature for May is around 15 degrees celsius. Rachel�s lived through a winter here before, and she�s not looking forward to it.

�There was a really really big storm, a big gust storm. And I couldn�t handle it,� she said.

�I was actually wearing the other side of the tent as a blanket when I was in bed because the whole thing just collapsed onto me.�

I put the pillow over my head coz I said to myself, if I can�t see it, it�s not happening. Just stay in a ball and you�ll be fine.
Rachel and Harley are among a handful of people who�ve sought emergency accommodation in the showground.

�There�s always been a homeless element in the park, but as you�d expect there�s complex issues. There were other factors at play, there were often drugs, alcohol, mental health issues,� manager Scott Gadd told Hack.

At its busiest in December, the showground housed 12 different families in tents dotted around the property, Scott said.

Working families seeking help
It was around that time that Scott noticed a change in the kinds of people who sought emergency accommodation.

When you see working families living in tents in the park, with kids trying to go to school, that had a big impact on me.
He said the showground is just the tip of the iceberg.

�For every one person I�ve got in here, there�s probably another 20 in greater Hobart somewhere - in a garage, couch surfing, under a tree, in a park. And that�s where the problem is,� he said.

Dr Kathleen Flanagan from the University of Tasmania said vulnerable people - like Rachel - have been struggling to find affordable accommodation in Hobart for a while now.

But she said the spotlight is well and truly on the issue now that working families are struggling, too.

�What we�re starting to see is even those people are having difficulty finding housing they can afford, and that�s when the political attention comes to bear,� Kathleen said.

So how did we get here?
Chances are, if you�re from the mainland you�ve probably been sold the message that Tassie is a beacon for affordable housing.

Well, it was. But that�s changed.

�We�ve seen a significant and rapid increase in rents,� Kathleen said.

And it�s not just one thing that got us here; rather a confluence of events that�s created an incredibly tight market.

Firstly, Tassie has done a stellar job of marketing itself as a tourist hotspot. But the ensuing economic boom took people by surprise.

People started investing in property and moving back from the mainland, and they all needed a place to stay, Adrian Kelly from the Real Estate Institute of Tasmania told Hack.

�What we�ve seen over the last 18 months, 2 years, is a massive surge of demand caused not only by people who want to buy an investment property, but there�s also a lot of people moving back home,� he said.

And the tourism boom took some houses that were earmarked as full time rentals, and put them into short-term accommodation like Airbnb.

Even a relatively small number can skew a market the size of Hobart.

�If there�s 300 properties taken out of the market, then that�s a lot,� Adrian said.

Then there�s the fact that state and territory governments across the country have been pulling out of social housing, and offering incentives for private landlords to fill the gap.

Rentals are businesses, and landlords rightly want to ensure they have the best and most reliable tenants they can have.

But that squeezes out people on income support, single parents, and people with complex needs - like domestic violence survivors and their families.

�You can�t have a market where house prices start to go up and up and up and have affordable housing,� Kathleen said.

Young people are especially disadvantaged
Young people, who have the least capital accrued, and the shortest rental histories to draw from, find themselves especially exposed in a market like that.

The rental market in Hobart is super tight right now.

�We have a vacancy rate last time I heard of I think 0.3 per cent,� Kathleen said.

Which means tenants have little bargaining power if their landlords decide to hike up the rent. Plus, they face difficulties in securing a place if they choose to go elsewhere.

�What a lot of people are doing is offering more than the asked rent. People have also been offering to pay double the amount of bond,� Adrian said.

In Tasmania, there�s no limit to how much landlords can raise the rent, as long as the final figure is in line with the rest of the market.

Adrian acknowledged that massive rent hikes do happen, though he said that�s relatively rare.

I�ve heard of a couple of cases where rents have gone up 30 or 40 percent.
�But I suspect in those cases they�re long-term tenanted properties and the rent hasn�t been put up in many, many years,� Adrian said.

Living in dangerous conditions
The result of all of this is that people are staying put in accommodation, even if it�s dangerous or unsuitable.

Like Hobart viticulture student, Dawn*.

Dawn and her fiance live in a three-bedroom house in a nice suburb of Hobart. The property itself is dilapidated and in urgent need of attention.

There are nails sticking out of the floorboards, broken cupboard doors, hobs that don�t work on the stovetop, inadequate fencing, tilting walls that are coming away from the skirting boards.

But far more worrying is the faulty electrics. In the kitchen there are scorch marks on the wiring where it caught alight.

Dawn reckons she and her partner have spent THOUSANDS on fixing up little bits and pieces that should have been sorted out by the landlord.

It was going to be savings for us to move overseas or potentially savings for getting married, but it�s gone. All of it is gone.

Dawn�s really worried about what will happen if she leaves this place without another one lined up, because even finding this one was a struggle.

�When we were looking for this place, I was still working full time as a nurse for a private medical company. My partner is a civil engineer essentially and� we were two weeks away from homelessness,� she said.

�Never in a million years did I think that I would be vulnerable or at risk of being homeless.�

The couple is going to stick it out until the end of this lease, and if things don�t change, they�ll consider leaving Hobart for good.

�Even though it�s our home and we love it and we don�t want to go because our friends are here, our family�s here, our clubs our sports our everything, there�s no opportunity for us to grow as a couple and potentially as a family,� Dawn said.

http://www.abc.net.au/triplej/programs/hack/young-pregnant-and-living-in-a-tent-hobart-housing-crisis/9712170

# ? May 7, 2018 10:26

Anidav: Feb 25, 2010; ahhh fuck its the rats again

The ABC has leaked that Tomorrow budget will contain a tax cut for low and middle income earners of 10 dollars a week.

Low and middle-income earners will get tax cuts worth up to $10.50 a week in tomorrow's budget.

The ABC understands that while the measure will start on July 1, the tax break will come in the form of a bigger end-of-year tax rebate.

The tax relief will be delivered by an increase to the Low Income Tax Offset (LITO) which doesn't show up in weekly or fortnightly pay packets.

At the moment, the LITO is worth $445 a year for people earning below $37,000 annually.

It gradually reduces and cuts out completely when people earn $66,667 a year.

Treasurer Scott Morrison is expected to announce the value of the offset will more than double to $1,000.

It will be extended to people on incomes of about $90,000 a year, the ABC understands, and would still be phased out so that the more a person earns, the lower the rebate they would receive.

That would mean an extra $10.50 a week for those who receive the maximum benefit.

Giving a tax cut in this way is cheaper for the Government because it is targeted at low to middle-income earners and would not flow through to people on higher incomes.

It is tipped to cost the Government about $4 billion to $5 billion a year.

Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison has already warned the tax breaks in Tuesday's budget will not be "mammoth".

When Mr Morrison was pressed on whether this tax break would be dismissed as only worth a hamburger and a milkshake, he argued that it had been a long time since there had been real tax relief.

He said the Government had always said it would provide tax relief that was both affordable and responsible.

Choosing a less expensive way of offering a tax break means the Government can also return to surplus more quickly.

It had forecast a surplus in 2020-21, but is now likely to announce that it can be in surplus in 2019-20.

# ? May 7, 2018 10:34

Starshark: Dec 22, 2005; Doctor Rope

Just to add to what Dane was saying - if you're on the dole and you want to move somewhere where the rent is affordable, you might get done by Centrelink for moving to an area of lower employment which cuts you off for six months.

# ? May 7, 2018 10:35

I would blow Dane Cook: Dec 26, 2008

Anidav posted:

The ABC has leaked that Tomorrow budget will contain a tax cut for low and middle income earners of 10 dollars a week.

Low and middle-income earners will get tax cuts worth up to $10.50 a week in tomorrow's budget.

The ABC understands that while the measure will start on July 1, the tax break will come in the form of a bigger end-of-year tax rebate.

The tax relief will be delivered by an increase to the Low Income Tax Offset (LITO) which doesn't show up in weekly or fortnightly pay packets.

At the moment, the LITO is worth $445 a year for people earning below $37,000 annually.

It gradually reduces and cuts out completely when people earn $66,667 a year.

Treasurer Scott Morrison is expected to announce the value of the offset will more than double to $1,000.

It will be extended to people on incomes of about $90,000 a year, the ABC understands, and would still be phased out so that the more a person earns, the lower the rebate they would receive.

That would mean an extra $10.50 a week for those who receive the maximum benefit.

Giving a tax cut in this way is cheaper for the Government because it is targeted at low to middle-income earners and would not flow through to people on higher incomes.

It is tipped to cost the Government about $4 billion to $5 billion a year.

Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison has already warned the tax breaks in Tuesday's budget will not be "mammoth".

When Mr Morrison was pressed on whether this tax break would be dismissed as only worth a hamburger and a milkshake, he argued that it had been a long time since there had been real tax relief.

He said the Government had always said it would provide tax relief that was both affordable and responsible.

Choosing a less expensive way of offering a tax break means the Government can also return to surplus more quickly.

It had forecast a surplus in 2020-21, but is now likely to announce that it can be in surplus in 2019-20.

Well they've got my vote lol.

# ? May 7, 2018 10:40

Anidav: Feb 25, 2010; ahhh fuck its the rats again

Auspol May: I voted Liberal and all I got was 10 bucks

# ? May 7, 2018 10:43

Ghost Leviathan: Mar 2, 2017; Exploration is ill-advised.

Lowtax, rejoice!

# ? May 7, 2018 11:10

I would blow Dane Cook: Dec 26, 2008

Gunna spend my tax cut on a new avatar for anidav.

# ? May 7, 2018 11:20

DancingShade: Jul 26, 2007; by Fluffdaddy

aejix posted:

Well if i have to choose between changing the design, getting the design verified, paying the extra material costs, training my workshop staff to assemble the new design, and passing the cost on to the consumer

OR

A bunch of kids get mashed up underneath my product

Then quite frankly the kids are going to continue to be ground into a paste. Its just simple business and i am a job creator

The wheels of progress are greased with the blood of the unworthy.

# ? May 7, 2018 11:23

hooman: Oct 11, 2007; This guy seems legit.; Fun Shoe

Starshark posted:

Just to add to what Dane was saying - if you're on the dole and you want to move somewhere where the rent is affordable, you might get done by Centrelink for moving to an area of lower employment which cuts you off for six months.

Jesus loving christ centrelink.

# ? May 7, 2018 11:31

Starshark: Dec 22, 2005; Doctor Rope

It's all here

I can't speak for every Centrelink office back when I worked for them, but at my office it was 'shoot first, ask questions later'. In other words, jobseekers would be cut off and they'd appeal to the social worker while they're getting no money.

# ? May 7, 2018 11:38

Doctor Spaceman: Jul 6, 2010; "Everyone's entitled to their point of view, but that's seriously a weird one."

Sounds better if you say it's $500 a year.

Gonna laugh if they lose the next election and Labor ends up with the first surplus in a decade.

# ? May 7, 2018 11:52

naeka: Sep 1, 2008

Starshark posted:

It's all here

I can't speak for every Centrelink office back when I worked for them, but at my office it was 'shoot first, ask questions later'. In other words, jobseekers would be cut off and they'd appeal to the social worker while they're getting no money.

Has been years since I've heard of a malep test failure but the offices I was at played it pretty loose back when we saw them and if people said the right thing noone had enough time to really dig unless you really really annoyed someone. It's a pretty wild part of the social security act that fits that bit in and definitely can land you in huge trouble if you don't know about it.

# ? May 7, 2018 11:56

NTRabbit: Aug 15, 2012; i wear this armour to protect myself from the histrionics of hysterical women

bitches

The Feds must think they're going to be turbofucked and lose Boothby, Sturt, and maybe even Grey and Barker, because

quote:

The electrification of the Gawler rail line and the completion of more stages of the South Road upgrade are among projects earmarked for more than $1.5 billion worth of infrastructure funding in tomorrow's federal budget.

The north-south corridor will get $1.2 billion, $220 million will go towards electrifying the Gawler rail line and $160 million has been allocated for the duplication of the Joy Baluch Bridge in Port Augusta.

Federal Urban Infrastructure Minister Paul Fletcher said there still needed to be some negotiations about what contributions the State Government would make to the projects.

They only hold 4 seats in SA, and 2 of them are well within the uniform swing range to Labor, while the other two were slim holds against ~~NXT~~ Goatse Alliance

# ? May 7, 2018 11:56

drunkill: Sep 25, 2007; me @ ur posting; Fallen Rib

People in the tax free threshold do not benefit from this either, so for the actual low income people (mostly teens in casual jobs) don't get the $10 a week off of tax.

# ? May 7, 2018 12:08

Megillah Gorilla: Sep 22, 2003; If only all of life's problems could be solved by smoking a professor of ancient evil texts.; Bread Liar

Solemn Sloth posted:

A doctor and senior Mormon who blames ungodly love for HIV, as well as a prominent campaigner against the Safe Schools program, have been elected to positions in the Victorian Liberal Party.

They are among at least five Mormons elected as party officers at last week�s state conference.

I'd laugh too, but religious bigots in power is never funny.

Even just a little power is still enough to hurt people.

# ? May 7, 2018 12:17

fiery_valkyrie: Mar 26, 2003; I'm proud of you, Bender. Sure, you lost. You lost bad. But the important thing is I beat up someone who hurt my feelings in high school.

I would blow Dane Cook posted:

Are you having a nice day? Well i'm here to change all that.

http://www.abc.net.au/triplej/programs/hack/young-pregnant-and-living-in-a-tent-hobart-housing-crisis/9712170

This tent city (and a second one in Glenorchy) have been in the local news a fair bit here in Hobart recently.

There was a news article the other week with a headline along the lines of �welcome relief for tent city residents� which sounded great, but it turned out that they were all patting themselves on the back for having found accommodation for 4 people. It�s very disheartening.

# ? May 7, 2018 12:35

Ghost Leviathan: Mar 2, 2017; Exploration is ill-advised.

We need to get all Genghis Khan on this. that is, way bigger tents. Maybe also an army of horsemen making an example of the government.

# ? May 7, 2018 13:25

drunkill: Sep 25, 2007; me @ ur posting; Fallen Rib

Bob Hawke is in hospital.

Probably just for an IV of beer but we'll see.

# ? May 7, 2018 13:45

Doctor Spaceman: Jul 6, 2010; "Everyone's entitled to their point of view, but that's seriously a weird one."

https://twitter.com/wrongdorey/status/993461796211015680

# ? May 7, 2018 14:01

norp: Jan 20, 2004; TRUMP TRUMP TRUMP

let's invade New Zealand, they have oil

drunkill posted:

Bob Hawke is in hospital.

Probably just for an IV of beer but we'll see.

If Bob Hawke were to steal the budget news cycle it would be the most amazing way for Turnbull to get hosed over yet again

# ? May 7, 2018 14:02

Dude McAwesome: Sep 30, 2004; Still better than a Ponytar

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-05-07/peter-costello-says-well-be-dead-before-national-debt-paid-off/9736158

Peter fuckin Costello calling people earning between $100k-$200k the "forgotten people" who are badly in need of tax relief. What loving planet does this cretin live on?

Also, I love how he says someone earning 200k is paying 47% tax. Deliberately applying the top marginal tax rate to the entire amount. gently caress these horrible pricks.

# ? May 7, 2018 14:20

Konomex: Oct 25, 2010; a whiteman who has some authority over others, who not only hasn't raped anyone, or stared at them creepily...

Ghost Leviathan posted:

We need to get all Genghis Khan on this. that is, way bigger tents. Maybe also an army of horsemen making an example of the government.

Clearly the solution to the housing affordability crisis is using large areas of lawn area in all major metropolitan cities as established tent cities. None of these crappy 'camping' tent poo poo either. Full on yurts with dirt tracks and areas to graze their animals. Force the homeless to live nomadic lifestyles, in winter they shall move north to Brisbane, in Summer they shall seek shelter in Melbourne and Hobart. And those who have wronged the nomadic tent people? They shall be banished to Perth on the banks of the Swan River where they will be overseen by their overlords in the CBD.

And we can film it for a special on SBS.

# ? May 7, 2018 14:28

Don Dongington: Sep 27, 2005; #ideasboom; College Slice

Dude McAwesome posted:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-05-07/peter-costello-says-well-be-dead-before-national-debt-paid-off/9736158

Peter fuckin Costello calling people earning between $100k-$200k the "forgotten people" who are badly in need of tax relief. What loving planet does this cretin live on?

Also, I love how he says someone earning 200k is paying 47% tax. Deliberately applying the top marginal tax rate to the entire amount. gently caress these horrible pricks.

Based on his performance and that of his PM as treasurer in their respective governments, I would not be shocked if he actually doesn't know how marginal tax rates work.

# ? May 7, 2018 16:00

Spudd: Nov 27, 2007; Protect children from "Safe Schools" social engineering. Shame!

So when do we start eating the rich? Because I am getting mighty hungry.

# ? May 7, 2018 16:38

Zenithe: Feb 25, 2013; _{Ask not to whom the Anidavatar belongs; it belongs to thee.}

Early Surplus my dick.

No goddamn way.

# ? May 7, 2018 21:08

DancingShade: Jul 26, 2007; by Fluffdaddy

*shoves budget papers in oven*

*breathes deeply*

Mmm, they smell good don't they.

# ? May 7, 2018 21:42

Lid: Feb 18, 2005; And the mercy seat is awaiting,
And I think my head is burning,
And in a way I'm yearning,
To be done with all this measuring of proof.
An eye for an eye
And a tooth for a tooth,
And anyway I told the truth,
And I'm not afraid to die.

A branch of the NSW Liberal Party is set to debate the merits of Sharia-style corporal punishment and a radical proposal to make citizens responsible for sentencing criminals rather than judges.

The notoriously hard-right Carlingford branch, under its colourful president George Popowski, will discuss a push to "straighten out the law and order system" by handing sentencing powers to a panel of 20 members of the public, with no more than 30 per cent from the legal fraternity.

Mr Popowski, who authored the motion, also urged the reintroduction of corporal punishment, arguing it was the "fairest" form of retribution because "we all feel the same pain".

He proposed 10 lashes for theft of a T-shirt, 1000 lashes for stealing a car (2000 if the vehicle is damaged), 5000 lashes for punching a police officer and 20,000 lashes for murder.

The floggings should be "delivered at 10 lashes per hour – every hour from 9am to 5pm, with one hour for lunch", Mr Popowski wrote. The sentence would be doubled for second-time offenders.

Mr Popowski made headlines in 2016 when he brought a motion to a party conference calling for an immediate ban on all immigration, labelling migrants "criminals", "bastards" and "jihadists".

# ? May 7, 2018 21:56

Solemn Sloth: Jul 11, 2015; Baby you can shout at me,
But you can't need my eyes.

Lid posted:

A branch of the NSW Liberal Party is set to debate the merits of Sharia-style corporal punishment and a radical proposal to make citizens responsible for sentencing criminals rather than judges.

The notoriously hard-right Carlingford branch, under its colourful president George Popowski, will discuss a push to "straighten out the law and order system" by handing sentencing powers to a panel of 20 members of the public, with no more than 30 per cent from the legal fraternity.

Mr Popowski, who authored the motion, also urged the reintroduction of corporal punishment, arguing it was the "fairest" form of retribution because "we all feel the same pain".

He proposed 10 lashes for theft of a T-shirt, 1000 lashes for stealing a car (2000 if the vehicle is damaged), 5000 lashes for punching a police officer and 20,000 lashes for murder.

The floggings should be "delivered�at 10 lashes per hour � every hour from 9am to 5pm, with one hour for lunch", Mr Popowski wrote. The sentence�would be doubled for second-time offenders.

Mr Popowski�made headlines in 2016 when he brought a motion to a party conference�calling for an immediate ban on all immigration, labelling migrants "criminals", "bastards" and "jihadists".

10 lashes for stealing a t-shirt so presumably a few thousand lashes for wage theft. Hmmm? No?

# ? May 7, 2018 22:09

Anidav: Feb 25, 2010; ahhh fuck its the rats again

Solemn Sloth posted:

10 lashes for stealing a t-shirt so presumably a few thousand lashes for wage theft. Hmmm? No?

Indeed fellow Liberal Party member, we lash the employee 10 thousand times.

# ? May 7, 2018 22:10

trunkh: Jan 31, 2011

Zenithe posted:

Early Surplus my dick.

No goddamn way.

You know it's will be based on dubious projections of all the zombie poo poo they've not passed, with an expectation that it can be adopted retrospectively.

# ? May 7, 2018 22:22

Anidav: Feb 25, 2010; ahhh fuck its the rats again

I'm keen for the zinger filled budget reply speech

# ? May 7, 2018 22:31

Solemn Sloth: Jul 11, 2015; Baby you can shout at me,
But you can't need my eyes.

Peter Costello says he�ll be dead before budget surplus so for the first time ever I care about the bottom line

# ? May 7, 2018 22:58

Dude McAwesome: Sep 30, 2004; Still better than a Ponytar

Anidav posted:

I'm keen for the zinger filled budget reply speech

Blank Shorten�s budget reply speech in 2014 was the moment I started having hope for the guy to eventually be PM. He was quite *checks notes* good.

# ? May 7, 2018 22:59

Dude McAwesome: Sep 30, 2004; Still better than a Ponytar

Man who created structural deficit talks about budget and is listened to by people.

Short memories all around apparently.

# ? May 7, 2018 23:01

The Before Times: Mar 8, 2014; Once upon a time, I would have thrown you halfway to the moon for a crack like that.

Dude McAwesome posted:

Man who created structural deficit talks about budget and is listened to by people.

Short memories all around apparently.

I mean, all he did was gently caress up telecommunications in Australia and sell everything that wasn't nailed down

# ? May 7, 2018 23:03

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# ? May 31, 2024 19:35

Dimebag: Jul 12, 2004

Solemn Sloth posted:

10 lashes for stealing a t-shirt so presumably a few thousand lashes for wage theft. Hmmm? No?

If they are going old school fear of God 10 commandments style system how many is Barnaby going to get for his adultery or will that be grandfathered in with the wet lettuce leaf he got lashed with by Malcom?

# ? May 7, 2018 23:21

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > Auspol May: it's a Bloody Budget Bonanza!

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