Auspol April - Long Live the Glorious State of North Queensland

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Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Ban OP; gas thread.

Has everyone forgotten about the Northern special development zone?

http://www.australianmining.com.au/news/abbott-s-plans-for-northern-economic-zone (Source deliberate).

quote:

Abbott's plans for Northern Economic Zone 7 February, 2013 Cole Latimer 3 comments

Abbott's plans for Northern Economic Zone
Latest News

Breakthrough aircraft to transform remote mining
Lucapa Diamond finds another large diamond
WA welcomes new mining minister
Hughes wins new gold drilling contracts
Coal mine head injury prompts investigation

Tony Abbot's plans for a Northern Economic Zone, in the style of those proposed by Gina Rinehart, have been revealed ahead of the election.

There have been calls for the establishment of a Northern Special Economic Zone for some time, with Galaxy poll results released by the Institute of Public Affairs stating that more than half of those surveyed supported lower taxes to stimulate growth in the north. Hugh Tobin from the Institute of Public Affairs told Australian Mining "a Northern Special Economic Zone, comprising Northern Western Australia, the Northern Territory, and Northern Queensland will allow Australia to make the most of our natural mineral wealth and will reduce some of the problems that exist for people living in these regions". In Rinehart's book, released late last year, she called for the establishment of a new economic zone, pushing her position as the chair of the group Australians for Northern Development and Economic Vision (ANDEV) (anidav lol). Her book Northern Australia and then some outlines a vision for Northern Australia�s future including unleashing its potential. But it argues that development will only occur if the right environment is created by government, an environment where private enterprise can flourish and welcome investment. This environment may now be created under an Abbott government.

Seems to incorporate the separate North Queensland and revolutionary new tax arrangements themes. Why isn't Turdball all for it?

The State Income Tax thing is being slammed as a ridiculous brain fart almost universally. The only places giving it any real legs are The Arsetralian and the rest of New Corpse. Even Ray Hadley called it idiotic and the Tas Lib Premier has come out swinging against it. Does Malformed Turdball want to lose?

-/-

The indigenous 'nations' actually have stronger grounds than you may imagine. Only NSW, Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia ever directly claimed sovereignty via England. The rest of Australia was administered as a protectorate. It wasn't until federation that a vague claim for sovereignty was made over the entire country. This claim wasn't ever fought over and has no legitimacy beyond what can be enforced through the courts.

# ¿ Mar 31, 2016 00:31

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# ¿ May 11, 2024 18:14

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

MysticalMachineGun posted:

Hey hey HEY HEY it's not April yet get the gently caress back in the other thread

No you.

# ¿ Mar 31, 2016 01:38

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Skellybones posted:

I can't believe how good this thread is!

It's gone noon in the eastern states Skelly. The A bomb isn't happening any more.

Colonial chat:

Of all the colonial powers you definitely didn't want to be colonised by (in order of badness).

Belgium (anybody remember the Congo?)
Spain (Hello Central and South America!)
then it's a nil all tie between England, Holland, Germany, France, Portugal, Other.

# ¿ Apr 1, 2016 02:57

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Touching the poop! :shrek:

Touching the poop! :shrek:

So was the State Income Tax thing an April Fools joke? This one really makes no sense on any level. At the end of the day Sco Mo was able to firewall himself from it so it appears to be entirely Turdball wallowing in an idea so cra cra that even NTATA explicitly discounted it.

There may be some bigger issues looming however:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-02/pre-election-survey-shows-support-of-local-submarine-build/7293840

It might only be two seats in SA (and maybe one in the senate) but that's a lot to be throwing away. My money is on any decision being delayed till after the election.

This HAS to be an April Fools thing:

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-nuclear-summit-obama-treaty-idUSKCN0WY52M

quote:

Obama: 'Madmen' must not be allowed to get nuclear material
WASHINGTON | BY ROBERTA RAMPTON, MATT SPETALNICK AND DAVID BRUNNSTROM

U.S. President Barack Obama urged world leaders on Friday to do more to safeguard vulnerable nuclear facilities to prevent �madmen� from groups like Islamic State from getting their hands on a nuclear weapon or a radioactive �dirty bomb.�

Speaking at a nuclear security summit in Washington, Obama said the world faced a persistent and evolving threat of nuclear terrorism despite progress in reducing such risks. �We cannot be complacent,� he said.

Any hope for nuclear power being used to combat climate change just got shot into the Sun and drat the extra energy cost!

Zenithe posted:

Is the traditional indigenous agriculture still practiced by any nations?

Yes.

https://www.dpaw.wa.gov.au/management/fire/fire-and-the-environment/41-traditional-aboriginal-burning

Cleretic posted:

We've actually been misunderstanding Egyptian texts this whole time. Heirpglyphics were actually the equivalent of fancomics on DeviantArt.

I heard it was all an elaborate series of loss jokes.

# ¿ Apr 2, 2016 01:02

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

turdbucket posted:

Sorry for the double post but I haven't seen this issue mentioned in this thread.

On the topic on pre-invasion Indigenous culture they recently found a massive archaeological site in Sydney while working on the new light rail line. I don't know what is going on with it currently but Baird seemed pretty keen to keep bulldozing, we are already missing so much information about pre-settlement Australia and then finds like this are treated merely as a problem and with no interest of respect at all.

http://www.sbs.com.au/nitv/article/2016/04/01/huge-indigenous-artefacts-find-sydney-why-it-so-significant

Especially notable because of the contrast to what happened when early convict era stable remains were found while renovating the conservatorium.

http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/heritageapp/ViewHeritageItemDetails.aspx?ID=5060991

# ¿ Apr 2, 2016 11:12

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-03/mning-leases-approved-carmichael-mine-qld-galilee-basin-adani/7295188

quote:

Mining leases have been approved for the $21.7 billion Carmichael coal mine and rail project in the state's Galilee Basin by the Queensland Government.

verses

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-03/great-barrier-reef-aust-will-miss-targets-researcher-said/7286466

quote:

Australia looks likely to miss water quality targets set out to keep the Great Barrier Reef on UNESCO's World Heritage list, a senior researcher at the Federal Government's own marine science agency has warned.

# ¿ Apr 3, 2016 04:41

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

I'm not responding, just commenting for the circle jerk. LC used surgeons as an example of where merit selection was especially important. If only he knew.

http://www.smh.com.au/national/bullying-endemic-among-surgeons-but-victims-too-scared-to-speak-up-report-finds-20150909-gjiuxl.html

quote:

Female surgeons feel obliged to give sexual favours, report finds Date September 10, 2015 Craig Butt Reporter for The Age

Apology over 'toxic culture' among surgeons
After a survey finds nearly half of all surgeons have experienced discrimination, bullying or sexual harassment, RACS President apologises for the 'devastating impact' on surgeons and trainees.
Analysis: Have we deified our surgeons?
Bullying, discrimination and sexual harassment are rife in the surgical profession, a damning report has found.

Half the surgeons and trainees who responded said they had been victimised.

Six months after senior surgeon Gabrielle McMullin said junior women doctors should "comply with requests" for sex to protect their medical careers, an independent survey of more than 3500 surgeons commissioned by the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons has revealed a "toxic culture" in surgery departments across Australia. Although about three out of five registered trainees surveyed said they'd been bullied, making complaints was widely believed to be "career suicide".
Sexism was entrenched and endemic and sexual harassment pervasive, with women reporting they felt powerless to protest. Vascular surgeon Gabrielle McMullin, who said in March that sexism was so rife among surgeons that young women should accept unwanted sexual advances or risk ruining their careers. Women reported much higher rates of victimisation than men. One in three of the 560 women surveyed reported they'd been sexually harassed. Sexual propositions and innuendo were the most common forms of sexual harassment.

# ¿ Apr 3, 2016 09:25

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Recoome posted:

Yeah but there's still kids in Nauru, this is pretty misleading

To its target audience the important dogwhistle is 'onshore'. We flexed our mighty border control penis and asserted sovereignty all over the Arafura Sea.

ewe2 posted:

Aww, he was a great ratbag. Very few know how to ratbag any more.

And was shut down by the mechanism that has been used to shut down ratbags since ~~colonisation~~ the invasion destroyed civilization in Australia.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-04/tributes-flow-for-writer-journalist-bob-ellis/7295744

quote:

Throughout his career he wrote more than 20 books, including bestseller Goodbye Jerusalem, 200 poems, 100 songs, and 2,000 film reviews.

Ellis suffered a fall from grace in 1998, when Goodbye Jerusalem was pulped after he lost a defamation suit taken by Tony Abbott and Peter Costello. "It cost me the right to address mass rallies and demonstrations, it cost the column on moral issues I had in the Sydney Morning Herald, it cost me status," he said at the time. In 1993, on the day he published his satirical book about John Hewson, his Palm Beach house burnt down and he sarcastically blamed God for punishing him.

-/-

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-04/verrender-workers-are-picking-up-the-tab-for-our-budget-deficit/7295740

quote:

Workers are picking up the tab for our budget deficit OPINION By Ian Verrender Posted about 3 hours ago

After last week's antics, it's now clear the grand plan to fix our structural deficit is through higher income taxes. The reason? Wage earners are soft targets, writes Ian Verrender.

"Between 1915 and 1942, income taxes were levied at both the state and federal level, leading to complexity and inequitable taxation of income across states." Oops. Better change that line quick smart. For that's the explanation Treasury first lobbed onto the federal government website in its Brief History of Australia's Tax System about a decade ago to explain just why the Commonwealth took full control of income tax during World War II. Suddenly that's all changed. If Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull had his way, the states in future would be responsible for raising their own income taxes to fund vital services such as health and education. While there was no disputing the grand sweep of Turnbull's idea and that it perfectly fit Coalition ideology, there were a whole series of questionable assumptions about the supposed benefits that would flow from this monumental change to our system of federalism. More on that later. Of more immediate concern is that it is now clear the grand plan to fix Australia's structural deficit is not through tightening middle and upper class welfare or removing distorting tax incentives such as negative gearing.

It is through higher income taxes. That's the only way the states could plug the funding gap for health and education. Otherwise, there'd be no point making the change. Call it unfortunate timing. But given the upcoming budget is likely to include a cut in corporate tax rates, with the possibility of further corporate tax cuts into the future, wage and salary earners look to have been tasked with the mammoth job of budget repair. The reason? They are a soft target, as evidenced by the growth in their tax contributions in the past few years. According to data released by the Australian Tax Office a fortnight ago, not only are individuals the biggest net contributors to the federal coffers, the growth in tax receipts in the five years to 2014 has far outstripped the growth in tax from companies and superannuation funds. Wage earners coughed up $166 billion in 2013/14, up from $120 billion in 2009/10. Corporate tax, on the other hand, grew from around $57 billion to $67 billion in the same period. With the company tax cuts now on offer, and given the recent massive losses clocked up by the likes of Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton in the past few months, the corporate world's contributions are set to substantially fall in the next few years, placing an even greater burden on government revenue.

Those pushing for a cut to company argue that Australia has one of the highest rates in the world.

At 30 per cent, we are well above the OECD average of 24.1 per cent and are among the highest in the OECD. America, incidentally, charges almost 40 per cent. But Australia is one of the few countries to have a system of dividend imputation, which effectively lowers the rate, particularly if most of a company's shareholders are Australian. Local investors are delivered franking credits, meaning the more tax a company pays, the less the investor pays. While the Prime Minister's grand vision on the federation has been dismissed by the state premiers, it has been a neat political victory at another level. No one is talking negative gearing, capital gains tax or superannuation rorts any longer. Even with record low interest rates, Australian taxpayers are claiming more than $4 billion annually in tax deductions from losses on mostly property loans, courtesy of negative gearing. That represents an enormous hit each year to tax receipts. Then there's the opportunity cost. All that money should have been invested in productive enterprises, not loss making ventures.

There's nothing wrong with trying to improve the efficiency of the health and education systems. But reshuffling the income tax system won't do it. The biggest impact, however, is on the cost of land and housing. Every business leader in the country complains about Australia's exorbitant costs. Guess what? A large part of that relates to the cost of real estate, which in turn flows through to rents and wages. Winding back negative gearing tax breaks and the associated discounts on capital gains would be a vital first step to not simply improving housing affordability, but lowering the long term cost of doing business in this country. As for the supposed benefits of allowing the states to levy their own income tax, the underlying assumption is that it would make the states more accountable; that if they had to raise their own tax, they'd spend the money more wisely. Where is the evidence for this? Which state has been squandering its health budget? And if any have, why not fix the problem at the source rather than offer an academic solution with spurious benefits?

The truth is that health costs are rising faster than inflation. Why? Because we have an ageing population, the cost of medical technology is soaring and the Australia US Free Trade Agreement signed a decade ago was a dud that left us at the mercy of US pharmaceutical giants. That, in turned, undermined the efficiency of our Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. In his first budget, then treasurer Joe Hockey highlighted the fact that "during the past decade the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme has increased by 80 per cent." He didn't mention anything about profligacy at the state level. Anyone who has ever worked in or been a patient in our public health system will tell you that work rates, staff dedication and stress levels are high and that wages are low. If you want an easy, well paid career as a front line health worker, good luck with that.

Among the arguments this week was that, if one state wants to offer a Rolls Royce health system and another wants a Trabant, then they should be allowed to do so.

Really? Whatever happened to the principle that all Australians are entitled to the same level of health and schooling? And while the Prime Minister assured us a "mechanism" would be put in place to ensure the poorer states would not be left worse off, that could only mean one thing; an equalisation fund whereby richer states would subsidise poorer states, thereby undermining the entire idea of state taxation independence. Still, the academics loved the idea, for it would minimise the VFI, the dreaded Vertical Fiscal Imbalance; the supposed evil where the Commonwealth raises more than 80 per cent of the revenue and the states get to spend most of the money. Not sure about you, but the last time I looked that's pretty much the way most modern corporations work. Head office is responsible for collecting the revenue while various departments are allocated budgets to which they have to adhere.

There's nothing wrong with trying to improve the efficiency of the health and education systems. But reshuffling the income tax system won't do it. Just ask Treasury.

# ¿ Apr 4, 2016 01:51

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Paracetamol posted:

Auspol: I lurk a fair bit here and use this place as a guide for my own moral compass. Can you please interpret this for me?

Someone thinks they have made a rational decision to become a bigot.

# ¿ Apr 4, 2016 12:13

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-05/australians-identified-in-mossack-fonseca-panama-papers-leak/7297964

quote:

Panama Papers: Fraudsters, former tax officials among Australians identified in Mossack Fonseca leak By the National Reporting Team's Lisa Main and Elise Worthington Updated 58 minutes ago

Convicted fraudsters, directors banned by the corporate regulator and former Australian Tax Office (ATO) officials are among hundreds of Australians linked to companies incorporated by Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca. They appear in the largest data leak ever analysed by journalists, with more than 11 million documents including emails, company registers and client files revealing the inner workings of Mossack Fonseca. Analysis by the ABC reveals the full extent to which Australians are using a range of financial services offered by the firm. The leak shows several Australians directly approaching Mossack Fonseca asking for help to hide their identities and avoid paying tax.

Key figures:

77 Australian clients or intermediaries working with Mossack Fonseca
More than 732 Australian shareholders
418 Australian passports listed in leak
More than 1,092 Australian-linked companies identified
800 individuals identified by ATO
In June last year, an electrician from Perth emailed Mossack Fonseca asking what he could do to "reduce or zero my tax".

Within 24 hours Mossack Fonseca replied with a range of options for their prospective Australian client. Another Australian called "Kriz", writing from a Yahoo email account, asked directly for tax haven options that would provide "complete privacy and secrecy". While it is not unlawful for Australians to set up and own offshore companies, it can be an offence to fail to disclose those assets to the Australian Tax Office. Deputy tax commissioner Mark Konza said the ATO had obtained part of the leak, and investigations had shown "a number of people who are either in our Wickenby or our wealthy Australians investigation programs" in the data.

Since 2006 tax fraud taskforce Operation Wickenby has charged 76 individuals and sent 46 people to prison.

Accompanying the hundreds of Australian shareholders, owners and directors named in the leak are dozens of Australian lawyers and accounting firms who act as "intermediaries" and use Mossack Fonseca to set up companies in tax havens for Australian individuals and companies. Only weeks after completing a prison sentence for 66 fraud-related charges, Maxwell Reid emailed Mossack Fonseca requesting an escrow account to move $100 million. Escrow services are a type of pass-through account in which a customer deposits money into Mossack Fonseca's escrow account before the law firm sends that money on as if it were its own money. In an application form, the former Coober Pedy opal miner said the millions he wanted to transfer were earned from investors and mining operations and described his role as a "paymaster" who received a "percentage" for his services, which appeared to be investing money for clients. The ABC contacted Mr Reid who confirmed he requested escrow services, but when asked if he had a current account with Mossack Fonseca he said: "Never ever."

Documents reveal the mastermind behind Australia's most infamous racing scandal became a director of a company named International Millionaire's Club after he was released from jail in the early 1990s. John Patrick Gillespie was convicted over his role in the infamous 1984 "Fine Cotton ring-in" in which another horse, Bold Personality, was painted and substituted for Fine Cotton in a race at Brisbane's Eagle Farm racecourse and won. Mr Gillespie already had an extensive criminal history when, in 1992, he became a founding director of International Millionaire's Club and another company called International Horseowners Club, both incorporated in the British Virgin Islands and the Bahamas by Mossack Fonseca.

Both companies were struck off the registries by 1995, but Mr Gillespie continued to be investigated for multiple scams allegedly involving race horses, anti-wrinkle cream and a multi-million-dollar collection of famous artworks which allegedly left investors high and dry. Mr Gillespie was unable to be reached for comment.

Warren Black, a Perth-based accountant and former ATO employee who runs a company called Wealth Safe, also appears in the leak as a director and shareholder of a Mossack Fonseca-managed company called Wealth Grow International Limited, which was incorporated in the Seychelles in March 2015. Mr Black's website states his "life passion" is legally "getting people out of paying tax" and that he is known for his "ability to create out-of-the-box solutions to minimise tax" and wants to make "the complex tax and asset protection secrets of the rich easily understood by the average person". On the day the company was incorporated, Mr Black's signature appears on a document declaring accounting records and registers are up to date and available to Seychelles authorities on request. The ABC is not suggesting any illegal behaviour or wrongdoing by Mr Black. Mr Black told the ABC he was surprised to hear about the leak but was not worried because his offshore company was completely legal. "I've always been a big believer of minimising taxes as much as you absolutely can, provided you stay within the law," he said. "I've been audited myself a couple of times in the past and it's come out very clean, so I always make sure I do things cleanly. "I think that everyone has got to ultimately look after what is [in] their best interests within the law." Mr Black notes on his website that he is a "gifted musician" and uses his unique piano-playing skills in his YouTube video series entitled Global Sovereignty � Free Yourself From Unjust Taxes.

Murray Priestley, ASIC-banned stock trader

Former Queensland-based Lifestyle trader chief executive Murray Priestley relocated to Singapore after the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) found he engaged in "deceptive conduct" and offered clients "misleading advice". In June 2013, ASIC banned Mr Priestley from providing financial services for three years. At the time, Mr Priestley was a director of a company registered by Mossack Fonseca. After Mossack Fonseca became aware of Mr Priestley's ban, the firm sought additional due diligence information but it appears requests went unanswered. Despite the ban, Mr Priestley and his company Alpha Holdings Management remain active, according to the leaked documents. Mr Priestly was unable to be reached for comment.

Warwick Farm Grandstand Motel

One of the 13 active Australian clients in the database is the Warwick Farm Grandstand Motel. Clients are also known as intermediaries and partner with Mossack Fonseca to set up offshore companies. Warwick Farm Grandstand Motel has the same name, address and contact details as a run-down, charge-by-the-half-day motel in Liverpool, west of Sydney. It has been at the centre of multiple violent disturbances. Emails between Mossack Fonseca and the Warwick Farm Grandstand Motel show they never produced due diligence documentation despite dozens of requests dating back to 2011. A warning on the client file says: "PLEASE DO NOT PROCESS ANY FUTURE PAYMENT UNTIL THE CLIENT COMPLIES WITH THE DUE DILIGENCE DOCUMENTATION." However, both Warwick Farm Grandstand Motel and the company it registered, K.D.S Incorporated, remain active in Mossack Fonseca's internal documents. The motel's holding company was also the subject of a wind-up action by the ATO last year, which was later dismissed. Neighbours to the property described the motel as "feral, dodgy and full of drug users and prostitutes". The Warwick Farm Grandstand Motel has a TripAdvisor rating of 1.1 star. One unimpressed user "Mark J" said the place looked like "a drug deal gone wrong, stains, burns and crack pipes", while another reviewer "Alex P" said it was "a good place to take a prostitute". When the ABC called the motel the company's directors were unavailable, however a receptionist advised the motel charged $80 a night and $49 for a half-day.

The ICIJ's findings reveal the Russian president's associates shuffled as much as $2 billion through banks and shadow companies. Putin's childhood friends Arkady and Boris Rotenberg amassed a fortune in part through lucrative contracts with state and state-owned companies, according to the ICIJ.

The ICIJ found a Panama company set up for Lionel Messi by Mossack Fonseca in 2012, Mega Star Enterprises Inc, adding a new name to the list of shell companies known to be linked to him. The Barcelona star's family has denied that he is involved in tax evasion.

Iceland's Prime Minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson

The data leaked revealed accusations he used an offshore company to hide millions of dollars in investments in Iceland's major banks. Gunnlaugsson was at the forefront of a campaign against bank bailouts after the 2008 Icelandic financial crisis.

Family of Chinese president Xi Jinping

According to the ICIJ, the files reveal offshore companies linked to the family of China's top leader, Xi Jinping, who has in the past vowed to fight "armies of corruption".

Jackie Chan, movie star

The files show movie star Jackie Chan had at least six companies managed through Mossack Fonseca. As with many of the law firm's clients, there is no evidence that Chan used his companies for improper purposes.

Who is involved in the Panama Papers leak?

The unprecedented leak has the hidden financial dealings of 12 current and former world leaders and 128 more politicians and public officials around the world.

The article has a bunch of links to more information and any of the 'fat cats' who thought they could wait this one out may have misread the temper of the times:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-05/icelandic-pm-refuses-to-resign-over-panama-papers-leak/7298944

quote:

(excerpt)Thousands take to streets

It was unclear whether Mr Gunnlaugsson was guilty of tax evasion but his opponents have insisted he step down regardless. "The Prime Minister should immediately resign," former Social Democratic prime minister Johanna Sigurdardottir said in a message posted on Facebook. A demonstration outside Iceland's parliament in Reykjavik calling for Mr Gunnlaugsson's resignation was then kicked off on Monday evening. Police provided no estimate of the size of the crowd, but said the demonstrators outnumbered the thousands who in 2009 brought down the right-wing government over its responsibility in Iceland's 2008 banking collapse. Organisers said more than 10,000 people had gathered outside parliament. "Take responsibility" and "Where is the new constitution?" read some of the signs carried by demonstrators, referring to the country's new charter drawn up after the 2009 political crisis and which has since been held up in parliament. Some protesters reportedly threw eggs at the parliament building. "People should not have a Prime Minister they are ashamed of ... the Prime Minister displayed his lack of faith in the Icelandic currency and economy by placing his money in a tax haven," Mr Sigurdardottir said. More than 25,000 Icelanders have also signed a petition demanding his resignation.

I can't help but think Aurfa Sidodinis isn't sleeping well at the moment.

Speaking of going quietly into the night Cunneen watch has been quiet because there is nothing being said by anybody.

# ¿ Apr 5, 2016 02:10

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Why are we looking for signs of coherent strategy in the ALP? Post Julia Gillard there have been sod all signs of any/one. It will take the worst government in the history of this nation since the invasion for the ALP to return to minority government. It has been repeatedly noted that this thread delivers better quality strategy advice for the ALP than the entire ALP apparatus. That makes party hacks, like the eternally butt hurt EvilEmo, all the more pathetic for ragging on the people who actually have a clue what's going wrong. I'm not talking about the advocating of the wholesale adoption of Greens policies by the ALP, this is the simple day to day poo poo that the ALP appear to remain utterly clueless about.

Failed YL? That's a complete tautology. What's the standard for a pass btw? Oh sorry I forgot incoherence is the new Red in the ALP.

Want to listen to the sound of failure?

http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/breakfast/christopher-pyne-talks-steel-and-submarines/7302734

quote:

Christopher Pyne talks steel and submarines Wednesday 6 April 2016 7:36AM (view full episode)

Troubled miner and steel maker Arrium, struggling under heavy debt, remains under threat of moving into voluntary administration, with hundreds if not thousands of jobs hanging in the balance. Scores of people marched through the South Australian town of Whyalla yesterday, highlighting the perilous state of the South Australian steel industry and the possible job implications. The Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science, Christopher Pyne joins Fran Kelly on RN Breakfast.

Now here's a sticky conundrum. The industry has already illegally implemented the penalty rate system they are advocating. Should we cave and make it all OK or prosecute the loving criminals until there is never a possibility of them doing it again? Replace business with bike gang if you want to get a better answer.

http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/breakfast/business-push-for-a-cut-to-sunday-penalty-rates/7302770

quote:

Business push for a cut to Sunday penalty rates, but experts say many are not complying anyway Wednesday 6 April 2016 7:51AM (view full episode)

The Fair Work Commission is currently looking at calls to create a single penalty rate for weekends, with its report due as early as July�just in time for the federal election. It follows a recommendation from the Productivity Commission in December that hospitality and retail workers be subject to one weekend penalty rate�a move that would effectively see the elimination of double time rates on Sundays and public holidays. But experts say that many small businesses are already refusing to pay weekend penalty rates, with non compliance most rampant in the hospitality and retail sectors.

Poop will eat itself.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-06/backbench-disquiet-over-turnbull-polls/7302532

quote:

Backbencher Michelle Landry criticises Government's "wishy-washy" performance By political reporters Matthew Doran and Stephanie Anderson Updated about an hour ago

Michelle Landry critical of "wishy washy" government

Coalition backbencher Michelle Landry has described the Government's efforts at selling its agenda as "wishy-washy" in the wake of a number of setbacks for the Prime Minister's team. The Nationals member for Capricornia said the Government needed to focus following the state and territory rejection of Malcolm Turnbull's income tax plan. Her comments also follow a drop in polling, with the Coalition falling behind Labor on a two-party preferred basis for the first time since Mr Turnbull became leader. Ms Landry told the ABC the Government needed to "buckle down" and focus on getting its message through. "I think it is coming across to the public that we are a little bit wishy-washy," she said. "There are a lot of positives there with what we want to do with the innovation and we've had some great success, but it seems to be getting lost."

Ms Landry also cited the influence of the 24-hour news cycle in the Government struggling to get its policies across. "We've got to get out there, promote our policies," she said. "I would hate to see us lose, yes, because we're off message or something like that." Ms Landry said the economy should remain the focus following the "wake-up call" of Tuesday's Newspoll.

Honeymoon over for PM, says Andrews

Dumped Abbott government minister Kevin Andrews also voiced concern over the latest polling, suggesting the honeymoon was finished for Mr Turnbull. "Polls go up and down � when any new leader comes in there's a honeymoon period," Mr Andrews said. "Obviously Mr Turnbull has had a honeymoon period but now as we get closer to an election Australians want to concentrate on the choice between Mr Turnbull and Mr Shorten." Mr Andrews, who made the comments while completing the annual Pollie Pedal fundraiser alongside Tony Abbott, made headlines earlier this week for indicating he would be prepared to serve as prime minister. He later said he was taken out of context.

I had prayed to the Gods of Chaos that some poo poo would happen outside the huffing hot house of the LNP party room and lo I have been rewarded!

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-06/lewis-liberals-and-the-panama-papers/7302494

quote:

The Panama Papers couldn't come at a worse time for the Coalition OPINION By Peter Lewis Updated about an hour ago

The avoidance of tax by corporate executives and the very rich is the last thing the Turnbull Government needs as it prepares for a federal budget that is likely to be anchored by a cut in the company tax rate, writes Peter Lewis. This week's Panama Papers data dump of one law firm's contribution to the global sport of tax avoidance looms as a wild card in the federal election. The 2.6 terabytes of data implicating world leaders, major corporations and an estimated 800 high net worth Australians will generate a steady stream of revelations and possible prosecutions over the coming months. The avoidance of tax by corporate executives and the very rich is the last thing the Turnbull Government needs as it prepares for a federal budget that is likely to be anchored by a cut in the company tax rate. As I argued last week, the Turnbull Government's mishandling of its tax conversation was already pushing it into a corner where it is seen as governing for the top end of town rather than the broader public.

Not only will the PM likely enter a campaign justifying a tax cut while attacking Labor for tightening negative gearing concessions and paring back superannuation benefits for high income earners. But he will also now be called to explain why the Government has failed to act on homegrown tax avoidance and minimisation that sees a third of Australia's top companies paying no tax. Meanwhile, his Government might be justifying reduced spending on health and education on the grounds that we do not have the money to meet public expectations. If it was an election fought purely on competence, the incumbents would be in trouble. But findings in this week's Essential Report point to a more existential challenge for a Liberal Party currently in an arm wrestle between its conservative and small-l Liberal traditions. We asked respondents to nominate which groups of society would be better off under a Liberal Government. The list is short and reads a little like the profile of the Mossack Fonseca client list. The common thread running through these groups is that these are not the people likely to be benefiting from the tax policies and non-policies of the current Government. And then there is what seems to be a growing array of groups that people see as being part of the Labor heartland, otherwise know as everyone else. With the parties locked at 50-50 in two-party preferred polls the risk for the Coalition is that after two years of Abbott and a muddled six months of Turnbull their constituency is shrinking before their eyes. And after decades of falling victim to shrewd Coalition wedge attacks on everything from immigration to climate change, Labor has a chance to unify as a coalition those without the wit or will to beat the taxman.

The article linked has a table of poll results which is what Lewis is basing this off. I think it's all a richly entertaining train wreck. Something Lewis doesn't mention is that often in a choice of ALP, LNP, Makes no difference and Don't know. A fighteningly large number of times the answer was 'Makes no difference'.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-05/rosewarne-a-bake-sale-sparks-rape-threats/7300172

tl;dr She who bakes must expect to be raped it's the natural order of things.

And for those who need a dose of schadenfreude/instant karma:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-05/mother-regrets-decision-to-reject-whooping-cough-vaccine/7301836

# ¿ Apr 6, 2016 01:29

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

hooman posted:

No, this is simply tragic. Failures to inform/stamp out antivax poo poo leads to terrible situations like this one. It's not like she was travelling the world promoting antivax, she was just woefully misinformed.

Just because the article didn't mention her previous advocacy doesn't mean she wasn't rabid. But in lieu of actual evidence I must concede.

# ¿ Apr 6, 2016 01:55

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

thatfatkid posted:

Why would a traditionally blue collar working class party not endorse and support an industry that is entirely blue collar working class? Especially so in a state where said industry is the largest part of that states economy? Do you think before you post or what m8?

You are so full of poo poo it is astonishing:

http://www.qgso.qld.gov.au/products/reports/employment-by-industry/employment-by-industry-201603.pdf

By employment, mining doesn't even get its own bar graph.

http://www.qgso.qld.gov.au/products/reports/qld-econ-review/qld-econ-review-201301.pdf

The only place it gets a top spot is by export income.

https://www.qrc.org.au/_dbase_upl/QueenslandStory2015_final.pdf

65 billion towards a total state GSP of 300 billion is at best 20%. Why at best? Because those are rabidly inflated figures from the Queensland Resources Council. Here's a more accurate picture:

(That's from Qld Treasury)

Your second point (not quoted) is however right on the money and is why Qld needs to look for less concentrated ways of developing its economy. Having a couple of big mining regions means they get a good deal while everyone else eats crow. At least agriculture tends to be disbursed as can be tourism. The mining road is a one way trip to oblivion.

If the worlds economy picks up (which ironically may be due to more readily available power in India) then betting on coal is, at best, a steady financial investment. It is however a terrible 'investment' in pollution and a huge risk to the Tourism sector which had at least the promise of sustainablility. Those big numbers from mining are the total cash side of things. The amount of money that Queensland ultimately sees from Coal is tiny compared to a sector like Tourism.

-/-

Those in the ALP camp who keep bagging the Greens need to wake up and read the polling numbers (Or actually pay attention when Antony Green is talking).

LNP primary votes ~ 43 %
ALP primary votes ~ 34 %

This is partly because nobody can really tell who is who and what they stand for so 'team' loyalties count for a bunch in those figures. Neither of them can get past 50% without the help of at least preferences from:

Greens primary votes ~ 11 %
Others primary votes ~ 12 %

At least the Greens are a coherent block of votes. That 12% contains a huge proportion of politically motivated nut jobs sprayed across the political spectrum from Right to Left like hundreds and thousands on a birthday cake. Even the better of the 'others' like Xenophon are likely to have a hugely mixed bag of positions across the broad range of policies.

Now if the Greens direct preference to the LNP it is 100% game over for the ALP. 43 + 11 = a boot stamping in the face of Australia for at least another 3 years. Even with the Green's unfettered preference support the ALP ( 34 + 11 = 45%) need nearly as large a chunk of the nut job pie as the LNP to get over the line. That's why I reckon a majority labour is a complete pipe dream and the best any of us can hope for is a minority Labour government at the next federal poll. The truely scariest of all notions is if the two majors go into some sort of lock step alliance as they do over the majority of terrible poo poo anyway. 43 + 34 = We are very very very hosed.

# ¿ Apr 7, 2016 02:09

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Skellybones posted:

All those old retirees being sucked dry, trying to collect their pension. Actually yes I like the idea of sucking the life force from boomers.

You couldn't actually use their blood you know. Might as well just grind us all up for fertilizer.

Need I mention that blood donation is a complex topic with many deep shades of ambiguity completely unsuited to 'agile' redesign?

For instance the reason paid blood donation is illegal?/unlawful? is it gives an incentive for people who are high risk donors to misinform at the point of collection.

In further nuanced news:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-08/more-teens-in-legal-trouble-for-sexting-every-week-lawyer-says/7309540

quote:

More 'sexting' teens in legal trouble every week, NSW children's lawyer says By state political reporter Lucy McNally Posted about 3 hours ago

Legal Aid lawyers in New South Wales are dealing with teenagers in trouble over "sexting" on a weekly basis, the state's head of Legal Aid for children says. Sexting � the practice of sending explicit content, including photos, using mobile phones � is one of the topics being examined by a NSW parliamentary committee, which is investigating the sexualisation of young people. The state's peak body for youth services and organisations, Youth Action, yesterday called for a change to laws that treat consensual sexting as the distribution child pornography. Children's Legal Service solicitor in charge Debra Maher said she agreed, because teenagers were regularly being charged. "There wouldn't be a week that goes past where we don't either represent a child in court charged with a sexting offence or take a hotline call on the Legal Aid hotline for a child who's at a police station being investigated for a sexting type offence, so they're very regular," she said. "They're potentially going to be on a sex offender register for the rest of their life."

The inquiry's public hearings continue today.

In my opinion the biggest area of child sexualisation is commercial television and the print industry. I'm going to be reading the final report very carefully to see if that even rates a mention.

Ethics! We don't need no steeeenken' ethics!

http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/breakfast/friday-panel:-bad-business-behaviour/7309938

quote:

Friday panel: corporate ethics and bad business behaviour Friday 8 April 2016 8:13AM (view full episode)

The reputation of the Australian banking sector has been battered in recent times by a series of scandals exposing wide-spread corruption, from financial advice scams to allegations of interest rate rigging. The leak of a cache of documents this week known as the Panama Papers has also raised questions about the role of global banks in assisting the rich and powerful to hide their wealth in offshore tax havens. So is more regulation needed to boost community trust�not just in the banks, but in the corporate sector more generally? To discuss business and trust, Fran Kelly is joined by Simon Longstaff, Louise Petschler and Adele Ferguson for this week's Friday panel.

# ¿ Apr 8, 2016 02:47

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

MaliciousOnion posted:

I think studies have found this not to be the case, though. In any case, the red cross do a lot of tests even on the volunteer blood - I've had a donation rejected because my white cell count was slightly elevated from a cold I had a week prior to donating, and I wasn't allowed to donate again until I had blood tests done.

WHO say otherwise:

http://freakonomics.com/2013/06/05/is-paying-for-blood-a-good-idea-after-all/

But there's so much more to the issue at a public health level:

http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/05/blood-money-the-twisted-business-of-donating-plasma/362012/

# ¿ Apr 8, 2016 03:26

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Won't somebody please think of the banks :qq:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-09/nab-anz-bosses-say-banking-royal-commission-a-distraction/7313030

quote:

NAB, ANZ bosses say calls for royal commission in banking a 'serious distraction' By political reporter Dan Conifer Updated 9 minutes ago

The bosses of Australia's biggest banks have dismissed the need for a royal commission into the financial sector, after Labor vowed to hold an inquiry if elected. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said a "string of scandals" proved the two-year, $53 million probe was vital. But National Australia Bank chief executive Andrew Thorburn dubbed the move a "serious distraction", saying there had been about 10 investigations into the sector since the global financial crisis. "However, our democratic processes are paramount, and if the government of the day decides that a royal commission is needed, then it will have our full co-operation," Mr Thorburn said. ANZ CEO Shayne Elliott also said there had been a number of recent inquiries into the industry and a royal commission could damage Australia's standing among global investors. "I understand the politics and that attraction for many people to think that such a commission or investigation is a good idea," Mr Elliott said.

What is a royal commission?

Bill Shorten says an incoming Labor government would hold a royal commission into misconduct in the banking industry. We look at the role of royal commissions and what would likely be involved. "But I feel that we've been through the financial systems inquiry, we have had all sorts of investigations, we have high-quality regulators whose day jobs it is to enforce existing legislation and rules about unethical behaviour and illegal behaviour. "It has the potential to harm Australia's reputation because international investors will be thinking where there is smoke there is fire and what exactly are we investigating here?" A Westpac spokesman said the community had the right to expect high standards from banks and all banking executives, but the bank did not support a royal commission. "Australian banks are well regulated and our regulators are seen as world class," a statement from Westpac said. "[The] announcement sends confusing messages about the strength of Australia's financial system and this could impact confidence in the economy." Westpac said it had just completed the two-year Financial System Inquiry which received almost 7,000 submissions and 44 recommendations were being implemented.

Banking inquiry 'above politics': Labor

The financial and banking sectors have been rocked by controversies in recent years. The Commonwealth Bank's financial planning and insurance arms have been accused of wrongdoing, while the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) dragged ANZ and Westpac to court over alleged inter-bank interest rate rigging � accusations both banks deny. A royal commission is a powerful body with the power to compel witnesses, access commercially sensitive documents and direct police to apply for search warrants. Labor Senators last year voted against a similar commission proposed by the Greens, but opposition financial services spokesman Jim Chalmers denied yesterday's announcement was a political manoeuvre. "This is more fundamental than political game playing or political judgements that some people have made including the Government," Mr Chalmers said. "This is really about one of the most important sectors in the Australian economy, and even more important than that, the way that Australians are treated within that part of the economy. I think it should be above politics."

Labor has called on the Federal Government to call its own royal commission, but that appears highly unlikely.

Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison dismissed Labor's push as playing "complete politics" ahead of the federal election. "For Bill Shorten to go down this path, I think it is a reckless distraction that puts at risk confidence in the banking system," Mr Morrison said. Greens senator Peter Whish-Wilson � a former banker � has long called for a royal commission into the industry. "Most of these scandals have only occurred because of whistleblowers," he said. "A royal commission will no doubt get to the bottom of a number of scandals that I think are still lurking there under the surface," he said.

One thing likely to be trotted out by the 'but business confidence!' crew will be that ASIC already has RC like powers. Well....

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-05-15/budget-2014-funding-cut-to-asic-business-regulation/5453816

quote:

(extract)Budget 2014: ASIC's funding cut in move away from financial sector oversight By Lexi Metherell Updated 29 Apr 2015, 2:50pm

The Federal Government is cutting funding to the corporate watchdog, as it pushes for less regulatory oversight of the financial sector. Over the next five years, $120 million will be pulled from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission's (ASIC) funding. A spokeswoman for Finance Minister Matthias Cormann, the minister responsible for ASIC, says the saving is necessary for the Government to repair the budget. But less than a decade after banks sparked the global financial crisis, the Government is signalling it wants to reduce regulation of the sector. Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer Steven Ciobo told a post-budget breakfast in Sydney on Wednesday morning the Government is in favour of more "self-regulation". "The Government thinks that there is scope for the financial services industry, and for all the other industries, to self-regulate more," Mr Ciobo said. "There will always be (as a general statement of principle) our preference for self-regulation over the need to have a regulator [that is] tax-payer funded intervening in the field."

When asked whether the cuts would reduce ASIC's power as a regulator, the Finance Minister's spokeswoman said "ASIC will continue to be able to perform its statutory objectives". The Government says it will be up to ASIC to decide how it allocates its reduced funding. ASIC is yet to reveal its plans. The Financial Planning Association's Dante De Gori expressed concern that ASIC could raise the prices it charges for services.(gently caress the leaners)

You can not make this poo poo up.

# ¿ Apr 9, 2016 01:41

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

I think the progress towards class warfare is actually closer than we thought. Turdbull keeps asking business to be agile so they can dodge the incoming rounds. It all makes sense now!

# ¿ Apr 9, 2016 09:54

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Zenithe posted:

NSW finest:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-10/greens-mp-jenny-leong-demands-action-after-online-posts/7313898

Count down till absolutely nothing happens 10, 9, :effort:

# ¿ Apr 10, 2016 09:55

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

I love the smell of desperation on a PM.

OK pundits. It's time to play terrorist or not terrorist again!

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-11/prisoner-is-attack-on-fellow-inmate-should-be-rehabilitated/7315194

quote:

Radicalised prisoner who carved jihadist slogan into fellow inmate's forehead should be rehabilitated, terrorism expert says AM Posted 39 minutes ago

Radicalised inmates should be rehabilitated rather than isolated in high security, a terrorism expert says, after a prisoner and former Australian soldier was bashed and had a jihadist slogan carved into his head by a radicalised teenager he was sharing a cell with.

The 40-year-old prisoner, beaten by his cell mate at the Kempsey prison on the NSW north coast last week, will be transferred from hospital back to jail in the next few days. The 18-year-old radicalised inmate has been moved to the SuperMax prison in Goulburn but counter-terrorism expert Clarke Jones said that was not the right response. "If they're placed in high security and they're isolated or segregated, often that contributes to someone who may have already exhibited signs of radicalisation," he said. "It sometimes compounds the feeling of isolation, marginalisation or the original reasons we've got them there in the first place." Instead, Mr Clarke suggested prisons should create environments to help radicalised inmates or those on terrorism convictions. "We need to create the environment that fosters and enhances the chance for rehabilitation and that doesn't happen in maximum security prisons," he said. Mr Clarke used the example of Khaled Sharrouf who was in prison for five years, went to fight for Islamic State in Syria and was killed. "He had significant mental health issues and they were obviously not dealt with properly in his time of incarceration," he said. "He certainly wasn't in an environment to create any type of rehabilitation ... then he was released a worse person."

A spokesman for the Public Service Association, which represents prison guards, Steve McMahon said there was no information in the system that would have raised the alarm about placing the two prisoners together. "The Government is continuing to push us," he said. "They're pushing us to take prisoners into the system well beyond the capacity. We've been requested on a number of occasions now to take three prisoners per cell in some locations." He said it was possible there could be a similar attack in the future. "On a number of grounds, yes, it's possible that we may have more unrecognised, self-styled administers of justice amongst radicalised inmates who want to do this," he said. "And then there's always the risk that two grown men, unrelated grown men, placed in a cell the size of an average backyard garden shed, will not get on and they will fight. So it's a matter for us balancing out the best-case scenarios."

A/ He's a fooken terrorist!
B/ He's not a terrorist.
C/ Too soon to tell.

I note the ongoing theme of inadequately managed mental health (and prison overcrowding in this case). Obviously these are problems that no amount of resources will fix whereas spending big bucks on border security is a universal panacea.

And after that what I need is nice cool drink of ~~beer~~ rain water.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-11/orange's-electrolux-closes-its-doors-for-good/7315122

quote:

Electrolux factory rolls out its last ever fridge as production moves overseas AM By Melanie Pearce Updated about an hour ago

Australia's last refrigerator factory, the Electrolux plant at Orange in central west NSW, will roll its last fridge off the production line today, after producing around 12 million fridges in its lifetime.

Key points:

In 2013 Electrolux announced production to be moved overseas
Closure marks the end of more than 70 years of whitegoods production in Orange
Plant pumped estimated $70 million annually into local economy
Electrolux factory began in 1942 as a WW2 munitions plant

In 2013 Electrolux announced it would close the factory and move production overseas. The company said they had decided it was more cost effective to make fridges in south-east Asia and eastern Europe. General manager Mark O'Kane said not only will the closure be a blow for the town of Orange, but also for Australian manufacturers seeking to compete globally. Of the remaining 300 employees at Electrolux's fridge factory, 210 will have their last day tomorrow while 90 will stay on for up to eight months decommissioning the plant. The Electrolux factory in Orange began in 1942 as a World War Two munitions plant. When that closed a deal was struck with the company Email Ltd � initially operating as Emmco and Elcon � and a whitegoods factory was born. From 1946 the factory made household goods including fans, stoves, washing machines and freezers, but more recently it has been fridges only.

Some of the remaining 300 employees of Electrolux look back on what the factory has meant to them and its role in Australian history and manufacturing. At its peak it employed more than 2,000 people and it was during this time the Queen visited it on her 1970 tour. One of the Electrolux factory's longest serving remaining employees, Phil Johnston, has seen a lot of changes in fridge making in his 44 years. "We used to get the steel in black, we used to fold it, paint it, we had our own paint shops here, we used to do chrome plating, anodising, powder coating, we used to do everything here, in house."

The closure announcement has been a blow for Orange because the plant pumped an estimated $70 million annually into the local economy.

However Mr O'Kane said it also has significance for Australian manufacturers as they seek to compete globally. "Every major manufacturer in the world is in this south east region, specifically Thailand," he said. "They have government support, they have trade-free zones within these industrial parks and of course at the end of the day a labour rate of $2.50 an hour. "That is really hard to compete against, I'm really fearful for Australian manufacturing." 'It's going to be like leaving part of the family behind' Mr Johnston said he fears what such factory closures mean for future generations. "What's happening is that we're de-skilling our people," he said. "The politicians are now talking about having a smart, people who are going to go into new technology with new businesses, but that's going to take years to develop and not everybody is going to go to university, because people just don't have the ability to do that." Ron Finch said he has worked at the Electrolux factory for 44 years, and has witnessed major milestones in manufacturing history, including the introduction of computerisation. "That was quite significant and I remember the general manager realising his factory could stop for want of a barcode label, which was a bit hard to fathom." Mr Finch said that not many of the employees were "buoyant about the closure." "It's a profitable factory. The thing that a lot of us feel is just the impact on the town." Cheryl Seymour said she has spent nearly three decades at the factory and said it is going to be an emotional farewell. "We spend a lot of time with these people so it is like a family, so you have this close friendship and close bond and it's going to be like leaving part of the family behind," she said.

Agile as a concrete block.

What sort of a poo poo smear would be trying to get these guns on our streets?

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-10/decision-on-adler-shotgun-ban-still-under-review/7311912

quote:

Port Arthur anniversary: Decision on Adler A110 may not arrive before temporary ban expires Australian Story By Greg Hassall Updated about an hour ago

A decision on the fate of the controversial Adler A110 lever-action shotgun has been delayed and may no longer be handed down before a temporary ban on its importation expires.

Key points:

Port Arthur massacre survivor started petition calling for heavy restrictions on Adler A110
Government placed temporary ban on gun, expiry date on August 7
Gun not specifically referred to in 1996 National Firearms Agreement, review to decide its fate
Howard "won't support" watering down laws
The decision was expected this month, which would have coincided with the 20th anniversary of the Port Arthur massacre, the event that led to the tightening of firearm laws.

Last year a survivor of the shootings, Carolyn Loughton, launched a petition calling for heavy restrictions to be placed on the gun, a lever-action firearm capable of shooting eight rounds in as many seconds.

A couple who were with Nanette Mikac and her daughters when they were murdered in the mass shooting at Port Arthur nearly 20 years ago break their silence. Ms Loughton lost her 15-year-old daughter Sarah in the Broad Arrow Cafe at Port Arthur on April 28, 1996, and was terribly injured herself. She still requires surgery 20 years later from a bullet wound to the shoulder. Until recently she had not given much thought to gun control, thinking the issue had been dealt with in 1996.
It was only after seeing a story on the ABC's 7.30 about the imminent arrival of the Adler shotgun in Australia that she was galvanised, starting her petition and contacting politicians. "The news report stopped me in my tracks," Ms Loughton said. "The person firing that gun had earphones on, it was very, very rapid fire. "You can't run that fast. It was truly, truly frightening."

Deal with Leyonhjelm puts automatic expiry on ban

Weeks after the story aired, the Federal Government placed a temporary ban on the shotgun. A short time later however, in exchange for Senator David Leyonhjelm's vote on border control legislation, the Government put an automatic expiry date on the ban of August 7 this year. The ban does not extend to a version of the gun that can fire six rounds. It remains available as a Category A firearm, the least restrictive category, and more than 7,000 have been imported into Australia in the past six months. A decision on the fate of the banned gun, and lever-action shotguns in general, is part of a wider review into technical aspects of the 1996 National Firearms Agreement, the deal pushed through by then-prime minister John Howard following the Port Arthur shootings. The review, underway since late last year, is being overseen by the Federal Government and conducted by Commonwealth, state and territory law enforcement and justice agencies.

Last month a group of senior officials considered a draft of the review and asked for more time to consider how to implement possible changes. This potentially pushes any decision beyond the expiry of the Adler ban, something the Government would not have anticipated when it made the deal with Senator Leyonhjelm. The review is politically sensitive and whatever the decision on the Adler, it is guaranteed to upset one side of the bitterly divided gun control debate. Gun control advocates consider the Adler's availability a significant weakening of Australia's gun control regime, which they argue has put a stop to mass killings and reduced firearm deaths in this country. For those on the other side of the debate, the gun simply updates century-old technology and they consider its ban an overreaction.

Howard will not support any watering down of laws

The problem is that lever-action shotguns are not specifically referred to in the 1996 agreement. The agreement places tight restrictions on semi-automatic and pump-action rifles, putting those with a magazine capacity of up to five rounds in Category C (prohibited except for occupational purposes) and those with a magazine capacity of more than five rounds in Category D (prohibited except for official purposes). Types of shotgun that are not specifically mentioned in the agreement tend to be consigned to the least-restrictive Category A, which is how both versions of the Adler ended up in this category. The review of the National Firearms Agreement is looking into the classification of lever-action shotguns in general and is expected to clarify the situation. It remains unclear what happens if a decision is not reached by the time the ban on the eight-shot Adler expires in August.

A Government spokesperson could only say that "no decision has been made regarding the ban". One person watching the review process with interest is John Howard. He said he was "pretty dubious" about claims the Adler lever-action shotgun did not have the lethal capacity of semi-automatic weapons. "I'll naturally wait and see what the inquiry recommends," Mr Howard said. "But anything that to me looks as though it waters down the laws that are in place now, I won't support and I will argue that the Government shouldn't support." Mr Howard is proud of the gun control measures he fought to achieve in 1996 and is concerned to protect his legacy. "This ban has been so successful, and is so widely respected around the world, that I would not want any government in Australia to do anything that would weaken it," he said. On Friday, Mr Howard lent his support to a petition launched by Walter Mikac, who lost his family at Port Arthur, calling on state and territory governments to maintain strict gun laws.

You don't deserve it but have some good news anyway.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-11/online-streaming-drives-increase-in-australian-music-industry/7314660

quote:

Online streaming drives first increase in music industry revenue in years triple j By Ruby Jones Posted about 5 hours ago

The Australian music industry's revenue has gone up for the first time in three years, driven by a doubling in music streaming services, while music downloads continued their decline.

Key points:

Digital streaming now accounts for 62 per cent of music streaming market
Downloads, CDs continue to slide
Artists getting low returns from streaming services
New figures from the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) show a 5 per cent increase in the value of Australian recorded music in 2015, the first upwards trend the industry's had in its wholesale figures since 2012.

The turnaround has been driven by a continued uptake in digital streaming, which now accounts for 62 per cent of the overall market. While the value of subscription-based digital streaming services, including services like Spotify and Apple Music, doubled from $23 million to $46 million, digital downloads and CD sales continued their decline. Digital downloads went down by almost 13 per cent, while CD sales fell 4 per cent, notably less than the 18 per cent decline in 2013. ARIA's statistics also showed vinyl sales increased by 38 per cent in 2015.

Streaming takes toll on artists' income

Online services have come under fire from big name artists � including industry heavyweights like Taylor Swift, who say they are not paying enough royalties to artists. A recent analysis by Death and Taxes showed Spotify paid $0.00521 per song stream. That money gets to artists via record labels and licensing organisations. In the Australian music scene, most artists feel the exposure is worth it, despite the lack of pay per stream. Al Grigg from indie band Palms does not know how much revenue he makes from Spotify, but estimates it is miniscule. "Even if it's a tiny royalty, it's probably better than people just downloading it for free," he said. "More people are hearing the band, and maybe then more people are liking the band, and they will buy a ticket and come and see you play live or they might buy a T-shirt, and then you are making your money that way."

Revenue expected to rise

Dan Nevin from Australia's independent music companies trade body AIR said working out how to maximise that exposure on streaming services was difficult. "It's great that independent artists can have their music found on a service that also has the biggest artists in the world, that is a fantastic thing," he said. "The flip side to that is the whole discovery element. How do we get opportunities on these big multinational streaming services?" While Nevin says there is not enough money in it for artists at the moment, he thinks when the services are making more money through more subscribers, artists will see the benefit. "It will get to a point I believe where it will overtake what the revenue of CD and digital were in its heyday, but we are quite a way off that," he said.

If you've got this far you might not be the target audience but anyhow. Pisscat is a troll. Stop touching the poop. Look at how well managed the posters who nobody responds to have become. I've heard all of the arguments for why felating trolls isn't always a bad idea so please don't bother to remake them.

# ¿ Apr 11, 2016 01:58

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

ahmeni posted:

https://twitter.com/nswpolice/status/719412128461926400

Phew. Sorted.

OK I was wrong they did something. Ultimately nothing but something none the less.

# ¿ Apr 11, 2016 09:33

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

SynthOrange posted:

http://www.theage.com.au/entertainm...411-go3mkw.html

lomarf 60 mins botched their escape

And they said Channel Nine couldn't do comedy.

Which is brighter? Tara or the table lamp?

This is actually better than scum watch (Panama papers and LNP turmoil) and Cunneen watch (gone quiet). I keep picturing Brooke Vandenberg in the production meetings that preceded this lunatic adventure. I'm a little bit sympathetic to the camera operator and the sound recordist but dual Walkley award winning producer Stephen Rice?

http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/meettheteam/264630/stephen-rice

quote:

Stephen Rice has been a producer on 60 Minutes since 2004, following ten years as executive producer of the Nine Network's Sunday program. Rice began his career in journalism with the investigative newspaper, The National Times, after graduating from the Australian National University in 1981 with degrees in law and arts . He then joined The Sydney Morning Herald covering political, legal and industrial issues. In 1984 he was hired by Channel Nine's Willesee program and later became executive producer of A Current Affair. In 1994 he became executive producer of Sunday, Business Sunday and The Small Business Show. Rice is the author of Some Doctors Make You Sick: The scandal of medical incompetence and winner of several national and international television and journalism awards, including the New York Festivals Awards. He has twice won a Walkley Award for journalism: one for an exclusive interview with the Golden Triangle heroin warlord Khun Sa in 1988 (a report he filmed himself on a Video 8 camera after illegally crossing the Burmese border by donkey); another for Excellence in News Leadership, in 1997.

"Nothing is going to go wrong. I've pulled stunts like this a thousand times. It's a tin pot Arab country, bribe early, bribe often."

-/-

Oh look a fresh steaming pile of poop! Do I?

A/ Let it lie and move on with my life?
B/ Comment loudly about it to everyone around me?
C/ Prod it cautiously with a stick. It might not be poop! It could happen!
D/ :shrek:

# ¿ Apr 12, 2016 02:34

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

So while their four stooges are in the Lebanese legal system one wonders who the corporate masters at Channel Nine are and what the gently caress they are doing. According to former Foreign Affairs official Bruce Haig:

http://www.looppng.com/content/60-minutes-crew-be-charged

quote:

Former senior Australian diplomat Bruce Haigh, who served in several Middle Eastern countries including Saudi Arabia and Iran, said the key to Channel Nine getting its employees out of Lebanon was to apologise profusely. "You need to grovel," Mr Haigh told AM. "You need to go and make an abject apology to the Lebanese Government and you need to say, 'Look, we made a huge error, a bad error of judgement and we really apologise for what's occurred.' "Nothing short of that will get these people out." A spokesperson for Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop said Australian consular staff in Beirut were continuing to provide ongoing consular assistance.

Was there a criminal conspiracy on Australian soil? More interestingly who decided to go with Child Abduction Recovery International Run by the noted chancer Adam Whittington. His organisation will be bad mouthed by anyone who operates in this shadowy area of legality. There is even a home grown company http://www.childrecoveryaustralia.com/ who has a much better reputation than Whittington's :australia:

Was this a dodgy deal done dirt cheap? All indication are: Yes, yes it was.

Perhaps it is time for ACMA to actually step up for once rather than spraying its scant resources around chasing complains by the LNP against the ABC. Would suspending Nine's license for a day send a sufficiently strong message? It's hard to imagine what anything less would achieve.

-/-

The LNP are having a very hard run at trying to keep the narrative straight. The whole 'ASIC beats a Royal Commission' has done nothing more than shine a bright light into probably one of the (many) places the LNP does not want any illumination what so ever. Perhaps they are hoping to exploit the upcoming (May 13) end of current incumbent head Greg Medcraft to shuffle in an even more obvious sock puppet. Maybe Ray Hadley has some spare time. The soon to exit head has a solid 'street cred' (http://theconversation.com/why-has-asics-turn-on-the-global-stage-been-ignored-71900 but appears to have not gotten many runs actually on the board. He was a (worst treasurer ever)Wayne Swan appointment so perhaps that is sin enough, and justification enough to put in someone truly cringe worthy. Which just begs the question: How can ASIC be superior to a Royal Commission (A laughable claim in any case) when the head is appointed by the Treasurer of the day? If it is run now on the previously sacrosanct basis of proper, fit for the job, executive appointments based on merit rather than politics, throwing them into the center of the hurly burly would almost instantly politicise the role.

But you have to laugh. Today, long term LNP target, turncoat Palmer was being pilloried for his Nickel company financial antics and ASIC was firmly in the sights of Palmers haters. http://www.smh.com.au/business/mining-and-resources/clive-palmer-referred-to-asic-over-queensland-nickel-collapse-20160411-go42b5.html The haters are all up in arms that ASIC wasn't more proactive. The matter has only now been brought before them and an investigation (should one occur) is yet to commence. This isn't the big tough strong arm of prudent impartial oversight this is the fig leaf of convenience.

So Mr Right Wing LNP nutter, ASIC Good or Bad? It can't be both. Or can it?

-/-

The Arts

What the lolbertarians can not fathom is how you can have an exam which is ,say, compose a poem about a waterfall and then have someone give it a mark. This doesn't fit the logical positivist reductionist view of the world. Black is Black and White is White. There are 0's and there are 1's. In a maths exam the right answer is, by definition, right. How can two poems be judged against one another? Yes there are some broad guidelines that might satisfy the reductionist view but modern poetry has shown that some of the finest poems can be the very ones that break the rules in often format breaking ways. More over the writer of the better poem hasn't been elevated above the writer of the lesser poem in some clearly definable way. It is all soft edges and shades of grey.

Which is why it is fascinating, if you have the opportunity to study academics at work, to compare the way the average science faculty and the typical arts faculty are governed. The science faculties tend to have a thin veneer of proper and merit based process but in reality are a cartel of the people who are most acceptable to the hierarchy all hell bent on pursuing the 'one true vision' of who ever is leading the research. This is the nature of specialisation. The arts faculties suffer from the same pressures but nobody alludes to this being due and proper. The emperors clothes are known and given the proper consideration. So it is that a Phd student in the Arts may routinely submit work that directly affronts the Arts faculty hierarchy and still expect to be given marks based on the merit of their actual work while a Phd student in the Science would suddenly not be able to find a supervisor.

We live in a world of grey that lolbertarians insist is black and white. Science deals well with black and white (which is why ultimately lolbertarians resort to authoritarian legalism) but usually does terribly with grey. The arts is all about the grey and leads to a closer understanding of the world that we experience, or at least admits of the tools to do so.

Cartoon fucked around with this message at 02:21 on Apr 13, 2016

# ¿ Apr 13, 2016 02:16

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

So what do all these chunky poo head fascists base their 'Moslems are taking over bro! Not even once!' stance on?

The first significant influx of Moslem people came in the 1860s with the afghani camel drivers used to open up Central Australia. They were responsible for the :argh:

first mosque built in Australia (Marree in SA) and contributed significantly to the Adelaide Mosque (1888) and the Perth Mosque (1905) and then the cunning little scamps went dormant for nearly one hundred years! That's how insidious they are (If you can include the two with an ice cream van during the Battle of Broken HIll 1915). After integrating successfully into the community (usually small region ones. You know the ones fullest of racist nongs) for over one hundred years they rose up and... peacefully integrated into the community, only now in urban areas. They now occupy a staggering 2.2% of us. Holy moly I'm making GBS threads my pants here! That's gonna stink when I put them on my head.

:jerkbag:

Sources/Background - https://museumvictoria.com.au/origins/history.aspx?pid=1
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afghan_(Australia)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marree,_South_Australia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam_in_Australia

-/-

But let's let our Authoritarian freak flag fly!

http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/apr/14/police-powers-prevention-orders-could-set-up-rival-justice-system-in-nsw

quote:

Police powers: prevention orders could set up 'rival justice system' in NSW

Bar Association warns against proposal that would ban employment and restrict movement of people without them being found guilty of an offence

The bill would give New South Wales police similar powers to those they have to seek and impose control orders on terrorism suspects.

New police powers that could see citizens in New South Wales face bans on their employment, restrictions on movement and curfews without ever having committed an offence would set up a �rival criminal justice system� and should be scrapped, the New South Wales Bar Association has warned. The NSW government has sought to introduce new powers called serious crime prevention orders.

The bill would give police similar powers to those they have to seek and impose control orders on terrorism suspects � but they could be applied to all citizens in NSW who are alleged to have some proximity or involvement to a serious crime, without a person ever being found guilty of an offence. They would allow orders to be made on any citizen restricting their movement, who they associate with, who they work for and whether they can access the internet. Even when a person is acquitted of a criminal offence police could still seek such an order. The penalty for breaching an order could be up to five years� imprisonment or a $33,000 fine for an individual, or $165,000 for a corporation.

In a scathing submission the NSW Bar Association criticised the government�s limited consultation with legal groups and its attempt to rush the bill through NSW parliament.

�No evidence has been cited as to the ineffectiveness of the administration of criminal justice by a process of trial for �reducing serious and organised crime� in New South Wales,� the submission said. �The bill effectively sets up a rival to the criminal trial system and interferes unacceptably in the fundamental human rights and freedoms of citizens of NSW.� It said the government had failed to explain why the powers should be expanded in a manner �so contradictory to long-settled principles concerning the adjudication of criminal guilt by a fair trial�.

The police minister, Troy Grant, has said that the measures would provide law enforcement agencies with a more effective means of reducing serious and organised crime by targeting business dealings and restricting suspects� behaviour.

Under the new provisions, the NSW police, the NSW Crime Commission and the NSW director of public prosecutions could seek orders from a judge, who must be satisfied there are �reasonable grounds� it would protect the public by restricting or preventing serious crime-related activity. But the bar association said it was unclear why the laws were needed. While they could be applied to individuals who had been convicted of a serious criminal offence, they would also be applicable to behaviour that was considered �serious crime-related activity� without an offence needing to be proven. The orders could also be sought on the basis of hearsay and other forms of tendency evidence that would normally be inadmissible in a normal criminal trial. The bar association warned that the laws posed an unacceptable interference with citizens; right to freedom of expression, association and privacy. They also noted that the orders were of �doubtful constitutional validity�. �Whatever be the fate of the legislation it can be said with confidence that very grave issues are raised by its prospect and that our high court will give them the attention they deserve,� the association said.

Our children and their children will not live in the same world that we did, and it won't be Moslems that did the damage.

And it's not like the police would ever abuse their powers! There are whole codes of conduct against that sort of thing:

http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/apr/05/police-officers-troll-greens-anti-sniffer-dog-campaign-on-facebook

quote:

(excerpt)Several officers have been found to have posted incorrect information on the NSW Greens� Sniff Off Facebook page, which publicises the location of drug detector dogs at railway stations, bus interchanges and events around Sydney.

Officers commented on status updates posted on 29 February and 7 March that advised of drug dogs� presence at Sydenham and Liverpool stations to insist that the dogs were not there. �Yeah nothing to see here,� wrote one beneath the February status. �Still nothing,� replied another. The first then posted a meme in the thread showing a German Shepherd dog at a computer, with the caption reading: �Saw bad man. Bit bad man. End of report.� The men�s identities have not been publicised by the NSW Greens, but Vice News confirmed that they were officers with NSW police. A third man is also thought to be involved. The Greens� justice spokesman, David Shoebridge, on Monday wrote to the NSW police commissioner, Andrew Scipione, to say that the police officers� conduct was a clear breach of police policies and to request that it be investigated.

NSW police said the officers involved had been spoken to and would be counselled.

In a letter copied to the state police minister, Shoebridge referred to the NSW police force code of conduct and ethics, which states that employees must �behave honestly and in a way that upholds the values and the good reputation of NSW police whether on or off duty�.

-/-

http://www.dailyexaminer.com.au/news/how-many-guns-are-kept-in-the-valley/2992777/

quote:

A CLARENCE Valley gun owner has amassed one of the state's largest private arsenals, with 91 firearms registered in his name.

A freedom of information request by the New South Wales Greens has revealed the 2460 postcode is home to 7930 registered guns, spread across the collections of 2043 owners. The area's biggest private gun cache is also one of the 100 largest in the state. Greens MP David Shoebridge sparked an online debate when he suggested on Facebook that allowing people to accumulate such vast weapons hoards was a public threat - especially if the cache was stolen. "The Greens accept that there are people in the community who have a genuine reason to own a gun," he said. "Farmers on rural properties often require firearms for euthanising injured stock or controlling wild invasive animals. "But it is impossible to see how any one individual can establish a 'genuine' or 'good reason' to have dozens or even hundreds of guns."

The party has set up a website listing gun ownership levels by postcode.

Yamba (2464) had 138 legal gun owners with 462 firearms, while Maclean (2463) was home to 1564 guns in 435 separate collections. There were 268 registered firearms in Iluka (2466), with the postcode's largest private stockpile numbering 26 guns. The data excluded weapons owned by firearms dealers and collectors. There were 850,634 registered guns in NSW as of December last year - up from 619,000 in 2001. (That's a huge rise in 'recreational' target shooters). Mr Shoebridge said a legal loophole in Australia's laws allowed gun owners to "endlessly recycle" the same reason used to acquire their first firearm when obtaining dozens more. The Greens have called for reforms that would force gun owners to provide a separate and extraordinary reason for owning each weapon once they had five to their name.

Firearms Owners Association of Australia president Ron Owen said shooters were already unfairly targeted and mired in red tape.

"All this does is put restrictions on good people and waste time, money and resources on controlling them," he said. "If you have over 30 firearms, you have to jump through all the hoops - you have to have increased security. "The idea of gun registration is just insane. "In fact, you would be much safer without registration or ever telling the police where they are. "We've had incidents in different states, especially Victoria, where police have actually been selling lists of licensed shooters. "The whole thing is a leaky boat."

https://www.toomanyguns.org/top-100

http://www.guncontrolaustralia.org/handguns_by_postcode

# ¿ Apr 14, 2016 02:11

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

So guns came into popularity because after the crossbow they were what enabled armies to field any old joe who didn't require the physical strength or skill to pull a normal bow. This strangely egalitarian move was justified because the schmos using the weapons would be the ones getting shot at and equality is fine if it is only among the plebs. This does give some insight into the mentality of the people who are clearly fascinated by metal and propulsion. I have to admit that I am among their number (fascinated by the technology) so if this seems like a cheap shot at gun nuts I include myself in any criticism. I have however restrained myself from purchasing a couple of hundred of guns and own zero. I have never fired an actual gun with a live round. Maybe my first would be too many.

There are some elephants in the gun control discussion room. Why has there been such a dramatic increase in hand gun ownership? Is it (as their licences require) due to the fast growing sport of target shooting? Well to unpack that a little, target shooting is becoming more popular because it is a requirement to own a hand gun. Leaving out primary producers there are only two reasons to own a firearm in NSW (Source: http://www.police.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/131164/Info_on_obtaining_a_firearms_lic_FACT_Sheet_-_7_January_2014.pdf) Sport/Target Shooting and Firearms Collection ( :rolleyes:

) The purposes of personal and property protection are explicitly prohibited.

(people in the shire are bad shots/ the bodies are never found? :shrug:

)

It can't be entirely a coincidence that the use of firearms in crime and prevalence of guns in the community appear to be somewhat corellated. After the 1996 gun buy back there was a dramatic reduction in firearm deaths.

More guns in the community is clearly not a good thing and the huge increase in guns isn't just a few nut job collectors it is driven by our saturation in American gun culture, the campaign of terror fear and continual 'crime wave' beat ups in the press.

So once it has been accepted that gun control is a worthwhile goal then how to best administer it comes into play. As it is explicitly prohibited to own a gun for personal or property protection moving the storage of the weapons out of the home makes immediate sense. If a gun can only be used at a shooting range then it should only be stored at a shooting range. If you want to have one at your house best start work on a complying shooting range which leads to the second elephant. There is NO WAY, NONE, that the protection afforded a weapon in a single gun household can compete with that available in a specialist facility. Just the aggregation of cost (Note the shooting range example above) should make this obvious to all but the most dedicated gun nut (and it smacks of socialism!). I might be a keen squash player but I don't insist that I have my own squash court. All the necessary facilities for cleaning maintenance and production of ammunition could be provided to the competitive shooter at a fraction of the cost of doing it at home. The 'other people handling my poo poo' problem has been solved in safety deposit boxes since forever.

Perhaps the magnitude of the possible severity of the consequence of a lost or stolen gun should be built into legislation. Meaning that if you have a gun nicked you face lengthy imprisonment for failing to properly secure it. I've linked the flimsy nature of complying gun safes before. At least in NSW they have to be steel. The current laws are a joke and clearly (See buy backs effect on crime) less guns means less gun crime.

But these elephants don't even exist if you believe the gun nut.

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2016/04/12/ban-adler-shotgun-being-skirted-gun-dealers

quote:

Gun dealers are modifying the Adler shotgun to enable it to fire 11 shots in as many seconds, skirting a ban on a seven-shot version of the weapon. Source: AAP 12 APR 2016 - 3:46 PM UPDATED 12 APR 2016 - 4:00 PM

Gun dealers are converting the controversial Adler rapid-fire shotgun so it can shoot twice as many rounds, sidestepping an import ban on a previous version of the weapon.

Plans to import the seven-shot lever-action shotgun were halted last July when it was banned by former prime minister Tony Abbott for six months, later extended to 12 months, only for a modified version that instead fires five shots in rapid succession to be introduced. It has now emerged gun dealers are using a legal loophole that allows them to significantly boost the magazine capacity of the weapon. One gunsmith and dealer in South Australia, who openly markets the "magazine extension tubes" via an official company Facebook page, is charging $250 to convert the Adler A110 to accommodate a 10-shot magazine, and one additional cartridge in the chamber. The modification enables the weapon to fire 11 shots in as many seconds without the need for reloading (For really viscious ducks and a better chance at fast target skeets).

The same gunsmith will convert the Adler A110 to its original seven-shot capacity for $165. "Latest shipment of barrel clamps has finally arrived so we are shipping out Adler mag extension tubes to the top names on the waitlist(sic)," a posting in February on the dealer's Facebook page states. "If you want in, we can put you on the pre-order list for the next batch." The development comes amid revelations more than 7000 of the five-shot version of the Turkish-made gun were imported into Australia in the past six months, and as a review considers whether the type of firearm undermines national gun laws struck after the Port Arthur massacre. The gun control lobby argues that technological advances mean even the five-shot version - sold under the least restrictive category of license which includes air rifles and paintball guns - should be classified as a semi-automatic firearm, warning tough laws introduced by John Howard in 1996 are being eroded.

The gun lobby disputes the claims.

Samantha Lee, the chair of Gun Control Australia, said it appeared the gun lobby had also convinced Justice Minister Michael Keenan that despite a ban on the importation of a seven-shot Adler, the same firearm with two less rounds was safe enough to bring into the country. "We know that decision to be even more absurd as we now know the five shot can be modified to become an 11-shot," Ms Lee said. Mr Howard has also rejected arguments from the gun lobby that the Adler A110 should not face further restrictions. "The Adler lever-action rifle is being argued to be not within the ban and it's really a weapon that doesn't have the lethal capacity of automatic and semi-automatics," he said. "I'm pretty dubious about that."

Eleven shotgun blasts in eleven seconds? Yeah totally OK. FFS.

-/-

If the government is somehow now worse than with NTATA seems Turdball is also able to outdo him in embarrassing speeches in foreign lands.

quote:

Negotiated by Andrew Robb who is here today - the most successful Trade Minister in Australia�s history, and now inspiring his successor.

Who but the most tragic of all Australiaphiles in Beijing gives a flying gently caress?

quote:

Everything we�re doing, innovation, competition, trade and infrastructure is focused on powering jobs and economic growth. Now the good news is that we are most of the way through the greatest terms of trade shock in our history. And our economic data tell a story of remarkable resilience. 300,000 jobs created last year alone and real GDP growth of 3%. And today as we have just seen, unemployment has declined again, to 5.7% with over 26,000 new jobs created in the last month. That�s good news, but we cannot afford to be complacent. We have to get our policies right to be more productive, more competitive, more innovative.

Who actually believes this flannel? His talk about innovation is embarrasiing given his administration's continuing gutting of R&D and overpricing of tertiary qualifications. At least we expected NTATA to be embarrasing.

-/-

http://www.ntnews.com.au/rendezview/reduce-indigenous-incarceration-rates-not-so-fast/news-story/8bd621664b1aeb471fab0e438b5dd644

quote:

Reduce Indigenous incarceration rates? Not so fast April 13, 2016 3:55pm Sara Hudson News Corp Australia Network

The Australian Bar Association is right in stating that the over-representation of Aboriginal people in the criminal justice system has nothing to do with racial discrimination. But while the suggestion by the Australian Bar Association to review mandatory sentencing laws for minor offences such as the practice of jailing fine defaulters is worthwhile, it is important to remember the reason why most Indigenous people are in jail in the first place. In the push to lower Indigenous incarceration rates the real victims are often forgotten � people who are assaulted or even killed by their family members, like the woman whose partner set fire to her genitalia because she �looked at another man the wrong way�. Abolishing mandatory sentencing for minor crimes is also unlikely to reduce the Indigenous incarceration rate as much as most people hope. The belief that most Indigenous people are in jail because they have been unfairly targeted by police and arrested for relatively minor �social nuisance� offences is not true.

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics on prisoner characteristics shows that of the 9,885 indigenous prisoners in 2015, only 1,069 Indigenous prisoners were in jail for offences against justice procedures, such as non-payment of fines. Most (56 per cent) were in jail for serious crimes such as homicide, assault and sex offences. As Indigenous lawyer and member of the Prime Minister�s Indigenous Advisory Council, Josephine Cashman, has pointed out, Indigenous family violence statistics are horrifying. Between 2012 and 2013, Indigenous women were hospitalised for family-violence assault at 34 times the rate of non-Indigenous women. Homicide rates for Indigenous people are also seven to eight times higher than the rate for non-Indigenous people. A greater proportion of Indigenous Australians live in low socio-economic, welfare-dependent suburbs or communities, leading to an increased crime rate. In saying this, however, it is important to note that these disturbing statistics are not necessarily related to Indigeneity, but rather are a problem of poverty and social dysfunction. Australia�s most disadvantaged postcodes have at least twice the rate of unemployment, criminal convictions and imprisonment than other postcodes. One of the main reasons the Indigenous incarceration rate is 13 times higher than non-Indigenous Australians is because a greater proportion of Indigenous Australians live in these low socio-economic, welfare-dependent suburbs or communities than other Australians. A 2012 Queensland study found the postcodes with the most chronic offenders were in remote and very remote locations with the highest levels of disadvantage. These are places like Yuendumu in the Northern Territory where at one time, 93 people from a total population of 587 were in prison. According to Australian Bar Association president Patrick O�Sullivan, there is no direct discrimination on the basis of race in the criminal justice system. For various reasons, mandatory sentencing tends to indirectly discriminate on the basis of disadvantage and the high rate of disadvantage experienced by Indigenous Australians, is why mandatory sentencing has had a disproportionate impact on them.

In fact, although many social justice advocates claim �the criminal laws and sentencing regulations unfairly target Indigenous people�, if there is any discrimination it tends to be in favour of Indigenous people. Overall, Indigenous offenders receive shorter sentences than non-Indigenous offenders for most crimes. The reason Indigenous people are more likely than non-Indigenous people to be locked up for minor crimes like traffic offences, is because Indigenous people are more likely to lack the financial means to pay their fines, not because the courts are biased. The Australian Bar Association is right to suggest reviewing the practice of jailing fine defaulters, but in the rush to reduce the overall Indigenous incarceration rate it is also important not to forget who the real victims are. Strategies to reduce the level of disadvantage and the corresponding high rates of family violence and intimate partner homicides among Indigenous Australians are likely to be much more effective in reducing Indigenous incarceration rates than tinkering with the criminal justice system ever will.

Sara Hudson is a Research Fellow and Manager of the Indigenous Research Program at the Centre for Independent Studies (CIS).

The dogwhistle and victim blaming are strong in this one but, even after all this, the clear issue is reducing disadvantage. The horrendous rates of indigenous incarceration are a leading indicator of the widening gulf between rich and poor. The addressing of this issue would see the other symptoms and the indelible damage done decline. It is really sad to see racial issues drive things in the reverse direction that our whole society needs. And yet here we are.

# ¿ Apr 15, 2016 02:39

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Suck it up kiddies! :smug:

Looks like I ain't votin' Greens no more!

# ¿ Apr 15, 2016 09:07

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Halo14 posted:

http://themap.org.au/

Anyone know what their policy on nuclear is? Could be a game changer.

# ¿ Apr 16, 2016 03:52

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Jumpingmanjim posted:

Maybe Bronnie can get a shoe on sky news now.

I hear a spot opened up on Channel Nine.

DAAS Kapitalist posted:

How thick do you have to be to not have worked that out six weeks ago?

How thick are you? Can't you read 'Anidav' or something? (Hysterical blindness is a possible defence).

open24hours posted:

If your business is so hopeless that you can't afford to pay yourself minimum wage it might be time to find a new job.

If your job involves the possibility of compromising public safety then I agree 100%. This is one of the cases where you should be prevented from being a danger to the public. This is exactly the kind of area where the surrender of personal power to the collective for the good of society should be in effect. The problem is that, stated as you have, you have put the cart before the horse. Adhering to your requirement would remove all kinds of advocacy and personal interest groups because they don't meet a fairly arbitrary personal reward benchmark. I don't make minimum wage but I get by and what I do (I like to think) is effectively a community service in a depressed rural area where I also employ people for award wages. Fortunately my personal income skimping doesn't result in the compromise of anyone's safety and as a musician I'm used to getting paid poo poo money. (Despite being the union).

Redcordial posted:

On ABC24 they just had a segment on the 200 year anniversary since the massacre ordered by General Macquarie where he ordered the men, women and children of a tribe be gunned down to send a message.

I remember someone in here posting a bunch of the Generals documents revealing the way he thought, and wrote about how the native population had to be dealt with. The part that struck me the most was the "Shoot them even if they refuse any commands, and hang their bodies from the trees to send a message to the others that disobedience will not be tolerated".

Just last week I mentioned this very command in a class debate at uni on indigenous affairs in psychology. As a former member of the defence force it carried a certain weight to it that I didn't think many would understand without a proper analysis of that command, and I ended up changing a few peoples minds who were not as understanding of the barbarity of colonisation.

Anyway, thanks to whoever posted those documents, the way they are so closely worded to today's legislation around indigenous and asylum seeker policy was really surreal...

Those kids had to be slaughtered because of the high prevailing rates of child abuse.

-/-

Why does Australia need a military?

Costa Rica abolished theirs so they could spend the money on health and education.

quote:

Since then, Costa Rica has remained among the most stable, prosperous, and progressive nations in Latin America. Following a brief but bloody civil war, it permanently abolished its army in 1949, becoming the first of only a few sovereign nations without a standing army.[6][7][8]

Costa Rica has consistently performed favorably in the Human Development Index (HDI), placing 69th in the world as of 2015, among the highest of any Latin American nation.[9] It has also been cited by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as having attained much higher human development than other countries at the same income levels, with a better record on human development and inequality than the median of the region.

They were also one of the first countries to default on unfair sovereign debt. All this and more http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/rearvision/costa-rica/7308100

Like Cuba a bunch of the far left Central American countries continue to abuse the dominant thinking on how to run a country. Costa Rica lets prisoners vote and, when you think about it, why should they be disenfranchised? That is clearly the top of a slippery slope. If your country has enough prisoners that their vote is going to swing things one way or the other then you both have bigger problems than prisoners voting and have made up your mind that prisoners are going to vote for bad policies. Prisoners themselves (And how they vote) aren't part of the problem in either case.

# ¿ Apr 17, 2016 04:31

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

iajanus posted:

But how will we defend ourselves from the ~~Indonesians~~ northern neighbours?

The same way Costa Rica does against what have often been unstable military dictatorships to its North AND South. Think Queensland on all sides of you.

open24hours posted:

Those truck drivers would probably make the same argument (providing a public service, not endangering anyone).

Except they'd be wrong.

http://www.news.com.au/finance/work...b25f27be7d196eb

quote:

That means, unsurprisingly, truck drivers topped the list. The transport and storage industry recorded 65 fatalities and 8,450 serious injuries in the year, making it the most dangerous overall.
In second place was agriculture, forestry and fishing, with 53 deaths and 3815 serious injuries � although with only half (301,100) the workers in transport (600,600) and nearly the same number of deaths, it�s statistically the more dangerous sector of the two.

What is notable here is the two most commonly considered 'dangerous' jobs which carry a premium supposedly as a result are Mining and Construction. Why is there no danger money for transport and agriculture workers if the free market is actually a thing?

# ¿ Apr 17, 2016 05:06

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Australian don't vote for governments they vote against them. This is by any metric that anyone can come up with, including their own, the worst government in post invasion history.

(eg)
Disfunction (Changed leaders apparently a complete deal breaker, no mandate = election NOW! etc) CHECK!
Budget emergency/Spiralling Debt and Deficit - CHECK!

< I think I'm targeting my opponents pretty precisely given the sponsors of the hate. Go me!

PS gently caress Mike's Plumbing. If I wanted to stand in poo poo I have all the tools already to hand and didn't need his help.

# ¿ Apr 17, 2016 07:02

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Cthulhu Dreams posted:

It seems likely that the STOP THE BOATS! refocusing of DIBP and Customs has meant that the other stuff these guys are support to enforce is flying under the radar because of a lack of enforcement resources. It is possible that the wheels will come off this at some point.

This is assuming that the power brokers at Rawr! Border Farce Rawr! think that slavery (especially sex slavery) is worth investigating. If a casual observer hadn't already decided the wheels were off our sled of a policy on immigration I don't think this stuff is going to be a game changer.

# ¿ Apr 18, 2016 02:56

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Cthulhu Dreams posted:

They don't, that's the issue - everyone has been moved to boats. So by the 'wheels come off' I meant 'lack of enforcement becomes a damaging scandal.' I probably have more hope that it will than you do, it requires a bunch more busts and someone running a serious expose piece about it terrible immigration enforcement which is possible if not plausible.

How many sex slave rackets will it take? It's clearly more than one.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-08-27/most-australias-alleged-sex-slavery-victims-left-in-'limbo'/6714974

quote:

Human trafficking: Most of Australia's alleged sex slavery victims left without government support By Katri Uibu Updated 27 Aug 2015, 6:37am

RELATED STORY: Sex slavery victims face brutal reprisals for talking to police

More than half of alleged foreign sex slavery victims in Australia are left without government support due to legislation that gives the Australian Federal Police (AFP) the authority to exclude suspected victims from the aid program.

In order to be entitled to the Department of Social Services (DSS)-funded Red Cross program that offers medical and psychological aid, accommodation, living allowance and English language classes, the victim has to be both willing and able to make a contribution to the prosecution process. Yesterday the ABC reported claims that the requirement puts victims' lives at risk due to the danger of reprisals from "ruthless" people-trafficking syndicates. But anti-human trafficking organisations are concerned that alleged victims who are willing to endanger their lives are often pushed off the Government's Support for Trafficked People Program because the police may not assess them as an "appropriate witness".

Kathleen Maltzahn, founding director of Project Respect, which supports trafficking victims, said she had worked with women who had undoubtedly been trafficked but did not qualify as an "appropriate witness" in the eyes of law. Women who have experienced tremendously serious violence in this country can spend years in limbo. "If the woman doesn't know the proper names of who trafficked her, if she doesn't know the address of the brothel, can't remember dates, if she's confused about what happened [and] when � partly because of trauma � that might mean that with the best will in the world she might not be a credible witness in court," she said. "You can talk to women who don't even know what suburb they've been held in and, indeed, I've spoken to women who haven't always been sure what states they've been in. So they often can't be witnesses." Ms Maltzahn said these women were then left to fend for themselves in the same country where they had been subjected to severe sexual violence. "Women who have experienced tremendously serious violence in this country can spend years in limbo which really doesn't aid their recovery," she said. "It's hard to believe that we can't afford as a country to really allow women to recover from this very serious violence ... given that violence was perpetrated in this country."

46 out 88 women left support program in last financial year

The Coalition Against Trafficking in Women in Australia says the laws put unrealistic expectations on the alleged victims.

"The assumption that they can just lay out for you the whole organised crime on a platter to explain how they were trafficked � we know that that's unlikely, extremely unlikely," the Coalition's Meagan Tyler said.

Sex slavery victims' lives endangered by laws

Foreign victims of sexual exploitation in Australian brothels are being put in danger by laws which make access to government support services conditional on speaking to police. ver half of the alleged victims referred to the police are falling through the cracks, statistics provided to the ABC by the DSS and Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) show. In the 2014-2015 financial year, out of 88 people on the Support Program, 46 left. The same year, of the 38 new clients who entered the program, 20 were exited, the DSS spokesperson said. The DIBP spokesperson said eight permanent Referred Stay visas were granted to victims who were seen as being in danger when they return to their country of origin. However, only half of those visas went to the victims and the other half to their dependents. Nine victims were granted Criminal Justice Stay visas and 15 Bridging F visas to cover the police assessment period were given.

Law asks victims to 'prove themselves'

Lena Sivasailam-Pichler from Project Respect visits about 90 legal brothels in the Melbourne area. Her work involves knocking on brothel doors, counting on being allowed entry so she can win women's trust and assist them in escaping slavery.
She said even when the organisation did succeed in referring the victims to the police, it was not always clear why they were exited from the program. "Last year we had eight women who were on a Support Program � all of them were exited from it. And we really don't know why they were exited from it," she said. Ms Tyler said a system that was "forcing victims into cooperating" was suspicious of any potential victim. "I think there are concerns in the current climate, certainly, that victims of trafficking need to prove themselves somehow," she said. "I think that seems to be where it comes from in terms of the national narrative of immigration � as horrendous as it is in this country � [it] seems to distrust people who have come from anywhere else." Though the Support Program is only funded to provide support for victims who fit the eligibility criteria for the government aid, a spokesperson for the Attorney-General's Department said there were "other appropriate support frameworks and legal and migration options, if required".

Australian Catholic Religious Against Trafficking in Humans (ACRATH) executive director Christine Carolan, who works with human trafficking victims, said while this was the case, the 20-day transition period granted to find alternative means of support was "very difficult". "That's a very tricky point of movement for somebody to go from the Red Cross program where they're given good support, quality support, into a space where they have to fend for themselves," she said. The AFP and Australian Crime Commission declined the request to answer any specific questions, saying they would refer the ABC to the Attorney-General's Department.

How the support system works

The Assessment and Intensive Support Stream sees that all trafficked people referred by the AFP to the Support for Trafficked People Program are eligible to receive 45-day support, regardless of whether they are willing or able to assist with the investigation. If the person does not have a valid visa, they are granted Bridging F visa to cover that period. The Extended Intensive Support Stream provides access to a further 45-day support for trafficked people who are willing but not able to assist with the investigation. The Justice Support Stream provides support for trafficked people until the investigation and prosecution process is finalised. Their stay in Australia throughout that period is covered with Criminal Justice Stay visa.
The Temporary Trial Support Stream provides support for trafficked people giving evidence pertaining to a human trafficking or slavery-related prosecution. A person who has made a contribution to an investigation or prosecution process may be eligible for a Referred Stay (permanent) visa.

So give me a number here. Is it ten? One hundred? Because even though we can collect and give all your metadata to the RSPCA, if they ask, nobody seems to be exactly giving poo poo one here.

# ¿ Apr 18, 2016 03:54

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

In all the smoke and mirrors of the latest Tory stunt it may have been missed that the Senate voted to abolish the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal and expunge the order on minimum wages:

Btw the whole of the loving cross bench EXCEPT Ricky Muir voted to do this.

So people who want to see workers get paid poo poo and people die on our roads are:

David Leyonhjelm - Arsehole.
Jackie Lambie - Fuckwit.
David Lazarus - Big Boofie Chucklefuck.
Bob Day - Jesus freak and all round nut job.
John Madigan - Oh gently caress it I'll split from the DLP. Divisionist scum.
Nick Xenophon - Toss a coin? Who the gently caress knows with this guy.
Zenya Wang - gently caress Unions! The boss said so!

Oh and the whole of the LNP, but that should shock nobody.

http://www.afr.com/news/senate-votes-to-scrap-road-safety-tribunal-20160418-go9g46

quote:

Senate votes to scrap road safety tribunal By Ewin Hannan

The Senate has voted to scrap the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal, after the Turnbull Government won the backing of key crossbenchers to kill off the controversial body. After earlier voting down the Australian Building and Construction Commission to give the Government a double dissolution trigger, the Senate voted 36 to 32 in support of the Coalition's bill to abolish the tribunal. Australian Industry Group chief executive Innes Willox welcomed the abolition. "Ai Group opposed the establishment of the tribunal, and ever since we have called for its abolition," he said. "The tribunal should never have been established in the first place. It was set up in response to a Transport Workers Union industrial campaign. The idea that paying drivers more or differently will improve road safety has been rightly rejected by Parliament." (An 'idea' backed by plenty of evidence)

Just hours earlier the tribunal has done an extraordinary backflip, agreeing to consider delaying the introduction of minimum payments for thousands of truck drivers until 2017. Reversing its previous refusal to delay the introduction of the rates, on Monday the tribunal used its change of position to criticise the federal government for not earlier releasing two reports into the new payments system. Introducing the bill to scrap the tribunal into federal Parliament on Monday , the government's leader in the house, Christopher Pyne, said the tribunal's refusal to delay the introduction of the rates despite calls from industry and union was the "last straw". "We cannot afford to wait any longer for this mess to be sorted out," Mr Pyne said. "We must stop this act of economic vandalism � there are real families suffering real stress and financial ruin." He said the government was not prepared to allow small business operators and families to be punished "just because they decided to buy a truck instead of a corner store. "Some drivers have indicated they are parked up and will be broke within weeks," he said. "This order has nothing to do with safety and everything to do with pricing small businesses out of a market. Small businesses whose workers don't typically choose to be a member of a union � which when it boils down to it, that's what the road safety remuneration system has always really been about."

The Transport Workers Union on Monday released polling showing just 12 per cent of voters wanted the tribunal scrapped, while a further 9 per cent supported reducing its powers. However, 30 per cent backed strengthening the tribunal's powers, 21 per cent backed no change and 28 per cent did not know.

Bold the whole thing (etc.)

Now this is from a terrible source but this encapsulates the whole of our current political discourse. Rational policy that the electorate backs is trashed by a political elite funded by big business. Who here is really the winner? Ideologically the far right NeoCons who funded the plucky truckie rally, certainly, but more over the big two retail players Coles and Woolworths who would do just about anything to shave a few cents of their transport bill. Including not paying them when it suits them. The other major players who are standing just behind the scenes are the banks who use high leverage financial instruments to lend money to aspiring truckers. Now last I checked neither Westfarmers, ANZ, Woolworths et all were actually short for a quid and if you are involved in paying freight there is clearly some cash sloshing around.

So in short the forces of darkness usurped the political process and smashed the workers face flat (Often literally) for what? The mighty dollar and the free hand of the free market.

Why does this reflect our whole political situation? Well never before have the forces of the far right been so clearly exposed. By playing brinkman ship with the more centrist force of Turdball rather than scare him straight they have shown themselves out. It was the constant posturing and leaking by the NeoCons that eroded Turball's honeymoon and this election is his to lose. And once again the chosen ground for the fight is Union bashing. This is crazy poo poo. Not only is this the one area that the LNP are most vulnerable to massive attacks based on their own past actions and current rhetoric but in all seriousness if the right wanted to win over the unions all they needed to do was wait quietly while Australians FYGM their way into there being no union movement worthy of the name.

It is refreshing to have all your suspicions confirmed. Newscorpse is in fact the mouth piece of the lunatic far right and the IPA, BCA, MCA etc are all shameless shills for their corprate masters. This isn't political discourse its a never ending poo poo spraying machine that ignores everything.

I mean who gives a gently caress about road saftey? What's a few human sacrifices when it comes to supporting laissez-faire capitalism?

Even better is the race to destruction that this stupid DD shenanigans has forced upon the entire edifice.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-19/submarine-announcement-delay-politically-suicidal:-weatherill/7336924

quote:

Submarine delay would be 'politically suicidal' for Liberal Christopher Pyne, Labor leader says 891 ABC Adelaide Updated about an hour ago

Leaving Australia's submarine contract announcement until after the federal election would be "politically suicidal" for one of the masterminds behind South Australia getting the go ahead to build offshore patrol vessels, the Premier has said. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull yesterday announced Adelaide would be home to the early construction of 12 offshore patrol vessels in 2018 before shifting to Western Australia in 2020. South Australian Labor Premier Jay Weatherill described the announcement as a "great win" for the state and gave credit to Liberal Industry, Innovation and Science Minister Christopher Pyne, who could have a fight ahead to retain the SA seat of Sturt at the federal election. "We want to knock him off [at the election], but I think he has done a great job," Mr Weatherill said. "I'm a Labor bloke and I've got a Labor candidate running against him and we want him to win but look credit where it's due, he's done a fantastic job here. This has been I think a fantastic community effort, I mean every South Australian should be proud of this."

Mr Weatherill said the campaign for the submarine work had been two years in the making and the patrol boat announcement pointed to an Australian build for the project. "I hope Christopher and the team are able to get that organised before the federal election is announced because I think it would be politically suicidal for him not to do so," he said. Mr Pyne said he would not reveal information that had been taken to Cabinet or the national security committee regarding the next step for the submarine project. "We will keep putting our best foot forward for the submarines obviously, and I hope to have an announcement before the election," Mr Pyne said. "I've said all along if the election is in September it would be much easier, if it is in July it will be harder."

Mr Pyne said it was important to put political differences aside to do what was best for South Australia. "I'm grateful that the Premier Jay Weatherill has given me credit for the offshore patrol vessels and I thank him for that," he said. "It is important that South Australians, proud South Australians like he and I work for our state not our political parties."

Every single one of these dodgy cretins that gets the arse come election day will make me do a little dance of joy. I won't let the harsh reality that the replacements are probably worse dampen my good mood for possibly minutes.

# ¿ Apr 19, 2016 02:12

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Les Affaires posted:

Yeah all of these comments, snarky or otherwise, are best emailed to the link on the website. Do them a favour.

And not poo poo up AusPol!? :monocle:

Sacre Bleu!

Want some red hot election issues?

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-20/millions-of-australians-living-without-internet/7340434

quote:

World Economic Forum scores Australia lowest for internet access affordability AM By Michael Edwards Updated about 6 hours ago

Millions of Australians live in households without internet access (Agile!), according to the World Economic Forum, who have awarded Australia the lowest scoring country in the category of affordability for internet access.

Key points:

WEF scores Australia ICT capabilities lowest scoring for internet access
57 per cent of households with an income less than $40,000 don't have internet(Meh poors don't need broadband)
Fees for hardcopy documents target poor, elderly, Indigenous people(as nature intended)
Similar overseas efforts have resulted in law changes to protect consumers(Not on MY watch!_{Union exempt from no regulation})

As more and more people rely on emails and other electronic forms of communication to pay their bills and receive official statements, many companies have begun to charge fees to people who want documents sent to them in hard copy.

Today a campaign will be launched by Keep Me Posted in Parliament to ask corporations in Australia to reconsider charging Australians for document hardcopies.

Kelli Northwood, who heads the group Keep Me Posted, said it was far from ideal for the mostly poor and elderly who make up the large percentage of Australians who do not have access to the internet. Ms Northwood said 57 per cent of Australian households with an income less than $40,000 do not have internet in their homes. "From an affordability perspective, we have the World Economic Forum scoring Australia ICT (information and communication technology) capabilities the lowest scoring country in the category of affordability for internet access," she said. Ms Northwood said the fees for hardcopy documents target societies vulnerable and she said they are just not fair. "It's just irresponsible, so we need to call on companies, the big end of town, to put consumers first in this regard," she said.

Ms Northwood said those with the lowest rates of internet access are the poor, the elderly and Indigenous people.

These people need hard copies of bills and other official statements to keep track of their business and they are increasingly being forced to pay for them. "We've seen some companies come out with $1.25, $1.75, $2.50, $3.20 - it's getting up into the top end," Ms Northwood said. Keep Me Posted Campaign was set up to get rid of these fees, Ms Northwood said. The Keep Me Posted Campaign has the backing of aged care groups, unions and politicians, including the independent Senator Nick Xenophon. "I mean the fact that there are 4 million Australians who live in households without internet access is a big issue," Senator Xenophon said. "Why should these people, particularly senior citizens, be impacted in this way?
"It really does seem to be quite discriminatory and counterproductive."

The Keep Me Posted campaign says similar efforts in countries including Canada, Germany and France have resulted in law changes to protect consumers from charges for billing or statement information.

Who was the minister for communication that dismantled the real NBN? Oh say it isn't so! Not owwa Turdball? Well gently caress me it was too. Agile. Innovative. Infrastructure. :jerkbag:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-20/government-announces-more-money-for-asic/7340374

quote:

Big banks to foot bill for ASIC corporate crime crackdown By political reporters Dan Conifer and Anna Henderson Updated about 4 hours ago

The Federal Government will use a levy on the banks and increased surveillance powers to crackdown on financial misconduct, as it fends off continued pressure from Labor to hold a royal commission.

Key points:

New ASIC commissioner focusing on banking prosecutions will be appointed (Who exactly dullards)
Kelly O'Dwyer says the Government will strengthen ASIC's powers for "enhanced surveillance" (Oh yes please more sticky beak powers to use willy nilly!)
Treasurer Scott Morrison has been in talks with the regulator over recent days
The levy will provide $120 million over four years for the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), helping replace cuts under the former Labor Government and in the 2014 Abbott government budget.()

It follows Labor's promise to hold a royal commission into the banks if elected, but Malcolm Turnbull said today's announcement was the product of a nine-month review of ASIC. "This is not a response to anything that's happened recently," the Prime Minister told Adelaide radio station FIVEaa. "This has been an issue that we've been addressing methodically." He said the Government was also making changes "that will ensure [ASIC] has a sharper edge in its ability to deal with wrongdoing."

A new ASIC commissioner focusing on banking prosecutions will also be appointed, and Assistant Treasurer Kelly O'Dwyer said the Government would strengthen ASIC's powers for "enhanced surveillance". Earlier this month the head of ASIC Greg Medcraft confirmed previous cuts to the regulator's budget had affected surveillance powers. "What we do when we have cutbacks, we look at the priorities of our proactive surveillance and we adjust those, the lower priority ones are obviously removed," he said. The political focus on banking impropriety follows a string of scandals and rip-offs in the financial sector.

Govt working to stop costs being passed onto consumers

Kelly O'Dwyer told AM the Government had been in talks with the banks to ensure the increased cost of the levy would not be passed on to consumers. "We have spoken with them over a number of months," she said. Treasurer Scott Morrison has also been in talks with the regulator over recent days.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten maintains the funding boost is not enough.

"Anything less than a royal commission is covering up for the banks," he said. Mr Shorten was also questioned about Labor's own budget cuts that reduced funding to the regulator, and his previous role as Minister for Financial Services. "Let's be straight here, there was an efficiency dividend across government, this is a matter of record," he said. "What the Government is trying to do here is blame everyone else." Labor earlier this month proposed a $53 million, two-year judicial investigation into financial sector misconduct. A number of Coalition backbenchers support the Opposition's push and six Coalition MPs told a partyroom meeting yesterday they were angry with the banks. Senior Government ministers argue a royal commission would take too long and would not deliver results for victims.

The regulator charges the client for it's services? That's communism! Oh wait silly me that's completely normal. And if we pay well enough we can influence the operations, because it's not corruption because something something profit.

Can we be shallow and transparent? What better time to talk about submarines!

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-20/submarines-announcement-expected-next-week/7340996

quote:

Submarine deal: Successful bid for new Royal Australian Navy boats to be announced next week Exclusive by political editor Chris Uhlmann Updated about 4 hours ago

The Federal Government is preparing to announce the successful bidder for Australia's next fleet of submarines next week, ahead of the May 3 budget.

The ABC understands Cabinet's National Security Committee discussed submarines last night. It is believed either France or Germany is the frontrunner to build a new fleet to replace the Royal Australian Navy's ageing Collins Class subs. This morning Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull was not prepared to confirm whether the decision would be announced prior to the election. "It will be made in due course, it will be made shortly," he told Adelaide radio station FIVEaa. "I'm not going to be drawn on dates."

The South Australian campaign to secure the submarine construction work for the state has been underway for about two years, Premier Jay Weatherill said yesterday.

Earlier this year the Defence White Paper revealed the Government planned to order 12 new vessels as part of its future submarine program. The lead up to the submarine contract has involved election promises, business and political campaigns and lots of speculation. Companies from Japan, Germany and France have been vying for the contract with various proposals about where and how much of the boats will be built in Australia. Mr Weatherill said a submarine announcement would be needed before the election to help Liberal Industry, Innovation and Science Minister Christopher Pyne retain the SA seat of Sturt at the federal election. "I hope Christopher and the team are able to get that organised before the federal election is announced because I think it would be politically suicidal for him not to do so," Mr Weatherill said.

The Liberals need to commit to building the next generation of submarines in Adelaide to avoid a potential voting backlash at the looming federal poll, a politics analyst said. Professor in politics and international studies Carol Johnson, of the University of Adelaide, said there were electoral risks for the Liberals if Adelaide did not fare well from the submarines project. "The problem is that the submarines are not only important for their build but also because of some of the high-tech components in it, so potentially it will still be damaging to the Liberals if they just have the ship build [offshore patrol vessels] and not the submarines as well," she said.

I love it when they wedge themselves on an issue.

And a feel good one to wrap it up! We should listen to the sound of our cash registers because nothing says sacred like a big fist full of fifties.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-19/adam-giles-call-to-support-uluru-climb-eiffel-comparison/7339976

quote:

Uluru trumps Eiffel Tower, says NT Chief Minister Adam Giles in call to support rock climb Updated about 6 hours ago

NT Chief Minister Adam Giles has compared Uluru to the Eiffel Tower and called on the traditionally opposed Aboriginal custodians to consider a rethink of their disapproval of the tourist climb in the name of culture.

Key points:

Giles calls for Aboriginal-sanctioned Uluru climb
Climb would foster better understanding of Indigenous culture, he says
Greg Norman a supporter, Giles says

The climb at Uluru, formerly known as Ayers Rock, is not supported by the Nguraritja and Anangu people of the area, who plead with visitors that they "shouldn't climb". But at a sitting of the Northern Territory Parliament in Darwin on Tuesday, Mr Giles said an Aboriginal-supported climb would "lead to jobs and a better understanding of Indigenous culture". "I was at Uluru just a couple of weeks ago with one of Australia's [most] famous, or greatest, golfers, Greg Norman," Mr Giles said. "At the time the climb was closed due to high winds ... but he, like I, could see the benefits of allowing people to climb." Mr Giles said just prior to his Central Australian visit he had passed through Sydney and witnessed people climbing the Harbour Bridge. "The experience has been voted as one of the world's most spectacular and exhilarating." Mr Giles said he was "fully aware that the Sydney Harbour Bridge does not have the spiritual significance of Uluru".(Oh really?)

He said with the approval of the local people, the climb could be a "great opportunity for the local Anangu to participate in a lucrative business and create much-needed local jobs". Mr Giles said he would "like to hear from the traditional owners, the Anangu people, and start a conversation". He said there were "plenty of examples worldwide" of culturally sensitive sites and tourism combining successfully. "For example the Temple of Angkor Wat in Cambodia, the Taj Mahal in India and Machu Picchu in Peru spring to mind," he said. "Uluru is as spectacular as any of those. It is higher than the Eiffel Tower and a lot more beautiful."

Climb ban likened to live export shutdown

The first part of the 1.6 kilometre ascent, which Mr Giles conceded was "arduous, and has claimed the lives of more than 35 people since the 50's", is aided by a chain strung between poles. In 2015, the ABC reported a man had cut the Uluru climb chain in protest, later explaining he had wanted to spark debate on whether people should walk on it. Earlier in the same year, a 27-year-old Taiwanese man had to be airlifted off Uluru after falling 20 metres into a crevice, suffering multiple fractures and head injuries. On the Parks Australia website, people are warned not attempt it "if you have high or low blood pressure, heart problems, breathing problems, a fear of heights or if you are not fit".

Mr Giles said "we could get a professional expert in to look at stringent safety requirements", adding "the climb is not easy. There are safety issues". "However, a regulated climb could deliver an unforgettable, unique experience in the heart of Australia's Indigenous culture." He said rules "enforcing spiritual respect ... would be endorsed, supported, and even managed by the local Aboriginal community". Mr Giles compared the spectre of a shutdown to the former federal Labor government's 2011 ban on live cattle exports and said the call on whether people should be permitted to climb should "be a decision for Territorians, not bureaucrats in Canberra". "A snap ban by Canberra makes about as much sense as the Labor government of the time's kneejerk ban on live cattle exports," he said. "And it could do almost as much damage."

Parks Australia data has shown that between 2005 and 2014, visitor numbers to Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park fell significantly. The Government's 2010 Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park 10-year management plan stated the climb would be "permanently closed when the proportion of visitors climbing falls below 20 per cent". Earlier this month, Federal Environment Minister Greg Hunt said there were "no plans to change current arrangements" following calls for a total ban in the wake of the announcement of a privately-run trekking operation to the iconic site. The local people have said they "continue to emphasise their wish that people do not climb Uluru and have expressed disappointment that the activity continues".

Wack in a chairlift and a gift shop on top. Agile. Innovative and Infrastructered to gently caress and back.

# ¿ Apr 20, 2016 06:46

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

ScreamingLlama posted:

Just popping into this thread to tell you I have been connected to the Turnbull!NBN through Optus for the princely sum of $95 per month (includes home phone, IPad-sized modem and three months of Stan). I may not be 1%, but according to tech pundits I'm part of the 18% (who can get fibre-to-the-node).

So gently caress your Democrats, ASMR and autism jokes, I'm going to binge on old TV shows, update my PlayStation and play EVE without lag. (Must remember to renew Dems membership at some point.)

If Barnaby turns up at Tamworth High School on election day, I'll be sure to tell him Auspol says hi.

Keeping the bastards...FYGM! :wave:

Bifauxnen posted:

All this talk about webpages getting formatted for mobile, while first dog remains nigh unreadable on any phone

See even you think anime is bad.

gay picnic defence posted:

Has anyone stopped to wonder why the banks couldn't possibly waste $50mil or so on a royal commission but are happy to pay $120mil to ASIC?

I certainly did in my last post. Look at any of the so called industry 'watchdogs' from the Civil Aviation Authority to the utterly contemptible and laughable ACMA http://www.acma.gov.au/theACMA/ACMAi/Investigation-reports/Statistics/online-statistics http://www.acma.gov.au/theACMA/ACMAi/Investigation-reports/Television-investigations/2016-television-investigations

They are industry Lapdogs. The experience is consistently that they become defacto lobby groups for the interests they are supposedly regulating. This is why the occasional independent inquiry or royal commission is necessary. "Quis custodiet ipsos custodes" in fact.

open24hours posted:

When Uber can follow labour laws they can be allowed to operate.

Is Uber really the kind of business model you want to encourage? Taxis might not be perfect but you have a lot more to lose from allowing companies like Uber to become established than you do to gain from cheaper taxis.

Uber is another problem rather than a solution in this area of consumer satisfaction. While we talk about the transport industry has it not occurred to anybody that in the current declining fuel cost environment if you can't pay your drivers a proper wage and still stay in business then just how hosed up will you be once fuel goes back to normal?

quote:

The lawyer acting for the Nine Network, Kamal Aboudaher, said on Monday the broadcaster had not offered any financial compensation to Mr el-Amien.

"We didn't exchange any offer with Ali regarding funds," he said.

So who got the reported three million dollars it took to get them out?

And a follow up from yesterdays report on Uluru.

http://www.sbs.com.au/comedy/article/2016/04/20/given-you-can-climb-uluru-you-should-also-be-able-do-sick-ollies-anzac-memorial

# ¿ Apr 21, 2016 02:06

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

And people say I have the issues with poop...

Helmets save lives. Sad that some of those are libertarians but that's socialism for you.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-22/pm-says-corporate-watchdog-should-look-at-60-minutes-abduction/7349212

quote:

60 Minutes: Malcolm Turnbull says corporate watchdog might investigate Channel Nine's actions By political reporter Stephanie Anderson, staff Updated 18 minutes ago

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says the corporate watchdog might be interested in Channel Nine's efforts to release its crew from a prison in Beirut.

Key points:

Questions raised whether Channel Nine paid for release of 60 Minutes crew
Turnbull said broadcaster's actions would be of interest to regulatory agencies
Lebanon court provided with document purporting payment of $70,000 from Channel Nine to child recovery firm
The 60 minutes crew involved in a botched attempt to remove two children in Beirut two weeks ago has arrived back in Australia.

Questions are now being raised about whether the broadcaster paid for the release of journalist Tara Brown and her crew, after being arrested earlier this month. Mr Turnbull has told Sydney radio station 2SM that the actions of the crew "appears to have been most unwise". "It doesn't matter who you are or who you work for, when you are overseas � if you're an Australian � you must obey the laws of the country in which you were visiting," he said. "Nobody is above the law." Mr Turnbull said that their actions "would be of interest to various regulatory agencies".

Mr Turnbull's comments come as the lawyer for the head of the child recovery firm still in Lebanon, and facing charges of child abduction at a court in Beirut, has provided the court with a document purporting a payment of almost $70,000 from TCN Channel Nine to the firm. In a separate development, 7.30 has confirmed controversial former NSW politician Eddie Obeid was approached by a friend of his at Channel Nine, and made a number of calls to senior Lebanese politicians in relation to the case. Nine has issued an emphatic denial that it approached Mr Obeid directly or indirectly, saying the allegation is completely false.

Sally Faulkner, the mother of the children involved in the botched abduction, spent her final visit with her two children at a suburban McDonalds in Beirut. Her estranged husband Ali Elamine said they had ice cream, that she hugged the children a lot, and that afterwards, she was in tears. Ms Faulkner is now free to leave Beirut and go back to Australia.

Oh the emphatic hand wringing. Nine should have their license reviewed at the very least. Watch nothing happen.

# ¿ Apr 22, 2016 01:52

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Build your own dunny leaner!

# ¿ Apr 22, 2016 02:41

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Acording to SBS news the 'new' dental plan is to strip one billion dollars of federal funding and push it all onto the (State funded) public health system. WIN-WIN! The head of the Australian Dental Association has already denounced it.

:bravo:

I know I keep saying it fruitlessly, maybe this time? Stop touching the poop. Just loving stop. OK?

# ¿ Apr 23, 2016 11:14

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Anidav posted:

Some sort of long term plan to gently caress up the state health system in order to advocate for....privatizing state hospitals? gently caress I don't know.

Because dental was excluded from Medicare it was the saving grace of private insurance. If the only way to get proper dental care is via the private insurer OR the increasingly creaking public system you either love your kids and go with the Private or selected the wrong vagina to exit and lanquish in squallor like the worthless filth you are and ever will be. This is about pushing everyone who can afford it onto private care and stripping money from the system for everyone else.

Insurance companys - rent seaking scum who will be the wall that we shoot everyone else infront of. Except we won't be using guns. Bows only come the revolution.

# ¿ Apr 23, 2016 11:35

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

Jumpingmanjim posted:

I thought there was supposed to be 5 billion $ in new funding.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-23/governments-$5b-subsidised-dental-plan-a-'hoax'-labor-says/7352892

All spin. Sorry.

quote:

Labor warns the plan will also see a cut in overall funding for dental health care by $1 billion over the next four years.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said there could also be a big blowout in waiting lists for publicly funded dentists because the scheme will also include adults with concession cards.

"This is a hoax of a plan for dental care," Mr Shorten said.

"This is the equivalent of cutting Medicare and flooding the emergency wards of Australian hospitals with more patients."

The state and territory public sector dental services are already over extended with waiting lists of between nine months to three years depending which state you consider
ADA president Dr Rick Olive
A spokesman for Ms Ley confirmed the $1 billion cut but said it came from money that was not spent under Labor's CDBS, arguing the old arrangements were ineffective and inefficient.

Phone posting from a Nokia 3110 so forgive the formatting.

# ¿ Apr 23, 2016 11:57

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ¿ May 11, 2024 18:14

Cartoon: Jun 20, 2008; poop

The lowest of low hanging fruit.

I almost bought a copy of "The Short and Excruciatingly Embarrassing Reign of Captain Abbott " but I could have bought any number of books about distateful fuckwits and settled on a biography of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Franklin instead.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-26/federal-budget-deficit-likely-to-keep-blowing-out/7355404

quote:

Budget 2016: Deficit likely to keep blowing out, Deloitte forecast warns By business reporter Michael Janda Updated about 4 hours ago

A leading budget watcher is forecasting a further blow-out in the budget deficit, with the Federal Government's position expected to be $21 billion worse by 2018-19 than forecast in the latest December update. Deloitte Access Economics' Budget Monitor is forecasting a further $16 billion in revenue write-downs over the next few years due to slow wage growth limiting income tax increases and weaker corporate taxes due to China's slowdown. Even the recent bounce in iron ore prices will not be enough to prevent another revenue write-off - Deloitte forecasts that it could add $15 billion in revenue if sustained, but that only cuts by half the $30 billion in write-downs that Deloitte would otherwise forecast. The report warned that a rising Australian dollar is likely to offset many of the revenue benefits from a stronger iron ore price. While revenue write-downs are the biggest short-term hit to the budget, the report's author Chris Richardson said spending increases over the past decade shoulder more of the blame. "Most of the mistakes in the budget in Australia over the last decade have actually been in spending and we'd be comfortable to see the bulk of budget repair done on the spending side," he told ABC News Online. "Equally, you cannot ignore the revenue side. Taxes have to go up too."

Mr Richardson has advised that the Government needs to be brave as it prepares the Pre-Election Fiscal Outlook (PEFO) document in order to avoid budget shock. "During an election campaign, they do get one chance � one shot � to tell their true view to all Australians ahead of the election," he said. Mr Richardson was equally scathing of both major parties for failing to sell the need for spending cuts and tax increases to narrow the deficit. The party that proves the best at juggling economic prowess with fairness will enjoy almost certain electoral victory. The Coalition faces its first test next week. e also reserved particular criticism for Treasury and the Department of Finance for their 2013 Pre-Election Fiscal Outlook (PEFO), which he dubbed the "Pixies, Elves and Fairies Outlook". "PEFO ignored the specific promises to spend a lot more and relied on that overarching promise to keep spending on a tighter rein," he said. "That meant there were large, unidentified savings implicit in what both sides were taking to the election." Mr Richardson cited funding commitments such as the National Disability Insurance Scheme and Gonski school funding reforms, while there was a budget commitment to limit spending growth to inflation plus 2 per cent, without specific plan of how to achieve that limit. He is hoping that Treasury will be a lot braver and more honest in this year's pre-election assessment of the Federal Government's finances, so that the election can be fought on the basis of a realistic set of numbers.

Debt to rise above levels that 'triggered previous downgrades'

Credit ratings agencies are also hoping to see concrete moves by the Government to narrow the deficit in the budget, with Moody's recently warning that tax increases would be needed in addition to spending cuts. Mr Richardson said Australia does not deserve to lose its AAA credit rating, given relatively low Government debt compared with international peers, but a downgrade over the next couple of years is not impossible. "Our projections would actually have net debt, net federal debt, as a proportion of national income rising to close to 20 per cent of that income and really only tailing away very slowly," he observed. "That's a higher level than has triggered previous downgrades from AAA ratings in Australia."

Now when even the economic drys come out and (reluctantly) insist that taxation has to increase you know that the story being sold to you by Sco Mo and Co. is utter ballderdash with a sprinkling of manure.

But wait there's something way more important OVER THERE OH LOOK AND IT'S SPARKLY!

Cynical dole bludgers making us sick

Daily Rash of Telling poo poo

quote:

MORE than 70,000 dole bludgers are exploiting a medical loophole to avoid having to get a job by claiming they are too sick to work. In some parts of Sydney and the Central Coast more than 50 per cent of all dole recipients use GP sick notes to claim they are too unwell to hold down a job. An investigation by the Department of Human Services has uncovered what the Turnbull government believes is widespread rorting of the medical loophole by some dole bludgers, as well as unscrupulous GPs. The most common conditions that are used to avoid working include depression, anxiety, muscular-skeletal problems, drug addiction and alcohol dependence. The figures, obtained by the Herald Sun, reveal almost 8 per cent of all Newstart, youth allowance and single-parent payment recipients use GP medical certificates to get around mandatory jobseeking requirements. They are all welfare recipients who are deemed not to be sick enough to receive the Disability Support Pension.

And oh gently caress look it's not even true.

https://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/services/centrelink/disability-support-pension

quote:

You may receive Disability Support Pension if you:

are aged between 16 years and age pension age
meet the residency requirements
meet the income and assets tests for your situation
and either:

are permanently blind
or all of the following:

are assessed as having a physical, intellectual or psychiatric impairment,
are unable to work, or be retrained for work, for 15 hours or more per week at or above the relevant minimum wage within the next 2 years because of your impairment, and have actively participated in, or completed, a Program of Support if required
To assess your eligibility for Disability Support Pension, we need medical evidence to help us understand your disability, injury or illness. You may need to attend an assessment with a Job Capacity Assessor and government-contracted doctor. This helps us determine whether you can work, how much work you can do and how much help you need to find and keep a job.

This was the front page on the Telegraph. I suppose it could have been worse, with even more space given to our latest TERROR MINNOW or is that minor?

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-26/teen-charged-with-anzac-day-terror-plot-'will-plead-not-guilty'/7357624

quote:

Sydney teen charged with Anzac Day terror plot will plead not guilty, lawyer says By Jessica Kidd, staff Updated about an hour ago

The lawyer for a 16-year-old Sydney boy charged over an alleged Anzac Day terror plot has told Parramatta Children's Court his client is pleading not guilty to the charge.

Key points

Lawyer says boy will plead not guilty and apply for bail on Friday
Police say they intercepted messages between him and IS recruiter
Boy allegedly tried to obtain gun for use at Anzac Day event
Magistrate grants prosecution six weeks; case will return in June
The teenager is charged with planning or preparing to commit a terrorist act by trying to obtain a gun, which police say he intended to use at an Anzac Day event.

It is understood messages intercepted by police made reference to April 25, but did not disclose a specific location or time. The boy was arrested on Sunday near his home in Auburn in Sydney's west, after an investigation by officers attached to Operation Vianden. He did not appear in court for the brief hearing surrounding his case. His lawyer, Zemarai Khatiz, said his client would apply for bail on Friday. Mr Khatiz said he had arranged for an expert psychologist to assess the boy while he was in custody, and the assessment would form the basis of the bail application. "The psychological impact of long-term incarceration will be a very relevant and powerful factor in that bail application," he told the court. Prosecutor Chris Choi told the court police would oppose bail, adding that the prosecution required 10 weeks to prepare their brief of evidence. "We need 10 weeks because there are a number of electronic devices that require examination," she said. Magistrate Elizabeth Ryan granted the prosecution six weeks to prepare the brief, which means the matter will return to court in June.

Teen 'linked to Islamic State recruiter'

Security was increased at Anzac Day events following the teenager's arrest. Police sources have told the ABC's 7:30 he had been on their radar since a Melbourne terrorism plot in May last year. He was allegedly in contact with police as part of an intervention program attempting to disrupt overseas recruitment for the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group. Counter-terrorism sources told 7.30 they also allegedly discovered communications between the 16-year-old and a younger boy who has previously been charged under Operation Appleby with preparing a terrorist attack, along with four other members of an alleged terror cell. They found communications between him and senior Islamic State recruiter Neil Prakash, and, after raiding his home, signed him up to the program after speaking to his parents, police told 7.30. The program uses mentors, psychologists, religious leaders, teachers and work placements to try and steer a handful of young extremists away from IS. It targets young people who are no longer the focus of police or ASIO investigations and who are considered open to diversion strategies.

Federal Justice Minister Michael Keenan said on Monday there was no indication that more arrests would be made in relation to the case. He joined police and NSW Premier Mike Baird in calling for people to put concerns over safety to the back of their minds, and attend Anzac Day events.

So if you didn't read it this kid was previously targeted by police and subjected to an anti-radicalisation program. Well it would seem the only thing working here are our terror alert knee jerks and gun laws. Everything else appears to be a complete failure. Or was it always intended to fail? Say it isn't so.

How about some evidence rather than anecdote?

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-26/navy-officer-reports-assault-on-anzac-day-train-service/7356920

quote:

Navy officer reports being assaulted after Anzac Day service posted about 6 hours ago

A Navy officer has been assaulted on a train after attending an Anzac Day ceremony, according to police. The alleged assault took place on a train stopped at Glenfied Station in Sydney's west. The 24-year-old told police he saw a group of men drinking and harassing other train passengers while he was on his way home from Sydney's Anzac Day memorial service in the city, on Monday afternoon. After approaching the group and asking them to stop drinking and disturbing other passengers, he said one of the men in the group punched him in the face as he was getting off the train. The officer was in full uniform, AAP reported. He suffered a bloody nose but did not need to go to hospital. Police are now looking for the man involved.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-26/adf-members-seek-ptsd-treatment-in-secrecy/7356718

quote:

ADF personnel seek PTSD treatment in secrecy to avoid 'career suicide', members say Exclusive by Alexandra Fisher Updated about 2 hours ago

Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel are being treated in secret for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental health conditions to avoid jeopardising their careers, according to serving and former members.

Key points:

ADF members say they speak to mental health professionals outside the Department
Talking about mental illness could jeopardise worker's career, members say
ADF says reporting mental illness ensures members are provided with proper support
James (not his real name) has just recently retired from a 25-year career in the Australian Army and said he never told the ADF he had PTSD.

"I'd go and speak to professionals outside of Defence," he said. "I'd go see a psychologist and talk to them about what was wrong." The ADF told the ABC in a statement that members were required to tell them if they were being treated outside the ADF system.(We're not bullies but,) But James said if he spoke up about his mental illness, he risked his career. "There are lots and lots of guys and women who get treatment outside of Defence because as soon as you put your hand up and say there is something wrong ... you get treated completely differently," he said. "You're almost alienated from the system ... you can't go to work, you can't drive a vehicle, can't carry a weapon." Serving member Mark (not his real name) told the ABC he was being treated for depression, also outside the system without the ADF knowing. "It is to protect my career, by bringing it up it would hinder any further career [opportunities]. It is career suicide," Mark said.

Another serving member Scott (not his real name) said his case showed what could happen when you were honest about your symptoms.

He said he was downgraded to a non-deployable status after revealing during a mandatory post-deployment debrief that he had recurring dreams. "When we get home, if we're having nightmares and the like, which is the body's natural reaction to this trauma, we should [be] able to talk about it without it becoming career suicide," he said. Scott believed some soldiers could continue in their roles with mental health conditions. "People have a lot of individual coping mechanisms, they're still good at their job, they're great at their job," he said. "But if you were to present with three different things that ultimately tick the boxes for PTSD, you're diagnosed and you're no longer deployable for that period of time until you can get an upgrade."

Stressful situations 'likely to exacerbate symptoms'

In a statement, the ADF said some members who present with mental health conditions may have their deployable status reclassified while undergoing treatment. It said that was to ensure members were provided with proper support and the opportunity to recover. Psychologist Melissa Harries worked for the ADF for about 10 years, and said it was upholding its duty of care. "Someone who has post-traumatic stress disorder for example, and they are currently experiencing symptoms, if we put that person under stress or pressure or expose them to further trauma, then that's likely to exacerbate their symptoms," Dr Harries said. She said she was aware of people being treated in secret outside of the ADF. "I actually think that's okay," Dr Harries said. "It's not desirable but I'd rather those people be accessing support regardless of where it comes from."

Don't ask don't tell.

I got through ANZAC day without seeing anything that disturbed me much. I can not fathom the AUSSIE AUSSIE AUSSIE OI OI OI crowd though. ANZAC was a massive failure. Our forefathers wanted us to remember what it meant to follow a foreign master into a stupid conflict half way around the world. Want to remember and honour their memory?

quote:

ANZAC COMMENT 1: It was a mistake, alltogether.

ANZAC COMMENT 2: Not Australia, wasn�t Australia�s war. It was England and France against Germany.

ANZAC COMMENT 3: The Turks didn't want to fight us. They�re good people, they�re like us. Couldn�t understand at all, none of them could, why we were fighting for England.

ANZAC COMMENT 4: I think (inaudible) 19 on Gallipoli and we were there for nine months, so I was only 18 when we landed there. Now I�ll be 100 on the 11th of November, the day the war ended. (inaudible) I never have or ever did have.

ANZAC 5: Well I think there�s only one word; adventure, thought it was you go to see what it was like and see the other countries, that�s all. Nothing else, curiosity. (laughs) We soon found out what it was like.

ANZAC COMMENT 6: I didn�t want to go, I had a girlfriend, I was very much in love with her. But my young brother was going so I couldn�t let him go on his own. That�s why I joined the army, not for any heroic reasons or anything like that.

ANZAC COMMENT 7: Oh yes, I told a lie. I told them I was 18 and I was 16. And if you were big enough you were good enough. I don�t know, everyone was doing it, it seemed a romantic sort of thing to do.

ANZAC COMMENT 8: Although not all Australians felt like that, not by any means. You know what a lot of them called us? Five bob a day murderers. That�s what we were called.

ANZAC COMMENT 9: Everyone was talking to us about king and country and all the rest of the tripe that a lot of them go on with. (inaudible) was so wonderful that they wanted (inaudible) in my opinion.

ANZAC COMMENT 10: I didn�t know anything about war, neither did all the others. And I never been in war before, that was the first time they�d heard a shot fired against them.

ANZAC COMMENT 11: I was the observer for the (inaudible) and while I was there, the machine gun opened fire. Oh, run across my head, and I got down quick and lively. And I was (inaudible) down there and he come down and �what are you doing there�. I was (inaudible). He said no-one hear you. Nobody told me that.

ANZAC COMMENT 12: It was a mistake where we landed, but either we drifted down or somebody made a mistake.

ANZAC COMMENT 13: We tried to blame one another for the mistake. It was definitely they should never have landed where they did. It was ridiculous. They had a beach about as wide as from here to the wall and you had straight up a hill. No wonder they all got killed.

ANZAC COMMENT 14: We lost a terrible lot of men, really. And the British and actually even those days, the Turks didn�t want to fight us. An old lady, she asked me through the interpreter why are they shooting at us and I said I don�t know and then she said neither do we know, which was lovely.

ANZAC COMMENT 15: We were their enemies. We shouldn�t have been but we were. I would say that that was due to politicians, there was that many dead that an awful smell... buried them but they didn�t get a private grave, they buried them in a common grave just dug a hole and buried them. I remember thinking, so you can get used to anything. Bringing down Turkish bodies, laying out in the sun, and all blown-up... taking them down past where we were and we were having a meal, I don�t know which meal it was, and they just went on eating. How terrible that is, that you can do that to a human being when he is dead.

ANZAC COMMENT 16: The War was not sensible. They don't act sensibly and it's a stupid business all together, war, I think.

ANZAC COMMENT 17: There�s only one reason to go to war and that is to defend your own country, but never get involved in foreign wars. And I was thinking mostly of Vietnam at the time, that�s a war that never should have been fought in any case, and we had no business whatever to go there.

ANZAC COMMENT 18: Look after your own country but don't go over to any fighting over the world.

ANZAC COMMENT 19: Have peace. Try and live in peace without war.

# ¿ Apr 26, 2016 04:42

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > Auspol April - Long Live the Glorious State of North Queensland

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