Oz Politics.

[skuthorp]

The Robodebt Enquiry.

Far to much of that anonymous creature, 'The Government' being responsible. The previous government was, it's ministers were, and not a few senior public servants! The advice at the time was that it was a dodgy procedure, 'unlawful' in fact. The use of the word 'inadvertant' is being used. Sorry, they were individually responsible for an illegal act and they knew it was or should have known. In fact it was theft and fraud and I want the individuals responsible hunted down and held individually responsible in the same way that they did with the people they labelled as fraudsters. And then there are the suicides caused by that action, hundreds at least. Contributory manslaughter I call it. I don't just want a big taxpayer funded compensation scheme, I want the extortionists tried and jailed. Every last one of them, and the enablers in the party that voted with them as accomplices.

[skuthorp]

4 Corners
China, Taiwan and the US.

Add Tyndal (New US Base) in NT, Darwin itself, Pine Gap (at present expanding), and Canberra to first strike targets. I suspect however we have been a target since the end of WW2.
What's the point in having 6 B52's in Aus without a nuke to carry?

And of course after the bumbling of the last LibNat govt and 30 years of Defence Acquisition inefficiency

under sucessive governments we don't have much of our own to put up. But then it probably never has been an a electorally popular subject.

But I still think that climate change will overtake all this human foolishness much sooner than we think.

PS: I see the penny has dropped re the implications of this deal/alliance. A Scomo deal perchance?

[skuthorp]

I note that the NSW government and the NSW liberal party is up to it's neck in corruption over the Star Casino affair, changing laws to negate the findings of the enquiry, changing planning regulations, changing building regulations mid enquiry. The whole lot of them are criminals.
You may have to buy The Saturday Paper to read the article.

[Hallam]

I get The Sat Paper put aside for me at the news agent each week. doing my bit for independant journalism. It's one way of making sure they get paid at https://schwartzmedia.com.au/

[skuthorp]

We already knew that anything on the internet is not secure and less and lass so now, but as citizens we have no choice as to whether companies and government require and keep such data. A friend has never had any contact with Optus, but his data was stolen from their site. What the f…….. were they doing with it?
I am going back to paper and personal contact as much as I can manage.

[Hallam]

Stephen Mayne on Twitter: "Enjoyed lobbing this question at Murdoch associate Richard Freudenstein at the Coles AGM. Chair James Graham was not amused. https://t.co/rsDFd3Vntl" / Twitter

[skuthorp]

This is one of those things that everyone knows is crooked, but legal, which is not surprising really when yoi consider who writes the laws and for whom. And of course eventually themselves as they 'retire' to a corporate post-dated bribe.

Andnot to be outdone an "official" has said that she "failed to tell Morrison that the Robodebt scheme might be unlawful/illegal.
(Here pull the other leg) and just see where this 'she' comes from politically, and maybe religiously……. not that I'm a cynic of course……...

[WX]

The Robodebt Enquiry.

Far to much of that anonymous creature, 'The Government' being responsible. The previous government was, it's ministers were, and not a few senior public servants! The advice at the time was that it was a dodgy procedure, 'unlawful' in fact. The use of the word 'inadvertant' is being used. Sorry, they were individually responsible for an illegal act and they knew it was or should have known. In fact it was theft and fraud and I want the individuals responsible hunted down and held individually responsible in the same way that they did with the people they labelled as fraudsters. And then there are the suicides caused by that action, hundreds at least. Contributory manslaughter I call it. I don't just want a big taxpayer funded compensation scheme, I want the extortionists tried and jailed. Every last one of them, and the enablers in the party that voted with them as accomplices.

I saw the figure of 2,000 suicides mentioned.

[skuthorp]

Q&A
Re the Medibank/Optus hacks
Two people on the panel advocated pirsuit and punishment of these criminal groups by governments, even when they are situated in another souverign state. I'd like to see contracts put out on them…….. but two, or more, can play at that game.

[skuthorp]

ROBODEBT
What I want to know is will we see Morison and his collaborators do any time for theft, fraud and contributing to mass suicide. Contributory manslaughter at least!
Jeff

[skuthorp]

What's 'detente' in Chinese?

缓和
Huǎnhé

I see Albo has pulled off a meeting with Xi. Word is that China is short of food, short of energy, and wants to join a Pacific Trading Forum……….. (not to mention Covid)

[Hallam]

ROBODEBT
What I want to know is will we see Morison and his collaborators do any time for theft, fraud and contributing to mass suicide. Contributory manslaughter at least!
Jeff

Giver what transpired was illegal and they were told as much then the law should be applied and they should be held accountable for the deaths by suicide that have links to unlawful debt notices. When will we see a class action agains those responsible.........Morrison would be top of the list it seems.

[skuthorp]

It will have to be a private case, too [politically hot and too recent for Albo to venture into. It would sweep up the LibNat leftovers in parliament along the way. Of course it should have a precedent in Aus if justice had been served, Aus's entry into Vietnam on a well documented lie and all the resulting personal and national damage.

[skuthorp]

Insurance Council sdays that whole towns in NSW are now uninsurable……
Now that will be a political hot potato, as it also means that they have virtually no resale value…..

[Hallam]

A question on my mind lately. Are we teetering on massive structural change because of social instability/climate change/ financial system corruption, and is that why the political right is moving away from democratic government. An attempt at positioning to be in control when the instability takes hold......... While trying not to be too obvious so as not to be seen as a causal factor? ( Many thought it would happen in the 70's so i'm not holding my breath but you never know? )
Linked to this is the large number of US, UK and probably Australian wealthy power players benefiting from Russian money that is a direct result of the corruption in that system. In that case the irony is that Capitalism would be its own worst enemy......... very satisfying thought given many of the sages and archetypal stories through history warned as much.

[skuthorp]

I say yes, and it's been coming since the mid 1980's if people cared to look. The changes and instability in climate and nature are the drivers of insecurity and a massive change that is well under way and will disrupt the established order in ways we are not prepared for.

[Hallam]

Owning a seagoing boat might come in handy.........

[skuthorp]

……………..especially if you can moor it in your back yard……….

[WX]

Given the cascade of continuous flooding events in Australia, and for that matter the world. I'm surprised alarm bells are not ringing right through both sides of parliament.

[skuthorp]

I don't think they know what to do… that will be acceptable to the voters.
But the longer 'the voters' put it off the worse it will be for them. Politicians want to be in power, but then doing what is necessary will have them thrown out. I'm not surprised that many of our prospective 'representatives' are not the brightest, after all who wants that kind of job?
Things will have to get much worse yet I fear before it sinks in to a population that does not want to believe that it will cost them many of their present comforts. Think Europe without Russian gas, think Aus. without gas………
Here it's going to be an interesting summer with many of our major food producing areas still under water, including much of the stone fruit, citrus and vegetables on the Murray flood plain.

[Hallam]

……..things are heating up for Jordan Shanks in NSW!

[skuthorp]

Go Dan……..
And the murdoch press has demonstrated that it is no longer of political importance.

[Hallam]

Yes Murdoch’s Herald Sun, and Sky along with 3 AW are the big losers from the election results x Good that the Greens doubled their numbers as a check on Labour.

[skuthorp]

The RW and religious parties are exploding on Melbourne radio. It's clear that they do not understand how the preference system works. Some I think have assumed that ours works like the American system. They need to get out more.

[Hallam]

It was back in the early 90’s that I was introduced to the two concepts at play with the right of politics in Oz at the moment. First was Ideology trumps common sense and the second was group think. Both are major contributing factors that lead to them being so out of touch with the electorate.

[WX]

Wow, the Libs really got hammered in Victoria eh.
And now the Nationals, without any research into the indigenous voice proposal have said they won't support it.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-...ment/101706466

[skuthorp]

I have the feeling that they may have dissenters when it comes to it.

[skuthorp]

Seems like Aus is in line to be an American space port, with planning for conflict in space under way on all sides.
Where are the Klingons when you need them?

[Hallam]

Yes, heard that on RN this morning. Southern hemisphere desert with proximity to the equator seems to be the attraction described something like as a golden opportunity.......for USA or Oz?? I would prefer we told them to shove off but sadly that won't happen.

If so we should extract a heavy price for access....... double / triple the price or nothing!!..... but I bet we will give away our bargaining power because we have allowed our nation to have no legs to stand on.

[skuthorp]

The US says jump, ALL our politicians say how high and for how long……..

I mean to say, they might not sell as at an exorbitant price an out of date, worn out, nuke sub……...

[skuthorp]

Paper mill in Vic's Latrobe Valley will shut down because the supply of suitable hardwood for pulping is no longer available in sufficient quantities.

It should never have been in operation and the supply was subsidised by the state as well.

[skuthorp]

Well, it looks like Australia has become an addeendum to the US MIC. We are contracting out our military and defense to the Americans at a time when it's moot whether they would even show up, depending on what party is in power there. And though the LibNats were responsible for the present untennable situation a series of governments are at fault. We are tied to the US by their military and nuke subs at Garden Island are just a matter of time.
Our PM will become just a US cypher, not that that hasn't been the case since WW2 anyhow.

[Hallam]

We need more of these influences on policy makers. The current mob and even more so the previous mob seem to be advised by intellectual light weights who are incapable of informed analysis:

Remembering Bruce Grant: An advocate of Australian self-reliant defence capability - Pearls and Irritations
By Gareth Evans

Bruce Grant, who died in August at the great age of 97, made an extraordinary contribution, as a writer and thinker, to Australia’s understanding of itself as a nation, and our place in the world. His richly well-lived life – with its multiple incarnations as journalist, author, university lecturer, diplomat and ministerial adviser – was commemorated at a memorial event in Melbourne this month, at which I offered this tribute.
Bruce was a complex and multi-faceted character. Not exactly a paragon of all the virtues, public and private – who of us are? But wonderfully subtle and supple intellectually; a supremely gifted communicator; passionate in his loyalty to and confidence in Australia; and passionate in his commitment to principled public policy. And combined with all of that, having the kind of impossibly good looks and impossible charm of the foreign correspondent, and diplomat, from central casting.
Bruce’s contribution, sustained over nearly seven decades, was one of almost unimaginable breadth, depth and richness, which strongly influenced the thinking of generations of policymakers. Certainly including me – not only in the time we worked together when I was Foreign Minister in the ‘80s and ‘90s, but also for decades before, through his wonderfully lucid public affairs columns for The Age, and his series of path-breaking books, starting with his classic Indonesia in the mid-‘60s.
The point about Bruce is simply, above all, that he was on the right side of history in every major judgement call he made – in his hundreds of newspaper columns, his dozen major non-fiction books, his university teaching, and in his advice to Gough Whitlam and later to me – about the great issues of the day relating to foreign policy, Australia’s national identity, and the relationship between them..........
continued: Remembering Bruce Grant: An advocate of Australian self-reliant defence capability - Pearls and Irritations

[skuthorp]

Thanks for that, but I doubt that any of our governments from WW2 on have had the actual independent authority to follow his ideas through. I have said for years that if we tried to take back authority at
Pine Gap the Americans would invade.

[skuthorp]

Vic. Pesuto wins, it'll be interesting to see how 'old guard' he is.