Category: communications

Media and Public Servants under Attack.

Since the federal election one has to look at history to try and gather what is happening to Australian democracy. When this government entered office the first order of business was to raid union offices, and indite former Prime Ministers. That agenda continued although its leadership changed all with the knowledge of ministers and department heads and all in the name of transparency and in the end with little or no charges but millions of dollars of taxpayers money in the pockets of the legal profession.

Fast forward to the election they weren’t going to win, we find within a day boats arriving which we were told stopped, then even more boats we now know did come and public servants were forced to lie or conceal truth as the politicians blatantly lied about the situation.

We now know we have our parts of navy fleet on blocks for years because we can’t staff it. No public announce there but we have to man submarines somehow as we have committed billions on the never never.

The well managed economy spin has fallen over, the surplus evaporated, as the reserve bank has played is last card to try to kick start a economy, and if the trade war continues we will go into recession, and this government has no idea or plans how to get us out. Good luck with your franking credits but the public servants who knew the real truth are gaged.

But there’s more, these attacks on journalism are a direct result to silence or intimidate anybody who is a threat not to the country but to the government and it has made it clear in all cases it will use military style tactics to stamp out non complying journalists who protect whistleblowers and sources that could expose misdemeanours at all levels of security.

I can’t help thinking that this government set political land mines thinking they would embarrass a incoming government Hence the Chinese Warship surprise, but they are blowing up in their face daily and my real concern is if our ethical media is silenced and our public servants who know the truth are jackbooted out we will be no better that some banana republic under authoritarian rule.

Boring Baffoonery Cartoonery

The Queenslland Times cartoonist will never be accused of deep thinking when it comes to his trade. Being possibly the shallowest and slanted In the world of cartoonary may I suggest it’s presence in the location of editorial and public content does nothing to enhance that surrounding product.

Be I as bold to suggest also that space could be allocated to up and coming local talent from our schools, colleges mainly young people who can give us fossils their view on how they see the world, after all it will be theirs in the future.

For one I will not be offended if told we stuffed up, and if indication was the day the youth hit the streets I think they deserve a place to vent/praise on a regular basis.

This may also increase readership of our rag if the schools/families took up the challenge and encouraged our adolescents to partake in general awareness of what the world is all about away from their mobile phones and gaming screen.

If we are expect young people to take part in our democratic processes we must make the aware there is a process and giving them a platform instead of bland repetition must be a step in the right direction. Mrs Editor.

Truth should not be the Casualty

The party’s over and now the combatants are celebrating, commiserating, and looking inward on their way forward and I have to ask , does the media do their reviews on their performance through the entire exercise.?

Starting with our Qt, my little exercise in media watchdogging rated the slant 45% LNP, 34% Alp, and 20% independent less the decimals which is what I regard as pretty balanced compared with other outlets within their conglomerate.

My concern was truth and the line between it, opinion, and downright lies.

I appreciate the media outlets printed and digital are struggling to survive but as the third state surely they have a obligation to identify and reject basic lies as part of ethical obligations.

Looking at the Presidential type of campaign run by our PM, I do not want to see our medial be dragged down to what we see in America where truth is no longer a qualification for broadcast, its who pays the most to spread the spin.

Our Afternoon on a Polling Booth.

I was scoured at, swore at, abused, hugged and thanked. Such is a afternoon on a polling booth handing out pictures.

All was a direct result of what the punters state of mind was on the way to the polls and influenced by what they had seen or heard via the media.. Democracy takes on different personas according to each individual but it does bring out behaviours often concealed but revealed in the final steps to polling booth door.

I saw youth who’s futures are influenced by governments directly scrunch up all handouts as a act of defiance to the volunteers. I saw people in uniform who’s lives depend on good Government decisions boast and laugh at making pirates or other luny tunes famous allegedly by gaining their tick., and then older people bitter about loosing income who had no idea about what franking credits were let alone qualify yet were convinced pensions would be cut and they would starve.

In my electorate alone over 6k were informal, nationally over 600k nationally indicate it just got either too hard to understand of they are too lazy to try to understand and democracy is a inconvenience, but the most worrying thing I feel is our country is adopting the terminology used of defining people and our society of being Lifters or Leaners, and that was not our culture, but after Saturday we may have moved closer to “up you I’m all right Jack” outlook for Australia.

Political agendas are set to appeal to what people see either effects them as individuals firstly and only or what effects our society first then, sow the flow on effect. My preference it to the latter as I believe we work better together as our nations forefathers did so we could get us where we are today.

.

Truth over Murdock Propaganda Critical in Australia.

I try to look at election campaigns across the free world objectively and I do hold my own political biases but we must rely on the media to give deliver truth, ethics and that in itself is sometimes is a problem depending on which outlet one chooses to read.

The line between news, opinion then verging on propaganda in this country sadly is mirroring America and this campaign is descending into that gutter by the Murdock press.

We have seen in past elections attacks on PM’s openly saying bag and drown the bitch, burn the witch, and many other slogans prominently splattered across mastheads and now we are sinking into attacks on politicians mothers.

Has Australian politics sunk that far or is it being dragged down by this organisation to keep what it sees as the right people to keep its organisation with a say in how our governments run?

We as Australians deserve better than this rubbish. We should not accept material that an never be described as journalism.

I am well aware this paper is owned by Murdock and it does not reflect its owners, as we do have editors around the country that maintain journalistic standards clearly reported when Palmer Party tried to ethically corrupt.

I’m pretty sure most intelligent Australians will not accept this American style of confronting intimidatory politics and demand balanced reporting, however painful it might be to our egos.

Strategic Sub Editing but the point was not lost, only the culprit hidden. 😂

Fake Fibre Obsolete On Delivery

As a former employee of Telstra and well trained in the capabilities of what the fibre network is capable of from its inception I struggle with what Australians have been forced to accept with the present NBN.

The network being rolled out as we speak is obselete in its present form and its capacity deliberately limited by this government to retain and protect current media monopolies.

When introduced in its infancy traffic in the fibre tubes was limited, but as technology expanded the capacity is only governed by what is hung on the end, therefore not only businesses ,households, the elderly sent to nursing homes, the sick or injured could have equipment ( health packs as invisaged) available in home ,with direct access to doctors and nursing staff and mobile doctors 24/7 cutting costs across the entire health spectrum. This is only one sector that has been restricted by this governments decision to retain copper and deliver a split network, one for the masses and one for the clients that can reap the benefits if they are wealthy enough.

Communication was legislated as a essential service in this country until privatisation, so their is no reason to get excited when you get a pay for a service that could deliver much more for the same cost, and that equation applies nationally.

It’s like buying a brand new car with 3 good tires and a retread and a free bumper bar thrown in.

Editorial Cut Sees My Health references irrelevant

The Vegan Dilemma

Many of us in our youth took to the streets if we felt civil protest was the only way to change governments or  Legislative powers for the good of living conditions of our fellow workers or democratic rights were challenged. 
The vegan protest philosophies  however, do not fall into that category in my view and are based on core beliefs on how humans should exist today compared on how we got here over evolution. 
To be clear from the onset I am not and never will accept animal cruelty, but we have to accept the fact  the food chain exists and right down to the basic kitchen gecko chasing mosquitos to lions chasing gazelle we humans come from  carnivores and changing that will never happen, but like all beliefs be it spiritual,  political, or society changing we are entitled to have them, even live by them , but we are not entitled to force them upon others in their own homes. 
I feel invaded when people turn up wanting to convert me to their beliefs as do many, but that does not stop the right of those people holding them but forcing them by invasion is not the way to go. 
I feel deeply in  todays world animal experiments should be a thing of the past, our science should have expanded past that age, but we cannot change the way we evolved, agreed not pretty in places but to be brutally honest we as humans do much more damage to each other in daily life physically and mentally on this planet than we do to when we take to survive and maybe that’s where our own back yard would be a good place to start to clean up first. 

Invisible People with Invisible Disabilities with Invisible Support.

I wish to raise a subject on behalf of people beligned by our present society by the broad term of dole bludgers.

I agree some people use the system out of pure laziness often stretching back generations however there are some very desperate people caught up in broad perception projected by our politicians that are living a life in abject poverty and can do nothing to break out.

They are the physically disabled, the mentally ill, the ones that just can’t work and do not transition to a disability pension or are in transition or cannot get through the NDS mazes alone.

Support Services for these people has been cut or does not exist so they are left in their houses or rooms if they are fortunate enough struggling to pay rent, food and usually medication last.

Suicide rates among these people is high unfortunately but suits the government data on unemployment hence low on the priority list.

Luckily some medics are sympathetic to this group but the social stigma stays when they have to venture into main stream population to get medications not on the PBS and struggle to pay at the counter.

This issue is not about raising the New Start allowance, although that would help greatly it’s about defining the people who are invisible in the present system.

This issue is in the too hard basket for many politicians regardless of allegiance.

The real issue is getting classification, getting approved or rejected then getting them into care be it NDS or Disability options, not letting them slowly fade into natural attrition.

We are supposed to have a surplus if we listen to the spin so let’s give the least able bodied people some life saving support.

Investigative Journalism must Survive.

I have been guilty of pulling the trigger maybe too quickly on the media on what I see as slanted reporting or cartooning but with the Al Jazeera story I can only commend the media on its speed on self analysis if ethical standards were breached.

Within hours of release, self questioning commenced weather it reported the story or created the story.

That debate will be ongoing but it’s my simpleton belief is overall if it’s in the public interest, the public should know.

The method of acquiring the evidence is played out regularly in capturing terrorist, online predators, drug dealers, gun runners all regarded as fair game if any investigative journalist outlet exposes the culprits.

The fact that they did not secure the funding does not change the intent or the toxic advice on how to nullify murder.

I believe this is a clear example on the value of investigative journalism, and regardless of what side of politics you support it is imperative to democracy these outlets across the world continue their work, and must be protected.

Atheist Point.

As a onlooker without a alliance to any religion I am troubled at the way the Kiwi Tragedy is being handled by social media and the media in general.

If we are to be consistent with reporting and coverage news their is no need to give the perpetrators religion a mention or ensure that when a unfortunate event happens call it equally.

However we  consistently read and view the Islamic faith linked to events by fanatics but rarely do we see the word Christian leading a headline when they impede. 

Hard Right Wing has blazed the headlines not Hard Right Wing Christians Fundamentalists for example which truly identifies those who hold that view but rarely identified in the media or any platform. 

I concede Christianity hold approximately 60% of Australian faith but that should not stand in the way of balanced reporting as that imbalance leads to false impressions and feeds divide.

Calling it as it is sometimes upsets and could threaten income streams of some news outlets but I suppose it comes down to journalistic ethics and brave editors to keep us well and truthfully informed.

Spot the Differences

Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑