Tag: culture

Us Older Fossils need to Stand Aside on Climate.

I know it must be hard for the older generation to accept the youth of the world are demanding we do more in regard to their and their children’s existence on this planet.

How dare they go to demonstrations or be allowed to address United Nations events or even contemplate they have more knowledge about climate science than us keepers of all knowledge.!

We will try to do our autocratic best to keep them in their little boxes and do exactly as they are told or we will cane them and keep them detained in their school rooms.

Like most of us older folk we see going backwards is the best way forward and that is a fallacy we ourselves crushed in the 60’s through to the 80’s where we took on the establishment and set up the wealth we “Silent Australians” have accumulated not even thinking that the planet was telling us it was in strife, and now when we are held to account we try and play the School Principal card over and over again.

Unlike the 60-80 years where we fought for workers conditions like wages, safety,leave leadings, and the 38-40 hour week, we/I was on the streets then only to see those conditions get traded off for what is called productivity gains and we are reaping those benefits industrial deaths, burnout, and mental health issues all related to the the magic dollar we are now geared to worship.

These kids are changing that ideology and us fossils can’t cope. They are smarter and more aware than we ever were at that age. They see their future not in a individual monetary sense but in a global vision we never imagined, and our only response is to refer to our god the magic dollar, aptly demonstrated by our governments obsession of a surplus over the needs of its own people’s welfare and wellbeing, so it’s not surprising that the old technologies resonate with that demographic as they try to stay relevant in a ever changing world gearing itself for the fight of its life.

The Three Stooge Act now Complete

It would be totally inappropriate to describe what has developed a three stooge act.

The three stooges were a deliberate comedy act but what we have been dealt with is far from a comedy.

The team sheet we have been dealt with could not be less impressive in regards to Trump, Morrison and now Johnson reeks of the toxic masculinity of baseball cap wearing thumbs up, “how good is this” antics of coal hugging ,fish kissing and female groping males who’s skills in schoolyard bullying have amplified in their political careers.

These bozo boys are now in charge of our nations and we must ask how we allowed this to happen. Look at leaders, great leaders regardless of political slant that have gone before. Former men and women had charisma,, intellect, and decorum of whom I will not name as a mark of balanced opinion but stand unchallenged at home and worldwide.

This present crew doesn’t make the reserve bench, and in times when leadership, political astuteness and world financial and military astuteness is critical to world peace none of these come equiped as their focus is on internal political survival and popularity stunts.

I’m sure our competitors Russia ,China, and other merging superpowers are watching on with great interest and looking for opportunities to manipulate the present political players and landscape and I live in hope that other world leaders outside this boys club maintain the standards expected to keep us away from world unrest where no one wins.

Keeping Council Under Watch

First rule of the change process is to inform the people involved what is the new direction intended and listen to the usually negative arguments as they usually highlight underlying often personal reasons of why change cannot be achieved. The council debate has achieved in that trumps.

For too long ipswich has been culturally divided by areas and demographics and it’s time we matured into a city of one direction where transparency of the our ratepayers rates distribution should be seen as fair and calculated.

The days of “look at me what I have done in my patch” mentality was highlighted when none of the old councillors allegedly knew what was going on across the entire council and run to their bunkers when the hammer fell. That’s pathetic corporate governance, and undeniable.

As stated by the administrator the new elected councillors will have to have broader skills and adaptability, and as a resident I too have to adjust. From a place where our one streetlight was a cause for a party to a place where our population is increasing that much the infrastructure cannot cope, the days of town and country reluctantly but factually are over. The city expansion and all its ugly traits are here and we not only need good councillors on the ground we need good competent administrators to provide ongoing advice and support across the entire spectrum of our local council areas.

Like it or not, local governments are not stand alone entities and are arms of state governments and when the dust has settled we will still need the oversight of statutory authorities like the CCC and the press freedom and vigilance to ensure we never revert to our previous state of disfunctuallity. .

Some One Had To Fight.

Another person did not make it home after a days work as the toll rises.

Cast your mind back to when this government was screaming for minister resignations when the pink bats issue was the issue yet the rise under their watch goes unspoken.

Fact is they have to make a decision on who to support. The profit of the coal magnates or the Safety of the Workers.

They cut the red tape on industrial laws and regulations, legislated against union protection deeming it as militant so expecting this government to support the CFMEU in its role to protect workers is beyond its political ethic let alone it moral ethic.

Blame however is not one sided. Union and non union workers too have traded off conditions, hard fought conditions by previous workers for the mighty dollars and here too the chook has come home to roost.

This industry and many others need a reset, but it will take workers to wake up the unions have a extremely important role in making sure the family unit is protected when you go to your place of employment and that is about to be challenged on the floor of Parliament.

No other business or company is required by law to protect people and conditions in their industry without any contribution. Unions have role yet the non members still get the benefits the payers have won. . Fair? You be the judge but remember when your in your lunch room, or on holidays or on sick or compensation or pension some one had to fight for you to have that.

Sorry silly me , it’s all about you in today’s society isn’t it?

No WIN for those in the Bush.

As I travelled around western Queensland in my former career it was vital for me and the locals to keep across area issues usually through WIN TV and ABC local news. Those services galvanise communities and are critical to the outlying properties so obviously that fact is ignored when the decision was taken to close WIN Tv in some rural and remote areas.

This decision has repercussions across the entire spectrum of the rural way of life where councils, essential services had a medium to directly contact its population in times of need.

Secondly it also provided employment and training for journalists, advertising and promotion for businesses, and more importantly a local platform for diverse news and opinions locally and nationally.

My fear is the major conglomerate news outlets will narrow the news feed focussing on major city issues that really the rural sector has no interest but get ratings on the coast.

When conglomerates gain control dollars for the shareholders is always the driver and service is secondary and we do not want monopoly’s controlling what you can or cannot hear or see.

From Baby Boomer to the Social Elite?

For us early risers it was a pleasure to get up every morning and turn on the radio and get the world news on our much loved ABC and discuss how lucky we were not to be where the nastiest things were happening in the world.

Today I’m more hesitant to even turn on the radio or tv as daily reports of crime, death by guns, knives, gangs, abductions, domestic violence and child abuse, racial hatred pouring out of the electronics, and we have to ask ourselves why or what have we let our society get to this state in Australia.

After the election I’m in the category of the self interested/ money hoarding baby boomer who only cares about me and my immediate family and the franking credits. Me not I assure you, but obviously many are and the reason we got to where we are is we were fortunate to have governments that saw things like superannuation, health care, 9 day fortnight’s, annual leave loading, employment, pension, and many other perks today we take for granted.

Our society was based on helping up those who were less fortunate, ie. returned war service personnel, TPI’s, widowed women and families all of us in the same boat struggling to get their families a feed let alone a house or property, that come later with the housing commission, another social incentive to get us established.

We were blessed wen we look back, no money but things were simple and we made sure our kids got it easier.

Today we have a greedy society all about “ME”. And we look down on people who’s demographic we were. They now born into poverty have a really tough time getting out and crime becomes a choice, never or rarely thought of back then but for some the only salvation to survive.

Increasing jails, fines are fruitless until we can get the social injustices addressed if not everyone will be living in gated communities scared to take your kids to the park or beach.

This idea of this government of giving only the ones who “have a go” help and thinking the ones on New Start or no start will look after themselves or die is actually playing out in our streets daily.

Looking back we got it pretty right in the early part then we forgot from where we come and must ask ourselves where we got it so wrong, and my answer is when greed outweighed our social responsibility.

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.

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.

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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. 😂

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