A weird decision !

Trio Capital was an investment fund that looked good to many financial planners - and to many who managed their own superannuation funds. The only problem was that it's money was invested in foreign tax havens - and most of it disappeared without trace. Thousands lost their nest eggs - and seemed doomed to a retirement little short of penury - but now the Federal government has stepped in with a $ 55 million reimbursement, the largest superannuation bailout in Australian history. Great ! But there is one little problem. The money will only go to investors directed to Trio by their financial counsellors. Those running self managed superannuation funds will not get a cent ! That means that the nearly six hundred Wollongong victims get a rude raspberry - and are to be left to struggle through old age with just the age pension. What a weird decision. Trio seems to have been run by a bunch of crooks and they managed to fool professional financial advisers, but the government seems to be saying that those who manage their own funds deserved to be robbed - and will therefore not be compensated - because they lacked the skill to avoid a suspect investment fund. That is a decision that may well come back to haunt the movers and shakers in this Federal government - because it is grossly unfair !

Disabled pay rates.

A case is proceeding through the Federal court system to investigate the rates of pay offered to disabled people. Instances have been submitted claiming that some disabled people have been working for rates ranging from $ 3.82 to $ 1.85 an hour. This needs to be examined with great caution. It would be just so easy for a group of benevolent people to bring in rates of pay that would effectively remove disabled people from the work force entirely. The court must not forget that word - " disabled " that applies to most of the 20,000 people attached to that category in Australia. For many businesses employing a disabled person is an act of charity. The degree of disablement reduces the function that they can perform so severely that they can only make a marginal contribution to the work needed. To demand that they be paid at the minimum wage would see most disabled work disappear. Unfortunately, courts tend to take an academic approach to such matters and there could be little attention paid to the fact that holding down a job - even if the work performed was marginal - delivers a huge boost to the disabled persons state of mind. The rate of pay is simply in addition to the disabled pension benefit. Hopefully, the court will not set rates that destroy the opportunity for many to feel good - and for employers to be able to make that happen !

An officer - but not a gentleman !

A disturbing report from the Australian Defence Academy in Canberra. An eighteen year old female cadet had consensual sex with a male cadet, but what she didn't know was that her lover had placed video cameras in the room and their lovemaking was being shown to a number of his mates in other rooms. Some compounded this intrusion by capturing still photographs on their mobile phones - which they shared with other students in the Academy. It was a gross breach of trust and when it was revealed the Academy bosses seemed indifferent. It broke no laws in the Australian Capital Territory and the perpetrator looked like escaping with a mere slap on the wrist. This courageous female cadet then invited in the media - and that brought a dramatic change of attitude. The event happened on Commonwealth land - and suddenly Commonwealth law swung into action and a prosecution for a criminal offence seems likely. Whatever the outcome, serious damage has been done to the prestigious Defence Academy. It has been trying to recruit more women into the defence forces and this incident of male chauvinism will not help. At the same time, it raises the question of how future officers can hope to trust each other with their lives in battle - if they can not be trusted with basic human dignity. The offender may be allowed to remain as a cadet - and eventually he may qualify as an officer. He will most certainly never achieve the words that usually follow that title - " and a gentleman ! "

The doctor shortage !

Plans to create medical super clinics that serve the public from 6 pm to 8 am - and bulk bill all patients - have one glaring deficiency. Where to find doctors willing to work through the wee small hours - when many practices can not attract doctors to work a civilized 9 to 5 shift ? The idea of super clinics is to divert demand from the over worked public hospital emergency departments. Many people present at emergency departments with medical problems more suitable for attention by a general practitioner - but this merely highlights the base problem with medicine in Australia. We are not training enough new doctors to service the needs of this country ! The obvious answer is to expand medical training - and lower the cost so that people with the brains, but not the finance - can become qualified. Unfortunately, such a plan would probably face obstacles from the existing pool of doctors. It is a fact of life that shortages cause price rises, and the present doctor shortage results in those qualified earning a very good living for a reasonable work load. All professions like to control the numbers - to safeguard their living standards. In particular, the ranks of specialists are carefully controlled - by those existing specialists. Expect defensive flak the moment any surge in new doctor training is suggested as the answer to our present medical problems.

Private smoking bans.

The residents of a Sydney housing complex have decided to impose a total smoking ban in and around their building. Some non-smokers complain that smoke from other units drifts in and causes them distress. At best, this is a huge bluff. The only way a smoking ban can be enforced is if it is supported by an appropriate act of parliament - as is the case with smoking in restaurants, pubs, clubs - and any enclosed public area. If space in the complex is rental units it is possible to add a clause in the rental agreement banning smoking, but if the units are freehold then such a ban is merely a " request " - and obeying it or otherwise is optional. This anti smoking ploy opens up a whole new can of worms. Whatever other activities can a body corporate ban if a majority of residents agree. We already have some classical wars on residents rights to own a dog or a cat. What else could be in the pipeline ? Maybe the deeply religious could ban sex - between unmarried couples. There are religions that consider drinking tea or coffee sinful. Then of course, alcohol is seen as a work of the Devil by those followers of many religions. Could we be heading into a regime when before buying a property it would be wise to consult a lawyer to have a search conducted on just what activities are allowed ? And more to the point - to get advice on how much weight such bans have in a legal sense !

Closing down !

News that Australia's biggest Internet cafe -a three hundred terminal outlet in Castlereagh street, Sydney - is closing should come as no surprise. It was popular with tourists and others not able to access their home computers - before the advent of mobile phones that enabled internet access. Technology improvements bring change. It is steadily going on around us and it will accelerate in the years ahead. The humble pay-phone in a phone box in the street - or on the wall in a public building is starting to disappear. Patronage has fallen to the extent that the coins collected often do not even cover the cost of collecting them and servicing the phones - which become targets of vandals. People are protesting at the closure of suburban post offices. The use of stamps and letters is in sharp decline as we learn to pay our bills by fund transfer or use internet banking - and suppliers are more and more billing us through our computers to avoid stamp and mailing costs. The day is fast approaching when the post office will be a singular institution in the centre of a city, with few if any suburban sites remaining. The only hope of survival for the network would be a decision by the government to convert the system to a bank. It seems to be a reflex action to protest when some service is withdrawn. But then - is was only a few decades ago when every town and village had a horse stable on main street - and the services of a blacksmith nearby. We live in ever changing times !

A costly white elephant !

Recently released statistics will make some economists shudder ! It seems that wireless internet connections accounted for fifty percent of business in 2010 - and now account for forty percent of user services -or 4.2 million people. Despite this, the Federal government still insists that internet users will be constricted to fixed line internet services when the NBN is fully rolled out. It all boils down to a choice. Internet users may have higher speeds and more services if they elect to accept the restrictions of a fixed line service - or they can have that marvellous freedom - mobility - if they opt for wireless. That seems to be a no brainer. The computer industry evolved from desk top computers to personal laptops - and these morphed to the various tablet forms now storming the market. The whole concept is to have a personal computer in your hands and ready to go to work - anytime and anywhere. Many aspects of the business community definitely need high speed broadband - but there is a grave doubt if that is needed by most other ordinary people, and it seems the Federal government is determined to force this issue whether we need it - or not ! Time to stop and have a rethink before we create a gigantic white elephant !

Australia - a regional bully ?

It seems that the Australian government is determined to foist a refugee processing centre on our poor little neighbour - East Timor - despite clear and unequivocal signals that it would be unwelcome. Australia is the nine hundred pound Gorilla in the south Pacific and East Timor owes us plenty for our help in assisting it to break away from a cruel Indonesian occupation. As a result, Prime Minister Gusmao has to be careful how he phrases his comments on the proposal - but it is clear that the East Timor people think Australia is simply dumping it's problems on their doorstep. It seems that this issue boils down to a matter of pride on the part of Julia Gillard. Our Prime Minister has decided the centre will go to East Timor and she is prepared to use our Pacific power to bully the small nation into submission. It is also a matter of politics - and losing face to the opposition if she bends - and picks up the phone and speaks to a prime minister willing and waiting to provide these facilities. Nauru would welcome us with open arms. This other tiny country needs the jobs and money the centre would bring - and there are facilities already in place on that island. Pride and prejudice - and being stubborn - are not the way to run good government. Surely the voters of New South Wales delivered such a message as recently as last Saturday !