Four years ago 4313 kilometres of " Infinity " brand electrical cable was imported into Australia from China. It was distributed to all states and because of attractive pricing it quickly found favour in the electrical trade. Only then was it discovered that the insulation used was inferior and would quickly age. There was a high risk of product failure where it was laid close to entry points or heat sources. It was subjected to a national recall.
That recall has been dismal here in New South Wales. It is estimated that seventy-four percent still awaits rectification and it is highly likely that many people are living in new or renovated homes where it lurks like a ticking time bomb. The usual outcome of cable failure is a house fire.
This contrasts with a 96% recovery rate in Queensland, 80% in Victoria, 70% in South Australia, 72% in the ACT and 100% in Tasmania. It is thought that many homeowners here in New South Wales are remaining silent because the work was done by unlicensed electricians and they fear prosecution or a drop in the value of their homes.
If people know - or suspect - that electrical work was done in their home in the past four years they would be wise to book an inspection by a licensed electrician., costing between $100 and $ 200.
If Infinity cable is discovered, that inspection cost plus the remedial work of stripping and replacing the faulty cable with be covered by the supplier.
The ACCC is now applying a risk based approach in NSW. Homeowners are only required to replace cable that is exposed or near a heat source. In such instances an indelible sticker is placed in the meter box to alert future tradesmen that this solution has been applied and whether this will impact on home values is unknown.
All stocks of this brand of cable have been removed from stores selling electrical supplies but there is a chance that some unlicensed tradesmen may have bought several coils because of its attractive price. It is quite possible some may still be active where unlicensed operators intend to use the faulty cable rather than suffer the loss of its disposal, or who simply do not care that it delvers a risk.
This debacle should also b a wakeup call for our customs inspection regime. China is particularly prone to numerous small manufacturing companies trying to compete on a price basis. When they offer a product for import to Australia and it is required to meet safety standards that apply in this country it needs some sort of international verification. The fact that Infinity cable was able to come into this country undetected and below the standard required here illustrates that the required safeguards are not in place.
The customs barrier is our first line of defence against faulty products.
Wednesday 31 May 2017
Tuesday 30 May 2017
Making a Choice !
A bill in the New South Wales parliament will be decided by the votes of those we elected to make laws on our behalf. It seeks to legally enable the terminally ill so seek assistance in ending their lives. It will contain a number of security measures by way of age limitations and medical consultations to ensure that the applicant is indeed suffering a terminal disease that will deliver a painful death.
Public opinion polls clearly show that the majority of people agree with this proposal, but unfortunately how this vote will be decided is uncertain. The major political parties have wisely granted their members a conscience vote but powerful religions are agitating against and they will marshal their forces to try and pressure the politicians to deliver a " no " vote.
It seems that this is an issue that must be decided on a state by state basis. The Northern Territory once passed such a bill, only to have it knocked down by the Federal parliament. It seems that only the states have the power to make this decision, and the Commonwealth has shown no desire to take it on as a national decision.
Strangely, it is only a small extension of a perfectly legal act. Suicide is an option for those who choose to end their life but the method chosen is usually repugnant to loved ones. Death can come from a hose inserted into the exhaust of a car, or by placing a plastic bag over ones head, or by jumping off a high building. Often the end result is messy, and risks injuring or killing other unfortunate people.
Those with a terminal disease would prefer a civilized death by way of a quick death assisted by their doctor or a chemist. This law change simply makes it optional. Those with strong religious views can reject that option and choose to let nature take its course. In fact the proposed legislation contains compulsory " rethink " time delays.
Should this bill be rejected when it comes to a vote in New South Wales it is likely that it will not reappear in a state parliament for a long period of time. But it will not be a rejection by the people of New South Wales. It will be political cowardice by a bunch of politicians who fear opposition whipped up against them by religious zealots at the next election.
This is probably too momentous a decision to be left in the hands of politicians. It is even too important to be decided at state level. This is a decision that may one day be faced by each and every citizen of this country and at present they will have no other option than to face an agonising death if fate allows them to linger in a hospital bed with limitations on the level of pain killers that can be applied.
This is a decision that should be made by national referendum. This is a case when the people should tell the politicians what they want - and demand that it be granted.
Public opinion polls clearly show that the majority of people agree with this proposal, but unfortunately how this vote will be decided is uncertain. The major political parties have wisely granted their members a conscience vote but powerful religions are agitating against and they will marshal their forces to try and pressure the politicians to deliver a " no " vote.
It seems that this is an issue that must be decided on a state by state basis. The Northern Territory once passed such a bill, only to have it knocked down by the Federal parliament. It seems that only the states have the power to make this decision, and the Commonwealth has shown no desire to take it on as a national decision.
Strangely, it is only a small extension of a perfectly legal act. Suicide is an option for those who choose to end their life but the method chosen is usually repugnant to loved ones. Death can come from a hose inserted into the exhaust of a car, or by placing a plastic bag over ones head, or by jumping off a high building. Often the end result is messy, and risks injuring or killing other unfortunate people.
Those with a terminal disease would prefer a civilized death by way of a quick death assisted by their doctor or a chemist. This law change simply makes it optional. Those with strong religious views can reject that option and choose to let nature take its course. In fact the proposed legislation contains compulsory " rethink " time delays.
Should this bill be rejected when it comes to a vote in New South Wales it is likely that it will not reappear in a state parliament for a long period of time. But it will not be a rejection by the people of New South Wales. It will be political cowardice by a bunch of politicians who fear opposition whipped up against them by religious zealots at the next election.
This is probably too momentous a decision to be left in the hands of politicians. It is even too important to be decided at state level. This is a decision that may one day be faced by each and every citizen of this country and at present they will have no other option than to face an agonising death if fate allows them to linger in a hospital bed with limitations on the level of pain killers that can be applied.
This is a decision that should be made by national referendum. This is a case when the people should tell the politicians what they want - and demand that it be granted.
Monday 29 May 2017
Death - From Asbestos !
For most of the last century asbestos was a legal content of most building materials and was widely used in industry. In particular, it was the favoured component of the brake shoes fitted to every car and when the brakes were applied the friction released tiny asbestos particles as the brake lining was worn away.
Asbestos was a silent, cunning killer. There is no minimum safe exposure level and in most cases it lays dormant in the lungs for up to twenty years before it delivers a slow and agonising death. Late last century bans came into force and all modern building materials are now asbestos free - and car brakes now feature a safer component mix.
The problem is the housing stock built before the 1980's is rife with asbestos and homeowners come face to face with it when doing even minor renovations. It is not acceptable at the local landfill and the only legal way to get rid of it is to engage a licensed asbestos removal contractor who will wet it down to stop particles flying into the air, bag it and take it to a licensed disposal area where it will be immediately buried - and that is a costly procedure.
We are now plagued by bandit contractors who avoid this fee structure by simply dumping loads of asbestos material on private land and in some cases in the middle of suburban streets in the dead of night. They usually obscure the number plates of their tip trucks with mud and select a quiet street in a suburban neighbourhood. A quick press of the tipping mechanism and a load of waste lands on the road and the truck is gone in seconds.
Uncovered asbestos is prone to shed deadly particles and often these dumpings are close to schools and child care centres. There is a danger that deadly Mesothelioma will appear in the lungs of those who breathed in those tiny particles a decade or so into the future. Councils and government agencies spend millions on emergency clean-ups to reduce this danger.
It is now quite clear that most of this problem is caused by the same group of serial offenders. There is a small number of contractors who seek out asbestos loads because they know they can extract a premium price for its removal. Of course they have no intention of paying the legal fee for its safe disposal because they intend to dump it in a public place - and pocket the money.
Detection methods are getting ever sharper and some of these bandits have been hauled into court - and given token penalties. In some cases, the same person is the subject of arrest warrants for failure to appear and answer charges and still playing the same elusive game of dumping asbestos as their way of making a living.
It is time the law got tough and treated this crime for what it is - an act that can deliberately deliver death by manslaughter to innocent people. The agitation of being carried in a truck and the blow as it lands on the road will certainly release any loose fibres to blow away in the wind and these will settle in a wide circle. That act can result in catastrophe for innocent people who can not imagine how they could ever have come into contact with asbestos.
It is high time the penalty reflected the serious nature of the crime.
Asbestos was a silent, cunning killer. There is no minimum safe exposure level and in most cases it lays dormant in the lungs for up to twenty years before it delivers a slow and agonising death. Late last century bans came into force and all modern building materials are now asbestos free - and car brakes now feature a safer component mix.
The problem is the housing stock built before the 1980's is rife with asbestos and homeowners come face to face with it when doing even minor renovations. It is not acceptable at the local landfill and the only legal way to get rid of it is to engage a licensed asbestos removal contractor who will wet it down to stop particles flying into the air, bag it and take it to a licensed disposal area where it will be immediately buried - and that is a costly procedure.
We are now plagued by bandit contractors who avoid this fee structure by simply dumping loads of asbestos material on private land and in some cases in the middle of suburban streets in the dead of night. They usually obscure the number plates of their tip trucks with mud and select a quiet street in a suburban neighbourhood. A quick press of the tipping mechanism and a load of waste lands on the road and the truck is gone in seconds.
Uncovered asbestos is prone to shed deadly particles and often these dumpings are close to schools and child care centres. There is a danger that deadly Mesothelioma will appear in the lungs of those who breathed in those tiny particles a decade or so into the future. Councils and government agencies spend millions on emergency clean-ups to reduce this danger.
It is now quite clear that most of this problem is caused by the same group of serial offenders. There is a small number of contractors who seek out asbestos loads because they know they can extract a premium price for its removal. Of course they have no intention of paying the legal fee for its safe disposal because they intend to dump it in a public place - and pocket the money.
Detection methods are getting ever sharper and some of these bandits have been hauled into court - and given token penalties. In some cases, the same person is the subject of arrest warrants for failure to appear and answer charges and still playing the same elusive game of dumping asbestos as their way of making a living.
It is time the law got tough and treated this crime for what it is - an act that can deliberately deliver death by manslaughter to innocent people. The agitation of being carried in a truck and the blow as it lands on the road will certainly release any loose fibres to blow away in the wind and these will settle in a wide circle. That act can result in catastrophe for innocent people who can not imagine how they could ever have come into contact with asbestos.
It is high time the penalty reflected the serious nature of the crime.
Sunday 28 May 2017
Training College Disaster !
It is clear to most Australian families that finishing an education with just the Higher School certificate will no longer deliver either a well paying job or any sort of job security. The work force of the present requires higher education and this need will further accelerate as robotics replace manual labour.
University study is one option but this need has been complimented by a large number of training colleges setup to provide qualifications and these have attracted a wide mix of both local students and young people from other countries. These are " for profit " campuses and they receive accreditation under the VET student loan scheme. The cost of the qualifications they provide require this money to be repaid once they reach an agreed earning level.
Unfortunately, the success rate of many of these training colleges is dismal. They fail to meet the promise of their advertising literature and there have been several sudden closures that have left students in limbo - and owing money for courses that will not continue. Australia is in danger of getting an adverse reputation on the world education market.
It seems that there are one hundred and fifty such educational colleges in danger of losing accreditation because of poor course completion rates and aggressive over recruitment methods getting unsuitable students to sign on the dotted line. Such courses had absorbed $ 264 million of taxpayer funding and delivered just 14.7% of student graduation
The latest to crash and burn is Careers Australia and when it suddenly closed its doors it left fifteen thousand students stranded mid course and a thousand qualified career teachers unemployed. This is a case of " voluntary administration " after it declared it lacked sufficient funds to meet its payroll and other expenses. The Education Department said students should try and move to another provider - or seek a refund.
The need for further education has firmly taken root in the minds of young people and their parents. The problem is that most are not qualified to fully understand course implications and can only rely on the literature provided. They take VET accreditation as proof that the college meets government standards. It is also undesirable that many such institutions employ recruiters paid on a commission basis which results in a high intake of unsuitable students.
It is quite clear that the safeguards presently in place are not working. Those seeking accreditation to VET funding need to meet a higher standard and this will only be achieved if the government puts aspiring new college proposals under a sharper microscope. Not only must the financial setup of such institutions meet stricter guidelines, the day to day running needs firmer control to ensure that the courses deliver value for money.
University study is one option but this need has been complimented by a large number of training colleges setup to provide qualifications and these have attracted a wide mix of both local students and young people from other countries. These are " for profit " campuses and they receive accreditation under the VET student loan scheme. The cost of the qualifications they provide require this money to be repaid once they reach an agreed earning level.
Unfortunately, the success rate of many of these training colleges is dismal. They fail to meet the promise of their advertising literature and there have been several sudden closures that have left students in limbo - and owing money for courses that will not continue. Australia is in danger of getting an adverse reputation on the world education market.
It seems that there are one hundred and fifty such educational colleges in danger of losing accreditation because of poor course completion rates and aggressive over recruitment methods getting unsuitable students to sign on the dotted line. Such courses had absorbed $ 264 million of taxpayer funding and delivered just 14.7% of student graduation
The latest to crash and burn is Careers Australia and when it suddenly closed its doors it left fifteen thousand students stranded mid course and a thousand qualified career teachers unemployed. This is a case of " voluntary administration " after it declared it lacked sufficient funds to meet its payroll and other expenses. The Education Department said students should try and move to another provider - or seek a refund.
The need for further education has firmly taken root in the minds of young people and their parents. The problem is that most are not qualified to fully understand course implications and can only rely on the literature provided. They take VET accreditation as proof that the college meets government standards. It is also undesirable that many such institutions employ recruiters paid on a commission basis which results in a high intake of unsuitable students.
It is quite clear that the safeguards presently in place are not working. Those seeking accreditation to VET funding need to meet a higher standard and this will only be achieved if the government puts aspiring new college proposals under a sharper microscope. Not only must the financial setup of such institutions meet stricter guidelines, the day to day running needs firmer control to ensure that the courses deliver value for money.
Saturday 27 May 2017
Unintended Consequences.
For years, the average person was probably unaware that a levy to fund essential services such as the fire brigade and SES was automatically added to all home insurance premiums. They simply paid - either in a lump sum or by monthly instalment and many wondered at the insanity of the vast number of people who failed to insure their greatest capital asset - their home.
Of course there was a very unfair aspect to this way of financing essential services. The fire brigade and SES responded wherever there was a need. There was no question about only putting out fires in insured homes and that change by dropping the insurance levy and tacking essential service costs onto council rates got the nod from most people.
Unfortunately, spreading the load across the wide spectrum of properties has delivered serious disadvantage to those home owners who fall into the category of " Asset rich - cash poor ". Often low income earners who bought their homes decades earlier when they cost a fraction of todays value and are now living on the basic old age pension.
The only reason they didn't insure - was that the insurance premium was out of financial reach. Now they are finding a new charge - often several hundred dollars - added to their council rates, making it unlikely that they will ever be able to pay even a lower insurance premium to insure their home. In fact it will deliver " breaking point " and force some to take the market option decision.
That ensures a very new problem. That valuable home is protected from the pensions means test while they continue to live in it, but the moment it is sold they may find themselves " too rich " for the pension, or with a vastly reduced amount. That is often the very reason old people are stubbornly remaining in homes far too large for their needs and denying these older homes market access to reduce the housing problem.
Another phenomenon makes it unlikely that we will see a huge change in the number of home properties taking up insurance. Decades earlier the cost of the block of land was minimal compared to the bricks and mortar erected upon it. Today, the reverse applies and in fact very often properties change hands to enable what exists to be demolished and replaced with something commensurate with the now elevated value of the area.
If an " average " home is destroyed by fire there is a fair chance that the block of land it sits on will realise the same value as would have been asked for the house and land as a deal. That is not an incentive for many cash poor home owners to bother to insure their properties.
Perhaps the guise of achieving a fair cost distribution for essential services was also intended to force the asset rich to re-think the reason they remain in unsuitable homes. It has certainly delivered " unintended consequences " for many people !
Of course there was a very unfair aspect to this way of financing essential services. The fire brigade and SES responded wherever there was a need. There was no question about only putting out fires in insured homes and that change by dropping the insurance levy and tacking essential service costs onto council rates got the nod from most people.
Unfortunately, spreading the load across the wide spectrum of properties has delivered serious disadvantage to those home owners who fall into the category of " Asset rich - cash poor ". Often low income earners who bought their homes decades earlier when they cost a fraction of todays value and are now living on the basic old age pension.
The only reason they didn't insure - was that the insurance premium was out of financial reach. Now they are finding a new charge - often several hundred dollars - added to their council rates, making it unlikely that they will ever be able to pay even a lower insurance premium to insure their home. In fact it will deliver " breaking point " and force some to take the market option decision.
That ensures a very new problem. That valuable home is protected from the pensions means test while they continue to live in it, but the moment it is sold they may find themselves " too rich " for the pension, or with a vastly reduced amount. That is often the very reason old people are stubbornly remaining in homes far too large for their needs and denying these older homes market access to reduce the housing problem.
Another phenomenon makes it unlikely that we will see a huge change in the number of home properties taking up insurance. Decades earlier the cost of the block of land was minimal compared to the bricks and mortar erected upon it. Today, the reverse applies and in fact very often properties change hands to enable what exists to be demolished and replaced with something commensurate with the now elevated value of the area.
If an " average " home is destroyed by fire there is a fair chance that the block of land it sits on will realise the same value as would have been asked for the house and land as a deal. That is not an incentive for many cash poor home owners to bother to insure their properties.
Perhaps the guise of achieving a fair cost distribution for essential services was also intended to force the asset rich to re-think the reason they remain in unsuitable homes. It has certainly delivered " unintended consequences " for many people !
Friday 26 May 2017
Voodoo Economics !
A very long time ago economic wisdom contended that the taxes we paid to the government provided the essential services that were unlikely to come from any other source. The government owned the electricity generators and the poles and wires that brought electric power to our homes and businesses. But the government was also responsible for roads and bridges, the railway system and a hug range of other services which were in need of repair and replacement.
New economic thinking suggested that if those poles and wires were sold - or leased - the billions generated would allow this backlog to be miraculously eliminated and we would get lower power bills. We now find that the new owners have been to court and those provisions set into the legislation have been set aside. It looks like the average family is abut to get an electricity price hike that will run to several hundred dollars more a year.
Now precisely the same voodoo economics is being suggested for the West Connex motorway. The long suffering motorists of New South Wales have endured ever slower daily commutes and at last the city is building the road system of the future. Widened roads and new tunnels, all paid for by the use of road tolls. The work is underway and all this will be completed a few years into the future.
That same argument that applied to poles and wires is now being suggested for the West Connex. Selling the entire road system to a consortium would free up billions of dollars that would allow even more unrealised dreams to become a reality for residents of this state and city. It seems that there are now movers and shakers advancing plans to sell West Connex in the construction stage and rosy dreams are emerging as to what the money will provide by way of a future utopia.
Of course, what it really means is that the original purpose of road tolls is to be abandoned - forever ! The original concept was to slap a toll on a section of road to provide the money for it to be widened and made capable of absorbing an enhanced traffic flow. When the cost of the work was repaid by the toll, the toll was lifted.
That was exactly the principle applied to the F-6 motorway linking Waterfall and Wollongong. Users remember that side excursion roads were banned, leaving Helensburgh reliant on the old Princes Highway and a one way toll was extracted at the toll gates at the Waterfall end of the motorway. Years later - the cost recovered - the toll plaza was demolished and that charge eliminated.
It is probably wishful thinking to expect the government to ever give up such a wonderful cash cow as road tolls, but at least while they remain under government jurisdiction the threat at the ballot box will keep them moderate. As we have just seen with electricity prices, when control is in the hands of others and the deciding factor is the courts the future is impossible to predict.
That old maxim - " Once bitten -twice shy - comers to mind !
New economic thinking suggested that if those poles and wires were sold - or leased - the billions generated would allow this backlog to be miraculously eliminated and we would get lower power bills. We now find that the new owners have been to court and those provisions set into the legislation have been set aside. It looks like the average family is abut to get an electricity price hike that will run to several hundred dollars more a year.
Now precisely the same voodoo economics is being suggested for the West Connex motorway. The long suffering motorists of New South Wales have endured ever slower daily commutes and at last the city is building the road system of the future. Widened roads and new tunnels, all paid for by the use of road tolls. The work is underway and all this will be completed a few years into the future.
That same argument that applied to poles and wires is now being suggested for the West Connex. Selling the entire road system to a consortium would free up billions of dollars that would allow even more unrealised dreams to become a reality for residents of this state and city. It seems that there are now movers and shakers advancing plans to sell West Connex in the construction stage and rosy dreams are emerging as to what the money will provide by way of a future utopia.
Of course, what it really means is that the original purpose of road tolls is to be abandoned - forever ! The original concept was to slap a toll on a section of road to provide the money for it to be widened and made capable of absorbing an enhanced traffic flow. When the cost of the work was repaid by the toll, the toll was lifted.
That was exactly the principle applied to the F-6 motorway linking Waterfall and Wollongong. Users remember that side excursion roads were banned, leaving Helensburgh reliant on the old Princes Highway and a one way toll was extracted at the toll gates at the Waterfall end of the motorway. Years later - the cost recovered - the toll plaza was demolished and that charge eliminated.
It is probably wishful thinking to expect the government to ever give up such a wonderful cash cow as road tolls, but at least while they remain under government jurisdiction the threat at the ballot box will keep them moderate. As we have just seen with electricity prices, when control is in the hands of others and the deciding factor is the courts the future is impossible to predict.
That old maxim - " Once bitten -twice shy - comers to mind !
Thursday 25 May 2017
Insider Trading !
It is not uncommon for younger age business people keen to adopt a fitness programme to regularly jog during the lunch break. The vice president of one leading bank often jogged with a more junior employee and there was friendly chatter as they peeled off the calories. It seems that this junior employee was using the opportunity to go on a " fishing expedition ". The senior man was involved in highlevel deals financed by the bank and gaining knowledge of how these were progressing opened up profitable stock exchange trading possibilities.
The ever watchful Australian Securities and Investment Commission ( ASIC ) noticed an emerging pattern in this junior employees trades - and began to keep watch, gaining a pattern of the timing of purchases corresponding with the times he was jogging with the bank vice president. He had been careful to keep mention of his stock market forays secret as he pumped for additional information during these exercise sessions.
This younger man had form for insider trading and had served a period in prison much earlier in his career. ASIC confronted him - and did a " deal ".He agreed to give evidence against the bank vice president in exchange for his own freedom from a prison sentence. At that time, the vice president was blissfully unaware that talking " shop " during jogs was snaring him in a devastating encounter with the law.
In a sensational development this week the charge against the vice president was thrown out of court. He was cleared by the local court of procuring or encouraging his jogging buddy to commit insider trading. ASIC was devastated. It seems that the evidence their witness was giving was " critical " to the case and without it the case simply collapsed.
The Magistrate was unimpressed. ASIC was suggesting that the vice president would risk his family and career " for nothing " ? There was no financial benefit whatsoever and it was not an offence to pass inside information to a person unless tipping or procuring was also involved, and clearly neither was involved in this case.
Many people are suspicious of the legality of " deals " where prison is waived in exchange for giving evidence in court against another person. There is a strong incentive to tell a lie. The prosecution is virtually putting words into their mouth and they will receive a reward if they do so in a manner accepted by the court.
Unfortunately, just like other professions the law progresses those who constantly win. Both prosecutors and defence lawyers achieve fame - and keep their jobs - by being successful and they can quickly become indifferent to the actual guilt or innocence of the accused.
In this instance, the magistrate was made aware that such a deal was part of the prosecution case - and decided accordingly. What is completely unacceptable is where such deals are made behind the scenes and kept secret from both judges and juries. It should be part of automatic court procedure for the judge or magistrate to question if any such deal is involved in all cases before the court. If such a deal was not disclosed, that would be automatic reason for any verdict to be set aside.
The ever watchful Australian Securities and Investment Commission ( ASIC ) noticed an emerging pattern in this junior employees trades - and began to keep watch, gaining a pattern of the timing of purchases corresponding with the times he was jogging with the bank vice president. He had been careful to keep mention of his stock market forays secret as he pumped for additional information during these exercise sessions.
This younger man had form for insider trading and had served a period in prison much earlier in his career. ASIC confronted him - and did a " deal ".He agreed to give evidence against the bank vice president in exchange for his own freedom from a prison sentence. At that time, the vice president was blissfully unaware that talking " shop " during jogs was snaring him in a devastating encounter with the law.
In a sensational development this week the charge against the vice president was thrown out of court. He was cleared by the local court of procuring or encouraging his jogging buddy to commit insider trading. ASIC was devastated. It seems that the evidence their witness was giving was " critical " to the case and without it the case simply collapsed.
The Magistrate was unimpressed. ASIC was suggesting that the vice president would risk his family and career " for nothing " ? There was no financial benefit whatsoever and it was not an offence to pass inside information to a person unless tipping or procuring was also involved, and clearly neither was involved in this case.
Many people are suspicious of the legality of " deals " where prison is waived in exchange for giving evidence in court against another person. There is a strong incentive to tell a lie. The prosecution is virtually putting words into their mouth and they will receive a reward if they do so in a manner accepted by the court.
Unfortunately, just like other professions the law progresses those who constantly win. Both prosecutors and defence lawyers achieve fame - and keep their jobs - by being successful and they can quickly become indifferent to the actual guilt or innocence of the accused.
In this instance, the magistrate was made aware that such a deal was part of the prosecution case - and decided accordingly. What is completely unacceptable is where such deals are made behind the scenes and kept secret from both judges and juries. It should be part of automatic court procedure for the judge or magistrate to question if any such deal is involved in all cases before the court. If such a deal was not disclosed, that would be automatic reason for any verdict to be set aside.
Wednesday 24 May 2017
The Coming Inundation !
There is a strange complacency about rising sea levels. Science has been telling us for quite some time that the great ice sheets in Greenland are melting and we know that sea ice has retreated in the arctic but all the talk has been on what will happen by two thousand one hundred ! It was predicted that by that time the world sea level will have risen by about one metre.
Eighty-three years from now - most of the people on planet Earth at present will be dead ! Perhaps that is why the inundation of where we live is being treated with a shrug of the shoulders. We think of it as someone else's problem !
The warnings are becoming more obvious. The US Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA ) suggests the ice melt has speeded up and the sea rise by 2100 will more likely be by 2.7 metres. By that time, the airports at Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane will be underwater and the inner cities will be reduced to a number of islands.
Few seem to remember an event that happened here a couple of years ago. An intense low formed off the New South Wales coast and this combined with a " King tide " to send giant waves crashing onto our beaches. Sand was washed away and sea walls eroded. Beachside homes and high rise apartments had their foundations washed away. They were in danger of collapse and residents were compulsorily evacuated.
Eighty-three years from now - most of the people on planet Earth at present will be dead ! Perhaps that is why the inundation of where we live is being treated with a shrug of the shoulders. We think of it as someone else's problem !
The warnings are becoming more obvious. The US Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA ) suggests the ice melt has speeded up and the sea rise by 2100 will more likely be by 2.7 metres. By that time, the airports at Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane will be underwater and the inner cities will be reduced to a number of islands.
Few seem to remember an event that happened here a couple of years ago. An intense low formed off the New South Wales coast and this combined with a " King tide " to send giant waves crashing onto our beaches. Sand was washed away and sea walls eroded. Beachside homes and high rise apartments had their foundations washed away. They were in danger of collapse and residents were compulsorily evacuated.
From there it was sheer bedlam. Some councils rushed to dumpy rocks and concrete to create protective sea walls. Other councils began to prosecute residents who used their own resources to achieve that result. The insurance industry was in turmoil. Various forms of legislation threatened but other interests claimed the headlines and the rising seas issue remained unresolved.
The latest studies indicate that a two metre rise by 2100 would be a " conservative outcome ". We have just had a summer that repeatedly broke long established heat records and that should serve as a warning. A lot of low laying parts of the city will eventually have to be abandoned. We would be wise to stake out the high ground where our population will be safe from encroaching seas.
Perhaps the saddest irony of the present housing price boom is the impossible mortgage many young couples are committing to in the hope of achieving home security. So many of our suburbs give the impression of being secure, and yet long before the witching hour of 2100 an extreme weather event is likely to send the oceans surging inland - and replace myth with reality.
We are ignoring a very clear warning of what the future holds. Reality could be as close as the arrival of the next super storm.
Tuesday 23 May 2017
When Love Turns Sour !
Injury, disfigurement and even death are a common result when relationships fall apart and one party claims " ownership " ! The long suffering police get called to what their log books describe as " domestic incidents " where they often need to physically separate brawling couples. If an AVO is in place that is supposed to keep the peace, but in the vast majority of cases they are ignored by the aggressor.
In recent times, a new method of delivering revenge and humiliation by the rejected lover is to deliberately circulate nude photographs of intimate moments on social media. These scandalous portrayals - for all the world to see - damage the social standing of the victim and do great social harm. In many cases, they can ruin careers.
Advances in technology have provided an easy opportunity to do such damage. The invention of the digital camera did away with the need for film processing and many lovers record their intimacy for their own enjoyment. Social media such as Facebook accepts input from the public and the ever widening Internet provides almost unlimited opportunity for salacious material to get an airing.
Sadly, even the most chaste relationship is not immune to such damage. A victims face can be plucked from an innocent social media photographic appearance and transferred onto the body of a complete stranger adopting a pornographic pose. Clever apps allow this to be managed by those with minimum technical skills.
The New South Wales Attorney General has finally acted with legislation to make this illegal. A bill passing through parliament will make it an offence if those recording or distributing an image are aware of - or reckless to the possibility - that the subject of the image has not consented. The law will also criminalize threatening to record or distribute an image and carry a penalty of up to three years prison.
An intimate image is defined as a photo or a video of a persons private parts or a person engaged in a private act that a reasonable person would expect to be private. This would include manipulation of photos taken in social media and doctored to appear as pornographic material. Displaying would go beyond appearance in social media. Pasting such matter in a public place would constitute such an offence.
Like the credence given to AVO'S this will probably initially be ignored, but the publicity when the first offenders are given a prison sentence will deliver clarity. There is also the expectation that what the New South Wales government has seen fit to legislate will be emulated in the Federal parliament. It deserves Australia wide application !
In recent times, a new method of delivering revenge and humiliation by the rejected lover is to deliberately circulate nude photographs of intimate moments on social media. These scandalous portrayals - for all the world to see - damage the social standing of the victim and do great social harm. In many cases, they can ruin careers.
Advances in technology have provided an easy opportunity to do such damage. The invention of the digital camera did away with the need for film processing and many lovers record their intimacy for their own enjoyment. Social media such as Facebook accepts input from the public and the ever widening Internet provides almost unlimited opportunity for salacious material to get an airing.
Sadly, even the most chaste relationship is not immune to such damage. A victims face can be plucked from an innocent social media photographic appearance and transferred onto the body of a complete stranger adopting a pornographic pose. Clever apps allow this to be managed by those with minimum technical skills.
The New South Wales Attorney General has finally acted with legislation to make this illegal. A bill passing through parliament will make it an offence if those recording or distributing an image are aware of - or reckless to the possibility - that the subject of the image has not consented. The law will also criminalize threatening to record or distribute an image and carry a penalty of up to three years prison.
An intimate image is defined as a photo or a video of a persons private parts or a person engaged in a private act that a reasonable person would expect to be private. This would include manipulation of photos taken in social media and doctored to appear as pornographic material. Displaying would go beyond appearance in social media. Pasting such matter in a public place would constitute such an offence.
Like the credence given to AVO'S this will probably initially be ignored, but the publicity when the first offenders are given a prison sentence will deliver clarity. There is also the expectation that what the New South Wales government has seen fit to legislate will be emulated in the Federal parliament. It deserves Australia wide application !
Monday 22 May 2017
A Clear Warning !
A lot of people in Australia have fallen victim to a clever scam that netted a mystery man several million dollars - and so far nobody can describe him because nobody ever met with him face to face. It all started when a Brisbane man replied to an online advertisement seeking solar panel sales people. All the communications were by email and he was asked to provide a scan of his drivers license, but it seems he was unsuccessful and heard no more about the proposed job.
Days later, the Australian Securities and Investment Commission was advised of a change of directors for an existing firm and it seems that this incoming sole director was that man who had applied for the job - and his scanned drivers license was given as proof of authenticity.
Things moved very fast from that point. This company began offering high quality European produced solar panels for $ 15,999, seriously undercutting the normal going rate of $25,000 and at the same time advertising for sales personnel. The sales people were offered commission only contracts and began to service the wealth of customers replying to this phenomenal sales offer - and quickly began to rack up full order books.
Many were experienced solar sales staff drawn from other legitimate solar companies impressed by the quality advertising appearing on Facebook, Gumtree and in regional newspapers. The very best discount price was offering for those who paid the bill up front.
Of course this was a very short term scam. The sales people were eagerly awaiting their commission cheques and their customers were expecting the installations to commence and advertising bills were going unpaid. Suddenly tracking numbers were leading nowhere, the company bank account was empty - the contents having been transferred overseas. A liquidator was appointed to wind up the company.
Days later, the Australian Securities and Investment Commission was advised of a change of directors for an existing firm and it seems that this incoming sole director was that man who had applied for the job - and his scanned drivers license was given as proof of authenticity.
Things moved very fast from that point. This company began offering high quality European produced solar panels for $ 15,999, seriously undercutting the normal going rate of $25,000 and at the same time advertising for sales personnel. The sales people were offered commission only contracts and began to service the wealth of customers replying to this phenomenal sales offer - and quickly began to rack up full order books.
Many were experienced solar sales staff drawn from other legitimate solar companies impressed by the quality advertising appearing on Facebook, Gumtree and in regional newspapers. The very best discount price was offering for those who paid the bill up front.
Of course this was a very short term scam. The sales people were eagerly awaiting their commission cheques and their customers were expecting the installations to commence and advertising bills were going unpaid. Suddenly tracking numbers were leading nowhere, the company bank account was empty - the contents having been transferred overseas. A liquidator was appointed to wind up the company.
People began to realise they had been scammed and their money was gone - forever. There never had been any solar panels. It was all an illusion, but it had been cleverly put together by someone who had run the entire operation just sitting as his or her computer.
That " sole director " had some embarrassing attention from both ASIC and the police, but a request to provide a photo drivers license as an identity check is a very normal part of most job applications, particularly so when the process is being conducted online.
The one clear warning was the pressure to pay up front. That should be a flashing red light in any - and all - business offers. No matter how good the deal sounds, it is illogical business practice because all the risk is borne by the buyer. Good business practice progressively pays as the service reaches completion.
The scammed may get some satisfaction if the scammer has not completely covered his or her tracks and the investigation gets a conviction, but recovery of the money seems a forlorn hope. Better to write off the loss in the name of " experience learned " !
Sunday 21 May 2017
Left Holding the Bag !
The Plutus Payroll scam at least delivers a clear warning of how easily ordinary people can get sucked into a criminal enterprise and suddenly find themselves confronted by both the police and the media world. Brittney was an eighteen year old teenager, pregnant with her first child when an acquaintance asked for her help to solve a problem. She was asked to start a company in her name because a wealthy businessman was about to go through a messy divorce and he wanted to hide money from a vengeful wife. She was promised a five hundred dollar reward each month for her assistance and she opened several bank accounts in her name as part of the deal.
Brittney had absolutely no business experience and she had to chase her sponsor for those monthly payments. When she bothered to check bank statements she noticed a balance of five hundred thousand in one and two hundred thousand in another. Eventually, she started getting phone calls from the Australian Securities and Investment Commission, She started to realise that she was deeply into something she didn't understand - and she wanted " out " !
When her sponsor was unhelpful she went on a $ 20,000 shopping spree. That had the desired effect but too little and too late. The company was forcibly wound up and she was dragged before a court and publicly examined. She - and many others - had been duped into becoming the " front " people for a vast criminal enterprise and now those people had melted away and left these " straw " people holding an empty bag !
It sounds exciting to be asked to become a " director " of a company and sit on the board, but with that title comes responsibilities. The law is very clear on what constitutes a business offence and " trading when insolvent " is a crime. A director needs to know precisely how that company is performing and whether other employees working under his or her direction are complying with the law.
There is an element of risk in undertaking an executive position in any organization, even if it is of a charitable nature. The law requires such an office holder to be diligent - and honest. If an offer seems too good to be true - then it probably is just that ! And needs to be avoided !
What happens to Brittney will be decided by a court but the experience will not sit well on her business resume and it is likely that she will incur at least some legal fees if she engages a lawyer for her defence. It will not have been a happy experience !
Brittney had absolutely no business experience and she had to chase her sponsor for those monthly payments. When she bothered to check bank statements she noticed a balance of five hundred thousand in one and two hundred thousand in another. Eventually, she started getting phone calls from the Australian Securities and Investment Commission, She started to realise that she was deeply into something she didn't understand - and she wanted " out " !
When her sponsor was unhelpful she went on a $ 20,000 shopping spree. That had the desired effect but too little and too late. The company was forcibly wound up and she was dragged before a court and publicly examined. She - and many others - had been duped into becoming the " front " people for a vast criminal enterprise and now those people had melted away and left these " straw " people holding an empty bag !
It sounds exciting to be asked to become a " director " of a company and sit on the board, but with that title comes responsibilities. The law is very clear on what constitutes a business offence and " trading when insolvent " is a crime. A director needs to know precisely how that company is performing and whether other employees working under his or her direction are complying with the law.
There is an element of risk in undertaking an executive position in any organization, even if it is of a charitable nature. The law requires such an office holder to be diligent - and honest. If an offer seems too good to be true - then it probably is just that ! And needs to be avoided !
What happens to Brittney will be decided by a court but the experience will not sit well on her business resume and it is likely that she will incur at least some legal fees if she engages a lawyer for her defence. It will not have been a happy experience !
Saturday 20 May 2017
Thinking Big !
The revelation that a group of young people from the big end of town successfully netted a sting on the tax office that delivered them a hundred and sixty five million dollars will draw admiration in criminal circles. Of course it helped that family relationships allowed them to garner information not available to the general public and vital to putting this scheme together.
They setup a payroll company that offered services to Australian companies with either low or no charges. This company would manage the payroll, sort out the tax payments, Medicare levy, Superannuation and other deductions, and compile the resulting pay envelope to be handed to each employee.
Once this was up and running they put together a shadowy subsidiary with the recruitment of " straw " directors drawn from welfare recipients and drug addicts. In that instance, the tax money that should have gone to the tax office went into the pockets of the scammers.
Thy were not discreet with their loot. When the sting came undone and the police raided twenty-nine properties and arrested nine conspirators they uncovered a virtual Aladdin's cave of treasure. It contained high end sports cars, boats and even airplanes, fashionable motor bikes and other " boy's toys " and individual excesses such as Rolex watches and wine collections of rare vintage.
This was a truly audacious scam that has left a high tax official with deep embarrassment. Details about the inner workings of the tax office allowed his son to be the master mind devising this very successful criminal foray. It seems certain the police will need the help of their scientific branch to fully investigate the depth of the penetration.
The nine people arrested for this crime spent a few brief moments before a magistrate and were then granted bail. No doubt they will resume their extravagant social life during the many months the prosecution will take to complete the investigation and put together the case to be presented in court. They may be required to report to police on a regular basis and have their passports confiscated, but many people will note a vast dissimilarity in the way we treat criminals.
If a teenage Aboriginal youth is caught down a city lane, siphoning petrol out of cars with a length of tubing, he will most likely languish on remand until the courts are ready to hear his case. But if the accused is a politician - or from the big end of town - he or she will usually be represented by a high end lawyer and be granted almost unlimited freedom.
It seems we bestow a degree of admiration for the clever people who " think big " and devise non violent crime. It seems to be rewarded with the absolute minimum time and inconvenience in a police cell !
They setup a payroll company that offered services to Australian companies with either low or no charges. This company would manage the payroll, sort out the tax payments, Medicare levy, Superannuation and other deductions, and compile the resulting pay envelope to be handed to each employee.
Once this was up and running they put together a shadowy subsidiary with the recruitment of " straw " directors drawn from welfare recipients and drug addicts. In that instance, the tax money that should have gone to the tax office went into the pockets of the scammers.
Thy were not discreet with their loot. When the sting came undone and the police raided twenty-nine properties and arrested nine conspirators they uncovered a virtual Aladdin's cave of treasure. It contained high end sports cars, boats and even airplanes, fashionable motor bikes and other " boy's toys " and individual excesses such as Rolex watches and wine collections of rare vintage.
This was a truly audacious scam that has left a high tax official with deep embarrassment. Details about the inner workings of the tax office allowed his son to be the master mind devising this very successful criminal foray. It seems certain the police will need the help of their scientific branch to fully investigate the depth of the penetration.
The nine people arrested for this crime spent a few brief moments before a magistrate and were then granted bail. No doubt they will resume their extravagant social life during the many months the prosecution will take to complete the investigation and put together the case to be presented in court. They may be required to report to police on a regular basis and have their passports confiscated, but many people will note a vast dissimilarity in the way we treat criminals.
If a teenage Aboriginal youth is caught down a city lane, siphoning petrol out of cars with a length of tubing, he will most likely languish on remand until the courts are ready to hear his case. But if the accused is a politician - or from the big end of town - he or she will usually be represented by a high end lawyer and be granted almost unlimited freedom.
It seems we bestow a degree of admiration for the clever people who " think big " and devise non violent crime. It seems to be rewarded with the absolute minimum time and inconvenience in a police cell !
Friday 19 May 2017
The " Health " Conundrum !
This week, three separate stories about problems in how " health " is delivered in this country must disappoint many people. Either we opt to have health insurance and with that the choice of both hospital and attending doctor, or we rely on the public health system and its long waiting times.
Health insurance premiums have been steadily rising much faster than inflation and the health insurance industry has been telling us that a price increase is essential because of rising medical costs. At a time when wage levels are stagnant - or even dropping - some families have reluctantly dropped that cover while others have made sacrifices to find the extra money. We now learn that the health insurance industry is reporting to its shareholders record profits. In the one breath they are crying poor when it suits them, and then announcing to the stock exchange trading profits in excess of $ 1.3 billion. It is unlikely their next appeal for a premium increase will be so readily approved.
The people of Bega must be aghast at the report into their local hospital. The decrepit old building that had served the district for generations was replaced with a spanking new hospital and most of its wards remain unopened, because the health authorities have not got around to hiring doctors and nurses to run the place. The existing facilities being used are filling with cobwebs because tenders have not been let for cleaning contracts , staff morale is at rock bottom and plagued with high staff turnover and waiting times have blown out far longer than existed in the old, overworked facilities. The problem seems to be bureaucratic in-fighting. The people being paid to make decisions and implement an efficient health system are more interested in point scoring and politics. The people of Bega are not getting the health system they deserve.
We also learned of the sad diagnosis that is regularly occurring with those who have the misfortune to contract an unusual disease which falls outside of public benefit guidelines. A Mum being checked for a persistent cough found that she was suffering from lung cancer, but while lung cancer is responsible for nineteen percent of deaths in Australia the variety affecting her lungs was restricted to very few people. She was a lifelong non smoker.
The good news was that a new drug - Crizotinib - offered hope of a cure, but it was not included in the PBS - and it cost $ 7,000 a month. It was an agonising decision, but she decided that she would not inflict a life shattering debt on her husband and three daughters. They were just an " ordinary " family and while some new drugs were capable of delivering " miracles " access was really restricted to those who belonged to a very wealthy class of people.
That is a decision facing a surprising number of people these days. Obviously the public purse must have limitations and for many even a decision to opt for a cure would be impossible because of credit limitations. In this instance, there was a happy ending. Publicity caused the charity " Rare Cancers Australia " to intervene and raise the money, and sixteen months after treatment this woman has returned to work and has regained her health.
It seems that the health labyrinth is still filled with obstacles and that we need a great deal of luck to avoid catastrophe.
Health insurance premiums have been steadily rising much faster than inflation and the health insurance industry has been telling us that a price increase is essential because of rising medical costs. At a time when wage levels are stagnant - or even dropping - some families have reluctantly dropped that cover while others have made sacrifices to find the extra money. We now learn that the health insurance industry is reporting to its shareholders record profits. In the one breath they are crying poor when it suits them, and then announcing to the stock exchange trading profits in excess of $ 1.3 billion. It is unlikely their next appeal for a premium increase will be so readily approved.
The people of Bega must be aghast at the report into their local hospital. The decrepit old building that had served the district for generations was replaced with a spanking new hospital and most of its wards remain unopened, because the health authorities have not got around to hiring doctors and nurses to run the place. The existing facilities being used are filling with cobwebs because tenders have not been let for cleaning contracts , staff morale is at rock bottom and plagued with high staff turnover and waiting times have blown out far longer than existed in the old, overworked facilities. The problem seems to be bureaucratic in-fighting. The people being paid to make decisions and implement an efficient health system are more interested in point scoring and politics. The people of Bega are not getting the health system they deserve.
We also learned of the sad diagnosis that is regularly occurring with those who have the misfortune to contract an unusual disease which falls outside of public benefit guidelines. A Mum being checked for a persistent cough found that she was suffering from lung cancer, but while lung cancer is responsible for nineteen percent of deaths in Australia the variety affecting her lungs was restricted to very few people. She was a lifelong non smoker.
The good news was that a new drug - Crizotinib - offered hope of a cure, but it was not included in the PBS - and it cost $ 7,000 a month. It was an agonising decision, but she decided that she would not inflict a life shattering debt on her husband and three daughters. They were just an " ordinary " family and while some new drugs were capable of delivering " miracles " access was really restricted to those who belonged to a very wealthy class of people.
That is a decision facing a surprising number of people these days. Obviously the public purse must have limitations and for many even a decision to opt for a cure would be impossible because of credit limitations. In this instance, there was a happy ending. Publicity caused the charity " Rare Cancers Australia " to intervene and raise the money, and sixteen months after treatment this woman has returned to work and has regained her health.
It seems that the health labyrinth is still filled with obstacles and that we need a great deal of luck to avoid catastrophe.
Thursday 18 May 2017
Doomsday !
When Stephen Hawking has something to say, the world listens. He is probably the world's foremost theoretical physicist who has been driven to live his life in a wheelchair by a crippling disease. He is so respected in the world of science that his predictions for the future must be taken seriously.
Stephen Hawking has warned that life as we know it on planet Earth may be impossible just a hundred years from now. By then, global warming will render Earth uninhabitable. He suggests that we had better get a move on in establishing a new home somewhere else far overhead.
We have already set foot on the Moon and there are plans for a mission to Mars in the foreseeable future, but so far our ability to seriously establish even a small colony in space remains in the realm of science fiction. Even the closest planets thought to have both an atmosphere and water are beyond the present life span of humans, even if we somehow managed to travel at the speed of light.
The last few years have been presenting an unmistakeable message about how our world is changing. The glaciers are retreating and it seems inevitable that the Arctic will be ice free in summer before we reach the middle of this century. Year after year temperature records are broken and there is every expectation that the rise in sea levels will accelerate. Storm intensity increases and tropical diseases invade cooler climes. Deserts are increasing in size and the food that sustains us is subject to change as rainfall patterns shift.
Our number are ever increasing and famine now stalks many lands. War and famine are sending refugees to seek survival across national borders and we are seeing rejection growing in the developed countries of the world. The population of planet Earth is well past seven billion people and shows no sign of slowing down. Here in Australia we have passed the twenty-four million mark and migrants flood in at the rate of about a third of a million each year. We are fast reaching an over populated Earth.
What is exacerbating this situation is what we see when we watch the television news. In so many countries from which this refugee flood is emanating each woman seems to be accompanied by many children. This procreation continues - at the rate of a baby each passing year - even when food is insufficient for the present numbers to survive. There seems no end to the capacity being produced because contraception is entirely lacking - or is banned by religion.
It seems that education - and contraception - go hand in hand. These same religions which refuse contraception on religious grounds see their educated followers reduce child numbers in developed countries. Part of the reason is that child mortality in the undeveloped world is so high that greater numbers are required to ensure at least some survive to later care for aged parents.
Unfortunately, religion holds the strongest sway in the minds of the uneducated and with education comes the reasoning that it is only sensible to produce children the parents can feed, educate and prepare for their place in the world. Each of the religions that shun contraception seem to thrive where the custom and lifestyle present do the most harm.
We could save planet Earth - if we could control our numbers. Unfortunately, it is the very same religions that we look to for salvation that preach unbending dogma that defies common sense. Unfortunately, it seems that Stephen Hawking's warning will fall on deaf ears. Doomsday may be closer than we think !
Stephen Hawking has warned that life as we know it on planet Earth may be impossible just a hundred years from now. By then, global warming will render Earth uninhabitable. He suggests that we had better get a move on in establishing a new home somewhere else far overhead.
We have already set foot on the Moon and there are plans for a mission to Mars in the foreseeable future, but so far our ability to seriously establish even a small colony in space remains in the realm of science fiction. Even the closest planets thought to have both an atmosphere and water are beyond the present life span of humans, even if we somehow managed to travel at the speed of light.
The last few years have been presenting an unmistakeable message about how our world is changing. The glaciers are retreating and it seems inevitable that the Arctic will be ice free in summer before we reach the middle of this century. Year after year temperature records are broken and there is every expectation that the rise in sea levels will accelerate. Storm intensity increases and tropical diseases invade cooler climes. Deserts are increasing in size and the food that sustains us is subject to change as rainfall patterns shift.
Our number are ever increasing and famine now stalks many lands. War and famine are sending refugees to seek survival across national borders and we are seeing rejection growing in the developed countries of the world. The population of planet Earth is well past seven billion people and shows no sign of slowing down. Here in Australia we have passed the twenty-four million mark and migrants flood in at the rate of about a third of a million each year. We are fast reaching an over populated Earth.
What is exacerbating this situation is what we see when we watch the television news. In so many countries from which this refugee flood is emanating each woman seems to be accompanied by many children. This procreation continues - at the rate of a baby each passing year - even when food is insufficient for the present numbers to survive. There seems no end to the capacity being produced because contraception is entirely lacking - or is banned by religion.
It seems that education - and contraception - go hand in hand. These same religions which refuse contraception on religious grounds see their educated followers reduce child numbers in developed countries. Part of the reason is that child mortality in the undeveloped world is so high that greater numbers are required to ensure at least some survive to later care for aged parents.
Unfortunately, religion holds the strongest sway in the minds of the uneducated and with education comes the reasoning that it is only sensible to produce children the parents can feed, educate and prepare for their place in the world. Each of the religions that shun contraception seem to thrive where the custom and lifestyle present do the most harm.
We could save planet Earth - if we could control our numbers. Unfortunately, it is the very same religions that we look to for salvation that preach unbending dogma that defies common sense. Unfortunately, it seems that Stephen Hawking's warning will fall on deaf ears. Doomsday may be closer than we think !
Wednesday 17 May 2017
The " Right to Die " !
" Euthanasia " is an emotive word which stirs strong feelings " for " and " against " in most people. In most of the first half of the last century it was actually a criminal offence to try and end your own life. The law regarded a suicide attempt as a case of " Murder by self " and those that botched it and survived were often put before a magistrate - and punished !
Quite a few countries now have relaxed laws that allow the terminally ill to get medical assistance to end their own lives. That is not even being considered here as a national Australian policy, but the citizens of New South Wales will see their state parliament debate the matter with the view of having a law change to make that possible.
So the decision will come down to getting a bunch of politicians to have the right to impose a painful death on those suffering a terminal disease - or allow that persons plea for mercy to be granted ! You can be assured that each individual politician will make that decision with one eye on the view of his or her political party and the other on the likely reaction of the voting public. The pressure to swing the vote either way will be vociferous.
Leading the charge against will be the mighty Roman Catholic Church. They will try and impose their " Make them suffer until their last breath " outlook with the manta that " Hospices deliver a painless death ". They certainly " ease " pain, but so many diseases are so configured that they always deliver a diabolical death.
Already the proposed legislation is gaining so many likely provisos that applicants will be required to jump through hoops. The under twenty-five age group will be excluded - because some health authorities have decided that the human brain does not reach maturity until that age. No doubt wise consent will be required from not only the patients general practitioner, but also from doctors who specialise in the that particular illness, probably aided by either a psychologist or a psychiatrist. The approval process will be mind numbing.
And so will the people with the right to halt a merciful death. Naturally, the applicant will have the right to withdraw at any time, and a mandatory cooling off period is reasonable, but it seems that relatives may step in appeal to the Supreme Court.
Haven't we learned anything from the donated organs fiasco ? People who have willingly signed all the necessary consents for the donation of their body organs die - and then just when the surgeons are ready to commence remote, religious old Aunt Aggie comes forward and objects to the removal of organs. That stops it in its tracks - and perfectly good, life saving body parts go into the ground or up the chimney !
This proposed legislation is restricted to those terminally ill and expected to be within twelve months of death. It will not be available to those with the ravages of age who suffer the discomforts that brings - and simply wish to terminate of their own free will.
It is likely that this debate will be open ended and will fail to come to a decisive vote because many politicians will avoid declaring their position. Unfortunately, many people heading towards an excruciating death will have their last moments exposed to the public gaze as this subject gains media attention.
There is not an expectation that this will come to a speedy conclusion !
Quite a few countries now have relaxed laws that allow the terminally ill to get medical assistance to end their own lives. That is not even being considered here as a national Australian policy, but the citizens of New South Wales will see their state parliament debate the matter with the view of having a law change to make that possible.
So the decision will come down to getting a bunch of politicians to have the right to impose a painful death on those suffering a terminal disease - or allow that persons plea for mercy to be granted ! You can be assured that each individual politician will make that decision with one eye on the view of his or her political party and the other on the likely reaction of the voting public. The pressure to swing the vote either way will be vociferous.
Leading the charge against will be the mighty Roman Catholic Church. They will try and impose their " Make them suffer until their last breath " outlook with the manta that " Hospices deliver a painless death ". They certainly " ease " pain, but so many diseases are so configured that they always deliver a diabolical death.
Already the proposed legislation is gaining so many likely provisos that applicants will be required to jump through hoops. The under twenty-five age group will be excluded - because some health authorities have decided that the human brain does not reach maturity until that age. No doubt wise consent will be required from not only the patients general practitioner, but also from doctors who specialise in the that particular illness, probably aided by either a psychologist or a psychiatrist. The approval process will be mind numbing.
And so will the people with the right to halt a merciful death. Naturally, the applicant will have the right to withdraw at any time, and a mandatory cooling off period is reasonable, but it seems that relatives may step in appeal to the Supreme Court.
Haven't we learned anything from the donated organs fiasco ? People who have willingly signed all the necessary consents for the donation of their body organs die - and then just when the surgeons are ready to commence remote, religious old Aunt Aggie comes forward and objects to the removal of organs. That stops it in its tracks - and perfectly good, life saving body parts go into the ground or up the chimney !
This proposed legislation is restricted to those terminally ill and expected to be within twelve months of death. It will not be available to those with the ravages of age who suffer the discomforts that brings - and simply wish to terminate of their own free will.
It is likely that this debate will be open ended and will fail to come to a decisive vote because many politicians will avoid declaring their position. Unfortunately, many people heading towards an excruciating death will have their last moments exposed to the public gaze as this subject gains media attention.
There is not an expectation that this will come to a speedy conclusion !
Tuesday 16 May 2017
Nauru Horror !
The situation in Nauru is fast becoming an embarrassment to many Australians. We have " boat people " who had the misfortune to believe people smuggler's lies and commenced their journey to Australia under the threat of never being allowed to set foot on Australian soil. Their fate then became a political football.
These bewildered newcomers were packed off to what are really detention camps on Nauru and a similar facility in New Guinea. They are mostly housed under canvas and they are not well received by the local native population. In recent times they have been granted a small degree of freedom. They are no longer restricted to live behind barbed wire barriers.
This has gone on unchallenged for years. We have a Federal opposition salivating at the hope that the government will lose its nerve and break what they consider a " sacred promise " and repatriate them here. The government knows that any sort of backflip would open the flood gates and have the people smugglers resume their despicable trade.
We tried to settle a few of them in Cambodia, but that was a costly failure. Then we had a mutual swap arrangement in the bag with the Americans - until Donald Trump won office and that whole deal began to look uncertain. It seems to be back on the table, but time marches steadily by and those refugees are still awaiting their fate on Nauru.
Everybody with the power to make decisions on Nauru seems afraid of " rocking the boat " ! We have refugees there with deteriorating health who can not - and will not - get the medical treatment they need because it is simply not available on that remote island.
We have men suffering a condition known as " fistula ". It is a breakdown in which the sufferer is subjected to permanent faecal incontinence. What an unmanageable condition when one hundred and twenty men are sharing bathrooms and showers and living communally.
These bewildered newcomers were packed off to what are really detention camps on Nauru and a similar facility in New Guinea. They are mostly housed under canvas and they are not well received by the local native population. In recent times they have been granted a small degree of freedom. They are no longer restricted to live behind barbed wire barriers.
This has gone on unchallenged for years. We have a Federal opposition salivating at the hope that the government will lose its nerve and break what they consider a " sacred promise " and repatriate them here. The government knows that any sort of backflip would open the flood gates and have the people smugglers resume their despicable trade.
We tried to settle a few of them in Cambodia, but that was a costly failure. Then we had a mutual swap arrangement in the bag with the Americans - until Donald Trump won office and that whole deal began to look uncertain. It seems to be back on the table, but time marches steadily by and those refugees are still awaiting their fate on Nauru.
Everybody with the power to make decisions on Nauru seems afraid of " rocking the boat " ! We have refugees there with deteriorating health who can not - and will not - get the medical treatment they need because it is simply not available on that remote island.
We have men suffering a condition known as " fistula ". It is a breakdown in which the sufferer is subjected to permanent faecal incontinence. What an unmanageable condition when one hundred and twenty men are sharing bathrooms and showers and living communally.
The medical operation to cure fistula is tricky, even in the best equipped hospital and the surgeons with those skills are not available in Nauru. It seems that permission to bring the patients to Australia are being constantly denied and an order of silence is imposed on those who would dare speak out.
If a prisoner with fistula was left untreated in Long Bay prison we would have a riot and the civil rights people would be baying like angry wolves. It is totally unreasonable that we choose to ignore human beings who have the misfortune to find themselves in the cross hairs of a political gun fight !
They must be flown to Australia urgently - and get the treatment they need. - and when they have recovered they should be returned to Nauru. That is an entirely different problem of the one where medical care is being withheld on a political issue !
If a prisoner with fistula was left untreated in Long Bay prison we would have a riot and the civil rights people would be baying like angry wolves. It is totally unreasonable that we choose to ignore human beings who have the misfortune to find themselves in the cross hairs of a political gun fight !
They must be flown to Australia urgently - and get the treatment they need. - and when they have recovered they should be returned to Nauru. That is an entirely different problem of the one where medical care is being withheld on a political issue !
Monday 15 May 2017
A " Free " Country !
We pride ourselves on the " freedom " we enjoy in Australia and one of those cherished freedoms is the right to say what we like. But there are limits. If we spread outright lies about anther person they can sue and claim damages for libel and slander - and that means what we say may have consequences.
In July an American white supremacist is planning to visit this country. His name is Mike Enoch and he writes a blog titled " The Right Stuff " in which he is virulently anti-Semite. This blog and podcast has a regular audience of over a hundred thousand people. He visited Australia last year and was feted on a harbour cruise by a local white supremacist outfit which goes by the title of the " Dingoes " .
The reason for the visit is to promote a white supremacist event to be known as " DingoCon " and the price of entry tickets has been set at $ 88. 88 is the code for the letters HH - which are the eighth letters of the alphabet and refer to the initials for " Heil Hitler ". It seems that DingoCon has neo-Nazi tendencies and celebrates the Holocaust !
The question that will be debated by many people here is whether Australia should grant an entry visa to a person who intends to bring together like minded people to form a hate group against anyone who has skin of a different colour. There is no doubt that the Australian media will cover DingoCon and quote its revelations and this may be deeply troubling to migrants who have escaped persecution over race in their former homelands.
In the earlier part of the twentieth century the bulk of our migrants were from Britain and Europe and consequently white. The end of the Vietnam war saw an influx of Asians and more recently the main migrant flow has been from the Middle East ad Africa. We have devolved into a multicultural nation and anything that promotes division is to be avoided.
Perhaps there is a lesson to be learned from the religious war that is raging in the Middle East - and which has brought death by terrorist acts to our shores. Recruiters for that war spread disharmony here with their messages of religious intolerance. Now it is a crime to leave Australia to fight in that foreign war - on either side - or to raise money here to aid the fighting.
There seems no doubt that Mike Enoch is a gifted speaker and no doubt his eloquence at DingoCon will attract some new supporters to his cause. We probably have a wide scattering of individuals which resent any skin colour that is not white, but allowing them to form into a cohesive group that will gain strength from sheer volume is surely not a good idea.
We certainly would not let a spokesperson for Islamic State come to this country to address a rally seeking support for a movement forcing religious conversion and enslavement on all others. Why would we allow in a speaker openly seeking the type of division that can only lead to conflict between the races ?
" Freedom " is a double edged sword !
In July an American white supremacist is planning to visit this country. His name is Mike Enoch and he writes a blog titled " The Right Stuff " in which he is virulently anti-Semite. This blog and podcast has a regular audience of over a hundred thousand people. He visited Australia last year and was feted on a harbour cruise by a local white supremacist outfit which goes by the title of the " Dingoes " .
The reason for the visit is to promote a white supremacist event to be known as " DingoCon " and the price of entry tickets has been set at $ 88. 88 is the code for the letters HH - which are the eighth letters of the alphabet and refer to the initials for " Heil Hitler ". It seems that DingoCon has neo-Nazi tendencies and celebrates the Holocaust !
The question that will be debated by many people here is whether Australia should grant an entry visa to a person who intends to bring together like minded people to form a hate group against anyone who has skin of a different colour. There is no doubt that the Australian media will cover DingoCon and quote its revelations and this may be deeply troubling to migrants who have escaped persecution over race in their former homelands.
In the earlier part of the twentieth century the bulk of our migrants were from Britain and Europe and consequently white. The end of the Vietnam war saw an influx of Asians and more recently the main migrant flow has been from the Middle East ad Africa. We have devolved into a multicultural nation and anything that promotes division is to be avoided.
Perhaps there is a lesson to be learned from the religious war that is raging in the Middle East - and which has brought death by terrorist acts to our shores. Recruiters for that war spread disharmony here with their messages of religious intolerance. Now it is a crime to leave Australia to fight in that foreign war - on either side - or to raise money here to aid the fighting.
There seems no doubt that Mike Enoch is a gifted speaker and no doubt his eloquence at DingoCon will attract some new supporters to his cause. We probably have a wide scattering of individuals which resent any skin colour that is not white, but allowing them to form into a cohesive group that will gain strength from sheer volume is surely not a good idea.
We certainly would not let a spokesperson for Islamic State come to this country to address a rally seeking support for a movement forcing religious conversion and enslavement on all others. Why would we allow in a speaker openly seeking the type of division that can only lead to conflict between the races ?
" Freedom " is a double edged sword !
Sunday 14 May 2017
A " Catch 22 " Decision !
Two hundred and five Sydney property owners face an agonising decision on what to do with their purchase because of bad information given by the State Land and Property Information Office. Between 2014 and 2016 critical information on changes to what is the route of the F-6 dual carriageway divided new road from Sutherland to Tempe was not loaded into the LPI computer and consequently those doing property searches were not warned that their property might be affected. The state government has admitted liability and is offering compensation.
This takes the form of settlement by way of a thirty thousand dollar compensation payment - or an offer to buy back the property - in which case the government will refund the purchase price, plus a grant of $ 75,000 and fully reimburse the stamp duty costs.
No doubt the people affected will be doing copious calculations on the back of envelopes. The Sydney property market has moved a long way forward during that period and they will need to determine the present value, taking into account that the proximity of the new road will be a factor taken into account by potential buyers.
A lot will depend on the degree of involvement. Should the property seem likely to be resumed and demolished to make way for the new road extension the decision is obvious, but if it is just a matter of road traffic noise or a long circuit drive to access this new freeway the site advantages - and disadvantages - will weight heavily. There is also the possibility that proximity to a fast route to the city centre may enhance the property value.
That LPI blunder will cost the state a lot of money. There are another 377 properties affected by the building of a tunnel on a section of the West Connex who received incorrect information. This is subject to negotiation and so far the government has made an offer of $ 5,000 each, plus legal costs as compensation. It is possible that this may be rejected and the matter returned to court.
What all this highlights is the necessity for the Land and Property Information office to scrupulously seek out and record all relevant information that may affect the freehold of property. Many potential buyers considering placing a bid at a property auction first pay for a property search which should disclose any intended future events that infringe on its use. That includes the presence of any pipes or tunnels that may pass under the property or wiring that may intrude on the airway overhead. Such a clearance confirmation also forms part of property conveyance.
A property purchase is usually the biggest money transaction in each persons lifetime and consequently it is not taken lightly. It is to the government's credit that they have quickly accepted responsibility and acted to make sensible offers. Now it is essential that the checks and balances are put in place to ensure that it can not happen again !
This takes the form of settlement by way of a thirty thousand dollar compensation payment - or an offer to buy back the property - in which case the government will refund the purchase price, plus a grant of $ 75,000 and fully reimburse the stamp duty costs.
No doubt the people affected will be doing copious calculations on the back of envelopes. The Sydney property market has moved a long way forward during that period and they will need to determine the present value, taking into account that the proximity of the new road will be a factor taken into account by potential buyers.
A lot will depend on the degree of involvement. Should the property seem likely to be resumed and demolished to make way for the new road extension the decision is obvious, but if it is just a matter of road traffic noise or a long circuit drive to access this new freeway the site advantages - and disadvantages - will weight heavily. There is also the possibility that proximity to a fast route to the city centre may enhance the property value.
That LPI blunder will cost the state a lot of money. There are another 377 properties affected by the building of a tunnel on a section of the West Connex who received incorrect information. This is subject to negotiation and so far the government has made an offer of $ 5,000 each, plus legal costs as compensation. It is possible that this may be rejected and the matter returned to court.
What all this highlights is the necessity for the Land and Property Information office to scrupulously seek out and record all relevant information that may affect the freehold of property. Many potential buyers considering placing a bid at a property auction first pay for a property search which should disclose any intended future events that infringe on its use. That includes the presence of any pipes or tunnels that may pass under the property or wiring that may intrude on the airway overhead. Such a clearance confirmation also forms part of property conveyance.
A property purchase is usually the biggest money transaction in each persons lifetime and consequently it is not taken lightly. It is to the government's credit that they have quickly accepted responsibility and acted to make sensible offers. Now it is essential that the checks and balances are put in place to ensure that it can not happen again !
Saturday 13 May 2017
A " Policing " Issue !
It would be a toss-up as to which is the most famous policing unit in the world -- America's FBI or Britain's Scotland Yard. If the measure used was how often either got a mention in films or books the FBI would probably win, because America makes more films and prints more books because of its greater population numbers and financial strength.
In America the policing structure is more individual. Each city has its own city police and small towns are policed by a local Sheriff and deputies. Outside that jurisdiction, the law is applied by state police, but when a crime crosses over a state line it becomes the responsibility of the FBI. A purist might describe them as the " National Police ".
Both the FBI and Scotland Yard serve as the best equipped entity to which all levels of policing appeal when investigating exceeds their resources. They have research laboratories and the most advanced science because they are funded on a national level. It is usually the aim of gifted local police to be recruited by the elite FBI or seconded to Scotland Yard.
The world is watching with astonishment as events unfold within America's FBI. The man who occupied the chair where J Edgar Hoover once sat and was the FBI boss was peremptorily sacked - by President Donald Trump - and he has the power to do that without the need to state a reason.
James Comey featured prominently during the recent presidential election. He was praised and feted by candidate Trump when he surprisingly reopened an investigation into Hillary Clinton - Trump's opponents - use of unrestricted emails during her time as Secretary of State - and many people believe that this helped Trump achieve an unexpected victory.
Comey was also being even handed. He angered the new president when he continued an investigation into claimed liaisons by Trump's subordinates with high officials of the Russian government who it is claimed interfered to swing the vote in Trump's favour. Comey had recently requested more resources to take this probe deeper.
In the eyes of many people Trump has just used his power of office to openly and blatantly close down an investigation into what might be an illegality under American law. The man at the very top of American law enforcement has been turfed out of office and it is very hard to imagine whoever replaces him insisting on continuing that enquiry.
What is even more astonishing. I seems that the President of the United States of America is going to get away with it !
No doubt the Democratic party will kick up a fuss - but they are in the minority in both houses. It is hard to imagine the Republican majority taking the steps that could result in a Republican president being forced to leave office.
What else seems astonishing - is the mute acceptance of how this issue was resolved by the American people. In other parts of the world, vast crowds might have gone to the barricades and protested in the streets, but it seems that Trump's hundred days in office have been so bizarre that the people are mesmerized into blank acceptance.
That is not a good indication of what may yet be to come !
In America the policing structure is more individual. Each city has its own city police and small towns are policed by a local Sheriff and deputies. Outside that jurisdiction, the law is applied by state police, but when a crime crosses over a state line it becomes the responsibility of the FBI. A purist might describe them as the " National Police ".
Both the FBI and Scotland Yard serve as the best equipped entity to which all levels of policing appeal when investigating exceeds their resources. They have research laboratories and the most advanced science because they are funded on a national level. It is usually the aim of gifted local police to be recruited by the elite FBI or seconded to Scotland Yard.
The world is watching with astonishment as events unfold within America's FBI. The man who occupied the chair where J Edgar Hoover once sat and was the FBI boss was peremptorily sacked - by President Donald Trump - and he has the power to do that without the need to state a reason.
James Comey featured prominently during the recent presidential election. He was praised and feted by candidate Trump when he surprisingly reopened an investigation into Hillary Clinton - Trump's opponents - use of unrestricted emails during her time as Secretary of State - and many people believe that this helped Trump achieve an unexpected victory.
Comey was also being even handed. He angered the new president when he continued an investigation into claimed liaisons by Trump's subordinates with high officials of the Russian government who it is claimed interfered to swing the vote in Trump's favour. Comey had recently requested more resources to take this probe deeper.
In the eyes of many people Trump has just used his power of office to openly and blatantly close down an investigation into what might be an illegality under American law. The man at the very top of American law enforcement has been turfed out of office and it is very hard to imagine whoever replaces him insisting on continuing that enquiry.
What is even more astonishing. I seems that the President of the United States of America is going to get away with it !
No doubt the Democratic party will kick up a fuss - but they are in the minority in both houses. It is hard to imagine the Republican majority taking the steps that could result in a Republican president being forced to leave office.
What else seems astonishing - is the mute acceptance of how this issue was resolved by the American people. In other parts of the world, vast crowds might have gone to the barricades and protested in the streets, but it seems that Trump's hundred days in office have been so bizarre that the people are mesmerized into blank acceptance.
That is not a good indication of what may yet be to come !
Friday 12 May 2017
" Unworthy " Denied Welfare ?
One of this weeks budget proposals will strike a chill of fear into the hearts of the many charities that service this country's " battlers ". It is suggested that some welfare applicants be subjected to compulsory drug testing and those that test positive have their payments suspended.
The details have yet to be worked out, but at this stage a trial seem to be a certain. The budget papers say that five thousand will be randomly selected from three trial sites - which are yet to be chosen. The most likely method used to select a site will include chemical testing of the matter in the sewer which can deliver a detailed analysis of each individual drug type and which will specifically identify a suburb containing many drug users.
The proposal is silent on the specifics of what happens if a welfare applicant tests positive for drugs but on the first occasion there will probably be a warning issued. If a second follow-up test also proves positive payments will be refused for a period of time, and further payments will depend entirely on the testing remaining negative.
Of course, that term " drugs " can be widely interpreted. A citizen who is addicted to ICE or Heroin is unlikely to be successful in gaining a job, but the term could also apply to a recreational user of Marijuana or someone who still has a high degree of alcohol in their system after a weekend on the booze. Then there are the people suffering panful disabilities who have become addicted to the legal prescription drugs that give them relief. Most likely the pass/failure line will be determined by bureaucrats consulting a chart set by an autocrat.
It seems we are entering a new era where we must be " worthy " to access the benefits of the welfare state. We already have a steady stream of homeless people living on the streets and many of these have been refused welfare for one reason or another. Their needs are serviced by the many charities who manage to put welcome meals together and hand out blankets and warm clothing. The prospect of drug testing adding further numbers is daunting.
The whole purpose of " welfare " is supposed to be a safety net. In some cases a drug affected person is the provider for children, and when those welfare payments stop - so does the food supply. The public purse is not bottomless and many people managed to rid themselves of the drug habit. That s a painful process and the medical profession accepts that there will be reversals - and that if takes time.
There will also be " unintended consequences " if this drug testing regime sees many people turned away by Centrelink. Drug dependency is already the motive for much of the break and enter type crime experienced in this country and more recently there has been an upsurge of assault and robbery in street crime. Desperate people resort to desperate measures and the refusal of welfare payments will have consequences.
It is easy to play the " blame game " and claim that drug users have themselves to blame for their addiction, but drugs are a scourge in all sections of society. If we shut all that need our help out of compassion we may find we have a more threatening society than we intended.
The details have yet to be worked out, but at this stage a trial seem to be a certain. The budget papers say that five thousand will be randomly selected from three trial sites - which are yet to be chosen. The most likely method used to select a site will include chemical testing of the matter in the sewer which can deliver a detailed analysis of each individual drug type and which will specifically identify a suburb containing many drug users.
The proposal is silent on the specifics of what happens if a welfare applicant tests positive for drugs but on the first occasion there will probably be a warning issued. If a second follow-up test also proves positive payments will be refused for a period of time, and further payments will depend entirely on the testing remaining negative.
Of course, that term " drugs " can be widely interpreted. A citizen who is addicted to ICE or Heroin is unlikely to be successful in gaining a job, but the term could also apply to a recreational user of Marijuana or someone who still has a high degree of alcohol in their system after a weekend on the booze. Then there are the people suffering panful disabilities who have become addicted to the legal prescription drugs that give them relief. Most likely the pass/failure line will be determined by bureaucrats consulting a chart set by an autocrat.
It seems we are entering a new era where we must be " worthy " to access the benefits of the welfare state. We already have a steady stream of homeless people living on the streets and many of these have been refused welfare for one reason or another. Their needs are serviced by the many charities who manage to put welcome meals together and hand out blankets and warm clothing. The prospect of drug testing adding further numbers is daunting.
The whole purpose of " welfare " is supposed to be a safety net. In some cases a drug affected person is the provider for children, and when those welfare payments stop - so does the food supply. The public purse is not bottomless and many people managed to rid themselves of the drug habit. That s a painful process and the medical profession accepts that there will be reversals - and that if takes time.
There will also be " unintended consequences " if this drug testing regime sees many people turned away by Centrelink. Drug dependency is already the motive for much of the break and enter type crime experienced in this country and more recently there has been an upsurge of assault and robbery in street crime. Desperate people resort to desperate measures and the refusal of welfare payments will have consequences.
It is easy to play the " blame game " and claim that drug users have themselves to blame for their addiction, but drugs are a scourge in all sections of society. If we shut all that need our help out of compassion we may find we have a more threatening society than we intended.
Thursday 11 May 2017
" The Budget " Judgement !
Millions of Australians will be making calculations on the back of an envelope to see if this weeks Federal budget costs them money - or delivers a saving. It is hoped that one of the measures will induce the aged still living in a large family home to sell and downsize, freeing up a lot of housing stock that may hopefully ease problems for first home buyers.
Most will not pass judgement until hey have perused the small print, but basically the government is offering a concession that would allow each of a home owning older couple to deposit three hundred thousand dollars of that sale proceeds into their superannuation - without it tripping the usual laws and restrictions that apply.
That couple - or perhaps the one surviving partner - would still pay the Estate Agents commission on the sale of the home and be responsible for stamp duty should they buy a smaller unit, but presumably the means test for the aged pension would still apply. The main concession here seems to be waiving a law that restricts how much you can deposit into superannuation in your later earning years.
That is certainly an inducement for people with a low superannuation account balance because of interruptions to contributions throughout their working life, but for those who eventually need the services of a nursing home or placement in an aged care village that means test again comes into play when the daily charge for accommodation is determined.
Those fees are not determined by the aged care provider, but by the government and if the means test is unfavourable to the regulations in place daily fees higher than the aged pension apply - and that is an entirely reasonable outcome. Unfortunately, it is also one of the main reason the elderly are sticking to the free value status of the home they own when it comes to pensions.
Many are "ordinary "people, living in an "ordinary " house in one of Sydney's "ordinary "suburbs who are amazed to find that the home they bought as a young couple for what seems a ridiculous figure today - is suddenly worth more than a million dollars. They also remember the struggle to pay off that mortgage, on the salary levels current at that particular time.
What frightens them is the prospect of that family home changing status from that of a "protected asset " in pension estimates to a new status where - at the whim of the government and by the stroke of a pen - its value can be taken into account and affect the living standards that apply. Whatever is being promised today can be changed later by this - or some other government voted into office - if the economic situation changes.
In all probability, the government will need to be very persuasive and offer a lot of iron bound guarantees if they hope that this concession will free up a huge housing component locked away to preserve the state of mind of the elderly.
Most will not pass judgement until hey have perused the small print, but basically the government is offering a concession that would allow each of a home owning older couple to deposit three hundred thousand dollars of that sale proceeds into their superannuation - without it tripping the usual laws and restrictions that apply.
That couple - or perhaps the one surviving partner - would still pay the Estate Agents commission on the sale of the home and be responsible for stamp duty should they buy a smaller unit, but presumably the means test for the aged pension would still apply. The main concession here seems to be waiving a law that restricts how much you can deposit into superannuation in your later earning years.
That is certainly an inducement for people with a low superannuation account balance because of interruptions to contributions throughout their working life, but for those who eventually need the services of a nursing home or placement in an aged care village that means test again comes into play when the daily charge for accommodation is determined.
Those fees are not determined by the aged care provider, but by the government and if the means test is unfavourable to the regulations in place daily fees higher than the aged pension apply - and that is an entirely reasonable outcome. Unfortunately, it is also one of the main reason the elderly are sticking to the free value status of the home they own when it comes to pensions.
Many are "ordinary "people, living in an "ordinary " house in one of Sydney's "ordinary "suburbs who are amazed to find that the home they bought as a young couple for what seems a ridiculous figure today - is suddenly worth more than a million dollars. They also remember the struggle to pay off that mortgage, on the salary levels current at that particular time.
What frightens them is the prospect of that family home changing status from that of a "protected asset " in pension estimates to a new status where - at the whim of the government and by the stroke of a pen - its value can be taken into account and affect the living standards that apply. Whatever is being promised today can be changed later by this - or some other government voted into office - if the economic situation changes.
In all probability, the government will need to be very persuasive and offer a lot of iron bound guarantees if they hope that this concession will free up a huge housing component locked away to preserve the state of mind of the elderly.
Wednesday 10 May 2017
Age of the Scammers !
Hordes of people are receiving unsolicited phone calls in which the caller repeatedly asks " Can you hear me ? " That seems a perfectly reasonable question and if there is voice clarity most people answer " Yes ! "
That is a big mistake because the scammer now has a recording of your actual voiced saying " Yes " and it will be later used in heists involving identity theft to order goods online. The merchandising companies always record the phone conversations when orders are placed by phone and so do the banks when account changes are made by phone. It can be difficult to persuade others that you did not order goods when it is clearly your voice agreeing to the purchase on that recorded phone conversation.
There is another penetration of security that is becoming quite common. Most people have a problem remembering the multiplicity of passwords that apply to their accounts and electronics - and often settle on a single password. Beware when a merchant insists on establishing a password for a service where that is entirely unnecessary, because when that is left to your choice it will probably be the one used in banking and other important matters.
Another scam associated with passwords is the quick reference to establish identity when a password is forgotten. Several key questions come into play. " What was you mothers maiden name ? ". " What was the name of your first pet ? ". It is probably wise to steer clear of such questions if they are suggested by a merchant and settle for something more remote - but of your choice.
The scammers have also updated the age old trade of the " scalper " ! How many times have you spent hours on the phone trying to buy tickets to a show you desperately want to go and see - only to fail to gain a connection ? Then you later find that the scalpers have plenty of tickets - and they are offering them at ever exorbitant prices at the clock clicks closer to show time.
The Australian live performance industry has long called on the government to enact legislation to outlaw " ticket bots " used to buy tickets in bulk and then resell them at vastly inflated prices. In many cases the computers making the calls were those belonging to private owners which had been infected with viruses and could be brought to life on command to swamp a ticket office phone lines and make it impossible for the public to get a connection.
There were usually limits on the number of tickets offered to each customer, but the sheer size of this " bot army " ,each buying at the numbers limit greatly reduced the seating available to genuine retail customers. The scalpers are making huge profits.
Ticketmaster reports that it blocked five billion bot attempts in 2015 but that the attacks increased by a ratio of ten percent year on year. As fast as one remedy is put in place and delivers a measure of success the scammers change tactics and bring the ingenuity of electronics into play to overcome the obstacles.
Nomatter what science thinks up to deliver a range of benefits, you can be certain that the other side of humanity will be equally quick to turn it to criminal advantage. Such is the ingenuity of the human mind !
That is a big mistake because the scammer now has a recording of your actual voiced saying " Yes " and it will be later used in heists involving identity theft to order goods online. The merchandising companies always record the phone conversations when orders are placed by phone and so do the banks when account changes are made by phone. It can be difficult to persuade others that you did not order goods when it is clearly your voice agreeing to the purchase on that recorded phone conversation.
There is another penetration of security that is becoming quite common. Most people have a problem remembering the multiplicity of passwords that apply to their accounts and electronics - and often settle on a single password. Beware when a merchant insists on establishing a password for a service where that is entirely unnecessary, because when that is left to your choice it will probably be the one used in banking and other important matters.
Another scam associated with passwords is the quick reference to establish identity when a password is forgotten. Several key questions come into play. " What was you mothers maiden name ? ". " What was the name of your first pet ? ". It is probably wise to steer clear of such questions if they are suggested by a merchant and settle for something more remote - but of your choice.
The scammers have also updated the age old trade of the " scalper " ! How many times have you spent hours on the phone trying to buy tickets to a show you desperately want to go and see - only to fail to gain a connection ? Then you later find that the scalpers have plenty of tickets - and they are offering them at ever exorbitant prices at the clock clicks closer to show time.
The Australian live performance industry has long called on the government to enact legislation to outlaw " ticket bots " used to buy tickets in bulk and then resell them at vastly inflated prices. In many cases the computers making the calls were those belonging to private owners which had been infected with viruses and could be brought to life on command to swamp a ticket office phone lines and make it impossible for the public to get a connection.
There were usually limits on the number of tickets offered to each customer, but the sheer size of this " bot army " ,each buying at the numbers limit greatly reduced the seating available to genuine retail customers. The scalpers are making huge profits.
Ticketmaster reports that it blocked five billion bot attempts in 2015 but that the attacks increased by a ratio of ten percent year on year. As fast as one remedy is put in place and delivers a measure of success the scammers change tactics and bring the ingenuity of electronics into play to overcome the obstacles.
Nomatter what science thinks up to deliver a range of benefits, you can be certain that the other side of humanity will be equally quick to turn it to criminal advantage. Such is the ingenuity of the human mind !
Tuesday 9 May 2017
A Merciful Death !
Japanese who follow the Buddhist faith have a prayer known as " pin pin korrori" which is a simple wish as to how they hope to end their life. It is a wish for two things. The first is for a long and healthy life. The other is for a quick and painless death.
Here in Australia death is often an unexpected visitor, under which we have very little control. In some cases the interval between the approach of death and its culmination can be mercifully short. It is more likely that the foretaste of what is to come results in a visit to hospital and for the vast majority of people that is where death will take place.
That is where we will have the least control over the outcome. Hospitals are places where the main function is preserving life. Anonymous faces hover over a succession of people as they journey from casualty and procedures will be ordered with the intent of keeping that person alive. It is most unlikely that anyone will take the trouble to determine precisely what is the patient desires if that person is nearing lifes end.
Pain management is now an integral part of hospital treatment, but there are limitations. There are strict laws that forbid mercy killing and usually life extension takes priority when it comes to the strength and frequency of pain treatment. In many cases, there is no near relative to negotiate on the patients behalf.
Unfortunately hospital ethos is formulated more towards intervention and as a result a dieing patient is likely to be tubulated or have some last measure treatment inflicted than be allowed to slip away peacefully. That is the function of a hospice, where one if available and a bed can be provided.
In recent years, " Living Wills " have received much publicity as a means of expressing our wishes on death but they mostly serve no useful purpose in the hospital system. For a start they are more likely to be locked away somewhere in our home rather than on our person when we arrive at emergency, and they serve no legal obligation to be followed by hospital staff.
Death seems to be the last old taboo standing when it comes to discussing the subject with others. It would help to have our thoughts known by our regular GP and it would certainly help if near relatives were clear in advance on what are our wishes regarding the donation of body parts for the transplant system.
Religion often plays an important part in how we respond to the inevitability of death. To some it is a time of great fear. We are told that this is when we will be punished for our sins while for others it is the entrance to a promised afterlife of eternal happiness. There are many religions, and most have vastly different view of what we will see when death parts the veil of vision.
Perhaps a good time to enhance the prospect of " pin pin korrori " by making sure our wishes about death are known to those who will survive us !
Here in Australia death is often an unexpected visitor, under which we have very little control. In some cases the interval between the approach of death and its culmination can be mercifully short. It is more likely that the foretaste of what is to come results in a visit to hospital and for the vast majority of people that is where death will take place.
That is where we will have the least control over the outcome. Hospitals are places where the main function is preserving life. Anonymous faces hover over a succession of people as they journey from casualty and procedures will be ordered with the intent of keeping that person alive. It is most unlikely that anyone will take the trouble to determine precisely what is the patient desires if that person is nearing lifes end.
Pain management is now an integral part of hospital treatment, but there are limitations. There are strict laws that forbid mercy killing and usually life extension takes priority when it comes to the strength and frequency of pain treatment. In many cases, there is no near relative to negotiate on the patients behalf.
Unfortunately hospital ethos is formulated more towards intervention and as a result a dieing patient is likely to be tubulated or have some last measure treatment inflicted than be allowed to slip away peacefully. That is the function of a hospice, where one if available and a bed can be provided.
In recent years, " Living Wills " have received much publicity as a means of expressing our wishes on death but they mostly serve no useful purpose in the hospital system. For a start they are more likely to be locked away somewhere in our home rather than on our person when we arrive at emergency, and they serve no legal obligation to be followed by hospital staff.
Death seems to be the last old taboo standing when it comes to discussing the subject with others. It would help to have our thoughts known by our regular GP and it would certainly help if near relatives were clear in advance on what are our wishes regarding the donation of body parts for the transplant system.
Religion often plays an important part in how we respond to the inevitability of death. To some it is a time of great fear. We are told that this is when we will be punished for our sins while for others it is the entrance to a promised afterlife of eternal happiness. There are many religions, and most have vastly different view of what we will see when death parts the veil of vision.
Perhaps a good time to enhance the prospect of " pin pin korrori " by making sure our wishes about death are known to those who will survive us !
Monday 8 May 2017
Political " Disinformation " !
An Australian Federal election used to be a relatively simple affair. It was a contest between the conservative Liberal/Country party coalition and the socialist leaning Labor party. On a regular basis, control of the Treasury benches changed hands and we were off on a stint where new faces headed ministries - and usually little changed in policy direction.
This recent US Presidential election signalled that politics has changed forever. Social media has emerged as the pivot point of public opinion and the " hacker " is the important entity that decides the issues that may sway the vote - and all this is done in the anonymity of cyber space.
There seems to be a valid argument that Russia had an interest in the outcome of the US election and deployed the facilities of its huge espionage facility to disparage Hillary Clinton and enhance the prospects of Donald Trump. It is suggested that the Russian state contrived " fake news " from what its hackers compiled from penetration of the Democratic parties email traffic and the effect was enhanced by paid " trolls " who gave the stories substance.
On the eve of the French Presidential election we are seeing a repeat of this tactic. The front runner is Emmanuel Macron and Russia would prefer Marine Le Pen because she proposes withdrawing France from the EU - and NATO ! Just as the medias blackout before the vote comes into force there has been a massive release of confusing matter hacked from the Macron campaign containing " misinformation " !
The source seems to be a mysterious news source that calls itself " MacronLeaks " - and this is styled on and assisted by Julian Assange's WikiLeaks. Assange still controls WikiLeaks from his bolt hole in London, where he avoids arrest by sheltering within the diplomatic protection of the Ecuadorean embassy.
The age of the computer brought with it the prospect of cyber warfare. Electronic intrusion is capable of disrupting power, water, transport in a target country and the espionage world maintains constant probing to penetrate the defences in place to guard the information stored by computers. As we are now seeing, the means exist to probe the political parties behind governments and steal secrets to be divulged just when voters are making decisions on their vote.
Russia was accused of interfering in the American Presidential election and now precisely the same tactic seems to be happening with the Presidential election in France. There is the expectation that the next important election target on the world stage will be in Germany, and once again it would seem to be in Russia's interest to unseat Angela Merkel. Many will expect a similar scenario to emerge.
This is a clever tactic that exploits the " freedom of information " that is a part of western democracies. It is doubtful if the world of computers will ever be secured against the best efforts of various state security to penetrate systems and steal secrets. Of course, the very states that are now deploying this method have their own media under tight control and exercise rigid censorship. The outcome of any elections they may permit are usually decided well in advance.
We are a long way away from the next Federal election, but it would be surprising if spooks trained in misinformation techniques are not already gathering background information and preparing the way to blacken the character of those not favoured by foreign intelligence services. Such is the hazard voters will need to learn to recognise - and ignore !
This recent US Presidential election signalled that politics has changed forever. Social media has emerged as the pivot point of public opinion and the " hacker " is the important entity that decides the issues that may sway the vote - and all this is done in the anonymity of cyber space.
There seems to be a valid argument that Russia had an interest in the outcome of the US election and deployed the facilities of its huge espionage facility to disparage Hillary Clinton and enhance the prospects of Donald Trump. It is suggested that the Russian state contrived " fake news " from what its hackers compiled from penetration of the Democratic parties email traffic and the effect was enhanced by paid " trolls " who gave the stories substance.
On the eve of the French Presidential election we are seeing a repeat of this tactic. The front runner is Emmanuel Macron and Russia would prefer Marine Le Pen because she proposes withdrawing France from the EU - and NATO ! Just as the medias blackout before the vote comes into force there has been a massive release of confusing matter hacked from the Macron campaign containing " misinformation " !
The source seems to be a mysterious news source that calls itself " MacronLeaks " - and this is styled on and assisted by Julian Assange's WikiLeaks. Assange still controls WikiLeaks from his bolt hole in London, where he avoids arrest by sheltering within the diplomatic protection of the Ecuadorean embassy.
The age of the computer brought with it the prospect of cyber warfare. Electronic intrusion is capable of disrupting power, water, transport in a target country and the espionage world maintains constant probing to penetrate the defences in place to guard the information stored by computers. As we are now seeing, the means exist to probe the political parties behind governments and steal secrets to be divulged just when voters are making decisions on their vote.
Russia was accused of interfering in the American Presidential election and now precisely the same tactic seems to be happening with the Presidential election in France. There is the expectation that the next important election target on the world stage will be in Germany, and once again it would seem to be in Russia's interest to unseat Angela Merkel. Many will expect a similar scenario to emerge.
This is a clever tactic that exploits the " freedom of information " that is a part of western democracies. It is doubtful if the world of computers will ever be secured against the best efforts of various state security to penetrate systems and steal secrets. Of course, the very states that are now deploying this method have their own media under tight control and exercise rigid censorship. The outcome of any elections they may permit are usually decided well in advance.
We are a long way away from the next Federal election, but it would be surprising if spooks trained in misinformation techniques are not already gathering background information and preparing the way to blacken the character of those not favoured by foreign intelligence services. Such is the hazard voters will need to learn to recognise - and ignore !
Sunday 7 May 2017
Rewarding Excellence !
When the first mobile phone became a reality, the instrument was about the size of a house brick and the cost of a call usually totalled several dollars. There were numerous black spots in the city - where calls would suddenly drop out and incur new connection costs, but they were totally unreliable in the country. It was a common sight to see people - mobile phone in hand - heading for the high ground in the hope of receiving a signal.
Things are very different today. There is the expectation that those travelling in a car on state country roads will be able to have an uninterrupted conversation on their mobile phones and the same conditions apply to those using the train service. We are rarely out of sight of a distant mobile phone tower, nomatter how much some people object to their presence.
The vast majority of those country phone towers were installed and paid for by Telstra, and we have just had a decision by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission ( ACCC ) to allow Telstra to make sole use of the towers under its control. It was ruling on an application by Telstra's competitors to force Telstra to share their towers with competing mobile phone service providers.
Because Telstra delivers coverage reliability it charges a premium on country mobile services and its competitors argued that a plethora of costly competing mobile towers made little sense. It would be better if all providers shared the network, and paid Telstra a fee for the use of their towers.
That ignores the principle that an innovator is entitled to a reward for excellence. Telstra spent its company capital installing mobile phone towers to improve country coverage and as a result the vast majority of rural mobile phone are connected to the Telstra network. It loses that advantage if its competitors muscle in and provide equal reliability.
Telstra also sounded a warning that if this sharing was forced upon them, the incentive to extend its mobile towers to parts of the country experiencing less reliable coverage would cease. Other suppliers would be unlikely to step in and spend their money when the usage rewards were not great and it would condemn remote area to permanent isolation.
That ACCC decision is also sending a message to the entrepreneurs of the future. Not so long ago the very idea of each person having an individual mobile phone and the ability to make calls on the move was science fiction. In fact the comic books depicted Dick Tracey with a phone in his shoe ?
It is certain that science will deliver new wonders in the future, and innovators will need to decide whether to risk their capital developing such ideas. ACCC has signalled that it respects the principle that the innovator is entitled to be rewarded for the risk of developing systems. Had the decision gone the other way, the development of promising innovations may not have progressed swiftly or at all if the safety of the capital was deemed to be at risk.
Things are very different today. There is the expectation that those travelling in a car on state country roads will be able to have an uninterrupted conversation on their mobile phones and the same conditions apply to those using the train service. We are rarely out of sight of a distant mobile phone tower, nomatter how much some people object to their presence.
The vast majority of those country phone towers were installed and paid for by Telstra, and we have just had a decision by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission ( ACCC ) to allow Telstra to make sole use of the towers under its control. It was ruling on an application by Telstra's competitors to force Telstra to share their towers with competing mobile phone service providers.
Because Telstra delivers coverage reliability it charges a premium on country mobile services and its competitors argued that a plethora of costly competing mobile towers made little sense. It would be better if all providers shared the network, and paid Telstra a fee for the use of their towers.
That ignores the principle that an innovator is entitled to a reward for excellence. Telstra spent its company capital installing mobile phone towers to improve country coverage and as a result the vast majority of rural mobile phone are connected to the Telstra network. It loses that advantage if its competitors muscle in and provide equal reliability.
Telstra also sounded a warning that if this sharing was forced upon them, the incentive to extend its mobile towers to parts of the country experiencing less reliable coverage would cease. Other suppliers would be unlikely to step in and spend their money when the usage rewards were not great and it would condemn remote area to permanent isolation.
That ACCC decision is also sending a message to the entrepreneurs of the future. Not so long ago the very idea of each person having an individual mobile phone and the ability to make calls on the move was science fiction. In fact the comic books depicted Dick Tracey with a phone in his shoe ?
It is certain that science will deliver new wonders in the future, and innovators will need to decide whether to risk their capital developing such ideas. ACCC has signalled that it respects the principle that the innovator is entitled to be rewarded for the risk of developing systems. Had the decision gone the other way, the development of promising innovations may not have progressed swiftly or at all if the safety of the capital was deemed to be at risk.
Saturday 6 May 2017
A Faded " Empire " !
At the time when Jesus Christ walked the earth the Roman empire ruled over most of what was then the " known world ". Since then other empires have come and gone and the last was the "British Empire " - on which it was proudly claimed that the " sun never set " !
The core of that empire was an insignificant tiny land mass off the coast of Europe and at its height it was ruled by Queen Victoria. Today that throne is occupied by the world's longest serving reigning monarch and Queen Elizabeth celebrated her ninety-first birthday last month. Her consort - Prince Philip turns ninety-six next month.
This week the Royal staff from several regional castles that are officially " home " to the Queen were summonsed to Buckingham Palace for a meeting and to hear a royal announcement. Prince Philip is to stand down from royal duties in the autumn and the functions of the monarch will be delegated more widely between Prince Charles and his sons, William and Harry and William's wife, Katherine.
It is obvious that Elizabeth's reign must soon come to a close and by protocol Charles will become king, but great change is happening right across the United Kingdom. A referendum to leave the EU will require a complicated withdrawal as it comes to trading terms with other nations and fractures within the alliance are set to deepen. Scotland recently narrowly voted to retain the union with England and Wales and it seems certain that the matter of northern Ireland's attachment to Britain will come under question as Ireland remains a member of the EU.
There seems no doubt that this EU membership withdrawal and the negotiations it will require will include pressure from Spain for the return of Gibraltar and Argentina can be expected to use the opportunity to again appeal to the United Nations over its claim to the Falkland islands.
Australia rejected a referendum to replace the monarchy by becoming a republic by a narrow margin. It is generally conceded that there will be no change during the Queen's lifetime but there may not be the same deep affection for Charles when he becomes king. Many people would prefer a generational change and for the throne to go directly to Prince William, but that is unlikely.
We live in a fast changing - and dangerous - world. Britain is not the world power it used to be and the Royal Navy no longer rules the waves. It remains to be seen if the surprise referendum result to quit the EU was a mistake or a calculated risk to gain freedom from the restrictive nature of a Brussels controlled trading block that seeks to impose " more Europe " on its members.
One thing is certain. Further change is inevitable !
The core of that empire was an insignificant tiny land mass off the coast of Europe and at its height it was ruled by Queen Victoria. Today that throne is occupied by the world's longest serving reigning monarch and Queen Elizabeth celebrated her ninety-first birthday last month. Her consort - Prince Philip turns ninety-six next month.
This week the Royal staff from several regional castles that are officially " home " to the Queen were summonsed to Buckingham Palace for a meeting and to hear a royal announcement. Prince Philip is to stand down from royal duties in the autumn and the functions of the monarch will be delegated more widely between Prince Charles and his sons, William and Harry and William's wife, Katherine.
It is obvious that Elizabeth's reign must soon come to a close and by protocol Charles will become king, but great change is happening right across the United Kingdom. A referendum to leave the EU will require a complicated withdrawal as it comes to trading terms with other nations and fractures within the alliance are set to deepen. Scotland recently narrowly voted to retain the union with England and Wales and it seems certain that the matter of northern Ireland's attachment to Britain will come under question as Ireland remains a member of the EU.
There seems no doubt that this EU membership withdrawal and the negotiations it will require will include pressure from Spain for the return of Gibraltar and Argentina can be expected to use the opportunity to again appeal to the United Nations over its claim to the Falkland islands.
Australia rejected a referendum to replace the monarchy by becoming a republic by a narrow margin. It is generally conceded that there will be no change during the Queen's lifetime but there may not be the same deep affection for Charles when he becomes king. Many people would prefer a generational change and for the throne to go directly to Prince William, but that is unlikely.
We live in a fast changing - and dangerous - world. Britain is not the world power it used to be and the Royal Navy no longer rules the waves. It remains to be seen if the surprise referendum result to quit the EU was a mistake or a calculated risk to gain freedom from the restrictive nature of a Brussels controlled trading block that seeks to impose " more Europe " on its members.
One thing is certain. Further change is inevitable !
Friday 5 May 2017
" Quack " Medicine !
It seems there is a fine line between what some see as " ancient and tribal cures " that migrants bring with them to Australia and the definition of what is harmful and illegal when put into practice in this country. We are about to extradite a Chinese itinerant national over the death of a six year old Sydney boy who was subjected to a " slapping cure " which this man travels the world exploiting.
The man was arrested in London at Australia's request and there have been a number of other deaths linked to the alternative medicine technique that he claims to have discovered. It is a " self healing " method that includes stretching, fasting and slapping the body to the degree of intense bruising. It seems that the dead boys family was complicit in the treatment and also face criminal charges.
Migrants from Africa and the Middle East have introduced a form of female genital mutilation that we find both illegal and offensive. It is for the sole purpose of ensuring the girl retains her virginity until marriage - and she is permanently denied the euphoria of sex after marriage in the belief that without its pleasure she will not " stray " ! Often is it applied by untutored elders without anaesthetic and with the use of a razor blade when the girl is a small child - and it s irreversible !
Many medicinal customs are so ingrained in village life that they are accepted as necessary and their adherents can not understand their rejection in Australia. The fact that Australians speak a language they are yet to learn means they usually gather in ethnic groupings and hence these customs prevail. Where intervention by the authorities threatens, often children are taken on a " holiday " to the old country to have the forbidden custom performed there.
In many cases procedures and the mix that forms medication is harmless. For a long time traditional Chinese medicine was scorned in favour of the spectacular advances made by western medication, but we have since learned that many of the medications of earlier centuries were amazingly effective. We also remember that less than a century ago we in the west were burning harmless old ladies at the stake on charges of witchcraft. In most cases, they were elders who were handing down the knowledge that mixing certain herbs could achieve results unknown to the doctors of that era.
It seems strange that we condemn so many practices that do not sit neatly within our concept of medical knowledge and yet allow those opposed to proven health enhancing procedures to denigrate and advertise bogus reasons to withdraw from such procedures. Usually, this is on the grounds of some perceived health risk that has been adequately proved to be false.
We have people opposed to the addition of fluoride to drinking water, and tragically - a very active and large grouping actively working to convince parents not to have their children vaccinated against a wide variety of diseases.
They are permitted to continue this practice under our vaunted " Freedom of speech " manifesto, despite it delivering a number of unnecessary deaths which could have been prevented if such actions had been unsuccessful.
It seems that prosecution is on a very selective basis !
The man was arrested in London at Australia's request and there have been a number of other deaths linked to the alternative medicine technique that he claims to have discovered. It is a " self healing " method that includes stretching, fasting and slapping the body to the degree of intense bruising. It seems that the dead boys family was complicit in the treatment and also face criminal charges.
Migrants from Africa and the Middle East have introduced a form of female genital mutilation that we find both illegal and offensive. It is for the sole purpose of ensuring the girl retains her virginity until marriage - and she is permanently denied the euphoria of sex after marriage in the belief that without its pleasure she will not " stray " ! Often is it applied by untutored elders without anaesthetic and with the use of a razor blade when the girl is a small child - and it s irreversible !
Many medicinal customs are so ingrained in village life that they are accepted as necessary and their adherents can not understand their rejection in Australia. The fact that Australians speak a language they are yet to learn means they usually gather in ethnic groupings and hence these customs prevail. Where intervention by the authorities threatens, often children are taken on a " holiday " to the old country to have the forbidden custom performed there.
In many cases procedures and the mix that forms medication is harmless. For a long time traditional Chinese medicine was scorned in favour of the spectacular advances made by western medication, but we have since learned that many of the medications of earlier centuries were amazingly effective. We also remember that less than a century ago we in the west were burning harmless old ladies at the stake on charges of witchcraft. In most cases, they were elders who were handing down the knowledge that mixing certain herbs could achieve results unknown to the doctors of that era.
It seems strange that we condemn so many practices that do not sit neatly within our concept of medical knowledge and yet allow those opposed to proven health enhancing procedures to denigrate and advertise bogus reasons to withdraw from such procedures. Usually, this is on the grounds of some perceived health risk that has been adequately proved to be false.
We have people opposed to the addition of fluoride to drinking water, and tragically - a very active and large grouping actively working to convince parents not to have their children vaccinated against a wide variety of diseases.
They are permitted to continue this practice under our vaunted " Freedom of speech " manifesto, despite it delivering a number of unnecessary deaths which could have been prevented if such actions had been unsuccessful.
It seems that prosecution is on a very selective basis !
Thursday 4 May 2017
Living " Off Grid " !
The price of electricity is ever rising - and the price of both solar and batteries continues a steady decline. We are fast reaching the stage when living " off grid " is becoming a viable option, but the repercussions will be extreme industry wide if this trend takes hold.
The economics of the electricity supply are very similar to that of the old landline telephone system. The installation and maintenance of poles and wires were required to connect a house to electricity, just as cables had to be laid and wiring connected to bring phone services to individual houses. The costs were evenly distributed when almost all homes had both an electricity and a landline phone connection.
Lithium-ion battery costs have plunged about a fifth in the past year and one Sydney resident coupled them to their five kilowatt capacity rooftop solar array to produce about 12-13 KW hours of electricity a day, allowing them to dodge the 60 c KW hour peak surcharge between 2 PM and 10 PM. Their " smart meters " allow them to tap the grid to top up their $ 8,000 battery system when power is at its cheapest. If they add just a little more battery storage, they will be able to disconnect from the grid.
The economic costs for the owners of the grid are obvious. Just like the phone service suppliers who found their product replaced by Smartphones, the telephone grid must be maintained to service the landline customers who remain, but the cost is shared amongst an ever decreasing pool. The more that access price increases, the quicker people dump landline and replace it with a smartphone.
This Sydney couple has peace of mind because they are still connected to the grid. In the event of a run of bleak days causing their solar to produce insufficient power the gap will be filled by the grid, but the cost of petrol driven electricity generators has also dropped to a few hundred dollars and such a reserve is now a viable alternative option.
In particular, a solar/battery option would have great appeal for farmers. They usually have ample roof space available on farm buildings and when the distance between the farmhouse and the road requires new poles and wires this is at the customers expense. Many already have generator backup because grid repairs in the country after a storm are often protracted.
Perhaps the state governments were far sighted. Back when poles and wires were regarded as a safe investment potential they put them to lease and they were snapped up by superannuation funds and similar bodies looking for both safety and a good, long term dividend return. Going off grid will be unlikely to ever be in the reach of all home owners, hence that mix of on grid and off grid homes will increase the costs of maintaining the system in its entirety - and the more the cost rises the fewer who will remain.
Such is the quandary that faces features once deemed " essentials " in this twenty-first century !
The economics of the electricity supply are very similar to that of the old landline telephone system. The installation and maintenance of poles and wires were required to connect a house to electricity, just as cables had to be laid and wiring connected to bring phone services to individual houses. The costs were evenly distributed when almost all homes had both an electricity and a landline phone connection.
Lithium-ion battery costs have plunged about a fifth in the past year and one Sydney resident coupled them to their five kilowatt capacity rooftop solar array to produce about 12-13 KW hours of electricity a day, allowing them to dodge the 60 c KW hour peak surcharge between 2 PM and 10 PM. Their " smart meters " allow them to tap the grid to top up their $ 8,000 battery system when power is at its cheapest. If they add just a little more battery storage, they will be able to disconnect from the grid.
The economic costs for the owners of the grid are obvious. Just like the phone service suppliers who found their product replaced by Smartphones, the telephone grid must be maintained to service the landline customers who remain, but the cost is shared amongst an ever decreasing pool. The more that access price increases, the quicker people dump landline and replace it with a smartphone.
This Sydney couple has peace of mind because they are still connected to the grid. In the event of a run of bleak days causing their solar to produce insufficient power the gap will be filled by the grid, but the cost of petrol driven electricity generators has also dropped to a few hundred dollars and such a reserve is now a viable alternative option.
In particular, a solar/battery option would have great appeal for farmers. They usually have ample roof space available on farm buildings and when the distance between the farmhouse and the road requires new poles and wires this is at the customers expense. Many already have generator backup because grid repairs in the country after a storm are often protracted.
Perhaps the state governments were far sighted. Back when poles and wires were regarded as a safe investment potential they put them to lease and they were snapped up by superannuation funds and similar bodies looking for both safety and a good, long term dividend return. Going off grid will be unlikely to ever be in the reach of all home owners, hence that mix of on grid and off grid homes will increase the costs of maintaining the system in its entirety - and the more the cost rises the fewer who will remain.
Such is the quandary that faces features once deemed " essentials " in this twenty-first century !
Wednesday 3 May 2017
A Vanishing Icon !
Once upon a time - and not long ago - to proceed your name with the title " Doctor " was almost like having a Knighthood. Every suburb and village seemed to have a resident GP who administered to the medical needs of residents and it was generally conceded that he or she would earn an above average income, live in a nice house and be able to afford an above average car. They were treated with respect and becoming a doctor was one of the most sought after courses of study at University.
In todays world the number of medical doctors who are designated a " General Practitioner " is fast eroding. For every new " GP " there are now about ten new " specialists ", simply because the financial rewards for providing GP services to the public are no longer rewarding.
It is a fact of life that those that qualify from university and begin years of gruelling, lowly paid training in a public hospital as a " registrar "doctor do so with a very large HECS debt. Financial security is important to them and emerging and working as a GP no longer delivers that reward. Most of the patients who will use their services will be billed through Medicare and the return for a twenty minute consultation has been pegged at $ 37.05.
Unless that GP has the good fortune to setup practice in a really affluent suburb where the vast majority of patients can afford to pay as a " private patient " at the rate somewhere between sixty and seventy dollars for each consultation the cost of opening and running a surgery simply do not deliver financial security.
The end result is delivering statistical horror. Many country towns and vast areas of the suburbs have no GP services. In many others, booking an appointment with the few remaining GP's can be a matter of weeks ahead and consequently we see patients in long queues at the emergency department of the local hospital seeking help for what they would normally get from a General Practitioner. As a result, our hospital system is fast reaching breaking point.
The average Australian now lives well into their eighties and medical frontiers are constantly advancing. It is conceded that the gateway to good health is to have every person attended through life by a GP who understands their lifestyle and habits and makes sure that vaccinations and regular health checks are up to date. That GP is the gate keeper - channelling his or her patient to the various specialists who prevent or treat the common diseases that occur with age.
The fact that few young emerging doctors are entering the GP field is ominous. The existing GP ranks tend to be elderly and they can be expected to thin further in the immediate years ahead unless this category of practice is made more rewarding.
The " bean counters " who allocate medical expenditure are getting it wrong if they think they " save " money by cutting the return for a GP consultation. That demand simply transfers elsewhere, and in most cases it is the hospital emergency department that has to be expanded and staffed to deal with the overload.
Perhaps a very good time to be realistic. Just what priority should health hold in the general mix of public spending ?
In todays world the number of medical doctors who are designated a " General Practitioner " is fast eroding. For every new " GP " there are now about ten new " specialists ", simply because the financial rewards for providing GP services to the public are no longer rewarding.
It is a fact of life that those that qualify from university and begin years of gruelling, lowly paid training in a public hospital as a " registrar "doctor do so with a very large HECS debt. Financial security is important to them and emerging and working as a GP no longer delivers that reward. Most of the patients who will use their services will be billed through Medicare and the return for a twenty minute consultation has been pegged at $ 37.05.
Unless that GP has the good fortune to setup practice in a really affluent suburb where the vast majority of patients can afford to pay as a " private patient " at the rate somewhere between sixty and seventy dollars for each consultation the cost of opening and running a surgery simply do not deliver financial security.
The end result is delivering statistical horror. Many country towns and vast areas of the suburbs have no GP services. In many others, booking an appointment with the few remaining GP's can be a matter of weeks ahead and consequently we see patients in long queues at the emergency department of the local hospital seeking help for what they would normally get from a General Practitioner. As a result, our hospital system is fast reaching breaking point.
The average Australian now lives well into their eighties and medical frontiers are constantly advancing. It is conceded that the gateway to good health is to have every person attended through life by a GP who understands their lifestyle and habits and makes sure that vaccinations and regular health checks are up to date. That GP is the gate keeper - channelling his or her patient to the various specialists who prevent or treat the common diseases that occur with age.
The fact that few young emerging doctors are entering the GP field is ominous. The existing GP ranks tend to be elderly and they can be expected to thin further in the immediate years ahead unless this category of practice is made more rewarding.
The " bean counters " who allocate medical expenditure are getting it wrong if they think they " save " money by cutting the return for a GP consultation. That demand simply transfers elsewhere, and in most cases it is the hospital emergency department that has to be expanded and staffed to deal with the overload.
Perhaps a very good time to be realistic. Just what priority should health hold in the general mix of public spending ?
Tuesday 2 May 2017
Raiding the Mesopelagic !
For as long as human beings have lived on the continents of the earth they have used the oceans as a source of food. Each century more efficient fishing boats have ventured further out to sea and in recent years the fish taken have exceeded the ability of the remainder to rehabilitate. We are fast decimating fish species to feed populations now numbering billions.
We only fish waters to a depth lit by the sun. Below two hundred metres it is a dark world and for a long time we thought it was devoid of all life, until the invention of the bathyscope with it's lights and cameras revealed a world teeming with living creatures. Its called the Mesopelagic and it is home to ten billion tonnes of animals, including finger sized fish with gaping maws and rows of needle sharp teeth, Dragonfish which illuminate prey with infra red spotlights unseen by their victims, and trillions of sea squirts a few millimetres across which inflate gelatinous homes on their backs. It is estimated that a mere one percent of this treasure would double the landed catch of all the world fishing boats.
Most of this would not appeal to the human palate, but just as we land creatures learned to farm to produce our food, now the bounty of the sea is undergoing a similar experience. We are creating fish farms in the sheltered shallows. Arrays of nets contain an area of water and it is stocked with fingerlings. Their density exceeds the food supply - and they need ground nutriments to quickly grow to commercial size. The fish farm industry is already eyeing the potential and Norway has issued 46 new licenses for vessels to fish there. The industry now refers to the Mesopelagic as " the big apple " !
The more we learn about the Mesopelagic the more critical it becomes. It is possibly the worlds biggest carbon sump. These trillions of small animals are in perpetual motion, rising and falling in depth as they rise to the surface to feed at night and return to the protection of darkness to hide them from their enemies as the light returns. Nature is not wasteful. Some die during each cycle and the waste they generate and those dead bodies fall to the bottom as what we call " ocean snow ". It becomes a food source for a whole range of even more diminutive life forms.
This huge mass of living creatures captures an estimated twelve billion tonnes of carbon while it is at the near surface feeding and takes it back to a lower depth each year where it remains in storage. We interrupt that cycle at our peril. Unless this carbon is taken below the reach of natural sunlight it will disperse into the air above and accelerate global warming.
Fish farming seems to be a fast expanding nascent industry. There will be a new source of income for the worlds fishing fleets, scooping up this unsightly marine product to be ground into a paste or a powder for the base product that is fast becoming the reliable food source of our fish supply. We have a degree of control over what happens in our coastal waters, but the high seas are borderless and many nations ignore international control measures. It is highly unlikely that any rationing measure to keep the quantity taken under control will be honoured.
We can estimate the annual fish harvest by what appears in the markets, but this new source of fishing wealth will be best taken during the hours of darkness, when it is near the surface and the end product will bear no resemblance to a product from the sea. Unless we are very lucky, raiding the Mesopelagic may one day result in lifeless oceans !
We only fish waters to a depth lit by the sun. Below two hundred metres it is a dark world and for a long time we thought it was devoid of all life, until the invention of the bathyscope with it's lights and cameras revealed a world teeming with living creatures. Its called the Mesopelagic and it is home to ten billion tonnes of animals, including finger sized fish with gaping maws and rows of needle sharp teeth, Dragonfish which illuminate prey with infra red spotlights unseen by their victims, and trillions of sea squirts a few millimetres across which inflate gelatinous homes on their backs. It is estimated that a mere one percent of this treasure would double the landed catch of all the world fishing boats.
Most of this would not appeal to the human palate, but just as we land creatures learned to farm to produce our food, now the bounty of the sea is undergoing a similar experience. We are creating fish farms in the sheltered shallows. Arrays of nets contain an area of water and it is stocked with fingerlings. Their density exceeds the food supply - and they need ground nutriments to quickly grow to commercial size. The fish farm industry is already eyeing the potential and Norway has issued 46 new licenses for vessels to fish there. The industry now refers to the Mesopelagic as " the big apple " !
The more we learn about the Mesopelagic the more critical it becomes. It is possibly the worlds biggest carbon sump. These trillions of small animals are in perpetual motion, rising and falling in depth as they rise to the surface to feed at night and return to the protection of darkness to hide them from their enemies as the light returns. Nature is not wasteful. Some die during each cycle and the waste they generate and those dead bodies fall to the bottom as what we call " ocean snow ". It becomes a food source for a whole range of even more diminutive life forms.
This huge mass of living creatures captures an estimated twelve billion tonnes of carbon while it is at the near surface feeding and takes it back to a lower depth each year where it remains in storage. We interrupt that cycle at our peril. Unless this carbon is taken below the reach of natural sunlight it will disperse into the air above and accelerate global warming.
Fish farming seems to be a fast expanding nascent industry. There will be a new source of income for the worlds fishing fleets, scooping up this unsightly marine product to be ground into a paste or a powder for the base product that is fast becoming the reliable food source of our fish supply. We have a degree of control over what happens in our coastal waters, but the high seas are borderless and many nations ignore international control measures. It is highly unlikely that any rationing measure to keep the quantity taken under control will be honoured.
We can estimate the annual fish harvest by what appears in the markets, but this new source of fishing wealth will be best taken during the hours of darkness, when it is near the surface and the end product will bear no resemblance to a product from the sea. Unless we are very lucky, raiding the Mesopelagic may one day result in lifeless oceans !
Monday 1 May 2017
The " Oldest " Profession !
Many Sydney councils are protesting that they are unable to close illegal brothels springing up in close proximity to schools and churches. The " oldest " profession used to be against the law but the Wood Royal Commission two decades ago uncovered such overwhelming evidence of payoffs to police and general graft that there was a law change. It is no longer a crime to supply sex in exchange for money - with a few location restrictions.
What angers councils is that they are usually unsuccessful in taking an illegal brothel to court and getting it closed down. It is almost impossible to prove that sex took place, short of actually paying a private investigator to become a client and buy sex, and then go to court and give evidence - and that is costly. The city of Sydney has instigated eighty separate investigations which can take up to two years to complete - and the success rate is abysmal !
Many such brothels hide behind the facade of offering remedial massage and sometimes go unnoticed by other residents. There is also the problem of a resident deciding to offer sexual services from their apartment in a residential building. Neighbours may notice an unusual number of visitors and perhaps that may extend far into the night - but there is nothing illegal that can result in council action.
Of course, criminal elements were quick to capitalise on the opportunities offering and we are seeing the exploitation of young women from Asian countries brought here under tourist or study visas who are forced into sexual slavery to repay their " debt " to their sponsor. Many are willingly recruited for prostitution, but they expect a better life and find their passports confiscated and live a life of threats and intimidation.
One suggestion that has been considered - and rejected - is to require those offering sex for sale to have a license to conduct such business. The advantage would be that visitors to this country engaging in the sex trade would need to register their passports and have regular health checks as part of their license conditions. The sex industry rightly claims that to do so would recriminalize prostitution.
There is no doubt that the public attitude to sex has dramatically changed over the course of the twentieth century. At its start it was rare for women to have been granted the vote and in many households they needed their fathers permission to marry. That was an era when decorum required unmarried couples to be supervised by a chaperone and every bride that went down the aisle was expected to be a virgin. If a baby was born less than nine months later the elderly grandmothers tittered behind their hands and declared it has come " early " !
The churches held great sway in that era and they were never comfortable with the subject of sex. Under their direction, censorship was strict and for decades risqué publications like Playboy were banned in the conservative state of Queensland. Those were the days when divorce was considered a sin and the legal system demanded that an " at fault " party be both determined and punished in a public examination.
Today's young people have a more relaxed attitude to sex and it has become a " normal " expectation in most relationships. Brothels have been a fact of life since the biblical days and they serve a purpose in providing an outlet for those who may otherwise find sex impossible to access and resort to desperate measures. Those objecting to the near proximity of a brothel are usually doing so on moral grounds rather than any real harm it is doing to their lifestyle.
In fact, the refusal to allow a brothel within a short distance of a school or other place of learning - or a church - is probably a sop to the " wowser " element that was against any change to the laws on prostitution. Children today are well aware of sex from a very young age, and the churches do not carry the authority they once exercised.
No society has ever been successful in eliminating prostitution. It seems that this council complaint is a case of tilting against windmills !
What angers councils is that they are usually unsuccessful in taking an illegal brothel to court and getting it closed down. It is almost impossible to prove that sex took place, short of actually paying a private investigator to become a client and buy sex, and then go to court and give evidence - and that is costly. The city of Sydney has instigated eighty separate investigations which can take up to two years to complete - and the success rate is abysmal !
Many such brothels hide behind the facade of offering remedial massage and sometimes go unnoticed by other residents. There is also the problem of a resident deciding to offer sexual services from their apartment in a residential building. Neighbours may notice an unusual number of visitors and perhaps that may extend far into the night - but there is nothing illegal that can result in council action.
Of course, criminal elements were quick to capitalise on the opportunities offering and we are seeing the exploitation of young women from Asian countries brought here under tourist or study visas who are forced into sexual slavery to repay their " debt " to their sponsor. Many are willingly recruited for prostitution, but they expect a better life and find their passports confiscated and live a life of threats and intimidation.
One suggestion that has been considered - and rejected - is to require those offering sex for sale to have a license to conduct such business. The advantage would be that visitors to this country engaging in the sex trade would need to register their passports and have regular health checks as part of their license conditions. The sex industry rightly claims that to do so would recriminalize prostitution.
There is no doubt that the public attitude to sex has dramatically changed over the course of the twentieth century. At its start it was rare for women to have been granted the vote and in many households they needed their fathers permission to marry. That was an era when decorum required unmarried couples to be supervised by a chaperone and every bride that went down the aisle was expected to be a virgin. If a baby was born less than nine months later the elderly grandmothers tittered behind their hands and declared it has come " early " !
The churches held great sway in that era and they were never comfortable with the subject of sex. Under their direction, censorship was strict and for decades risqué publications like Playboy were banned in the conservative state of Queensland. Those were the days when divorce was considered a sin and the legal system demanded that an " at fault " party be both determined and punished in a public examination.
Today's young people have a more relaxed attitude to sex and it has become a " normal " expectation in most relationships. Brothels have been a fact of life since the biblical days and they serve a purpose in providing an outlet for those who may otherwise find sex impossible to access and resort to desperate measures. Those objecting to the near proximity of a brothel are usually doing so on moral grounds rather than any real harm it is doing to their lifestyle.
In fact, the refusal to allow a brothel within a short distance of a school or other place of learning - or a church - is probably a sop to the " wowser " element that was against any change to the laws on prostitution. Children today are well aware of sex from a very young age, and the churches do not carry the authority they once exercised.
No society has ever been successful in eliminating prostitution. It seems that this council complaint is a case of tilting against windmills !
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