Corona Virus a con job or overeaction or a bloody good job
bgt said
09:45 AM Feb 20, 2021
The 'best' country in the world is somewhat subjective. 'Best' in what respect?
I think it's like the old pair of shoes. They are comfortable and you know them well. Getting a new pair can be a bit of a gamble.
We are familiar with everything in Australia. But I can't say it's the best because I haven't lived in every country in the world. I think strawberry ice cream is the 'best' but I haven't tried every flavour so how do I know?
But from what I've seen of other countries Australia is far from a S$#@ hole.
dorian said
10:42 AM Feb 20, 2021
Santa wrote:
dorian wrote:I prefer to think of myself as a world citizen, without nationalistic biases.
Guess that's one way of labeling yourself.
The words that immediately come to my mind are pompous, pretentious, contemptuous, arrogant, egotistical, disdainful, and not least of all smug.
I would have thought those were the characteristics of a one eyed, introspective nationalist.
My experience has been that human beings are fundamentally bad. It doesn't matter where you look, the difference is only a matter of degree.
Recoup said
11:07 AM Feb 20, 2021
UK Government Releases Shocking Report On COVID Vaccine Side Effects
Factual Reporting: LOW Country: United Kingdom World Press Freedom Rank: UK 35/180
History
Founded in 2010, Principia Scientific International (PSI) is an organization based in the United Kingdom which promotes fringe views and material to claim that carbon dioxide is not a greenhouse gas. PSI has also published a book, titled Slaying the Sky Dragon: Death of the Greenhouse Gas Theory. According to their about page Principia Scientific International (PSI) is the only independent science body in the world that is legally incorporated to champion the traditional scientific method, as set out in the work of Karl Popper. The founder and current CEO of Principia Scientific International is John OSullivan. For more background information on John OSullivan see here and here.
In November 2019, the PSI Facebook page was banned: Facebook Bans Principia Scientific International Without Explanation. As of 3/13/2020, it does not appear to have been restored.
Mike Harding said
12:59 PM Feb 20, 2021
Santa wrote:
dorian wrote:I prefer to think of myself as a world citizen, without nationalistic biases.
Guess that's one way of labeling yourself.
The words that immediately come to my mind are pompous, pretentious, contemptuous, arrogant, egotistical, disdainful, and not least of all smug.
Ah... mate! Don't beat around the bush... tell us what you *really* think :)
[Dorian wrote]
>My experience has been that human beings are fundamentally bad.
Interestingly my experience is that most people are fundamentally good but, as do we all, they stray from the correct path occasionally but most recognise and return to "goodness" or at least recognise their error.
Recoup said
01:26 PM Feb 20, 2021
One more side looking for donations , they should be banned , we have a very trustworthy Media in Aus. , controlled by some power full people, they tell us what we "have to know" need to know.
dorian wrote:I prefer to think of myself as a world citizen, without nationalistic biases.
Guess that's one way of labeling yourself.
The words that immediately come to my mind are pompous, pretentious, contemptuous, arrogant, egotistical, disdainful, and not least of all smug.
Ah... mate! Don't beat around the bush... tell us what you *really* think :)
[Dorian wrote]
>My experience has been that human beings are fundamentally bad.
Interestingly my experience is that most people are fundamentally good but, as do we all, they stray from the correct path occasionally but most recognise and return to "goodness" or at least recognise their error.
This thread tells it all. I would have thought that someone who wanted to be seen as a world citizen rather than a rabid nationalist would have been viewed in a positive light. But what else can you expect from people who are fundamentally bad? Clearly "Santa" is no Santa Claus.
If you want to know what human nature is really like, you only have to look at young children. They are the cruellest of all, especially toward those who are different. Some will mature and discover empathy, but they will need to work at it. "Goodness" requires effort, "badness" just comes naturally.
bgt said
03:33 PM Feb 20, 2021
Dorian just for a giggle please enlighten everyone here what is so bad about Australia. Statements mean little without the details.
Santa said
05:21 PM Feb 20, 2021
dorian wrote:
My experience has been that human beings are fundamentally bad. It doesn't matter where you look, the difference is only a matter of degree.
Fortunately I don't share your cynical/jaded view of humankind, in fact my views are diametrically opposed to yours.
Buzz Lightbulb said
05:29 PM Feb 20, 2021
dorian wrote:
If you want to know what human nature is really like, you only have to look at young children. They are the cruellest of all, especially toward those who are different. Some will mature and discover empathy, but they will need to work at it. "Goodness" requires effort, "badness" just comes naturally.
That's very interesting because when I watched those children who interacted with my latest son, nearly all of them were very caring. None treated those of different race any differently. In fact, they didn't seem to recognise any difference. The child with autism was treated in a friendly manner and most children had fun with all concerned.
There was one child who didn't interact very well. When I asked the deputy principal if she thought he was sociopathic she didn't answer, which to me, says ". maybe ". Teachers nowadays can't say anything critical.
I guess it depends on how the children are brought up and the school they attend.
dorian said
06:53 AM Feb 21, 2021
bgt wrote:
Dorian just for a giggle please enlighten everyone here what is so bad about Australia. Statements mean little without the details.
Just a few that immediately come to mind ...
still a British colony after 200 years
6 states & 2 territories all with separate health, education, police, legislature, governors, GG
no-one can afford the law except the wealthy and the destitute
corrupt police - Ryan from UK hired to clean up NSW police force
two local councils - replaced by administrators due to corruption, incompetence
corrupt NSW Labor gov
corrupt Liberal gov - pork barrelling
SAS - murdered Afghan civilians - ritualistic "blooding"
labour unions infiltrated by organised crime
country is awash with drugs, bikie gangs - teenagers mostly drug users
Aussie cultcha - drugs, booze, hounds, nags, pokies and footy
gun loonies have a political party
Australia has most of the world's natural resources, but has no manufacturing industry to take advantage of them
As for children, cyberbullying is their new tool.
Mike Harding said
08:17 AM Feb 21, 2021
dorian wrote:Just a few that immediately come to mind ...
Jeeezzz Dorian! How do you manage to drag yourself out of bed in the mornings?
The things you mention are true of every country in some degree or other and they are a bloody sight worse in most of the countries I have visited. Don't confuse things such as occasional corruption (a couple of bent cops) with systemic corruption - try getting a hotel room in much of the Middle East without a bribe and if you want *anything* formal done via government (build a house) it's going to cost serious money in payoffs.
Which countries do you believe are superior to Australia and do not suffer a significant dose of the ills you mention?
JayDee said
08:31 AM Feb 21, 2021
WOW!!!
I have only just read this thread.
My only comment is that if I make a comment, I fear it would be shot down in flames, like many of the above comments.
Some scathing remarks, which do not deserve space on this thread.
Proudly signed by
Jay&Dee
bgt said
09:58 AM Feb 21, 2021
dorian I accept you are close to the mark on many items.
But I take exception to "SAS - murdered Afghan civilians - ritualistic "blooding" ". It's alleged at this stage to say otherwise makes you as guilty as anyone in a kangaroo court. We aren't a British colony. 1901! "corrupt Liberal gov - pork barrelling" All governments pork barrel. "gun loonies have a political party". There's more than one loonie party. But it's not against the law to be an idiot. Even idiots have rights.
dorian said
10:09 AM Feb 21, 2021
Mike Harding wrote:
The things you mention are true of every country in some degree or other and they are a bloody sight worse in most of the countries I have visited. Don't confuse things such as occasional corruption (a couple of bent cops) with systemic corruption - try getting a hotel room in much of the Middle East without a bribe and if you want *anything* formal done via government (build a house) it's going to cost serious money in payoffs.
Which countries do you believe are superior to Australia and do not suffer a significant dose of the ills you mention?
Ryan came to NSW to clean out systemic corruption, not to straighten a few "bent cops". Terry Lewis in Qld was just the tip of a continental sized iceberg. Remember him? Now we have the "Gobbo affair" in Victoria. Ironically, she and the Vic police did a good job putting organised criminals away, but now the wig headed fraternity are releasing these crooks back into the community.
In fact I had my own first hand experience of a bent cop (in Asia). He was a retired police chief and was essentially my boss. He told me that he was a CIA informant and that the CIA had set him up in business. He confessed that every one of his major contracts involved a bribe. I have no doubt that such corruption exists everywhere, including Australia. It's just that it is more overt in some societies than others.
I lived in Singapore for several years. If you were caught with even a single round of ammunition, you got the noose. More than a certain amount of illicit drugs, you got the noose. There was no organised crime, other than maybe the totalitarian government, and young girls could walk the streets safely at night. When I asked people why they voted for Lee Kwan Yew (whom I detested), they said that they remembered the kind of criminal cesspit that was Singapore under British rule.
My alternative society? It would be a mix of good aspects from each country. Singapore's approach to law and order, Australia's national health system, Japanese or Korean approach to manufacturing, truly free tertiary education funded by a robust manufacturing economy, etc.
-- Edited by dorian on Sunday 21st of February 2021 10:20:57 AM
TheHeaths said
10:15 AM Feb 21, 2021
Dorian
Some wide ranging statements with your observations of life in Australian society.
Some underlying truth to some of them. Some are just incorrect. And I see no factual information presented to back up your statistics for teenage drug use and resource ownership, suggesting it is an opinion, not a fact.
It is unfortunate that you seem to hold such a dark opinion of things in this country. Hopefully others will not.
-- Edited by TheHeaths on Sunday 21st of February 2021 10:16:11 AM
Blues Man said
10:23 AM Feb 21, 2021
All i know is that the whole world is changing and it's not for the best.
How long will it last before it all blows up in our faces.
Human nature is definitely changing.
dorian said
10:45 AM Feb 21, 2021
bgt wrote:
dorian I accept you are close to the mark on many items.
But I take exception to "SAS - murdered Afghan civilians - ritualistic "blooding" ". It's alleged at this stage to say otherwise makes you as guilty as anyone in a kangaroo court. We aren't a British colony. 1901! "corrupt Liberal gov - pork barrelling" All governments pork barrel. "gun loonies have a political party". There's more than one loonie party. But it's not against the law to be an idiot. Even idiots have rights.
If you need to be reminded that Australia is still a British colony, ask yourself, what is the function of governors and a governor general? For the answer to that question, read Kerr's letters to Her Majesty, the Queen of Australia, during Whitlam's dismissal.
The fact that idiots have rights is not in question. In fact they can become president of the USA. What I resent is that Australian society has people whose primary motive for voting is so that they can own a deadly weapon. That is indicative of a psychological disorder, not idiocy. What is really absurd is that a person who wants a firearm merely for personal protection, with no desire to actually use it, is not deemed responsible enough to own such a weapon. Instead you need to demonstrate a desire to kill animals.
As for the SAS, I cannot begin to explain the deep respect I have for anyone who puts their life at risk for their country. It doesn't seem right to pass judgment from the security of my armchair. These people are in a cauldron, facing death every day. But their victims were innocent. I don't think that the events are in doubt, as much as I would like them to be. The allegations are coming from within the SAS itself.
-- Edited by dorian on Sunday 21st of February 2021 10:46:21 AM
bgt said
11:32 AM Feb 21, 2021
Dorian Kerr was an exception. A drunk exception. The Governor General very rarely refers anything to the Queen. But that's a constitutional argument that even confuses the High Court!
The gun laws are a hot potato. I'm not going near that. But idiots of all persuasion vote!
Lets see what the legal folk say about the SAS. We shouldn't judge ANYONE without due process.
I have only a few grumps about Australia. Well more than a few!! But PC is killing the fabric of what we are. Ideology without debate is also an issue. The ability of the left to argue for free speech but then try to shut down those who don't agree with their version of free speech. Making this generation responsible for what happened in our great grandfathers time. Yes I generalize.
Bring back 'We're a weird mob'. 'Adventures on Barry McKenzie'. 'Don's party'. Hogans comedy show. Kevin Bloody Wilson. Bring back our sense of humour and take it as just that, humour without everyone calling everyone racists, homophobia or sexist. Where's the Australia we all grew up in where everyone got on with earning a living and getting pissed on the weekend?
rgren2 said
11:41 AM Feb 21, 2021
Bring back 'We're a weird mob'. 'Adventures on Barry McKenzie'. 'Don's party'. Hogans comedy show. Kevin Bloody Wilson. Bring back our sense of humour and take it as just that, humour without everyone calling everyone racists, homophobia or sexist.
"Constitution Alteration (Fair Elections) 1988 proposed to enshrine in the Constitution of Australia a guarantee that all Commonwealth, State and Territory elections would be conducted democratically. The question was put to a referendum in the Australian referendum, 1988. The main aim of the question was to enshrine the One vote, one value principle in the Constitution."
The majority voted against fair elections, and the amendment was opposed by the Libs and NATs.
Q: Do you want your vote to be worth the same as every other vote?
A: Duh, no.
-- Edited by dorian on Sunday 21st of February 2021 01:49:48 PM
bgt said
12:50 PM Feb 21, 2021
Dorina for whatever reason Australian's don't trust change. All referendums fail.
But I'll bet that a referendum at the moment re who controls state borders would get a resounding yes for the federal government.
But look on the bright side. In China and Russia you don't get a choice!!
dorian said
02:55 PM Feb 21, 2021
Interesting that you should mention China and Russia. In fact Australians don't have any bill of rights, and they don't have a right to free speech.
If you recall, the Abbott government passed legislation which made it a jailable offence to report on the condition of offshore asylum seekers at Manus Island, Nauru, or wherever they are being detained these days. This is the kind of draconian law that one could expect from a country like the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
Then there is the disgraceful treatment of whistle blowers by Australian authorities. For example, when Wilkie blew the whistle on Howard's lies in respect of Iraq, Howard sent an ASIO goon to SBS. This goon grabbed a hard drive belonging to Carmel Travers, an SBS reporter, and smashed it with a hammer. He then said that he had done this several times, and tried to intimidate SBS into silence. SBS called his bluff and publicised the event on the news.
More recently a whistle blower exposed the misdeeds of the ATO, and he is now being crucified for doing so (or has he already been?).
So no need to look to China or Russia for bad examples. There are plenty of them much closer to home.
"Constitution Alteration (Fair Elections) 1988 proposed to enshrine in the Constitution of Australia a guarantee that all Commonwealth, State and Territory elections would be conducted democratically. The question was put to a referendum in the Australian referendum, 1988. The main aim of the question was to enshrine the One vote, one value principle in the Constitution."
The majority voted against fair elections, and the amendment was opposed by the Libs and NATs.
Q: Do you want your vote to be worth the same as every other vote?
A: Duh, no.
-- Edited by dorian on Sunday 21st of February 2021 01:49:48 PM
There were vigorous scare campaigns. I'm pretty sure if the information explained fair elections it would have been a yes. Most Australian Attitudes would have thought if it works don't change it. Definitely didn't want to give councils any more power (that was how it was pushed) reality may have been different.
Much like today. Really big health scare campaigns by the medical controllers and the government. Perhaps if they gave out credible information rather than waving a big stick they might get more takers. But govt has promised to get everyone vaccinated and if they don't, then votes may go against them. So come hell or high water they are going to make it happen. At the moment, they will get a lot who will take it up because they don't want to risk being restricted and losing their jobs and businesses like they have over the last twelve months. The govt. just passed laws to strengthen their power to have everyone comply.
dorian said
07:16 PM Feb 21, 2021
As I see it, the fact that a rhetorical question had to go to a referendum just amplifies the stupidity.
Mike Harding said
08:56 PM Feb 21, 2021
What makes you think Australians are more stupid than any other nationality?
Really Dorian... I have much respect for your knowledge and intelligence but you are failing to show it here.
dorian said
06:26 AM Feb 22, 2021
Mike Harding wrote:
What makes you think Australians are more stupid than any other nationality?
"Still a British colony after 200 years" is enough proof.
I think it's like the old pair of shoes. They are comfortable and you know them well. Getting a new pair can be a bit of a gamble.
We are familiar with everything in Australia. But I can't say it's the best because I haven't lived in every country in the world. I think strawberry ice cream is the 'best' but I haven't tried every flavour so how do I know?
But from what I've seen of other countries Australia is far from a S$#@ hole.
I would have thought those were the characteristics of a one eyed, introspective nationalist.
My experience has been that human beings are fundamentally bad. It doesn't matter where you look, the difference is only a matter of degree.
principia-scientific.com/uk-government-releases-shocking-report-on-covid-vaccine-side-effects/
I like the bit at the end...Please Donate Here!
Principia Scientific International are a bunch of nutter anti vacsists peddling conspiracy theories.
-- Edited by montie on Saturday 20th of February 2021 11:21:55 AM
Principia Scientific International (PSI)
https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/principia-scientific-international/
Very low credibility.
Factual Reporting: LOW
Country: United Kingdom
World Press Freedom Rank: UK 35/180
History
Founded in 2010, Principia Scientific International (PSI) is an organization based in the United Kingdom which promotes fringe views and material to claim that carbon dioxide is not a greenhouse gas. PSI has also published a book, titled Slaying the Sky Dragon: Death of the Greenhouse Gas Theory. According to their about page Principia Scientific International (PSI) is the only independent science body in the world that is legally incorporated to champion the traditional scientific method, as set out in the work of Karl Popper. The founder and current CEO of Principia Scientific International is John OSullivan. For more background information on John OSullivan see here and here.
In November 2019, the PSI Facebook page was banned: Facebook Bans Principia Scientific International Without Explanation. As of 3/13/2020, it does not appear to have been restored.
Ah... mate! Don't beat around the bush... tell us what you *really* think :)
[Dorian wrote]
>My experience has been that human beings are fundamentally bad.
Interestingly my experience is that most people are fundamentally good but, as do we all, they stray from the correct path occasionally but most recognise and return to "goodness" or at least recognise their error.
dailyexpose.co.uk/2021/02/18/think-the-pfizer-jabs-safe/
This thread tells it all. I would have thought that someone who wanted to be seen as a world citizen rather than a rabid nationalist would have been viewed in a positive light. But what else can you expect from people who are fundamentally bad? Clearly "Santa" is no Santa Claus.
If you want to know what human nature is really like, you only have to look at young children. They are the cruellest of all, especially toward those who are different. Some will mature and discover empathy, but they will need to work at it. "Goodness" requires effort, "badness" just comes naturally.
Fortunately I don't share your cynical/jaded view of humankind, in fact my views are diametrically opposed to yours.
That's very interesting because when I watched those children who interacted with my latest son, nearly all of them were very caring. None treated those of different race any differently. In fact, they didn't seem to recognise any difference. The child with autism was treated in a friendly manner and most children had fun with all concerned.
There was one child who didn't interact very well. When I asked the deputy principal if she thought he was sociopathic she didn't answer, which to me, says ". maybe ". Teachers nowadays can't say anything critical.
I guess it depends on how the children are brought up and the school they attend.
Just a few that immediately come to mind ...
still a British colony after 200 years
6 states & 2 territories all with separate health, education, police, legislature, governors, GG
no-one can afford the law except the wealthy and the destitute
corrupt police - Ryan from UK hired to clean up NSW police force
two local councils - replaced by administrators due to corruption, incompetence
corrupt NSW Labor gov
corrupt Liberal gov - pork barrelling
SAS - murdered Afghan civilians - ritualistic "blooding"
labour unions infiltrated by organised crime
country is awash with drugs, bikie gangs - teenagers mostly drug users
Aussie cultcha - drugs, booze, hounds, nags, pokies and footy
gun loonies have a political party
Australia has most of the world's natural resources, but has no manufacturing industry to take advantage of them
As for children, cyberbullying is their new tool.
Jeeezzz Dorian! How do you manage to drag yourself out of bed in the mornings?
The things you mention are true of every country in some degree or other and they are a bloody sight worse in most of the countries I have visited. Don't confuse things such as occasional corruption (a couple of bent cops) with systemic corruption - try getting a hotel room in much of the Middle East without a bribe and if you want *anything* formal done via government (build a house) it's going to cost serious money in payoffs.
Which countries do you believe are superior to Australia and do not suffer a significant dose of the ills you mention?
I have only just read this thread.
My only comment is that if I make a comment, I fear it would be shot down in flames, like many of the above comments.
Some scathing remarks, which do not deserve space on this thread.
Proudly signed by
Jay&Dee
But I take exception to "SAS - murdered Afghan civilians - ritualistic "blooding" ". It's alleged at this stage to say otherwise makes you as guilty as anyone in a kangaroo court. We aren't a British colony. 1901! "corrupt Liberal gov - pork barrelling" All governments pork barrel. "gun loonies have a political party". There's more than one loonie party. But it's not against the law to be an idiot. Even idiots have rights.
Ryan came to NSW to clean out systemic corruption, not to straighten a few "bent cops". Terry Lewis in Qld was just the tip of a continental sized iceberg. Remember him? Now we have the "Gobbo affair" in Victoria. Ironically, she and the Vic police did a good job putting organised criminals away, but now the wig headed fraternity are releasing these crooks back into the community.
In fact I had my own first hand experience of a bent cop (in Asia). He was a retired police chief and was essentially my boss. He told me that he was a CIA informant and that the CIA had set him up in business. He confessed that every one of his major contracts involved a bribe. I have no doubt that such corruption exists everywhere, including Australia. It's just that it is more overt in some societies than others.
I lived in Singapore for several years. If you were caught with even a single round of ammunition, you got the noose. More than a certain amount of illicit drugs, you got the noose. There was no organised crime, other than maybe the totalitarian government, and young girls could walk the streets safely at night. When I asked people why they voted for Lee Kwan Yew (whom I detested), they said that they remembered the kind of criminal cesspit that was Singapore under British rule.
My alternative society? It would be a mix of good aspects from each country. Singapore's approach to law and order, Australia's national health system, Japanese or Korean approach to manufacturing, truly free tertiary education funded by a robust manufacturing economy, etc.
-- Edited by dorian on Sunday 21st of February 2021 10:20:57 AM
Dorian
Some wide ranging statements with your observations of life in Australian society.
Some underlying truth to some of them. Some are just incorrect. And I see no factual information presented to back up your statistics for teenage drug use and resource ownership, suggesting it is an opinion, not a fact.
It is unfortunate that you seem to hold such a dark opinion of things in this country. Hopefully others will not.
-- Edited by TheHeaths on Sunday 21st of February 2021 10:16:11 AM
All i know is that the whole world is changing and it's not for the best.
How long will it last before it all blows up in our faces.
Human nature is definitely changing.
If you need to be reminded that Australia is still a British colony, ask yourself, what is the function of governors and a governor general? For the answer to that question, read Kerr's letters to Her Majesty, the Queen of Australia, during Whitlam's dismissal.
The fact that idiots have rights is not in question. In fact they can become president of the USA. What I resent is that Australian society has people whose primary motive for voting is so that they can own a deadly weapon. That is indicative of a psychological disorder, not idiocy. What is really absurd is that a person who wants a firearm merely for personal protection, with no desire to actually use it, is not deemed responsible enough to own such a weapon. Instead you need to demonstrate a desire to kill animals.
As for the SAS, I cannot begin to explain the deep respect I have for anyone who puts their life at risk for their country. It doesn't seem right to pass judgment from the security of my armchair. These people are in a cauldron, facing death every day. But their victims were innocent. I don't think that the events are in doubt, as much as I would like them to be. The allegations are coming from within the SAS itself.
-- Edited by dorian on Sunday 21st of February 2021 10:46:21 AM
The gun laws are a hot potato. I'm not going near that. But idiots of all persuasion vote!
Lets see what the legal folk say about the SAS. We shouldn't judge ANYONE without due process.
I have only a few grumps about Australia. Well more than a few!! But PC is killing the fabric of what we are. Ideology without debate is also an issue. The ability of the left to argue for free speech but then try to shut down those who don't agree with their version of free speech. Making this generation responsible for what happened in our great grandfathers time. Yes I generalize.
Bring back 'We're a weird mob'. 'Adventures on Barry McKenzie'. 'Don's party'. Hogans comedy show. Kevin Bloody Wilson. Bring back our sense of humour and take it as just that, humour without everyone calling everyone racists, homophobia or sexist. Where's the Australia we all grew up in where everyone got on with earning a living and getting pissed on the weekend?
Bring back 'We're a weird mob'. 'Adventures on Barry McKenzie'. 'Don's party'. Hogans comedy show. Kevin Bloody Wilson. Bring back our sense of humour and take it as just that, humour without everyone calling everyone racists, homophobia or sexist.
Housos is a modern equivalent, not very PC.
This is how stupid Australians really are:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1988_Australian_referendum#Fair_Elections
"Constitution Alteration (Fair Elections) 1988 proposed to enshrine in the Constitution of Australia a guarantee that all Commonwealth, State and Territory elections would be conducted democratically. The question was put to a referendum in the Australian referendum, 1988. The main aim of the question was to enshrine the One vote, one value principle in the Constitution."
The majority voted against fair elections, and the amendment was opposed by the Libs and NATs.
Q: Do you want your vote to be worth the same as every other vote?
A: Duh, no.
-- Edited by dorian on Sunday 21st of February 2021 01:49:48 PM
But I'll bet that a referendum at the moment re who controls state borders would get a resounding yes for the federal government.
But look on the bright side. In China and Russia you don't get a choice!!
If you recall, the Abbott government passed legislation which made it a jailable offence to report on the condition of offshore asylum seekers at Manus Island, Nauru, or wherever they are being detained these days. This is the kind of draconian law that one could expect from a country like the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
Then there is the disgraceful treatment of whistle blowers by Australian authorities. For example, when Wilkie blew the whistle on Howard's lies in respect of Iraq, Howard sent an ASIO goon to SBS. This goon grabbed a hard drive belonging to Carmel Travers, an SBS reporter, and smashed it with a hammer. He then said that he had done this several times, and tried to intimidate SBS into silence. SBS called his bluff and publicised the event on the news.
More recently a whistle blower exposed the misdeeds of the ATO, and he is now being crucified for doing so (or has he already been?).
So no need to look to China or Russia for bad examples. There are plenty of them much closer to home.
There were vigorous scare campaigns. I'm pretty sure if the information explained fair elections it would have been a yes. Most Australian Attitudes would have thought if it works don't change it. Definitely didn't want to give councils any more power (that was how it was pushed) reality may have been different.
Much like today. Really big health scare campaigns by the medical controllers and the government. Perhaps if they gave out credible information rather than waving a big stick they might get more takers. But govt has promised to get everyone vaccinated and if they don't, then votes may go against them. So come hell or high water they are going to make it happen. At the moment, they will get a lot who will take it up because they don't want to risk being restricted and losing their jobs and businesses like they have over the last twelve months. The govt. just passed laws to strengthen their power to have everyone comply.
What makes you think Australians are more stupid than any other nationality?
Really Dorian... I have much respect for your knowledge and intelligence but you are failing to show it here.
"Still a British colony after 200 years" is enough proof.