After reading about ex PM Paul Keating's intervention in the machinations of the NSW Labor Party, I have to agree 100% with what he had to say read it here . John Robertson is one of the key players responsible for the fourth term Government going completely off the rails into Greek tragedy, and now he wants the leadership as a reward? And I'm so glad to see him also fingering that God awful Mark Arbib for special mention too.
Keating is one of a dying breed of Labor figures with a vision, courage and character. A man who was never interested in opinion polls, but rather led from the front and changed the public's view of a policy through the force of the argument, not the other way around of listening to a bunch of whingeing Wendys in a focus group.
In fact Keating was the first to publicly warn Rudd when he was still Opposition Leader that listening to mealy mouthed advisers who need to rely on a focus group to "decide which side of the bed to get out of" was a recipe for disaster. But after a barrage of criticism, he stayed silent thereafter to give Labor a clear run through to the election.
So while it's easy for every blow in commentator and party hack to come in now and take a shot at NSW Labor, the record clearly shows that when Keating has something to say, party figures should listen.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
rape and adultery in UAE
Here is another example of the dangers of being a woman and seeking financially attractive employment in God awful places like the United Arab Emirates read here .
While the liability of the hotel's actions is before the courts, the issue I'm interested in has always been why westerners (especially women) continue to see the UAE is a place to live and work?
This is essentially nothing but another propped up dictatorship where working migrants from Asia are in essence treated no better than serfs. But so long as the money keeps flowing in and we all keep silent, who really cares about the reality on the ground?
The governing classes of this fake country can only be described as awful human beings, which makes it not very surprising that a white hotel worker can be raped, then charged with adultery for having the temerity of reporting the crime (which causes unnecessary "inconvenience" to the authorities).
The lesson in all of this is that, unlike in say Turkey, you can't (as a woman) live a "western" lifestyle of making good money, nightclubs and alcohol without the risk of consequences.
But as we've seen with other western backed autocracies in Tunisia and Egypt (despite very different circumstances), people power can bring them down very quickly, and in the case of the UAE.....I hope they will!
While the liability of the hotel's actions is before the courts, the issue I'm interested in has always been why westerners (especially women) continue to see the UAE is a place to live and work?
This is essentially nothing but another propped up dictatorship where working migrants from Asia are in essence treated no better than serfs. But so long as the money keeps flowing in and we all keep silent, who really cares about the reality on the ground?
The governing classes of this fake country can only be described as awful human beings, which makes it not very surprising that a white hotel worker can be raped, then charged with adultery for having the temerity of reporting the crime (which causes unnecessary "inconvenience" to the authorities).
The lesson in all of this is that, unlike in say Turkey, you can't (as a woman) live a "western" lifestyle of making good money, nightclubs and alcohol without the risk of consequences.
But as we've seen with other western backed autocracies in Tunisia and Egypt (despite very different circumstances), people power can bring them down very quickly, and in the case of the UAE.....I hope they will!
Sunday, March 6, 2011
dodgy parking companies get their just deserts
The Victorian Baillieu Government had its first new consumer law triumph with the recent passing of the Fair Trading Act amendments see here . It looks like these rogue car parking companies will finally start becoming accountable for their actions (to a point), as they've been getting away for far too long with the scam of issuing pseudo parking "fines" to vehicles that have overstayed the time limit in parking bays controlled by these private operators.
Instead of actually running a proper parking lot where you need to go past a barrier gate to enter/exit and are aware upfront of what the cost will be, these money grubbing cowboys prefer to let cars enter at will and have their pseudo parking officers issue "fines" to vehicles that have overstayed. And who is to decide what this "fine" will be, and with no accountability or governmental oversight? The parking operator of course, they seem to think they can charge what they like so long as they mention it in the fine print of that massive sign on the lot. Well sorry, but any bush lawyer can tell you that a business's conditions of entry do not override the applicable state laws.
But the real reason these cowboy operators have been able to flourish in this state is because the previous State Government allowed these companies to access the Vicroads database for the purposes of sending people threatening payment demands. Despite all our strict privacy laws, it's almost incomprehensible to think that the State allows outside private entities such access to privileged information. The only other example I'm aware of private companies accessing the Vicroads database are the private franchised public transport companies, but their officers are proscribed Authorised Officers and are governed by appropriate legislation.
While it's not clear in the article whether these companies will still be able to access the Vicroads database, at least the practice of continuously sending out threatening follow up letters will cease once a request has been made for the matter to be heard in court.
And just like the god awful car clamping cowboys that roamed the streets of Melbourne in the early 90s until the Kennett Government killed them off via legislation, hopefully Baillieu is taking the first step to doing the same thing with these guys.
Instead of actually running a proper parking lot where you need to go past a barrier gate to enter/exit and are aware upfront of what the cost will be, these money grubbing cowboys prefer to let cars enter at will and have their pseudo parking officers issue "fines" to vehicles that have overstayed. And who is to decide what this "fine" will be, and with no accountability or governmental oversight? The parking operator of course, they seem to think they can charge what they like so long as they mention it in the fine print of that massive sign on the lot. Well sorry, but any bush lawyer can tell you that a business's conditions of entry do not override the applicable state laws.
But the real reason these cowboy operators have been able to flourish in this state is because the previous State Government allowed these companies to access the Vicroads database for the purposes of sending people threatening payment demands. Despite all our strict privacy laws, it's almost incomprehensible to think that the State allows outside private entities such access to privileged information. The only other example I'm aware of private companies accessing the Vicroads database are the private franchised public transport companies, but their officers are proscribed Authorised Officers and are governed by appropriate legislation.
While it's not clear in the article whether these companies will still be able to access the Vicroads database, at least the practice of continuously sending out threatening follow up letters will cease once a request has been made for the matter to be heard in court.
And just like the god awful car clamping cowboys that roamed the streets of Melbourne in the early 90s until the Kennett Government killed them off via legislation, hopefully Baillieu is taking the first step to doing the same thing with these guys.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Gillard finally grows some cahoonas
After spending the best part of the last six months criticising and ridiculing PM Gillard, I've finally gained some respect for her. And how did this occur? Well bizarrely it involved the cynical and deliberate tactic of rejecting a carbon tax on the eve of the election, knowing full well that's exactly what you're going to introduce straight afterwards.
Now while a broken promise (on such a game changing issue) is nothing to be proud of, at least we're now having a proper old fashioned political debate about an issue of immense importance. While the complex issue of climate change (and what to do about it) can be argued elsewhere, what really impressed me was that Gillard threw away the focus groups results playbook and decided for the first time to act like a leader, ie leading from the front and arguing a case of why we need this carbon tax. A leader must lead from the front while facing down their opponent's scares.
The script is pretty easy to follow, whether it's a GST or a carbon tax, the Opposition will argue that the sky will fall in if it's introduced, while the Government must be able to stare down the hysteria and tell us why this policy is for the greater good etc.
So despite all the mouth frothing and analysis thus far over who's winning and who's losing, for me this "courageous decision" has not only put the Government back in the game, it's given them a raison d'etre which they've so sorely lacked since the election.
Now while a broken promise (on such a game changing issue) is nothing to be proud of, at least we're now having a proper old fashioned political debate about an issue of immense importance. While the complex issue of climate change (and what to do about it) can be argued elsewhere, what really impressed me was that Gillard threw away the focus groups results playbook and decided for the first time to act like a leader, ie leading from the front and arguing a case of why we need this carbon tax. A leader must lead from the front while facing down their opponent's scares.
The script is pretty easy to follow, whether it's a GST or a carbon tax, the Opposition will argue that the sky will fall in if it's introduced, while the Government must be able to stare down the hysteria and tell us why this policy is for the greater good etc.
So despite all the mouth frothing and analysis thus far over who's winning and who's losing, for me this "courageous decision" has not only put the Government back in the game, it's given them a raison d'etre which they've so sorely lacked since the election.
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