He has now gone one step further in a gesture I hope will shame many others in Parliament, unfortunately knowing the greed of many, I doubt others will follow suit at a time where this very gesture would make a huge difference.  This true Australian though was not prepared to sit back and let his words fall away, he was looking for a way he could make a difference with this increase.  He has found a worthy way to it for a purpose Education spending has not been addressing.

Senator Madigan, will give away his parliamentary pay increase to provide training equipment to Technical and Agricultural school students.

Senator Madigan told Fairfax Media on Thursday, people were “doing it tough out there”.

The former blacksmith said that after tax, he was left with about an extra $30,000. He wants to use the funds to buy Australian-made equipment for technical and agricultural schools, to encourage young people into trades, farming, food processing and engineering. Schools can apply for a grant online.

The DLP senator said he also wanted to “encourage our manufacturers not just with our words but with something tangible”.
Read more: www.canberratimes.com.au/opinion/political-news/senator-gives-away-50000-pay-increase-20130523-2k2dz.html#ixzz2U6OWAX1s

His name is Peter Madden and he is Family First Tasmania’s lead Senate Candidate and the man most likely to win against Lin Thorpe, (ALP) and Peter Whish Wilson, (The Greens.)

Timothy W. Humphries, Assistant Managing Editor at Menzies House said of Peter:

I first met him at a conservative forum aimed at building skills and networking within the conservative movement, writes Tim Humphries. He was well spoken, genuine and the sort of Australian whose character was demonstrated by the authenticity of his handshake. My initial impression was that he was a Liberal Party candidate. However upon further investigation it was made known that he was in fact the lead Family First candidate for the Senate in the great state of Tasmania.

I myself met Peter when The Australian TEA Party were involved in holding a successful rally in Port McQuarie against the cowardly betrayal of Rob Oakeshott  against  his electorate by changing from an elected Independent candidate … to being a Labor Party stooge.

Peter was there supporting the Australian TEA Party and supplied his truck with a stage and Microphone and Speakers supplied. He was unassuming, yet conveyed a presence that people gravitated towards. When he spoke that day, as with every time I have heard him since, Peter’s voice commanded the listener into silence, solely due to what he has to say, he commands respect, has confidence and holds his principles up high for people to know exactly who he is.  Peter is truly the man you see and is the man he appears to be. He is a firm family values person, and will fight for you with his last breath in Parliament. All you need to rely on is for Peter Madden to be himself …  Peter Madden. He is not there for a reason that is self serving from a business point of view, and he is not a lead Senate candidate because of joining a list of Socialist women  who are in politics for extreme ideological reasons and will do whatever they can to help another Socialist female win a seat.

He is there because he believes in his Party and believes Families need to have a true voice in politics that is not a part of the 2 major Parties and will not vote for or against their policies unless it is clear it benefits you. For it is you that Parliamentarians are supposed to work for. Their aim is supposed to be policies that are best for all taxpayers, not just the rich, and not just the poor.

Lin Thorp (ALP Tasmania), however, entered the Federal Senate in June 2012, filling the casual vacancy left by the resignation of Nick Sherry.   Lin Thorp appears to be a bit of a Phoenix. In the State Labor Government after serving for 12 inglorious years, the people decided they did not want her due to incompetence, and she lost her seat to Liberal candidate in a landslide.

Fair enough, the people had decided she was not the best person to represent them, however, after a special Emily’s List handshake she was given a suddenly vacant Senate seat with the Federal Government.

So maybe she had become a forthright character after years of incompetence with the state government. Now, Ms Thorp must have a sterling career as: Minister for Human Services, 2008–2010, Minister for Education and Skills 2010–2011, Minister for Children 2010–2011, Minister for Police and Emergency Management 2010–2011…… Well may be not so sterling after all.

First is the fact this person who failed to impress in State Politics and Tasmanian Premier Lara Giddings (Emily’s List) have both publicly apologised to former children’s commissioner Paul Mason. The apology comes after Ms Thorp publicly revealed Mr Mason’s confidential interview details, saying he was ranked fourth out of five candidates when he reapplied for his job.

Last October, Mr Mason gave Ms Thorp a scathing report about her department’s failures after a 12-year-old Hobart girl was sold for sex while she was a ward of the state. About a week later Mr Mason was told he no longer had a job. This is not just abhorrent it is the gross negligensce

It would seem Ms Thorp deserved the massive 18% swing against her in the 2011. However as a result of playing in the same sandbox with the PM, she obtained her Phoenix label when in 2012 her (Emily’s List) comrades and the ALP gave her a retiring Senators position in the Federal Government.

It is difficult to understand how a Minister who so badly let down a 12-year-old who was sold for sex to more than a 100 men in Hobart between August and September 2009 by her 41-year-old mother and Glenorchy man Gary John Devine, especially given she was accepting the money of Minister for Children, and was then endorsed and given a position in the Federal Senate.

Forget any Divine intervention being a cause as she is not a Christian. Therefore the only links to have helped her to put behind the fact her electorate dumped her so conclusively with a massive swing of 18%, mainly after her dealing with her Department’s letting down a 12 year old Child in Danger. At the time the girl and another younger sister were under protective orders, and yet Ms Thorp and her Department did nothing to protect her. The girl’s mother and pimp Gary Devine are in prison serving 10-year sentences for selling her. But this story gets worse.The Supreme Court has been told the 12-year-old girl former MP Terry Martin had sex with was pimped by convicted criminal Garry John Devine. So maybe this is just a horrible mistake, a error of judgement from the Emily Listmembers and the ALP, although sadly though this is not an isolated case, but one of many from this toxic Party.

Then the Greens decided to slip Peter Whish Wilson into Bob………………..Brown’s Senate Seat. Mr Whish Wilson (Greens Tasmania) has Green credentials everywhere. To start, he was a lecturer and researcher in economics and finance at the University of Tasmania, Carbon scam trader at Merrill Lynch and he was a former Senior Vice President involved with carbon trading at Deutsche Bank.  The fortune he garnered from the poor taxpayers involved in this scam allowed him to buy a vineyard , settle in Tasmania in 2003 … as a ‘small businessman‘ and lose 2 elections for The Greens where (after he gave up christianity ) he seems to have found eager supporters.

He is also well known as a campaigner for Tasmania’s North against Gunns proposed pulp mill.  Of course there is a prelude to this fight against the pulp mill, Mr Whish Wilson is the owner of 3 Wishes Vineyards in Tasmania which may be the real reason for Mr Whish-Wilson’s sudden environmental bent.  It seems the Pulp Mill as the crow flies was only 3 kms from the 3 Wishes Vinery and their delicate Grapes.

Mr Whish-Wilson it appears is a man that is not driven by the environment, he is driven by the cost to him of any effect from a Pulp Mill on his Winery. He is driven by the bottomline of his set of accounts … a true Crony Capitalist.  Because of the impact of the pulp mill on his livelihood he didn’t want himself or his campaign to be “undermined and just be written off as ‘one of them’”.

Whish Wilson has a history of failure.  In 2009, he contested the Tasmanian Legislative Council election for the Greens in the seat of Windermere … he lost.  He then ran unsuccessfully on the Greens ticket for the Senate in the 2010 election.

This has shown Mr Whish Wilson as a mercenary character who only campaigns for what directly effects himself, he is not a man interested in the issues of the electorate unless they happen to fall into his needs.  Fotunately the people were not buying what he was serving up in politics in 2009  and again in 2010

His entry into the Senate upon Bob Brown’s retirement has meant he got a free Senate handout of income for his Vineyard and regardless of his lack of conviction for policies since he entered politics  joined .

He states he didn’t join the Greens or enter the Senate to “become part of a protest movement, or to be there just to oppose bad projects or bad policy”.  He notes that given his background he feels a responsibility to “propose alternative, positive solutions – especially for Tasmania”.  It would seem what he would propose would be of benefit to him, not Tasmania

Compared with Peter Madden and the strength of his conviction towards the issues, Mr Whish Wilson is no more than a self serving appendage of the Greens, who doesn’t believe in them, but expects people to vote for him under the Green ticket.

The choice is simple

When you vote on 14 September 2013 vote 1 Peter Madden and know you have a representative that will be committed to fighting for his constituency

Just one year after Holden received a $275 million financial assistance package, they have announced that they will be shedding 500 jobs, and downscaling. Former global president of Ford, Jac Nasser, warns that the demise of Australian car manufacturing is inevitable. There are a long list of other industries struggling; the agricultural, tourism, and manufacturing industries overall have been devastated gradually over the past decade. The question we must ask ourselves is, why are Australian industries faltering so much?
Over the years, we have seen increasing trends of globalisation between both major parties. This started with the signing of the 1975 Lima Declaration to the UN with bipartisan support. This involved raising the productivity of third world and developing nations, by deliberately reducing our own industries to unnaturally increase the productivity and wealth of other nations at an accelerated rate, with no care to Australian industries or its people.

Over time, we have seen this globalist agenda come to fruition. Policies such as a crushingly high Australian dollar, the complete removal of tariff protections, free trade agreements with third world countries and encouraging 457 visas in over 100,000 foreign workers per year have had clear results. Agricultural sectors are failing. We have sold our largest cotton farm to China. Most of our mines are foreign owned. We don’t manufacture our own clothes, or cars, or technological products. Most of our creation-based industries have been reduced to nothing, or vanished completely. Coles and Woolworths, who collectively own other chains such as Bunnings, our main industrial wholesale chain. Target & Kmart, our general clothing and shopping chains, our liquor stores, and a majority of other store chains now source the majority of their products from overseas. To top it off, both Woolworths and Coles are foreign entities, and it is estimated that 23% of everything we spend goes into their pocket in groceries alone. Tourism and University intakes have taken a major blow, as the high dollar has had a large impact on foreign tourists and students.
The finance sector also has a role to play with this demise. Currently, housing loans are still over 6%, and personal loans up to 14%. This flies in the face of the RBA, who has stated Australian loans should be reduced to 2.75%. Global interest rates are also at an average of 0.1%-1.0%. With our economy weakened and productive industries vulnerable, banks have been foreclosing on housing and assets with excessive interest rates, at a time the rest of the world have reduced interest rates to encourage domestic growth.

We need an industrial Australia to prosper. We are $250 billion dollars in debt, yet both major parties allow industries which can generate a lot of wealth to fall to ruin. At this stage of our economy, we need economic nationalism to promote wealth creation and industry growth. This will lead to lower unemployment, less people on welfare looking for work, and higher tax revenue in the form of income tax and company tax. We need a party that has the courage to stand up to the UN’s plan for economic equality. Why? The UN’s method of promoting equality is to destroy the industries in developed nations to give preference to developing nations. A transference of wealth on a grand, international scale. Both major parties are content for Australian industries to burn, as long as they can be king of the ashes come election time.

A case in point of economic success with these principles is Iceland. When faced with economic catastrophe with debt of $85 billion dollars, or 600% of GDP. They implemented mortgage forgiveness measures, stabilised and reduced their currency, imposed light tariffs and promoted Iceland’s industries and tourism to blossom. Because of these wealth-creating measures, Iceland is leading the Eurozone in economic growth, with 2.4% growth versus the Eurozone average of 0.2%. They have shown us that these industrial measures can be done, are successful, and lead to prosperity.

In summary, reducing the Australian dollar, imposing a reasonable import tariff, reducing interest rates and abolishing free trade agreements would create an economic boom within Australia. We need to create growth. We need to create jobs. The major parties are clearly ignoring simple solutions to the industrial crisis facing Australia. Without these measures, we will continue to spiral, we will continue to send our wealth overseas, we will continue to lose income, and we will continue to lose jobs. Australia must strive to improve itself. To be a stronger nation. To improve our industries, to uplift its citizens, to generate wealth for all to prosper. What do we do with all of our potential? We squander it to appease the failed global economy experiment. We must stop going backwards.

Written by T.I.M
Supporting article on the Lima Declaration; http://austeaparty.com.au/web/lima-declaration/

In July 2007 this Government under Rudd increased the baby bonus to an incredible $5,000.  In Tonights budget the 2013 budget, 6 years after this has

The Budget took it apart and effectively signalled the demise of the Howard legacy. Only a Labor government could do it but it’s Liberals who will be grateful.

In less than a decade the generous handouts which were delivered in Mr Howard’s terms as Prime Minister have gone from being Budget jewels to expensive burdens on national spending.

The Budget eliminated a key feature of that Howard edifice, the Baby Bonus, which then Treasurer Peter Costello in 2004 announced as a boost to population growth.

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/opinion/the-end-of-the-entitlement-generation/story-fnh4jt54-1226642443689#ixzz2TGKxf4sE

Although I never particularly liked this idea, it was from a well funded source and affordable during the Howard years, in fact ALP fewlt it was good enough to increase to $5000 an incredible 40% increase, although funded with the surplus left by the Howard Government.

Now in the 2013 Budget they claim the Howard Baby Bonus is unaffordable and we can no longer afford, therefore they will slash.  They fail to mention in the past 5-6 years, this Government after wasting the surplus, and borrowing to meet their continually revenue errors in delivering a number of bad policies until they had a $19.4 b budget deficit in 2013 so have decided the Howard Government’s baby bonus is a waste.  This could have happened in 2007 when Rudd increased it by 40%, but in another economic mistake they increased the size of the bonus for popularity, even though their policies were money pits just sucking up the surplus at an unfathomable rate.

Good try Swan, but this baby was a Twister was a black hole of your own making, not the Coalition.

In all seriousness there’s not much need to analyse what has been spewed forth from this cantankerously cadaverous, last legs Government. The truth is they’re more politically dead then the bushwhackers of HBO’s Deadwood!

Journalists will run back and forth, too and fro and the bogglingly obvious truth will be apparent to all that care to look. This is a Government that has whole-heartedly, completely, utterly and single handedly given the Australian people the largest ‘you know what sandwich’  in the history of the Federation.

Distractions like wasteful referendums about local government and various other forms of stupidity just divert from the overall truth that Wayne Swan is the worst Treasurer Australia has ever seen!

How stupendously spectacular and magnificently large must the level of denial and stupidity get before even the Treasurer himself admits he is talking in globs of carbon emitting cow pat.

Sitting there listening to his mouth move was actually rather amusing. My mother whilst watching the broadcast saw a moth appear on the ceiling.

Jumping up on the couch she tried to swat it down but missed. It could be said she is practising for September 14. She initially wasn’t amused at this suggestion.

After several failed attempts, she looked back at Swannie’s moving lips and started laughing. The intellectual bug is indeed about to face the bluish grey tint of a can of electoral Mortein. The level of irony, poetic justice and joy that springs forth is too awesome to quantify.

Fear not fellow travellers, for our freedom is nigh at hand. The glorious break of dawn will shine rays of refreshing light across the land and remind us that the last 6 budgets have all been a nightmarish con!

Felonius Punk writes from the barricades of Brisbane, Australia

Now we have the National Disability Insurance Scheme foisted upon us. It’s a great idea in theory but turns out to be an unfunded idea.

In the usual ALP tradition they have done what they always do, reached into the pockets of the electorate.

The ALP and their supporters here have shown the real sense of entitlement that the Left have regarding other people’s money and the usual denial that there can be any problems. In pushing for the NDIS they bleat it’s ‘only $6 a week, that’s less than two cups of coffee for someone’ or ‘it’s only $300 a year’.

And if you refuse to go along with their bleating and want to hang on to your money they portray you as heartless and uncaring and all sorts of other nasty names despite being unaware of your own circumstances as in you may be below the poverty line or dealing with disabilities yourself.

Those two cups of coffee that someone will have to go without could be the very ones someone relies on to keep on to stay awake and keep working. That $300 a year could be a trolley full of groceries to a family.

And this ‘it’s only $6 a week or $300 a year’ is on top of all the other ‘only $3 a week here’, and ‘$50 a month’ there and ‘$400 a year’ on top of that’ costs people are having to absorb to pay for the ALP’s spending spree.

Of course if billions weren’t leaving the country in interest payments on the ALP’s debt the NDIS might have some funding available.

These are the facts the ALP supporters here are always ignoring and they ignore them because as usual the facts always get in the way of their lack of argument.

And what will the NDIS means to the economy? Quite simply $300 less per Australian taxpayer to spend which instead is sucked up by the government. That $300 could have been earmarked for their council rates or their electricity bills or their groceries.

That’s $300 might have been destined to buy a service from a small business which is already struggling to stay afloat. Or maybe that $300 is for some clothes for someone’s child.

And it doesn’t matter if it’s taken from people as $6 per week, the ALP likes to paint it as a trifling amount still works out as $300 less from someone’s budget. $300 less in someone’s tax return, they might have been relying on that refund to pay a bill.

If the ALP were genuine in the caring picture they want to paint of themselves an across the board cut in political wages and benefits could more than fund it.

Of course they would never do that though. As far as they’re concerned other people’s money is really there to fund the ALP’s schemes.

If the ALP hadn’t already taken so much from us there would likely be little objection but the ALP have taken too much from us already, way too much. Many people have nothing to spare. Of course the ALP doesn’t care, the party of the people only wants to take from the people.

It’s a truism of Keynesian economics that consumer spending drives the economy; if spending slows in a recession, government must make up the difference. In reality, consumer spending merely signals what consumers want; producers may be unable or unwilling to deliver. Government spending may compensate — or make matters worse — depending on the type of spending and whether it’s financed by progressive taxes or by borrowing.

Let’s see if I can explain it:  I go and spend $1 at the shop. The proprietor spends $.80 of that for petrol. The petrol station owner then spends $.80 of that to get their hair cut and so on.  By the logic of what is an infinite series,  my original $1 in spending has created an additional $4 dollars in spending; or a “multiplier” of 4.  And with that additional spending comes another $4 in production.

Now imagine if I leave that $1 in the bank, and the bank doesn’t lend it to someone else to spend, then government must spend a $1 instead to keep the economic machine running. This is the idea behind Keynesian accounting, and it sounds fair doesn’t it?

But, there is a glitch in this philosophy: the assumption that spending automatically leads to production and jobs.( this is where we must remember what it means to Ass u me.)

Consider a small business. It makes wooden widgets. Every month it has to decide how many puzzles to make, and in essence  how many hours to schedule for it’s employees. So what will it consider?:

1. First, it must estimate the next month’s sales from the sales last of the last month as well as the trends of previous months.
2. Therefore it plans how many widgets to produce based on consumer spending. But also considers how much cash is available to pay for plywood and workers’ wages.
3. Small businesses will often operate on lines of credit, borrowing each month for payroll and materials, then paying back loans with cash following sales.
4. If — as happens in a recession — banks reduce the amount of credit and customers delay paying, our widget maker cuts back planned production and lays off it’s workers.

If it were a large profitable conglomerate, an combination of dozens of businesses and thousands of products. This kind of enterprise faces no shortage of cash in a recession.
But management will become very cautious.  It shuts down it’s less profitable business lines and lays off workers, even though there may still be substantial demand.
Equally big banks turn cautious, denying credit even to it’s steady customers like our widget maker.

Therefore when a recession makes cash tight for small business, and confidence low for large business, consumer spending does not necessarily translate into production and jobs.

Can government spending create production and jobs to replace those lost in a recession? That would depend on the type of spending. Military spending is the hardest. First it creates very few jobs per dollar spent; second, it creates limited benefits. Although it is much needed and we cannot afford to make it too lean.  Contrast that with urban services:  street and sewer repairs, garbage collection, schools, police, fire, welfare and health provision — all of which create many jobs per dollar spent. Then add to it Federal safety-net spending – ie. Social Security, & Medicare.  Without these services operating invisibly in the background, neither the Widget maker, the conglomerate, nor their customers would survive.

This is where I believe government should spend more money during a recession, not cut back.  The effectiveness of government spending also depends on how it’s financed. Local government services raise property values; when property owners pay property taxes, they pay for benefits received.  However, the Keynesian method is based on excessive borrowing which undermines the benefits of government spending.  It is really a harmful myth that spending drives the economy.  It makes us think we can rev up the economy by any additional government spending, financed by borrowing. In reality, we need productive, job-creating, service-providing government, supported by sensible taxation that does not take away the incentive to create business in Australia.

In a Fabian essay, Wayne Swan offers a new motto for why the budget needs to quickly get back to surplus: “If we are going to be Keynesians in the downturn, we have to be Keynesians on the way up again.”
Mises Daily: Monday, December 21, 2009 by Robert P. Murphy

Keynes in the 1930s depression suggested paying workers to dig holes and fill them in again. So, in response to the financial crisis, Labor spent $16 billion on low-productivity school halls and a few billion on a home insulation program that burned down houses.  He was so intent on an analysis of the failed Scullen Government in 1929 through to the 1940′s as proof of the success of the Keynesian approach.  He even failed to take account of “Krugman Falls into the Keynesian Accounting Trap”  Krugman is arguably is the world’s most famous living Keynesian, and he won the Nobel (Memorial) Prize for his work on trade theory, accusing him of a basic error on this score would be akin to telling Madonna she knows nothing of pop music, however, it remains that there are large holes in this theory and a fallacy in the “national accounting identity” equation [Y = C + I + G + (X − M)] .

The Keynesian view says that one way to measure total economic output (Y) is to add up total spending on consumption (C), investment (I), government purchases (G), and net exports (X − M). This leads to the equation:

Y = C + I + G + (X − M)

this is not a “theory” of the macroeconomy, it is a truism of accounting. Because goods are diverse, the only way to aggregate them in order to come up with a figure like “total output” is to add up their money prices. So if “total output” is just the total amount of money that producers are receiving, then this number must be the same as the total amount of money that purchasers are spending. That’s why the left side of the equation must equal the right side.

Therefore, if foreigners are spending money on consumption or investment goods produced within the United States, then this spending on US exports (X) needs to be added, because the first three components (C, I, and G) wouldn’t have already captured it since they only look at domestic expenditures.

In our present context, Krugman has argued that lowering trade barriers will (in general) raise X and M equally, and so this can’t possibly change the left side of the equation.  But that is wrong; it assumes that domestic consumption and investment spending will not themselves be influenced by the reduced trade barriers. Since the standard case for free trade rests on the demonstration that it will increase per capita income, it is simply amazing that Krugman failed to realize this before firing off his blog post. But this has shown the inefficiencies of the Keynes method.  It is not designed for the changing world of the 21^st Century.

I am not as smart as Mr. Swan obviously, but I have always believed you don’t compare chalk with cheese.  I would be interested in a more modern approach to suit the 21^st Century, and look for successes in this era, why wasn’t this done, maybe because the world of accounting has evolved, unfortunately Mr Swan seems to have remained as a ‘Hobbit’.

Wayne Swan ‘s Keynesian Accounting has cost us $232 billion debt at a time when we should have been building business confidence in Australia.  He needed to have budgeted closely with revenue rather than borrow whatever the Policies wanted, and he needed to be on the backbench instead of ruining Australia’s finances.

On ANZAC Day we honour the brave soldiers of Australia and New Zealand who have fought bravely to protect our freedoms. And despite the day being mostly about our own brave people the soldiers of our allies are also recognised.

But whether it’s ANZAC Day or Remembrance Day one group is overlooked despite being one of the most distinguished.

They fought for freedom with no hesitation, their contribution to WW1 and WW2 was higher per capita than any other Commonwealth nation and that includes Britain. Their future prime minister also fought in WW2 with distinction.

They served with such distinction the Royal Family made a special tour of their country after WW2 to say thank you.

The country in question is Rhodesia which was a self-governing nation within the British Empire.

But despite fighting with Britain and the Commonwealth the Rhodesian’s found themselves abandoned by Britain and the Commonwealth in their own time of need.

The rise of so called African nationalism that was usually a flimsy front for vicious dictator’s and the ruining of stable African nations one by one launched itself against Rhodesia. Countries all around Rhodesia fell to this supposed majority rule that in reality unleashed absolute horror onto the continent.

When the refugees from these newly independent African nations went through Rhodesia they told of the looting, the mutilations, the rapes and the murders that they were fleeing from.

That is what majority rule brought to those nations so it’s no wonder the Rhodesian’s resisted. To many in the West majority rule was a wondrous thing where everyone was happy and the majority ran the nation to greater levels of prosperity for all.

Of course many of the starry eyed idealists out there don’t let facts get in the way of anything.

“Britain has granted independence to more people than any other nation in history”, squeaked then British prime minister, the starry eyed Harold Wilson. The response by Rhodesian Prime Minister Ian Smith was “Yes and in one instance this resulted in a million people being killed in 3 days”.

One problem for Rhodesia was the ambiguous status of its relationship to Britain. Not a colony, not a dominion but definitely governing itself, the Rhodesian’s weren’t going to take a step back to appease the newly independent dictatorships that were flourishing within the Commonwealth.

Having fought for freedom with distinction they weren’t going to give everything up for the convenience of a British government that was caving in to communism.

The calls for one man one vote and majority rule for Rhodesia were major acts of hypocrisy by Western nations especially since they recognised en masse African dictatorships where the majority weren’t allowed to vote or even speak out.

In any case there was a way black people in Rhodesia could vote. If they meet certain employment or property qualifications they would be placed on the same voters roll as anyone else. This method was used in the country as they had no way of securing their borders, it would have been more than possible for someone to bus in supporters over the border. At least with property and/or employment they were demonstrating their commitment to the continued well-being of Rhodesia.

On top of that the tribal chiefs had a voice in the running of the nation so no one was totally disenfranchised. One person one vote was of no concern to people whose main concern in life was tribal custom and survival. Give them a how to vote form and they’d likely use it as a firelighter. And forget about ‘educating them’. Many of them didn’t want to know although that was changing and no one in the government was stopping them.

Of course all this was making the newly established dictatorships look bad. A country where the majority of people are happy? Can’t have that, makes the dictatorships look bad! A country where given time the black majority would be in a position to run a first world democracy? Can’t have that! Educated, democratic voters make life difficult for dictators.

When the so called freedom fighters launched a civil war in Rhodesia the Rhodesian’s showed their commitment to freedom when they stood alone against an enemy that was determined to wipe them out. Abandoned by their allies they fought against the evil that had already enslaved most of Africa.

Their fight was justified and they certainly weren’t going to let the fact that it was an inconvenience to anyone stop them. They dared to stand alone at a time when many wanted to pretend everything was fine and everyone was happy.

Because they dared make their stand for their country the Rhodesian’s aren’t as widely recognised for their achievements but that doesn’t alter the fact that their contribution to fighting for freedom is outstanding.

They have done much to be proud of and just like all of our allies they deserve our recognition and gratitude.

The Rhodesian’s I have had the good fortune to meet carry on the true spirit of their great nation. They prefer to remain happy about what they had and achieved instead of remaining bitter about what they have lost.

They had a prime minister who fought for his country in war, served his country in peace and was only concerned with what was good for his country, not just himself.

While the sun has set on Rhodesia it will never set on Rhodesian’s. The contribution they have made lives on and they helped make the world a better place.

This is the 3^rd time you have gone out of your way to help the Gillard regime out, and we are not blind to your Puffing out your chest on each occasion.   You see we are noticing a dangerous element in NSW Politics, and you are the main culprit.

1. You allowed mining exploration for CSG although the people were against this.
2. You allowed Bob Carr to take on the Senate Seat, although your Government had a legal way of stopping the move and reducing the Labor numbers.
3. The federal and New South Wales governments have reached an agreement about how to fund the National Disability Insurance Scheme, with each agreeing to pay for the scheme, 50-50.  Prime Minister Julia Gillard told reporters in Canberra on Thursday 6 December, 2012, that NSW had been the first state to reach an agreement on how to support the NDIS in the long-term.
4. And now Mr. O’Farrell does exactly what Ms Gillard wants and signs the Gonski review deal Gillard is offering, even though it would prove to be a slap in the face for his Federal Leader, however, he has now established a history of this.And what of O’Farrell himself, Abbott’s (annoyingly) co-operative NSW Liberal confrere?  Well, he was just doing what he claimed felt (poor naive fellow) was in the best interests of his state.  However this was a rushed decision, one not in keeping with the desire not to throw Ms Gillard any Political Life-Rafts.  In truth, Abbott, who addressed reporters at the same time Gillard and O’Farrell fronted the media in Sydney, was caught out by Gillard’s education breakthrough.  For a moment it seemed old “one-trick Tony” was back.

Such is the binary nature of politics that Abbott’s unvarnished displeasure betrayed the full extent of Gillard’s achievement.  Not that her achievement is likely to change Gillard’s fortunes overnight. Rather, it was a case of better late than never.

Read more: www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/gillards-deal-on-gonski-a-case-of-better-late-than-never-20130423-2icbd.html#ixzz2RSsrRoeu

You see when 2. Occurred I appealed to the O’Farell Government to not allow this and proved they did not need to accept it.  I sent this to them:

Please take the time to read and react to this as we have a short window of opportunity.  Let’s stand against PM Gillard and stop her plan to give Bob Carr a free walk into Federal Politics.

Vacancies are filled though appointment by joint sittings of the relevant state or territory parliament. The party for which the departing member was elected puts forward one candidate to the joint sitting, and the state or territory parliament accepts the one nomination.

There is no convention that a party must put forward multiple candidates.  There is no way the parliament can put forward a candidate that is not the accepted nominee of the party whose member retired.

There is only one loophole. The Parliament can fail to appoint anyone.

This arose in 1987 when the Tasmanian Parliament failed to appoint a replacement for Labor Senator Don Grimes.

I ask that you speak with NSW Liberals and ask them not to fill this position as it would be another slap in the face to allow the architect of NSW woes to be given a lucrative position for which he does not deserve and no one would vote for him to fill if they had a choice.

This is the one time we can have a say into who PM Gillard rewards her lackies, we need NSW Government to make this stand.

This was not ignored as I got a response, but they decided to let Gillard have her way yet again.  Why is it the O’Farell Government is falling into line with the Gillard Government so easily, do they not have the ticker for a scrap, or is it they not as right wing as we felt when we employed them ?  It will be a matter of challenging this Government at the next election, with a NEW right wing Party.  One that can wake them up to the fact, we did not want yet another left wing Government, no matter what they call themselves.

The AG foughta tough against crime campaign and then become a puppy dog and did nothing to help. The Health Minister has done nothing to address the single biggest issue in Australia, our Health care crisis.  And instead of helping to fund Health Care, O’Farrell has now committed 1.7 billion for further Education reforms under the Gonski Review pretext.  The strange thing is Gonski is standing up and saying this is wrong because Gillard is robbing Peter to pay Paul, yet Mt O’Farrell decides this is great ???.

Just recently I have found it hard to get his name right and have caught myself on a few ocassions about to call him Barry O’Flannery, because there is a similarity in their thinking judging by his decisions of late.

Mr. O’Farrell you have hung your support with the Gillard regime, however, you will discover at the next election people will not forget, I will ensure that for one, and people do not forgive this betrayal of your Party.

John Arnold,

Never take a knife to a gunfight and always remember to have the biggest bloody gun there!

Roll of Honour – Allan Robert Hansen

Service number: 214329

Rank: Private

Unit: 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment

Service: Australian Army

Conflict: Vietnam, 1962-1975

Date of death: 25 October 1965

Place of death: South Vietnam

Cause of death: Killed in action

Cemetery or memorial details: Rookwood Crematorium, Sydney, New South Wales

Source: AWM153 Roll of Honour cards, Vietnam

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/national-news/julia-gillard-warns-boao-forum-in-china-of-growing-military-threat-to-asia-pacific/story-fncynjr2-1226614159016#ixzz2PrVU0iD2

Then this is where we are now, we are telling Communists about the threats of Communism in the Asian region ? Somehow I feel there is a possibility they may already know the truth behind any possible threats in their area, who they have been secretly funding, and who their enemy will be if they must take sides. In the meanwhile they are laughing at Australia who is led by a Communist Party, and most of Australians pretend not to notice it. Or have we really reached a point where half of Australia are Communists?  Why else would they possibly support a Government like this. A Government that is half full of people that questions are being asked about their dealings in the past, a Government with members who have Criminal Proceedings in progress.

However, Communism has become smarter, it now relies on the greed in human nature to allow it to spread. It works at increasing wages, increasing Pensions and attacking those in the upper pay scale to pay greater tax to fund this. It has reached a point where the Poverty line for a Single Parent with one child in 2012 was $514.80pf. Bow it may be just me, but when $500 a fortnight is the Poverty Line, I believe our cost of Living is unable to be sustained. And who is it that keeps pushing these costs up….’The LEFT’.

Besides wanting higher wages and 12 months Parental leave on full pay, they want the Taxpayer to pay for it. Why does this matter some say. Well if wages go up, prices go up of course. and once prices go up the Poverty line goes up also, and the wage increase has meant nothing. Of course our Tax has a need to increase in order to pay for the higher costs of everything including Pensions, which don’t automatically go up, yet they suffer the most from the union pushes for higher wages, and so the circle moves on. And the Wolf howls once more into the night.

It has again successfully made people feel the pain of increasing costs, and it is disguised as the lamb fighting for better wages for the lower income earners. Something we must accept, we will always have lower income earners, it is why costs are kept at acceptable levels and will stop cost of living from increasing too much, while keeping the Poverty Line at a lower level.  People earning these wages also work in less challenging employment, which helps to keep costs down in Manufacture etc, meaning we are able to compete in Australia, with other countries. And yet again the Wolf howled as it pushed prices up with wages and taxes until many Manufacturers to survive were forced overseas.

So what can be done, well to start with these Unions need to be locked out as Howard did previously, and allow the employer to set a reasonable wage for their staff, which should be no less than a minimum National wage rate. Again Howard had a similar system in place, but a Union scare campaign made people think this was a bad thing.  It is always a tough call with attacking wage Rises, especially when Both sides of Politics snatched up their own disgraceful pay rises without a whimper, how can we expect them to fight pay rises for others in order to stop wages pushing cost of living through the roof…OMG a Pack of Wolves just howled.

After the Howard crowd, we never had the smarts to see what the next step would be, and this opposition have always been reactive, instead of being ahead of the game.  Otherwise it would have fought the Government over their pay increases looking for a 50% less pay increase.  This would show them to be more in line with peoples perception and show a willingness to sacrifice for the Australian people.

This will never happen now and trust in both sides of Politics over their Wages and Conditions have taken a severe beating.  Only by taking pay increases to the people for approval will ever repair this damage, caused by what is fast becoming the scourge of Australia…Greed.

We have Asylum seeker numbers not only increasing to unmanageable levels we have a boat almost reach the mainland, and another reach the WA Mainland recently.  This is not a result of poor policy, it is a result of treachery in dismantling a Policy that was successful in stopping the influx, another Wolf joins the pack. In order to deal with the influx, we have increased the amount of detention Centres, we have used motels to house Asylum Seekers, we have, used Nursing Homes to house Asylum Seekers, and now we have them in housing receiving $500 per week plus other benefits, up until July 2012, we had 19,590 of these. in the past year these numbers are higher still and of course the tragedy of more deaths at sea.

If you do not want the Wolf sitting at YOUR door, vote against Labor and against the Greens, otherwise the Pack mentality will continue to ruin our country.

” MAGGIE WE LOVE YOU !”

When the plane touched down  there were three groups separated  by partitions from each other .

On the left was a small ugly group of leftist demonstrators yelling foul abuse.

Ironically in the middle were the pathetic pair of hopeless losers and values free conservatives – Qld. Premier Mike Ahern and Brisbane Mayor SillyAnne Atkinson (this seemed almost like an unintentional joke as the contrast to the character and strength of the Iron Lady could not be more obvious).

On the right were our intrepid band of conservative students proudly cheering and applauding the arrival of a true world hero.

Mike Ahern and SillyAnne beckoned to the great lady to come towards them and get into the official black car that was waiting.

Instead she spotted and  heard our group and ignoring the hapless duo … detoured over to say hullo …. as she moved down the line she was shaking all our hands and making us all feel that we were the special people there and not her.

I heard several comments she made :

“Wonderful to see you” … ”Where are you from ?…” Oh the University – Isn’t that Marvellous !” …  ”Thank you for coming” … when she got down to the end where I was … the foul comments from the ignored lefties opposite were becoming truly offensive ..  outraged I felt the need to apologise to her  for their vile and very personal comments. She  was serenely unconcerned. “Don’t you pay it any mind… I don’t … they don’t actually believe anything … these young people here are just the foot soldiers for a few committed leftist masters that control them. Those few of course are purely marxists and their hatred is totally ideological .. it’s not really personal at all … nothing to concern yourself about…

And with that note of wisdom (and finishing shaking all our hands) she was finally whisked away by 2 people who have rightly been consigned to historical obscurity due to their manifest mediocrity, and to the continued distress and curses of the rabid lefties opposite.

The smaller group of lefties were featured by all the news channels that night. However, our smiles and signs were actually featured on channel 7 that night. I think i still have a VHS tape of that report somewhere .. I kept the sign “MAGGIE WE LOVE YOU ” in the boot of my Datsun for probably 2 years afterwards.

I will never forget it …

David Goodridge.

The first enemy attack on Australian soil in the history of the Commonwealth of Australia occurred at 9.58am on Thursday 19 February 1942. The small Northern Territory town of Darwin suffered an air-raid attack by 188 Japanese aircraft. At the time of the attack the civilian population numbered less than 2000.

The man who had led the attack on Pearl Harbour, Mitsuo Fuchida, was in command of this first attack on Darwin. It had been launched from four carriers, Akagi, Soryu, Hiryu and Kaga, about 500km to the northwest.

The increased advance of the Japanese war-machine after Pearl Harbour, some efforts were made to increase the defence of the Darwin area. Darwin was base for the 7th Military District of Australia. Larrakeyah Barracks contained men of the 23rd Australian Infantry Brigade. There were also two Australian Infantry anti-aircraft batteries. The important RAN base at Darwin included a floating dock. The RAAF was represented at a base, built in 1940, 8km south of Darwin.

Unfortunately, a radar station at Dripstone Caves outside Darwin was not yet operational. Radar at this time was a  newly invented aid, however, this was eventually of great help in forestalling subsequent air attacks on Darwin.

Civil defence left much to be desired. By late December most white and Asian women and children had been evacuated from the town. Little thought seemed to have been given to the large Aboriginal population. They were expected to fend for themselves, and it was expected they would return to the relative safety of their outlying Communities.

The white women who stayed, about 63, were for the most part employed in essential services, such as nursing and telegraphy. Some civilians and organisations had dug slit trenches and there had been several trial air-raid alarms, but overall defences were completely inadequate. A tragedy of errors was about to unfold.

By late February Port Darwin had become an important staging point for ship convoys and aircraft on their way to the fighting to the north-west. The port was particularly crowded on the 19th February.

A convoy of ships carrying Australian and American troops and supplies, escorted by USS Houston, had returned to port after an attack by Japanese aircraft and submarines. (Their objective had been embattled Timor). This added to the congestion of the port, which contributed to the large number of casualties that followed.

Coastwatchers, often civilian and largely unknown and unsung, proved to be a vital part of the Australian war effort.  Forty-three minutes before the bombing, John Gribble, a coastwatcher on Melville Island, radioed the naval station that a large number of aircraft was flying toward Darwin. A few minutes later, Father John McGrath, of the Catholic mission station on Bathurst Island, radioed Lou Curnock of the Darwin Australian Amalgamated Wireless station reporting a similar message. Curnock immediately transmitted this to the RAAF. These warnings were not acted upon, thus increasing the number of casualties as ships and planes were not moved.

The RAAF Operations Centre was not concerned. Despite the different direction from which the planes were travelling the RAAF officers believed that the aircraft were American P40 Kittyhawks which had been forced by bad weather to return from a sortie to Timor.

In fact, nine of the ten US Kittyhawks were approaching the airfield as the Japanese Zeros flew in and the Kittyhawks were shot down immediately. Four US pilots were killed in the initial attack. The airbase was therefore unable to mount any counterattack. It was up to the anti-aircraft batteries to try to defend the town. Although they kept up a continuous barrage from their gun emplacements, only one Japanese aeroplane was shot down by their fire.

The main target for the first attack was Darwin’s harbour. There were upwards of 47 ships in the port, including the US destroyer Peary. Within minutes Peary had been sunk with a loss of 80 lives. Sunk also was the large US transport Meigs, though with a loss of only two lives. The Australian ship Neptuna, formerly a passenger vessel, was hit. Loaded with heavy explosives, it blew up with a terrifying explosion. The ship’s captain, William Michie, and 45 crew members were killed. Five merchant ships were sunk. The hospital ship Manunda was hit but survived to play an important role in caring for the injured. a bomb fell through a number of decks before exploding, killing 12 people including Army nurse Sister Margaret de Mestre.

One of the most dramatic events of the affray involved HMAS Katoomba, a corvette being repaired in the floating dry dock. Although the ship was trapped in the dock its captain, Commander A.P. Cousin, RANR, ordered the 12-pounder high-angle gun and Vickers machine guns, together with rifle fire, to open up on the enemy dive bombers. Both ship and dock survived, largely undamaged.

Just before the air-raid alarm and the arrival of the Japanese planes, 70 waterside workers had been unloading the Neptuna and Barossa on the right-angled extension of the long pier. When the pier was hit many wharf labourers were marooned on the edge. Dozens of men were blown into the water only to have to swim through burning oil. Twenty-two are known to have died.

There were many heroic acts as the dead and dying and survivors were plucked from the water by men in small boats.

In the town the Post Office had been hit and nine peopled killed. These were the Postmaster, Hurtle Bald, his wife Alice, and daughter Iris, four women who had remained in their essential jobs as telephonists, Emily Young, Eileen and Jean Mullen, Freda Stasinowsky, their supervisor, Archibald Halls, and another PMG worker Arthur Wellington. The air-raid trench in which they had sought shelter in the Post Office garden had received a direct hit. Walter Rowling, a telephone technician, later died from injuries sustained in the raid.  Darwin Hospital was also bombed, fortunately with no loss of life.

The Administrator of the Northern Territory, Charles Abbott, his wife Hilda, and members of his staff sheltered from the bombing under Government House. Daisy Martin, an Aborigine, and one of the Administrator’s maids, died when a concrete block fell on her. All the others survived. There were some extraordinary stories of escape from injury, such as that related by Douglas Lockwood in his graphic book on the bombing, ‘Australia’s Pearl Harbour’.

Reginald Rattley, a telephone mechanic, had tried to shelter with the Postmaster’s group but found the trench too crowded. He then raced to shelter over the Esplanade cliff to the beach. As he jumped a bomb-blast lifted him bodily on to the sand where he landed in relative safety and remarkably uninjured.

By 10.30am the first raid was over. It had lasted just over half an hour.

The shocked surviving population, was just emerging from cover and trying to assess the damage and dig out the trapped and dead when, at 11.58am, the attack resumed.

The second raid was launched from land in the Celebs and Ambon, recently occupied by the Japanese. This time the airfield was the target, the Zeros strafing and saturation bombing the airstrip with its easily targeted, un-camouflaged aircraft. The remaining Kittyhawk was destroyed together with a Liberator, three Beechcraft, three US Navy Catalina’s, six RAAF Hudsons and a Tiger Moth. Surprisingly, only seven men were killed, including Wing-Commander Archihbald Tindal RAAF, who Tindal Air Base is named after in Katherine, NT.

Air Force and military personnel did not, on the whole, feature well in many of the events immediately following the end of the bombing. The lack of preparation, the lack of trust in a Coastwatchers report, and the lack of leadership and control of the aftermath meant a recipe for panic

Hundreds of Darwin civilians acted the way many people do under war conditions: they became refugees, leaving the town by any means they could. But many RAAF personnel also fled. Nearly 50 years later, the events of 19 February 1942 at the RAAF base are still not fully explained.

It seems that immediately after the bombing the commander, Wing-Commander Stuart Griffiths, gave an order for the men to “go half a mile down the road to Adelaide Waters and half a mile into the bush”. Among many of the largely undisciplined and thoroughly scared airmen, this order was taken as ‘go bush’ meaning they disappeared and many not seen in Darwin again. One is reported to have kept going until he arrived in Melbourne thirteen days later.

By the weekend order had been restored, but not until after some extraordinary behaviour. There had been widespread looting of the deserted houses and businesses by civilians and military men of the Australian Army Provost Corps. Some of the looting was justified on the grounds that goods were being requisitioned for military use. There are, however, stores of refrigerators, pianos and other valuable items being sent south to the families of the looters.

Within days a Royal Commissioner, Mr Justice Lowe of the Supreme Court of Victoria, was appointed to investigate both the civil defence implications and the behaviour of civilians and servicemen. Among the findings of the Lowe Report, which was not released until 1945, were that 243 people had been killed and between 300 and 400 injured, that earlier warnings would have saved lives, and that “unfortunate panic” was rife among civilians and servicemen.

It is often forgotten that the air-raids of 19 February were only the first of more than 60 raids over the next eighteen months, although none was as severe as those of 19 February. The last raid took place on 12 November 1943. The Japanese also bombed several other northern Australian towns. On 3 March the undefended Western Australian town of Broome suffered a devastating attack. Flying boats, loaded with refugee women and children from the Dutch East Indies, were destroyed and many lives lost. Later in the month the tiny town of Wyndham was bombed.

Darwin came under military control after 22 February. The Administrator left Darwin on 2 March for Alice Springs, from where the Territory was governed until 1945, when civil rule returned. The Darwin area became a large Allied base for the offensive to drive the Japanese back from South East Asia. On 28 March General Edmund Herring, just back from the Middle East, took command and from this time the area was adequately defended.

The initial bombing of Darwin on 19 February 1942 was both the first and the largest single attack mounted by a foreign power against Australia. On this day, 242 Japanese aircraft attacked ships in Darwin’s harbour and the town’s two airfields in an attempt to prevent the Allies from using them as bases to contest the invasions of Timor and Java. The town was only lightly defended, and the Japanese inflicted heavy losses upon the Allied forces at little cost to themselves. The urban areas of Darwin also suffered some damage from the raids, and there were a number of civilian casualties.

This event has often called the “Pearl Harbor of Australia”.  Although it was a less significant military target, a greater number of bombs were dropped on Darwin than were used in the attack on Pearl Harbor.  The Australian government downplayed the damage from the bombing raids on Darwin believing its publication would represent a psychological blow to the Australian population.   This of course has left many unaware of the extent of attacks on Australian soil, even today.  The raids were the first and largest of almost 100 air raids against Australia during 1942–43 which left over 330 Australians dead on our own shores.

What we seldom appreciate is the picture of an Australian nurse on that same day attending to hundreds of battered and bleeding men on the decks and in the confined wards of a hospital ship, many of which would have surely died without these wonderful nurses and their tireless efforts. Wounded men were ferried out to the Gascon lying off Anzac Cove.

Among these nurses, doctors and orderlies who attended them there, was Sister Ella Tucker, AANNS:

The wounded from the landing commenced to come on board at 9 am and poured into the ship’s wards from barges and boats. The majority still had on their field dressing and a number of these were soaked through. Two orderlies cut off the patient’s clothes and I started immediately with dressings. There were 76 patients in my ward and I did not finish until 2 am.

[Ella Tucker, in Barker, Nightingales in the Mud, p.30]

Ella Tucker stayed with the ship for the next nine months as it ferried over 8000 wounded and sick soldiers between the Gallipoli Peninsula and the hospitals on Imbros, Lemnos, Salonika, Alexandria, Malta and in England. An entry in her diary for a voyage in May reflects the stressed and, at times, almost surreal nature of her work:

Every night there are two or three deaths, sometimes five or six; its just awful flying from one ward into another … each night is a nightmare, the patients’ faces all look so pale with the flickering ship’s lights.

[Ella Tucker, in Bassett, Guns and Brooches, p.44]

On the hospital ships off Gallipoli, Australian nurses came face to face for the first time with the reality of war the horrendous number of wounded. Some of the nurses realised their nursing training and skills were lacking for this kind of reality. The very notion of the glory of war was sadly knocked out of them on the 25 April 1915 washed away in the blood of our wounded soldiers .

Working on the hospital ship Sicilia Sister Lydia King confided to her diary:

I shall never forget the awful feeling of hopelessness on night duty. It was dreadful. I had two wards downstairs, each over 100 patients and then I had small wards upstairs — altogether about 250 patients to look after, and one orderly and one Indian sweeper. Shall not describe their wounds, they were too awful. One loses sight of all the honour and the glory in the work we are doing.

[Lydia King, in Goodman, Our War Nurses, p.39]

Although serving on a hospital ship was the closest the Australian nurses came to the fighting during the Gallipoli campaign. The strain of sheer numbers of wounded, the emotional pain of looking after some 250 wounded soldiers each, meant they were fighting their own campaign in Gallipoli alongside so many of our wounded ANZACS, aboard these ships.  Even in the comparative safety of such ships, they were sometimes in danger.

On 11 August 1915, Sister Daisy Richmond was nearly killed:

We return to Imbros to discharge our light cases, once more return to be refilled … We are well under fire many bullets coming on the decks. I was speaking to one boy, moved away to another patient when a bullet hit him and lodged in his thigh. It just missed.

[Daisy Richmond, in Cheryl Mongan and Richard Reid, We have not forgotten, p.152]

These Gallipoli hospital ships deposited their patients general hospitals on the nearby Greek islands of Imbros and Lemnos, or at Alexandria, 1050 km away in Egypt.
Among the tent cities on Lemnos was No 3 Australian General Hospital (AGH) where Matron Grace Wilson and her staff of 96 AANS nurses tended Australian and Allied wounded.

On Lemnos, Matron Wilson and her nurses experienced the inefficiency of military administration in relation to the hospital.  In her diary she described the steady flow of new patients during the August 1915 offensive on Gallipoli and the effect that lack of proper equipment and supplies had on the care of the wounded:

9 August — Found 150 patients lying on the ground — no equipment whatever … had no water to drink or wash.

10 August — >Still no water … convoy arrived at night and used up all our private things, soap etc, tore up clothes [for bandages].

11 August — Convoy arrived — about 400 — no equipment whatever … Just laid the men on the ground and gave them a drink. Very many badly shattered, nearly all stretcher cases … Tents were erected over them as quickly as possible … All we can do is feed them and dress their wounds … A good many died … It is just too awful — one could never describe the scenes — could only wish all I knew to be killed outright.

[Grace Wilson, in Bassett, Guns and Brooches, p.46]

Nurse Louise Young wrote of the difficulties they experienced on the island:

The travelling kitchens would burn on windy days, and people got dysentery from the Greek bread … we did not even have a bath tent as water was so short, and as well the centipedes were very bad! Our hair used to be full of burrs, and in the end many girls cut their hair short. It saved a lot of trouble.

[Louise Young in Bassett, Guns and Brooches, p. 8]

The exposed to the elements position of No 3 AGH meant strong winds and rain added to the discomfort. On 21 October five tents were blown down — four nurses’ tents and one ward tent. Sister Louise Young remembered the weeks around Christmas 1915 when the winds seemed to howl continually across Lemnos:

Hardly a night or day did not pass that a tent did not collapse altogether … I don’t think I shall ever get over my dread of wind again, night after night, every bit of canvas creaking, shaking, straining and your mind always wondering which would collapse next.

[Louise Young in Bassett, Guns and Brooches, p. 48]

An observation from a soldier staying on Lemnos for a short R&R commented:

What a relief and pleasure it was to see the girls of our land after six months of roughing it at Anzac. They made the place look quite bright with their pretty uniforms. They were bricks to stick at Mudros like they did for I can tell you they had some rough times there. They even had to live on bully beef and biscuits at times and time after time their tents would be blown down in a raging rain storm and they would turn to help and put them up again in the pouring rain. Their first thought was for the sick and wounded men and they looked after them splendidly. One cannot praise our nurses too highly. They were bonzer girls.

they may had a rough time of it on Lemnos, one of the nurses spoke for many, Nellie Pike was grateful for the opportunity to use her skills in a forward zone:

We were all glad to be taking part in the great adventure. They were grim and tragic, but somehow inspiring days.

[Nellie Pike, in Barker, Nightingales in the Mud, p.42]

We should all remember the courage shown by these marvellous nurses, for they had a different battle to fight, but the effect on morale, the cheer they continued to show to the wounded, the grace they showed under such harrowing conditions, and their dedication to the wounded ANZACS showed they were up to this battle.  True their greatest battle was a mental battle, but in many ways this is the battle that more difficult to fight, especially under such a barrage of wounded and dying soldiers, yet these angels dealt with it tremendously and never failed a wounded soldier in need of their services.

Lest We Forget

On June 24th Australia experienced one of its most tumultuous days in federal politics since Gough Whitlam was dismissed by Governor General John Kerr. Only this time it was a Fabian socialist moving into the Prime Minister’s chair, rather than being ejected out of it, that was making all the headlines. Julia Gillard may be Australia’s first female PM but, more importantly, her biography indicates that some of her past associations are even redder than her Prime Ministerial hairdo.

Julia Eileen Gillard was born on 29th September 1961 in Barry, Wales. When Julia was four years old her family (father John, mother Moira and older sister Alison) immigrated to Adelaide, partly because doctors believed the warmer climate would help young Julia recover from bronchopneumonia. In Adelaide she attended Unley High School and then went on to the University of Adelaide. Her father John became an avid supporter of the pink ‘hot-shorts’ wearing Premier of South Australia, the ALP’s Don Dunstan, known for his extreme socially progressive views.

Julia Eileen Gillard was born on 29th September 1961 in Barry, Wales.

Julia’s political career really began in her University days. After becoming heavily involved in Labor student activism in her second year at Adelaide Uni she then transferred to the University of Melbourne in 1982.  Her prominence within the student-left reached its zenith when she became President of the Australian Union of Students, the umbrella representative group for student politicians around the country.  Shortly after this she became Secretary of a far Left-Wing faction called the Socialist Forum which was started as an intra-Labor pressure group in 1984.

Julia says Bob Hawke is her “role model”
her “gold standard” for running Australia

Julia Gillard’s official parliamentary disclosure page has listed among  her continuing affiliations the Fabian Society of Australia.  Bob  Hawke, one of Julia Gillard’s political heroes, was a proud Fabian Socialist during his Prime Ministership. In fact, at a very recent party overlooking Sydney Harbour on 12th July (to launch a book by Hawke’s wife, Blanche d’Alpuget) Julia Gillard, proclaimed Hawke her “role model” and the “gold standard” for running Australia! In 1984, at a one hundred year anniversary gala event for the Fabians, Bob Hawke famously remarked, “I gladly acknowledge the debt of my own government to Fabianism…

The Wolf in Sheeps Clothing
The Fabian Socialists Society
(founded 1884)

The Fabian Society acknowledges the principal tenet of Marxism, the abolition of private property, in this case to own land. They then  align themselves with the non-violent arm of Marxism by accepting the non-violent road of patient gradualism to total government.” Gillard was involved in the far-left Socialist Forum from 1984-1987 (hardly a‘minor blip’ during her formative political action training  years). It is interesting that the Communist Party in Victoria adopted incremental Fabianism over revolutionary goals in 1984, with future PM Julia Gillard at the vanguard of the CPA splinter group Socialist Forum. It has the makings of political- action-thriller novel. It could be titled 1984! (Literary critics have actually suggested that Orwell set his novel in 1984 because it represented the 100th anniversary of Fabianism).

Although Gillard may not be married in the traditional sense we can see she has had several long term committed relationships with atheism, adultery, feminism and Fabianism during her political life. and has been able to ruin others marriages by having affairs with a few married men as well.

It seems Shorten and Gillard have increased their strength, having just discarded Julia’s long term mentor and father figure Simon Crean who was humiliated after forcing Julia Gillard to have a Leadership spill and declaring his alliance with Rudd only to discover no one nominating for these top jobs and leaving him exposed to the Gillard wrath.  At least the spill that will occur in September will see this mob annialated by the very people they loathe, the Australian public.

The pair are currently engaged in intense debate about a man who died roughly 60,000 years ago, by the shores of once-verdant Lake Mungo in south-eastern NSW. More specifically, they are arguing about the DNA of a man, now named  Mungo Man.

In a technical attempt to win this debate, a team led by Thorne has extracted and analysed parts of a single gene from Mungo Man. More stunning still, the researchers claim that what they discovered is that the man’s DNA is unlike anything they have ever seen. While Mungo Man was undoubtedly fully modern anatomically, he came from a genetic lineage that is now extinct.

Thorne claims that the findings support his theoretical point of view and discredit Groves’ position entirely. Groves, disagrees and because the finding is so unexpected, scientists around the world have joined the fray.

Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the African continent around 60,000 years ago, and arrived in Australia around 50,000 years ago.  The Torres Strait Islanders are indigenous to the Torres Strait Islands, which are at the northern-most tip of Queensland near Papua New Guinea. The term “Aboriginal” has traditionally been applied to indigenous inhabitants of mainland Australia, Tasmania, and some of the other adjacent islands.

But what did it mean? Well, ANU evolutionary geneticist Simon Easteal set about analysing the DNA from Mungo Man and comparing it with sequences of the same gene from the other early Australians, not to mention 45 living Aboriginal people, 3,453 people from around the world, two European Neanderthals, and finally chimps and bonobos, or pygmy chimps.

Easteal produced a likely “evolutionary tree” for the gene, which is only passed on by women. It went like this: first to branch off were the chimps and bonobos; next the Neanderthals, then Mungo Man’s clan, and after that,the common ancestor of all people alive today.

In other words, Mungo Man’s gene is extinct. According to the out-of-Africa model he should have had a gene like everybody else. But there he was, a physically modern man living in Australia 60,000 years ago with a defunct gene that probably appeared well before the most recent common ancestor of all of us.

So there it lies, Mungo Man appears to precede the known Australian Aborigine, and therefore we CANNOT regard them as Indigenous, they colonised this country prior to the English, however, they were not Indigenous to this land as it is long accepted they came from Papua/New Guinea, and Indonesian origins.

For it is said  “It is in truth we shall truly be freed”

This current State Tasmanian Government is a doozy.  I mean I’ve seen some catastrophes in my time, but this Gidding Government would be the most amateurish, incompetent and arrogant of them all. In bed with the Greens the Giddings Labour Government ignores the terrible economic plight of the State and rushes ahead to implement very left wing and trendy legislation.  No matter that small businesses are closing up; no matter that people cannot pay their power and water bills; no matter that unemployment is rising; no matter that the timber, primary and mining industry are not sure what their future is; no matter there is no longer any manufacturing industry; no matter of the social problems, such as drugs and crime, but let’s be concern over minority groups and radicals.

In a landmark piece of idiocy, the Giddings government is endorsing a new policy in which current names will be replaced by aboriginal names.  In deception they released information to the press stating this will be duel names and this is bad enough, but according to the Opposition these manufactured modern aboriginal place names will actually replace existing names.  This is madness and all to please the radical Tasmanian Aboriginal Council (TAC) led by notorious Michael Mansell.  Said Heather Sculthorpe for the TAC “History doesn’t start from the English invaders.”  Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Green Member Cassy O’Connor said it is “a significant step in reconciliation” yet Sculthorpe’s comments are anything but reconciliation.  The fact of the matter is, this is all political and has got nothing to do with culture.  The likes of Tamar River, Mount Welling and the Great Lake besides others will be changed to unprounceable names which have no historic aboriginal base.  They are manufactured and will only produce confusion. It is just plain un-necessary.  This is when an extreme left wing government gets in.  The Giddings, O’Connors and Michelle O’Byrne, whom we shall soon mention, have no real life experience, are all young, have no family and have just got no idea of the reality of how people live.

Minister Michelle O’Byrne is introducing a pro abortion Bill modelled on the disastrous Victorian State one, but by all account it is worse.

Michelle O’Byrne says “The plan will give women greater access to terminations and will provide legal certainty. Currently an exemption under the Criminal Code means women can undergo a termination only after the approval of two doctors and counselling. The change will mean women no longer face the threat of criminal charges. Tasmania’s laws were based on British laws from the 1800s.”

The Opposition has described a plan to increase women’s access to abortion as an attempted distraction from the State Government’s problems. Liberal MP Jeremy Rockliff has says the Government is trying to divert attention from Tasmania’s economic problems.

He adds, “The distraction of even the abortion legislation today, of course we’ll make a contribution to that and a very considered one, and passionate debates of all sides when it comes to these matter of conscience vote,” he said. “But really the government needs to wake up.’ Public consultation on the bill closes on March 22.”

The problem is that the Giddings decadent and hopeless government knows their days are numbered, so they are pushing through their trendy legislation as quick as they can before they are tossed out by a landslide.  There has to be, however, some legislation introduced which can, by the consent of the people, throw out an incompetent government before the next election.  Otherwise without this people power all we have is “electoral dictatorship”.

REG.

The second year of the Second World War began with a series of impressive British and Commonwealth victories in North Africa. In January 1941 the Australian 6th Division led the British advance eastwards into Libya, capturing first the Italian fortress at Bardia and then Tobruk. By the end of the month they had advanced over 500 kilometres and captured tens of thousands of Italian soldiers. By mid-February, the British had destroyed the remaining Italian forces in eastern Libya. The fortunes of war, however, can turn quickly.

With the Allies on a roll the German troops were withdrawn to Tripoli, and a new Commander was assigned to rally their troops and lead a counter offensive. This fairly unknown man was Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel

After their initial success, the British Commonwealth forces in Libya were either withdrawn to support the forthcoming Greek campaign or were in need of rest  and refit. The Australian 6th Division, for example, was relieved in March, destined for Greece, and replaced by another Australian division, the untested 9th Division.

Rommel realised the British were overstretched and went on the offensive. As the Germans began advancing in late March, British and Australian troops fell back  towards Tobruk and the Egyptian border. During the confused withdrawal, which became known as the “Benghazi handicap”, the two most senior British generals in Libya were captured, along with many other troops. On 10 April, shortly after the last Australians entered Tobruk, along the perimeter the first shots were exchanged with the Germans; they and the Italians began encircling the fortress. By the afternoon of the 11th, Good Friday, Tobruk was surrounded. The siege  had begun.

The garrison now included more than 14,000 Australians from the 9th Division, and the 7th Division’s 18th Brigade, who had arrived in Tobruk by road and sea from Egypt on 7 April. The Australians were supported by British artillery, machinegunners, a handful of tanks and armoured cars, and an Indian regiment.

During the night of Easter Sunday, 13–14 April, a group of German machine-gunners infiltrated the Red Line Party of a 45kilometer outer perimeter near Post R33. The 2/17th Battalion’s Lieutenant Austin Mackell led Corporal Jack Edmondson, Private Ron Grant and four other men in a bayonet charge against the intruders. “There seemed to be bombs going off everywhere,” Grant wrote to his father afterwards, “& with a blood-curdling shout we tore into them.” Vicious hand-to-hand fighting ensued. Although mortally wounded, Edmondson saved Mackell’s life and killed several Germans.

He was carried back to R33 but died during the early hours of the 14th. Twenty-six-year-old Edmondson was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross, the first awarded to an Australian during the war.

The main German attack came before dawn. Coming up from the south, German tanks and troops broke through the perimeter between Posts R33 and R35. The tanks were engaged by artillery and anti-tank guns, and were either destroyed or turned back. Remaining steadfast in their posts, the Australian infantry inflicted heavy casualties on the German troops.

Major John Balfe described the hellish scene to war correspondent Chester Wilmot.

The crossing was badly churned up and the tanks raised clouds of dust as they went. In addition, there was the smoke of two tanks blazing outside the wire. Into this cloud of dust and smoke we fired anti-tank weapons, Brens, rifles,  and mortars, and the gunners sent hundreds of shells. We shot up a lot of infantry as they tried to get past, and many who took refuge in the anti-tank ditch were later captured.

Tobruk’s garrison won a brief reprieve. As the dust settled, the 9th Division’s Major General Leslie Morshead became the fortress commander, taking over from another Australian, Major General John Lavarack, who had helped organise Tobruk’s initial defence. Despite looking like a businessman, which he was in civilian life, Morshead was every inch a general. Slight of build and with a strong personality, he believed in leadership, discipline, and hard work. His men referred to him as “Ming the Merciless”.

The most important feature of Morshead’s tactics for defence was the aggressive spirit. “If we should have to get out,” he told his men, “we shall fight our way  out. There is to be no surrender and no retreat.” If the enemy’s armour broke through the Red Line, the defenders were not to retreat they were to remain solid in their posts and attack the enemy infantry. Patrolling would be carried out every night. Morshead was determined that Tobruk would be defended thoroughly. These defences were to be continually improved. About three kilometres within the outer perimeter, a second defensive line, the Blue Line, was gradually dug and wired. A third line, the Green Line, was also developed closer to the town. Hoping for a quick victory, Rommel had been reckless in his Easter attack. Three weeks later, he tried again. This time, though, it was a deliberate and well coordinated attack. The Germans succeeded in capturing the south-western corner of the Red Line, the high ground around the Ras el Madauuar feature (Hill 209). After four days of fighting, from 30 April to 4 May, the Germans held a pocket about 5.5 kilometres wide and 4 kilometres deep, an area which became known as “the Salient”. Thrust and counterthrust cost the Germans and Italians nearly 1,000 casualties, with almost 800 casualties to Tobruk’s garrison.  As efficient a Desert Warfare Commander was to become, he had met a Allied Commander who was a master in the tactics of Defence. and no ground was to be made on their line without a significant loss of enemy forces.

Morshead refused to concede any ground. In June and August the Australians repeatedly tried to recapture the lost posts. Each attack was beaten back with heavy losses. Some of the worst fighting at Tobruk took place in the bullet-raked Salient. In some places, only a few hundred metres separated the Germans from the Australians. The 2/12th Battalion’s Corporal Geoffrey Lowe put it simply: “You couldn’t move in daytime, you’d be shot.”

The fighting had became a patrolling war. The Australians dominated no man’s land. Each night groups of Australians went out beyond the wire into no man’s land to carry out reconnaissance, raid the enemy’s lines and capture prisoners. Patrols were frequently supported by the artillery, tanks and tracked carriers. This ceaseless and aggressive patrolling was one of Morshead’s key strategies. “I determined we should make no man’s land our land,” he told Wilmot. “We’re not here to ‘take it’, we’re here to ‘give it’.” Morshead’s policy of making the “besiegers the besieged” kept the enemy at arm’s length and prevented them from observing the Australian lines.

“We just lived in holes in the ground and it was filthy sand,” recalled Sergeant Max Thow, 2/12th Battalion. “We had sand in our mouths, we had sand in our food, we had sand in our clothes.” Not surprisingly the propagandist for Germany, William Joyce, better known as Lord Haw-Haw, began describing the besieged men as living like rats in underground dug-outs and caves. The men responded by adopting the name the Rats of Tobruk with defiant pride.

The 2/13th Battalion became crucially involved in the fight from 29 November to 1 December, they participated in the recapture of Ed Duda ridge in a night bayonet attack. They then helped hold the ridge, despite heavy enemy artillery fire. The ferocity left even veterans of the earlier Tobruk battles lost for words. “We were shelled continually for two days,” wrote Private Arthur Armstrong. “It was terrible, I can’t describe it.” Fierce fighting took place but the Germans and Italians were gradually worn down.  On 7 December Rommel was finally forced to abandon the siege, falling back towards Tripoli.

The siege had lasted for 242 days, from 10 April until 7 December 1941. It was one of the longest sieges in British military history. Holding Tobruk had been an epic of endurance and an impressive feat of arms, but it came at a heavy cost. Between April and October, the garrison suffered nearly 4,000 casualties – mostly Australian. More were killed and wounded during the siege’s final weeks. The total losses for Morshead’s 9th Division and supporting troops, from March until December, were 832 men killed, with 2,177 wounded and 941 taken prisoner.

However the Aussie legend as formidable fighting men continued to flourish and in the 9 month siege of Tobruk our Aussie laconic humour meant they adopted the name of
‘The Rats of Tobruk’ killing off the propaganda ‘Lord Haw-Haw’ had been trying to spin for the way they were living during this siege.

Lin Thorp appears to be a bit of a Phoenix.  In the State Labor Government after serving for 12 inglorious years, the people decided they did not want her, and she lost her seat to Liberal candidate in a landslide.  Fair enough, the people decided she was not the best person to represent them, however, after a special Emily’s List handshake she was given a suddenly vacant Senate seat with the Federal Government.

Now Ms Thorp must have a sterling career as:

• Minister for Human Services, 2008–2010
• Minister for Education and Skills 2010–2011
• Minister for Children 2010–2011
• Minister for Police and Emergency Management 2010–2011

Well maybe not so sterling after all.  She managed to play the field with Ministerial portfolios in 2010 – 2011, and was so effective was voted out of office in 2011.

Of course the fact this person who failed to impress in State Politics and Tasmanian Premier Lara Giddings and Children’s Minister Lin Thorp have both publicly apologised to former children’s commissioner Paul Mason. The apology comes after Ms Thorp publicly revealed Mr Mason’s confidential interview details, saying he was ranked fourth out of five candidates when he reapplied for his job. Last October, Mr Mason gave Ms Thorp a scathing report about her department’s failures after a 12-year-old Hobart girl was sold for sex while she was a ward of the state.

About a week later Mr Mason was told he no longer had a job.

It would seem Ms Thorp deserved the massive 18% swing against her in the 2011 election and with a resounding defeat handed out by the Tasmania electors, you would expect her career to be over.  However as a result of the right connections and playing in the same sandbox with the PM, she obtained her Phoenix label when in 2012 her EL comrades and the ALP gave her a retiring Senators position in the Federal Government.

It is difficult to understand how a Minister who so badly let down a 12-year-old who was sold for sex to more than a 100 men in Hobart between August and September 2009 by her 41-year-old mother and Glenorchy man Gary John Devine, especially given she was accepting the money of Minister for Children could be given a position in the Federal Senate.

Forget any Divine intervention being a cause as she is not a Christian.  Therefore the only links to have helped her to put behind the fact her electorate dumped her so conclusively with a massive swing of 18%, mainly after her dealing with her Department’s letting down a 12 year old Child in Danger.  At the time the girl and another younger sister were under protective orders. The order was due to end in October but she was allowed to return to her mother in June.  A child that was still at risk with a Mother still taking drugs and the mother,  allowed her 12 year old daughter to be sold for prostitution, and then exposed to the actions of a friend of the Mother a predator named Gary John Devine, and yet Ms Thorp and her Department did nothing to protect her.  The girl’s mother and pimp Gary Devine are in prison serving 10-year sentences for selling her. But this story gets worse.

The Supreme Court has been told the 12-year-old girl former MP Terry Martin had sex with was pimped by convicted criminal Garry John Devine.  However, TERRY Martin showed no sign of emotion and refused all requests for comment as he walked free from the Supreme Court in Hobart this afternoon after he was found guilty of having sex with a 12-year-old girl.

In a surprise move Justice David Porter chose not to jail the former MP and long-serving Glenorchy mayor instead handing him a 10-month suspended sentence back-dated to November 22 when he was taken into custody.

Martin was last week found guilty of having underage sex – with a 12-year-old girl prostituted by her mother and mother’s friend – in September, 2009.

He pleaded not guilty and argued from the start he believed the girl was 18.

This time a Minister colleague of Ms Thorp had sex with this child while she was in the care of her Department, and he was found guilty with no penalty.

But nothing was done to the then Minister for Children Lin Thorp and her Department in whose care this child was supposedly under at the time of these horrendous acts.  The Supreme Court has been told the 12-year-old girl formerMP Terry Martin had sex with was pimped by convicted criminal Garry John Devine. (ABC News)

But the Minister for Children, Lin Thorp, says an inquiry into child protection is unnecessary.

This type of failure is not unusual to Ms Thorp, she faced criticism for her involvement in the failed criminal case against the former head of the southern-based Sexual Assault Support Service.

The former head of the service, Karen Donnet-Jones, had stealing charges against her dismissed in August.  Police will now pay her legal costs.

Ms Donnet-Jones claims the Police Minister Lin Thorp – who was then the Minister for Human Services – is partly to blame for the matter going as far as it did.

Ms Donnet-Jones believes Ms Thorp avoided meeting her about the issue and believes the MP’s friendship with a SASS board member clouded her judgement.

The State Government has released 14 pages of the Commissioner for Children’s report into the prostitution of a 12-year-old ward of the state.  It found several government agencies, including Child Protection Services, were aware of risks facing the girl but failed to protect her.

The Opposition wants the Minister to resign, or be sacked.

Lin Thorp says she is staying on and will work hard to fix the system.

Now a strong government would never have thought seriously about giving Lin Thorp a position, however, this is NOT a strong Government, it is a toxic Government, and it did not hesitate to install her into the Senate position of a retiring Labor Senator. I for one have a real issue with her being looked after by her EL mates regardless of her failures or the wishes of the electorate, and certainly not with the Christian values we would expect from the Australian Government.  So maybe this is just a horrible mistake, a error of judgement from the EL supporters and the ALP, sadly though this is not an isolated case.

Ms Thorp no longer belongs in Politics after what she did to Mr Mason in a total and planned breach of his privacy, but more what she caused to happen to a 12 yo under state care by returning the child early to her mother, a heavy drugs user, who claimed she was no longer using, without any investigation into this statement by the mother, and once in the mothers care no follow ups to ensure the childs safety.  It was at this point the mother sold the daughter to a brothel where she was repeatedly raped and abused by up to 100 men when this 12 yo victim of Ms Thorp’s own Department had her as a ward of the state and gave her to her mother without any followup to ensure her safety.

When Ms Thorp’s unelected Senate seat comes up for election in September 2013 make sure the Senate is rid of of failed politicians like Ms Thorp and vote for the Right candidate you are certain will represent your views.

‘‘Our country was taken by superior force at gunpoint,’’ he said. ‘‘Blood has been spilt on the wattle and this war of attrition against Aboriginal people is continuing.’’ Mr Anderson said a well supported ‘‘Lest We Forget The Frontier Wars March’’ had joined on behind the Anzac Day March in Canberra last year. ‘We received enormous support from the public at the time, now we intend to keep it growing.’’ He has urged Aborigines who cannot travel to Canberra to stage similar protests at Anzac commemorations in their own home towns and communities. ‘‘We are subject to continued war of attrition, including urban warfare. Our people are dying in custody for crimes white people don’t usually go to jail for, minor driving offences.’’ These ‘wars’ were a conflict between the Aboriginal and white settlers of Australia and not a war where Australia was fighting against another Nation, therefore it does not meet the same criteria as the ANZAC day march, nor does it belong on the same day as this.    Mr Anderson, the last of the four men who founded the tent embassy in 1972 still alive, now lives in Goodooga in north western NSW. He is the leader of the Euahlayi people.

He has called on former Aboriginal servicemen to boycott the RSL march and, instead, take their place alongside their own people. ‘‘Those interested in joining us can gather at the lower end of Anzac Parade, Canberra, at 10am for the 11am March on April 25 and carry a banner for one of the wars or massacres that have occurred,’’ he said.  He said Mick Thorpe, the leader of last year’s ‘‘Frontier Wars’’ march in Canberra had worn his grandfather’s service medals, although this may well have been against what his grandfather fought so gallantly for. The Australian Defence Force honours past and present Aboriginal service personnel at a special ceremony in Canberra every year. Mr Anderson, wants Aboriginal people from across Australia to use the city’s Anzac Day march to protest against the massacres committed during the ‘frontier wars’. ‘‘Our country was taken by superior force at gunpoint,’’ he said. ‘‘Blood has been spilt on the wattle and his war of attrition against Aboriginal people is continuing.’’  Mr Anderson said a well supported ‘‘Lest We Forget The Frontier Wars March’’ had joined on behind the Anzac Day March in Canberra last year. These ‘wars’ were a conflict between the Aboriginal and white settlers of Australia and not a war where Australia was fighting against another Nation, therefore it does not meet the same criteria as the ANZAC day march, nor does it belong on the same day as this.    Throughout history around the world superior forces fought for pieces of land, it wasn’t a matter of colour, it was a matter of fighting for what they needed and believed in then. This has nothing to do with the ANZACS or any soldiers since, for they did not fight against anyone that was not an enemy of Australia or UK. In Australia the ‘ANZACs’ have hero status and Anzac Day is a day of many commemorations where Australia’s ex-servicemen and servicewomen march the streets. This article focuses on Australia’s Aboriginal war veterans and the Coloured Digger march which started in 2007. 500 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people joined in World War I, Sydney Morning Herald, 17/4/2007, An estimated number of 33% of Aboriginal soldiers who served overseas and were killed in action or died of wounds or disease . ‘Special recognition at Adelaide service’, Koori Mail 400 p.37,  it is in their name also that ANZAC day commemorates, or does Michael Anderson claim they don’t count and the effort and bravery they exhibited does not deserve proper recognition ? Accurate numbers might never be known as no record is known of how many Indigenous Australians served in the armed forces.  Many Aboriginal Diggers did not identify themselves as Indigenous when they joined the military because as Aboriginal people they may not have been allowed to join, or they wanted to avoid exposure to racism.  Instead they pretended to be Maori or Indian. When Aboriginal men and women who tried to enlist were rejected they were sent back to their communities and often arrested because they were not allowed to leave their prescribed area.  This was a sign of the times, however, regardless of this in WW1 500 Aboriginal diggers joined to fight for Australia, and they deserve the equality people like Michael Anderson is not allowing them by denigrating the war and trying to hijack ANZAC day celebrations of these war heroes . Now these Aboriginal diggers did not return to the respect and praise they should have, and people through their ignorance of the time, ignored their efforts, failing to recognise the fighting spirit and bravery they showed in war. Aboriginal people decided to draw attention to their history and organised Australia’s first Coloured Diggers March on Anzac Day (25th April 2007) in Redfern, Sydney, with hundreds of Indigenous veterans and their descendants marching along Redfern Street to St Saviour’s church in Sydney’s first Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Anzac Day parade. They were criticised for this as they could have participated in the main march, however, due to the past lack of acknowledgement a Coloured Diggers March was thought to be a good vessel to make the general population aware of the merits of Indigenous war veterans.   What they need most is honour, recognition and respect.

However, the good this has done, the awakening of people to the plight of these diggers which is being hurt through the actions of a few that want to dredge u the Frontier Wars at this time, instead of celebrating Australia’s heroic ANZACS For those who aren’t aware they refer to

Read more: http://www.creativespirits.info/aboriginalculture/history/anzac-day-digger-march.html#29#ixzz1reRoYv6b All of this is prior to 1900 and the times and people were vastly different.  We cannot move ahead if we focus on the ignorance of the past, instead of the progress of the times since then. ANZAC Day is not the day for this argument !  ANZAC Day is a day to celebrate the Australian Diggers who showed us the spirit, determination, skill, laconic attitudes and the resilience to move forward even after such horrific wars, for it is their Legacy we must respect, not use this important day that celebrates both black and white diggers achievements. On a personal point I feel it disappointing that black and white Australians should need separate marches or to protest against a fight between black and white Australians, due to out dated beliefs and opinions that existed prior to 1900′s.  This type of dysfunction is being garnered by Socialist elements that work behind the scenes to separate the Australians by having them fight among themselves and separate into their own smaller groups.  The sooner the us and them mentality is put behind us and activists, pull their heads in, the sooner we  find the opportunity to overcome this division in our Country.  Only then  we will truly meld together as the one Nation of Australians willing to move forward and improve Australia for the benefit of all Australians.  

It’s not a case of politicians being incompetent, fools, stupid or having very low IQ’s, it’s all a matter of politicians being scammers who are smart enough to make people think that they aren’t being scammed.

And politicians have this down to an art form. They wreck the economy, our livelihoods’ and further their agenda and all the people who are now bankrupt thanks to them do is call them fools.

If a mugger or an email scammer left you with nothing you wouldn’t call them fools or stupid yet when politicians take people for a ride all they get called is fools while they get richer at our expense.

No matter how you look at it you are being scammed by the very people you are calling fools and may need to rethink your approach to politicians and their promises.

SIMON Crean has announced himself to be on the  Kevin Rudd team as long as he can to serve as his deputy on a joint leadership ticket.

Sources in the Rudd camp confirmed early today a deal was being brokered which could see Mr Crean back Mr Rudd to take back the leadership and serve as deputy prime minister.

Of course this is just Labor being….well Labor.  Crean has in the past year been making statements claiming Krudd to be disloyal to the Party.

Simon Crean accuses Kevin Rudd of being disloyal in February 2012.  “I think anyone who commits to playing in the team and knowingly doesn’t can be accused of that (disloyalty),” said the Minister for Regional development.

Gillard backers scoffed at newspaper lists of MPs said to be for and against her and said she had a clear and comfortable majority of support in the Caucus.

And they maintained a bitter assault on Mr Rudd and his ambitions.

Mr Crean led the attack, appearing in two radio interviews and one on TV. “I am at least talking about this in public because I’m sick to death,” he told one interviewer.

Mr Crean said Mr Rudd could not convince his colleagues to return him to the leadership and so was engaging in “some sort of public campaign”.

“And it’s that public campaign that drags the ship down and that’s what has to be stopped,” Mr Crean told Melbourne’s 3AW.

Mr Crean, a former party leader himself, said Julia Gillard had to call in her Foreign Minister for “a conversation” and firmly ask “Are you in my team or not?”

Arriving in Canberra tonight ahead of tomorrow’s 10am leadership ballot Mr Crean said the “constant undermining” of Julia Gillard from several caucus members had resulted in the issue being brought to a head and Mr Rudd ultimately resigning as foreign minister.

“I have not been scathing of him,” Mr Crean said.

“But I was really annoyed that the undermining was allowed to continue without a challenge occurring.

“I do not accept the fact that the circumstances that led to this were due to anything other than the constant undermining of the Prime Minister.”

Of course being Kevin Rudd’s Deputy PM would be Crean’s dream job, without ever having to suffer the pains of fighting for the job, in the unlikely event Gillard spills, Krudd wins the support, Krudd again became a short lived PM or even won the election, then Simon Crean would gloatingly take on the PM’s position, again without having to take it to an election.  Labor thy name is DECEIT.

In November 2001, following Labor’s third consecutive election defeat, Simon Crean was elected unopposed as the Leader of the Labor Party and the opposition following the resignation of Kim Beazley. On 4 February 2003, Crean led the Labor Party in condemning Prime Minister John Howard’s decision to commit Australian troops to the Iraq War.  Through most of 2003, consistently poor polling led to constant speculation of a leadership challenge by Beazley, though a reasonably successful Budget reply speech and the controversy over Peter Hollingworth gave Crean a small boost in popularity.  Nevertheless, to end the constant rumblings over a challenge, Crean called for a leadership spill.  Polls continued to suggest that the public much preferred Beazley to Crean; nevertheless, when the vote was taken on 16 June 2003, Crean won by 58 votes to 34, proving to most the Labor Party doesn’t care what the Public thinks, it is only concerned with itself.. By November, however, polls continued to show Crean losing more ground to Howard as preferred Prime Minister.  On 27 November 2003 a group of his senior colleagues told Crean that he had lost the party’s support and should resign.  Crean said he would “sleep on it”.  On 28 November 2003, Crean announced that he would resign as Leader of the Labor Party, becoming the first federal Labor leader to be replaced without having contested an election since the expulsion of Billy Hughes in 1916. Now with Crean’s protege, Julia Gillard receiving continued poor polling, he again would consider challenging for the leadership and becoming another unelected PM, prior to his retirement, with the knowledge no one can save this Government from being trounced at the next election. If this comes to pass, then it will be as a reward for a powerbroker, who has been the most ineffectual Opposition Leader in Labor’s recent history. An example of Mr Crean’s inadequacies, were never more evident than in this interview with Lisa Wilkinson dated 25 October 2012.  Lisa is a well known Labor supporter, a point I make for no other reason than to point out he was not against a hostile journalist. SIMON CREAN: Hi Lisa, how are you? LISA WILKINSON: Very well thanks. Now Craig Thomson insists that he is going to be vindicated over all of this. Either way it seems certain that the government is going to be dragged through the mud once again on this issue. Do you think Craig Thomson should step aside until this is resolved? SIMON CREAN: Well, he’s gone to the crossbenches. So in one sense he’s certainly stepped aside from the Labor Party. He’s not bound by any decisions we make. Here he is implying that this matter is resolved.  But then: The second point I would make, Lisa—and this just goes to the fundamental rights of any individual in these circumstances—no charges have been laid and people shouldn’t be asked to do anything until such time as either they are or are found guilty. Certainly they shouldn’t be pre-judged. I think we’ve just got to let the investigations run their course. He has now claimed natural Justice for Thomson, therefore what does the first point make? LISA WILKINSON: Well the Prime Minister has always said that she has full confidence in Craig Thomson, given what you’ve just said. Does that continue to be the case? SIMON CREAN: No, I don’t think she has said that since the point at which he moved to the crossbench. I think she said the line had been crossed. What has happened to the statement of innocent until proven guilty, It seems Mr Crean is sending mixed messages here.  Or is it a matter of it only applying if it is convenient to do so. The reference to confidence went sometime back and I think again if we’re being accurate in the reporting of the sequence of events, its important that point is made. She hasn’t expressed confidence in him of recent times.  He has gone to the crossbenches. Crean has really started to struggle at this point, he repeats this although it is the point in which their hypocrisy stands out.  If they truly believed in innocence until proved guilty, then nothing would have changed to challenge that belief.  The truth is they don’t believe in Natural Justice unless it is convenient to do so

You see Mr Crean’s only power comes with his pedigree of second generation Fabian Society member (Frank Crean, his dad being the first) with the ALP.

He faced a preselection challenge for his seat from Martin Pakula,  a member of his former union,  a move which he blamed on Beazley,  Hong Lim, and the Labor Right.

Beazley refused to publicly support either candidate, but several front-benchers including,  Julia Gillard supported Crean. Crean recorded around 70% of the votes in the first stage of voting, which led to his opponent’s withdrawal.

Since his victory Crean has singled out Senator Stephen Conroy for his part in the preselection challenge, describing his front-bench colleague as “venal” and “one of the most disloyal people I’ve ever worked with in my life”.

Let’s not be fooled about Simon Crean, he is the architect of the Gillard camp, and the Union Left member who could secure their support for this Gillard camp. Although Conroy is a part of this team, it would be a selection Crean did not contest in the hope of exposing Conroy’s true character, and watching his career implode.

The most interesting fact here is Frank Crean was Deputy Prime Minister for the last six months of the government’s term.  I am sure Simon Crean would love to take this one step further and become PM for the last 6 month of this Governments term.

SIMON Crean has announced himself to be on the  Kevin Rudd team as long as he can to serve as his deputy on a joint leadership ticket.

Sources in the Rudd camp confirmed early today a deal was being brokered which could see Mr Crean back Mr Rudd to take back the leadership and serve as deputy prime minister.

Of course this is just Labor being….well Labor.  Crean has in the past year been making statements claiming Krudd to be disloyal to the Party.

Simon Crean accuses Kevin Rudd of being disloyal in February 2012.  “I think anyone who commits to playing in the team and knowingly doesn’t can be accused of that (disloyalty),” said the Minister for Regional development.

Gillard backers scoffed at newspaper lists of MPs said to be for and against her and said she had a clear and comfortable majority of support in the Caucus.

And they maintained a bitter assault on Mr Rudd and his ambitions.

Mr Crean led the attack, appearing in two radio interviews and one on TV. “I am at least talking about this in public because I’m sick to death,” he told one interviewer.

Mr Crean said Mr Rudd could not convince his colleagues to return him to the leadership and so was engaging in “some sort of public campaign”.

“And it’s that public campaign that drags the ship down and that’s what has to be stopped,” Mr Crean told Melbourne’s 3AW.

Mr Crean, a former party leader himself, said Julia Gillard had to call in her Foreign Minister for “a conversation” and firmly ask “Are you in my team or not?”

Arriving in Canberra tonight ahead of tomorrow’s 10am leadership ballot Mr Crean said the “constant undermining” of Julia Gillard from several caucus members had resulted in the issue being brought to a head and Mr Rudd ultimately resigning as foreign minister.

“I have not been scathing of him,” Mr Crean said.

“But I was really annoyed that the undermining was allowed to continue without a challenge occurring.

“I do not accept the fact that the circumstances that led to this were due to anything other than the constant undermining of the Prime Minister.”

Of course being Kevin Rudd’s Deputy PM would be Crean’s dream job, without ever having to suffer the pains of fighting for the job, in the unlikely event Gillard spills, Krudd wins the support, Krudd again became a short lived PM or even won the election, then Simon Crean would gloatingly take on the PM’s position, again without having to take it to an election.  Labor thy name is DECEIT.

In November 2001, following Labor’s third consecutive election defeat, Simon Crean was elected unopposed as the Leader of the Labor Party and the opposition following the resignation of Kim Beazley. On 4 February 2003, Crean led the Labor Party in condemning Prime Minister John Howard’s decision to commit Australian troops to the Iraq War.  Through most of 2003, consistently poor polling led to constant speculation of a leadership challenge by Beazley, though a reasonably successful Budget reply speech and the controversy over Peter Hollingworth gave Crean a small boost in popularity.  Nevertheless, to end the constant rumblings over a challenge, Crean called for a leadership spill.  Polls continued to suggest that the public much preferred Beazley to Crean; nevertheless, when the vote was taken on 16 June 2003, Crean won by 58 votes to 34, proving to most the Labor Party doesn’t care what the Public thinks, it is only concerned with itself.. By November, however, polls continued to show Crean losing more ground to Howard as preferred Prime Minister.  On 27 November 2003 a group of his senior colleagues told Crean that he had lost the party’s support and should resign.  Crean said he would “sleep on it”.  On 28 November 2003, Crean announced that he would resign as Leader of the Labor Party, becoming the first federal Labor leader to be replaced without having contested an election since the expulsion of Billy Hughes in 1916. Now with Crean’s protege, Julia Gillard receiving continued poor polling, he again would consider challenging for the leadership and becoming another unelected PM, prior to his retirement, with the knowledge no one can save this Government from being trounced at the next election. If this comes to pass, then it will be as a reward for a powerbroker, who has been the most ineffectual Opposition Leader in Labor’s recent history. An example of Mr Crean’s inadequacies, were never more evident than in this interview with Lisa Wilkinson dated 25 October 2012.  Lisa is a well known Labor supporter, a point I make for no other reason than to point out he was not against a hostile journalist. SIMON CREAN: Hi Lisa, how are you? LISA WILKINSON: Very well thanks. Now Craig Thomson insists that he is going to be vindicated over all of this. Either way it seems certain that the government is going to be dragged through the mud once again on this issue. Do you think Craig Thomson should step aside until this is resolved? SIMON CREAN: Well, he’s gone to the crossbenches. So in one sense he’s certainly stepped aside from the Labor Party. He’s not bound by any decisions we make. Here he is implying that this matter is resolved.  But then: The second point I would make, Lisa—and this just goes to the fundamental rights of any individual in these circumstances—no charges have been laid and people shouldn’t be asked to do anything until such time as either they are or are found guilty. Certainly they shouldn’t be pre-judged. I think we’ve just got to let the investigations run their course. He has now claimed natural Justice for Thomson, therefore what does the first point make? LISA WILKINSON: Well the Prime Minister has always said that she has full confidence in Craig Thomson, given what you’ve just said. Does that continue to be the case? SIMON CREAN: No, I don’t think she has said that since the point at which he moved to the crossbench. I think she said the line had been crossed. What has happened to the statement of innocent until proven guilty, It seems Mr Crean is sending mixed messages here.  Or is it a matter of it only applying if it is convenient to do so. The reference to confidence went sometime back and I think again if we’re being accurate in the reporting of the sequence of events, its important that point is made. She hasn’t expressed confidence in him of recent times.  He has gone to the crossbenches. Crean has really started to struggle at this point, he repeats this although it is the point in which their hypocrisy stands out.  If they truly believed in innocence until proved guilty, then nothing would have changed to challenge that belief.  The truth is they don’t believe in Natural Justice unless it is convenient to do so

You see Mr Crean’s only power comes with his pedigree of second generation Fabian Society member (Frank Crean, his dad being the first) with the ALP.

He faced a preselection challenge for his seat from Martin Pakula,  a member of his former union,  a move which he blamed on Beazley,  Hong Lim, and the Labor Right.

Beazley refused to publicly support either candidate, but several front-benchers including,  Julia Gillard supported Crean. Crean recorded around 70% of the votes in the first stage of voting, which led to his opponent’s withdrawal.

Since his victory Crean has singled out Senator Stephen Conroy for his part in the preselection challenge, describing his front-bench colleague as “venal” and “one of the most disloyal people I’ve ever worked with in my life”.

Let’s not be fooled about Simon Crean, he is the architect of the Gillard camp, and the Union Left member who could secure their support for this Gillard camp. Although Conroy is a part of this team, it would be a selection Crean did not contest in the hope of exposing Conroy’s true character, and watching his career implode.

The most interesting fact here is Frank Crean was Deputy Prime Minister for the last six months of the government’s term.  I am sure Simon Crean would love to take this one step further and become PM for the last 6 month of this Governments term.

The public officer of Coastal Voice, who was written to on 2 August, was Mr Craig Thomson, MHR, the Federal Labor member for Dobell. Fair Trading takes very seriously the responsibility of ensuring the continued integrity of associations in New South Wales. Members probably are aware, particularly from media reports today, that Coastal Voice is alleged to have been a front that was set up for the election of Mr Craig Thomson, who is now the Federal Labor member for Dobell. Coastal Voice had a website whose domain was registered to the national office of the Health Services Union—a union that was run by Mr Thomson.
The Daily Telegraphreports statements from Miss Criselee Stevens, who is “a former member of Federal Labor MP Craig Thomson’s inner circle.”   The report confirms that union money was used both to establish Coastal Voice and to fund glossy Coastal Voice brochures for Craig Thomson.

At this stage no account of Coastal Voice moneys has been provided to Fair Trading, as required by the Act. That is both unacceptable and unlawful. and has occurred for the past 4 years since the 2007 election.  The people of New South Wales deserve to know that community groups and associations in their area are both real and responsible in their use of funds and in relation to their reporting responsibilities. Fair Trading is continuing to monitor associations to ensure that they comply with the rules and legislative requirements.
This Association is said to have been a front Mr Thomson had transferred Union funds to and was responsible for a mass glossy electoral advertisement under the name Coastal Voice for Mr Thomson prior to the 2007 election.  During this time Mr Thomson was a candidate for the seat of Dobell and was still the National; Secretary of the Health Services Union.  Of course the Association that Mr Thomson claimed to have nothing to do with failed to lodge financial returns for 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and Mr Thomson is alleged to still be the Public Officer for the association.

He really has nowhere left to go False statement, failure to supply accounts for Coastal Voice in 2007, 2008, 2009 & 2010.   A statement from an ex most trusted insider, alleging he did use union money was used both to establish Coastal Voice and to fund glossy Coastal Voice brochures for Craig Thomson.   And this time he will be taking Ms Jill Hall, MP with him, as she has lied a=on a stat dec  claiming he was not in a argument with a Salvation Army volunteer where he threatened to end her career.  Why do I keep getting visions of a Iguana, hmmmm.

After the next 2 years of bouncing around in the bowels of the Fair Work Tribunal, who incidentally refused the NSW and Vic Police access to evidence they held, finally the Vic Police lodged a Search Warrant giving them access to these documents and documents held by Thomson and the HSU, including a bag of documents Michael Williamson and his son was in the process of removing from the HSU offices.

Mr Thomson continues to sit as a MP on a salary of arounbd $190 550 per annum. while awaiting court action.   This more than likely won’t happen until after the next election meaning although this Government has been aware of strength of the allegations against Mr Thomson, they were prepared to protect him for as long as was possible rather than lose his crucial vote in the House. and seat supporting Labor.  I would hope when Mr Thomson is convicted the lies that have given him such a large salary at taxpayers expense is taken into account, as this person has been responsible with keeping this Government in Office and has had the luxury of Taxpayer paid salary entilements and  will be receiving a Pension, although if these charges are proved he was never entitled to be in office.

While he was recovering in Malta he wrote of the landing in Gallipoli, his first letter unfortunately no longer exists but the second letter I will publish here

For an hour or more I struggled on slipping every now and again right down the side where the earth was very loose, making my already wet and heavy clothes still heavier with the mud that hung to them. I found it very slow work my pack and rifle and shovel etc. catching every few minutes in the thick scrub, I had at times hard work to extricate myself I seemed to have handles sticking all over me, but what we accomplished that day we ourselves marvel at now. In spite of the dirty and in some cases ragged uniform covering tired bodies the men were cheerful and laughed at their plight, some jokingly saying “Oh, if only my girl could see me now”.

All day long the fire of the big guns was terrific, the crack of rifles incessant. All day stretcher bearers carried away the wounded down rugged paths hastily cut by the pioneers and men struggled up the same paths carrying ammunition. The food that fed the only weapons that prevented us being overwhelmed by the superior numbers of the enemy. I was very thirsty, but dare not drink, not knowing when I would get a fresh supply of water, eating I never thought of until the long day was drawing to a close.

I had given up hope of finding my company at the firing line and was prepared to spend the night in the bed of a dry creek running down from the ridge, where with several of the reserves we endeavoured to keep ourselves warm by squeezing up close together.

About 8pm or perhaps later, it came on to rain, although not heavy it added to the darkness and misery of the already miserable state of affairs, particularly in the case of the wounded. Men struggled through the wet scrub, groping their way and slipping down every few steps, but only to struggle on again without a murmur. All night I sat half dozing and half wondering what the cost of this ceaseless fire would mean to our men, and not being an old warrior, I could not imagine so much ammunition being expended at random.

In the early hours of the morning I heard the Officers going along amongst the men, saying “Stick to it lads, don’t go to sleep”, and the cheerful reply would be “No Sir; we won’t go to sleep”, and my heart swelled with admiration, I knew what the ordeal of the strenuous day before had been, and knew what pluck and determination was necessary to keep awake and alert through the long weary hours of the night, therefore I thought I was justified in being proud of being an Australian and after that night I had no fear as to the result of our operations eventually. Give me Australians as comrades and I will go anywhere duty calls, and I hope to be pardoned for saying so, being one myself. Thus it was the Australians passed their first day and night on the battlefield, Sunday, April 25th. What a difference to the Sunday spent at home, I wondered often through the day and night if the loved ones at home had any kind of a presentiment of what we were doing.

From the time we settled down on that point until my last day on the Peninsula, when I was wounded, each day was very much the same, there being only a day now and again to be marked by anything worth reporting. Shrapnel poured onto the beach each day, picking off men every now and again. Terrible sights of suffering were seen at the hospital near our quarters, each day. The usual line of dead were to be seen waiting for sunset to be laid to rest on the hillside, when it would be safe to hold the usual burial service. And so things went on, day after day, we getting more accustomed to it each day.

Later, in this same letter, Roy Denning provides a memorable description of death and burial on the peninsula. He ponders, too, on the devastation the news of death will bring to family members. Despite his resort to fairly conventional imagery and sentiment, it none the less reveals a capacity on this soldier’s part to see the tragedy of war as it reaches out far beyond the battlefield:

That night [May 1] we were working until 9 o’clock in pumping water, and were returning to our dugouts when we came up with two stretchers on each one lay the remains of an Australian. The stretcher bearer of one, having a bad hand, asked my friend and I if we would take some of the weight for him and willing did so and continued on to where the big grave waited for its prey. We laid the stretchers down gently, the bodies were lifted into the grave, then we stood with bowed heads while the Chaplain, with the aid of an electric torch read those memorable lines set apart for the burial of the dead. The graves being dug to take three side by side, I just threw enough earth over them to cover the bodies leaving one place vacant for another of our number. I wondered who would fill it, death seemed so close to us all, it may just be the click of a rifle and one of us may make the third to fill and thus satisfy the yearning of that open grave.

The service over, we returned to our dugouts, but in my case not to sleep. The sad proceeding we had just been through seemed so impressive and although only two in hundreds, made me picture the homes of the two departed. I wondered if ever the loved ones of the two deceased would hear or know how they were quietly laid to rest on the slope of the lonely Turkish hillside, where, when men ceased to slaughter and annihilate each other, there would be nothing but the gentle lap of the water at its foot and the nightingale’s solitary note to break the silence.

I pictured an aged couple waiting for news of their son, dreading to answer the door bell for fear of what may be there, scanning the casualty list with trembling hands and aching hearts lest the dreaded news be found there. Perhaps it may be a young wife with a babe in arms, another little chubby face pressed against the window pane watching and waiting for that familiar form we just laid away To those dear ones the sad news of what we had just taken part in, had to be borne. Perhaps a young maiden waits for one of them living her life in a mingling of pride and bitter dread at what the morrow may bring with it and into that bright young life, blighting all hopes that had been so bright and promising, would be thrust that awful news, leaving as the only star to brighten the dark firmament of the future, the thoughts of valiant deeds in a strange land.

Is it any wonder I could not sleep, but rather prayed that God would be merciful and heal the broken hearts and that all mourners would fully realise the true meaning of the words, “Oh grave where is thy victory; oh death where is thy sting”, and I felt that God would be good to men who had so nobly given their lives in such a cause for they had given their lives for their friends.

Private Roy Howard Denning at war’s end in 1918.
The stress of four years on the battlefields
is reflected in his face.
Reproduced with the permission of Lorna Lancaster

In October 1918, because he was an original Anzac, Private Roy Denning received the so-called ‘Anzac leave’, and he was travelling on the high seas when war ended on 11 November.

Reported in the AGE on 7 March 2013 under a typical heading of  ’Taken for a Ride’  http://www.theage.com.au/national/taken-for-a-ride-20130306-2fli4.html?rand=894160  Mark Baker reports, a federal government inquiry has found that the legendary heroism of Simpson and his donkey is more myth than reality.

This investigation was under the guise of looking into claims he should be awarded a VC.

I had investigated John Simpson and agreed he does not warrant a VC, however, he does deserve a highest Bravery award for his actions, and below is MY investigation into John Simpson and his Donkey.  His story was NOT mainly myth, he actually did these acts, and people of both sides had great respect for his selfless acts, his one flaw was he never fitted into the Killing Machine mantel that most heroes were held in such high regard for.

I believe it is a true sign of the Aussie humanity that alongside Lance Corporal Jacka, a fighting colossus of the time, comes with equal fame a man who was so opposite in way of living his life.  John Simpson, was regarded as a true humanist.  He disregarded the orders to keep himself sheltered in his determination to serve his country by making every effort to save others.

Born in England in 1892, he showed his rare courage as a 13 year old lad.  He saw 2 youths drowning in the River Tyne, so with no consideration for his own safety he dived in and saved them both.  He had a certain empathic way with animals, and he loved them as much as they were devoted to him. He worked around horses, donkeys, kept rabbits and pigeons and was rarely seen without a dog following him around.

He felt a strong sense of responsibility to others. And after his father died in 1909, he assumed the role of bread winner for his mother and sister. In 1910 he joined the crew of the SS Yeddo as a stoker and sailed for Newcastle, Australia. Without fail, he continually sent money home to his mother – irrespective of how much he needed it himself.

And yet regardless of how loyal he was to his family, in his work life he never showed a temperament which would have suited him to army discipline. When the Yeddo arrived in Newcastle, he deserted.  For the next few years he worked a series of jobs such as cane cutting, cattle droving, and coal mining.  He then joined the crew of the SS Yankalilla. The job took him to Fremantle where Simpson again deserted.  Just 3 weeks after the outbreak of World War 1, Simpson enlisted, it was not a heroic motive that made him join, but a selfish one, for he had heard the army was going to England for their basic training, which meant to him, a free ride home. as of yet no one could have noticed the strength of character of this man that would soon make him one of Australia’s celebrated heroes.

Unfortunately for Simpson’s plans, the army was diverted to Egypt.  It was in Egypt, Simpson was allotted to the Field Ambulance as a stretcher bearer.

After 8 months in Egypt he landed at ANZAC Cove, Gallipoli. Of the 1500 men who landed in the first wave, only 755 remained in active service at the end of the day. The sheer number of casualties necessitated that stretcher bearing parties be reduced in the size from 6 to 2. Simpson then decided that he could operate better by acting alone. He spied a deserted donkey in the wild overgrown gullies and decided to use it to help carry a wounded man to the beach.  From this moment on, he and his donkey acted as an independent team, and the legend began.  Instead of reporting to his unit, Simpson camped with the 21st Kohat Indian Mountain Artillery Battery – which had many mules and nicknamed Simpson “Bahadur” – the “bravest of the brave”.

Simpson’s  refusal to report to his own field ambulance post was a direct affront to his Commanding Officer’s ego, not to mention considerations of military tradition, etiquette and discipline. For the first 4 days he was technically a deserter until his CO, seeing the value of his work, agreed to turn a blind eye to rules and approved his actions, it is better to have a one brave maverick rather than to tie him down and lose his enthusiasm for saving lives.

Simpson would start his day as early as 6.30 a.m. and often continue until as late as 3.00 a.m. He made the one and a half mile trip, through sniper fire and shrapnel, 12-15 times a day. He would leave his donkey under cover while he went forward to collect the injured.  On the return journey he would bring water for the wounded. He never hesitated or stopped even under the most furious shrapnel fire and was frequently warned of the dangers ahead but invariably replied “my troubles”.

For almost 24 days Simpson operated through the impossible conditions.  After seeming to gain an aura of someone with divine protection and a conviction he would survive, Simpson’s luck ran dry and he was killed.  He was subsequently recommended for the Victoria Cross, twice, and the Distinguished Conduct Medal. The commander of the 4th Brigade, Colonel Monash, said:

“Private Simpson and his little beast earned the admiration of everyone at the upper end of the valley. They worked all day and night throughout the whole period since the landing, and the help rendered to the wounded was invaluable. Simpson knew no fear and moved unconcernedly amid shrapnel and rifle fire, steadily carrying out his self-imposed task day by day, and he frequently earned the applause of the personnel for his many fearless rescues of wounded men from areas subject to rifle and shrapnel fire.”

Padre George Green, who led Simpson’s burial service, later said :

“If ever there was a man deserve the Victoria Cross it was Simpson. I often remember now the scene I saw frequently in shrapnel Gully, of that cheerful soul calmly walking down the gully with a Red Cross armlet tied round the donkey’s head. That gully was under direct fire from the enemy almost all the time.”

Sgt. Hookway, his Section Sergeant, said of him:

“a big man and very muscular, though aged only 22 and was selected at once as a stretcher bearer… he was too humane to be a parade ground soldier, and strongly disliked discipline; though not lazy he shirked the drudgery of ‘forming fours’, and other irksome military tasks.”

Although Simpson had the respect of all those who knew him, his larrikin ways did not endear him to the authorities thus all nominations for posthumous decoration were declined.  The lack of posthumous decoration probably bothered Simpson’s admirers far more than it would have ever bothered Simpson.  He just didn’t have the character that sought recognition, decoration or awards.

Despite the lack of military decoration,  the wider community elevated him to iconic status.  He was seen to embody the ANZAC spirit of abandonment of everything except that which is important.
In 1965, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the ANZAC landings, Australian stamps where issued depicting Simpson, his donkey and a wounded soldier. In 1967, the Australian Government released the ANZAC Commemorative Medallion. It depicted Simpson and his donkey. In 1995, the Australian five dollar commemorative coin was released. Again, it depicted Simpson, his donkey and a wounded soldier. In 1996, the Australian 100 dollar bill was released. It had Simpson and his donkey in the background.

While the stamps, the medals, and the currency have all helped immortalise his name, perhaps the commemoration that most befitted his character was a simple stone that replaced the cross over his grave in Gallipoli. It read:

JOHN SIMPSON
KIRKPATRICK SERVED AS
202 PRIVATE
J SIMPSON,
AUST. ARMY MEDICAL CORPS,
19TH MAY 1915         AGE 22
HE GAVE HIS LIFE
THAT OTHERS MAY LIVE.

A man who was not the type imagined to be a hero, yet when the strife hit, he showed little respect for the “Military and yet without consideration for his own safety, he determined to save as many soldiers as he was able.  A true ANZAC hero.

NB. Simpson has never been honoured with a VC medal and when looking at his contempt of discipline, and his refusal to report to his Commanding Officer would be a major reason he never received a VC.  However, although I might acknowledge it not being in the finest tradition of the Service to award this to him, there is more than enough evidence to suggest Pte Simpson is worthy of the highest bravery honour  available, and a special dispensation should make this available to him posthumously. However the validity of the enquiry needs to be questioned.  It seems they had a agenda in their investigation into this matter.  The evidence clearly showed his courage in saving others, while placing his own life in Peril.  It was a unfortunate part of his character that he would not follow orders, however, John Simpson’s humanity was HIS driving force and the reason he should have his heroism officially recognised.

Muhammad at that time developed a plan that would see him as a man of wealth and importance, he declared he had a vision and this vision was claimed as being from god.  A uncle of great importance to the Arab peoples, who had just converted to Christianity was convinced this vision was from god and declared Mohammad was a Prophet to the Arab people.

After he had been declared a Prophet of God, Mohammad launched the next part of his plan and proclaimed Allah as the one true god.  He made his wife the first convert to Islam.  Very few listened to him and he was incurring the wrath of the idol worshippers. His uncle and his tribe the Hasims protected Mohammad during this early Meccan period.

Some 7 – 9 years later his wife and Uncle both died and the Uncle that became the new leader of this tribe refused to protect Mohammed. During the next 3 years Mohammed would fear for his life. He sought refuge and protection in nearby cities from those seeking his life.

Arab tribes from the city of Yatrob later to be called Medina, came for the annual pilgrimage. They met Mohammed and thought him to be a prophet and invited him to their city to bring peace and settle disputes between the warring tribes. Yathrob was founded by three Jewish tribes and the idea of monotheism was familiar to its Arab tribesmen. The Arabs of Medina had been told by Jewish tribesmen about the coming Messiah who would one day conquer the world including the Arabs. The Arab tribes hoped to find this individual before the Jews.  Meeting Mohammed they thought he was the one.

The following year the situation became intolerable for the Muslims in Mecca, and they made what has become known as the Hejira or flight from Mecca to Medina. When word reached those of Mecca about the escape to Medina they tried to kill Muhammad.
Muhammad and Abu Bakr were able to sneak out of the city and escape to the safety of Medina by another route.

In Medina the warring Arab tribes submitted to Mohammed leadership and prophet-hood. The Jewish tribes rejected his claims of prophet and ridiculed his revelations. With most of the new arrivals from Mecca without work they needed to earn a living. Ghazu or caravan raiding was a way tribes would prevent one tribe from becoming to powerful. The Muslims in Medina began to rob the caravans heading toward Mecca. This is where the Muslim doctrine of Jihad was created.

Their was a number of battles between the Jews and Muslims over a few years, which Muslims claim they were massively smaller in size of their army, however they won these battles and Mohammad declared it as a sign from Allah and his status in Medina became over inflated.

Eventually the Jewish forces made a massive attack on the well fortified city of Medina and although having large numbers suffered massive losses under the hot sun for a two week period.  After the lack of success they returned to Mecca.   After this unsuccessful attack,  Mohammed and the Muslims attacked the last remaining Jewish tribe. The tribe surrendered to the mercy of Muhammad. The men were killed and the women and children were sold into slavery.

The Muslims then begin to consolidate their power with the surrounding Arab tribes and cities.  Muhammad wedded 6 year old Aisha at sometime in 623 and Aisha was made to consummate the marriage in 626 when she was only 9 years old, this would have been a deal for his protection to her family and proving to himself he could do anything he wants without retribution from his believers.

Mecca felt the economic impact of its trading losses and Mohammed’s power grew in the north. They reluctantly signed the 10 year peace agreement with Muhammad and the Muslims in March 628.   Muslims are allowed to return to Mecca and worship at the Kaba once a year. The people of Mecca would leave their city so the Muslim could come and worship.

Two years later, in January 630,  Muhammad leads 10,000 warriors to Mecca and nullifies the treaty because Muslims have been killed.  The city submits to Muhammad and his warriors and accepts him as prophet. Muhammad goes to the Kaba and destroys the 360 idols in the structure. From Mecca, the “Muslims” wage Jihad on the surrounding cities forcing them to accept Islam as their religion and Mohammad as their prophet.

Muhammad died unexpectedly in 632. His friend and father in law Abu Bakr (Father of Aisha)  succeeded him as leader of the Muslims.

So we see this is about Mohammad, who was obviously a strong leader a master manipulator and a man who made people believe he was doing his god’s work, no mercy, no quarter given, and each victory was about the people accepting Mohammad as their leader and Islam as their religion, it was not about god or Allah, and it all began with a man who married for money and status and then worked on the confusion of others to make them believe he was a Prophet and convert the country to his way. He merely stole parts of Christianity and then introduced parts that made him the ultimate status figure of Islam at that time.  A pure opportunist, willing to do anything to improve his place in lie, who was obviously a gifted speaker.

However, ISLAM is NOT a religion of god, it is a mechanism used by Muhammad to make himself the most important man in the land.

http://www.truthnet.org/islam/whatisislam.html

John McTernan has been and continues to be a divisive figure.

The advice given to our PM, the same advice that has caused even greater divides across the nation is being taken by the PM to be good advice,  and yet the PM still uses this advice given her by John McTernan.

Today he was asked about his guest worker status in Australia.

ABC News Online reports that it asked Mr McTernan the direct question – are you here working on a 457 Visa.   The Prime Minister of Australia’s Head of Communications answered the query from the Australian Broadcasting Commission with 3 words.   “Hardly f*ck*n relevant”.

I think the people of Australia are entitled to make that judgement John.  Let’s look at your past:

2000-2001, he was a special adviser as Head of Policy to the First Minister Henry McLeish of the Scottish Executive.  It would be wrong of me NOT to mention Mr McLeish resigned as First Minister in 2001 amid a scandal involving allegations he sub-let part of his tax-subsidised Westminster constituency office without it having been registered in the register of interests kept in the Parliamentary office. The press called the affair Officegate.

Nice advice here Mr McTernan, what else have you done that may in fact be f***n’ relevant:

He was Political Secretary/Director of Political Operations at 10 Downing Street for Tony Blairfrom 2005–2007, where he provided political management and support for the development of the government’s political strategy.

In 2006 Blair was criticised for his failure to immediately call for a ceasefire in the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict.  The Observer newspaper claimed that at a cabinet meeting before Blair left for a summit with Bush on 28 July 2006, a significant number of ministers pressured Blair to publicly criticise Israel over the scale of deaths and destruction in Lebanon.  Blair was criticised for his solid stance alongside US President George W. Bush on Middle East policy.

In March 2010 the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments revealed that 14 months after resigning as Prime Minister, Blair had served as a paid business consultant to an oil firm with interests in Iraq.  The news raised concerns that he had profited financially from contacts he made during the Iraq war.

Blair was sometimes perceived as paying insufficient attention both to the views of his own Cabinet colleagues and to those of the House of Commons.His style was sometimes criticised as not that of a prime minister and head of government, which he was, but of a president and head of state—which he was not.  Blair was accused of excessive reliance on spin.  He is the first British Prime Minister to have been formally questioned by police, though not under caution, while still in office.

It would seem there is some coincidence with Mr McTernan and his advice, and the Political end of those that employ him.

In 2007 McTernan was seconded to the Scottish Labour Party to run its campaign for the May  Scottish Parliament general election.

It seems Mr McTernan had a bad year as he managed to turn a 8% lead in the Polls before the election into a loss for Labour  come election day.  I sure hope he is giving this same advice to his current charge here.

In 2007 he worked on the November 2007 Australian Labor Party general election campaign.

The KRudd/Gillard pairing had run a long campaign with the Unions against John Howard and his Government.  So effective were the lies told prior to the election, there was a 23 seat swing against the Coalition Government at a time when Australia’s debt was  brought back to $0, and we actually had a surplus of around $29 billion.

In September 2011, he was appointed as communications director to Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard.

In November 2011, the now former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Peter Slipper, was installed by the Gillard minority Government.  It is believed that McTernan was instrumental in helping to achieve this. At the time it was considered ‘a master stroke’, ‘a brilliant strategic move’ on behalf of the Prime Minister because it meant the Opposition would have one less vote in the chamber. Numbers were very tight in the House of Representatives, with Labor being dependent upon the single Australian Greens member and supportive independents to pass legislation and retain government.

McTernan has been referred to as ‘Gillard’s Brain’. As Chief Media Advisor/Communications Director, reminiscent of Karl Rove, who as George W. Bush’s chief strategist became known as ‘Bush’s brain’. McTernan, keen to repeat the success of his strategy in the UK is believed to be using similar tactics to coach the Australian PM and her ministers in media situations. He is believed to be the brain behind a central media narrative for Labor to frame the Opposition as ‘negative’.

On 9 October 2012, in response to a motion by Tony Abbott to have Peter Slipper removed as Speaker of the House of Representatives over sexist comments made in private text messages, and in the context of the ongoing Alan Jones shame controversy, Ms Gillard publicly addressed for the first time the issue of sexism against her, and raised allegations of misogyny and sexism against Opposition leader Tony Abbott.  While the speech was criticized by mainstream Australian media political correspondents it received widespread positive attention from social media and international news coverage being described as a “masterful, righteous take-down” and “badass”.   John McTernan is alleged to have been the mastermind behind Julia Gillard’s parliamentary speech, which has been seen by some media analysts as part of a broader political strategy by Labor in the lead up to the 2013 Australian federal election.

However,  McTernan’s strategy was defeated through the professional and insightful work and speeches by Julie Bishop Deputy Opposition Leader, which destroyed the ability to directly attack male MP’s and this tactic was beaten.

So the era of lies, misinformation, inducement, sexual abuse allegations, and totalitarian management styles are almost behind us.  Once again this Government is seeing there façade eroded and people seeing straight through to what lurks underneath and are not happy with the depth to which this Government have been willing to go to retain their tenuous hold on our reins.

It also has left exposed Mr McTernan and his dirty tactics Political advice.

Labor has had 2 senior MP’s resign. A Senator they stage kicked out of the Party who investigation of 5 years was delayed until the Victorian Police finally received it. He has now been charged with 160 charges of fraud.  The Political tussle between Krudd and Gillard continue,  The Carmody Inquiry still has Mr Rudd in the frame to be interviewed in regard to the shredding of evidence from his time as Top fixer for the Goss Government.  The appointment of failed and retired ex NSW Premier Bob Carr as Foreign Minister. Of course the PM’s own involvement in the AWU scandal when she helped her married boyfriend to create a Company to siphon funds stolen from AWU funds. It just goes on and on.  This Labor Government has become the Blueprint for all that stinks in Politics and will be dealt a significant blow in their loss on 14 September 2013 election.  It is likely they will be able to call the election within the first 2 hours of Polling closing in this election.

Yes Mr McTernan your dirty politics is not wanted here, and neither is your disgraceful attitude towards the Australian Public.

Urban Dictionary

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=eco-fascist

eco-fascist

A person who uses the unsubstantiated beliefs and sentiments of environmentalism to impose their political will onto the scientifically illiterate public to inflate their megalomanic sense of power. Usually at the public’s detriment.

Eco fascists are the de facto crusaders of what has become the religion of the American political left; that is environmentalism.

They use the guise of dogooderism and the pretense of being some kind of environmental savior to justify their economically destructive actions much the same way Hitler did to justify his actions.

Nancy Pelosi is acting as an eco-fascist by voting down congressional efforts to allocate water resources to California farmers who have historically been given access to these resources in favor of the delta smelt (a fish) that had been put on the “threatened” species list; thus favouring the fish over humankinds need to grow food.

Al Gore is one of the most notable and dogmatic eco-fascists for preaching his prophecy of “Truth” for his own self-agrandizement and his obvious agenda of demonizing the oil barons that defeated his political aspirations to the US Presidency, which he clearly felt entitled to.

Lord Monckton has said nothing more than what is the truth. He has chosen the language of today to communicate and called a few people what they actually are in many peoples views. There are no apologies to be made, well except by Tony Abbott at this stage, there are no reason for him to word things differently, it is Garnaut and the Government’s so called Climate scientists that should be apologising, to all Australians

And now because the Government is being hurt in the Polls they are changing Legislation to spy on any one they want, they are threatening media with ??? to not speak against her, they have tried taking talkback radio hosts to court over comments they have made and the Opposition is still happy to sit back while all us groups,Media Social /Media, talkback, Bloggers take the fight up to the Government, especially over the big issues.  Tony Abbott had best heed the warnings, we would rather see him their than ALP, however, he has to lift his game and be a part of the cure for this great country and not another part of the disease.

Disclaimer
The impact assessments summarised here are based on
results from computer models that involve simplifications of
real physical processes that are not fully understood.
Accordingly, no responsibility will be accepted by CSIRO for
the accuracy of the assessments inferred from this brochure
or for any person’s interpretations, deductions, conclusions
or actions in reliance on this information.

http://www.csiro.au/files/files/p3ct.pdf

Of those funds, $167.7 million was provided to NSW. Part of that funding was directed by NSW toward increasing the capacity of palliative care services, mainly for enhancing community palliative care services.

On 1 July 2013, funding for inpatient palliative care services will change to funding based on the Activity Based Funding (ABF) model. However the ABF funding model for community palliative care is not scheduled to be introduced until 1 July 2014.

Because of the imminent year-long gap in federal funding for community palliative care services, over 50 community palliative care positions across NSW could disappear on 1 July.

Palliative Care is not just another Health service in the lives of their patients.  These wonderful nurses make a difference in the lives of  patients who are in the last phase of there lives, the care they receive is critical in giving them a better quality to their remaining time.

These patients have paid their dues to society and paid their taxes throughout their lives, and now when they need some help due  to tragic illnesses, they have been unlucky enough to have come across a Government that just doesn’t care.  They decide to change  the funding model which lweaves a funding gap for 12 months and believe it is ok to allow this program to go without for the 12 months before funding resumes.  Unfortunately the patients may not have 12 months to wait, while this Government plays around with their funding of 2013 and with the loss of some very necessary and important services.

The present four-year funding stream for palliative care services was linked to increased activity reporting over that period.  This withdrawal of federal funds for community palliative care for the period from 1 July 2013 to 30 June 2014 leaves the palliative care sector in the regrettable, some might say bizarre situation where service activity which hitherto has been growth-funded, will now have to be cut back to 2009 levels due to the loss of federal funding and resulting loss of this increased workforce.

The Health Minister’s office seems to be under the impression that activity based funding will take over for all palliative care services from 1 July 20131. This is apparently not the case.  Activity Based Funding will only apply to in-patient palliative care services, and as things stand, federal funding for community palliative care services will be withdrawn for 12 months until the introduction of Activity Based Funding for non-inpatient services on 1 July 2014.  Why??

PM Gillard is travelling around claiming she will increase Health funding and take it away from the states, however she did that to NSW around 2010, then after 12 months of inaction handed the package back to NSW.  Ms Gillard seem to feel Healthcare is a pawn for her to play Politics with instead of it being a crucial service that is in place for all taxpayers.

PM Gillard needs to start packing, as  we will be looking forward to voting her out of office this Year, and to seeing Healthcare receive some serious assistance.

THE Northern Territory government has agreed to keep firefighters based at a rural community, in another act of damage control following a poor showing at a by-election.

Chief Minister Terry Mills called on Thursday for full-time fire officers to remain at the Humpty Doo fire station.

He said he wanted a review of the structure of the NT Police, Fire and Emergency Services instead of the Humpty Doo cuts.

Last year he announced the firefighters would be withdrawn as part of the government’s cost-cutting program.

The decision drew an angry reaction from some in Humpty Doo, a rural community about 40km from Darwin, and last weekend Mr Mills met with firefighters at the station .

The backflip was the second in two days, after the government on Wednesday announced a $20 “counter transaction fee” at the Motor Vehicle Registry would be scrapped just months after it was brought in.

Political commentator and former NT Labor MP, Ken Parish, told AAP he thought the move was likely to be damage control after the Country Liberal Party’s (CLP) big loss in the Wanguri by-election.

The by-election on February 16 saw a greater than six per cent swing towards the ALP in what was already a safe Labor seat.

Following the result, NT Attorney General John Elferink began counting votes for a possible leadership challenge to Chief Minister Terry Mills.

The challenge did not go ahead, and Mr Elferink offered his resignation following the move.

This Territorian is happy with this move, however awaits Mr Mills next “money saving” move.

Adam O’Rourke
Darwin, NT

As for the roll out of the NBN construction has been underway for 2 years and now the head of the National Broadband Network (NBN) wants an industry study to determine the best way to build the high-speed internet project.  Now we find even NBN Co feels there is still a worthwhile debate over which technology should be used.

The NBN Co is using a technology called ‘fibre to the premises’, which goes all the way to a home, to build most of the network.  But the Coalition wants to use ‘fibre to the node’. It says this method is faster and cheaper, but it will come with slower speeds.  Even if it came with 50 Mbit/s of speed, this is more than is needed in Australia and would still provide instantaneous teleconferencing etc.  It is a matter of this Government cannot stand to be wrong and will not back down no matter how much it costs taxpayers.

The NBN really is a Money Pit and even Mike Quigley is having concerns over the direction it is heading.  The NBN will not be fijnished within this decade.