Australian Current Affairs Thread (not a Politics Thread) lol

[wendybr]

In for a penny - in for a pound.

Why not?

[mack]

[wendybr]

Well...so far so good! 

 

[Paul01]

I'll start then

Corporate greed in it's worst form has been uncovered by the Royal Commission into the Banking Sector. 

The kickbacks via commissions are legalised protection rackets. Just like organised crime only it was looked on as legal.

No wonder the corporate Superannuation sector hated the industry funds. They couldn't get the kickbacks from most of them but I could be wrong.

Then there are the mortgage brokers. If you have used one, then they get a small percentage of the interest you pay for the life of the mortgage (I think it is 0.25%). 

Corporate crime dressed up as good business all to make some people a lot of money.

[wendybr]

12 minutes ago, Paul01 said:

I'll start then

Corporate greed in it's worst form has been uncovered by the Royal Commission into the Banking Sector. 

The kickbacks via commissions are legalised protection rackets. Just like organised crime only it was looked on as legal.

No wonder the corporate Superannuation sector hated the industry funds. They couldn't get the kickbacks from most of them but I could be wrong.

Then there are the mortgage brokers. If you have used one, then they get a small percentage of the interest you pay for the life of the mortgage (I think it is 0.25%). 

Corporate crime dressed up as good business all to make some people a lot of money.

 

Thanks for contributing Paul!

I'm sure there will be things that people will want to comment on - or debate about in this thread.

I can't really offer anything on this - but the revelations have been staggering, and beyond disgusting!

 

Quote

Then there are the mortgage brokers. If you have used one, then they get a small percentage of the interest you pay for the life of the mortgage (I think it is 0.25%). 

  I've never used one - and didn't know that. 

Has that just come out as part of the RC ? I can't imagine people would use their services if they knew they were signing up to that.

[Paul01]

1 hour ago, wendybr said:

 

Thanks for contributing Paul!

I'm sure there will be things that people will want to comment on - or debate about in this thread.

I can't really offer anything on this - but the revelations have been staggering, and beyond disgusting!

 

  I've never used one - and didn't know that. 

Has that just come out as part of the RC ? I can't imagine people would use their services if they knew they were signing up to that.

Not a RC thing. Some lenders won't deal with brokers and give you a cheaper rate.

The brokers don't tell anything about their trailing commission. Any if you threaten to leave one of the big banks, they could give you an immediate discount of 0.5% as that's included in their cost structure.

[wendybr]

Glad this seems to have worked out so far.

Would love a comment from Dcrow - although I doubt I'll get one. 

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-02/tesla-battery-proves-a-leading-source-of-dispatchable-power/10326420

[Paul01]

3 minutes ago, wendybr said:

Glad this seems to have worked out so far.

Would love a comment from Dcrow - although I doubt I'll get one. 

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-02/tesla-battery-proves-a-leading-source-of-dispatchable-power/10326420

This made the TV News where the battery was shown to stabilize the electricity network without delays compared to the usual way it's done now.

Apart from helping the South Australians, it is like a big Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) that some companies use for critical equipment like servers and stops massive power spikes as well.

[wendybr]

And I don't know whether anyone else watched this last Tues on the ABC - which will continue tonight - but I found it compelling...and beyond bizarre!

I had no intention of watching it - but I couldn't look away.

The whole miserable saga raises BIG questions - not only about the woman herself - but about her family, friends and acquaintances. 

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-02/new-witness-found-in-keli-lane-case/10209024

 

 

This was the 1st episode

https://iview.abc.net.au/show/exposed-the-case-of-keli-lane

[thefairy]

thoughts wendy?

https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/home/pets/sydneys-randwick-council-wants-to-stop-cats-going-outside/news-story/ecbbf0c619b179d850d297ff4aa1f5ef

wild/domestic cats are killing our native birds. 

[wendybr]

Ewwwwwww…

I guess I'd say.……….. I would rather see them kept inside than NOT managed responsibly and conscientiously.

But I don't like the idea of cats imprisoned indoors.

They can be responsibly managed to minimise what they can hunt and when (with the when the most important factor) - and to do that, they MUST be brought in at night.

Our 5 cats are strictly brought in before dark, and never let out until the Sun is up.

I can't guarantee that they don't ever kill things like lizards - but I REALLY don't think they have done - once they got past their kittenhood.

Cats sleep for 18 hours a day - well - if they're well fed, and don't have to spend time hunting they do. So they sleep all day! And only get a bit frisky early in the morning - and then around dusk.

In the past, when they were young - 3 of the 5 would have been responsible once or maybe twice for catching a bird  or a possum  ...or occasionally more recently, a rat or a mouse.  

But their cumulative age is 40 years  - (a 16 year old, a 7 year old, two 6 year olds, and a 5 year old) Does that make sense? And I can't remember when we last had a dead animal brought in (and when they do kill something, they DO present it as a gift)! 

So I honestly don't think that between them they have had very much of a chance to do much damage to other creatures.

 

Not sure if that's a decent answer??

[wendybr]

PS We lost a 21 year old a year or so back.

She NEVER caught or killed a living creature. I know it.

A bird once knocked itself unconscious by flying into a glass door near her. She barreled up to within a metre of it then sat placidly and watched it lying helplessly. And watched with little interest while I collected it to wait til it recovered and flew off. I saw her chase a moth - unsuccessfully. I KNOW she was probably a bit of an exception - but some really aren't much interested in even play-hunting. 

PPS She WAS the least intelligent cat I've ever owned - a lovely fluffy creature - but eye-candy only! lol

[Carns]

From my experience a small percentage of cats are real hunters who actively seek out the hunt. I have had a few that were hunters until they physically couldn't do it any longer. I think some are naturally wired to do it more often. Although I agree that many of them simply grow out it. I actually like the hunters when they are keeping rodents at bay, but the killing of birds is one of the major reasons I don't have them any more (unfortunately, my pup (under 2) loves chasing birds and kills them if he catches them).

[wendybr]

11 minutes ago, Carns said:

one that feFrom my experience a small percentage of cats are real hunters who actively seek out the hunt. I have had a few that were hunters until they physically couldn't do it any longer. I think some are naturally wired to do it more often. Although I agree that many of them simply grow out it. I actually like the hunters when they are keeping rodents at bay, but the killing of birds is one of the major reasons I don't have them any more (unfortunately, my pup (under 2) loves chasing birds and kills them if he catches them).

Yes - I think of the cat's I've owned or known well, only a very small number retained any sort of drive to hunt beyond their first year or two. Actually - any that actually killed anything outside of their first year or so only did it while making the most of an irresistible opportunity - with an injured bird, or a little one falling out of a nest etc.

Most, as I said, sleep from after their breakfast, until dinner time as the sun goes down. They are lazy and snoozy creatures for 90% of their lives as adults.

[luisenrique]

 

Surely all Labor has to do to win the next election is repeatedly play the clips of ScoMo saying the banking royal commission would be a 'waste of time' and a 'populist whinge'. 

[Paul01]

7 hours ago, luisenrique said:

 

Surely all Labor has to do to win the next election is repeatedly play the clips of ScoMo saying the banking royal commission would be a 'waste of time' and a 'populist whinge'. 

You might get this thread locked. 

I refrained from bringing that up.

Today, with the IPCC meeting in Korea to discuss climate change and how to keep emissions down, carbon emissions in Australia are at their highest level in 10 years.

[wendybr]

^^^ Liked because you posted...about the most important issue of all...not because of the sad content your post contained. 

Don't refrain from posting about anything topical...even if it is (absurdly) controversial...Mack won't mind.  

[Paul01]

Analysis: Financial planners could have fixed their own mess, now Kenneth Hayne will do it for them
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-03/financial-planning-industry-could-have-fixed-its-own-mess/10332000

[Paul01]

The issue over privacy and the your electronic health record is being reported on the Guardian Australia website. 

It's seems that anyone, police/security authorities (without a warrant) and pharmaceutical companies, can access your MyGov health record. Remember that your health records could not be accessed by anyone except you and medical professionals before this electronic record

I've opted out already of the system that failed in Old Blighty.

[Unlimited]

49 minutes ago, Paul01 said:

The issue over privacy and the your electronic health record is being reported on the Guardian Australia website. 

It's seems that anyone, police/security authorities (without a warrant) and pharmaceutical companies, can access your MyGov health record. Remember that your health records could not be accessed by anyone except you and medical professionals before this electronic record

I've opted out already of the system that failed in Old Blighty.

How do we opt out?

[hawks2767]

There was a window you could opt out, pretty sure it's passed now.

[Paul01]

6 minutes ago, hawks2767 said:

There was a window you could opt out, pretty sure it's passed now.

You have till the 15th November 

https://www.myhealthrecord.gov.au/for-you-your-family/opt-out-my-health-record

[wendybr]

1 hour ago, Paul01 said:

The issue over privacy and the your electronic health record is being reported on the Guardian Australia website. 

It's seems that anyone, police/security authorities (without a warrant) and pharmaceutical companies, can access your MyGov health record. Remember that your health records could not be accessed by anyone except you and medical professionals before this electronic record

I've opted out already of the system that failed in Old Blighty.

How did it fail, Paul?

You mean in terms of security?

I like the idea of it...it makes sense.

But the privacy issue seems to always create problems.

[Paul01]

2 minutes ago, wendybr said:

How did it fail, Paul?

You mean in terms of security?

I like the idea of it...it makes sense.

But the privacy issue seems to always create problems.

It gave free access to anyone who wanted information and it was just brought here without any privacy concerns .addressed 

[Carns]

Quote

Richard Branson backs church-led push to decriminalise drugs in NSW

A church-led coalition that includes the state's peak legal bodies is lobbying the NSW government to decriminalise drugs in a campaign to be launched this month by Sir Richard Branson.

The NSW and ACT synods of the Uniting Church and its service arm, Uniting, are spearheading the call to have illegal substances decriminalised for personal use in a movement backed by 60 organisations, including the Law Society of NSW, the NSW Bar Association, and the NSW branch of the Health Services Union.

The Virgin boss, who has long advocated ending the war on drugs, will be the star speaker at the Sydney Town Hall event on October 12.

Uniting senior executive Doug Taylor said the organisation believed it was the only Christian church globally to create a policy around decriminalisation, “throwing some muscle” behind the agenda.

"It's the first time we’ve really tried to create a broad coalition of organisations to push for a fundamental rethink on drug policy," Mr Taylor told the Herald, adding many of the organisations had long campaigned on the issue.

According to a recent report by the Penington Institute, annual drug deaths almost doubled in the decade to 2016, with a record 142 people in Australia dying every month from accidental overdoses.

The campaign launch will also hear from Dr Khalid Tinasti, the executive secretary on Global Commission of Drug Policy, and the medical director of the Kings Cross Medically Supervised Injecting Centre, Marianne Jauncey.

It comes after two suspected drug overdose deaths at the Defqon.1 dance music festival in Penrith last month, prompting calls for pill testing.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian has ruled out the practice, saying it is not supported by the NSW government.

Mr Taylor said the key objectives of decriminalisation and obtaining greater investment in drug treatment were informed by the experience of the world-first injecting centre, which was launched by Uniting in 2001.

He said, each year, 200,000 Australians were unable to access vital alcohol and other drug-treatment services.

Among its key goals, Uniting has called for a drug-treatment summit similar to a 1999 forum that resulted in the creation of the injecting centre; a significant increase in funding for treatment services, especially in rural and regional areas; and culturally appropriate treatment models for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

As part of the campaign, 50 walkers will also relay a baton from Dubbo to NSW Parliament to highlight the paucity of treatment in rural locations.

According to data provided by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, the number of Australians arrested for drug possession doubled in the decade to 2015-16, whereas provider arrests have only slightly increased.

Dr Jauncey said during the same period, the proportion of users being diverted into treatment was decreasing.

She said the current approach to drugs stigmatised users and discouraged them from seeking help, which could have tragic consequences.

“What we’re frightened of even more than our children using drugs is our children dying from drugs. This is where we are absolutely united,” she said.

The coalition is not advocating for legalisation but the removal of criminal penalties for drug use/possession. Under its policy, there would be no legal means to obtain drugs for personal use.

It's understood Uniting has met with the NSW government on the issue.

When asked to respond to the questions about the campaign's objectives, a government spokesman said in a statement: "Use of illegal drugs is harmful and too often has tragic consequences. The NSW government takes a zero-tolerance approach to illicit drugs. Our approach includes the use of law enforcement, education and treatment. We make no apology for putting community safety first."

It comes as Nuno Capaz, a harm minimisation expert in Portugal, where drugs have been decriminalised, is set to give evidence at a NSW coronial inquest about opioid deaths and drug-policy reform early next month.

The inquest, before Deputy State Coroner Harriet Grahame, heard earlier that Australia, previously a leader in drug policy, was stagnating on "obvious policy issues."

The inquest also heard that deaths from prescription opiates in Australia exceeded heroin-related deaths by up to two-and-a-half times.

In 2014, the NSW Bar Association released a discussion paper supporting an approach similar to Portugal’s, claiming the approach to prohibition in NSW had failed to decrease personal use.

Bar Association president, Arthur Moses, SC, said it was much easier to be timid about policy reform and pretend the law was working to decrease personal drug use.

“Lawyers, judges and police know that this is not true,” Mr Moses said.

“This is not about being soft on crime but being smart on crime and stopping human suffering. Politicians need to be courageous and do what they know is right.”

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/richard-branson-decriminalise-drugs-nsw-uniting-20181002-p507ad.html

I know this has no chance of getting up. Politicians of all stripes (bar those lefty Greens ) are too scared to look "soft on drugs" and will never allow sensible decisions like this be made.

For me it is a no brainer. It allows those who have serious addiction issues to find the appropriate treatment they need, stops clogging up courts with useless possession arrests and treats the issue for the primary concern: a medical problem focusing on addiction, rather than a policing and law enforcement issue.

Personally, I also advocate for the legalisation of (at a minimum) marijuana and easily accessible pill/substance testing too (without fear of reprisal). But, again, pollies are terrified of looking soft and are spineless. I particularly enjoyed when Berejiklian recently stated that she would not allow for pill testing, even if her enquiry into music festivals suggested it. ******* scum.

[wendybr]

You don't think that - in the same way we are led around by the nose by what happens in the US, that we will probably follow the lead being established in so many US states, and in places like Canada...and even Portugal?

There seem to be a number of encouraging signs of change in that report?

[Carns]

1 hour ago, wendybr said:

You don't think that - in the same way we are led around by the nose by what happens in the US, that we will probably follow the lead being established in so many US states, and in places like Canada...and even Portugal?

There seem to be a number of encouraging signs of change in that report?

Well, the States and Canada have legalised weed, but haven't decriminalised other as far as I knew?

Whereas Portugal has decriminalised everything but not legalised anything.

I have zero faith in our politicians, full stop. Their only focus is re-election, and appealing to the (relatively) conservative middle ground.

Legalising weed may happen purely for the tax revenue, but it won't be done for the common sense argument.

[wendybr]

Your generation needs to learn to stand up and ask for what you want to see changed.

This isn't the first time - or the first issue  - on which I've though this.

You are too defeatist. 

[Carns]

Just now, wendybr said:

Your generation needs to learn to stand up and ask for what you want to see changed.

This isn't the first time - or the first issue  - on which I've though this.

You are too defeatist. 

There are plenty in my generation who advocate for what they believe in. I'm too cynical for that. We've already established this.

The pollies are self interested, lacking in courage and tied to the will of the party (whose goal is to maintain power and influence at all costs).

[marron]

6 minutes ago, wendybr said:

Your generation needs to learn to stand up and ask for what you want to see changed.

This isn't the first time - or the first issue  - on which I've though this.

You are too defeatist. 

Once we've asked, is that when we get the investment property portfolio, or do we have to sit back down for a while first?

 

(Now thats cynicism )