***
Black Lives Matter!
Stay safe - wash your hands, practice social distancing and wear
a face mask in public, and follow informed medical advice - and be considerate towards those at risk or in
situations of vulnerability (including economic) while the COVID-19
pandemic is a problem.
This is a new, very cut down series of news
aggregation posts based on some observations on matters that struck a
personal note: unlike the former “Gnwmythr’s News”, it is not
trying to convey key events. Also, being an Australian, I am now going to start
referring to specific Australian states using accepted abbreviations.
Editorial
comments / personal opinion by me in grey.
Content Warning: the linked
articles and their descriptions here may be about violence, abuse, hate, and
other problems.
My Articles this week include: “a from the ground-up estimation of the
economy - part
1 - introduction and clean air”.
On Personal / Spiritual Matters: thoughts on how
to defeat neochristian
fundamentalism (the one about embracing uncertainty is particularly apt, but
the notion of supporting liberal religions is one that should not be forgotten
either).
Reading/Viewing I
found interesting this week included:
“Words matter – poets can change the World!”; A Powerful Call For Compassion.
Overall Commentary on
this week’s news:
the problem of “othering” (or “me and mine first”) is very apparent this week, along with lack of insight/understanding of difference, but there are attempts (some very brave) to do better in many areas of life. Some despots are being held to account, while others are continuing their needy grasps for more and more of everything. The haters, including the “accidental” haters (who use the unconscious bias or “I didn’t know” excuse) and all those who s**tting themselves at the sight of anything that is not rigidly ordered (especially some police) are still running far too rampant. The crisis of the pandemic continues to, to some extent, hide the crisis of the climate, but both are forcing the world to choose: decency, or conservatism, fear, and the control of despotism.
the problem of “othering” (or “me and mine first”) is very apparent this week, along with lack of insight/understanding of difference, but there are attempts (some very brave) to do better in many areas of life. Some despots are being held to account, while others are continuing their needy grasps for more and more of everything. The haters, including the “accidental” haters (who use the unconscious bias or “I didn’t know” excuse) and all those who s**tting themselves at the sight of anything that is not rigidly ordered (especially some police) are still running far too rampant. The crisis of the pandemic continues to, to some extent, hide the crisis of the climate, but both are forcing the world to choose: decency, or conservatism, fear, and the control of despotism.
In This
Week’s News:
declining intergenerational equity; a warning about the risks of defamation on social media - including forwarding others’ posts, which puts you in the situation of - legally - being a publisher; unbelievably inappropriate, unacceptable and just downright wrong use of a Communist symbol by some members of a political party; an examination of why an image-based social media platform is becoming a popular source of news; “the first global standard to prevent mining catastrophes” and “must protect people and hold powerful companies to account”; a tech company has started bullying Australians over having to pay a fair price for news.
declining intergenerational equity; a warning about the risks of defamation on social media - including forwarding others’ posts, which puts you in the situation of - legally - being a publisher; unbelievably inappropriate, unacceptable and just downright wrong use of a Communist symbol by some members of a political party; an examination of why an image-based social media platform is becoming a popular source of news; “the first global standard to prevent mining catastrophes” and “must protect people and hold powerful companies to account”; a tech company has started bullying Australians over having to pay a fair price for news.
In the Environmental Arena, where we have been fighting World War III for some time now:
the people behind the risky efforts to change a shark fin fishing industry; the ship causing an oil spill in Mauritius has now started breaking up; a criticism of proposals to store carbon in soil; #45’s regime has approved oil drilling in pristine Alaska; forest clearing for palm oil is threatening sago food crops in Papua and West Papua; farmers want net zero emissions; the subtleties of carbon accounting (“buy local … and seasonal?”); despite high costs and insufficient charging stations, sales of electric vehicles have tripled - but to only 0.6% of the Australian markets; we are using too much cropland; recycling materials into road making; the devastation caused by “staycationers”; microplastics have now been found in human organs; climate grief; after 5 years, neighbours have won an “historic” legal battle against a wind farm over noise (this does not appear to be the infrasound claims: I’d like to know more - especially re the “legal error” the defence claimed, but the case is not online yet); the “Greenland ice sheet lost a record [1 million] tonnes of ice per minute in 2019”; buying direct from Australian producers.
the people behind the risky efforts to change a shark fin fishing industry; the ship causing an oil spill in Mauritius has now started breaking up; a criticism of proposals to store carbon in soil; #45’s regime has approved oil drilling in pristine Alaska; forest clearing for palm oil is threatening sago food crops in Papua and West Papua; farmers want net zero emissions; the subtleties of carbon accounting (“buy local … and seasonal?”); despite high costs and insufficient charging stations, sales of electric vehicles have tripled - but to only 0.6% of the Australian markets; we are using too much cropland; recycling materials into road making; the devastation caused by “staycationers”; microplastics have now been found in human organs; climate grief; after 5 years, neighbours have won an “historic” legal battle against a wind farm over noise (this does not appear to be the infrasound claims: I’d like to know more - especially re the “legal error” the defence claimed, but the case is not online yet); the “Greenland ice sheet lost a record [1 million] tonnes of ice per minute in 2019”; buying direct from Australian producers.
This week on
the Protests in the USA and
associated protests/issues elsewhere:
misogynistic, fascist white supremacists have “clashed with” (attacked?) BLM protestors; the racist patterns evident in fatal shootings (murders?) by police in Portland, Oregon;
misogynistic, fascist white supremacists have “clashed with” (attacked?) BLM protestors; the racist patterns evident in fatal shootings (murders?) by police in Portland, Oregon;
Police:
criticism - including by the city’s mayor - of police doing a “snatch-and-stash” on a protestor in the USA;
criticism - including by the city’s mayor - of police doing a “snatch-and-stash” on a protestor in the USA;
On Human and Animal Rights:
a march in support of a bill to hold the CCP accountable for abuses in the free, sovereign and violently invades Tibet; Burundi has joined the DR Congo in seeking reparations from former colonialist European nations; a Russian opposition figure may have been poisoned; genocidal burma has banned Muslim candidates from standing for election - again;
one Australian jurisdiction has finally (they’re the first) raised the age of criminal responsibility to that which decent nations have used for decades;
Afghani women are risking death in the fight to get back their public identity; moves in my home state to improve gender equity by training; a man pleaded guilty to assault for slapping a female bar manager’s bottom;
as online algorithms are found to promote anti-Semitism, a joint German-Israeli flyover to fight anti-Semitism; more calls for the visa partner system imposed by the racist neolib government in Australia (are they trying to break up multiracial couples?) to be reformed; a sadly ongoing copyright problem with the Aboriginal flag; a statement from June by police calling for a better relationship with Aboriginal communities (the wording is good, and I consider the sentiment genuine - as it often is at higher levels of all organisations: the real test is whether this continues through to everyday face-to-face interactions); “elsewhere they get it but the Australian media is still living in White Australia”; the higher-than-their-numbers contributions of Indigenous players to football; an appalling attempt to sell photos of a destroyed Indigenous site; two episodes of a popular TV show are being edited to remove racist references; reports that unequal power led to Indigenous owners being forced(take it or get nothing) to trade away their heritage; Aboriginal women in my home state are being assisted;
poverty must be addressed to address inequality;
age discrimination in accounting;
“in response to a nun’s [defence] of the monster Mother Teresa”;
“the mothers of two young men who took their own lives after receiving Centrelink debts have challenged a top bureaucrat who said she did not ‘accept that people have died’ over the Coalition’s income compliance – or robodebt – program”;
a non-verbal teenager is writing music for his school band;
a call for a central housing bank as part of regaining control over Australian house prices (“the average home had a greater return, made up of rent and capital gains, than the average worker”);
appalling US chicken farming practices.
a march in support of a bill to hold the CCP accountable for abuses in the free, sovereign and violently invades Tibet; Burundi has joined the DR Congo in seeking reparations from former colonialist European nations; a Russian opposition figure may have been poisoned; genocidal burma has banned Muslim candidates from standing for election - again;
one Australian jurisdiction has finally (they’re the first) raised the age of criminal responsibility to that which decent nations have used for decades;
Afghani women are risking death in the fight to get back their public identity; moves in my home state to improve gender equity by training; a man pleaded guilty to assault for slapping a female bar manager’s bottom;
as online algorithms are found to promote anti-Semitism, a joint German-Israeli flyover to fight anti-Semitism; more calls for the visa partner system imposed by the racist neolib government in Australia (are they trying to break up multiracial couples?) to be reformed; a sadly ongoing copyright problem with the Aboriginal flag; a statement from June by police calling for a better relationship with Aboriginal communities (the wording is good, and I consider the sentiment genuine - as it often is at higher levels of all organisations: the real test is whether this continues through to everyday face-to-face interactions); “elsewhere they get it but the Australian media is still living in White Australia”; the higher-than-their-numbers contributions of Indigenous players to football; an appalling attempt to sell photos of a destroyed Indigenous site; two episodes of a popular TV show are being edited to remove racist references; reports that unequal power led to Indigenous owners being forced(take it or get nothing) to trade away their heritage; Aboriginal women in my home state are being assisted;
poverty must be addressed to address inequality;
age discrimination in accounting;
“in response to a nun’s [defence] of the monster Mother Teresa”;
“the mothers of two young men who took their own lives after receiving Centrelink debts have challenged a top bureaucrat who said she did not ‘accept that people have died’ over the Coalition’s income compliance – or robodebt – program”;
a non-verbal teenager is writing music for his school band;
a call for a central housing bank as part of regaining control over Australian house prices (“the average home had a greater return, made up of rent and capital gains, than the average worker”);
appalling US chicken farming practices.
Refugee, immigration, and migration
matters (good and bad) have occurred in:
the English Channel; the Mediterranean Sea;
the English Channel; the Mediterranean Sea;
Racism/caste based matters including
land rights (good and bad)
have occurred in:
Australian TV; Australia;
Australian TV; Australia;
Trafficking/Slavery & Extreme Worker
Abuse/Child Abuse matters (good and
bad) have occurred in:
disturbing allegations about a neochristian church from 2016; compensation for abuse has been so delayed some will use it for their funerals . . . ; fresh genetic evidence is said to raise questions about the murder conviction for a woman over the deaths of her four children; an enquiry is underway in my home state into a child abusers register (by a different name); education in Yemen is being undermined; Brazil;
disturbing allegations about a neochristian church from 2016; compensation for abuse has been so delayed some will use it for their funerals . . . ; fresh genetic evidence is said to raise questions about the murder conviction for a woman over the deaths of her four children; an enquiry is underway in my home state into a child abusers register (by a different name); education in Yemen is being undermined; Brazil;
LGBTIQ+ matters (including internalised
homo-/bi-/trans-phobia/hate) (good
and bad) have occurred in:
post-explosion Lebanon;
post-explosion Lebanon;
Sexism (including internalised sexism), misogyny/misandry
and domestic violence matters (good
and bad) have occurred in:
Egypt; Israel; Kenya;
Egypt; Israel; Kenya;
Disability matters (good and bad) have occurred in:
one person’s experience of becoming deaf; heart-warming inclusion of a young person with a stutter;
one person’s experience of becoming deaf; heart-warming inclusion of a young person with a stutter;
Freedom of the Press / Expression matters (good and bad) have occurred in:
USA; Jordan; burma; India;
USA; Jordan; burma; India;
Repression/Oppression / reduction of democracy and
other civil & political rights matters (good and bad) have occurred in:
Thailand; Ethiopia - where a call has been made to “beat anger into empathy”; Rwanda; two more activists have been murdered in the Philippines; Azerbaijan; Israel; Tibet; Tibet;
Thailand; Ethiopia - where a call has been made to “beat anger into empathy”; Rwanda; two more activists have been murdered in the Philippines; Azerbaijan; Israel; Tibet; Tibet;
- Other animal and human rights matters
(good and bad) have occurred in:
an enquiry into the management of at-risk-of-suicide prisoners in WA;
an enquiry into the management of at-risk-of-suicide prisoners in WA;
In the related human rights arena of Employment:
Australia; the underpayment scandal in Australian universities continues to grow; in a spectacularly poorly timed move, Jordan has chosen to arrest a thousand teachers to suppress a union; one aspect of working at Universities (teaching vs. research); claims of poor working conditions at an ethical cosmetics company are being investigated.
Australia; the underpayment scandal in Australian universities continues to grow; in a spectacularly poorly timed move, Jordan has chosen to arrest a thousand teachers to suppress a union; one aspect of working at Universities (teaching vs. research); claims of poor working conditions at an ethical cosmetics company are being investigated.
Risks or occurrences of Atrocities, Mass Violence and/or War(s) this week in:
Somalia; the international spread of a violent extremist white supremacist group; Israel/Gaza; a concerning outbreak of violence in Colombia has taken 13 lives;
Somalia; the international spread of a violent extremist white supremacist group; Israel/Gaza; a concerning outbreak of violence in Colombia has taken 13 lives;
And:
a reflection on R2P; an analysis shows that, although overall violence has decreased, some of that is due to pre-pandemic actions, and violence against citizens has increased; the human rights abusing and repressive UAE may be able to buy advanced fighter jets from the USA.
a reflection on R2P; an analysis shows that, although overall violence has decreased, some of that is due to pre-pandemic actions, and violence against citizens has increased; the human rights abusing and repressive UAE may be able to buy advanced fighter jets from the USA.
In the Democracy, Governance, Politics, Public Ethics, and Society
arena:
in Australia:
possible branch stacking is being investigated in my state’s neolib party; the neolib’s vicious attack on tertiary education will also undermine post-pandemic recovery - and they are trying to “lock in an inequitable economy for years to come”. Those bigots are also trying to force women “back in to the home” - including forcing pregnant women out of elected Parliamentary roles, and by having a sexist recovery budget. See a critique of their hypocrisy here; although a whistleblower is on trial, so too are Australia’s democratic institutions; while our secrecy-obsessed and paranoid national neolib government keep trade agreement negotiations with Europe a secret, Europe is splashing the details about quite openly; a heavy handed neolib national government action over student failures has been criticised as leading to premature terminations; a Guardian Australia exclusive reports that an accidental release of a whistleblower’s details is a crime punishable by up to six months jail; a call for the relief package for regional media to do more; following a review, recommendations for improved elections in my home state; a report has called for a collaborative approach to helping the disadvantaged find work.
in Australia:
possible branch stacking is being investigated in my state’s neolib party; the neolib’s vicious attack on tertiary education will also undermine post-pandemic recovery - and they are trying to “lock in an inequitable economy for years to come”. Those bigots are also trying to force women “back in to the home” - including forcing pregnant women out of elected Parliamentary roles, and by having a sexist recovery budget. See a critique of their hypocrisy here; although a whistleblower is on trial, so too are Australia’s democratic institutions; while our secrecy-obsessed and paranoid national neolib government keep trade agreement negotiations with Europe a secret, Europe is splashing the details about quite openly; a heavy handed neolib national government action over student failures has been criticised as leading to premature terminations; a Guardian Australia exclusive reports that an accidental release of a whistleblower’s details is a crime punishable by up to six months jail; a call for the relief package for regional media to do more; following a review, recommendations for improved elections in my home state; a report has called for a collaborative approach to helping the disadvantaged find work.
The Unexceptional States of America:
“Democrats legislate. Republicans fulminate”; as fears grow over #45’s attempts to undermine the next election and stunning details are released by the US Senate intelligence committee of #45’s ties to Russia, lying #45’s next diversionary tactics; a warning that the conspiracy nitwits supporting lying #45 - who dog whistled to one of these racist slurs against Vice Presidential Candidate Kamala Harris [who is likely to boost the USA’s international soft power], comments that needed to be reversed by #45’s Chief of Staff the next day - need to be taken as a serious political threat; confirmation that steps to cripple the US postal service, and thus exclude voters more likely to support the Democrats, are underway - and are being actively resisted, leading to a possible backdown by the recently #45-appointed USPS boss (there is some doubt as to whether he can be trusted, given the lack of specifics in his statement - and his support for #45); #45 attacked a company for a claimed ban on his merch - which did not exist;
“Democrats legislate. Republicans fulminate”; as fears grow over #45’s attempts to undermine the next election and stunning details are released by the US Senate intelligence committee of #45’s ties to Russia, lying #45’s next diversionary tactics; a warning that the conspiracy nitwits supporting lying #45 - who dog whistled to one of these racist slurs against Vice Presidential Candidate Kamala Harris [who is likely to boost the USA’s international soft power], comments that needed to be reversed by #45’s Chief of Staff the next day - need to be taken as a serious political threat; confirmation that steps to cripple the US postal service, and thus exclude voters more likely to support the Democrats, are underway - and are being actively resisted, leading to a possible backdown by the recently #45-appointed USPS boss (there is some doubt as to whether he can be trusted, given the lack of specifics in his statement - and his support for #45); #45 attacked a company for a claimed ban on his merch - which did not exist;
Elsewhere in the World:
protests, with women playing a key role - and brutal, repressive violence against the protests - are continuing in Belarus, where the embattled - to the detriment of European stability (see here on ways to address that) - and incompetently stubborn president has threatened Russia will come to his rescue (the EU has warned Russia to stay out of it), but has released some - abused - prisoners. There are also concerns about the possible destabilising effect of recent political events in Kosovo; a coup has forced the President out in troubled Mali; an opinion that Fethullah Gülen is at least as responsible as Erdoğan for Turkey’s problems;
protests, with women playing a key role - and brutal, repressive violence against the protests - are continuing in Belarus, where the embattled - to the detriment of European stability (see here on ways to address that) - and incompetently stubborn president has threatened Russia will come to his rescue (the EU has warned Russia to stay out of it), but has released some - abused - prisoners. There are also concerns about the possible destabilising effect of recent political events in Kosovo; a coup has forced the President out in troubled Mali; an opinion that Fethullah Gülen is at least as responsible as Erdoğan for Turkey’s problems;
other democracy, governance, politics, public ethics,
and society matters have occurred in:
my home state.
my home state.
Internationally:
warnings foreign spying in Australia (particularly our ship building industry) has increased (really? Is our ship-building significant enough technically? This reason has been used to block an FoI request, but the suggestions that this threat is related to the declining relationship with the CCP is consistent with what happened in the First Cold War); Lebanon’s President has hinted at possible peace talks with Israel; a conviction has been made over the 2005 assassination of a President of Lebanon; as the UAE criticises threats from Iran, Sudan and Israel are now talking about normalising ties (whether this is good or not depends on possible conditions and the detail), but Israel has told the USA it is concerned over the Saudi nuclear programme; the UN has rejected the USA’s attempts to extend the arms embargo against Iran; revelations about the UK’s role in the overthrow of democracy in Iran in 1953; thoughts on fixing the USA’s foreign affairs policies; a report that Gazans no longer fear a major war; a report on North Korea’s illegal influence in the DR Congo, and how to address that; “the two faces of Kurdistan: nationalism vs communalism”;
warnings foreign spying in Australia (particularly our ship building industry) has increased (really? Is our ship-building significant enough technically? This reason has been used to block an FoI request, but the suggestions that this threat is related to the declining relationship with the CCP is consistent with what happened in the First Cold War); Lebanon’s President has hinted at possible peace talks with Israel; a conviction has been made over the 2005 assassination of a President of Lebanon; as the UAE criticises threats from Iran, Sudan and Israel are now talking about normalising ties (whether this is good or not depends on possible conditions and the detail), but Israel has told the USA it is concerned over the Saudi nuclear programme; the UN has rejected the USA’s attempts to extend the arms embargo against Iran; revelations about the UK’s role in the overthrow of democracy in Iran in 1953; thoughts on fixing the USA’s foreign affairs policies; a report that Gazans no longer fear a major war; a report on North Korea’s illegal influence in the DR Congo, and how to address that; “the two faces of Kurdistan: nationalism vs communalism”;
on China’s Communist Party (CCP) Regime and the
new
ideological Cold War this week:
the CCP’s misleadingly named Confucius Institutes have been declared by the USA to be “foreign missions”; Australia’s wine exports are the next target of the declining relationship with the CCP; the CCP has ordered a reduction in food waste, leading to very strange ideas; US Universities are finding ways to stop Chinese students being punished by the CCP’s new repression laws; the need to pay attention to the improving China-Russia relationship.
the CCP’s misleadingly named Confucius Institutes have been declared by the USA to be “foreign missions”; Australia’s wine exports are the next target of the declining relationship with the CCP; the CCP has ordered a reduction in food waste, leading to very strange ideas; US Universities are finding ways to stop Chinese students being punished by the CCP’s new repression laws; the need to pay attention to the improving China-Russia relationship.
In
Africa - Democracy,
Governance, Politics, Public Ethics, And Society and International Relations:
teachers need better pay.
teachers need better pay.
On the COVID-19 pandemic
caused by the SARS-CoV-2 novel coronavirus (there
are other novel coronaviruses) (seven major risks to watch here,
and seven sins of thought to avoid here),
and Wear Masks!!!):
a comment in this video at about 6:45 was chilling: what could be worse than the current pandemic is a bird flu - as transmissible, but up to 50% fatalities; another grieving for the loss of our pre-pandemic lifestyles, hopes and aspirations; airlines are struggling to stay in business; more on the grief of not being able to attend funerals (I want to know if the funerals respect the religion of the deceased);
a comment in this video at about 6:45 was chilling: what could be worse than the current pandemic is a bird flu - as transmissible, but up to 50% fatalities; another grieving for the loss of our pre-pandemic lifestyles, hopes and aspirations; airlines are struggling to stay in business; more on the grief of not being able to attend funerals (I want to know if the funerals respect the religion of the deceased);
good stories/news: Indigenous kids in Redfern are making striking face masks;
good transformations from lockdown;
medical aspects: “telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic
shows the ‘anti-social loner’ autism stereotype is a myth”; the infectiousness
of grief; symptoms appear in a
particular sequence; testing is now not
as severe; the
risks of discarded/used PPE, and of badly
fitting PPE for health workers from some
minority groups; children
as spreaders - and at increased
risk of diabetes; a doctor from
Wuhan, China has warned that evidence is crucial;
Human Rights Aspects (crisis
. . . running summary of impacts on elections here):
the problem of opportunistic scumbags committing identity theft; “workplace transmissions: a predictable result of the class divide in worker rights”; some jobs have been lost forever; in a radical move, funding will help victim/survivors of domestic violence stay in their homes while their abusers are moved out; a call for disabled workers to be able to continue working from home after the pandemic; a 29 page policy brief on “Principles to Uphold the Rule of Law and Good Governance in Public Health Emergencies”;
the problem of opportunistic scumbags committing identity theft; “workplace transmissions: a predictable result of the class divide in worker rights”; some jobs have been lost forever; in a radical move, funding will help victim/survivors of domestic violence stay in their homes while their abusers are moved out; a call for disabled workers to be able to continue working from home after the pandemic; a 29 page policy brief on “Principles to Uphold the Rule of Law and Good Governance in Public Health Emergencies”;
Australia:
some experts who should know better are making flawed comments. From this article: yes, we are lacking a national Bill of Rights; no, that does NOT mean we have no human rights - we ratified the ICCPR (which does not HAVE to be copied into our legal system, because we're a Constitutional Monarchy, not a truly Parliamentary democracy, and thus the Executive [yes, we do have one - it is the Governor-General together with all Ministers] can commit us - see “Treaty Making in Australia”), which encodes the UDHR. This, however, states there are exceptions/limitations to some rights for the purpose of public health (Article 3 of the UDHR was codified into Articles 4 and 9 of the ICCPR, but Clause 3 of Article 11 also states "The above-mentioned rights shall not be subject to any restrictions except those which are provided by law, are necessary to protect ... public health ...”) - which is BECAUSE people also have the right to life; - see also this ethical consideration which led to a decision to wear facemasks, this, the less clear cut medical view on the subject, and this, which, behind the shift words, is making a vaccine compulsory for those receiving social security (While I favour encouraging and possibly making the vaccine mandatory AND FREE for most, singling out those on social security is vicious discrimination yet again). As a final point on coercion (the official word for compulsion), WA is considering monitoring bracelets for those considered a flight risk from hotel quarantine;
some experts who should know better are making flawed comments. From this article: yes, we are lacking a national Bill of Rights; no, that does NOT mean we have no human rights - we ratified the ICCPR (which does not HAVE to be copied into our legal system, because we're a Constitutional Monarchy, not a truly Parliamentary democracy, and thus the Executive [yes, we do have one - it is the Governor-General together with all Ministers] can commit us - see “Treaty Making in Australia”), which encodes the UDHR. This, however, states there are exceptions/limitations to some rights for the purpose of public health (Article 3 of the UDHR was codified into Articles 4 and 9 of the ICCPR, but Clause 3 of Article 11 also states "The above-mentioned rights shall not be subject to any restrictions except those which are provided by law, are necessary to protect ... public health ...”) - which is BECAUSE people also have the right to life; - see also this ethical consideration which led to a decision to wear facemasks, this, the less clear cut medical view on the subject, and this, which, behind the shift words, is making a vaccine compulsory for those receiving social security (While I favour encouraging and possibly making the vaccine mandatory AND FREE for most, singling out those on social security is vicious discrimination yet again). As a final point on coercion (the official word for compulsion), WA is considering monitoring bracelets for those considered a flight risk from hotel quarantine;
residents have been moved
out of mental health care facilities after outbreaks,
and a call
made for help with residential disability care institutions; more
high deaths and lower new cases in my home state, but a warning
not to be complacent; more details of early
concerns about (Lack of) infection control protocols, losing
track of inmates, ignoring suicide risks, and wrong use of PPE by guards for
the hotel quarantine scheme - and of an attempted
(but unsuccessful) cover-up by a Contractor, and criticism
by a human rights expert who experienced the quarantine; aged care is being limited
by workers being stuck on the wrong side of state borders - despite desperate
calls for help; tenants and
landlords have extended protection; concerns
that the estimated proportion of infected health care workers may be low; the arbitrariness
of ICU policies; the suffering
of mental housing tenants;
inadequate
mental health support from the national neolib government, whose incompetently
conceived home renovations scheme has received only 250 applications and made no
payments - and more staggering
revelations of their incompetence, including a lack of competence at being human (see
here),
in rejecting early appeals to move people out of aged
care homes, where poor ventilation may
be a problem; the national pandemic
plan omitted
people living with a disability; the community
on Christmas Island has been put
at risk by the xenophobic national neoliberal government; international students are now going hungry
(shame
may be stopping them ask for help)- and some migrant workers will never
return here because of their suffering;
more steps towards Australia having an accessible (possibly free)
vaccine once
one is developed - see also this,
on plasma from recovered patients; the costs
to a business of a COVID-19 case; a
quarantine guard has tested positive - this time, in NSW,
where bus
drivers are threatening a strike unless facemasks and physical distancing
are made mandatory (and quarantine may
have involved illegal subcontracting);
another call for a gender-inclusive recovery from the pandemic; concerning
revelations that meatworks workers were compelled to return to work before they
had received test results; staggering
advice to farmers to put sheep and produce on
planes to evade border shutdowns . . . ; a heart
wrenching effect of the border closures;
a shortage
of Uni places - which are still seeking to slash
yet more jobs; inmates at a youth
detention centre in Qld have been put into single
isolation in cells; as a result of
inequity, American Indians and Alaskan natives have 3.5
times higher rates of infection;
Internationally:
oppositions as well as governments of the day are being tested by the pandemic; an incompetent attempt to address inequity in school assessments caused by the pandemic; a call for a two week lockdown in Lebanon; New Zealand - where the first few days of a lockdown were justified, but unlawful; India’s death toll has passed 50,000; South Korea is facing a crisis; visa changes and dodgy enforcement in Indonesia are leaving foreigners (including workers - this is not only about tourists) in desperate situations; Europe; Germany; mass testing in the UK; fears of a second wave in Italy; cover your ram’s horn!; no PPE or pay for doctors in Kenya;
oppositions as well as governments of the day are being tested by the pandemic; an incompetent attempt to address inequity in school assessments caused by the pandemic; a call for a two week lockdown in Lebanon; New Zealand - where the first few days of a lockdown were justified, but unlawful; India’s death toll has passed 50,000; South Korea is facing a crisis; visa changes and dodgy enforcement in Indonesia are leaving foreigners (including workers - this is not only about tourists) in desperate situations; Europe; Germany; mass testing in the UK; fears of a second wave in Italy; cover your ram’s horn!; no PPE or pay for doctors in Kenya;
Irresponsibility,
Selfishness, and Unthinking Behaviour:
WA (I hope they have the metaphorical book thrown at them); Sweden’s cold-blooded gamble; problems with irresponsible US residents on the US-Canada border.
WA (I hope they have the metaphorical book thrown at them); Sweden’s cold-blooded gamble; problems with irresponsible US residents on the US-Canada border.
WLNGRHDMT
And finally . . . Black Lives Matter!
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