VoteYES!

I got a No card out of my letterbox this morning. 
At first it just made me mad - I am voting YES. 
But I need to talk about what No has said on that card. 

They claim that "The Voice will divide Australians". It won't. They will divide Australians. The First Nation people belong in this country. It was their own country for tens of centuries. How do they think the Voice will divide this country? They claim that Aus isn't a racist country, but they keep making it that same way. Read the history!! The present Aus was "made" 250 years ago when the Brits arrived to make it into a jail for their own people. They killed too many Indigenous people, thinking they were making the country British. Why?? Why were Indigenous people not included in the constitution when it was set up?

They claim that it isn't fair to "change the national rulebook". What rulebook?? This country became a British area. What is now in the "rulebook"? British rules? Are Indigenous people included? They should be. They say that the Voice "will have special access to Ministers and the Public Service". Why shouldn't they? Why were Indigenous people excluded from voting until 1962? Why were they never accepted in the World War I and II wars, even though there were soldiers who were Indigenous? In May 1964 the Labor opposition leader, Arthur Calwell, set out a bill which would include the Indigenous people in the constitution, but the government didn't accept that. The Indigenous people were not even included in the federal full equality election lists until 1984!

They claim that compensation will cost Australia too much, yet they use capitalism to speak of that. They refer to "reparations and compensation for 'historical wrongs'". Why are they trying to deny that to Indigenous people? A&TSI people have been abused far, far too much. 

• Their culture has been ignored and still is. Writers Taylor and Habibis said "White ignorance has a critical impact on race relations and is implicated in the maintenance of Aboriginal disadvantage. Addressing this ignorance is a largely overlooked capacity‐building opportunity within Australia's non‐Aboriginal population. It warrants consideration as a key component of strategies targeting Aboriginal disadvantage." 
• There are too many Indigenous people who commit suicide when their culture is ignored. Creative Spirits wrote "Almost non-existent in the 1980s, the rate of suicide and self harm amongst Aboriginal people is at crisis levels and has reached "horrific proportions", particularly in remote communities and especially amongst youth." 
• Their children were taken from their own parents! This must be considered today. YES can definitely help that!  

Looking into the history of the British into Māori has met much, much more than the white Australians. In New Zealand (Aotearoa), the Brits signed a treaty with Māori, and the meaning of the Treaty is specified in the NZ law. If the A&TSI had a treaty with the Brits, perhaps they would live much better than they are now. Just saying that.

They say that the Australia Day will be abolished, but this has been fought on for decades. Why are they saying that now? ABC posted an article about this in 2021. According to them, the "Australia Talks National Survey 2021 has revealed a majority of people now believe Australia Day should not be celebrated on January 26, given the historical significance of the date for Indigenous nations." The No vote people should realise that the activists for the change of the Australian Day might think different than the upcoming voters for the YES referendum, but many of them do support the YES vote! Why include them in your arguments? 

I am still rather angry at finding this piece of crap in my mailbox, but I suspect I have read much more history which should be considered when you think of voting No. 

#VoteYES

What has changed, and why?

 

Mostly throughout our lives we all have dreams which don't seem to come real for us. I dreamed of careers, I dreamed of real men, I dreamed of a healthy lifetime. I lost each of those. Too many other people seem to have lost everything or, simply, changed their lives after Covid hit us in 2019. Losing a cheap rental which you lived in for years as the rental price increase far too much; losing your job at the beginning of Covid during the lockdown; never making your bucket list holidays overseas because during Covid all aircraft were stopped from flying or now the prices are far too high. 

My losses were different to those who gave in to Covid, but they seemed similar: I lost my job when I told my employer about my brain aneuryms; after the stroke I was moved closer to my daughter so the rental costs changed; my holidays overseas simply didn't happen because I had lost 2/3 of my annual salary and I was now on DSP. My bucket list seemed to lose much of what I had ever put on it.

I am living now in a senior residential village and I haven't built up my bucket list. My predominant events were graduating from Griffith University with a BA a couple of years ago, and from Macquarie University this year with a Masters of Creative Writing. Both of these degrees were intended to help me recover from the stroke and aphasia (dysphasia) which I haven't, really. I forget words, I forget to discuss when all I can do is write.

When I passed the Masters of Creative Writing I had just finished the three years of research and writing for my family history book, but I still haven't gotten it printed. I found out that I could choose to only have one printed and use that to advertise it. Perhaps that is what I will do but I really need to understand the cost on that, because I sure can't afford to pay for a whole heap of them printed. It should have helped me to feel "recovered", yet I know I'm not. Some people think I certainly am, but perhaps they don't really know me. 

Two things wound me up today. The first was finishing the Jodi Picoult novel Wish You Were Here, published 2021. I found this in the free library in my retirement village, and it was a very good book: perhaps I could have written a review, but my words probably wouldn't help it. I felt so similar to the woman she had written about during Covid. I remembered a dream I had when I was a child, flying away, and I have often remembered that. Why do I? I had no reason to fly away in my childhood, but maybe that was a sensor warning about my teenager future, away from my family. The character's career in Picoult's novel has changed: so has mine. I might read that novel again in the future. Maybe it might help me.

The second thing was an article on First Peoples nation which says that Jacinta Price's "denialism takes the Coalition to a new Indigenous Affairs policy: erasure of First Peoples". I wonder if she even realises what she is doing? That is so wrong. The First People were in this country long before the British turned up and took over. Maybe she thinks that what happened was okay? Has she ever read history??

I am asking everyone to #VoteYES !

Forgotten times

I only remembered today that I hadn't posted another blog since December last year. I can blame my aphasia... and also the recent person I discovered I did not like. He was just a tutor who didn't know any more than I do or may have known more than I did but never chose to discuss that with me. 'Nuff said. I've gotten over that! 

I finished the draft of my book, which I have been working on for 3 years, and I am feeling pretty stoked! Yesterday I found one beta reader; perhaps I should use more, but the first one is my first goal... get that goal and then I can go ahead with more beta readers. I spent too long looking at the different publishers, and I still haven't chosen one. This book is an historical non-fiction work... I just want it published! 

For the rest of this post I am talking about how people are treated over poverty and rent and where they want to live. That includes me - I'm a retired woman and I have been following the politics of rental since COVID. When I moved last year to be closer to my family, I chose a single bedroom unit for less than $300. Except I have been discovering what's not good of this unit for me. There is only one entry/exit which shares access with every other tenant on this level; there is no balcony on the other side of the unit; there are 15 steps up and down that I have to walk every day, and my legs are tired; the oven is rusty; the ceiling is peeling (even after being painted before I moved in); there is too much dust which just happens to come inside from the main road through this area; there are no sound limits through the neighbour's walls; there is no aircon; the mailboxes are very difficult to check - very low and in front of the garden that is too close. Months ago, I requested a permanent set of curtains in my bedroom to stop the afternoon summer sun actually getting into that side of the unit, and I am very grateful that the owner had them put in. That's pretty much the only excellent thing that has been done for me. 

When I reached retirement age, I had my name put on the Housing Dept list for a community unit. A couple of weeks later I got a notice from the property agent to ask if I was moving out. No, I was not! I only put my name on a list, and I might have to wait for a couple of years for a property to become available for me. At the beginning of this month, I received another email which informed me that my rent was going up when I reached the end of my two-year contract. It was going up by $60 a week!! Perhaps I should have ignored that notification, because my contract did not expire until 2024. But I have aphasia, and my brain works by itself and told me I should be upset/angry and start looking elsewhere now. 

I tried looking through property websites, most of which quoted rent for a one-bedroom unit or a studio unit as $350 a week, and some $450. Almost all of these were called a "granny flat", and I, seriously, am wondering how many landlords actually have their own "granny" who could never afford $350. Why, just why call a single bedroomed unit/flat a "granny flat"? 

I have my name on the lists with retirement villages, which have many people on their own list. To find something I can afford for the rest of my life would work for me, but the only one I attempted to get in to inspect, after telling me that I was definitely considered, was signed up by a person chosen by the private owner. I had already been into Housing Dept to arrange for the bond, and they had told me that, even though the rent for that unit included a meal a day, the cost was just over the limit the HD had placed on beneficiaries like me, but they were happy to support me. Which didn't happen. 

COVID has led to payments increased to workers, but very little to beneficiaries, which sees us move out if the rent goes higher than we can afford. That's what leads to homelessness. These days so many of the advertised units/flats are rented as furnished. I wonder why this is happening now, when it didn't happen a few years ago? I have my own furniture and belongings and I have the right to live with my own stuff. 

Very recently I completed a survey and a submission for the Queensland state government where they are looking into availability of housing. They have a website page which looks at Housing Support for Aged People (for people like me) and Housing Pathways for Young People (which probably includes everyone else). If you can provide your own submission then please do so, whether you need a home or already have your own. This suggestion is directed at people who aim to earn what they need to pay for rent, certainly not at the property owners (unless you will support us too!).

A year ago, when I moved closer to my family, I didn't really feel that I could be facing homelessness throughout my future life. I also never considered that the agent would tell me months in advance about the rent increase. But I already knew I could not afford $350. 

I think of anything I could do: speed up the publication of my book (but I can't guarantee an income from it); win the lotto sometime in the future (but I can't really afford that). I guess that, now, I can think about the useless stuff that people with too much money spend on.

I won't miss that stuff.

"Bulldozed" by Niki Savva

 

Savva's book was published in 2022, a perfect time to write this. It is about "Scott Morrison's fall and Anthony Albanese's rise", and so true! Morrison described himself has "a bit of a bulldozer" (p. 7), which proved to be so correct.

My memories of Morrison was that he disputed Albanese as the Labor leader, saying that he had "no experience". He obviously didn't know Albanese, who had been an MP since 1996 in Grayndler, had been the deputy PM under Rudd in 2013, and had held various MP positions under Gillard and Rudd from 2007-2013 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Albanese). He had been Leader of the House,  Minister for Regional Development and Local Government and Minister for Infrastructure and Transport.He had been appointed to those positions by ALP. He had taken over from Bill Shorten in 2019 at the party Leader. He knew a lot about government according to Savva in the book, Morrison "had always underestimated Albanese, who was both resilient and street smart" (p.4). According to Alex Hawke, he had "got addicted to executive authority" (p.7).

Savva had accomplished interviews with so many of the people both in LNP and ALP, and included their words in the book. One of those she interviewed said that Morrison "would only step down if God told him to" (p.19), which, after the 2022 election, proved to happen whatever he thought about. Savva said that "every year of his tenure began with a disaster of one kind or another" (p.24), which showed Morrison had no experience as a party leader or a PM.

Morrison often prayed in the PM's office with his colleagues (p.73), those with a belief in religion. The Constitution, Section 42 (https://www.aph.gov.au/constitution), allows an oath OR affirmation. A bible is not essential in the House, nor the Senate. Morrison conducting prayers was scary, for those of us who had no belief. His approach to other people, regardless to his 'control' of them, was based on his belief, and did not ring true to those he was confronting. His disinterest in "rules-based order" was identified by Senate Fierrawanti-Wells who said that Morrison was "not fit to be prime minister" and that he was "an autocrat, a bully who has no moral compass" (p.214). When Morrison fired Holgate from the AusPost, he thought it was "appropriate to publicly admonish her" her (p.127). The Senate "exonerated [her] and recommended he apologise" (p.127). He didn't. Holgate accused him of bullying. When Morrison had found about the rape of Higgins in Reynold's office, he insisted he had not been told by anyone (p.139). According to Savva, "few believed him" (p.139).

Morrison had walked away from the national bush fires, and went to Hawaii with his family in 2019. On his return (earlier than he had planned, due to being asked by his colleagues to be here), he went to Cobargo where fires had ravaged the community. He attempted to shake the hand of a woman, who refused; he took her hand, and didn't even listen to her (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts71iK2Jx_I). Savva said that he had gone "missing when his country needed him the most", and that he was "incapable of accepting responsibility when things went wrong" (p.51). Buzzfeed had 18 ridiculous sayings that Morrison had made (https://www.buzzfeed.com/louisegong/16-times-scomo-humiliated-australians-over-the-past-year) but there were more, like the "I don't hold a hose", written about by ABC (https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-05-18/scott-morrison-acknowledges-saying-i-dont-hold-a/13886694) on 18 May 2022, and New Daily listing a long list of when Morrison had said "it's not my job" (https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/politics/australian-politics/2021/04/22/scott-morrison-not-my-job/). 

As I looked through Google and Wikipedia, which I am certain Morrison would not use, or would decry them, I found so much info which Savva wrote about throughout the book. Savva acknowledged that Morrison was "to never own up when he got anything wrong" (p.248), had acknowledged that voters "mightn't like him, but at least he got things done" (which he didn't) (p.268), told people that "there are things that we are going to have to change with the way I do things" (which was answered by Albanese who said "If you want to change, change the government") (p.268), supported Katharine Deves for Warringah despite not understanding how she was perceived by women voters and ignored his party members as they asked him to dump her (p.218), and paid no attention to what Barnaby Joyce had been recorded as saying: "[Morrison] is a liar from my observations and that is over a long time." (p.140). This is a very few of what Savva has noted throughout this book.

Savva had an acknowledgement at the back of the book for all the people she got information from, and that list is impressive. The book was an excellent read for me, even though it took me a little bit longer as I went to NZ for a brief visit. It's taken a definite position on my bookshelf, where I can pick it up and re-read it whenever Morrison tries to re-introduce his religion, or still bullies, or still ignores that whatever he does is his job! And he should never have belittled Albanese, who is now a much, much better prime minister than Morrison ever was.

I'm a Kiwi. If you want to understand why I never trusted Morrison, look up Rob Muldoon, a Kiwi prime minister back in 1975-1984, who was, as far I think, far too similar to Morrison (albeit not religious). Thank you, Niki Savva, for this book - you made my day reading it!

I am all & all is me...

Yesterday I was looking for something to blog about when I saw that the previous PM, Scott Morrison, had secretly taken on three departments without letting anyone else in this country know about it! I looked up other blogs and news articles. I found this picture on the Poll Bludger under the comments on “Roy Morgan, Morning Consult and JSCEM (open thread)”, dropped in there by the Dog's Brunch - and I loved it/hated it so much, but it showed, as "Wendy" had said, ScuMo had always thought "I am all & all is me". I hope - truly hope - that he has found his real position: in Hell's deep hole. Excellent time to find out his idiotic stuff! 

I went backwards to look at an ABC article dated 8 April 2022 which spoke about the Governor-General David Hurley who had personally lobbied ScuMo for funding for a "leadership program" which had only been set up last year. ScuMo gave it more than $18 million in the federal funding. Why did that happen? Labor did know about it - but they were, at that time, the opposition. Penny Wong questioned it. 

Very recently News.com.au said that "Scott Morrison breaks silence on secret ministry scandal as Anthony Albanese seeks legal advice", The Guardian told their readers that "Morrison took control of Keith Pitt’s portfolio to reject exploration licence in lead-up to election" and on 15 August The Guardian printed an article by Anne Twomey for The Conversation, and The Australian ($) wrote that "Scott Morrison was appointed by David Hurley to take control of the entire Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources" (no link because you have to subscribe to them - I don't). I have always had problems with how Morrison became a PM. Now I wonder if other LNPs standing for PM would have acted the same way. 

I have read that this over-extension is allegedly based on Section 64 of the Constitution. I looked it up. It says:

"64. Ministers of State

The Governor-General may appoint officers to administer such departments of State of the Commonwealth as the Governor-General in Council may establish.

Such officers shall hold office during the pleasure of the Governor-General. They shall be members of the Federal Executive Council, and shall be the Queen's Ministers of State for the Commonwealth.

Ministers to sit in Parliament

After the first general election no Minister of State shall hold office for a longer period than three months unless he is or becomes a senator or a member of the House of Representatives."

To me, this gave no approval for the Governor-General to do this for Morrison. Hurley did not establish the "departments". This did not apply to him, nor to Morrison.

I wait with a bated breath for whether or not this will be taken to court. I don't think it was relative to S.64. Is Hurley still GG? Happy to hear from others readers.

What an [adjective] time!

Another 6 months since I have written anything in here. I wonder why...

Still, I have now moved and I am in another single bedroom unit in the north of Brisbane (I was south of Brisbane, in case I hadn't mentioned that). I suppose I should have settled down years ago, but my aphasia (with my stroke) has only improved in the past 2 years. Perhaps that was because I used to isolate myself during the COVID-19 pandemic. I know that everyone was supposed to, but I didn't break any laws!

This term I have finished another two papers for the Master of Creative Writing course. I actually didn't really enjoy both the units this time, but I have started another story which might just become my next novel. I so hope so!

I have been so distressed until right now. Right this moment! In April I was very upset with the increase - yet again - of the life (death) insurance which I had taken out in 2013, before I ended up in hospital in 2014 with the brain aneurysm, stroke and aphasia. The aphasia played badly with my memory, and after April 2014 I had no memory of this policy. I was put on to DSP as I could no longer work.I didn't even find out who this company was until 2018.

I contacted Australian Seniors Insurance and spoke to a person whose name I do not know in June 2019, when my previous premium had been increased to $37.59. I asked for the premium charge to be reduced as I could not have afford this - double what I had started this policy with in 2013. I hadn't found out about the premiums for this policy until 2017, which had increased that year to $29.82. It was increased again in 2018 and 2019 and after I found out about the Australian Seniors finally in 2019, it reduced to $33.66 on 19 June 2019. For me, that was still too much. Back then I have no memory of talking to anyone from Australian Seniors about stopping the increased premiums. Three years later I still tried to contact the staff: I spoke to "Marie" at 5.30pm, 8 April 2022. I later rang "Andrew" and "Corinne" on 11 April this year and 13 April this year. I was not told where this had been sent. On 13 April I also sent two documents to Andrew and Corinne: those documents had information about my stroke and aphasia back in 2014, and from the ABIOS person who assisted me for months after I was discharged. On 26 April I received an email from "Emily" advising that my complaint had been sent on to the "Internal Disputes Resolution Department and is currently under review".  

On 26 April Emily had cc’d to customercare@greenstone who I later found out – 16 May - was Maria Pinzon, the first time I had heard from her. She had posted a letter dated 6 May which I did not receive until 16 May. She advised me that my claim had been declined.

I was extremely upset that the Australian Seniors company had no interest in my stroke and aphasia and the fact that I did not again become aware of the company until 2019. Since then it has taken me three years to get this far. I still live with aphasia, and I have very little communication with any person by vocalising. I fully believe that the company Greenstone and/or Australian Seniors should have cancelled my policy from the date of the stroke and aphasia. Since then I had no communication with the company until I found out who the direct debit was for. I personally believe that from 2017 onwards they had no absolute permission from me to continue with this policy. I certainly believe that they had no permission from me for the continuation of the policy while I had begun to live with the stroke and aphasia - which will affect me for the rest of my life. Since February in 2017, when I became aware of the Australian Seniors company, I have paid approximately $4,799.22 for premiums, which I should not have had. I cancelled the policy on 20 May this year. That is $4,799.22 out of my DSP benefit, which I have been paid with since April 2014. What right did Australian Seniors and Greenstone have to continue taking it from me without finding out what happened to me?

Their letter says "There is no need for you to do anything..." I firmly believe that every person should be asked to sign for an increased premium. I have never had to do that. I would like a refund of all the premiums I have paid since February 2017, which is when I became aware of the policy and had to make a lot of attempts to find out the name of the company. I have sent a complaint further up the line, this time to ACFA. I hope they will find positive for me!

When I moved here I got refunded bond from my previous address, and my electricity account was in credit so they refunded that. I wish that other people who became aware of what had happened to me should have/could have had a conversation face-to-face with me to help me sort out the issues. 

Another company which refused to refund six months of a membership fee was RACQ. My car and my contents insurance had been with them for years, and I never questioned the cost, until I moved here and found another insurance company who offered the contents policy for a quarter of the price that I had paid to RACQ! I cancelled my car because I won't be driving it any more (I loved it for the past 12 years, but the cost of petrol has put it right out of my reach), and they told me that I would still be a member until January 2023 - even though I have no car and no contents with them any more! Why do companies do that? I find that insulting. 

Anyway, I am to start the next term of the units for the Master of Creative Writing I am doing, and I really hope these units will be enjoyable. Perhaps I shouldn't have blamed the previous units, because the issues I had to sort out were not theirs.

Still, I am now living within 1.5kms from my daughter and her partner, and their lovely wee girl - my granddaughter! Sometimes I think it's warmer up here than down where I was!

Have a wonderful rest of the year!

The end of this year

It's almost there. Today is the 31st December 2021, and what has happened during 2021? For me, nothing particularly good, except for some of the things I looked up - like a new albatross hatched in February - there's a bit of a tale to that. This is the end of the second year of the pandemic life under COVID-19. It has affected me too often, and although I have had two vaccinations (AstraZeneca) I have not (yet) had the third one. Do I need that? 

2021 with a few things that happened is laid out here for readers.

January: 6 January 2021 was the worst of much of 2021, as the QAnon followers attacked the Washington USA Capitol, and tried to express its significance to them. The majority of the world saw it as a stupid crime during which some people were killed. This event won the PolitiFact 2021 Lie. In the next few months severe reaction by the government and police changed the act from the QAnon followers: hundreds went to court and were jailed; Facebook, Twitter, Reddit and Instagram got rid of contacts who were identifying as QAnonners; some global authors got their history of QAnon published, including Van Badham from Australia, who wrote an excellent story of it; and, as we already know, Joe Biden was the elected USA President, not Trump.

February: a 70-year-old albatross in a wildlife refuge in the North Pacific Ocean had a chick, BBC was told by the US wildlife officials. "Wisdom", the albatross, had been identified in 1956 and was the oldest one the wildlife officials knew of.

March: On 13 March, McGowan, the Premier of Labor's party, lead the party back into West Australia with a bigger majority. Victoria, also a Labor state, had grown immensely with COVID-19 infection as reported in the Federal government Health department.

April: Queen Elizabeth's husband, Philip, died on April 9th. He was 99 years old. He'd been in hospital between February and March this year, and had a ""successful procedure" for a preexisting heart condition on March 3". 

May: USA President Joe Biden announces that his government was heading towards 70% vaccinations before 4 July. Australia didn't make this then, either.

June: Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven resigned on 28 June after a non-confidence vote. Sweden had a temporary PM until November when the first-ever female prime minister, Social Democrat Magdalena Andersson, was elected. Within hours she resigned when her budget was rejected. I wonder if the Swedish politics would work in Australia?

July: In this month I discovered a New Zealand cop drama based in the TV town Brokenwood, titled The Brokenwood Mysteries. It had country music - which I normally don't like - but the series of this programme were well made, and watchable through ABC's iView.

August: While this month had horrifically hot temperatures around the globe ever since records started, bushfires also played their game. Guardian's article was about Hawaii's largest wildfire on record in South Kohala which was finally brought under control, but it had burned through 40,000 acres

September: The Conversation wrote an article about the earthquake in Melbourne on 22 September. Even though it was only a magnitude of 5.8 there was some damage. While Aus seems to be lucky not to have such heavier earthquakes, that brought memories of the New Zealand Christchurch earthquake in 2011, a 6.3 shock which caused so much damage and killed 185 people. This year, the worst earthquake which killed people was in Haiti, a 7.2 which killed 2,248; the worst one of magnitude this year was in July in Alaska, USA, where an 8.2 was in Aleutian Islands but no-one killed.

October: There was a Komatsu PC270 clearing the ground south of my unit from the debris from a demolition. So. Bloody. Noisy! The dude didn't even operate that digger well himself - maybe he'd only leased it. This noise went on into the first couple of weeks of November.

November: Broke my 7th rib on 13 November, falling off a chair I was standing on to try to stop my unit fire alarm beeping. Pain was around 6 then, I drove to Ipswich Emergency department and the pain got worse. I had the ribs x-rayed and they confirmed it was broken. Pain  was 10 most of the rest of that day - and I had to drive myself home! My daughter and her family came round and helped by vacuuming inside and mowing the outside, both which I couldn't have done. The rib was allegedly to repair itself within 6 weeks.

Later in this month my next door neighbour came to my unit and mowed the back lawn again! I am so grateful to those who helped meat the start of this six weeks! Love you all!

December: This is the end of 2021, yet it seems it seems not the end of the COVID pandemic. This year we saw two different viruses, the Delta and now the Omicron. Our borders were opened for overseas and interstate travellers for Christmas and holidays, but the Omicron has picked up - and is working fast. Still, the government has changed regulations, so I wonder how states will react to this? The UN WHO says that 2022 may be the end of the pandemic. Shall we watch and see?

Just after 6pm in Brisbane, Australia. I say to all the New Zealanders, have a very nice NYE. And to all in Australia, the same. Let's just all hope that our new year, 2022, will be better than the last two.