Australia Day?

26 January. What does that mean to you? For me, that date in 2016 is the date I became a citizen in Australia. I have a certificate hanging on my wall, but often I don't know how I feel about that. I don't usually celebrate Australia Day because this country is nothing more than where I live.

Twelve years ago, in 2005, was the year I moved here with my ex. Being in love, unfortunately, blinds you to everything else in your new city. I didn't wake up to the politics until PM Julia Gillard was disgustingly abused by LNP. When Tony Abbott was elected, my dislike of these politics and politicians grew, and has continued to grow since then - throughout the Turnbull years, including the PM and MPs like Morrison, Dutton, Pyne, Brandis, Bishop, Ley, Hunt, Joyce, Rowan and on and on... and on. And recently Pauline Hanson was elected, but as far as I am concerned the mistake of people voting for her is far to close to the evil mistakes which happened in Australia - and in USA.

Women marched after Trump's inauguration, and their protest drew more supporters than the inauguration did. After Trump, women have become - again - second to men. So far we have tried so hard to reach where we should be - with men! Do you remember Nightingale, Pankhurst, Woolf, Parkes, Friedan, Steinem, Greer, Brownmiller, Dworkin? They and so many others fought for us. Feminist was a lifetime, but too many women walked away from it recently. That was dangerous for us - too many turned the feminist around from liberating to chaining. Yet what the early suffragettes and the later feminists won for women are ignored by women today. And by men.

Trump has signed a bill which reinstates an abortion-gag against women. THAT is OURS! What right did he have to do that?

Trump has signed a bill to build a wall between USA and Mexico. THAT should be paid for by the President from the USA who made that stupid decision - not by Mexico.

It's Our Future in New Zealand wrote that "... the countries that have signed up to the TPPA have agreed to either change or freeze national laws to suit the interests of overseas investors from the other TPPA countries (the US, Canada, Mexico, Japan etc).  This means locking in light-handed regulation, limiting restrictions on overseas investment, and making it harder for governments to respond to both the future needs of their citizens and the natural environment." Trump has stopped USA involvement with the TPPA. I actually agree with that, but how does the LNP government here in Australia get along with that?

How would Turnbull regard Trump? How does China regard Trump? How does China regard Hanson? How does Turnbull regard Hanson? Far too many questions, far too many people who I think are evil.

The LNP government last year got Centrelink to send debt notices to 169,000 Centrelink beneficiaries - and so many of these have attempted to contact Centrelink and have been pretty much ignored. Most of them aren't in the wrong, yet Centrelink ignored their own records and these people. It seems it's up to the person who is attacked incorrectly to prove that they are in the wrong through Centrelink - but they have to start paying even before they have provided evidence!

We're losing much of our Medicare. We're losing funds to public schools. We're losing adult and child dental funds, setting up in a National Partnership Agreement (NPA).

What is an NPA needed for? In Australia there are NPAs for legal assistance services, early childhood education, homelessness, health, disability, coal seam gas and large coal mining, road and rail programmes, Indigenous economic and housing requirements, mental health, energy, skills reform et al. So many NPAs! The Council of Federal Funding said: "National Agreements define the objectives, outcomes, outputs and performance indicators, and clarify the roles and responsibilities that guide the Commonwealth and the States in the delivery of services in key sectors." Yet this doesn't explain to me what a National Partnership Agreement means. Another page said there are differences between National Partnerships, Implementation Plans and Project Agreements, and yet another said there are "... currently six National Agreements in the health, education, skills and workforce development, disability services, affordable housing and Indigenous reform sectors, and a National Health Reform Agreement."  That seems very different than any page which showed up in Google with an NPA as I mentioned. Have a look through the links at the start of this paragraph. So many NPAs.

Is any NPA for every person in Australia? Do they include refugees, émigrés, unemployed, youth, old people, people with illnesses, people who live in poverty with no choice themselves? Do you, PM Turnbull, know everyone in this country who ended up where they now are from policies and laws which you and your government has passed? Do you know too many of the Kiwis who have lived here, in Australia, for most of their life, committed a stupid crime and are now being sent back to NZ - where they don't know anyone? Who do you blame for refugees who came here and ended up in Nauru? Why have you signed a contract with Adani coal mine when the Indian government says they will never use that coal?

What is Australia on 26 January? To me, it seems far too different, much worse, than only a few years ago. What would you do, PM Turnbull? Do you really know? Please tell me, because I can't follow your government or the USA government or TPPAs or NPAs or One Nation or arguments or debt notices or any of the stuff which Australia seems to live in.

What would you do? 

What do petitions do?

Many years ago I had heard the Herman's Hermits song, “There's a kind of hush”. This morning, sitting looking through the Change.org petitions site I started singing that song in my head, but with different words.

Herman's Hermits wrote about love, but, for me, this song had become a desperate song for people who this government had walked over. I changed a couple of words.

There's a kind of hush all over the world tonight
All over the world you can hear the sounds of people [in pain]
You know what I mean

So many articles I had read from internet newspapers – real papers.

Like Sunshine Coast Daily which wrote about how the Centrelink beneficiaries have been billed for debts they don't even owe (4 Jan).

Like The Advocate which wrote about what a person could do if they had received a letter saying they owed what they didn't even know about (5 Jan).

Like New Matilda which wrote about how the Centrelink “Robo-link” debacle was getting worse (6 Jan).

Like the Newcastle Herald which wrote a warning from the CSPU about how the Centrelink debt is heaping misery on the welfare beneficiaries (10 Jan).

Like Independent Australia who wrote about how the Centrelink debacle shows a “symptom of Turnbull Government's war on welfare” (10 Jan). 

Like the Conversation which looked at Centrelink's data-matching problem.

Like News Mail which wrote about how the Centrelink debacle was very similar to the Census debacle (14 Jan). David Kirkpatrick's article was repeated in the Northern Star, the Gympie Times, the Queensland Times.

Like Sydney Morning Herald who wrote about what the government is planning to do next through Centrelink (16 Jan).

The use of the internet to follow what the government is doing to Centrelink beneficiaries is useless. Personally, I have NetGear from Telstra. Every single day I get onto the internet but every single day I'm cut off. I go offline, watch the message, and eventually it lets me back on. This is Turnbull's NBN. This is pathetic now for any Centrelink beneficiary who needs to get into MyGov to find out what's happening to them. This is pathetic for anyone who has internet problems.

When I finally can get online I follow the Facebook pages where I've joined to see how they feel about this debacle – like the Labor Coalition or Philips's and Friends' Political Analysis & Satire or GetUp!

GetUp! has a petition for us to “fight the unfair debt recovery”, but only needs 50,000 names. Except that the PM had already turned down a petition of more than 200,000 signatures which wanted him to keep working on the Labor NBN. If he could get rid of petitions then he will do it any single day he ever receives a petition. Don't you know that?? Who in this government would listen to that petition? 500,000 signatures might be better. (Oh, and the way we suffer with the internet right now is Turnbull's problem – he should have accepted that petition 3 years ago...)  

Enough is Enough set up a petition asking for 75,000 signatures (presently 57,117) with back-up titled “Ombudsman Investigate Centrelink Debt Recovery”, 9 Jan.

Politicians behave as if the Centrelink beneficiaries aren't there for them – they spend taxpayer funds when they don't care. Graeme Andrews of Mandurah started his petition about the expenditure by politicians, titled “Stop MPs wasting taxpayers money on personal expenses”, set the petition for 150,000 signatures. So far they're up to 78,482. 

Michelle Pedersen of Banksia Beach wrote her petition about stopping payments for non-currently serving politicians: “Stop ALL entitlements, payments, allowances, including travel allowances for politicians who are no longer currently serving the Australian public.” She wanted 300,000 signatures, currently 208,881. She has now lodged this petition on the APH site (Petition number EN0096) and advised that she had “been told the format is incorrect”. Well done, Ms Pedersen – unfortunately no-one should use change.org for a parliament petition! There are only 11 people have signed that one so far...

So if we really wish for a petition to be given to – and accepted by – the PM, what do we do? I looked through the Parliamentary House of Representatives Petitions or Senators website. I found this page with information you could look through. This page says “The subject of a petition must be a matter on which the House has the power to act, that is, it must be a Federal (nationally controlled) rather than a State or Local matter and one involving legislation or government administration.” This is very important information for how a petition can be submitted and who can sign it. 

 

E-petitions can be done, and the person who “signs” it must provide their name and address. There is another page where you can find a petition which is already lodged within APH which you can sign (if it's still open). You must sign.

I have asked everyone who reads this to read everything about this. I have asked you to sign a petition – change.org if you believe in that, or at the Parliament website if you know about it. Please, please don't just flick the page. This page is what YOU need to read. This page is what YOU can follow. This page is what you have to share to get other people in this country to show how angry and frustrated they are of this present government.

Please.... sign.

One Billion Rising

At the end of 2012 and the start of 2013 I started my own website www.itsokaytobeangry.com which told my story and compared that to what happened to a beautiful woman in India. There was a blog too, but now I couldn't get into it. Why? I have contacted Blogger but haven't yet had a response, so this blog is here and should be read by every person who supports One Billion Rising.

What is One Billion Rising? According to the OBR website, it had started in 2012 and the first OBR dance was in 2013. They said: “One Billion Rising is the biggest mass action to end violence against women in human history. The campaign, launched on Valentine’s Day 2012, began as a call to action based on the staggering statistic that 1 in 3 women on the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. With the world population at 7 billion, this adds up to more than ONE BILLION WOMEN AND GIRLS. On 14 February 2013, people across the world came together to express their outrage, strike, dance, and RISE in defiance of the injustices women suffer, demanding an end at last to violence against women.”

Four years ago, at the end of 2012 and the beginning of 2013, I started a One Billion Rising dance group in Brisbane to get people involved in OBR around the world. The intention of the group was raising knowledge in public on 14 February. Valentine's Day here is usually romance. We were trying to turn it to understanding abuse. Ours was a very small dance group: only 30-odd turned up for the strike dance in Brisbane's Queens St Mall, but it went down so very well. We had our pics taken at the end of the Queens St Mall and we felt as if we had won against the world – or at least a part of Brisbane – for the OBR.

Later that year I was also involved in the Vagina Monologues, an excellent play written by Eve Ensler, which raised knowledge about how women are abused. It was real. I met some people who had danced in OBR with me, and other who became friends.

Around that time I had already started the One Billion Rising Brisbane Facebook page, which still exists and has 244 followers. If I had attended to that then maybe it would have grown, but I had a stroke, with aphasia, nearly 3 years ago and I haven't done anywhere near as much as I should have. I asked in a public message if there were any followers who would take over this page, but no response.

This year, 2017, was celebrated at midnight as the end of 2016, an extremely bad year for so many people. Yet I can't see ahead for 2017 because, for me, there are too many things happening throughout the world which will continue to happen – and will get worse. Australia has been writing from Centrelink to beneficiaries about what they owe, when the beneficiaries know they don't owe. Too many people in this country committing suicide. Too many politicians have been kicked out of the front bench – and all of them should resign. Too much abuse against women. Too many work safety injuries and death. Too many pensioners robbed by the government when their own

politicians just make money. And more... and more.

In the USA the President-elect, Trump, should never have been elected. What I see that happened – anger about how poor people are really living – is very similar to what happened in Australia as One Nation was elected, even though Hanson is no better than Trump and nothing will ever get better. UK last year voted Brexit, Prutin from Russia cares very little at all about the rest of the world, nuclear weapons are growing alarmingly between governments who are supposed to be running their country for their people, and far too many TPPAs.

Two countries, China and India, between them have one third of the entire population of the planet. Where does that leave us, those who protest against abuse against women, coal mining, break-down of the Barrier Reef, water issues, politicians, health, education et al et al et al?

One Billion Rising is a very valuable protest against abuse, but as the world population grows alarmingly, as the majority of people in control of this planet are male, as women in every single country throughout this sad growth have no control over their true futures, how do we look forward? I know that protests will still happen from OBR, protests against us will still happen from anti-OBR, but what else will happen? Will this protest, which I am still very proud of, keep happening? Will the abuse which happens against women throughout the world actually stop? If not, why? Why??

Does anyone – any man who is against rape, abuse, mistreatment – read this? Would any of those men have danced with us in 2013? Are you dancing this year?

OBR acknowledges each event throughout the world, and there is one here in Brisbane at the Powerhouse at New Farm, run by Vulcana Women’s Circus, WaW Dance, BDVS and Nia Australia. I hope there are many people who will go to this, many people who will write about it, share it, talk to people about it.

I hope that Brisbane will dance for OBR.

Dear Friend

Dear friend, I remember you. Kindy was so much fun. We played every day. We stuck together throughout our school years because we were best friends. We had other friends too, but we were the best. I left school earlier than you, and you took different training than I did. You moved. You came back many years later but you no longer see me. I still love you. I miss you.

Dear friend, I remember you. You were a bouncy, wonderful young person. We had a wonderful friendship, and we would talk about who you could date, how you should party, what was happening to me. I ventured out of my town. I heard the news: you died far too early. I still love you. I miss you.

Dear friend, I remember you. You taught me in the gym, so much I learned! You were a lovely, friendly teacher. We'd join a group for a coffee early in the morning, we chatted. Your career shot ahead, you moved. I watch you, I still love you. I miss you.

Dear friend, I remember you. You lived so far away from me, but we talked so much! I tripped up and down the country and visited you, you cooked dinner for me, we went out with our mutual friends, we danced, we played pool, we drove around, you came up to visit me. You died far too early from a stupid cancer. I still love you. I miss you.

Dear friends, I remember you. You were all of the wonderful people I met after I came out of my shell. We'd meet for coffee, parties, singing, dancing, enjoy each other, travel with each other. I'd come up the island to you, you'd come down the island with me. We had such a lot of fun, so many silly things we did together and we loved it! I moved. My own silly fault. I went back over there a few times and I visited you. I still love you all. I miss you.

Dear friend, I remember you. We met at trivia. You were making so many friends, I was losing too many of my own. I drove you around when you were recovering, you came to visit me when I was recovering. I still went to your trivia, but not as often these days: it seems too far away. It seems I'm too far away from you. I still love you. I miss you.

Dear friend, I remember you. You came into town and met me and we danced. We got very close, you came to visit me when I was recovering. I would visit you often and every other often you would come to visit me. We sat and yakked, we hugged, we messaged each other. I moved and I'm too far away from you. My own silly fault. I know that you have your own illness problems, but I rarely see you. I still love you. I miss you.

Dear friend, I remember you. You joined me in a stage play, you made me so many beautiful necklaces, you made a mask of my old keys, you painted my face for the Zombie parade. I would go visit you in your home. You were a beautiful, wonderful person. I know that your family have their own illnesses: I haven't seen you for too long. I still love you, I miss you.

Dear friend, I remember you, even for a very short time. You were at the retirement village when I moved in. We quickly became friends, we understood how we thought of ourselves and what other people would think of us. You were sick, sicker than me. You chose not to eat because you didn't want to live in this village. You died. I miss you.

Dear friends. Dear, dear friends. So many I lost. I know that they have their own lives, have their own death. I'm not included. Maybe it's me who moved away from them. Maybe it's me who is old, who is still in recovery, who can't go back to what I used to do. Do I tell you about how I feel? Do you tell me how you feel? Why don't we talk? Why don't we listen? Why don't we help each other?

Dear friends, I remembered you, but I knew you didn't need me. I still love you. All of you.

I miss you.

Annus horribilis 2016

This was my personal annus horribilis, but I know that 2016 proved to be a very bad year for far too many people. I didn't have any decent stuff happening for me until August after I moved back to Brisbane – I had a lot of things to do in my diary! In October I got into the School of Hard Knocks choir, but the next month I lost a friend. This might just tell you something you hadn't read about – there are a few of my blogs mentioned. I live differently.

January: David Bowie died 10 January as a result of his cancer. Alan Rickman from the Harry Potter series died 14 January also from his cancer. Glenn Frey from Eagles died 18 January. Blog “Welcome to my hell” printed 31 January. Unemployment increased to 6.0%, highest jobless number in 4 months.

February: Looking for work. Blog “Looking for work?” printed 11 February. Trade deficit up to $3.41billion. Unemployment at 5.8%

March: Jon English died 9 March from post-operative complications from his aortic aneurysm. Keith Emerson, from Emerson, Lake & Palmer, committed suicide 10 March by shooting himself in the head. Wrote a blog called “I wish...” on 22 March which reflected my thoughts of wishing for work – and help. Unemployment dropped to 5.7%.

April: Blogged “The Decision” on 10 April about how I was frustrated about the lack of decision “10 months and 27 days (and a few hours, give or take)”. Got my result from QIRC on 22 April: even though the Commissioner found in my favour (I read: section 32(3)(ba) ), he read section 32(5)(b) of the Act which wouldn't allow it. He found for Q-Comp. My brain stopped working... I didn't think at all about what I was doing, just a reaction towards my severe depression. I gave notice at my rental property as it was now too expensive for me. Singer Prince died 21 April. Unemployment at 5.7%.

May: Moved up to a farm property just north of Noosa. It started well, blogged “Sweet Home Cootharaba” on 15 May, but it went downhill for the next two months. No NBC at the farm. Unemployment at 5.7%.

June: No NBC at the farm. Had to drive to Noosa Library every second day. Blog on 22 June was titled “Courage and strength”. Unemployment up to 5.8%.

July: No NBC at the farm. Did not enjoy the area, arranged to move back to Brisbane to a retirement village in Bethania. Car into mechanic for repairs and blogged about that - “Going down, going up”, 10 July. Daughter came to vet with me and Jordie, arranged for exams, medicals and prescriptions. Unemployment at 5.7%.

August: Big communication problem with HELP about registering me for employment – I wanted to, they didn't. Blog “Communication problem”, 18 August. Unemployment at 5.6%.

September: Had seemed to be okay when I first moved in, but started going downhill from this month. Induction held far too long after I arrived, I asked questions and got growled at! Dog owners were banned from walking some retirement village paths (not against the law!). Train issues became a problem. Blogged about that, “Too much to handle”, 10 September. Unemployment at 5.6%.

October: Wrote a positive blog - “Snuggling up”, 12 October. Got into School of Hard Knocks choir! Began my severe low depression with my fight with the property manager and site manager. Unemployment at 5.6%.

November: Wrote a blog about site manager calling me names - “Nutcase” 1 November. Dom (friend) committed suicide – self-invoked hunger while he waited to die from asbestosis. Blogged about him in “Asbestosis” on 7 November. Leonard Cohen died 11 November. Attempted suicide later this month; taken to hospital and kept overnight. Locked out of my unit by the site manager when I got back, illegal. Ongoing communication with police, Tenants Qld, Q-Star, YFS and others for help. Application to QCAT against property manager. Unemployment at 5.7%.

December: Moved into (2brm) unit in Eagleby, felt so good because I was self-contained, had a decent yard for Jordie, and same rent as single bedroomed unit! Wrote a blog about what I suffer, “Dyspraxia”, 17 December. George Michael died 25 December. Unemployment figures not available for this month yet.

So now it's 2017. Last night I didn't watch the TV which was set up to show the Sydney NYE stuff. The noise over the back neighbour's fence seemed to have disappeared - it had been there almost the entire day, but around 10pm it just... disappeared! (Maybe they'd all gone to sleep...) And I was tired. Every day tired. I have attended many years of celebrations, but these years they just aren't for me. The only thing I want to see is the new year, the best new year, the decent new year. I hope this year works for all of you.

Have a wonderful 2017!