Hello and welcome to yet another post of joyous acclamation of the role that Mt Gambier gets to play in the life and well-being of Adelaide...but don't think that it's all a one way street...Rann/Weatherill may have sold off the Forests and all of those jobs to build the Adelaide Oval, and axed 50+Public Service jobs under the Shared Services fiasco, and axed courses and jobs at TAFE, etc, but they're redressing the imbalance with a lovely new Gaol Expansion.
But first, Family First MLC Rob Brokenshire says three of Jay Weatherill's staff have been notified and therefore officially requested (and could be forced) to appear before the current Select Committee reviewing issues from the DeBelle Inquiry...Mr Blewett, Mr Harvey and Ms Baldock have previously been ordered not to appear by Premier Weatherill.
Mr Weatherill delivered that related letter to the Select Committee immediately prior to the hearing last Friday 4th October, in the same way that Attorney General John Rau delivered his threatening letter about the 1917 'Don't Knock The Royal Commission Or Else' legislation to the Committee minutes before it's hearing on the previous Friday 27th September...but I digress...
Former Forestry Minister Michael 'We've Sold The Forests Already' O'Brien, now Corrections Minister, was in town yesterday for the official opening of the 108 bed, $23million Mt Gambier Gaol Expansion...and he brought with him all manner of great news...particularly about the jobs...
Unfortunately he completely contradicted himself at a fundamental and critical level, which in itself exposed a basic reality about the Labor government's attitudes and behaviours re sex offenders, particularly paedophiles...I know it sounds confused, but bear with me, I am confused...I've been reading The Border Watch...
The Border Watch has run several articles this week and in recent months about the Gaol Expansion, eg, Prisoner influx '180 inmates begin move to Mount Gambier' TBW Thursday 22nd August 2013, about the first 10 new prisoners arriving at the gaol, where TBW describe it is a "180 bed facility", a "180 bed expansion", and "180 more prisoners", and;
"The 180 new prisoners will be in addition to the current 128 inmates, of which the
majority are serving time for sex-related offences."
Then yesterday Prison party TBW 09/10/2013, described the "118 bed expansion, which will almost double the current capacity"...and today, Prison expansion on show TBW 10/10/2013, is is reported as "the new 108-bed prison unit" that "has doubled the prison capacity, bringing the number of beds to 280."
So it's either '128 current +180 new = 308', or it's '118 new x 2 = 236 ', or it's '108 new that doubles to 280 beds'...and I'm the one who's confused...
I have no idea what the hell Mayor Steve Perryman thinks he's doing by refusing to attend the opening, nor why he needs to go on the front page of TBW to say it...why is he complaining about the opening itself, and praising up the gaol in the same ways as all the Labor stooges?...
It is openly acknowledged that the vast majority of prisoners in Mt Gambier Gaol are sexual offenders, ie, paedophiles and rapists, but this point has completely fallen out of the debate recently...indeed today Mr O'Brien had a whole different dialogue going about 'violent thugs' and 'protecting the youths'.
Minister O'Brien denied the opening 'party' was inappropriate and should not have been boycotted by Mayor Steve Perryman because it was a celebration of all the great things about the Gaol Expansion, as well as the official opening.
And I've just listened to an ABC Local Radio interview in which he repeatedly cited these benefits, eg, that 50% of the work was done by small local contractors, stating that in these reasonably difficulty times Labor has helped them through with employment opportunities that are significant to the local economy...and there will be additional employment benefits with the next 60 bed expansion due soon.
He kept banging on about "thugs" inflicting violence on young people going about their entertainment and that we had to deal with these repeat offenders, violent repeat offenders, and getting them off streets...he criticised Mayor Perryman, saying something about how he was 'making a shabby political point and doesn't grasp that we need to protect citizens and young people going out' (paraphrase)...and that it was a priority whether it was Pt Augusta or Whyalla to get these dangers off the streets...
Minister O'Brien rejected Mayor Perryman's comments about increased escapees, stating that these were low-medium security prisoners who were not violent or otherwise difficult to deal with...and besides it's security is world class, and therefore there's no threat to the community...and he actually said 'besides, it's out of town'...dead set...too bad if you live near there...and didn't a prisoner wind up at the airport or something years ago?
He then went into a lovely analogy...'it's like saying no Scotts Transport because trucks increase accidents'...
In the one interview Minister O'Brien repeatedly stated that this was about 'getting violent thugs off the streets to protect the young', and then completely contradicted himself...'there's no security issues because these aren't violent prisoners'...
He also criticised Liberal candidate Troy Bell for his comments that the $23million should have been spent on health, saying 'the reality is that health is an area of priority, and that enormous sums had been spent on it', and that we need to 'get tough on criminals'...'would he prefer the young to be going into Emergency' and 'we should be putting thugs in jail'...
I reckon Mr O'Brien was paraphrasing Mayor Perryman's support for the Gaol Expansion, by stating that Mr Bell would have very little support from his Liberal colleagues for diminishing the positives...and I note that local MP Don Pegler has joined this criticism of Mr Bell...
The third most offensive narrative being run is the 'be grateful for the jobs' line being run by Grant District Mayor Richard Sage, Don Pegler, Steve Perryman, and particularly by Mr O'Brien...'ooo, look at all the jobs, don't worry about the paedophiles and rapists being moved into your area'...
And the constant lies trying to minimise or outright deny the number of released sex offenders moving permanently into Mt Gambier...and that's where Mr O'Brien's self-contradiction justifies itself...deny the reality of the type of prisoner, and then deny where they'll end up...right here in Mt Gambier...
And the second most offensive plank in this raft of offensiveness and
lies, are the comments from that prize planker Minister Michael O'Brien
that people need not fear any sort of escape or other problems with any
prisoners because the Gaol is only medium-low security prisoners, and
besides is well out of town...so escapees are apparently only really an
issue for those people who live near the gaol...
That's bad enough, but he then slid into the most offensive and
indicative comment about the whole issue...that nobody needs to worry
(even if they do escape) because these people aren't violent or
difficult prisoners...and here is a window into the mentality of these
men making these decisions...
They are not personally threatened by rapists and child abusers...these are perpetrators who will largely be subservient and compliant under any authority, and will then seek to dominate and abuse those weaker than themselves when able...
Mr O'Brien knows exactly what kind of offenders are at the gaol, paedophiles and rapists, but he refers to them as non-violent and not difficult...in my personal experience, this is the attitude displayed by so many in government and other authorities...these 'sex crimes' are often not seen as acts of violence, they are somehow 'lesser crimes'...one needs only look at the suspended sentences, good behaviour bonds, etc frequently handed to convicted child abusers...
In tripping over his own lie, Mr O'Brien has clumsily exposed the even uglier truth beneath.
I'll end now 'cause it's late, but there are many issues here to be further addressed in future posts.
Tomorrow: No Idea
And hopefully the return of Ed...he just hasn't felt that up to it in the last couple of days...
I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog...cheers big ears...
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