Mt Gambier City Council Protects Their Mate Over Apparent 'Illegal And Unlicensed' Event

Howdy dear availees...strewth! that 9 days went by damnedly fast, I mean, I know it's Xmas and all, but what the actual?...anyhoos, here we are now, so away we go...jumping past the oft-promised post about the relentless Mt Gambier City Council deceits/corruption of the $70Million+ Farcical Aquatic Recreation Centre (FARC), to address this other piece of rampantly corrupt MGCC conduct...(well that's your opinion, that it's corrupt-Ed)...indeed, your point being?...(well sure it looks like willingly corrupt conduct-Ed)...at a number of levels and on various separate occasions...(sure, but I mean, given that MGCC has refused to answer your specific questions-Ed)...and then hasn't even responded to my last letter...(yeah, it therefore remains technically possible that this isn't actually another text-book example of MGCC's relentlessly corrupt conduct, as defined by their usual Standard Operational Deals For Mates functioning-Ed)...even though that's exactly what it looks like...(even though that's exactly what it looks like-Ed)...fair enough

For the record, and as referred to in the letter attached below, I have made multiple attempts to engage with the appropriate 'Authorities'...(like the Liquor Licensing peeps-Ed)...yep, like them, and with Mt Gambier City Council, to establish the 'Truth' about exactly how this particular event was allowed to happen...also for the record, I am deeply disappointed with the Liquor Licensing's lame responses...after receiving this dismissive answer just below (9th November 2021), on 15th November 2021 I emailed them again, including a copy of my latest letter to Council (further below)...Licensing have not responded to that email/letter...***

Good afternoon Mr Fletcher

The information you provided to Consumer and Business Services (CBS), has been referred to the Compliance and Enforcement (C&E) unit.

The C&E unit considers possible breaches of the Liquor Licensing Act 1997.

The matter you have brought to our attention relates to concerns of permits and approvals issued by the local council.

You will have to pursue your concerns with them.

We will retain the intel for assessment of future licence applications and thank you for your information.

While C&E treats all information supplied by consumers and stakeholders seriously, it cannot pursue all the complaints it receives or address all issues that come to its attention.

To make the best use of resources and maximise public benefit, compliance and enforcement activity will target complaints considering a range of factors including evidence or likelihood of broader consumer detriment, or evidence to suggest a history of illegal conduct. For further information on the enforcement powers, functions, priorities and strategies of CBS visit: http://www.cbs.sa.gov.au/investigations/cbs-investigates/

Information provided to CBS helps us to identify the highest areas of risk to focus resources on and assists with monitoring and compliance initiatives.

Regards

***...(well I'd have thought that a Council allowing an 'Illegal and Unlicensed' event to proceed, including the involvement of a former Councillor, that'd be serious enough for the Liquor Licensing peeps to at least get involved-Ed)...yeah, at best it's a lame failure to act in the direct area they are responsible for...(and at worst?-Ed)...at worst, if they have been in contact with Council and then refuse to act, then they are also complicit in supporting/allowing an 'Illegal' event...so here's the third letter I wrote Council (15th October 2021), as yet unanswered, by anyone...***

Team Leader General Inspector

Mt Gambier City Council

10 Watson Tce

Mt Gambier SA 5290

Email: city@mountgambier.sa.gov.au

Re: Tuck Shop Cafe Failure To Acquire Council Permits

Dear Mr Ferguson,

This is the third time I have written to Council seeking a straight-forward answer to a simple question, ie, did The Tuck Shop cafe proprietors have the appropriate Council approvals/permits to conduct the (liquor) licensed event of Friday 1^st October 2021, as held on the public footpath at their site, 110 Wehl St Sth, Mt Gambier?

For the record;

1. this event included the erection of several marquees across the footpath and out onto the road, where a section of parking lane was partitioned-off with bunting and witches hats;

2. when I contacted Council at 1317hrs on 1^st October 2021 to ask about this event, the lady who answered the phone could not find any approvals/permits, and said that someone was “looking into it” and that they would “call (me) back”;

3. that call-back was at 0956hrs the next morning, when, although Council offices are not open, 'Michelle' left a phone message stating that “the problem” was being addressed, and that the marquees were being removed “as we speak”.

Not only is it highly unusual for Council offices to be 'open' on a Saturday morning, the statement further indicated that The Tuck Shop likely did not have the necessary approvals/permits to do what they were doing, otherwise there would be no “problem”.

From Council's two initial verbal responses it is reasonable to summise that The Tuck Shop did not have these Council approvals/permits.

The chronology of contacts shows that Council was therefore aware on the Friday afternoon that the 'event' did not have appropriate approvals/permits, but chose to allow the event to proceed.

I then wrote to Council on Tuesday 5^th October 2021 specifically seeking clarification of this issue, ie, did The Tuck Shop proprietors have the requisite approvals/permits from Council?

Council's one-line written response of Thursday 7^th October is extremely vague, but seemingly confirms that The Tuck Shop did not have the relevant approvals/permits;

“Council has investigated and addressed matters directly with the proprietors of the Tuck Shop cafe.”

I re-iterate, given that the “matters” presumably refers to my inquiries about approvals/permits, etc, if everything had been done appropriately and the relevant approvals/permits were issued by Council, then what was there to investigate, and what needed to be addressed?

Now you are claiming that Council will not answer my simple question because;

“For privacy and confidentiality reasons Council does not provide information on matters pertaining       to unrelated third parties.”

Firstly, Council's 3 previous responses already indicate that The Tuck Shop did not have the requisite approvals/permits, as explained above.

Secondly, how is a business operating a 'for profit' function on a public footpath and road in any way subject to “privacy and confidentiality reasons”, especially when they were apparently 'illegally' serving alcohol?

Thirdly, why repeatedly discuss this issue with me, but wait until the 4^th response (2 verbal, 2 written) to cite these alleged “privacy and confidentiality reasons”?

This event involved the sale of 'open' alcohol directly onto a public footpath in a residential street, an event that included marquees blocking-off the footpath and a section of parking lane of a busy semi-arterial road, by definition literally everybody is a 'related third party'

Any of the neighbours affected by the noise, parking issues, drunk and/or rowdy patrons; anyone walking past and therefore through that function or having to cross that busy road to avoid it, etc; anyone driving past; and by definition of accountability, each and every Ratepayer in Mt Gambier, we are all 'related third parties'.

I do not believe that any such “privacy and confidentiality reasons” exist under law, and that you are trying to use these unspecified vaguaries as a false justification for not answering my questions, but if I'm wrong, please direct me to the specific legislation that deems the issuing and/or discussion of these basic permits to be subject to “privacy and confidentiality reasons”.

Furthermore, given that Council were clearly aware that this was not a 'legally' sanctioned event, who would be liable had there been an accident, eg, patrons standing on the footpath and/or section of partitioned-off road, or indeed just in the vicinity of the event, had been hit by a car?

What if an alcohol affected patron drove and had an accident, and it was then discovered that they were 'illegally' served that alcohol? And with Council's knowledge and therefore tacit approval?

If there was any sort of accident, and it was then established that the event did not have the appropriate Council approvals/permits, then any insurances would be rendered void/redundant.

No insurance company is going to knowingly cover an 'illegal' event, and will automatically cancel/withdraw any cover upon learning that the event is 'illegal'.

And worse, if it was then shown that Council had been alerted to the 'illegal' event and was therefore aware but allowed it to continue, and there was an accident of any sort, then affected parties would be well within their rights to sue Council for any injuries and/or other damages, etc.

And any compensation awarded against Council would be paid for by Ratepayers, because every cent Council spends, on anything, every cent is Ratepayer's money.

Therefore, every Ratepayer in Mt Gambier, myself included, is a concerned 'third party' with a direct financial stake in events being conducted 'legally' with appropriate Council approvals/permits and liquor licensing.

It's the fundamental reason why we have these rules and regulations, so that functions are conducted appropriately and safely, etc, and that patrons and everyone else potentially involved have the relevant appropriate protections under law.

Why have you directed me to the Liquor Licensing Commission? What has the LLC got to do with my questions to Council about a business failing to get appropriate permits from Council?

However, as per your instruction, I have contacted the Consumer and Business Services (Liquor, Gambling and Lotteries), and they directed me back to you, to Council, as being the 'Authority' with the primary responsibility for the issues I have raised.

As I previously stated in my letters, it is my understanding that the onus lies with the proprietor to first gain the appropriate Council approvals/permits before a Liquor License, even a temporary one, can be issued, and the CBS (LGL) confirmed that it is the proprietor's responsibility to;

1. acquire appropriate Council approvals/permits for any function/event, and;

2. to do so before the proprietor can then apply for any relevant Liquor Licenses, and;

3. that failure to get appropriate Council approvals/permits renders any subsequent Liquor Licenses as void/redundant, and therefore;

4. the function/event would be rendered 'unlicensed' and therefore 'illegal'.

They explained/confirmed that any involvement of the Liquor Licensing Commission is contingent on the previous actions of the proprietor and relevant Council and that those facts need to be established first, which is what I am trying to do.

Even if I hadn't previously explained all of this in my correspondence, I find it hard to believe that Council would not be aware of this fundamental chain of responsibility.

And again it comes back to who is going to be held financially responsible if something goes wrong and the proprietors do not hold the requisite approvals/permits/licenses.

Without hyperbole, everyone I have discussed this with questions the 'legality' of The Tuck Shop cafe's current location, operating from the proprietor's driveway directly onto the footpath in a residential street, and no-one can believe that a licensed function was allowed at that site.

As repeatedly stated to me, 'this just looks like another instance of favourable treatment for family and/or mates of Council', a belief further cemented when people become aware that the co-proprietor of The Tuck Shop is a former Mt Gambier City Councillor.

Please provide me with the 'public' information that I have repeatedly requested confirming that The Tuck Shop did or did not have the requisite Council approvals/permits for their event, because as explained above, and as per their direction, I cannot pursue this issue with CBS (LGL) until I have that specific information.

Also, please direct me to the specific approvals/permits that would allow me to operate a business at my residential address in the manner The Tuck Shop has been doing since it first opened.

Yours,

***...and here's the auto-response from Council, indicating that my email/letter was received at 1327hrs, 16th October 2021...***

Thank you for your email. This auto reply is confirmation that your message has been received by the City of Mount Gambier. Your request will be forwarded to an appropriate staff member for a response.

***...and I've let it slide thus far, not least of all 'cos all involved clearly have no intention of acting appropriately, but I can absolutely promise that I'm looking forward to kicking-off the New Year with a renewed examination of this very serious issue...(mate! the way you've covered the apparent breaches/failures and the potential implications, all of that, how can the Liquor Licensing peeps not act?-Ed)...well quite, I mean, Council's actions are transparently corrupt in favour of a mate, but what about the Licensing stuff?...(is it that the Licensing peeps have looked at this and decided that Council's corrupt conduct is a whole bunch of shizzle that they, The Licensors, just don't want to have to deal with?-Ed)...quite possibly, sure, but that then runs directly into being potentially 'complicit', that is, they know how wrong all this is but are trying to avoid getting involved...

And as per usual, I'm quite happy to correct and/or clarify this issue should any of the various involved parties see fit to contact me...but, as it currently stands, I feel it is completely obvious what has and hasn't happened here, namely, that the proprietors did not have the requisite Council permits/approvals, and that Council knew and let the function continue anyways...

Tomorrow: Trying To Explain The MGCC Lies About The FARC Costings

    Thank you for your email. This auto reply is confirmation that your message has been received by the City of Mount Gambier. Your reqThank you for your email. This auto reply is confirmation that your message has been received by the City of Mount Gambier. Your request will be forwarTomorrow: The MGCC's FARC Deceit/Corruption Breakdown

It's part-written already, but there's been heaps of research involved with that post....(and not least of all several hours trawling through MGCC's Budgets from recent years-Ed)...yep, which by definition means trying to engage with facts and figures that I simply don't believe at any level...(so quoting from those self-same numbers is a bit, shall we say, problematic?-Ed)...yes, that's a very polite way of putting it, 'problematic'...

I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog....cheers and laters...

PS: I'm particularly hot on this Licensing issue 'cos those involved have many questions to answer about a range of corrupt/illegal activities...and they can can rest assured that we are definitely going there too in the New Year...(yay-Ed)...    

Precious Peter Van Onselen Bizarrely Contradicts Himself On Twitter

Howdy dear availees, just doing a quick cut-'n'-paste post, with lottsa' side-reading, what says everything y'all need to know about Precious Petey and this issue of him conspiring with his bestie Christian Porter, and Andrew Laming to send 'Defamation Concerns Notices' to Prof Gemma Carey...(as we covered in several recent posts-Ed)...indeed, so if y'all ain't awares as to that of what which we speak...(wow, that's some top-notch Englishing right there-Ed)...damn straight it is, and it makes about as much sense as some of the vindictive nonsense that Precious has been pouring onto his closed Twitter account...(yeah right, he deleted literally 1,000s of tweets and shut-down his 'open' Twitter page-Ed)...yep, so he can mouth-off about others but they/we can't see those tweets and cannot 'comment' directly to him...(pathetically cowardly, particularly coming from someone who is supposedly as expert journalist-Ed)...yep, he's a real piece a' work is our Precious...but thankfully various Tweeps (Twitter people) keep accessing and posting screen shots of those comments...(yay-Ed)...this post is a little disjointed, but please stick with it as best y'all can...

When mega-suspect lawyer Rebekah Giles issued that now-notorious email to Prof Carey...(the single email that contained all 3 threats from these 3 stooges?-Ed)...yeah that email, when that became public knowledge, Precious shoved Giles right under the proverbial Bus of Responsibility with this tweet stating he didn't know what was happening...(but he seems to know that it's about, and he has also said 'it can't happen fast enough-Ed)...which is the thread copied below that...but first things first, unless all 3 parties are involved in a joint claim, it is completely inappropriate and potentially unlawful to send that email with all 3 on it...if you believe that this was done without Petey's knowledge, it is grossly inappropriate to combine supposedly separate actions...(not least of all 'cos it identifies the 3 individuals to each other-Ed)...exactly...beyond that, it is a deliberate attempt to intimidate Prof Carey, and one that was initially effective, but has since gone wonderfully wrong for the 3 Stooges and their clown-class lawyer...***  

https://twitter.com/DarylTractor/status/1456576530843373573

Sounds legit

9:28 PM · Nov 5, 2021·Twitter for iPhone

***...but Petey has also said 'it didn't happen quickly enough for me"...(he's also continuously inventing aspects of his own outrage, eg, I don't see where Prof Carey said anything about Petey's wife-Ed)...yeah he seems to do that throughout, from the initial construct that the generalised comment about the safety of women is directly 'Defamatory' of him, and the number of tweets, and his allegation that Prof Carey "doubled-down" on her initial comment, etc...it is possible that I'm not seeing the entire exchange, due to the fact that Petey has locked and/or blocked nearly everyone, but he seems to be rather fast and loose with the truth...I also note again that heaps of people are screen-shoting Petey's stuff and then posting it...(he's not very popular is he?-Ed)...all his own work and nuthin' less than he deserves...***

https://twitter.com/noplaceforsheep/status/1456577598503391236

These post from Petey don’t sound like they are written by someone who didn’t know what his lawyer was doing.

9:32 PM · Nov 5, 2021·OS X

***...Remember, this is the rancid li'l man who viciously denigrated a deceased person, Ms Katharine Thornton, in defense of his mate Christian Porter, and has then attacked Prof Carey as not being genuinely pregnant 'cos she's not actually pregnant herself...(I love his extraordinary comment about 'the law' and 'not defaming people', when he's been flat-out abusing and/or defaming Prof Carey-Ed)...and here's Precious clearly threatening/abusing/mocking people who have been contributing to the highly successful GoFundMe account in support of Prof Carey, as referred to in previous post...he also appears to be defining the vexatious nature of his original 'Concerns Notice' threat, stating that the availability of funds for him to receive 'compensation' is what motivates him...he also made a related comment about buying a new boat with his 'account' that had $125k in it, a snide reference to the amount in the GoFundMe at that time...***   

https://twitter.com/noplaceforsheep/status/1457097900014510080

New threat: don’t give her money because then I’ll continue to go after her.

7:59 AM · Nov 7, 2021·Twitter

***...Here's the link to a replay of Precious' rancidly self-interested 'Macro/Micro' statement on the ABC's The Insiders program, about how tough it is for him to be the mate of Self-Defined Rapist Christian Porter...

https://twitter.com/rationalbitch/status/1456854825967046656

Look closely at this thread 'cos it has Petey and others discussing the "veracity" of Prof Carey's 'claims' of abuse and/or disability, and Petey saying "which interests me to burrow deeper in to test it's veracity"...his actions are about attacking Prof Carey, not about defending himself...

https://twitter.com/criprights/status/1456853598587944960

It's over a month since I started this post, and after all of that crass, self-involved nonsense (above), Petey has taken it to a whole new level with this disgraceful effort (below)...he's looking to draw-out the trauma that he is deliberately trying to inflict on Prof Carey...this clown isn't genuinely concerned about his alleged reputation...(if he ever was, he's now self-defining as just a precious li'l twit who's clearly enjoying causing trauma-Ed)...certainly appears that way doesn't it...***

The concerns notice was sent. I’ve thus got 12 months to take formal action from the point in time the comments were made. I’ll get the next few months out of the way and then decide. Leaning towards because it’s hardly been a sincere apology. No point thinking about it till then

***And here's a comment I managed to get directly at our mate Petey after he Tweeted that...not sure how his Tweet became 'public' but it did, so I said this...(heard from his lawyer yet?-Ed)...not yet, and I refer dear availees to the several posts I've already done about his conduct...*** 

By your appallingly defense of Porter, including your disgraceful assault on K Thornton; your precious, over-blown bleating about what is clearly not defamation; and your glee/pride at the distress you're causing Prof Carey, you have defined yourself as a self-involved coward.

***...Here's a coupla' Twitter comments I made recently to someone who was apparently semi-obsessed with Prof Carey's property portfolio, in defense of Van Onselen...I've Tweeted a few times before, but this is my first actual Twitter exchange/conversation...here's the link to most of the broader convo...*** 

https://twitter.com/LargeAngryHippy/status/1467411480467234819

I have been threatened with Defamation dozens of times for telling the truth, usually on/about my blog The Mount Gambier Independent, but never once actually sued. What Prof Carey said isn't even close to defo, but prceious PVO's response reeks of 'dost protesteth too much'.

OK, but an honest opinion is not defo. When I read that original tweet, I thought Prof Carey meant C Porter. It is PVO's ballistic response that led me to ask, has he got a 'guilty conscience'? And there's also his appalling conduct defending Porter, eg, attacking K Thornton.

***...This Twitter comment below sums-up Petey perfectly...grossly over-reacting far beyond self-defense...(even if he had actually been 'Defamed'-Ed)...exactly, and many others share my experience that we didn't even associate Prof Carey's comment directly to PVO, but that his actions in viciously retaliating, particularly joining his 'action' to Porter's and Laming's, these are the actions of a a man with a very guilty conscience...*** 

Van Onselen thinks that because Prof Carey has written about her personal experiences he can take them, weaponise them & use them against her. This is exactly what he did with Kate’s diaries. Took them, weaponised them & used them against her.

***...And another excellent Twitter thread (below) that I encourage dear availees to read in it's entirety...it 1) clearly identifies that there was only one original Tweet by Prof Carey, 2) provides a personal account of direct experience of abuse, of talking about that abuse, and of subsequent 'trolling', and 3) makes the excellent point that PVO's conduct is potentially a subconscious guilt reaction related to regret...(sure, possibly, it's definitely about having a guilt conscience, but I'm not sure he regrets any of it, he just hates being called-out on any of it, or even just hates being criticised or questioned at all-Ed)...I agree...

https://twitter.com/criprights/status/1467291580818071555

In conclusion, Petey has gone right off the deep end in his appalling attacks on Prof Carey, but anyone who is familiar with his work...(particularly regarding his mate the Self-Defined Rapist Christian Porter-Ed)...indeed, nobody who has watched PVO's spectacular descent into madness is overly surprised to see his disgraceful conduct toward Prof Carey...(and both counts of 'mad', being 1) 'angry' and 2) 'insane'-Ed)...well quite...(and no-one's surprised, but shocked, appalled, disgusted, furious, all of these and many more-Ed)...absolutely...I'm also aware that at least 14 individuals and organisations have received similar 'Defamation Threats'...  

Tomorrow: Mount Gambier City Council - A Debasco Looking For Somewhere To Happen

Strewth, where to start...MGCC's appalling conduct towards the Turners, who used to run the internationally renowned Blue Lake Tours and associated Cafe?...(what about the ludicrous 'we've got a plan to have a plan about the Crater Lakes Precinct'-Ed)...is that the same plan they had a decade ago?...(dunno'-Ed)...and then there's the extraordinary $70m+ debasco (debacle/fiasco) that is the Farcical Aquatic Recreation Centre...(I thought it was $57m-Ed)...well Council would have you believe that, but it's at least $70m and likely well beyond that...(yay-Ed)...in keeping with Council's well-established record of doing projects that blow-out by 100% or more even... 

I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog...cheers and laters...

A Much Calmer, Super-Short Post About COVID19 and QAnon

Howdy dear availees...apologies that I went a li'l bit off the deep end last post...(a li'l bit?-d)...anyhoos, 'cos I got so fired-up I actually forgot to cover the one main issue I had set-out to discuss...(well, in review, there were some fairly confronting things we did cover-Ed)...indeed...(and I reckon most dear availees will appreciate the sense of frustration generated by 20 years of the St Martins Lutheran School Child Abuse Cover-up, including your 3 year long Pro-Paedophile Political Persecution "bizarre trial" under the ICAC Act 2012-Ed)...yeah, frustration, anger, despair, and a whole raft of other traumas...(and the fundamental lack of response from the community, let alone the abject failure to support yourself and/or other St Martins parents-Ed)...and what response there has been is criticism, abuse, denigration, and 'Pariahtisation'...(ah yes, "Pariahtisation", where the first priority is to discredit and demonise those whom speak-out, to make a pariah of the 'Whistleblower'-Ed)...exactly...(and in a context where 'Authorities' like the Lutherans, SAPol (police), the Parliament, government departments, the Teachers Registration Board, the Crown Solicitor, et al, have actively protected the "text-book grooming paedophile teacher-Ed)..and not least of all by threatening, blaming, and publicly attacking us parents, yes Pariahtisation 101 from all concerned...

And that's why I believe that the QAnon 'Global Cannibal Paedophile Conspiracy' stuff is a reverse-psychology strategy to discredit the reality that I have personally witnessed and been subjected to for 20 years now...(namely?-Ed)...that 'Society' is indeed run by paedophiles and those who directly support them...(and the 'reverse psychology' stuff?-Ed)...that, by having the Paedophile stuff as the main QAnon issue, and then aligning that with multiple other 'extreme' conspiracy theories, this discredits and dilutes the seriousness of the 'Paedophile Conspiracy' stuff...(and therefore, in many people's view of things, it all becomes one big pot of loony stew, none of it credible or worth considering-Ed)...exactly, and it equally offers weak-willed 'decent' people the excuse they need to look away from a horrendous reality that they'd sooner not deal with...(and therefore their conscience is cleansed 'cos it ain't real therefore they ain't ignoring it-Ed)...and by ignoring, therefore allowing and even tacitly, complicitly supporting...(yes, it's much more pleasant to just pretend it ain't real and ain't your fault by default-Ed)...and by aligning it with multiple other 'fringe conspiracy theories', it becomes just that and can be dismissed/ignored...       

I recently read an excellent piece about how QAnon is so 'effective' because it allows dis-enfranchised and often under-educated and/or misinformed people who feel powerless and dis-enchanted with their lives, the opportunity to subscribe to something 'bigger' than themselves, and feel that they are contributing in a positive way to what is promoted as a positive agenda...(confronting Paedophiles and/or other corruption, etc-Ed)...exactly, and combine that with the 'elitist' sense of belonging to something that many others are not...(another manifestation of the 'powerlessness' stuff, namely, we're in this exclusive club and this club knows stuff you don't know, and this stuff is the actual truth, which makes you wrong/ignorant, etc, etc-Ed)...yeah, I'm sorry I didn't save the link to that article, but we've covered it pretty well...(one last question-Ed)...sure...(the 'Cannibal Paedophile' stuff, what's that about?-Ed)...well mate, apart from the possibility that there are such people, and it's always a possibility, it makes the whole 'Paedophile Cabal' claim much more extreme and therefore far less likely to be believed...(in a context where the agenda is to discredit, that does make sense-Ed)...indeed...  

As for COVID19, I don't know where it came from, if it's a 'Global Conspiracy', if it's accidental or 'deliberate', etc, etc, but I do believe that it's 'real' and that it is a very serious illness...I know a coupla' people who have had it, and several medical types, including ambulance officers, who have explained to me their experiences of dealing with it...(and that COVID19 is a real thing, including the extensive, extended post-illness complications/side-effects-Ed)...yep, and that it ain't the 'Common Flu', which does cause deaths every year, but if we treated that in the same way as we have COVID19, eg, lockdowns, distancing, masks, etc, would have near-zero fatalities...(and COVID19 is effectively much more contagious than the 'Common Flu'-Ed)...and then there's the extraordinary workload COVID19 protocols place on hospitals and ambos, etc...(for example, the extensive Personal Protection Equipment required of staff, particularly ambos, and the constant cleaning between patients, etc, etc-Ed)...exactly, and that leads into the main point that I clean forgot to cover in my venting last post...

It is well documented, if one cares to look, that hospitals in the Australian states who have had major COVID19 outbreaks, have struggled to cope with the patient load...(particularly in their Intensive Care Units-Ed)...yes, and even in less affected states, whatevs the reasons for that...(well Western Australia has had very strict border controls and quarantine requirements, etc, mate, it just cost them their Ashes cricket test match-Ed)...yep, and they've had near-zero COVID19 cases as a result...(fair enough-Ed)...in those states, and I'm actually thinking specifically of li'l ol' Sow Straya here, we have some major 'load' issues on a good day...(you mean like the ambulance 'ramping' where-in multiple patients get stuck waiting in ambulances in the Emergency entrance/carpark?-Ed)...spot on, 'cos the Emergency is already at capacity...(and this obviously and drastically compromises patient well-being-Ed)...for that patient and any future patients...('cos an ambulance stuck on the ramp cannot attend the next patient/call-out, and when that patient does get to hospital there's already a backlog-Ed)...yeah, and on it goes...and this is my concern about 'anti-vaxxers' and the affect they do have on other patients...

And this is a particular issue for us Regional/Remote patients 'cos the state government has already stated that those patients will get shoved back to their local hospitals, in a context where those services are grossly under-funded and inadequate already, because of Adelaide's obsession with spending all our money on Adelaide, specifically on North Tce, and the obscenely expensive 'new' Royal Adelaide Hospital...and this has already happened several years ago when country patients were shunted out of the RAH to make room for Adelaide patients... 

Aside from the issues of unvaccinated people likely carrying a greater viral load and suffering more extreme symptoms, etc, according to the ambos I've spoken to, upward of 50% of their case load has been unvaccinated COVID19 patients...now, I have been double-vaxxed, my choice, and mostly 'cos I have elderly relatives, but also for my own health...(aren't you still considered to be in the 'Immuno-Compromised Cohort' 'cos of that truckload of Chemotherapy you had back in 2004/05?-Ed)...indeed, to treat Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma, and my recent health issues were concerning for the potential that it had returned, etc...and it led me to a place where I was quietly hoping that, if it was something serious, that I'd get diagnosed pronto and into hospital/treatment/whatevs, be that Chemo or whatevs...(so as to avoid the situation we're about to discuss?-Ed)...yeah, and it's a very real situation that has occurred in many countries...(and likely here to-Ed)...sure, namely, what happens when ICU's are full of COVID19 patients and another critically ill patient requires that bed?...

Now there's a whole raft of qualifiers about vaccine availability and degrees of personal accountability to consider here, but bottomline, if someone refuses to get vaccinated and then contracts COVID19,  should that person get an ICU bed that potentially means another critically ill patient cannot?...(ok, but would you apply this to drunk drivers who have crashed or smokers with Lung Cancer?-Ed)...mate, I've had a coupla' 'anti-vaxxers' come at me with this, and it's really quite simple...you try to provide best quality treatment for everybody, but there already exists a thing called Triage', providing best care as facilities/services allow...and yes, I'd choose the non-drunk car accident victim...(but what if they're actually the passenger, say, doing the right thing by catching a taxi home and the taxi is in an accident?-Ed)...well that person is just a patient, they are not a drink driver...(fair enough, but what about, saaaaay, ooo, a ciggie-chuffing Lung Cancer patient with symptoms similar to COVID19, already in ICU, and a COVID19 patient from a remote community who couldn't get vaccinated 'cos of the Morrison Federal government's appallingly inept handling of vaccine supply? what about that one?-Ed)...yep, very complicated, but we're not really dealing with the main issue that, if addressed properly, renders such examples redundant... 

If people are vaccinated, then it is highly likely we don't end-up in that situation of having to make harsh choices about who does or doesn't get the appropriate attention/treatment...(ok, fair enough-Ed)...and I ain't just thinking about my own issues across the last month or so...I have direct experience of someone who was recently air-evacuated to Adelaide, into ICU, had a brief but extreme operation, back into ICU, and due to that immediate attention/treatment has made a remarkable recovery...(and well done all those involved-Ed)..indeed, and I ain't gunna' be more specific 'cos that's their private medical stuff, but it immediately occurred to me, what might the outcome have been if they'd got to Adelaide and there wasn't a single ICU bed available due to COVID19?...(and now we're just chucking caution to the wind, just as a new variant is kicking-off-Ed)..exactly! opening borders and removing restrictions, and we're back to that scenario where it looks like governments, particularly Scott 'Scummo' Morrison's Liberal/National Party want disease-riddled chaos to ensue...(well, certainly that the Economy is more important than people-Ed)...and here's an excellent Twitter thread that explains it perfectly...I've included the link if y'all wanna' check that out too...ooo, and Language Warning...***

https://twitter.com/MFWitches/status/1470987999378763777

Okay here’s a short thread. A. Years ago during the GFC I was at a party and ended up talking to a guy high-up at a large insurance company. We got chatting about the economic downturn. And I said to him something like “Is your business badly affected by the recession?”

 

B. I’ll never forget what he said to me. He scoffed and commented “Oh no, we’re doing great. Insurance always does fantastic when the economy is bad because when people get scared, they take out more insurance”. Why is this relevant now? Because we should never forget that …

C. … national crises which are bad for many Aussies and cause much suffering for some are often fantastic for the ruling classes including business, media, politics and the wealthy. That’s why Australia is opening up now despite the deaths, pain and hardship it will cause.

D. BECAUSE THERE ARE MANY, MANY PEOPLE WHO WILL BENEFIT AND WHO DON’T GIVE THE SMALLEST SHIT ABOUT YOU. Business benefits because there are huge opportunities during hard times. It’s why wealthy people love wars. They all got rivers of #JobKeeper plus many other tax benefits.

E. The media benefits as people consume more news during crises, so they get link clicks and advertiser rates rise. Politicians benefit as they get to rort more without scrutiny when people are distracted, and because during anxious times people (usually) vote for incumbents.

F. Politicians also get to give huge grants and benefits to business which are then returned to them as campaign funding. Why do you think Harvey Norman, Qantas and others keep paying huge fees to Murdoch? It’s because Murdoch gets them exactly what they want from Scott.

G. Wealthy people benefit because the unbelievable tax rorts already in place in Australia are extended and consolidated, including government policies to ensure real estate rises and tax write-offs for purchases. Plus, they own the businesses and media, of course.

H. Plus of course, all these people are prioritised for vaccines and/or can hide away on large estates while the working classes slave away in danger of catching #COVID19 to keep them fed, watered and comfortable. It’s an absolute fucking disgrace.

I. Don’t ever forget that in the months to come while there will probably be untold suffering from #Omicron, all this was wished for and planned for by many of our political leaders, and particularly by the LNP. They won’t suffer, or barely. They WANT what is about to occur.

J. Yet their current acts would be criminal in any other setting. And that, too, is how they’ve set up laws and judicial systems: it’s almost impossible to punish them for what they’re doing now, and even a federal ICAC wouldn’t be able to capture most of it. Worst of all, …

K. … the media barons who are at the root of it all will never be adequately punished. If you’re scared, the only thing to do is to fight. Fight #NewsCorpse, and #NineFax, and Stokes and the others who refuse to report honestly to the people who pay their wages: us.

L. If we don’t stop them, who will? If we don’t call ENOUGH on this fucking bullshit, who will fucking do it? When will we stop letting them get away with killing and maiming us and laughing all the way to the bank while they do so? Ends.

***End Language Warning...(and one immediately thinks of businesses like QANTAS and Harvey Norman, etc, who profitted during the pandemic directly as a result of LNP funding they didn't legally qualify for-Ed)...and were then allowed to keep it all, with Scummo saying "We don't engage in the politics of envy"...(what an arsehole-Ed)...yep, he's a class act alright...but we digress, the main point today is very current 'cos I see multiple 'Health Experts' continuing to express the self-same concerns about system overload, and particularly with Omicron variant emerging...just yesterday the New South Wales Health Minister Brad 'Health' Hazard was stating that NSW could be experiencing 25,000 cases a day by mid-January 2022...(mate! I thought I'd mis-heard that, it is 25,000?-Ed)...apparently yep, but they're still lifting restrictions, removing mask mandates, etc...(no wonder they're being called Let It Rip politicians-Ed)...

Tomorrow: Porter, Van Onselen, And Other Spineless Grubs

Or possibly the Mt Gambier City Council stuff-up with the Farcical Aquatic Recreation Centre and various other corruptionings...(so much to choose from-Ed)...indeed...

I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog...cheers and laters...

Dear Availees, My Hot Take On COVID19, and Far QAnon

Howdy dear availees, just a short post about Health, namely, my health...had an unpleasant 5-6 weeks of symptoms that were adjacent to the Lymphoma tumour I had back in 2004...(and that was some sort of lump wasn't it...what was it? 12cm x 16cm?-Ed)...yep, and apparently got bigger when first under attack by CHOP protocol Chemotherapy...(and right in the middle of your rather broad chest, just shovin' everything else outta' the road-Ed)..yep, with all sorts of related symptoms...(and misdiagnosed, what, 3 times?-Ed)...well 4 in total...(and even when Mt Gambier Hospital finally x-rayed a massive mass in ya' chest, they discharged ya' and ya' had to make your own way the 450kms to Adelaide and a specialist, etc-Ed)...yep, and literally/actually everyone I dealt with thereon in were in shock, breathlessly inquiring, "were they trying to kill you?"...(ah yeah, good times, good times-Ed)...and fortuitously it was a highly treatable single blocked lymph node that hadn't spread rancid crap anywhere else, etc, etc...(yeah, lucky is a word, but a single massive treatable tumour is 'Cancer Lucky'-Ed)...indeed, so, then 7 months of a veritable truckload of toxic chemicals to slay the wee beasty, and I lost the most luscious, mane-like head of hair...(still got the ponytail we chopped off ya' after ya' first Chemo?-Ed)...errr, somewhere, yeah...(and of course there's the ongoing resultant degenerative joint issues-Ed)...some, yes...(and 'fragile' teeth issues-Ed)...that too...(and 17 years later, still here to whinge about it all-Ed)...damn straight...

So it's been a rocky road for a few weeks trying not to think too much about what might be happening, but preparing for the worst should it happen, etc, etc, and round and round...(and then the massive emotional discharge of a likely 'clear' diagnosis, and the associated 'release of stress' slump-Ed)...yeah, and then getting side-swiped about 'the seventeen years I had no right to have', and all that 'Survivor Guilt' came crashing back in...(it's not an uncommon response to a highly traumatic event, especially for someone who has a 'social conscience' and is aware of the suffering of others, etc-Ed)...spot on, and it's something I know that both my grandfathers had issues with from time to time regarding their extraordinary military service in World War II...and they went through years of almost daily doses of intensely violent trauma, nothing I can truly hope to relate to...so where am I going with all of this? right here...

I don't know where COVID19 came from...was it deliberately released by the Chinese? or is it a One World Government Depopulation Conspiracy? or did a pangolin goose a bat? whatevs...(I thought that it was the USofA secretly leaked it into China to crash the Chinese economy?-Ed)...orrr ok, where did you read that?...(oh I didn't read it, I just thunk it for ma'self-Ed)...you 'thunk it for ya'self'?...(oh yeah, then I made-up a website called My Left Testicle Is A Better Patriot Than You-Ed)...oh, super...(yeah yeah, and started a Twitter page as 'LeftBallPatriot'-Ed)...well naturally...(with an Aussie flag between each letter-Ed)...wow, that's a lotta' flags...(16 I reckons-Ed)...16? it's like a slow day at a Scott 'Scummo' Morrison press conference...(and opened my feed with a text about how Steve Bannon is the next manifestation of the Christ child-Ed)...riiight, and how's that goin' for ya'?...(well Andrew Bolt, Rowan Dean, George Christensen, Craig Kelly, Pete Evans, and Alex Antic haven't called me a 'woke leftie snowflake' yet, so I must be doin' somethin' right-Ed)...well, terrific, more power to ya' mate...(oh I don't need power sir-Ed)...no sir?...(no sir, ever since I had my second Pfizer vaccination I just pop on my $37,000 Pete Evans 5G Sonic Colander and I get Twitter streaming live behind my eyeballs, 24/7, for free, no Interweb connection or power needed-Ed)...beam me up matey...(in fact, I'm just getting an incoming transmission now, ummm, WomWomWomWomWomWomWomWom-Ed)...what does it say?...(they want two no.17's, one without chilli, and a large fried rice-Ed)...fascinating, and how do they pay for that then ?...(well they just gotta' run their PE5GSC compatible price gun across their forehead, it beams to me, and I discretely excrete Bitcoin-Ed)...fabulous stuff...

The Long And Short Of It:...I directly know 3 people who have had COVID19 (all in 2020) and they were all ill for months, have all only partially recovered, suffering side-effects like short breath, chronic fatigue, associated depressive episodes, etc...and that's all before vaccines were available...plus I've heard second-hand accounts of several others...

I know several nurses, ambos and other medical staff who have all described the realities of bad COVID19 infections, eg, people on oxygen in ICU, usually face-down struggling to breathe, etc, and then the long-term complications, etc, and all the strain this places on our already struggling Health Services, eg, there's already a critical ton a' ambulance ramping at Adelaide's hospitals before COVID19...

Recently had a random conversation with an East Coast ambo here on brief holiday for "re-charging the batteries" before returning to the 'front line'...logistically speaking, described how more than 50% of their workload is COVID19 patients, usually un-vaccinated, and the associated time and effort and uncomfortable imposition of full-body, full-face Personal Protection Equipment, and the time-consuming cleaning regime required after each patient, etc...then there's the illness itself and the suffering of patients, etc...

It's Just The Flu:...clearly it ain't...(but numerous people die of 'the flu' each year, far more than have from COVID19 don't cha' know-Ed)...and if we applied the same protocols and restrictions to yearly flu as we have to COVID19 there's be few if any fatalities from it...

I've been double vaccinated with Pfizer, and I did it not least of all 'cos I have elderly family, who themselves have had their Astra Zenica...and all this bleating about COVID19 Vaccine 'Passports', supposedly compromising our supposed 'Human Rights' and/or 'Freedoms', well 1) 'Passports' already exist, they're called passports, and 2) vaccines in general have saved literally millions of lives and near-eradicated several insidious illnesses like Polio...(and 3), there are multiple travel vaccine requirements that have existed for decades?-Ed)...exactly...and it was Scummo himself who several years ago demanded 'No Jab No Play' about kids not attending kindy, etc, without being vaccinated...

I can't possibly know exactly what, where and/or why, but rest assured, nor can any of these halfwits 'Marching For Freedom', freedoms that in many realities do not and have not ever existed, eg, we do not have legislated 'Free Speech' in Australia, it is a 'Political Convention', not a Law...and as for complaining about having to wear a mask for the 10 minutes you're in a supermarket, just get a grip...

Part of being a society is about making concessions to your gratuitous personal desires to do whatevs you want whenevs ya' feel like it...(and we all get those feelings from time to time-Ed)...to a certain extent, sure we do, some times, but the vast majority of 'Rules/Laws' are about making society logistically functional, eg, we obey traffic lights or get gridlocked mayhem and mass accidents...(and Workplace Safety Laws, and Food Safety Laws, and Medical Practitioner regulations, etc, etc, etc-Ed)...indeed, Rules and Regulations hopefully designed to improve everyone's quality of life...    

Far QAnon Bunnies:...I find it terrifyingly hilarious that all these supposed 'thinkers', like the QAnon circus, they get random info from even more random websites and/or other 'sources', and they somehow know that that's right but everything else is wrong...(that the Everything's A Tainted New World Order Conspiracy Theory that they believe in, is the One True Conspiracy Theory-Ed)...yep, well this one I can help ya' with...(fire away-Ed)...the cornerstone QAnon Conspiracy?...(errr, a Global Satanic Child-Eating Paedophile Cult rules the world?-Ed)...that's the one...(but they're not actually people, they're our Intergalactic Overlord Space Lizards, right?-Ed)...yeah hang on, back it up a second...albeit by accident, you've hit on the exact nature of the QAnon reality...(which is?-Ed)...that the world is effectively run by Paedophiles and/or their supporters, who do run the major religions, governments, media, etc, and they are doing everything to discredit/dismantle that reality...(err, I'm confused, I thought you said that QAnon subscribers were pig-ignorant, sludge-sucking imbeciles who'd struggle to get outta' their own way on a good day?-Ed)...well yes, I do say that, but I'm talking about the text-book gas-lighting reverse psychology strategy of the Paedophile Powerbase...(please explain-Ed)...well where's the best place to hide a grotesque truth about the Human Condition?...(ummm, I wanna' say errr, in plain sight?-Ed)...bingo, and how better to discredit/gaslight that reality?...(errr, dunno'-Ed)...simple, associate it with a whole raft of bizarre gibberish...

The QAnon Paedophile Conspiracy platform is a strategy to confront people with the reality that we all know but few will acknowledge; that we, humanity, we're run by Paedophiles...(yay-Ed)...and the best way to undermine, discredit and divert from that Truth is to irretrievably connect it to multiple bizarre 'Conspiracy Theories'...(and so we get 'Q'-Ed)..yep, 'Q' and QAnon...(and do ya' reckon that all these enlightened QAnon souls who rant-on about the evils of 'The Deep State', do they realise or even have a faint notion that they are likely the puppets of a 'Deep State' operation called 'QAnon'?-Ed)...I don't think that 'Irony' is big with these people...and I've lived 20 years of that Paedophile Powerbase manifest as the St Martins Lutheran School Child Abuse Cover-up...

The Lutherans; the South Australian Police, Courts and Parliament; virtually every politician I've ever met and/or dealt with, state and federal; Mt Gambier City Council; the SA Teachers Registration Board; the SA Crown Solicitor; lawyers like Piper Alderman and Bill Degaris; media like The Border Watch, the ABC, The Advertiser; multiple government depts and workers, etc, etc, ad infinitum...all Pro-Paedophile Corrupt, all Pro-Paedophile complicit, from the very off, through 20 years of the St Martins Cover-up, and still going strong...all I've encountered is a relentless tsunami of Paedophiles, wantonly Corrupt Pro-Paedophiles, willingly complicit enablers, and a vast army of spineless minions more concerned with their own careers and well-being, not least of all because of the stifling Pro-Paedophile Corruption that runs everything 'above' them in the sickly corrupt Patriarchy that is Australia...   

Language Warning:...and what support have we parents had in this community?...Sweet Fuck All, not one fucking instance, nothing but abuse, denigration and rejection...(and then you were persecuted by that rancidly Pro-Paedophile Corrupt 'System' with your "bizarre trial" under SA's ICAC Act 2012-Ed)...yep, as I proved in Court, an "Abuse of Process" Pro-Paedophile Political Persecution, and I still get a 'Criminal Conviction' for telling absolute truths...and maybe 2 people tried to defend/support me...my life is in many ways a text-book study of the Pro-Paedophile Corruption Model, particularly the 'chapter' that runs South Australia...and where's the fuckin' protests in the street about this egregious Pro-Paedophile bastardisation of 'Justice'? where's the phalanxes of fuckers braying about their fucking 'Freedoms'?...(ummm, nowhere?-Ed)...nowhere to be seen...but ask the same glassy-eyed dullards to wear a fucking mask for 5 fucking minutes so they don't fucking pox-up everyone around them, and, urghurghurgh, they're out in the fucking streets ranting about shit they they really don't understand, "urghurghurgh, my Human Rights as a Sovereign Citizen under the 333rd fucking Amendment"...AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...

So y'all 'll excuse me if when next I see these drooling fucking mouth-breathers staggering up Commercial St braying about whatevs absolute fucking bollocks they think they know, that I might pause to somewhat less-than-politely tune them in to exactly what fuckin' easily manipulated and selfish morons they are...fuck me...(got that outta' ya' system? feelin' better?-Ed)...ah yeah, a bit, I just find it extraordinarily galling that on one hand we have the horrific reality of the St Martins Cover-up and SFA happens...(and your "bizarre trial", yeah, I get that, we all do-Ed)...and then there's this COVID19 stuff and people are marching down the street protesting just about anything and/or everything...hey, I'm all for the rights/power of public protest, but fuck me, there's a time and a place and a motivation worth pursuing...(and COVID19 5G Micro-Robot conspiracies just ain't it?-Ed)...absolutely, attack the realities of an increasingly Fascist Pro-Paedophile Political System, by all means, but just wear a fuckin' mask, it's not difficult...(you done yet?-Ed)...yeah yeah...(so I can do an End Language Warning now then?-Ed)...yep, go on...

Tomorrow: The Promised FARC Post - The $70m+ Debacle

I've tried to research this as thoroughly as is possible, given my limited understanding of official Local Government procedure, but I reckon the alarmingly high numbers speak volumes for themselves...

I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog...cheers and laters...